Book picks similar to
Scarred by Nina Merrill


gothic
mystery-thiller
romance
short-stories

Griefing (King Henry Shorts, #5)


Richard Raley - 2013
    He returns to the Asylum adrift, unsure how to process the situation. But one thing is a constant: he's the Foul Mouth, he won't be grieving, he'll be GRIEFING, and it will be up to Ultra Class '09 to bear the brunt of the onslaught.

Duke's Heart


Vivian Rose Lee - 2013
    From the first moment, they met Caitlin “Cat” Smith and Ellington “Duke” Howard had an instant dislike for each other. Caitlin dislikes his arrogant, superior attitude, but he is Zoey Howard-Bryant (Player’s Heart) brother the best and only friend she has. Over the years and after many disagreements somehow she foolishly fell in love with the arrogant, over protective older brother. Love was something Cat avoided, convinced that she could live without it. She had issues in her life that had to be resolved before she could ever consider a relationship with any man, especially one with Ellington “Duke” Howard. Duke Howard knew Caitlin Smith to be stubborn, opinionated, and feisty and he wanted her. Over the years, he fought his attraction because he knew she did not like him, and didn’t mind telling him. She loved his sister and his brother but only putting up with him, until the night after his sister wedding when they found themselves making love through the night. After the best night of his life, she did what she does best. She ran.

Leaving A Thug For A Savage


Khadijah J. - 2017
    If a person loved you they would hurt you. She believed that and after experiencing that kind of love in a abusive home Sa'dai knew she had to get out unlike the girls around her she didn't use her body to escape the pain she used her brains.  When her dreams of becoming a nurse and securing a better future are coming true. She finds after a chance encounter that there is love in Hip-Hop and falls for a local rapper who promised her love in exchange for lies and deceit. With a heart full of hurt will she be able to feel her heart with love again? Savage Johnson was living up to the name his daddy gave him. He carried himself in the streets and in the sheets with many different women like a Savage should. Being proud of it until he ran into Sa’dai. Those eyes instantly drew him in. No woman had ever captured his heart just from a glance. Sa'dai was everything he wanted his future to look like. He hadn't spoken a word to her but he knew he had to make her his. Seeing she wasn't being treated right he was determined to turn from being a savage to her savior. He was going to love the hurt from her heart. ​In this urban tale of love and redemption we will uncover the story of two lovers battling the world as well as mending broken hearts.

Fell For The Plug Next Door


Candi B. - 2019
    For years, she stayed in a marriage that held no value or substance. She dedicated four years of her life to a man who lied, cheated, and walked all over her heart. At the age of twenty-four years old, she should have been wild and living her best life. After Xavier delivers another powerful blow to her heart, Ivy has no interest in sticking around to save her sunken marriage. The moment Ivy signs the divorce papers, she feels alive and free. She's on a mission to get her life back, and put the past behind her. When she parks her U-Haul in her neighbor's assigned spot, she comes face to face with the sexiest man on God’s green Earth. Since his junior year in high school, Zane worked the streets of Detroit, and now he was leaving his ruthless ways behind him and focusing on his upholstery shop. Zane was now just a regular guy, who was trying to make a way for his eight-year-old daughter. He had been with a few women here and there, but not anyone who could potentially capture his heart. Falling in love wasn't on his agenda, and if it was, his nagging baby mama, Timeka, wouldn't make it easy. After a frustrating day at work, all Zane wanted to do was go home, turn on his TV, and relax. He notices his new neighbor, and instantly, he is mesmerized by her good looks and perfect body. After a run in that leaves both Ivy and Zane wanting to do more than just borrow a cup of sugar, they avoid each other as much as possible. The inevitable occurs, and Ivy and Zane are forced to face the elephant in the room. Being in Zane's presence did something to Ivy, and she could no longer resist what her body and heart desired. Zane is falling hard for Ivy, but where there is happiness, evil lurks. When the past can't let you go, secrets are put to the forefront, and enemies are watching your every move, can Ivy and Zane survive the madness?

