Book picks similar to
Romance for Cynics by Nicola Marsh


romance
contemporary-romance
harlequin
contemporary

The Kissing Deadline


Emily Evans - 2012
    Miss the deadline and the unthinkable happens.Cassie will turn Sweet Sixteen and Never Been Kissed. Too shy to even talk to a guy, she has no hope of pressing her mouth against one. According to her BFFs, she must change. Starting with her hair, her clothes, and her strategy. Or else. Being a member of the un-kissed is not Cassie’s only secret. She has a crush. A massive, skin tingling lust for Ryan the hottest guy in school. She’s too shy to ask him out, much less offer her lips to him. Now, as her birthday looms, she must make a choice: stay in the shadows, follow her friends’ lead, or go for the hot guy.

Resisting the Bad Boy


Violet Duke - 2013
    His brother's best friend. And the valium for his soul he had no business wanting.To be fair, she did ask him for advice--on what she could do to stop being 'the nice girl' for a little bit. All he did was answer truthfully:"Try something new that excites you."...Preferably him.NOTE TO READERS: This is Book #1 in a three-part 600-pg SERIAL (also available as a bundled box set). Each book in the trilogy has a separate story arc in the greater love triangle, and need to be read in order. Book #4 (the other brother's happily ever after) is a standalone novel that can be read on its own.

The Naughty List


Jodi Redford - 2011
    One suitable for public consumption…and a private one that’s too hot to handle. Right at the top: wild, wicked fantasies about her best buddies and business partners Ryan Hollister and Bram Colton.Besides the fact they’re both poster boys for Hunks ’R’ Us, they’ve been there for her through thick, thin and the heartbreak of a cheating fiancé. So what if her boys will never know they star in her sexiest daydreams? In her fantasy world, her heart will never get trampled again.Ry and Bram are pretty sure Lacey never meant to email a list of some of her raunchiest wants. Particularly the one that tightens their shorts—she wants a threesome. With them. Although they’ve loved her for years, they made a pact to keep Lacey off limits in order to protect their friendship. Now all bets are off. And the quest to give her all she wants—and more—is on.Warning: This book contains a wickedly hot M/F/M ménage that will heat up the holidays. Friends steaming things up in a hot tub. Bondage and blindfolds. Sexy shenanigans at a Christmas tree lot. And maybe even a glimpse of Santa…in a Speedo.

One Perfect Night


Rachael Johns - 2011
    McSexy, but she's also heard that he's aloof and distant. Cameron McCormac certainly seems cold toward Christmas when she meets him at the company's annual party...but he's also the sexiest man Peppa has ever seen. And when he offers to forgive the damage she accidentally caused to his expensive car in exchange for accompanying him to his family's holiday get-together, she agrees.Cameron needs a date to the family party to get his matchmaking relatives off his back. Their chemistry is instant and undeniable, leading to an incredible one-night stand. But Peppa wants love and family, while Cameron's only interested in temporary pleasure. When their relationship takes an unexpectedly serious turn, will he run the other way—or will he give love a second chance?

Destination Wedding


Robyn Neeley - 2013
    Little did he know that an innocent kiss while pretending he was his brother would soon create havoc.What happens in the air doesn’t stay up there. Once on tropical land, Kate believes that the handsome stranger who gave her the best kiss of her life is now her new client, Drew Cannon, fiancé to the beautiful and wealthy Lauren Kincaid. While Kate struggles with the intense feelings she thinks she has for Drew, Luke discovers Kate’s been hired to plan his brother’s destination wedding. He also realizes the initial sparks they shared 30,000 feet up are now mistakenly aimed at Drew.Can Luke get Kate to realize that the feelings she has are for him? He’s got forty-eight hours in paradise to try.

Sweet Filthy Boy


Christina Lauren - 2014
    They aren’t supposed to be with someone like him.But after a crazy Vegas weekend celebrating her college graduation—and terrified of the future path she knows is a cop-out—Mia Holland makes the wildest decision of her life: follow Ansel Guillaume—her sweet, filthy fling—to France for the summer and just…play.When feelings begin to develop behind the provocative roles they take on, and their temporary masquerade adventures begin to feel real, Mia will have to decide if she belongs in the life she left because it was all wrong, or in the strange new one that seems worlds away.

Incriminating Dating


Rebekah L. Purdy - 2017
    But winning the election for class president against popular Jenna Lee will be impossible without a miracle. When she stumbles upon Mr. Perfect Luke Pressler defacing public property and catches it on camera: cue miracle. Ayla’s got the dirt she needs to get Luke on Team Ayla—in the form of her new fake boyfriend.One mistake. All Luke wanted was a night to goof off, to blow off steam. The pressure of maintaining the perfect facade when his reality was crumbling around him had become too much, and next thing he knew, he was pretending to date Ayla Hawkins. But his little blackmailer turns out to be kind. Honorable. Opinionated. And just the breath of fresh air he didn’t even realize he was suffocating for. But Luke and Ayla come from different worlds, and once the election is over, their fauxmance will be, too. Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book features adult language, sexual situations, and plenty of girl power. Reading may result in swooning, laughing, and looking for a Luke of your own.

