Best of
Young-Adult-Romance

2013

A Place in Time


Jessica Concha - 2013
    Terrence, on the other hand, is not your average boy.To Shaylie, Terrence has always been the enigmatic, aloof, talented and temperamental older brother of her best friend, who has never given her a second look. Until they are thrown together in a date.Their first date sparks an unlikely romance that confuses Terrence, who has long pushed people away because of a secret he has kept throughout his life. But Shaylie is patient with him, giving him a chance to feel things he has never felt with anyone else before.Will they overcome the challenges that stand in the way of their budding love? Or will a happy ending ultimately be too much to ask for?

Loyalty & Respect


Drea Delgado - 2013
    Tania, fifteen years old being raised by her heroin addicted mother and being beaten on a regular basis meets Nico, the biggest drug dealer on the south side of Chicago. Realizing how she is being treated, Nico takes Tania under his wings and shows her a better life. When forced to separate due to the betrayal of a mutual friend, will they be able to maintain their relationship?

The Clay Lion


Amalie Jahn - 2013
    If you want to travel back in time, you need to be at least eighteen years old. You can only travel within your own lifespan for a maximum of six months. And above all else, you must never, ever, change the past.But that's exactly what Brooke Wallace plans to do.As Brooke faces existence without her beloved brother, his life cut short by a rare disease, she can think of only one solution - travel back in time to prevent his death. However, her attempts at fixing the past challenge her to confront everything she believes to be true about herself. And ultimately, she is forced to discover whether or not we can ever truly be in charge of our own destiny.

Purple Moon


Tessa Emily Hall - 2013
    This summer might finally hold the chance of a new beginning for Selena ... but having to live with her snobby cousin in Lake Lure, NC while waiting for her mom to get out of rehab wasn't how Selena was planning on spending her summer. She soon begins to wonder why she committed to give up her "bad habits" for this.Things don't seem too bad, though. Especially when Selena gains the attention of the cute neighbor next door. But when her best friend back home in Brooklyn desperately needs her, a secret that's been hidden from Selena for years is revealed, and when she becomes a target for one of her cousin's nasty pranks, she finds herself having to face the scars from her past and the memories that come along with them. Will she follow her mom's example in running away, or trust that God still has a fairy tale life written just for her?Debut Novel by 19-year-old Tessa Emily Hall

And We Danced


Toni Mari - 2013
    Windsong had the breeding, training, and the flashy good looks to win medals at national competitions, but conservative, shy Jane wasn't sure she was up to the challenge of riding the temperamental beast. He may have been an imported Swedish Warmblood, and he may have had Grand Prix dressage training, but he was wild. When her spirited, new horse races out of control, help comes unexpectedly—unwelcomed—from a loathsome cowboy, a horribly mean-spirited, condescendingly brusque, gorgeous black-haired, azure-eyed reining champion, who is positive Jane is most definitely not up to the challenge. As these two from opposite ends of the horse world are forced to work together, tempers blaze and horseshoes fly, but something else begins to spark. Can Jane overcome her fear and preconceptions to win her goal of competing in the National Junior Rider Championships…and not lose her heart at the same time?

The Revised Life of Ellie Sweet


Stephanie Morrill - 2013
    But when “outcast” gets added to the list, she decides it’s time to take reality into her own hands … and tweak it as needed.In the pages of her book, she’s Lady Gabrielle, favorite of the medieval Italian court. Her once-friends are reduced to catty ladies-in-waiting, and the too-charming Palmer—who in real life never spares her a second word—gets to be nothing more than a rake wracked by unrequited love for her. She even has a perfect real-life villain in the brooding Chase, who hails from the wrong side of town.But just when she’s getting along great in her fictional world, the real one throws her a few curves. With Chase pursuing her, Palmer wanting to date her—but in secret—and the details of her manuscript going public, Ellie suddenly receives more attention than she ever really wanted. And when her former-friends discover what she’s been writing, they’re determined to teach Ellie a lesson about the severe consequences of using her pen as her sword.

Swimming Through Clouds


Rajdeep Paulus - 2013
    Between what if and what is. It’s how I manage. It’s the only way I know. Everyone has their way. This is mine.Senior year kicks off when a Post-it note sparks a sticky romance between two unlikely friends. Transfer student Talia Vanderbilt has one goal at her new school: to blend in with the walls. Hoops and homework occupy Lagan Desai until something moves to the top of his list: befriend the new girl. One Post-it note at a time, Lagan moves past Talia's caution-taped heart, revealing a world where hope seems to lie around the corner...she never turns.From Award-winning author Rajdeep Paulus comes a story that reminds us that life is battle we don't fight alone.