After Everything I've Done For You: A Chi-Town Soap Opera


Nicety - 2015
    Despite his past infidelities, she pushes hard to make it work. A night of snooping brings out a few secrets that could destroy their love forever. But someone in her corner might be willing to take Bianca's pain away if she let's them. Damita Paxton had been dealt a bad hand. After losing her job and being forced to move in with her cousin, Bianca, she tries to start her life over and begin a new. But a secret that she left back in Atlanta not only threatens her happiness but her life as well. Sunset Richmond is in love with a man who may never love her the way she loves him. With two kids on her hip, all she desires is to be a real family. Is she doomed to being the side chick forever? Will anyone be able to find the happiness they so desperately seek or is this a setup for failure?

Give her Love. Give her Power. (Hussle & Heart Book 1)


Grey Huffington - 2019
     The Hussle and Heart series, dedicated to the late Nipsey Hussle, travels to the slums of Channing City and places a magnifying glass on the lives of the biggest hustlers with the biggest hearts.

Salamanca Cottage


Mary Fitzgerald - 2014
    But Salamanca Cottage is not all that it seems and soon she finds that she is not alone. Then she has decide if the being she talks to and finds herself becoming fond of is real or merely a manifestation of her grief and longing.

Her Unexpected Husband


Chandra Priya - 2020
    He told her he would make her his wife and protect her. In her state of haze, she agreed.The stranger was her savior and she was thankful but was he really her husband? How did the handsome, charming man end up becoming Her Unexpected Husband?Note: This is a short and sweet romance with a happy ending.

My Heart Was A Fool: Esmin & Greigh's Story


BriAnn Danae - 2018
    There ain’t no leaving me.” – Esmin Though he never tried to fight it, Esmin didn’t think his initial attraction to Greigh would be anything more than what she tried to make it; forbidden. Up against a battle to keep her heart, and keep her brother’s out their business, he’s also coming to terms with becoming a dad. A role that his own father lacked in due to incarceration and one Esmin wanted to conquer regardless of his shortcomings. The undeniable connection Greigh felt with Esmin from the beginning, is much more than she expected it to be. She vowed to never cross the dangerous line that he walked on and went for playing it safe, but those lines were quickly blurred when she became pregnant. Learning to not only love him and the new life growing inside her, Greigh finds herself struggling to balance her life and their relationship. Falling in love and staying there isn’t an easy task. In fact, falling in love will be downright agonizing for this couple. When life throws a curve ball their way, Esmin and Greigh both must come out swinging at the perfect angle. But, at what price does love cost? And, will it be worth all their efforts in the end to fight and forgive or to let their hearts wander?

Loving Him Through The Storm


Kay Shanee - 2020
    As the owner of three daycare centers, she’s as much savvy as she is sultry. Despite her immediate attraction to Landon Maxwell, his preceding reputation declares him designated to the friend-zone. Until one fateful night…Notorious playboy, Landon Maxwell, is the much talked about wide receiver for the San Antonio Stars. He can have any woman he chooses…except Lexi Greene. She came with requirements and being noncommittal wasn’t going to suffice.But one night holds their friendship in the balance. Crossing the line could put their friendship at risk. Will Lexi risk heart break and give him a chance to prove his love? Will Landon let Lexi love him through the storm or let the demons of his past rain on his future? *This book is a spin-off of “The Love I Deserve.” Although you can read one without the other, you will get some background about how Landon and Lexi met in the aforementioned book.*

The Best Part of Me


Staci Brush - 2010
    The pair have been through rough times, so they decide a vacation is in order. Expecting to find a comfortable getaway, they encounter a phenomenon neither has ever experienced; True Love. Watch them grow and bloom as you experience their love with them.

