Within These Walls


J.L. Berg - 2014
    I am not strong. I am just a survivor of circumstance.Isn’t that what we all do? Survive?Each of us has our own set of circumstances to muddle through. Mine are just more…complicated. Born with a severe heart defect, I’ve seen the inside of a hospital room more than my own bedroom. I was drowning, a prisoner to the illness that owned me, until he appeared. He thinks he’s blocked out the world with his tattoos and hard exterior, but I see the real Jude, the one he so desperately wants to forget. But is he the answer to my prayers or will he break my already damaged heart forever?My name is Lailah Buchanan, and this is our story of hope, redemption and sacrificing it all for the one you love.

You Loved Me At My Darkest


Evie Harper - 2014
    Kidnapped by a rich madman, Sasha is sold into slavery, while Lily is forced to join The Collection, a unique bevy of exotic beauties enduring frequent horrors at the hands of elite bidders. However, no amount of pain and suffering will break Lily, who will stop at nothing to save her younger sister. Possibly with help from an unlikely ally.Love is stronger than loyalty…Attempting to prove his allegiance to his employer, Jake is tasked with guarding the unruly and uncontrollable Lily. He can’t afford to help her in her quest to free Sasha—not if he hopes to fulfill his own agenda. But in their dark, gritty, tension-filled world, solace is taken wherever it’s found. Bonds are formed and hearts engage despite Jake’s resistance and both their attempts at self-preservation.When certain secrets come to light, the resulting explosion has breathtakingly bittersweet consequences that, by the end, may not leave everyone whole…or alive.

Reclaiming the Sand


A. Meredith Walters - 2014
    Tormenter and tormented. Villain and hero. Ellie McCallum was a bully. No connection to anyone or anything. A sad and lonely existence for a young woman who had come to expect nothing more for herself. Her only happiness coming from making others miserable. Particularly Freaky Flynn. Flynn Hendrick lived a life completely disconnected even as he struggled to become something more than that boy with Asperger's. He was taunted and teased, bearing the brunt of systematic and calculated cruelty, ultimately culminating in a catastrophic turn of events that brought Ellie and Flynn’s worlds crashing down.But then Flynn and Ellie grew up. And moved on.Until years later when their paths unexpectedly cross again and the bully and the freak are face to face once more.When labels come to define you, finding yourself feels impossible. Particularly for two people disconnected from the world who inexplicably find a connection in each other. And out of the wreckage of their tragic beginnings, an unlikely love story unfolds.But a painful past doesn’t always want to let go. And old wounds are never truly healed…and sometimes the further you try to run from yourself the closer you come to who you really are.

Perfectly Flawed


Nessa Morgan - 2013
    I had friends that loved me, an aunt who adored me, and everything was just okay.But what I thought was okay and fine, all of that changed.The nightmares, well, they started again, throwing me into a pit I couldn't climb out of, the people at school were spreading and starting rumors faster than I could hear them myself, and I was remembering...I was remembering everything.Well, almost everything. Some things wouldn't come to mind, like why he did it. Why my father killed them, why he tried to kill me? It's not there. Nowhere near my memory.But I'm determined to find out.My name is Joey and this is my story.Joey Archembault is the typical sixteen-year old Junior. She's an overachiever by nature, in her school orchestra, and spends most of her time either doing homework or hanging with the boy next door.Well, typical wouldn't be the word most would use with her. Freak, psycho, that's more what's heard around the school. She can't help it - it's not her fault her father killed her mother, brother, and sister nine years ago. Oh, and he tried to kill her as well, she has the scars to prove it. Joey tries to move on as best she can. It's easy when she can't remember anything about that night or her life before.One day, the self-proclaimed heartthrob asks her out. She knows she should tell him no, but when that doesn't work, and he tricks her into a date by serenading her - twice - things go south, she calls her best friend Zephyr to pick her up, and she once again tries to move on. But it triggers something inside her. It unlocks a vault she never knew existed within her and she can't stop the memories or the feelings, nor can she even begin to decipher what happened to her years ago. Soon, the puzzle begins to piece together and she begins to understand what really happened that night and why she's alone. Couple that with a blooming relationship with the boy next door and it's all a recipe for destruction.

Be All


Marie Wathen - 2013
    Invited to a welcome home party for Morgan Walker, playboy and future heir to Walker Corporation, Breesan’s self made world of exile begins to fall away.An introduction to Morgan only initiates the downfall of her self-contained world. His brother, undercover Drug Task Force Enforcer, Marcus Walker’s return adds to the chaos by uncovering family secrets, lies and evil plans to destroy her that will make protecting her heart and those around her extra difficult.Family responsibilities, deceits and the criminal behavior twist these three lives together threatening their meager existences. One brother could offer her a love that will be all worth the downfall.

Punk 57


Penelope Douglas - 2016
    Until we met." MishaI can’t help but smile at the words in her letter. She misses me.In fifth grade, my teacher set us up with pen pals from a different school. Thinking I was a girl, with a name like Misha, the other teacher paired me up with her student, Ryen. My teacher, believing Ryen was a boy like me, agreed.It didn’t take long for us to figure out the mistake. And in no time at all, we were arguing about everything. The best take-out pizza. Android vs. iPhone. Whether or not Eminem is the greatest rapper ever…And that was the start. For the next seven years, it was us.Her letters are always on black paper with silver writing. Sometimes there’s one a week or three in a day, but I need them. She’s the only one who keeps me on track, talks me down, and accepts everything I am. We only had three rules. No social media, no phone numbers, no pictures. We had a good thing going. Why ruin it? Until I run across a photo of a girl online. Name’s Ryen, loves Gallo’s pizza, and worships her iPhone. What are the chances?F*ck it. I need to meet her.I just don’t expect to hate what I find.RyenHe hasn’t written in three months. Something’s wrong. Did he die? Get arrested? Knowing Misha, neither would be a stretch.Without him around, I’m going crazy. I need to know someone is listening. It’s my own fault. I should've gotten his number or picture or something. He could be gone forever.Or right under my nose, and I wouldn’t even know it.

