Books like 'House Of Payne: Rude'

Readers who enjoyed House Of Payne: Rude by Stacy Gail also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

contemporary  military  from hate to love  m-f  cruel hero

  • Conquered by Riley Edwards

    Conquered by Riley Edwards

    Rated: 4.69 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    Dylan Welsh was the last man standing…until Sawyer Glasgow brought him to his knees. Dylan wasn’t ready for Sawyer. He wasn’t ready to confront the truth of his past. He wasn’t ready to admit he’s fallen in love with the sweet, sexy woman who captivated him from the moment he saw her. He’s especially not prepared to face the hurt he’s caused Sawyer. But to keep her, he must do all three...
  • Bane by Brenda Jackson

    Bane by Brenda Jackson

    Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    New York Times bestselling author Brenda Jackson's last Westmoreland bachelor is a navy SEAL on a mission to protect the woman who got away…  After five years, navy SEAL Brisbane Westmoreland is back home on his ranch and ready to reclaim the woman he left behind. But when he tracks her to Dallas, he's in for a shock...
  • Sponsored links
  • It'll Be An Adventure by Cherise Sinclair

    It'll Be An Adventure by Cherise Sinclair

    Rated: 4.51 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    From NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Cherise Sinclair comes an outstanding addition to the beloved Masters of the Shadowlands series. The secret of author Murphy’s success is hands-on research. Murphy loves writing popular Regency thrillers and jumping into new adventures under the guise of research. For one novel, she’d joined a K9 search-and-rescue group—and liked it so much she stayed...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  bdsm  alpha male
  • Rescuing Mary by Susan Stoker

    Rescuing Mary by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    Ford “Truck” Laughlin and Mary Weston have weathered their share of storms over the last couple years. Truck’s job, Mary’s health. His bossiness, her bitchiness. All while dancing around their intense attraction. Mary’s tried to push him away for his own good but Truck won’t let her give up…on herself or on them. Just when she decides they deserve a fair shot, disaster strikes...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary  caretaking
  • Billionaire Unreachable ~ Wyatt by J.S. Scott

    Billionaire Unreachable ~ Wyatt by J.S. Scott

    Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    What happens when the man you think you despise turns out to be a completely different guy beneath the surface? I didn't like Wyatt Durand. He might be my friend's older brother, but he was unpleasant, sarcastic, and the grumpiest guy on the planet. It didn't matter to me that he was a breathtakingly gorgeous, ultra-wealthy billionaire with the very prestigious Durand last name...
  • Securing Piper by Susan Stoker

    Securing Piper by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    What started as an adventure, soon became hell. Piper Johnson’s thrilled to spend time in Timor-Leste with her best friend, a Peace Corps volunteer…until civil unrest erupts throughout the countryside, including an attack at the orphanage the women were visiting...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary
  • Jade by Kris Michaels

    Jade by Kris Michaels

    Rated: 4.78 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 9 ratings
    Jade King lives life at full speed. After over a year undercover for the DEA, she’s back in play and wants what any hot-blooded woman who’s gone a year without sex would want: an alpha bad boy who is convenient, delicious and disposable. A fun one-night stand, multiple orgasms, and absolutely no strings attached. Right? If only...
  • Legend by Marie James

    Legend by Marie James

    Rated: 4.78 of 5 stars
    · 9 ratings
    I wouldn’t call it love at first sight, but my body definitely reacted when I saw her.Getting Faith Robbins under me became my obsession.I knew I wanted fast and done.It’s how I always did things.Looking for anything more with a woman was never in the cards.I wasn’t like the other guys in the Cerberus MC. I didn’t want more.It was physical, sating a desire...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  mystery  contemporary  bikers
  • Lord Have Mercy by Lani Lynn Vale

    Lord Have Mercy by Lani Lynn Vale

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 21 ratings
    Poor judgment: knowing better yet doing it anyway. Flint Stone is a professional in every way. He’s a police officer with the K-9 unit and works at Gun Barrel High as the school resource officer. In his spare time, he’s working his heart out to create a successful gym from the ground up...
  • Covert Mission by Lynn Shannon

    Covert Mission by Lynn Shannon

    Rated: 4.69 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Duty is all he knows.  Logan Keller spent his military career saving lives, but none of that prepared him for raising his out-of-control teenage niece. He’s desperate to get through to her. A charity designed for teens seems like the answer, but when Logan arrives to speak to the director, he interrupts an attack on the woman’s life.  Danger surrounds her...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  suspense  christian  mystery
  • Justice For Angie by Cara Carnes

    Justice For Angie by Cara Carnes

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    She’s never met a fight she couldn’t win…until now. 

