34 Books like Les liaisons dangereuses

The 120 Days of Sodom

by Marquis de Sade

Four libertines lock a château, fill it with kidnapped children, and appetite becomes the only rule.

3.05

15k+

💀 Transgressive Fiction 🏰 18th Century France 📖 Story Within Stories 🩺 Clinical Horror 🎭 Libertine Philosophy

The 120 Days of Sodom 93%

Four libertines lock a château, fill it with kidnapped children, and appetite becomes the only rule.

by Marquis de Sade 2009

3.05

15k+ ratings

💀 Transgressive Fiction 🏰 18th Century France 📖 Story Within Stories 🩺 Clinical Horror 🎭 Libertine Philosophy

L'Orpheline du temple

by Victoria Mas • 2025

A revolutionary guard falls in love with the Bourbon princess he keeps prisoner.

3.49

233

🇫🇷 French Revolution 📜 Epistolary Novel 💔 Forbidden Love 🤫 Family Secrets 🔗 Captivity

L'Orpheline du temple 92%

A revolutionary guard falls in love with the Bourbon princess he keeps prisoner.

by Victoria Mas 2025

3.49

233 ratings

🇫🇷 French Revolution 📜 Epistolary Novel 💔 Forbidden Love 🤫 Family Secrets 🔗 Captivity

Bel-Ami

by Guy de Maupassant • 1885

Georges Duroy has no money and no morals, just the most useful face in Paris.

3.86

50k+

🖋️ French Realism 🪜 Social Climbing 😈 Amoral Protagonist 🎭 Cynical Satire 🕰️ Belle éPoque

Bel-Ami 91%

Georges Duroy has no money and no morals, just the most useful face in Paris.

by Guy de Maupassant 1885

3.86

50k+ ratings

🖋️ French Realism 🪜 Social Climbing 😈 Amoral Protagonist 🎭 Cynical Satire 🕰️ Belle éPoque

Sentimental Education

by Gustave Flaubert • 1869

Paris, the 1840s. A young dreamer falls for a married woman and never quite recovers.

3.81

25k+

😔 Novel Of Disillusionment 🇫🇷 French Realism 💔 Unattainable Love 😶 Passive Protagonist 🏛️ Bourgeois Society

Sentimental Education 90%

Paris, the 1840s. A young dreamer falls for a married woman and never quite recovers.

by Gustave Flaubert 1869

3.81

25k+ ratings

😔 Novel Of Disillusionment 🇫🇷 French Realism 💔 Unattainable Love 😶 Passive Protagonist 🏛️ Bourgeois Society

The Three Musketeers

by Alexandre Dumas • 1844

A young Gascon's sword earns him three friends, a queen's secret, and a cardinal's undying hatred.

4.10

349k+

🗡️ Swashbuckling 🖤 Found Family 👑 Royal Court Intrigue 💋 Femme Fatale 🎭 Cloak And Dagger

The Three Musketeers 90%

A young Gascon's sword earns him three friends, a queen's secret, and a cardinal's undying hatred.

by Alexandre Dumas 1844

4.10

349k+ ratings

🗡️ Swashbuckling 🖤 Found Family 👑 Royal Court Intrigue 💋 Femme Fatale 🎭 Cloak And Dagger

The Piano Teacher

by Elfriede Jelinek • 1983

Trapped by her mother, a Vienna piano teacher hands her student a script for her degradation.

3.62

17k+

🚫 Transgressive Fiction 📚 Austrian Literature 💔 Toxic Mother Daughter ⛓️ Masochism And Submission 🎹 Teacher Student Affair

The Piano Teacher 89%

Trapped by her mother, a Vienna piano teacher hands her student a script for her degradation.

by Elfriede Jelinek 1983

3.62

17k+ ratings

🚫 Transgressive Fiction 📚 Austrian Literature 💔 Toxic Mother Daughter ⛓️ Masochism And Submission 🎹 Teacher Student Affair

Suite Française

by Irène Némirovsky • 2004

A French wife and the German officer billeted in her home share a forbidden intimacy.

3.86

79k+

🇫🇷 Occupied France 💘 Enemies To Lovers ⚖️ Moral Ambiguity 👩 Women In War 🎩 Class And Status

Suite Française 89%

A French wife and the German officer billeted in her home share a forbidden intimacy.

by Irène Némirovsky 2004

3.86

79k+ ratings

🇫🇷 Occupied France 💘 Enemies To Lovers ⚖️ Moral Ambiguity 👩 Women In War 🎩 Class And Status

El ancho mundo

by Pierre Lemaitre • 2022

Four siblings, two continents, one deadly secret: a family saga of love, crime, and corruption.

