Book picks similar to
Down by the Water by Anna Cruise


new-adult
contemporary
romance
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Just One Year


Penelope Ward - 2020
    On the first day of orientation, I had an altercation with an infuriating British dude in a campus bathroom. (The ladies’ room was out of order. So, I used the men’s room. Don’t judge.)I got home later that night and realized that the foreign student we were expecting to rent a room in my parents’ house was allergic to our cat.So, the spare room went to someone else: Caleb—the British guy from the men’s room. And so it began…my love-hate story with Caleb Yates. Or was it hate-love in that order?The guy knew how to push every one of my buttons. Sometimes I’d email him to express my aggravation and disdain.He’d actually rewrite my own words and send them back to me. That was the type of infuriating person Caleb was.So frustrating.And…Sometimes incredibly funny and endearingly sweet.And hot. He eventually grew on me, and Caleb soon became one of my best friends that year. Too bad he was headed back to England soon, so nothing could happen between us—for so many reasons. I definitely couldn't fall in love with him, especially since all we had was just one year.

Chasing Leah


C.A. Williams - 2012
    Being abandoned by her mom and ignored by her grandma, shes basically on her own dealing with life's everyday struggles and added into the mix is a three year old. But as soon as she locks eyes with a tattooed up bad boy looking Chase O'Neil, shes hooked and has no where to run while she fights the overgrowing attraction that ignites between them.

The Sheikh’s Contract Fiancée


Leslie North - 2017
    So when he asks her to travel to the Middle East to complete an important business merger, Annabelle sees an opportunity. It’s her chance to prove her worth, but the culture clash proves difficult for the strong-minded American woman. She’s supposed to work closely with the son of the oil company’s CEO, but Annabelle’s not sure what to make of Imaad. He may be gorgeous, but she refuses to be cowed by his good looks or his old-fashioned ways. Sheikh Imaad is ruthless in his business dealings for the family oil company, but standing up to his traditional father is not as simple. When he learns his father’s full intentions--that the business arrangements include an arranged marriage to the American executive, Imaad wants to refuse. His intended bride is both beautiful and brash, but Imaad has a plan. If he can convince Annabelle to go along with the fake marriage, they might both get what they truly want. Sounds simple, but Imaad soon realizes it won’t be easy to tame a western woman. To please their families and prove their worth, just how far will Imaad and Annabelle be willing to go? And what will happen when the charade starts to get a little too real?

Blue Sky Days


Marie Landry - 2012
    She has spent most of her life trying to please her frigid, miserable mother - studying hard, getting good grades, avoiding the whole teenage rebellion thing - and now she feels she has no identity beyond that. Because she spent so many years working hard and planning every moment of her life, she doesn't have any friends, has never had a boyfriend, and basically doesn't know who she is or what she really wants from life. Working two part-time jobs to save money for college hasn't helped her make decisions about her future, so she decides it's time for a change. She leaves home to live with her free-spirited, slightly eccentric Aunt Daisy in a small town that makes Emma feel like she's stepped back in time. When Emma meets Nicholas Shaw, everything changes - he's unlike anyone she's ever met before, the kind of man she didn't even know existed in the 21st century. Carefree and spirited like Daisy, Nicholas teaches Emma to appreciate life, the beauty around her, and to just let go and live. Between Daisy and Nicholas, Emma feels like she belongs somewhere for the first time in her life, and realizes that you don't always need a plan - sometimes life steers you where you're meant to be. Life is wonderful, an endless string of blue sky days, until Nicholas is diagnosed with cancer, and life changes once again for Emma in ways she never thought possible. Now it's time for her to help Nicholas the way he's helped her. Emma will have to use her new-found strength, and discover along the way if love really is enough to get you through.

Crossing the Line


Simone Elkeles - 2018
    But his plans to keep his head down and stay out of trouble are shattered the minute he meets the beautiful and totally out of his league Dalila Sandoval.Dalila Sandoval shouldn’t even know someone like Ryan Hess. The daughter of one of the wealthiest lawyers in Mexico, Dalila is focused on studying and planning for her bright future. Ryan is only a distraction from her dreams, but she’s never felt more alive than when she’s by his side.Ryan and Dalila are wrong for each other in every way. And yet they can’t resist the sparks that fly when they’re together. But their love is like a flame burning too close to the fuse. Something is going to explode. Will their love be strong enough to survive? Or will it burn them both?