After brutally murdering someone in Angie Bierman’s dojo, the killer targets her first and then people she cares about to scare her off the investigation. Determined to prevent further tragedy, she does the one thing she can to keep them safe—run...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary
  • Time for Love by Marie Force

    Time for Love by Marie Force

    Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Dr. David Lawrence has spent the last two years atoning for his sins and recovering from the devastating breakup with Gansett Island golden girl Janey McCarthy. As the island's only doctor, he's had ample opportunity to show his fellow island residents that there's more to him than the guy who disappointed Janey so profoundly...
    Categorized as:
    cruel hero  m-f  contemporary  college
  • Tempting Promises by Corinne Michaels

    Tempting Promises by Corinne Michaels

    Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 21 ratings
    What’s the worst thing you could do when you’re stranded in the woods with your rival? Sleep with him. That’s what. Not only is Rowan Whitlock my sister’s ex, but we’re both vying for the contract that would save my family farm...
  • Anubis by Kris Michaels

    Anubis by Kris Michaels

    Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 8 ratings
    In the Shadow World, he was the God of Death, and he was called many names. The monsters he hunted called him Anubis. Those who saw his face died. To Guardian Security, he was a number, a surgical weapon they wielded against monstrous evil. One woman called him Kaeden Lang...
  • Finding Monica by Susan Stoker

    Finding Monica by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Years of abuse at the hands of her father has taught Monica Collins she can’t trust anyone—especially military men. Since escaping her home, she’s built a successful career as a nanny, showing other kids the love she was denied as a child. But when her employer’s ambassadorial home becomes fair game for intruders during a riot, she’s forced to rely on two SEALs to get her to safety...
  • Finding Elodie by Susan Stoker

    Finding Elodie by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    This is the first book in the SEAL Team Hawaii series. This is Elodie and Scott "Mustang" Webber.Sometimes what you think you want in life, isn't what you need. Mustang finds that out the hard way when he meets Elodie...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary
  • Hot Rebel by Lynn Raye Harris

    Hot Rebel by Lynn Raye Harris

    Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    A rebel on the run… Victoria Royal is a traitor. Or so the U.S. government believes. Victoria was once a promising sniper in the Army, but now she’s gone rogue—worse, she’s just landed in the middle of a Hostile Operations Team mission in the desert and blasted it all to hell. Nick “Brandy” Brandon doesn’t expect to run into Victoria when he’s bugging out from a mission gone wrong...
  • Shadow: Cerberus MC Book 3 by Marie James, Kari Ayasha

    Shadow: Cerberus MC Book 3 by Marie James, Kari Ayasha

    Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    Morrison “Shadow” Griggs, VP of the Cerberus MC, is a force to be reckoned with. Women fall at his feet, willing to do almost anything for a night with him. Misty Bowen is the exception. She’s young and impressionable, but with her religious upbringing, she’s able to resist Shadow’s advances… for a while at least...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary  bikers  pregnancy
  • HOOT: REAPER-Patriots: Book Fifty-Five by Mary Kennedy

    HOOT: REAPER-Patriots: Book Fifty-Five by Mary Kennedy

    Rated: 4.83 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Benjamin Scott 'Hoot' O'Neal is one-third of the O'Neal triplets. Prolific members of MARSOC, the triplets are now retiring and heading home to Belle Fleur. With their father and uncle, Eagle and Hawk, they will become members of the RP team. But when his first op finds him carrying a dying woman into an emergency room, Hoot is starting to doubt the wisdom of leaving the Corps...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  alpha male
  • Fearless: A Salvation Society Novel by Chelle Bliss, Salvation Society