4.08

6k+

🏠 Family Saga 🌴 Colonial Indochina 💔 Forbidden Love 🏛️ Corrupt Institutions 🔥 Dysfunctional Family

El ancho mundo 89%

Four siblings, two continents, one deadly secret: a family saga of love, crime, and corruption.

by Pierre Lemaitre 2022

4.08

6k+ ratings

🏠 Family Saga 🌴 Colonial Indochina 💔 Forbidden Love 🏛️ Corrupt Institutions 🔥 Dysfunctional Family

The Custom of the Country

by Edith Wharton • 1913

A small-town beauty carries herself into old New York, where acceptance only sharpens her appetite.

4.07

16k+

🎭 Novel Of Manners 🥂 Gilded Age New York 🏙️ Social Climber 💔 Doomed Marriage 🗼 Belle ÉPoque Paris

The Custom of the Country 89%

A small-town beauty carries herself into old New York, where acceptance only sharpens her appetite.

by Edith Wharton 1913

4.07

16k+ ratings

🎭 Novel Of Manners 🥂 Gilded Age New York 🏙️ Social Climber 💔 Doomed Marriage 🗼 Belle ÉPoque Paris

Père Goriot

by Honoré de Balzac • 1997

In a Paris boarding house, a student learns ambition's cost from a ruined father and criminal.

3.85

69k+

🎭 Realist Novel 🇫🇷 19th Century Paris 😈 Corrupt Mentor 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Ungrateful Children

Père Goriot 89%

In a Paris boarding house, a student learns ambition's cost from a ruined father and criminal.

by Honoré de Balzac 1997

3.85

69k+ ratings

🎭 Realist Novel 🇫🇷 19th Century Paris 😈 Corrupt Mentor 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Ungrateful Children

The Man in the Iron Mask

by Alexandre Dumas • 1847

A bishop swaps the king for his hidden twin. The aging musketeers scent a conspiracy.

4.00

66k+

🗡️ Swashbuckling 🏰 Court Intrigue 👥 Twin Swap 👑 Hidden Royalty ⚔️ Doomed Brotherhood

The Man in the Iron Mask 89%

A bishop swaps the king for his hidden twin. The aging musketeers scent a conspiracy.

by Alexandre Dumas 1847

4.00

66k+ ratings

🗡️ Swashbuckling 🏰 Court Intrigue 👥 Twin Swap 👑 Hidden Royalty ⚔️ Doomed Brotherhood

The Red and the Black

by Stendhal • 2002

In Restoration France, a carpenter's son uses seduction to climb a ladder built to break him.

3.86

86k+

🧠 Psychological Realism 📜 Restoration France 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Forbidden Love ⚔️ Thwarted Ambition

The Red and the Black 89%

In Restoration France, a carpenter's son uses seduction to climb a ladder built to break him.

by Stendhal 2002

3.86

86k+ ratings

🧠 Psychological Realism 📜 Restoration France 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Forbidden Love ⚔️ Thwarted Ambition

That Mad Ache

by Françoise Sagan • 1965

A kept woman in Paris trades comfort for passion and discovers the price of wanting more.

3.99

2k+

🧠 Psychological Novel 💔 Love Triangle 💎 Kept Woman 🔥 Illicit Affair ⚖️ Passion Vs Security

That Mad Ache 89%

A kept woman in Paris trades comfort for passion and discovers the price of wanting more.

by Françoise Sagan 1965

3.99

2k+ ratings

🧠 Psychological Novel 💔 Love Triangle 💎 Kept Woman 🔥 Illicit Affair ⚖️ Passion Vs Security

The French Lieutenant’s Woman

by John Fowles • 1969

An engaged gentleman meets a fallen woman on the sea wall, and his Victorian world tilts.

3.88

56k+

🕰️ Neo Victorian 📖 Metafiction 💔 Fallen Woman 🎭 Class Transgression 🌊 Seaside Gothic

The French Lieutenant’s Woman 89%

An engaged gentleman meets a fallen woman on the sea wall, and his Victorian world tilts.

by John Fowles 1969

3.88

56k+ ratings

🕰️ Neo Victorian 📖 Metafiction 💔 Fallen Woman 🎭 Class Transgression 🌊 Seaside Gothic

The Kindly Ones

by Jonathan Littell • 2009

An intellectual SS officer recounts his role in the Holocaust, insisting it was just a job.

