The Goode Brothers · 2023
The Anti-HeroSpice level, tropes & is it dark romance?
by Sara Cate
Spice 4/5 (Explicit) · Darkness 5/5 (No light) · 6 trigger warnings flagged
From Sara Cate, 2023: The Anti-Hero, book 1 of The Goode Brothers. Expect mafia and morally grey. We score it spice 4 (explicit) and darkness 5 (pitch black). The heaviest flags readers report are violence, religious trauma, cheating. Our scores lean on what readers report, not on a full reread, so treat them as a guide. This note is ours. It is not a publisher blurb.
First published: 2023. Book 1 of The Goode Brothers.
The Anti-Hero tropes
On this shelf, The Anti-Hero is filed under Mafia dark romance and Morally grey heroes. Each tag opens more books with that trope.
The Anti-Hero spice level
Is The Anti-Hero dark romance?
Yes, at the very dark end. The Anti-Hero scores 5 of 5 on our darkness scale (No light).
Spice and darkness are separate scores. More no light books. How we rate.
The Anti-Hero trigger warnings
Book-specific flags taken from reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 41 readers), grouped by us. Also on that list: sexual content, homophobia, injury/injury detail, toxic relationship, cursing, misogyny, alcohol. See the reader-submitted list.
Graphic (6) — open before you read
Open this before you read. These are the flags most likely to be a hard stop.
Moderate (0)
Harm, control, or obsession that is common in this lane.
None flagged in this band.
Minor (0)
Present, and usually not the reason someone puts the book down.
None flagged in this band.
Full The Anti-Hero trigger warnings
The Goode Brothers reading order
The Anti-Hero is book 1 of 1 in Sara Cate's The Goode Brothers series. Start here.
- Book 1 The Anti-Hero (this book) · 2023
Order checked against the StoryGraph The Goode Brothers series page on 13 October 2026.
Who it's for
Shelf note written for this site. We do not copy reviews or publisher blurbs. Outbound links are search pages, not quoted ratings. Kindle Unlimited and endings are only flagged when we were willing to mark them. How we rate.
Missing a book? Suggest it.
Books like The Anti-Hero
Matched on shared tropes, then the closest spice and darkness scores. Other books in the same series are listed above, not here.
- Pennies
Pennies
Pepper Winters
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Moments of Malevolence
Moments of Malevolence
T.L. Smith
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Little Dove
Little Dove
Layla Frost
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Morally grey heroes, Mafia dark romance
- North of the Stars
North of the Stars
Monica James
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Riot Rules
Riot Rules
Callie Hart
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Binding Rose
Binding Rose
Ivy Fox
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Control Me
Control Me
Michelle Heard
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Dante
Dante
Sadie Kincaid
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
Books like The Anti-Hero, with a reason for each
Questions readers actually ask
What is the spice level of The Anti-Hero?
The Anti-Hero spice level is 4 of 5 (Explicit). On-page sex, clearly written. Darkness is a separate score: 5 of 5 (No light).
What are the The Anti-Hero trigger warnings?
Graphic: Violence, Religious trauma, Cheating, Abuse, Psychological abuse, Sexual assault. Moderate: none flagged. Minor: none flagged. These are book-specific flags reported by readers on reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 41 readers), grouped by us. The author's own note may list more. Read it before you start.
Is The Anti-Hero dark romance?
Yes, at the very dark end. The Anti-Hero scores 5 of 5 on our darkness scale (No light). The book is not interested in pulling the punch.
What tropes are in The Anti-Hero?
On this shelf The Anti-Hero is filed under Mafia dark romance and Morally grey heroes.
Who is The Anti-Hero for?
For readers hunting mafia and morally grey with explicit spice. Check the trigger warnings before you start.
What are some books like The Anti-Hero?
Matched on shared tropes and similar spice and darkness: Pennies by Pepper Winters; Moments of Malevolence by T.L. Smith; Little Dove by Layla Frost; North of the Stars by Monica James; Riot Rules by Callie Hart; Binding Rose by Ivy Fox. More read-alikes, each with a reason, are on zademasked.com/like/the-anti-hero.
Is The Anti-Hero a standalone?
No. The Anti-Hero is book 1 of 1 in the The Goode Brothers series by Sara Cate.
What order should I read the The Goode Brothers series in?
1. The Anti-Hero.
How many books are in the The Goode Brothers series?
The The Goode Brothers series by Sara Cate has 1 main book.
What is the The Anti-Hero age rating?
We'd say 18+. Spice sits at 4/5 (explicit) and darkness at 5/5 (no light). That's our recommendation, not an official rating, so read the trigger warnings as well.
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