Book picks similar to
Losing Francesca by J.A. Huss


new-adult
romance
contemporary
young-adult

Miss Me Not


Tiffany King - 2012
    Madison Hanson's past demons have given her a shadow of an existence with little hope. With the sudden tragic death of a fellow student, Madison questions her own life choices, and is now forced to evaluate everything she thought she believed in. When fate intervenes and partners her with Dean Jackson, a popular "all around good guy" from school, Madison gets a glimpse of a life that is filled with sunshine that has the power to break through the darkness she has cloaked herself in. With Dean's help, Madison discovers a desire to finally step out of the shadows, and embrace life and all its gifts.

The Law of Moses


Amy Harmon - 2014
    You will know it’s coming, and it will hurt. But you’ll be able to prepare.Someone found him in a laundry basket at the Quick Wash, wrapped in a towel, a few hours old and close to death. They called him Baby Moses when they shared his story on the ten o’clock news – the little baby left in a basket at a dingy Laundromat, born to a crack addict and expected to have all sorts of problems. I imagined the crack baby, Moses, having a giant crack that ran down his body, like he’d been broken at birth. I knew that wasn’t what the term meant, but the image stuck in my mind. Maybe the fact that he was broken drew me to him from the start.It all happened before I was born, and by the time I met Moses and my mom told me all about him, the story was old news and nobody wanted anything to do with him. People love babies, even sick babies. Even crack babies. But babies grow up to be kids, and kids grow up to be teenagers. Nobody wants a messed up teenager.And Moses was messed up. Moses was a law unto himself. But he was also strange and exotic and beautiful. To be with him would change my life in ways I could never have imagined. Maybe I should have stayed away. Maybe I should have listened. My mother warned me. Even Moses warned me. But I didn’t stay away.And so begins a story of pain and promise, of heartache and healing, of life and death. A story of before and after, of new beginnings and never-endings. But most of all...a love story.

The Space in Between


Brittainy C. Cherry - 2013
    Andrea Evans is traumatized and guilt-ridden by the death of her fiancée. Tired of the gossiping small town, she travels to New York City to pursue her dream of dance.He’s uncertain of his future. Cooper Davidson is a famous photographer and reality television star trying to flee from his own life filled with paparazzi, mental health clinics, and a cheating wife who is pregnant. When Andrea and Cooper’s paths cross, they realize how damaged and in need of escapism they both are. The two create an arrangement to explore the space in between chaos and order with one another. The rules are simple—no emotional connections, no talking about the past, no speaking of the future, and when one finds order, the other walks away. All is well until Cooper accidentally falls in love with Andrea.Warning: The following story contains mature themes, strong language, and sexual situations. It is intended for readers 18+ older.

Ten Thousand Words


Kelli Jean - 2016
     Reclusive author, Xanthe Malcolm, likes her private and quiet life. However, when her wildly-popular series Paranormal Hunters gets picked up by a big-time publishing agency, she’s thrust into the limelight alongside sexy, photographer-turned-cover model, Oliver Fairfax. Upon meeting, the chemistry between the quirky writer and arrogant model quickly intensifies, creating a steamy page-turner of events made for romance novels. Then comes the plot twist. Xanthe has secrets that have kept her bound to silence. And the truth has Oliver questioning every unspoken word.

Erased


K. Webster - 2014
    She’s a concert pianist in New York who lives with her longtime boyfriend and is close with her fiercely protective father—until one fateful night when she is taken in the middle of the night.In a desperate attempt to access a program that could be a threat to national security, her ability to play the piano is threatened. Her world comes crashing down when her father puts his need to protect a program over his own daughter.At the last minute, Joss finds herself whisked away by an unlikely ally. She later lands in the protective custody of none other than small-town bad boy and bar owner Derek Slade. Slade is entrusted to look after Joss and see to it that she hides behind her new persona, Jill, so that bad people don’t find her ever again.Joss has been erased. Joss is now Jill.As Joss trades her blond locks for Jill’s mahogany ones, she also takes on the strength of her new persona. Jill is someone who doesn’t put up with crap. Jill doesn’t trust easily. Jill must protect the broken heart of Joss.Joss and Slade battle an intense attraction, but she isn’t the only one with secrets. Behind Slade’s silver eyes are mysteries he’s unwilling to share. Slade knows better than to get involved with Joss, yet he finds it nearly impossible to push her away. What happens when Slade crosses the line of protector? Can he protect her when the evils of both of their pasts come back to haunt them?

