Book picks similar to
Summer Letters by Dan Petermeier


romance
first-reads
fiction
contemporary

The Thin Wall


R. Cyril West - 2014
    Without warning, Russian tanks have crossed the frontier and are pouring into the city. The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia has begun. Arriving with the troops is Colonel Grigori Dal, a seasoned KGB officer and coldblooded killer. While the country slips into chaos, Dal uses the fighting as cover to apprehend an American prisoner of war from a military prison in Prague. Within days, only a cursed woman and a troubled war hero will stand between him and protecting the Cold War’s darkest secret: proof U.S. servicemen were secretly transferred to the Soviet Union.R. Cyril West’s award winning novel of tragic love, suspense, intrigue, and the dangerous machinations of the human heart—The Thin Wall.*BRAG Medallion Award

Birds of California


Katie CotugnoKatie Cotugno
    James dropped out of the spotlight after a spectacularly public crash and burn. The tabloids called her crazy and self-destructive and said she'd lost her mind. Now in her late twenties, Fiona believes her humiliating past is firmly behind her. She's finally regained a modicum of privacy, and she won't let anything--or anyone--mess it up.Unlike Fiona, Sam Fox, who played her older brother on the popular television show Birds of California, loves the perks that come with being a successful Hollywood actor: fame, women, parties, money. When his current show gets cancelled and his agent starts to avoid his calls, the desperate actor enthusiastically signs on for a Birds of California revival. But to make it happen, he needs Fiona St. James.Against her better judgment, Fiona agrees to have lunch with Sam. What happens next takes them both by surprise. Sam is enthralled by Fiona's take-no-prisoners attitude, and Fiona discovers a lovable goofball behind Sam's close-up-ready face. Long drives to the beach, late nights at dive bars . . . theirs is the kind of kitschy romance Hollywood sells. But just like in the rom-coms Fiona despises, there's a twist that threatens her new love. Sam doesn't know the full story behind her breakdown. What happens when she reveals the truth?

Falling in Between


Devon Ashley - 2012
    And all I had to do was throw myself off a cliff, drown in a pond in my undies and let him put his hands on my breasts to bring me back to life. Yay me! (yeah, that’s sarcasm) Yep, that pretty much sums up the most craptastic night of Jenna Baker’s life. She drowns after jumping off a cliff, meets a hotty named Chance in the pearlescent in-between and is brought back to life by her soon-to-be boyfriend Robert.Just when things start to move forward with Robert, the guy she'd been crushing on for a year now, in walks the man of her dreams – literally. Chance suddenly appears in her dream every time she closes her eyes. So it's Robert by day and Chance by night. One in the real world and one in the dream world. What could possibly go wrong?Absolutely nothing – until she comes face to face with the guy she met in the in-between, and realizes her romantic rendezvous with Chance may be more than just her imagination.New Adult Paranormal Romance (think old-school paranormal. Twilight Zone-ish, not sparkly supernatural creatures.) Mature YA (17+) / Coming of Age / New AdultNote: Language and Sexual Situations.Official Book Page: http://devonashleyauthor.com/books/fa...

Johnny Doesn't Drink Champagne


Cody Young - 2011
    That’s okay… isn’t it? He drives a Lamborghini. So what? He was born in 1462. Uh-oh. He seeks revenge, but there is one person standing in his way. Me. On a high school trip to London, Madison Lambourne meets seductive stranger Johnny De Vere, who believes he knows her already, and is torn between love and revenge. Eager to learn more about this beautiful, lonely young man, Madison agrees to go with him to a re-enactment at the Tower of London. Dressed as a highborn medieval lady in a black velvet gown, she accidentally slips through a doorway that leads to the past. Knowing she will not last long on the streets of medieval London, Johnny must follow her… with devastating consequences for them both. A wild time-travel adventure full of love, lies, mystery and betrayal.

