Book picks similar to
All I've Ever Wanted by Adrianne Byrd


romance
adrianne-byrd
african-american-romance
contemporary-romance

Barefoot in the Sand


Roxanne St. Claire - 2012
    Claire's beloved Barefoot Bay series! When a hurricane roars through Lacey Armstrong's home on the coast of Barefoot Bay, she decides all that remains in the rubble is opportunity. A new hotel is just what Mimosa Key needs, and Lacey and her teenage daughter are due for a fresh start. And nothing, especially not a hot, younger architect, is going to distract Lacey from finally making her dreams a reality. Love has already cost Clay Walker everything. And if he's going to have any chance of picking up the pieces of his life, he needs the job as Lacey Armstrong's architect. What's not in the plans is falling for the headstrong beauty. Her vision of the future is more appealing than anything he could have ever drafted for himself. Will Clay's designs on Lacey's heart be more than she can handle, or will she trust him to build something that will last forever?

A Love Of Her Own


Bettye Griffin - 1999
    She cherishes the idea of happy couples and building lives and eventually a family together...knowing that for her, the reality was painfully different.Ten years before Ava walked out on her marriage when she and her ex-husband received the devastating news that she would never be able to have children...the one thing her ex wanted most. The intervening years have been marked by aborted relationships and by clinging to the belief that she will finally be able to claim happiness once she reaches the point in her life where she would not be expected to bear children...but she's only thirty-five years old and lonely, and 'that certain age' is still a good ten years away.Then, in the same remarkable evening, Ava encounters both an eight-year-old purse snatcher and an exciting new man in town. Alliances are formed, bonds that soon deepen into something more special than she's ever known. Could these two males be the key to her attaining...A Love of Her Own?

Dodge the Bullet


Christy Hayes - 2011
    But Sarah doesn’t know a Colorado Senator has earmarked her ranch for purchase and he’ll do anything to get it. Unwilling to sell, she dismisses his continued offers and moves ahead by improving the land with the help of a sexy stranger. A.J. Dodge is a man with a past. He’s returned to his hometown ready to set down roots and make things right with his family and whatever anyone else thinks he doesn’t give a damn. Until his old friend Tommy Thornton asks a favor, a favor he can’t refuse, and Dodge becomes involved with the beautiful widow Sarah Woodward. She’s alone with her young sons on a dilapidated ranch she’s determined to get up and running with or without his help. Under pressure to deliver the Woodward ranch to a land developer with shady connections, the senator sets in motion a dangerous plot to convince Sarah to sell. Dodge will risk everything to protect Sarah and the boys including his heart.

Stone Walls


A.M. Madden - 2015
    M. Madden, a red-hot cop and a broken beauty are linked by painful pasts . . . and one tempting future.As an NYPD officer, Benjamin Stone is married to his job, determined to clean up the drug-infested streets. His partner, Rob, always has his back—except when Rob and his girlfriend, Andrea, play matchmaker at his expense. On Ben’s birthday, they’re at it again. Andrea’s friend is exactly Ben’s type, even if he stubbornly will never admit it. But it’s not the lithe brunette’s looks that intrigues Ben; it’s the hurt in her eyes.Ella Parker is bright, beautiful, kind—and, thanks to one horrific night, severely damaged. She’d rather be training for her black belt or watching TV in her favorite pair of pajamas than be dragged out on a blind date. Sure enough, Ben swaggers into the club, locks onto Ella, and claims he’s not interested—despite the irresistible chemistry between them. So Ella decides two can play at that game. But when her dangerous past comes back to haunt her, Ben will break all the rules of seduction to keep her safePraise for Stone Walls “With an untouchable couple wrapped in a sweet package with a comical side, A. M. Madden’s Stone Walls is a must-read—the perfect mix of intrigue, mystery, and sex appeal.”—New York Times bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin“Stone Walls is a roller coaster ride with lots of twists and turns. Ben and Ella are wonderful characters: funny, intelligent, and perfect for each other. But the secrets from their pasts may destroy their chances for a future together.”—New York Times bestselling author Kathy Clark“Madden delivers an intense read with beautiful character development and so much emotion you feel every high and every low. There were times I wanted to reach into the pages and offer comfort to both Ben and Ella.”—USA Today bestselling author Chelsea Camaron“Madden’s storytelling pulls you in from the very beginning. I loved this romance story. With likable and believable characters and a riveting storyline, this book kept me up long into the night. Stone Walls is an excellent start to a new series! I can’t wait see what happens next.”—Stacey Lynn, author of His to Love“OMG! A. M. Madden blew my socks off with this one! I laughed, I cried, I got angry, cried again, and then I sighed with happy contentment. Stone Walls is one of my all-time favorite romantic suspense novels.”—Devilishly Delicious Book Reviews“Readers looking for some suspense with their romance will like this book and the characters. I will definitely look for more from A. M. Madden in the future.”—Ramblings from This Chick“I loved all the characters in this book! . . . The author did an amazing job.”—Summer’s Book Blog (five stars)“I’ll always look forward to more from this author. Fab five-star read!”—Fictional Men’s Page for Book Ho’s“A great book . . . This story is extremely well written (all of A. M. Madden’s stories are) and the characters are very well developed. . . . I was not disappointed.”—Sexy Lady’s Reading CornerStone Walls is meant for mature audiences 18+ due to sexual content and adult situations. Stone Walls is a stand alone novel from the True Heroes Series. Loveswept / Random House Edition