Material Girl


Julia London - 2003
    Glamorous jet-setter Robin Lear gets a crash course in Reality 101 when her father demotes her from her cushy job in the family business. And thanks to a sexy contractor, her scrap-metal love life is about to undergo some major renovations.

Paper Marriage Proposition


Red Garnier - 2010
    A man with his own desire to destroy her ex-husband. Landon Gage had a score to settle, and she knew he'd be eager to join forces.Marriage seemed the perfect method to make war on their mutual enemy. And though Landon knew their union was meant to be in name only, he was soon impatient to make love to his new "wife." But when they both got what they wanted...would they still want more?

Last One Home


Debbie Macomber - 2015
    After high school, Cassie ran away from home to marry the wrong man, throwing away a college scholarship and breaking her parents’ hearts. To make matters worse, Cassie had always been their father’s favorite—a sentiment that weighed heavily on her sisters and made Cassie’s actions even harder to bear. Now thirty-one, Cassie is back in Washington, living in Seattle with her daughter and hoping to leave her past behind. After ending a difficult marriage, Cassie is back on her own two feet, the pieces of her life slowly but surely coming together. Despite the strides Cassie’s made, she hasn’t been able to make peace with her sisters. Karen, the oldest, is a busy wife and mother, balancing her career with raising her two children. And Nichole, the youngest, is a stay-at-home mom whose husband indulges her every whim. Then one day, Cassie receives a letter from Karen, offering what Cassie thinks may be a chance to reconcile. And as Cassie opens herself up to new possibilities—making amends with her sisters, finding love once more—she realizes the power of compassion, and the promise of a fresh start.

Insatiable


Cari Quinn - 2011
    But for the past few years, Shawn has been fantasizing about getting his best pal in his bed. When she announces she's taking a trip to reconnect with an old lover, Shawn knows the time has come to put up or shut up. If she wants to go to New York City, fine. But he's coming with her.Rachel doesn't know what to think of Shawn's sudden interest. Determined to live life on her own terms, she refuses to fall right in line with her wealthy family's wish that they get married and have perfect little babies. She just didn't count on how determined her seemingly laid back - and extremely sexy - best friend would become after setting his sights on what he wants. Her, over and over again.But when tragedy strikes, Rachel begins to wonder if she'll lose not only her lover but her best friend too. Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, exhibitionism/sex in public.

Screwed


Kendall Ryan - 2015
    Not to mention I’m packing a sizable bulge below the belt. It’s a combination that drops panties on a regular basis. Yay, me, right?But my cock, troublemaker that he is, has been confined to my trousers by my business partner. A concession I agreed to, and one that’s never been hard to enforce until Emery moves in across the hall. She’s smart, young, determined, and sexy as hell. I want a taste. I won’t stop until I’m buried deep inside the succulent new-in-town brunette.After being warned about my past, she does her best to steer clear, but I’m about to show her that underneath it all, I’m a guy with a heart of gold and a cock of steel.My name is Hayden Oliver, and this is my story.SCREWED is standalone romantic comedy by New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author Kendall Ryan.

The One That Got Away


Kelly Hunter - 2013
    The only thing missing? A man with an edge to keep things interesting.Enter Logan Black. Tortured, distant and sexy, Logan has edge written all over him. He's also the man who tipped Evie "over" the edge a few years back - she gave him everything, but he didn't know when to stop taking.Leaving Logan was the hardest thing Evie's ever done. Until now. Because Logan's back, the chemistry is as blistering as ever and this time he's not going anywhere....

Her Best Laid Plans


Cara McKenna - 2014
    Getting here took you a plane, bus, taxi and…um, bicycle. But just as you're resigning yourself to drinking beside grey-haired farmers, you see him—a man with the looks and charm to soothe any heartbroken girl.He's your bartender. Your really, really gorgeous bartender.For American Jamie Webb—recently dumped and housesitting for two weeks—Connor Kelleher is like a six-course feast after a 23-year starvation diet. But it's gotta be casual. She's just begun rerouting her life after a three-year man-related detour. Still, a sexy romp (or twenty!) with Sexy McBartender?But what happens when Jamie's best-laid plans for no future plans with any man begin to change?

Wanted


J. Kenner - 2014
    He is brilliant, fierce, and devastatingly handsome. But he is also headstrong, dangerous, and burdened with secrets. My family warned me to stay away, that I could never handle Evan’s dark dealings or scarred past. Maybe I should have listened. Maybe I should have run. But our desire is undeniable, and some temptations you just can’t fight. And from the moment we touch—the passion between us consuming us both—I know that I will never be the same. Wanted is an erotic romance intended for mature audiences.