Authors Like Cheyenne McCray (14 Book Recommendations)

Cheyenne McCray is a romance novelist who sets her love interests in a world of suspense and thrilling stories.

Recently Cheyenne has created a new pen name, Deb Ries, where her stories focus on cozy mysteries rather than lusty thrillers.

Authors Like Cheyenne McCray (14 Book Recommendations)

But most readers know McCray for her romantic novels, so we will focus on these genres to find similar authors for you to dive into.

McCray grew up on a ranch in southeastern Arizona which is why some of her stories take place in the American West. However many of McCray’s ideas take place in a world dissimilar to our own.

In the Night Tracker series, and the Dark Sorcery series McCary explores demons and magic, as a metaphor for protecting yourself against evil and desire.

Of course, for these urban fantasy stories to feel real, they are set in areas we should know well. However, the twist of fantasy allows us to see magic in the mundane.

If you love Cheyenne McCray, then you should consider reading Ilona Andrews, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Cynthia Eden, and Ann Aguirre.

All four of these authors continue the urban fantasy genre that you expect in Cheyenne McCray, but they also dabble in romance, paranormal activity, and magic.

Books By Cheyenne McCray

The Forbidden (Dark Sorcery Book 1)

The series Dark Sorcery starts with the first book Forbidden Magic. With a name like that, you wouldn’t expect the novel to start in San Francisco, and yet this urban fantasy mirrors the world we live in today, but with a twist.

There are witches and Fae in this world, and Silver has started to practice gray magic.

This story embraces the contrast of light and dark as the main character Silver falls for the man who attacks her coven. Sensual chemistry and moral choices are the two themes within this series.

Demons Not Included (A Night Tracker Novel)

The Night Tracker series flips this concept on its head, as the main character Nyx is meant to be the only demon in town.

When innocent people start getting murdered on her turf, Nyx decides that she needs to take down whoever is prowling through her streets.

The story Demons Not Included continues the imagery of good versus evil, but instead makes the good guys toe the line of what “good” really means.

Branded For You (Riding Tall Book 1)

Going down a completely different path is the series Riding Tall. The first book in this series is Branded For You, which takes place in the American West.

This series doesn’t hold a supernatural or fantastical storyline, but it does continue the idea of morally gray characters.

In this story, Megan is at risk of losing her family’s restaurant and the handsome Ryan McBride might be behind all of her troubles.

No matter which genre you go down, McCray’s stories are filled with lusty romance, mysterious plots, and a battle of moral judgment.

Knowing this, we have found authors that balance these concepts too.

Authors Like Cheyenne McCray

Ilona Andrews

Kate Daniels

Ilona Andrews is actually the pen name for a writing duo. The husband and wife’s real names are Ilona and Gordon, and they have co-authored two series. Both are urban fantasies while The Edge is also a romance.

The Kate Daniels series, which starts with Magic Bites, does contain romance but the story leans more toward the urban fantasy and vampire genre.

In this world, either magic is in power or technology is. When magic has its turn, no technology works as it should, while when technology takes the lead, magic becomes unpredictable.

When Kate’s guardian is murdered, she is led on a quest for justice between two magical factions.

On the Edge (A Novel of the Edge Book 1)

If you want your next author to have a stronger romantic storyline, then you may prefer On The Edge, as part of The Edge series.

The urban fantasy of this story exists between two worlds, The Broken (where magic is a fairy tale and people shop at Wal-Mart) and The Weird (where magic is real and changelings can frame you).

Edgers, such as Rose, can move between the two worlds. Bloodhunter Declan wants to claim Rose’s power for himself when danger starts to flood into The Broken.

Declan has to put aside his greed as he works with Rose to protect the Edge.

Because the Ilona Andrews storylines are written by two people the world-building becomes more realistic as each aspect of the creation is looked at from multiple points of view.

This makes Ilona Andrews a perfect follow-on author if you want more romance, world-building, and magic-to-reality crossovers.

Pros

  • Long Series
  • Mixture Of Science Fiction And Fantasy
  • Fantastic Writing

Cons

  • Aggressive Main Characters
  • Relies On Sarcasm For Humor
  • Plots Aren’t Original

Themes: Romance, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Urban, Paranormal

Vicki Lewis Thompson

Werewolf in Manhattan (Wild About You Book 1)

If the reason you love Cheyenne McCray is her ability to make realistic love interests and add paranormal creatures into the real world, then you will love Vicki Lewis Thompson.

In her series Wild About You, the first story called A Werewolf In Manhattan follows a writer who creates stories around these fictional beasts but doesn’t believe that they’re real.