Far Gone


Laura Griffin - 2014
    Disgraced and disillusioned, she's on leave from her job when she gets an urgent call from her younger brother. She'd prefer to ignore his latest plea for cash, but this time instinct tells her something is very wrong. Andrea's search for answers takes her to a dusty Texas border town where danger lurks in plain sight and nothing is quite what it seems. FBI agent Jon North is working undercover in west Texas investigating an unsolved murder that may be linked to a broader plot. But when the evidence points to Andrea's brother, Jon finds that persuading the stubborn cop to help will be harder than cracking his toughest case. Andrea must find a way to do what's right while protecting her only sibling. As the clock ticks down on a deadly plot, Andrea and Jon race to confront a heartless killer who will stop at nothing to deliver a final, terrifying message.

The Irish Cottage: Finding Elizabeth


Juliet Gauvin - 2014
    Book 1 of 3. Elizabeth Lara built a perfect life as San Francisco’s top divorce attorney, but when she loses her great-aunt Mags, the woman who raised her, she boards a plane and leaves it all behind.The Irish shores welcome her as she learns a shocking truth, kept secret for thirty-five years. Devastated and now alone in the world, Beth tries to find peace in a beautiful cottage by Lough Rhiannon, but peace isn’t what fate had in mind. Almost as soon as she arrives, Beth’s solitary retreat into the magic wilds of Ireland is interrupted by Connor Bannon. A man with light brown hair, ice blue eyes and a secret of his own. He’s gorgeous, grieving, and completely unexpected. With the help of Mags’ letters, the colorful townspeople of Dingle, and Connor, Elizabeth might just find a way back to the girl she lost long ago and become the woman she always wanted to be.

All the Lies We Tell


Megan Hart - 2017
    They’d grown up on a remote stretch of Quarry Street, where there were two houses, two sets of siblings, and eventually, a tangled mess of betrayal, longing, and loss. Tragedy catapulted Allie and Ilya together, but divorce—even as neighbors—has been relatively uncomplicated.Then Ilya’s brother, Nikolai, comes home for their grandmother’s last days. He’s the guy who teased and fought with Allie, infuriated her, then fled town without a good-bye. Now Niko makes her feel something else entirely—a rush of connection and pure desire that she’s been trying to quench since one secret kiss years ago. Niko’s not sticking around. She’s not going to leave. And after all that’s happened between their families, this can’t be anything more than brief pleasure and a bad idea.But the lies we tell ourselves can’t compete with the truths our hearts refuse to let go…

Life, Unscheduled


Kristin Rockaway - 2021
    As a user experience designer at Virtuality, an artificial intelligence company in Los Angeles, Nicole is at her desk from sunrise to sunset. She doesn’t have time for a social life (or a love life), but that’s perfectly fine with her. Until her best friend, Parisa Shahin, announces her engagement and asks Nicole to be her maid of honor.That’s when Nicole decides to meticulously schedule out the next six months of her life—from her project due dates to her dress-fitting appointments to how many hours she plans to sleep each night. If she can stick to her schedule, she’ll balance everything fine. Of course, that’s a really big if. And after she crosses paths with emerging restaurateur Brandon Phelps, Nicole is feeling feelings she hasn’t felt in…well, ever. But scheduling time to fall in love might push even the most meticulous plans into pure chaos.

Ariel, Always Enough


Danielle Norman - 2017
    One woman would never be enough for one man. So I traded in men for a Harley. Nothing beats that kind of power between my legs. Then I blinked. And he was there. ~ Some things in life were inevitable; death, taxes, and badge bunnies willing to hop into my bed. The only problem is I’m a one woman kind of man. In my line of work, I’ve seen it all. Nothing bothers me until I find a woman’s wrecked body. When she blinked, My world changed. Forever doesn’t come close to giving me enough of her. From the author: Enough features my ideal hero, an Alpha-Beta. They are the type of men that will open the door for you during the day and put you up against it at night. Enough is comical, with just a hint of drama. It isn't politically correct and will have you searching your favorite sex toy store. Enough is a stand-alone novel with no cliffhanger. You will meet characters that will reappear in future books.