    Fearless: A Salvation Society Novel by Chelle Bliss, Salvation Society

    Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    I’ve always been a wild child and my own worst enemy. Ditched by my best friend at a biker bar. A broken Jeep in a new town with no one to call. What else could possibly go wrong? I’m Makenna Dixon, not a damsel in distress. My parents taught me how to survive on my own. But a handsome stranger thinks he’ll be my saving grace. A challenge leads to a lip lock I can’t quite forget...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  new adult
  • Shelter for Penelope by Susan Stoker

    Shelter for Penelope by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    Dubbed the “American Princess” after her rescue from months in the hands of ISIS, soldier and firefighter Penelope Turner has struggled silently since her return to Texas. The media, the danger of her job, the pressure of knowing lives are in her hands…all of it and more has combined to slowly fill Penelope with seething guilt and doubt...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary  firefighter
  • Justin by Kris Michaels

    Justin by Kris Michaels

    Rated: 4.71 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 7 ratings
    Being CEO of flourishing JK Holdings isn't a sufficient challenge for millionaire restaurateur Justin King. He craves the rush gained by facing danger and triumphing—be it heli-skiing, rappelling, suit jumping from the peaks of Mt. Everest or racing performance cars. But nothing does it for him like breaking into impenetrable fortresses and rifling their vaults for Guardian Security...
  • Protective Instinct by Fiona Quinn

    Protective Instinct by Fiona Quinn

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    She’s running for her life……His mission: protect her.Ex-Delta Force Operator Ridge Hansen has a thing for artist Harper Katz.So does his tactical K9, Zeus……But Harper is on the run.Someone is aiming to kill her.Ridge wants two things…Convince Harper to move their relationship from friends to lovers,And find out who she really is...
  • Maximum Risk by Ruth Cardello

    Maximum Risk by Ruth Cardello

    Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    Max Andrade: Rich, bold, unapologetic. He is a man who doesn’t hear the word no—until he meets Tara. In his obsession to have her, he’ll offer her anything—except his heart. Tara Holmes: Outspoken, hardworking, levelheaded. She makes her living by exposing unfaithful spouses. She doesn’t believe in love, especially not with a man who sees her as nothing more than a challenge...
    Categorized as:
    cruel hero  m-f  humor  contemporary
  • No White Knight by Nicole Snow

    No White Knight by Nicole Snow

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    Handsome devil. Hate-worthy. Walking scandal.I'm catching one feeling with him and it's got teeth...If I were a bird, I know who I'd paint white.Holt Silverton. The cocky dolt who swaggered up thinking he'd buy my ranch out from under me.I know his reputation—those stormy eyes and chiseled looks ruined half this town.Spare me the pick up lines and pretty words...
  • Damaged Grump by Nicole Snow

    Damaged Grump by Nicole Snow

    Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Wall Street Journal bestselling author Nicole Snow returns with a hysterical office romance where the grumpiest boss claims the good girl and loses his scorched heart.Our meet cute was one big sip of ugly.He pushed my hell-no buttons, wearing an indestructible smirk.I offended his warped morals in front of his starry-eyed minions.Then I got my sweet reward for doing the right thing...
  • Jason by Kris Michaels

    Jason by Kris Michaels

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 11 ratings
    Jason King was presented the opportunity of a lifetime… …assume control of Guardian Security from the billionaire who had built the world renowned agency. As CEO, Jason would manage the best security resources in the world...
  • Somebody's Angel by Kallypso Masters

    Somebody's Angel by Kallypso Masters

    Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    When Marc d’Alessio first rescued the curvaceous and spirited Italian Angelina Giardano at the Masters at Arms Club, he never expected her to turn his safe, controlled life upside down and pull at his long-broken heartstrings. Months later, the intense fire of their attraction still rages, but something holds him back from committing to her completely...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary
  • Dangerously Hot by Lynn Raye Harris

    Dangerously Hot by Lynn Raye Harris

    Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    By USA TODAY Bestselling Author Lynn Raye Harris Available Today! The next explosive story in the Hostile Operations Team Series! The world’s most wanted man is back from the dead. And only one woman can stop him… Former Army linguist Lucky San Ramos escaped with her life, but the scars an evil terrorist leader left on her skin are a constant reminder of her captivity...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  suspense
  • Stone by Max Monroe