Star-Crossed


Luna Lacour - 2014
    It is intended for mature readers.It started with a game - seduce the new teacher.Eighteen-year-old Kaitlyn Laurent is living the American Dream. Born into a wealthy, socialite family with more opulent surroundings and material things than any girl could even fathom, Kaitlyn is the fresh, young face amidst a sea of morally-amiss Manhattan Debutantes. She is educated, poised, and on the outside - entirely virtuous. Her life, in short, is perfect.Or so it would seem. Inside the walls of her Upper East Side mansion, Kaitlyn is struggling. After her parents' divorce and her father's remarriage to a beautiful but otherwise utterly vapid woman, Kaitlyn quickly finds herself living in a realm of self-created fantasy, completely detached and entirely clashing with her new family – particularly, her classmate-turned-stepbrother, Marius. Arrogant and with a penchant for playing games, he is intrigued and infatuated by Kaitlyn's faux-chaste outer facade that she uses to cover an otherwise calloused heart.When the two of them enter into into their final semester at Trinity Prep, and the buzz around campus is that a gorgeous new teacher has set foot in the classroom, Marius makes Kaitlyn a bet: seduce the man who is now her Literature teacher.If she wins, she gets his trust fund. Money that she can use to finally escape a life that she has come to loathe.If Marius wins...he gets her virginity.When an initial spark turns into full-blown obsession, and her affections are inevitably returned – Kaitlyn learns that there are no actions without consequence, and some affairs are simply star-crossed.

Isn't She Lovely


Lauren Layne - 2013
    Lauren Layne puts a New Adult spin on Pygmalion, also the inspiration for Pretty Woman, and gives the classic love story its edgiest twist yet."Who knew that pretending you're not falling for someone would be so much more difficult than pretending that you are?"Stephanie Kendrick gave up her whole summer to ace her NYU film school screenwriting course, so she's pissed to be stuck with a preppy, spoiled frat boy as her writing partner. Then again, with her piercings, black-rimmed eyes, and Goth wardrobe, Stephanie isn't exactly Ethan Price's type, either. He's probably got his eye on some leggy blonde with a trust fund... or does he?As the summer scene kicks off in the Hamptons, Ethan is desperate to make his snobbish mother forget the pedigreed girl who broke his heart. While Stephanie's a stretch as a decoy, the right makeover and a pastel cardigan just might do the trick. She may not love the idea of playing Ethan's brainless Barbie girlfriend, but the free rent and luxurious digs make a tempting offer. So does the promise of a ready-made screenplay idea inspired by their charade.But when Stephanie steps into Ethan's privileged world, the "acting" begins to feel all too real. The kissing and touching that were intended to fool the Hamptons crowd wind up manipulating "them." And Stephanie faces a question she's too afraid to ask: Is Ethan falling for the real her or for the dolled-up princess he wants to see?

Famous in Love


Rebecca Serle - 2014
    Meet Paige Townsen, Rainer Devon, and Jordan Wilder…When Paige Townsen, a young unknown, gets cast in the movie adaptation of a blockbuster book series, her life changes practically overnight. Within a month, Paige has traded the quiet streets of her hometown for a crowded movie set on the shores of Maui, and is spending quality time with her co-star Rainer Devon, one of People’s Sexiest Men Alive. But when troubled star Jordan Wilder lands the role of the other point in the movie’s famous love triangle, Paige’s crazy new life gets even crazier.In this coming-of-age romance inspired by the kind of celeb hookups that get clever nicknames and a million page views, Paige must figure out who she is – and who she wants – while the whole world watches.

Glass Hearts


Autumn Doughton - 2013
    No matter how much she studies, Ellie Glass can't prepare for every aspect of life. A fact she realizes after a chance encounter with a young musician leaves her scrambling to speak in coherent sentences. Scruffy, long-haired, and undeniably sexy, Ben is the exact opposite of her type. So why is it that Ellie can’t stop thinking about him?When fate intervenes and the two are thrown together for a second time, Ellie gets more than she bargained for. With the help of her friends and a newfound romance, she begins to redefine herself and slowly realizes that happiness isn't something you can plan for. This is the captivating story of an undeniable attraction, the choices that we make, and ultimately, the unexpected power of love.**Formerly published under the title On an Edge of Glass**