Deeper We Fall


Chelsea M. Cameron - 2013
    Ready to move on. Ready to start forgetting the night that ripped her life apart. Her plans come to a screeching halt when not one, but both brothers responsible for the accident end up back in her life again. Zack is cruel, selfish and constantly rubbing what happened to her friend in Lottie's face. Zan is different. He listens to her awkward ramblings. He loves To Kill a Mockingbird as much as she does, and his dark eyes are irresistible. His words are few and far between, but when he does speak, she can't help but listen. The trouble is, Zan was the driver in the accident, and now Lottie's discovered he lied to her about what happened that night. Now she must decide if trusting him again will lead to real forgiveness, or deeper heartache.

In the Stillness


Andrea Randall - 2013
    Staying present is only possible when you let go of the past. But, what if the past won't let go?

Rae of Sunshine


Micalea Smeltzer - 2014
    Then with one stupid decision everything fell apart and nothing was ever the same.Rae Wilder wants nothing but a do over—but life doesn’t work that way. She’s stuck living out the consequences of her actions. At times the burden feels unbearable. College is supposed to be her second chance. New place.New people.New life.No one to know what she did.Despite that, she has still vowed to avoid everyone and everything at all costs. Unfortunately for her, an accidental run-in with the campus heartthrob, Cade Montgomery, derails that plan. He’s determined to thaw the ice around her heart and expose the girl she used to be. He wants to show her that life is worth living for and that she really is a Rae of Sunshine.

Some Boys


Patty Blount - 2014
    Some boys will break your heart. But one boy can make you whole.When Grace meets Ian she's afraid. Afraid he'll reject her like the rest of the school, like her own family. After she accuses the town golden boy of rape, everyone turns against Grace. They call her a slut and a liar. But...Ian doesn't. He's funny and kind with secrets of his own.But how do you trust the best friend of the boy who raped you? How do you believe in love?A gut-wrenching, powerful love story told from alternating points of view by the acclaimed author of Send.

Almost


Anne Eliot - 2012
    Very nearly. Not quite. Three years later, Jess has managed to make everyone believe she's better. Over it. Because she is....Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.Unfortunately, until Jess proves she's back to normal activities, her parents won't discuss college. So, she lands a summer internship and strikes a deal with hockey jock, Gray Porter: He gets $8,000. She gets a fake boyfriend and a social life. Jess has no idea Gray signed on for reasons other than money. She also never expects to fall in love. But Gray’s amazingly hot, holds her hand all the time, and makes her forget that he’s simply doing his job. It’s like having a real boyfriend....Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.Gray Porter is hiding secrets of his own. About Jess Jordan. About why he’s driven to protect her, why he won't cash her checks, or deny her anything she asks.

From Ashes


Molly McAdams - 2012
    So of course she follows him to Texas when he leaves for college. She just didn't expect to be so drawn to their new roommate, Gage, a gorgeous guy with a husky Southern drawl. The only problem? He's Tyler's cousin.Gage Carson was excited to share an apartment off campus with his cousin. He didn't mind that Tyler was bringing the mysterious friend he'd heard about since they were kids ... until the most beautiful girl he's ever seen jumps out of his cousin's Jeep. There's something about Cassi that makes Gage want to give her everything. Too bad Tyler has warned him that she's strictly off-limits.Despite everything keeping them apart, Cassi and Gage dance dangerously close to the touch they're both been craving. But when disaster sends her running into Tyler's arms, Cassi will have to decide whether to face the demons of her past ... or to burn her chance at a future with Gage.

Liar, Liar


T.L. Martin - 2020
    So I ran—from them, from home, from everything.That’s when I found him. He became my savior before he even knew I existed.And then I was welcomed into the family.Now he sees me. I make sure of it.I notice the way he watches me when I slip from my bed and fall into someone else’s. See the heated flicker in his eyes when I peer up at him from behind red solo cups, wandering hands, and blaring music. Feel the burn in his touch when I stumble and he catches me—and he always catches me.But I’m no longer the same weak girl he discovered hiding behind his house all those years ago, and some demons simply can’t be set free. All the lies in the world can’t hide that.Even though the same blood doesn’t run through our veins, I know he can never be mine.I was never supposed to fall for him.We’re family now, and I’m going to be a good little sister.Liar, liar, liar.CONTENT WARNING: contains sex, profanity, and sensitive subject matter, including sexual abuse (such as rape) and taboo content.

99 to Nowhere


Domino - 2011
    Living homeless and depending on each other until the day they are forced apart. Rio and Maxx do everything in their power to stay together, no matter the consequence.

So Much More


Kim Holden - 2016
    It comes out of nowhere. There’s no logic to it. It’s not methodical. It’s not scientific. It’s pure emotion and passion. And emotion and passion can be dangerous because they fuel love…and hate.I’m now a reluctant connoisseur of both—an expert through immersion. I know them intimately.When I fell in love with Miranda, it was swift and blind. She was the person I’d elevated to mythical status in my head, in my dreams.Here’s the thing about dreams, they’re smoke.They’re spun as thoughts until they become something we think we want. Something we think we need.That was Miranda. She was smoke.I thought I wanted her. I thought I needed her.Over time reality crept in and slowly dissected and disemboweled my dreams like a predator, leaving behind a rotting carcass.Reality can be a fierce bitch.So can Miranda.And I can be a fool...who believes in dreams.And people.And love.Note from the author: Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is recommended for mature audiences only.