4.03

15k+

🕯️ Holocaust 🗣️ Perpetrator Narrator 🤥 Unreliable Narrator 💔 Incestuous Obsession ✒️ Confessional Fiction

The Kindly Ones 89%

An intellectual SS officer recounts his role in the Holocaust, insisting it was just a job.

by Jonathan Littell 2009

4.03

15k+ ratings

🕯️ Holocaust 🗣️ Perpetrator Narrator 🤥 Unreliable Narrator 💔 Incestuous Obsession ✒️ Confessional Fiction

The Scarlet Pimpernel

by Emmuska Orczy • 1905

To save her brother, Marguerite must betray the Pimpernel, unaware the hero is her foppish husband.

4.07

142k+

⚔️ Swashbuckling Adventure 🇫🇷 French Revolution 🎭 Secret Identity 👑 Dandy Hero 💔 Blackmail And Betrayal

The Scarlet Pimpernel 89%

To save her brother, Marguerite must betray the Pimpernel, unaware the hero is her foppish husband.

by Emmuska Orczy 1905

4.07

142k+ ratings

⚔️ Swashbuckling Adventure 🇫🇷 French Revolution 🎭 Secret Identity 👑 Dandy Hero 💔 Blackmail And Betrayal

Traveler of the Century

by Andrés Neuman • 2009

A translator falls for an engaged salon hostess in a city that rearranges itself by night.

3.83

2k+

📖 Philosophical Fiction 💔 Forbidden Love Affair ✉️ Epistolary Romance 🫖 Salon Culture 🍂 Melancholy Mood

Traveler of the Century 89%

A translator falls for an engaged salon hostess in a city that rearranges itself by night.

by Andrés Neuman 2009

3.83

2k+ ratings

📖 Philosophical Fiction 💔 Forbidden Love Affair ✉️ Epistolary Romance 🫖 Salon Culture 🍂 Melancholy Mood

A Sport and a Pastime

by James Salter • 1967

An American in rural France reconstructs a passionate love affair from fragments, envy, and desire.

3.64

12k+

👁️ Unreliable Narrator 👀 Voyeuristic Narrator 💔 Melancholy Romance ✍️ Sensual Prose 🏘️ Provincial France

A Sport and a Pastime 90%

An American in rural France reconstructs a passionate love affair from fragments, envy, and desire.

by James Salter 1967

3.64

12k+ ratings

👁️ Unreliable Narrator 👀 Voyeuristic Narrator 💔 Melancholy Romance ✍️ Sensual Prose 🏘️ Provincial France

Ifigenia

by Teresa de la Parra • 1924

Europe freed her. Caracas demands a proper husband and the quiet burial of her desires.

4.06

573

✉️ Epistolary Novel 🌎 Latin American Classic ⚖️ Duty Over Desire 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Trapped By Society

Ifigenia 90%

Europe freed her. Caracas demands a proper husband and the quiet burial of her desires.

by Teresa de la Parra 1924

4.06

573 ratings

✉️ Epistolary Novel 🌎 Latin American Classic ⚖️ Duty Over Desire 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Trapped By Society

The Red Winter

by Cameron Sullivan

An immortal magician hunts the Beast that stole his lover and now curses their son.

3.95

9k+

🖤 Doomed Queer Love 🔥 Inner Demon 🐺 Monstrous Transformation 🌊 Fey Bargains ⛪ Religious Corruption

The Red Winter 88%

An immortal magician hunts the Beast that stole his lover and now curses their son.

by Cameron Sullivan 2026

3.95

9k+ ratings

🖤 Doomed Queer Love 🔥 Inner Demon 🐺 Monstrous Transformation 🌊 Fey Bargains ⛪ Religious Corruption

Madame Bovary

by Gustave Flaubert • 2004

To escape provincial boredom, a doctor's wife pursues lovers and luxury until the debts close in.

