Book picks similar to
Shallow by Yessi Smith
romance
high-school
young-adult
ya
Kissing in Cars
Sara Ney - 2014
Studious and (mostly) sensible, the only thing Molly Wakefield wants to do is get through Senior Year and graduate. Well, that and hit the beach in her spare time. Okay, fine - and go shopping every once in a while for a new dress... (and who could blame her?) And things are going according to plan - until the day she spies Weston McGrath, handsome star athlete and scholar, spying on her in study hall. A tad creepy? Maybe. Thrilling? Absolutely. You see, Weston McGrath happens to be one guy no one can get close to. Despite her best efforts to avoid it (because let's face it - the guy isn't exactly "boyfriend material") Mollly and Weston form a friendship. And more.... Sort of. But it's a friendship that comes with a price - because Weston just cannot seem to stop screwing things up. Or saying all the wrong things. Possibly in that order... And who has time for an 18 year old "fixer-upper" that should know better? Not Molly. Or does she? This is book one and includes chapter one of book two, Ke Kissed Me First. This book is a stand-alone with no cliffhanger. Note: This YA book is intended for 17+ due to the vulgar language used by its male characters (and occasionally the females as well, even though they're too lady like to do it throughout the entire book). Some adult sexual situations that steam up a few car windows. This title is approx. 63,000 words.
Steal Me
India R. Adams - 2016
I hope so.A drunk driver killed my dad.Mom is sinking into a depression, and I’m left to care for my little sister.I may have made a huge mistake, moving us to another town, hoping to escape the pain of the loss.But my biggest mistake of all may be falling for a girl who clearly hates my guts.
364 Days a Year
Sarah Riad - 2018
I couldn't put this book down. The first chapter had my heart thumping with excitement, but that epilogue!" - Between Books"364 Days a Year is a fascinating tale were fantasy meets reality... It's a beautiful love story, but not only of young love. It's also about family love and self love." - BellaorevBooks "What a breath of fresh air! 364 Days A Year was one of the most riveting, thought-provoking and unique stories I've read this year." - Yessi Smith, YA Author of Shallow"This book is undeniably a 5 star read and one of the best books this year. I expected to like it but I ended up absolutely LOVING it." - Goodreads Reader"There is so much to love about 364 Days... Riad doesn't disappoint, and just when you start to dry your eyes, she throws you one more reason to grab that tissue box." - One More Paige"The unique storyline and creativity that went into it, is unlike any other YA read I've come across! It was so well written and emotionally captivating." - Goodreads Reader
Unraveled
Mia Kayla - 2017
Horizontal gravity.I once loved a boy who grew into a man.A man that promised me stability, loyalty, and a lifetime of security. I had it all—at least I thought so. Until mere minutes with someone else made me want for more. More than I already had. Forbidden wants that I shouldn’t wish for.Cade Ryder was everything my Ivy League pedigree should have stayed away from. Every sane part of my existence screamed for me to keep my distance.Distance from where he worked. Distance from him, his body, and his soul-searing eyes.But the more I stayed away, the more our lives merged. Now my life—my normal—is unraveled. My heart, my hope, my new future all in the hands of a tall, tatted bartender.I planned my forever with the perfect man. But sometimes the heart wants more than stability, more than security, more than what others want for you. One thing’s for sure—destiny can’t be planned.*Due to descriptive sexual situations and mature themes, this novel is not intended for readers under the age of 18.*
The Boy & His Ribbon
Pepper Winters - 2018
What do you do when you meet your soul mate and have to spend a lifetime loving him in secret? I’ll tell you what you do.You lie.”RENRen was eight when he learned that love doesn’t exist—that the one person who was supposed to adore him only cared how much he was worth. His mother sold him and for two years, he lived in terror.But then… he ran.He thought he’d run on his own. Turned out, he took something of theirs by accident and it became the one thing he never wanted and the only thing he ever needed. DELLAI was young when I fell in love with him, when he switched from my world to my everything. My parents bought him for cheap labour, just like they had with many other kids, and he had the scars to prove it. At the start, he hated me, and I could understand why.For years he was my worst enemy, fiercest protector, and dearest friend.But by the end… he loved me.The only problem was, he loved me in an entirely different way to the way I loved him.And slowly, my secret drove us apart.