Karma


Walter Mosley - 2010
    He was a private investigator who had "decided to go from crooked to slightly bent," turning down the shady but lucrative work that New York's thugs and mobsters had long brought to his door. In "Karma," Walter Mosley tells us the story of the moment McGill decided to change his ways, when a seemingly classic femme fatale forced him to confront the reality of his life of corruption and betrayal. It was the culmination of a dark and tragic case that reached back through McGill's entire career, plumbing the full, complex history of the soul-scarred figure now hailed as "a poignantly real character . . . [and] a more than worthy successor to Philip Marlowe." (The Boston Globe) Originally published in Otto Penzler's anthology Dangerous Women, "Karma" was included in Best American Mystery Stories 2006, edited by Scott Turow.

Girl's Guide to Witchcraft


Mindy Klasky - 2006
    And another that turns a cat into her witch's familiar (a snarky, critical, self-absorbed man—pretty much a typical male). Though her impulsive acts of magic have brought a warder (sexy, grouchy, elusive and determined to stop her from using magic) down on her, Jane's not willing to let go of this fantastic new life.Though she wonders about having things that aren't "real," she's having too much fun to stop. After all, no one ever said being a witch was easy….

Twisted Bond


Emma Hart - 2015
    I’m passionate and shoot before I think. You only f*ck with me if you’re stupid.Photograph cheating spouses. Hand over the evidence. Cash my check.That was my plan when I returned home to Holly Woods, Texas, and became a private investigator.Finding the dead body in my dumpster? Yeah… Given the choice, I think I would have opted out of that little discovery, especially since all three of my brothers are cops. And my Italian grandmother is sure the reason I’m single is because of my job.Of course, my connection to the victim is entirely coincidental. Until I’m hired by her husband to investigate her murder and shoved bang-smack into the path of Detective Drake Nash. My nemesis, a persistent pain in my ass, and one hell of a sexy son of a bitch.Shame he still holds a grudge from that time I shot him in the foot twelve years ago, or we could have something. In another life.So now all I have to do is avoid my nonna’s blind dates, try not to blackmail my brothers into giving me confidential police files, and absolutely do not point my gun at Drake Nash. Or kiss him. Or jump his bones.All while I hunt down the killer.Sounds totally simple—until a second body proves that sometimes things that start as coincidences don’t always end up that way…(Twisted Bond is book one of the Holly Woods Files series and while it does not end in a cliffhanger, it is not a standalone.)

Secret Sisters


Jayne Ann Krentz - 2015
    Now, the New York Times bestselling author of Trust No One and River Road delivers a novel that twists and turns into a read that will leave you breathless.Madeline and Daphne were once as close as sisters—until a secret tore them apart. Now it might take them to their graves.They knew his name, the man who tried to brutally attack twelve-year-old Madeline in her grandmother's hotel. They thought they knew his fate. He wouldn't be bothering them anymore...ever. Still their lives would never be the same. Madeline has returned to Washington after her grandmother's mysterious death. And at the old, abandoned hotel—a place she never wanted to see again—a dying man’s last words convey a warning: the secrets she and Daphne believed buried forever have been discovered.Now, after almost two decades, Madeline and Daphne will be reunited in friendship and in fear. Unable to trust the local police, Madeline summons Jack Rayner, the hotel chain’s new security expert. Despite the secrets and mysteries that surround him, Jack is the only one she trusts...and wants. Jack is no good at relationships but he does possess a specific skill set that includes a profoundly intimate understanding of warped and dangerous minds. With the assistance of Jack's brother, Abe, a high-tech magician, the four of them will form an uneasy alliance against a killer who will stop at nothing to hide the truth....

Tempting Faith


Susan Mallery - 1994
    Powerful. Proud. Agent Carl Hollenbeck moved with the grace of a predator on the prowl. And he always walked alone. In "fighting the good fight," he never got too close - to anyone. Until terrifying blanks in his memory forced him to face his deepest fears . . . and trust a woman who walked on the wild side. . . .

The Venetian Contract


Marina Fiorato - 2012
    Five years after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Lepanto, a ship steals unnoticed into Venice bearing a deadly cargo. A man more dead than alive disembarks and staggers into Piazza San Marco. He brings a gift to Venice from Constantinople. Within days the city is infected with bubonic plague—and the Turkish Sultan has his revenge. But the ship also holds a secret stowaway—Feyra, a young and beautiful harem doctor fleeing a future as the Sultan's concubine. Only her wits and medical knowledge keep her alive as the plague ravages Venice. In despair the Doge commissions the architect Andrea Palladio to build the greatest church of his career—an offering to God so magnificent that Venice will be saved. But Palladio's own life is in danger too, and it will require all skills of medico Annibale Cason, the city's finest plague doctor, to keep him alive. But what Annibale had not counted on was meeting Feyra, who is now under Palladio's protection, a woman who can not only match his medical skills but can also teach him how to care.