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Series · contemporary romance

Cruel Castaways

by L.J. Shen

The Cruel Castaways series by L.J. Shen has 3 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Ruthless Rival (2022).

Books
3 books
First published
2022
Status
completed
Last checked

Start here: Ruthless Rival (2022) — then read straight through in publication order.

Cover of Ruthless Rival, the first book in Cruel Castaways

Reading order

The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.

  1. Ruthless Rival

    Novel

    View book

  2. Fallen Foe

    Novel

    View book

  3. Cold Hearted Casanova

    Novel

    View book

About the Cruel Castaways series

Cruel Castaways is L.J. Shen's trilogy of interconnected enemies-to-lovers romances published by Montlake, moving her signature wealthy-anti-hero style out of the Sinners of Saint/All Saints High world and into a new, standalone-adjacent cast. Ruthless Rival reunites Arya Roth and Christian Miller, childhood friends separated for two decades, as adversaries when Christian -- now an ambitious attorney -- represents a plaintiff suing Arya's father; neither recognizes the other until Arya starts falling for the man plotting her family's downfall. Fallen Foe follows Arsène Corbin, a theater owner whose calculated engagement collapses when his fiancée dies suddenly, and Winnifred Ashcroft, the struggling actress who lands a role in his theater and turns out to know secrets about the dead woman no one else does. Cold Hearted Casanova closes the trilogy with Daphne "Duffy" Markham, blackmailing her way out of a visa crisis after her almost-fiancé disappears, and Riggs Bates, a secretly wealthy playboy who keeps his fortune as hidden as his real feelings.

Published between 2022 and 2024, each book stands as a complete romance with its own couple, but the three share a loose social world of money, secrets, and betrayal that rewards reading them together. Readers who enjoy Shen's morally grey heroes and high-drama plotting in Boston Belles or All Saints High, but want a fresh cast, should start here.

How to read this series

Publication order: Ruthless Rival (2022), Fallen Foe (2023), Cold Hearted Casanova (2024). Each book is a complete standalone romance with a different couple, so any of the three can be read first without confusion -- but the trilogy shares a social world and recurring secondary characters, so publication order gives the fullest picture of how the three stories connect. This is a separate cast from Shen's Sinners of Saint/All Saints High/Boston Belles world, published by Montlake rather than self-published, so no prior Shen reading is required to start here. Readers who enjoy her enemies-to-lovers plotting and wealthy anti-heroes but want a fresh set of characters should treat Ruthless Rival as the natural entry point.

Frequently asked questions

How many books are in the Cruel Castaways series?

Three: Ruthless Rival (2022), Fallen Foe (2023), and Cold Hearted Casanova (2024).

What order should I read Cruel Castaways in?

Publication order: Ruthless Rival, Fallen Foe, Cold Hearted Casanova. Each is a standalone with its own couple, but they share a connected social world.

What is the Cruel Castaways series about?

Three enemies-to-lovers romances about wealth, betrayal, and old secrets resurfacing -- childhood friends turned courtroom adversaries, a theater owner and the actress who knew his dead fiancée's secrets, and a blackmail scheme between two people hiding the truth about themselves.

Is Cruel Castaways connected to L.J. Shen's other series?

No -- it's a separate world from Sinners of Saint, All Saints High, and Boston Belles, published by Montlake rather than self-published.

Is Cruel Castaways a completed series?

Yes, all three books were published between 2022 and 2024 and no further Cruel Castaways titles have been announced.

Reading order last verified .