Carolina Reckoning


Lisa Carter - 2013
    Despite the influence of her best friend, Valerie, a strong Christian, Alison remains aloof from God and is determined to handle this crisis her own way. But Alison may not get that chance. Frank never makes it home. Soon his body is found on a lonely back-country road in antebellum Weathersby Historic Park where Frank served on the board of directors and where Alison, with a degree in landscape design, was a volunteer garden docent. Homicide detective Mike Barefoot, a Cherokee native from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, immediately puts Alison at the top of his suspect list. He finds himself drawn to her--and not just because she had motive for the crime. As an army veteran, Mike usually keeps his emotional walls high. And as a detective, he knows not to get involved with murder suspects. So why he is so attracted to Alison? Can he fight his feelings for her--and the stirrings in his heart toward God?

A Dancer's Guide to Africa


Terez Mertes Rose - 2018
    Vowing to restart as far from home as possible, she accepts a two-year teaching position with the Peace Corps in Africa. It’s a role she’s sure she can perform. But in no time, Fiona realizes she’s traded her problems in Omaha for bigger ones in Gabon, a country as beautiful as it is filled with contradictions. Emotionally derailed by Christophe, a charismatic and privileged Gabonese man who can teach her to let go of her inhibitions but can’t commit to anything more, threatened by an overly familiar student with a menacing fixation on her, and drawn into the compelling but potentially dangerous local dance ceremonies, Fiona finds herself at increasing risk. And when matters come to a shocking head, she must reach inside herself, find her dancer’s power, and fight back. Blending humor and pathos, A DANCER’S GUIDE TO AFRICA takes the reader along on a suspense-laden, sensual journey through Africa’s complex beauty, mystery and mysticism.

Shatter (The Choosy Beggars Series, #1)


Charisse Moritz - 2020
    In her defense, she’s a little preoccupied as the caretaker of five younger siblings, one dog, one cat, facing a mountain of bills and determined to keep her family together. The eternal optimist, she just needs to try harder, be better, take a deep breath and definitely shouldn’t bring home another stray dog or an angry, scary and scarred boy who is obviously in desperate need of a hug. After a stint in juvie, Taz is back for senior year, and every minute is a struggle. His only defense is silence. Keeping quiet avoids the slaps, hits, threats and is as close to safe as he can manage. Until Tia West convinces him of possibilities he never knew existed. She fills every dark, empty space with a lightness he’s never experienced before, and the only way to keep her is by speaking up for himself. But his secrets are the kind that devastate and destroy.

The Complete Swanson Court Trilogy: Drawn to You - Addicted to You - Lost in You


Serena Grey - 2018
    I pretended to be someone else. Now, he's found me. And he's determined to make me pay for deceiving him. But how can I resist when the payment he demands is so, so sweet? On the night she discovers her ex's engagement, Rachel meets Landon, the sexiest man she's ever seen, and he mistakes her for a hooker. The thing is, he's so sexy...what harm can there be in losing herself in his touch just for one night?Landon prefers his women beautiful and sophisticated, with no desire for commitment, so when his brother ignores his protests and sends him a hooker on his birthday, he's surprised by how willing he is to continue paying for her services. It should be easy, except she's no hooker, and she has no intention of letting him into her life.As the billionaire owner of Swanson Court Hotels, Landon is used to getting what he wants, and Rachel is not going to be an exception.This collection includes Drawn to You, Addicted to You, and Lost in You.

Love and Shenanigans


Zara Keane - 2014
    When she discovers the drunken vows she exchanged with the groom during a wild Las Vegas trip eight years previously mean they're legally married, her future plans ricochet out of control.Gavin Maguire's life is low on drama, high on stability, and free of pets. But Gavin hadn't reckoned on Fiona blasting back into his life and crashing his wedding. In the space of twenty-four hours, he loses a fiancée and a job, and gains a wife and a puppy. Can he salvage his bland-but-stable life? More importantly, can he resist losing his heart to Fiona all over again?