Fighting Fate


Amity Hope - 2013
    Now, she’s running from her old life. Not sure where else to go, she decides to move back to Laurel, where she plans to renovate the farmhouse her grandmother left her. She has a new job and is looking forward to a new start in life. The last thing she expects is to bump into her old high school flame.Cole Montgomery knows what it’s like to run from something. Due to an unfortunate case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, he felt he had no choice other than to leave Laurel and the girl he loved right after high school graduation. But now it’s eight years later and he’s back. And by some strange twist of fate, she’s back too. Cole is determined to right his wrongs. Even if it means finally telling Sarah the real reason he broke her heart. He needs her to know that he only wanted to keep her safe then as well as now. Because the truth is, he’s still worried his past will come back to haunt them both. What he doesn’t know is that Sarah’s past haunts her too. Winning her back might be the easy part. It’s keeping her safe that might be a challenge.

Above All Else


Dana Alison Levy - 2020
    The goal that kept them going: summiting Mount Everest, the highest point on earth. Accompanied by Tate’s dad, the two will finally make the ultimate climb at the end of their senior year. But neither Rose nor Tate are fully in the game—not only is there a simmering romance between them, but Rose can’t get her mind off her mother’s illness, while Tate constantly fails to live up to his ambitious father’s standards.Everyone on their expedition has something to prove, it seems. And not everyone is making the best decisions while short on oxygen and physically and mentally exhausted. The farther up the mountain they go, the more their climbing plans unravel and the more isolated each team member becomes. Rose and Tate will have to dig deep within themselves to determine what—or who—they value above all else.In a fictional tale as riveting, irresistible, and heartbreaking as Into Thin Air, teen climbing prodigies Rose and Tate attempt to summit—and survive—Mount Everest.

Derailed


Alyssa Rose Ivy - 2012
    Expecting to lay low until she can figure out what else to do with her life, she finds herself in the arms of her high school sweetheart, the boy who represents everything from the past she tried to leave behind.Looking for an escape, she instead finds a way back to the girl she almost forgot existed and a future she never dreamed possible.

Shattered


Elizabeth Lee - 2012
    Big plans that included getting the hell out of the little town she’d grown up in with her two best friends. When she decided it was time to let one of them know her true feelings for him; a change of plans resulted in a tragic turn of events. Now, Alyssa is left alone to find her way out of the darkness that an untimely death has left in its wake.Jesse Vaughn was never good at letting people in. He’d learned a long time ago that it’s easier that way because people leave, or, unfortunately, die. The one person he wanted to let in doesn’t want him anymore. The only problem is he can’t stop thinking about her. Jesse returns to the childhood home he left behind with one goal in mind… to convince her that they should be together. When Jesse finds Alyssa she’s not the same girl he left behind. She’s wild, reckless and hell-bent on not giving Jesse a second chance. Lucky for Jesse, his stubborn streak has always been a mile-wide and he’s not about to give up on her.When your life has been shattered can you really pick up all the pieces and move on?

Our Song


Jordanna Fraiberg - 2013
    But after a near-fatal car accident, she’s haunted by a broken heart and a melody that she cannot place. Then Olive meets Nick. He’s dark, handsome, mysterious . . . and Olive feels connected to him in a way she can’t explain. Is there such a thing as fate? The two embark on a whirlwind romance—until Nick makes a troubling confession. Heartbroken, Olive pieces together what really happened the night of her accident and arrives at a startling revelation. Only by facing the truth can she uncover the mystery behind the song and the power of what it means to love someone.

The Mister


E.L. James - 2019
    Life has been easy for Maxim Trevelyan. With his good looks, aristocratic connections, and money, he’s never had to work and he’s rarely slept alone. But all that changes when tragedy strikes and Maxim inherits his family’s noble title, wealth, and estates, and all the responsibility that entails. It’s a role he’s not prepared for and one that he struggles to face.   But his biggest challenge is fighting his desire for an unexpected, enigmatic young woman who’s recently arrived in England, possessing little more than a dangerous and troublesome past.  Reticent, beautiful, and musically gifted, she’s an alluring mystery, and Maxim’s longing for her deepens into a passion that he’s never experienced and dares not name. Just who is Alessia Demachi? Can Maxim protect her from the malevolence that threatens her? And what will she do when she learns that he’s been hiding secrets of his own?   From the heart of London through wild, rural Cornwall to the bleak, forbidding beauty of the Balkans, The Mister is a roller-coaster ride of danger and desire that leaves the reader breathless to the very last page.