Forget You


Jennifer Echols - 2010
    and what you remember?There’s a lot Zoey would like to forget. Like how her father has knocked up his twenty-four-year old girlfriend. Like Zoey’s fear that the whole town will find out about her mom’s nervous breakdown. Like darkly handsome bad boy Doug taunting her at school. Feeling like her life is about to become a complete mess, Zoey fights back the only way she knows how, using her famous attention to detail to make sure she’s the perfect daughter, the perfect student, and the perfect girlfriend to ultra-popular football player Brandon.  But then Zoey is in a car crash, and the next day there’s one thing she can’t remember at all--the entire night before. Did she go parking with Brandon, like she planned? And if so, why does it seem like Brandon is avoiding her? And why is Doug--of all people-- suddenly acting as if something significant happened between the two of them? Zoey dimly remembers Doug pulling her from the wreck, but he keeps referring to what happened that night as if it was more, and it terrifies Zoey to admit how much is a blank to her. Controlled, meticulous Zoey is quickly losing her grip on the all-important details of her life--a life that seems strangely empty of Brandon, and strangely full of Doug.

Drowning Instinct


Ilsa J. Bick - 2012
    (This is not one of those stories.)Jenna Lord’s first sixteen years were not exactly a fairytale. Her father is a controlling psycho and her mother is a drunk. She used to count on her older brother—until he shipped off to Afghanistan. And then, of course, there was the time she almost died in a fire. There are stories where the monster gets the girl, and we all shed tears for his innocent victim. (This is not one of those stories either.)Mitch Anderson is many things: A dedicated teacher and coach. A caring husband. A man with a certain... magnetism. And there are stories where it’s hard to be sure who’s a prince and who’s a monster, who is a victim and who should live happily ever after. (These are the most interesting stories of all.)Drowning Instinct is a novel of pain, deception, desperation, and love against the odds—and the rules.

The Paper Swan


Leylah Attar - 2015
    But on Day 22, she would have given anything for the sweet slumber of death. Because on Day 22, she realizes that her only way out means certain death for one of the two men she loves.A haunting tale of passion, loss, and redemption, The Paper Swan is a darkly intense yet heartwarming love story, textured with grit, intrigue, and suspense. Please note: This is NOT a love triangle.A full-length, standalone novel, intended for mature audiences due to violence, sex and language. Subject matter may be disturbing for some readers.

Second Rate Chances


Holly Stephens - 2013
    Instead, he finds a bleached-blond diva, claiming to be his fiancée, hovering over him. When he learns that he's just woken up from a coma and has lost the last three years of his life, any semblance of stability he thought he had falls down around him. All he wants – all he needs – is Lil. After countless visits with her shrink and too many sleepless nights waiting for the one man she loves to walk back through the door, Lil wants nothing more than to separate herself from the life she used to have. But the moment Sam smiles at her, Lil knows it's going to take more than self-restraint to stay away.Second-Rate Chances is about a young man fighting to regain his memory, and the one thing in his life that felt real. A modern-day Samson and Delilah, it's a look at what it means to love and be loved, and to fight though it seems hopeless.

Wherever It Leads


Adriana Locke - 2016
    Sexy. Irresistible. Those qualities equal only one thing.Big. Freaking. Trouble.Brynne Calloway knows that anything that seems too good to be true usually is. Fenton Abbott and his cashmere voice, Adonis body, and a magnetism like no other clearly falls into that category. But what’s life without a little risk?It was supposed to be a rebound, an uncomplicated escape from reality. But nothing ever goes as planned. Fenton turns out to be so much more … in ways Brynne never sees coming.