    Stone by Max Monroe

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    First, hate. Then, want. But in the end? Heartbreak. My celebrity life was supposed to be easy, and this movie was the biggest break of my career. But from the moment Officer Levi Fox gave me a speeding ticket on my way into town, he’s been nothing but a thorn in my side. Dominant. Cocky. Callous...
  • I Need You To Hate Me by Genicious

    I Need You To Hate Me by Genicious

    Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    An alternative cover edition can be found here. A passionate and enthralling college romance. Two damaged souls on a path to obliteration. When they collide, will they heal each other, or are they damaged beyond repair?What’s worse than losing someone you love? Blaming yourself for their death. Two years after a devastating accident, Calla is still full of guilt...
  • Ripped & Shipped by Savannah Scott

    Ripped & Shipped by Savannah Scott

    Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    If you had asked me if I'd ever be dating Chris St. James, well, let's just say it's more likely Jimmy Choo would name a shoe after me.Which, Jimmy, if you're out there, the "Ella Mae" would definitely be a big seller. Call me, Mkay?But, back to Chris. Sure, he's handsome...
  • Securing Zoey by Susan Stoker

    Securing Zoey by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    Zoey Knight has lived in Juneau, Alaska her entire life. She loves her friends, but yearns for more excitement. She gets more than she ever bargained for when the plane she’s in goes down in a remote stretch of wilderness. Mark “Bubba” Wright regrets not spending more time with his pop...
  • Betrayed by Kaylea Cross

    Betrayed by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Torn apart by lies and a hail of bullets… Georgia Randall is a government-trained killer with nothing left to live for except the burning need for revenge. She’s lost everything she cared about, including the only man she ever loved, and now her past has caught up with her. Shadowy enemies are on the move, determined to silence her before she can kill her remaining targets...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary  betrayal
  • Code Name: Ghost by Sawyer Bennett

    Code Name: Ghost by Sawyer Bennett

    Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    I knew the risks of this job when I signed on with Jameson Force Security. Knew my time as a marine would prepare me for the danger I would face. But no amount of training could have ever prepared me for the helplessness of watching my teammates die, the agonizing mental and physical pain of torture, or the despair of captivity...
  • Drifter by Kristy Marie

    Drifter by Kristy Marie

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Tit for tat. These are the rules I live by. But don’t think this is some kind of cutesy story of a boy and a girl with a simple misunderstanding. This a story of a girl who hates and a boy who loves. This is a story about how weakness became my strength. This is our story. Drifter is a stand-alone in the Commander in Briefs Series. The series has crossover characters from each novel...
  • Rescuing Wendy by Susan Stoker

    Rescuing Wendy by Susan Stoker

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    Aspen “Blade” Carlisle is the last of his Delta Force team to find love…and he’s pretty bummed about that fact. Which might explain why he finds himself chatting up a telemarketer as if she’s a long-lost friend. But Wendy is surprisingly easy to talk to, so when they go from occasional calls during her work, to nightly conversations on their cells, it somehow feels right...
  • Exposed by Kaylea Cross

    Exposed by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Sometimes the one you were meant to be with… Marisol Lorenzo landed her dream job as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and is working on the case that could make her career; now she’s determined to put away the most dangerous drug lord in the country. But his incarceration has opened up a lethal turf war among his lieutenants...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary
  • Rogue Mission by Kendall Talbot

    Rogue Mission by Kendall Talbot

    Rated: 4.80 of 5 stars
    · 5 ratings
    She can’t trust anyone. He can’t trust her.But pitched together in a deadly mission, trust becomes everything.Royal Flying Doctor pilot, Xander Devlin ( Razor) walked away from his military career so broken he never wanted to see his ex-army team again. Especially Aria, the woman who crushed his heart...
  • The Fine Art of Faking It by Lucy Score

    The Fine Art of Faking It by Lucy Score

    Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 16 ratings
    Davis Gates. Naked. Tossing her a handful of orgasms like he was on a lust-themed parade float. A fifty-year feud. One failed smoke bomb matchmaking scheme. Two enemies turned fake lovers. For the past fifteen years, Eden has worked her ass off to overcome high school. She’s cornered the tourism market in Blue Moon offering visitors a place to stay in her hippie, dippy hometown...
  • Disavowed by Kaylea Cross

