Book picks similar to
Before by Cambria Hebert


young-adult
paranormal
romance
fantasy

Flash Gold


Lindsay Buroker - 2011
    The problem? Fortune seekers and airship pirates are after her for the secret to flash gold, her late father's alchemical masterpiece. With her modified rifle and a pocketful of home-made smoke bombs, Kali wouldn't normally hide from a confrontation, but taking on a whole airship single-handedly is a daunting task. Unfortunately, the other racers won't assist her--they're too busy scheming ways to sabotage her unorthodox sled.When a sword-slinging stranger shows up, wanting to hire on as her protector, she's sure he has ulterior motives, but he's the only one interested in helping her. The question is...why?Details: an 18,000-word (75 page) steampunk novella set in the Yukon during the gold rush era.

Ethereal


Addison Moore - 2011
    When her newly remarried mother moves the family to Paragon Island, to a house that is rumored to be haunted, Skyla finds refuge in Logan Oliver, a boy who shares her unique ability to read minds. Skyla discovers Logan holds the answers to the questions she’s been looking for, but Logan’s reluctance to give her the knowledge she desires leaves her believing Logan has a few secrets of his own. Skyla’s bloodlines may just be connected to the most powerful angelic beings that roam the earth, and the more she knows, the more danger she seems to be in. Suddenly an entire faction of earthbound angels wants her dead, at least she still has Logan, or does she?

Bound to Night


Nina Croft - 2010
    She dreams of freedom, a normal life, and going home, but after eight long years, she believes it will never happen. Her life changes with the arrival of the stunningly gorgeous Jack, the latest unwilling guest of The Facility. Passion flares between them, but Jack refuses to share his body or his mind.Jack must fight his burning desire for Tasha; he has a job to do—destroying The Facility—plus a very good reason for keeping his distance from for the young werewolf. Only when they escape their prison, does he admit his feelings and accept the possibility of a future together. However, Tasha yearns for a normal life, and Jack is a vampire…As the past unravels and they uncover the secrets behind Tasha’s attack, she realizes that ‘home’ is farther away than ever. Now, she must decide if that matters when the alternative is an place at Jack’s side…

The Gifting


K.E. Ganshert - 2015
    And crazy is dangerous."In a world where nothing supernatural exists, Tess Eckhart is positive she’s going crazy. After her complete freakout at a high school party, her parents worry she might be right. So much that they pack their bags and move across the country, next to a nationally-renowned facility for the mentally ill.Tess is determined to fit in at her new school, despite the whispers and stares. But when it comes to Luka Williams, a reluctantly popular boy in her class, she’s unused to a stare that intense. Then the headaches start, and the seemingly prophetic dreams that haunt her at night. As Tess tries harder to hide them, she becomes increasingly convinced that Luka knows something—that he might somehow be responsible.But what if she’s wrong? What if Luka Williams is the only thing separating her from a madness too terrifying to fathom?

Angelbound


Christina Bauer - 2013
    She’s not your every day quasi-demon, part-demon and part-human, girl. For the past five years, Myla has lived for the days she gets to fight in Purgatory’s arena. When souls want a trial by combat for their right to enter Heaven or Hell, they go up against her, and she hasn’t lost a battle yet. But as she starts her senior year at Purgatory High, the arena fights aren’t enough to keep her spirits up anymore. When the demons start to act weird, even for demons, and the King of the Demons, Armageddon, shows up at Myla’s school, she knows that things are changing and it’s not looking good for the quasi-demons. Myla starts to question everything, and doesn’t like the answers she finds. What happened seventeen years ago that turned the quasi-demons into slave labor? Why was her mom always so sad? And why won’t anyone tell her who her father is? Things heat up when Myla meets Lincoln, the High Prince of the Thrax, a super sexy part-human and part-angel demon hunter. But what’s a quasi-demon girl to do when she falls for a demon hunter? It’s a good thing that Myla’s not afraid of breaking a few rules. With a love worth fighting for, Myla’s going to shake up Purgatory.

Ice Study


Maria V. Snyder - 2009
    Ice Study tells a short story after Fire Study and another short story Power Study. After the events of Fire Study, Yelena and Valek's sabattical is cut short when they become entangled in a plot to prevent the Ice Moon from falling into the hands of a rogue magician.

Rising


Holly Kelly - 2013
    Xanthus Dimitriou-the most lethal Dagonian to rise from the ocean-is on a mission to save mankind from annihilation. But first there's one small thing he needs to do... kill a beautiful young woman in a wheelchair. Killing her doesn't start out as part of his plan. He entrenches himself deep in the human world. Aligning with his enemies, he prepares to send them to Triton to face their punishment. Then Sara Taylor rolls onto the scene. Xanthus knows at once she's a criminal. And her crime? Being born. She's a human/Dagonian half-breed, an abomination. Killing her should be an easy job. All he has to do is break into her apartment, slit her throat, and feed her body to the sharks. Simple, right? Wrong. If only she weren't so beautiful, so innocent, so sweet... Saving the world may have to wait. It appears Xanthus has a woman to save. But protecting her may cost him his own life.