The Rookie and The Rockstar


Jiffy Kate - 2021
    With her next album set to drop in less than two months, what Gossipers are dying to know is: is this the real deal or the latest publicity ploy from Camp Carradine? #TheRookieandTheRockstar Baseball News has been following the developing story of rookie third baseman, Bo Bennett, and singer, Lola Carradine. With this being a crucial time in the young athlete's life, finally making it to the Big Leagues, we have to ask ourselves: is this the right move this early in his career or will the rocker be too much of a distraction?

Where It All Lands


Jennie Wexler - 2021
    Never fallen in love. Moved from city to city by her father’s unrelenting job, it’s too hard to care for someone. Trust in anything. The pain of leaving always hurts too much. But she’ll soon learn to trust, to love.Twice.Drew and Shane have been best friends through everything. The painful death of Shane's dad. The bitter separation of Drew's parents. Through sleepaway camps and family heartache, basketball games and immeasurable loss, they've always been there for each other.When Stevie meets Drew and Shane, life should go on as normal.But a simple coin toss alters the course of their year in profound and unexpected ways.Told in dual timelines, debut author Jennie Wexler delivers a heartbreaking and hopeful novel about missed opportunities, second chances, and all the paths that lead us to where we are.

Where We Left Off


J. Alex Blane - 2012
    Others you wish you simply had the opportunity to remember. Mason Everett found himself in the center of both, as he felt the warmth of an autumn sun graze his face through the tinted windows.A successful Real-estate developer, Mason had his picture perfect life. He was young, handsome, wealthy and single. No stranger to frequent hook ups at the local night clubs he avoided relationships at all costs living tirelessly by one rule:“Never let anyone close enough again to hurt you”Until he found himself falling for Sydney McCail, a young woman he met at his brother’s wedding. In the midst of a developing relationship Mason’s past begins to surface causing him to push Sydney away in fear of her finding out a secret he’d kept hidden for most of his adult life. In the wake of a tragic accident she finds that what she thought she knew was only the beginning, and what happens from there leaves them both searching for answers to a single question in what turns out to be a startling outcome, Where We Left Off.

Nocturne


Andrea Randall - 2013
    Brilliant, eclectic and passionate, she lives music, but struggles with her plans for the future.Gregory Fitzgerald is one of the most renowned cellists of his generation. A member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and professor at the Conservatory, he is laser focused on his career to the exclusion of friends, family and especially romance.When Gregory and Savannah’s paths cross in the classroom, it threatens to challenge more than their wildly differing beliefs on music. Friendships, ethics, and careers are put on the line as Gregory and Savannah play a symphony of passion and heartbreak. In the final movement, Gregory and Savannah are handed their greatest challenge, as the loss of absolutely everything they’ve held as truths hangs in the balance.

Kiss the Bride: The Wedding Dress\The Wedding Kiss\Sparks Fly


Lucy Kevin - 2014
    She needs some of that magic to rub off when she meets charming P.I. Gareth Cavendish, who delivers some unexpected news. The Wedding Kiss Rose Martin is the owner of Rose Chalet. She's so busy planning weddings for everyone else that she doesn't realize her own special someone has been by her side all this time! Sparks Fly Businessman Will Scott only agrees to a feng-shui design consultation to be polite. He thinks the whole thing is hocus-pocus—until he gets to know interior designer Angelina Morgan and his no-nonsense demeanor falls under the magic power of love.

Julian


Piper Shelly - 2012
    Thank God, in six weeks, I’ll be eighteen and free!Except, a certain stupid sweater in my backpack—okay, okay! I didn’t actually pay for it—lands me at court. And, look at that…my mother is back, too.I want to keel over dead when the judge sentences me to time in France with her. Actually, I take that back, I want her to keel over dead! And then somebody says she has cancer. Wow, I’ve never had a wish fulfilled this fast. But until that happens—or I turn eighteen, whichever comes first—I’m required to work in some unknown family’s vineyards. Yeah, right…France, however, holds another surprise for me. Julian.He doesn’t miss a chance to provoke me, and for some reason he seems to foresee each step of my brilliant escape plan. What the hell—?But then he makes a tiny mistake. And suddenly, I’m confronted with a secret that makes my blood run cold.