At least, that was true until real-life werewolves start appearing in New York, sniffing out Emma in the search for her informant.

This story follows an omegaverse structure but without the intense darkness or horror. Instead, the stories are sensual, romantic, and fantastical in the real landscape of Manhattan.

Nerd in Shining Armor (The Nerd Series Book 1)

If you like the idea of a subdued omegaverse story, then you may also enjoy the Nerds series which starts with Nerd in Shining Armor.

Genevieve is stuck on a remote desert island after a non-alpha nerd saves her by using computer programming to safely crash a sabotaged plane.

Gen realizes she can bring the passion out of a nerd in a comedic and saucy survival story.

Although the Nerd series doesn’t contain any supernatural elements, the idea of bringing someone to their potential by igniting their arousal adds a lighter aspect to the omegaverse structure.

Pros

  • Lighthearted
  • Fun Comedy
  • Great Chemistry Building

Cons

  • Cringe In Places
  • Often Relies On Southern Stereotypes
  • Plots Are Predictable

Themes: Contemporary, Comedy, Adventure, Romance

Cynthia Eden

Bound By Blood (Bound - Vampire & Werewolf Romance Book 1)

Cynthia Eden enjoys the concepts of good versus evil just like Cheyenne does.

Her stories often contain a fantastical element around love between a human and a paranormal creature or two paranormal creatures that aren’t meant to mix.

The Bound series is a great example of this. It starts with Bound by Blood in a fantastical world where werewolves and vampires are blood enemies.

However, when a new enemy emerges into the immortal war, the weres and vamps need to make a truce.

The vampire princess and werewolf alpha agree to become mates and seal a blood bond. But making a deal to avoid the devil doesn’t go to plan.

Mine To Take (Mine- Romantic Suspense Book 1)

However, if you prefer more suspense in your romantic thriller, look at the Mine series (If you liked this, check out Books Like Digital Velocity).

Starting with Mine To Take, this story follows Skye and her unbreakable feeling that someone is stalking her.

Falling into the arms of an ex-lover, Skye asks for Trace’s help. Trace takes this job too far in his desire to keep Skye for himself, escalating the situation to dangerous levels.

There isn’t a fantastic element of the Mine series which may put some McCray fans off, however, the romantic thriller storyline is gripping from start to finish.

Pros

  • Intense Drama
  • Good Pacing
  • Intense Chemistry

Cons

  • Short Novels
  • Predictable
  • Little Character Development

Themes: Contemporary, Suspense, Erotica, Romance

Ann Aguirre

Witch Please: A Charming Small-Town Paranormal Romantic Comedy (Fix-It Witches Book 1)

Heading back into the fantastical space, Ann Aguirre writes about war zones, zombies, and witches as she jumps from urban fantastical scenes to post-apocalyptic futures.

Each of them has a romantic aspect, but none are quite as spicy as Cheyenne McCray. If you prefer your romance novels to leave you breathless, you may consider Ann too tame.

However, if romance is the sugar on top of a good story, Ann could be perfect for you.

In the urban fantasy series Fix-It Wiches, starting with Witch Please, we see a story that mixes the comedy and realism of Gilmore Girls with an arcana touch like Practical Magic.

In the story, the owner of the tech repair shop Fix-It Witches is actually run by witches, but she falls in love with a “mundane” who has been cursed to live alone forever.

Her family won’t allow them to be together and the world is battling them too.

Grimspace (Sirantha Jax series Book 1)

If you prefer your stories to be a little more gritty and passionate, then you may prefer the Sirantha Jax series, which starts with Grimspace.

In this futuristic world, magic doesn’t exist, but aliens do. Jax is stranded on a spaceship with no memory of a crash, her only hope is to join the rogue fighters who will help her for a price.

The story follows the dichotomy of good and evil, in an almost magical world.

Pros

  • Strong Storylines
  • Fast Pacing
  • Loveable Characters

Cons

  • Follows Dystopian Tropes
  • Clunky In Points
  • Lack Of Detailed Backgrounds

Themes: Young Adult, Dystopia, Romance, Supernatural, Contemporary

Final Thoughts

Cheyenne McCray writes lusty thrillers set in urban fantasy locations which leads to enticing stories that are just outside our world.

To read something similar, you should consider Ilona Andrews, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Cynthia Eden, and Ann Aguirre.

They all write romances. Some are more sensual than others and some are more fantastical than others, but depending on the reason behind your Cheyenne love, each of them could become your new favorite author.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Old Is Cheyenne McCray?

Cheyenne is 57 years old. She was born in 1965 and published her first book Wildfire in 2003, at the age of 38.

Anna Davis