Effortless With You


Lizzy Charles - 2013
    That is, until she lands in trouble one too many times and her parents issue the ultimate punishment: a summer job. Suddenly, the summer can't end fast enough.To make matters worse, the job is painting houses with Justin, the most popular, egotistical guy in school. Spending all summer with Justin might be other girls' dreams, but definitely not Lucy's. After all, Justin is cocky, annoying, and a jerk. So what if he's the most beautiful jerk Lucy's ever seen? Or that his grin makes her forget she’s mad at the world? Or that maybe, just maybe, there's more to Justin than Lucy realizes. Only one thing is certain: it won’t be the summer she wanted, but it might be exactly the one she needs.

Crashing Down to Earth


Terry Reid - 2013
    Her flatmate is her guardian angel. But with the terrifying events of two years ago firmly put behind them, Hayley finally dares hope for a quieter life for her and Alex to enjoy.But it is not long before the old angel’s past comes back to haunt him in the form of an ex-lover. As Alex tries to protect Hayley though, it quickly becomes apparent that far greater powers are at play, far bigger than either of them could ever have possibly imagined.Join Hayley and Alex in the first part of their epic journey as they try to save Glasgow, as well as each other, from doom.Crashing Down to Earth will be available from Amazon and Smashwords this August.

Silent Treatment


Jackie Williams - 2013
    But while her hectic schedule is filled with dreams of Daniel, he discovers football stardom and contracts worth millions of dollars.With the allure of hundreds of beautiful women and the offer of a lifestyle beyond his wildest dreams, will Daniel find America a temptation too strong to ignore? Or was a single summer of thumping hearts and heated looks, enticement enough for Daniel to give up his silent treatment and come home to Carrie once more.

Lone Wolf - The Pseudo Date


Veronica Blade - 2013
    This extra (told in Zack's point of view) begins when he picks her up at her house.Read it here for free:http://veronicablade.com/wordpress/wp...

Lone Wolf - The Complication


Veronica Blade - 2013
    This is the scene from My Wolf's Bane where Zack first sees (and later meets) Autumn, told in his point of view.Find it here for free:http://veronicablade.com/wordpress/wp...

World of Ash


Shauna Granger - 2013
    Kat, one of the unlucky few who survived, is determined to get to her last living relative and find shelter from the pox that continues to devastate the world. When it mutates and becomes airborne, Kat is desperate to avoid people because staying alone might be her only chance to stay alive.That is, until she meets Dylan. Dylan, with his easy smile and dark, curly hair, has nowhere to go and no one to live for. He convinces Kat there can be safety in numbers, that they can watch out for each other. So the unlikely couple set off together through the barren wasteland to find a new life – if they can survive the roaming Pestas, bands of wild, gun-toting children, and piles of burning, pox-ridden bodies.

The Pull of Destiny


Hotcheri - 2013
    Jaded Luke Astor is a Legacy student at Dalton, heir to millions and, in the words of his father, is a royal screwup. Their paths cross by chance and when kind Celsi offers to help Luke work on his bucket list before his aneurysm operation, they slowly start falling for each other. But neither of them are prepared for the jealousy, hatred, love and pain that they will have to deal with before they can be happy. Destiny works in mysterious ways, but will it pull them closer together or further apart?The Pull of Destiny explores the budding friendship and growing interracial love between two teenagers who are drawn together because destiny always finds a way...http://www.amazon.com/The-Pull-of-Des...

Lone Wolf -The Damsel in My Distress


Veronica Blade - 2013
    This is the scene from My Wolf's Bane where Zack helps Autumn with her car, told in Zack's point of view.Find it here for free:http://veronicablade.com/wordpress/wp...

Lone Wolf -The Beginning


Veronica Blade - 2013
    This is that scene, told in his point of view.Find it here for free: http://veronicablade.com/wordpress/wp...

Eternally


A.J. Myers - 2013
    I should have known Shea O'Hare was up to something the second the word ‘favor’ came out of her mouth. I was an easy target, I’ll admit. She had something I wanted, something only she could give me, and she used my heart’s desire to maneuver me into place like a pawn on a chess board.You might be asking what a witch could possibly have that a vampire might want so badly that he would willingly let her play him for a fool. In my case, that answer was ridiculously simple—information. It was only a name and a location, but that name and that location meant everything to me.It was bribery, plain and simple.

Among the Shrouded


Amalie Jahn - 2013
    And a common destiny. They just don’t know it yet. Mia Rosetti is used to being different, especially since she can tell if people are good or evil just by looking at their auras. But when a mysterious (and handsome) stranger walks into her life without one, she starts questioning her power and begins a search to find the true purpose of her gift. What she doesn’t know is that aura-less Thomas harbors secrets of his own - an abusive past and the ability to avoid danger. Halfway around the world, Kate uses a form of telepathy to provide for her sisters and is excited by the prospect of going to the United States to secure their financial independence. None are aware of the ancient prophesy foretelling the birth of seven psychics destine to change the world. Among the Shrouded follows Mia, Thomas and Kate, three unsuspecting strangers whose lives intertwine to reveal the significance of their gifts and the greater purpose of their collective lives.