As You Turn Away
Molli Moran - 2014
With a life as a ballerina in New York City—and the freedom she craved while growing up in a small Southern town—Quinn Reynolds seems to have everything she's ever wanted. But it's all built on a painful past she can't outrun. Desperate to make peace with her ghosts, she goes home for a visit. Back in the town she once loved, Quinn tries to rebuild the relationships she destroyed when she fled, which may be harder than she realized. And her life gets more complicated when Jonah Walker returns, reminding her of the love she's never been able to forget. Or experience with anyone else since him. Jonah Walker became someone he didn't recognize when he left his hometown to escape his anguish over losing Quinn. He kept his family at arm's length and became a shell of his former self. But if he hopes to find redemption, he has to own his mistakes—especially if he wants another chance with Quinn. Together, they struggle to forgive and create a new future. But Quinn could lose Jonah forever if they can't overcome their past and the obstacles ahead of them.(This book was updated with a new cover and new material/editing in 2017.)
Cruel Prince
Ashley Jade - 2019
But four years later, here I am...back to finish my senior year at Royal Hearts Academy.And forced to face Jace Covington. My first friend. First crush. First kiss. The one I left behind.Only—he isn't the same boy I gave my heart to.This new Jace is as cruel as he is gorgeous.And he's determined to make my life a living hell. Along with the rest of his glorified family and crew of tyrants.They expect me to worship the ground they walk on like everyone else, but I'd rather eat dirt.If Jace Covington wants me gone...he'll have to try harder. Because I've never been the kind of girl to play by the rules.WARNING: Royal Hearts Academy is a New Adult/High School series of standalones filled with drama, a touch of angst, and boys who are bad to the bone. And when I say bad, I mean they are assholes with a capital A. If you're looking for a safe, sweet romance, this series is NOT for you. At all! Please don't say you weren't warned.WARNING: Royal Hearts Academy is a New Adult/High School series of standalones filled with drama, a touch of angst, and boys who are bad to the bone.This series is recommended for mature readers due to graphic language and sexual content.
A Love Letter to Whiskey
Kandi Steiner - 2016
Except this time, there was no rain, no anger, no wedding invitation — it was just us.It was just him — the old friend, the easy smile, the twisted solace wrapped in a glittering bottle.It was just me — the alcoholic, pretending like I didn’t want to taste him, realizing too quickly that months of being clean didn’t make me crave him any less.But we can’t start here.No, to tell this story right, we need to go back. Back to the beginning.Back to the very first drop.This is my love letter to Whiskey. I only hope he reads it.
If
Randi Cooley Wilson - 2018
The ifs that linger between the pages of this novel will break your heart and stay with you long after the final chapter. Emerson Shaw thought she’d left her old life behind her, but when she returns home for her best friend’s wedding, she has no idea her past is waiting to reclaim her. Dark and broken, Lincoln Daniels never wanted to find love. But when he met straight-laced Emerson, he fell. Hard. The only thing they seemed to have in common was an undeniable mutual attraction, but from the moment he laid eyes on her, there was something about her that called to him. Until he lost her. Consumed by their pasts, it took years to slowly glue together the shattered pieces of their what ifs. Just when Emerson is finally ready to let go and stop existing in a past full of pain and regret, Lincoln returns, turning her life upside down. What begins as a tentative friendship quickly escalates, and the two soon realize that all the ifs lingering between them no longer matter. What happens when two broken people meet, fall in love, and realize they can never be? What happens when all the what ifs no longer make sense? If you knew your heart would break, would you still fall? This book is intended for mature audiences.
Claimed (Armstrong Lovers, #1)
Chelsea McDonald - 2019
It was my time to serve our country, just like my father and my grandfather before me. The pain that throbbed in my chest every night I was away was the stone cold fact that I’d left her behind, not ever having told her how I felt. After twelve years and only a few short visits in-between, I’m finally back for good. I’ve waited long enough and I’m ready to take back the girl I let get away all those years ago.Finding out he was back in town isn’t too shocking, but finding out he’s back permanently - that’s a whole different story. He’s been my unicorn for as long as I can remember and the more I think about seeing him, the more I want to run and hide. Twelve years is a long time to live without someone in your life, we’ve both grown up and I doubt he’ll remember the little girl his brother dumped in middle school. Now that he’s back how do I hide the feelings of desire and heartbreak that he left me with all those years ago.