3.71

384k+

🖋️ Literary Realism 🏘️ Provincial Discontent 💔 Romantic Disillusion 💍 Marital Infidelity 🎩 Bourgeois Satire

Madame Bovary 89%

To escape provincial boredom, a doctor's wife pursues lovers and luxury until the debts close in.

by Gustave Flaubert 2004

3.71

384k+ ratings

🖋️ Literary Realism 🏘️ Provincial Discontent 💔 Romantic Disillusion 💍 Marital Infidelity 🎩 Bourgeois Satire

Bleak House

by Charles Dickens • 1853

A lawsuit devours fortunes for generations as an orphaned girl uncovers the secret of her birth.

4.02

115k+

🏛️ Legal Satire 🔍 Secret Parentage 🗣️ Dual Narration 💼 Doomed Inheritance 🥀 Fallen Woman

Bleak House 89%

A lawsuit devours fortunes for generations as an orphaned girl uncovers the secret of her birth.

by Charles Dickens 1853

4.02

115k+ ratings

🏛️ Legal Satire 🔍 Secret Parentage 🗣️ Dual Narration 💼 Doomed Inheritance 🥀 Fallen Woman

Abundance

by Sena Jeter Naslund • 2006

At fourteen she enters Versailles craving love from a nation that will one day guillotine her.

3.75

11k+

🇫🇷 Revolutionary France 👑 Tragic Queen 🎭 Court Intrigue ✊ Feminist Retelling 🖋️ Fictionalized Biography

Abundance 89%

At fourteen she enters Versailles craving love from a nation that will one day guillotine her.

by Sena Jeter Naslund 2006

3.75

11k+ ratings

🇫🇷 Revolutionary France 👑 Tragic Queen 🎭 Court Intrigue ✊ Feminist Retelling 🖋️ Fictionalized Biography

Identity

by Milan Kundera • 1997

A woman who believes men no longer see her receives anonymous letters insisting she is beautiful.

3.69

34k+

🥐 French Existentialism 💌 Secret Admirer 💔 Deceptive Partner 🕰️ Aging And Desire 🌫️ Melancholy Atmosphere

Identity 88%

A woman who believes men no longer see her receives anonymous letters insisting she is beautiful.

by Milan Kundera 1997

3.69

34k+ ratings

🥐 French Existentialism 💌 Secret Admirer 💔 Deceptive Partner 🕰️ Aging And Desire 🌫️ Melancholy Atmosphere

Marshlands

by André Gide • 1895

To write about a man at peace with stagnation, a writer must confront his own paralysis.

3.58

1k+

📖 Novel Within A Novel 🤔 Philosophical Fiction ✒️ Writer Protagonist 🥀 Ennui 🗼 Belle Epoque Paris

Marshlands 88%

To write about a man at peace with stagnation, a writer must confront his own paralysis.

by André Gide 1895

3.58

1k+ ratings

📖 Novel Within A Novel 🤔 Philosophical Fiction ✒️ Writer Protagonist 🥀 Ennui 🗼 Belle Epoque Paris

Powers of Darkness

by Valdimar Ásmundsson • 1901

A Transylvanian castle imprisons a solicitor as its blood-drinking master schemes to rule the world.

3.63

2k+

🦇 Vampire Conspiracy 🖤 Erotic Horror 💋 Femme Fatale Vampire 🕯️ Ritual Horror 📜 Epistolary Horror

Powers of Darkness 88%

A Transylvanian castle imprisons a solicitor as its blood-drinking master schemes to rule the world.

by Valdimar Ásmundsson 1901

3.63

2k+ ratings

🦇 Vampire Conspiracy 🖤 Erotic Horror 💋 Femme Fatale Vampire 🕯️ Ritual Horror 📜 Epistolary Horror

Mercure

by Amélie Nothomb • 1998

On a mirrorless island, a nurse questions why her patient has never seen her own face.

3.70

8k+

🖤 Gothic Suspense 🔍 Gaslighting Control 🔒 Psychological Captivity 🏝️ Isolated Island 😰 Claustrophobic

Mercure 88%

On a mirrorless island, a nurse questions why her patient has never seen her own face.

by Amélie Nothomb 1998

3.70

8k+ ratings

🖤 Gothic Suspense 🔍 Gaslighting Control 🔒 Psychological Captivity 🏝️ Isolated Island 😰 Claustrophobic

The Monk

by Matthew Gregory Lewis • 1796

A monk revered as a saint falls into lust, murder, and a bargain with the Devil.