Anywhere but Here


J.L. Paul - 2013
    People smother you with sympathy and your friends have no idea what to say. Guilt eats you up inside while you just want to curl up into a tight ball and disappear yourself.Just ask seventeen year old Rena Hamilton - she can tell from personal experience.Rena moves from the suburbs of Chicago to a tiny Michigan town to live with her aunt. After a dismal start to her senior year, along with a serious bout of trouble, Rena just wants to begin again in a new school where no one knows her and, more importantly, no one knows about her sister's disappearance.Things don't quite work out according to plan. Although she tries to alienate the entire population (she doesn't need friends) a ragtag group of skater types adopt her into their group. And then there's Fin, the cute hockey player who worms his way into her heart. Throw Roberta, the friendly counselor into the mix and Rena's life is anything but quiet.Although she tries to keep the past away from the present, the strain of keeping secrets coupled with the stress of small-town gossip and high school drama slowly tears her apart. When she suffers a breakdown, it takes the love and support of the new people in her life to get her back on her feet.Show more Show less

Destiny


Cindy Ray Hale - 2013
    As their rehearsals begin, Destiny realizes the unimaginable: Isaac has developed deep feelings for her despite their vastly different backgrounds and belief systems. But can they find the true message of love in a world full of judgement and fear? Weaving around Destiny and Isaac’s alternating viewpoints, this modern-day retelling of Romeo and Juliet is the first book in a series inspired by the characters of Les Misérables and explores heartbreak, self-discovery, intolerance, and love.

The Release


Shelbi Wescott - 2013
    But as Lucy looks forward to her trip, a sinister plot is unfolding that will demolish the world as she knows it. An unknown bio-terrorist group unleashes a virus that virtually wipes out the earth’s population—leaving Lucy, and a small faction of survivors, trapped inside her high school to wait out the apocalypse. As war, looting, and death wreak havoc outside, inside, the students must contend with a tyrannical and paranoid principal and their own struggles of being orphaned, frightened, and unsure of what the future will bring. What begins as a basic fight for survival turns into a search for answers that will challenge everything Lucy has ever known about her life and her family.

Mythos


Heather McLaren - 2013
    The last thing he expected was to meet the girl of his dreams--and discover a hidden world he'd thought existed only in legend.David and Faryn's forbidden love would be enough of a challenge; but both their worlds are threatened by the savage sea demons, and it's up to them to find a way to save not just their people but their own future.

Hunter


Joanne Wadsworth - 2013
    Hounded by her skilled hunter senses, she is on a mission to track down one man, her soul-bound mate.Peacian protector and hunter, Cole Cyrano, is driven by his soul’s demand to find his mated one, a woman he knows is his enemy. Dralion and Peacio are at war, and he ignores his soul’s call. Except Lieska shows up during a fierce training session inside his protectors’ arena, and his soul demands he protect her.Completely, yet impossibly matched, they decide to renounce their bond, only not all goes as planned when Lieska receives word bushfires rage across her Outback station. She leaves, and now nothing can keep Cole from the hunt. He joins Lieska in driving the station’s cattle toward the mighty river, and the chase is on…against both nature and each other. Can the mated pair find their place together in a world at war?A Young Adult, New Adult Fantasy RomanceBook One: PROTECTORBook Two: WARRIORBook Three: ENCHANTERBook Four: HEALERNovella: HUNTER

Under a Painted Sky


Jenna Roads - 2013
    She flees to the Land of Enchantment, Albuquerque, NM, where the beautiful painted skies go on forever and hold hope for a fresh start.She meets Logan Hayes, a sexy guide who has been hired to show her all the sights of her new city. He shows her much more than that. Something Paranormal happens to Isabella that she is unaware of when touring the Petroglyphs and her life takes a downward spiral into a supernatural captivity that no one will believe except for Logan. He vows to protect her with his life after seeing for himself.

All the Tales We Tell


Annie Cosby - 2013
    a darkly romantic beginning to what promises to be an unusual contemporary YA fantasy series."- Serena Chase, USA TodayWhen Cora’s mother whisks the family away for the summer, Cora must decide between forging her future in the glimmering world of second homes where her parents belong, or getting lost in the bewitching world of the locals and the mystery surrounding a lonely old woman who claims to be a selkie creature—and who probably needs Cora more than anyone else.Through the fantastical tales and anguished stories of the batty Mrs. O’Leary, as well as the company of a particularly gorgeous local boy called Ronan, Cora finds an escape from the reality of planning her life after high school. But will it come at the cost of alienating Cora’s mother, who struggles with her own tragic memories?As the summer wanes, it becomes apparent that Ronan just may hold the answer to Mrs. O’Leary’s tragic past—and Cora’s future.(Note: This book was formerly published under the title "Learning to Swim.")