Credence is classified as a work in the “dark romance” genre, a category of romance that often features flawed, traumatized characters, anti-hero protagonists, and mature themes. In a dark romance, the sex is usually explicit and intense, and the sexual and emotional behavior of characters tends to occupy an ethically grey area. Heroes, mostly men in a largely heteronormative genre, tend to be dominating and arrogant, and their occupations can include mafia and criminal gangs. The female main character is typically resourceful with a complex backstory. The dark romance genre features content that touches upon taboo themes such as relationships with large age gaps, emotional manipulation, reluctant or coerced consent, kidnappings, and stalking. The sexual content may feature elements of BDSM (bondage, domination, sadism, and masochism), but the relationships are not necessarily framed as BDSM arrangements.

The dark romance genre is popular yet controversial. Critics say that it normalizes violence against women and presents emotional and physical abuse as romance. On the other hand, writers of dark romance, who are mostly women, say that the genre is empowering since it offers readers a safe space to enjoy their fantasies. Many readers of dark romance recognize that their fantasies would be harmful in a real-world sense and choose to enjoy them as works of kinky escapist fantasy.