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart


J.C. Lillis - 2012
    As co-runners of the Internet’s third most popular Castaway Planet vlog, they love to spar with the “Cadsim” fangirls who think Cadmus will melt Sim’s mechanical heart by the Season 5 finale. This summer, Brandon and Abel have a mission: hit the road in an RV to follow the traveling Castaway Planet convention, interview the actors and showrunner, and uncover proof that a legit Cadsim romance will NEVER, EVER HAPPEN.A Brandon and Abel romance: also not happening. Brandon’s sick of his struggle to make “gay and Catholic” compute, so it’s safer to love a TV android. Plus Abel’s got a hot new boyfriend with a phoenix tattoo, and how can Brandon compete with that? But when mysterious messages about them start popping up in the fan community, they make a shocking discovery that slowly forces their real feelings to the surface. Before they get to the last Castaway Planet convention, Brandon’s going to find out the truth: can a mechanical heart be reprogrammed, or will his first shot at love be a full system failure?

The Coincidence of Callie & Kayden


Jessica Sorensen - 2012
    . . THE COINCIDENCE OF CALLIE & KAYDENFor Kayden, suffering in silence was the only way to survive. If he was lucky, he could keep his head down, do as he was told, and make it through the day. But one night it seemed like his luck -- and his life -- might finally end... until an angel named Callie appeared just in time to rescue him.Callie has never believed in luck. Not since her twelfth birthday when everything was taken from her. After the worst was over, she locked up her feelings and vowed never to tell anyone what happened. Now, six years later, she continues to struggle with the painful secret that threatens to consume her.When fate lands Kayden and Callie at the same college, Kayden is determined to get to know the beautiful girl who changed his destiny. Quiet and reserved, Callie still fears letting anyone else into her world. But Kayden is certain that Callie has come back into his life for a reason. And the more he tries to be a part of her life, the more he realizes that, this time, it's Callie who needs to be saved...

Swear on This Life


Renee Carlino - 2016
    As an adjunct writing instructor at UC San Diego with her own stalled literary career and a bumpy long-term relationship, Emiline isn’t thrilled to celebrate the accomplishments of a young and gifted writer.Yet from the very first page, Emiline is entranced by the story of Emerson and Jackson, two childhood best friends who fall in love and dream of a better life beyond the long dirt road that winds through their impoverished town in rural Ohio.That’s because the novel is patterned on Emiline’s own dark and desperate childhood, which means that “J. Colby” must be Jase: the best friend and first love she hasn’t seen in over a decade. Far from being flattered that he wrote the novel from her perspective, Emiline is furious that he co-opted her painful past and took some dramatic creative liberties with the ending.The only way she can put her mind at ease is to find and confront “J. Colby,” but is she prepared to learn the truth behind the fiction?

I Dare You


Shantel Tessier - 2018
     Austin Lowes is new to town. She's running from a mom who hates her to her dad who cares nothing about her. Only a few months and she will be free, or at least, that's what she hopes ... until she meets him. Cole Reynolds is the devil disguised as a man. He wants her fear, he wants her blood, and he wants her soul. Just a little game, he says, I dare you. Will Austin survive him, or will she lose herself and the game? Secrets are revealed and justice will be served, but at what cost? Who survives and who doesn't?

Tight


Alessandra Torre - 2015
    In my life as a single, thirty-two year old woman. I had a good job, wonderful friends, my independence.I also hadn't got laid in three years. Hadn't been on a date in two. Had stopped counting calories and wearing makeup... a while ago.Then Brett Jacobs waltzed in. Caressed my thigh, dug rough fingers into my hair, lowered his soft mouth to my skin, took sexual control of my mind and stirred it all around with what he packed in his pants. He flipped my quiet life upside down and crawled into a place in my heart I thought was dead.The issue is his secret.The issue is her.The issue is that I don't even know she exists, and he thinks she's dead.The issue is that shit is about to hit the fan and I can't hold on to him tight enough.