The Illusion of Annabella
Jessica Sorensen - 2015
She had dreams of going to college and becoming a dancer. But the summer before her senior year, the life she knew is ripped away from her, and she’s left wondering if it ever really existed in the first place.Six months later, Annabella is living an entirely different life. The loving family she had no longer exists, and the girl who dreamed of being a dancer can barely walk. She spends most of her time getting into trouble and living in denial over what happened. One night she takes things one step too far and is left dealing with the consequences.Put under house arrest, Annabella can no longer run away from her problems. With the help of her cute, sweet neighbor, Luca Benton, she rediscovers the girl she used to be, and finally learns the truth about what really happened that horrible day that changed her life forever.
When Forever Changes
Siobhan Davis - 2018
Perhaps I did, but I subconsciously chose to ignore them. From the time I was ten, when I first met Dylan, I knew he was my forever guy. Back then, I couldn’t put words to what I was feeling, but, as the years progressed, I came to recognize it for what it was—soul-deep love. The kind only very few people ever get to experience. Dylan was more than just my best friend, my childhood sweetheart, my lover. He was my soul mate. We were carved from the same whole—destined to be together forever. Until he changed. And I believed I was no longer good enough. Until he shattered me so completely, it felt like I ceased to exist. And I’d never experienced such heart-crushing pain. Until he leveled me a second time, and I truly wanted to die. But I had to stay strong because I wasn’t alone in this cruel twist of fate. I look to the sky, pleading with the stars, begging someone to tell me what I should do because I don’t know how to deal with this. I don’t know how to cope when my forever has changed, and I can’t help wondering if I had seen the signs earlier, if I’d pushed him, would it have been enough to save us? Or had fate already decided to alter our forever? Due to mature content and potential triggers this book is only recommended to readers over the age of eighteen.
Sophie & Carter
Chelsea Fine - 2011
Carter is overwhelmed by issues at home as he struggles to support his mother. Meanwhile, next door neighbor Sophie is left to care for her three younger siblings in place of their absent and troubled mother. All that holds these two best friends together is each other, and knowing that each night they'll sit together on Sophie's front porch swing and escape from reality, if just for awhile. But as their relationship reaches a turning point and high school graduation nears, will their friendship become something more?
Jack & Sadie
J.B. Salsbury - 2019
I left for college promising her I’d be back in four years. She stayed behind promising me she’d wait. We both broke our promises.When we bump into each other five years later my feelings for her come rushing to the surface. I want her back. She wants me gone. How quickly my Sadie Girl has forgotten—I’ve never been the type of man who accepts defeat. No matter the cost. Jack Daniels was my entire life. Until he wasn’t. Now he’s back and thinks we should pick up where we left off. I miss the simplicity of what we had. I miss how easily we fit together. Truthfully…I miss him.But if I allow him to get too close, he’ll see I’m not the same girl he left behind five years ago. He thinks I’m upset about our break up. The truth is so much worse.
Eleanor & Grey
Brittainy C. Cherry - 2019
As the young girl who first fell for him, I didn’t know much about life. I did know about his smiles, though, and his laughs, and the strange way my stomach flipped when he was near. Life was perfect…until it wasn’t, and when we were forced to go our separate ways, I held on to our memories, let go of my first crush, and wished for the day I’d find him again. When my wish came true, it was nothing like I imagined. I couldn’t have known when I took the nanny position that it would be his children I looked after, that my new boss would be that boy I used to know, that boy who was now a man—a cold, lonely, detached man. The smile and laugh I had loved so much were gone, now distant memories. Every part of him was covered in a fresh pain. When he realized who I was, he made me promise to do my job and my job only. He made me promise not to try to get to know him, not to recall the memories I’d treasured all this time. But, sometimes, I saw the boy I’d once known in his stormy eyes. I saw the Greyson who smiled and laughed, who had stolen a young girl’s heart, and there was no doubt in my mind that this boy was worth fighting for. I was given a second chance with the one who’d left his mark on me. All I hoped was that somehow I’d leave a mark on his soul, too.