    Disavowed by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    The government trained her to kill… Briar Jones has lived most of her life in the shadows, carrying out secret ops to eliminate some of the United States’ most dangerous enemies. She’s devoted her life to serving her country so when a faceless enemy targets her and kills someone close to her, she’ll stop at nothing to bring them down...
  • Healed by Love: Nate Braden by Melissa Foster

    Healed by Love: Nate Braden by Melissa Foster

    Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    HEALED BY LOVE is a USA TODAY BESTSELLER In HEALED BY LOVE... Nate Braden has loved his best friend's younger sister Jewel for as long as he can remember, but between their age difference and his respect for Rick, he's always kept his feelings at bay. Now he's back in Peaceful Harbor, and Jewel is no longer sixteen years old--but there's an even bigger obstacle standing in his way...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  siblings-bff
  • Wanted by Kaylea Cross

    Wanted by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    She thought her past was behind her. After nearly dying at the hands of a madman in New Orleans a year ago, Zoe Renard has worked hard to put that trauma behind her and move on. With her man at her side she’s focused on her writing career and building a future together. Things are almost perfect between them, until a series of shocking events turns her world upside down again...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary
  • Critical Error by Lynn Shannon

    Critical Error by Lynn Shannon

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    One decision changed his life.  Nathan Hollister nearly died in a war zone and the experience made one thing crystal clear—breaking off his engagement was a terrible mistake. He arrives at his ex’s ranch to make amends, but gunfire erupts before he can.  Someone wants her dead.  Cassie Miles is used to being abandoned, first by her mother and then Nathan...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  christian  contemporary
  • Necessary Peril by Lynn Shannon

    Necessary Peril by Lynn Shannon

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    His scars are hidden.  Kyle Stewart always envisioned marriage and children in his future, but being deployed changed him in every possible way. All he wants now is to take care of his aging parents and live a quiet life of bachelorhood. Then a woman from Kyle’s past blasts back into his life with hired hitmen on her tail. She’s not who she claims to be. Sierra Lyons isn’t her real name...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  christian  contemporary
  • Redeeming Justice by Suzanne Halliday

    Redeeming Justice by Suzanne Halliday

    Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 11 ratings
    Sometimes …Happily Ever After comes with a price Alex Marquez wears many hats. Sometimes he’s the slightly patrician Don of a family with deep Spanish roots. Other times he’s a brilliant tech-God and CEO of an exclusive security agency. He’s also a boss, a musician, and a fierce friend...
  • A Home For Christmas by Ann Vaughn

    A Home For Christmas by Ann Vaughn

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Single mom, Jenna Blackwell wasn't having a very good start to the Christmas season; her purse got stolen on Black Friday. She's cursing her luck and herself for even being out in the Black Friday madness when the store manager brings in Riley Stanton, a former Navy SEAL who chased down the thieves and recovered her purse...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  contemporary  alpha male
  • Cold by Max Monroe

    Cold by Max Monroe

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    I wanted a second chance. What I got was a repeat. She was too beautiful. Too smart. And her emerald green eyes saw too much. I wanted space-she took it away. I craved her lips-she gave me her kiss. I screwed it up-she got smart. Avoiding me is the right thing to do. I'm messed up, tortured, and probably always will be. But I still want her. Her mind. Her body. Her heart...
  • Seized by Kaylea Cross

    Seized by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    She’s strictly off limits. Carmela Cruz has wanted the same man for over a year, and now that he’s finally free, he’s fair game. But just when it seems like everything is about to click into place for them, he puts on the brakes. For her, the decision is simple. He either wants her or he doesn’t. She’s tired of his mixed messages and done with waiting for him to make up his mind...
  • Fast Kill by Kaylea Cross

    Fast Kill by Kaylea Cross

    Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    The past has come back to haunt her. Having battled long and hard to put her painful past behind her, DEA Special Agent Taylor Kennedy has done everything in her power to make a new life for herself. She never dreamed that same past would suddenly show up on her doorstep one night, or that its reappearance would threaten everything she’s built for herself...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-f  suspense  contemporary  alpha male
Fantastic book recommendations by romance book lovers for romance book lovers.
Find out more about romance.io.


Get recommendations by genres & tropes

Use the romance book finder to mix and match over 100 content keywords to find the books that match your preferences

romance book finder

Looking for more inspiration? Enter another book title to get more suggestions on what to read next.


Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.