The Ultimate Sacrifice


Talia Jager - 2011
    This is somewhat difficult because she has the ability to inflict pain on others with her mind, which is why she was sent to a special institute for kids with various gifts. It is here Kassia met her best friend Mira. Their lives will change forever after Mira is attacked and Kassia finds out her talent is much more powerful when she saves her. Little did she know that this act would attract the attention of demons. Suddenly she is on the run from them with her boyfriend, Mira, and a few of their close friends. Realizing she can't outrun the demons, she seeks the guidance of a shaman. The shaman tells her the heart breaking news that the only way to protect her friends and the institute is through her own death. Join Kassia on her journey of friendship, love, and the conflicts she must face to protect those around her.

Deep Blue Secret


Christie Anderson - 2011
    She has great friends, an energetic mother she adores, and the beach practically in her own backyard. But her carefree life is turned upside down when she's rescued by a mysterious and strangely familiar boy who won't even tell her his name.Each time the boy appears, Sadie's unexplainable attraction to him deepens along with her need to unravel his secrets. The boy is there to protect her. But as wonderful and exciting as it might be to have an irresistible boy with crystal green eyes protecting her every move, every minute of the day . . . why does Sadie need one?As Sadie finds answers, she realizes her life isn't as perfect as she thought. Not only is she caught in a world of dangerous secret agents she never knew existed, but it turns out her true identity may be the greatest secret of all.

Cheyenne


Lisa L. Wiedmeier - 2011
    Deception from every angle—who's telling the truth?Cheyenne Wilson's life is thrown into turmoil after her adoptive parents are killed in an accident. With only her best friend Colt to comfort her, she scours through the family archives, hoping to quell her grief. Instead she begins to unravel the mystery behind her birth parents, and her secret heritage. She is a Timeless- a being that ages one year for every hundred human years when they reach their twenties- and of the royal line, destined to gain great power.But Cheyenne has other problems. The ones who killed her parents want her too, and Colt is hiding something of his own. Surrounded by danger and with few she can trust, Cheyenne must face the dark truth of her past, and choose between a forbidden love that will forever hold her heart, or her destiny...

Meeting Destiny


Nancy Straight - 2010
    Destiny becomes reality when paths cross during a failed robbery attempt. Lauren and the stranger experience chemistry like no other and now her doubt over her long time relationship with her high school sweetheart is not her only secret…someone else knows about her keen intuition and sixth sense.A mysterious clairvoyant seeks Lauren out and tells her not only of her life now but what the future may hold. Soon Lauren is in the middle of a murder investigation and a questionable friendship with the key suspect. Law enforcement, friends and family are concerned for Lauren but unfortunately they are unaware of the true danger…Sinister forces are at work and will stop at nothing to destroy Lauren’s abilities.

The Medium


C.J. Archer - 2012
    Actually, she has several. As if seeing dead people isn't a big enough social disadvantage, she also has to contend with an escaped demon and a handsome ghost with a secret past. And then there's the question of her parentage. Being born an entire year after her father's death (yes, a year) and without the pale skin of other respectable English ladies, Emily is as much a mystery as the dead boy assigned to her.Jacob Beaufort's spirit has been unable to crossover since his death. It might have something to do with the fact he was murdered. Or it might not. All he knows is, he has been assigned by the Otherworld's administrators to a girl named Emily. A girl who can see and touch him. A girl who released a shape-shifting demon into the mortal realm. Together they must send the demon back before it wreaks havoc on London. It should be a simple assignment, but they soon learn there's nothing simple when a live girl and a dead boy fall in love.

Coexist


Julia Crane - 2011
     In elfin society, mates are predetermined but not allowed to meet until they are eighteen. Against tradition, Keegan's brother Thaddeus told her Rourk's name because his visions warned him she'd need Rourk's protection, especially since Keegan will play a key role in the coming war between the dark and light elves. Rourk finds himself drawn to Keegan's side every time she thinks his name. He wants to talk to her but remains in the shadows, silently guarding her every time she mentally beckons him. A twist of fate thrusts the two of them together when Rourk is forced to step up his protection and make his presence known. An ancient prophecy deeply entwines Keegan's family and the future of their society. Somehow they must find a way to thwart fate and win the battle...without losing Keegan. With war brewing, and dark forces aligning, will Keegan and Rourk ever have the life together that they both desire?

Beasts and BFFs


Shannon Delany - 2010
    A Bonus 13 to Life Prequel Story.Meet Jessie Gillmansen as she realizes that things might not be what they seem in the town of Junction.

Darkhouse


Karina Halle - 2011
    Though she’s been dealing with a quarter-life crisis and post-college syndrome like any other twenty-something, she’s still not what you would call “ordinary.” For one thing, there’s her past which she likes to pretend never happened, and then there’s the fact that she sees ghosts. Luckily for her, that all comes in handy when she stumbles across Dex Foray, an eccentric producer for an upcoming webcast on ghost hunters. Even though the show’s budget is non-existent and Dex himself is a maddening enigma, Perry is instantly drawn into a world that both threatens her life and seduces her with a sense of importance. Her uncle’s haunted lighthouse provides the perfect catalyst and backdrop for a horrific mystery that unravels the threads of Perry’s fragile sanity and causes her to fall for a man, who, like the most dangerous of ghosts, may not be all that he seems.