3.86

35k+

🖤 Gothic Horror ✝️ Religious Horror 😈 Demonic Pact ⛪ Corrupt Clergy 📉 Fall From Grace

The Monk 88%

A monk revered as a saint falls into lust, murder, and a bargain with the Devil.

by Matthew Gregory Lewis 1796

3.86

35k+ ratings

🖤 Gothic Horror ✝️ Religious Horror 😈 Demonic Pact ⛪ Corrupt Clergy 📉 Fall From Grace

The Paris Express

by Emma Donoghue • 2025

An anarchist boards the 1895 Paris Express with a bomb, a grudge, and a faltering will.

3.27

14k+

🏴 Anarchist Fiction 📖 Literary Suspense 🧩 Interwoven Lives 🕰️ Fin De SièCle ⚖️ Act Of Conscience

The Paris Express 88%

An anarchist boards the 1895 Paris Express with a bomb, a grudge, and a faltering will.

by Emma Donoghue 2025

3.27

14k+ ratings

🏴 Anarchist Fiction 📖 Literary Suspense 🧩 Interwoven Lives 🕰️ Fin De SièCle ⚖️ Act Of Conscience

The Wolf and the Watchman

by Niklas Natt och Dag • 2017

A one-armed watchman and a dying lawyer pursue the fiend who dismembered a young man.

3.88

23k+

🌑 Nordic Noir 🕵️ Odd Couple Detectives 🏚️ Gothic Atmosphere 🩸 Body Horror ⚖️ Corrupt Institutions

The Wolf and the Watchman 88%

A one-armed watchman and a dying lawyer pursue the fiend who dismembered a young man.

by Niklas Natt och Dag 2017

3.88

23k+ ratings

🌑 Nordic Noir 🕵️ Odd Couple Detectives 🏚️ Gothic Atmosphere 🩸 Body Horror ⚖️ Corrupt Institutions

Tess of the D’Urbervilles

by Thomas Hardy • 1891

A peasant sent to claim kin meets a charming heir. His crime will become her ruin.

3.84

305k+

🥀 Pastoral Tragedy 👩‍🦰 Fallen Woman Narrative 🔺 Tragic Love Triangle ⚖️ Victorian Morality 🌾 Bleak Pastoral

Tess of the D’Urbervilles 88%

A peasant sent to claim kin meets a charming heir. His crime will become her ruin.

by Thomas Hardy 1891

3.84

305k+ ratings

🥀 Pastoral Tragedy 👩‍🦰 Fallen Woman Narrative 🔺 Tragic Love Triangle ⚖️ Victorian Morality 🌾 Bleak Pastoral

Far From the Madding Crowd

by Thomas Hardy • 1874

An heiress running her own farm sends a careless valentine and ignites a deadly obsession.

3.97

168k+

🌾 Pastoral Fiction 💪 Independent Heroine 🖤 Unrequited Obsession 🎭 Charming Scoundrel 🔥 Slow Burn Romance

Far From the Madding Crowd 88%

An heiress running her own farm sends a careless valentine and ignites a deadly obsession.

by Thomas Hardy 1874

3.97

168k+ ratings

🌾 Pastoral Fiction 💪 Independent Heroine 🖤 Unrequited Obsession 🎭 Charming Scoundrel 🔥 Slow Burn Romance

The Queen of the Night

by Alexander Chee • 2016

A Paris opera star's hidden past is made into a libretto. The source was someone she trusted.

3.43

12k+

🏛️ 19th Century Paris 🎭 Opera World 👑 Courtesan Protagonist 🤫 Secret Past 💰 Rags To Riches

The Queen of the Night 88%

A Paris opera star's hidden past is made into a libretto. The source was someone she trusted.

by Alexander Chee 2016

3.43

12k+ ratings

🏛️ 19th Century Paris 🎭 Opera World 👑 Courtesan Protagonist 🤫 Secret Past 💰 Rags To Riches

Les Misérables

by Victor Hugo • 1987

An escaped convict builds a virtuous life while a relentless inspector hunts him down.

4.21

856k+

🏛️ Historical Epic 📖 Social Novel 🕊️ Redemption Arc 🔗 Ex-Convict Protagonist 🏴 Revolutionary Paris

Les Misérables 88%

An escaped convict builds a virtuous life while a relentless inspector hunts him down.

by Victor Hugo 1987

4.21

856k+ ratings

🏛️ Historical Epic 📖 Social Novel 🕊️ Redemption Arc 🔗 Ex-Convict Protagonist 🏴 Revolutionary Paris

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