Honkytonk Cowboys: I Love This Bar / Hell Yeah / My Give a Damn's Busted


Carolyn Brown - 2013
    Now get all three books for one low price: I Love This Bar, Hell, Yeah, and My Give a Damn's Busted. About the Books in this Contemporary Romance Bundle 1. I Love This Bar Serving two counties, the Honky Tonk is the gathering place for every hothead, thirsty rancher, and lusty lady looking for a good time. Owner Daisy O'Dell vows she'll run the place until they drag her cold dead body through the swinging doors. That is, until Jarod McElroy walks in, looking for a cold drink and a moment's peace from his ornery Uncle Emmitt. The minute Jarod sees Daisy, he knows he's met not only his own match, but Uncle Emmitt's as well. Now, if only he can convince her to come out from behind that bar and come on home with him... 2. Hell, Yeah When Cathy O'Dell buys the Honky Tonk, the nights of cowboys and country tunes come together to create the home she's always wanted. Then in walks a ruggedly handsome oil man who tempts her to trade in the happiness she's found at the Honky Tonk for a life on the road. Travis Henry has found his best friend and so much more in Cathy. When his job is done in Texas, how is he ever going to hit the road without her? 3. My Give a Damn's Busted Hank Wells thinks he can dig up dirt on the new owner of the Honky Tonk for his employer, but he's got no idea what kind of trouble he's courting. Larissa Morley isn't going down without a fight. If this dime store cowboy thinks he's going to get the best of her—or her Honky Tonk—then he's got another thing coming. As secrets emerge, and passion vies with ulterior motives, it's winner takes all at the Honky Tonk...

That Bona Fide Hood Love 2: Fire and Pure


Dymond Taylor - 2019
    Gaining his trust, took time and patience. Now, all that they have accomplished together, may be the end after she’s caught with the enemy; unknowingly. Fire is not only pissed off but hurt as well. Against his own will, he has caught feelings for Pure. The last thing he wanted to happen, but it did. Witnessing her, with one of the accomplices who robbed him, put a bad taste in Fire’s mouth. It’s only one way he knows how to handle snakes...death. Zoni is left devastated, after finding out she and her sister, had been sharing the same man without either of their knowledge. Talking about a tough pill to swallow. She’s conflicted between her love for Yurey and her loyalty to her sister. Do love conquers all or will she be forced to leave what her and Yurey once had in the past; even though it’s painful to do so?

Mind Reader - The Teenage Years: Book 4 - A Whole New Power


Katrina Kahler - 2020
    When she finds herself under attack yet again, she desperately seeks answers but soon discovers she has taken on more than she bargained for. All the while, Jack tries to hold her back in the hope of protecting her from the one person she is determined to confront. Amidst the turmoil, Julia Jones is faced with a new romance, which leads to yet another discovery. Mind Reader The Teenage Years Book 4 reveals all!

But You Deserve Better


B. Love - 2017
    Because of his deep relationship with his sisters and mother, he knew all that it took to make a woman feel loved and appreciated. Because he watched heartbreak lead one of his sisters to kill herself with the use of drugs and alcohol, he knew all that it took to break a woman. Lianne Rodgers is the epitome of a gifted soul. Her love for music blessed her with a record deal at the age of seventeen, and since then she’s been traveling the world for years gracing stage after stage with her tremendous talent. As much as she loves what she does, she’s tired – mentally, physically, and emotionally. When Lianne returns to Memphis for a break, she falls in love with Jabari’s cooking after a visit to his restaurant. She ordered the food to go and ate it at home to avoid being seen and recognized, but the food was so good she made her way back to his restaurant to meet the man behind the best meal she’d ever had in her life. Jabari is used to people singing his praises for his food, but Lianne’s praises touch him in a different way. A different place. And when she asks him to be her personal chef during her stay in Memphis he happily agrees just for the chance to be near her. They say food nourishes the soul, and Jabari uses his culinary skills to reach Lianne in a way that no man ever has. There’s just one problem – she’s in a relationship with her manager. When her break is over, Lianne is committed to returning to her man, her life, and her career… but after waiting for a woman like Lianne for years… Jabari has no plans of letting her get away from Memphis or him that easily.