Book picks similar to
The Scars of You by Rachael Tonks
contemporary
romance
abuse
mafia
Imperfect Bastard
Pamela Ann - 2016
Falling in love with your brother's best friend can be catastrophic...so is unrequited love. Love was one hell of a mother*&c#!$. Not only was it addictive, but it was that kind of drug that could get you so high you floated out of your physical existence, and then it had the potential to drop you more swiftly than a lactose-intolerant monkey could shamelessly take a crap. It was so powerful, in fact, that it could drive any sane, lucid person to become thoughtless, mental to the point of destruction, consumed with taking desperate measures in order to win what they yearned for the most. But playing with fire could end up engulfing me inflames, burning every ounce of me until I was left in ashes, a speck of dirt that could be smeared and wiped away, left to be forgotten, unloved, alone. Drew Cavendish was every woman's bad boy fantasy. Not only was he cool and smart with a bevy of women lapping up everything he did; he also happened to be my brother's best friend and secretly the love of my life. After losing my virginity to him, I hadn't seen him since. Now I was moving to study at NYU and about to live with my brother ... in a condo where Drew lived, as well. At one point, he had meant the world to me, but circumstances had changed. Consequently, even though the palpable attraction was intoxicating, I knew better than to succumb to his easy charm. I would try to keep my composure and stay aloof. There was no need for panic. Yet my heart was a beat away from having a serious meltdown. I would survive this as I had all my life--by loving him from a quiet distance.
Interference
Hazel Grace - 2019
It was all I had left of my dad, a memory I promised myself to keep alive.Until a freckled-face, redhead sauntered into Freemont High and became the unattainable. My best friend wanted her. I, on the other hand, wanted to annihilate her.However, it didn’t occur to me that she wielded more power under her sweet and innocent facade than I expected. They say not to judge a book by its cover, and I should’ve listened.Her revenge on me is sweet, though, but in the end, it’ll all be mine.I’ll light every word, every last page stitched between her pretty cover in untamed flames…until she’s nothing but ash.Left to rot in the red dust of the playing field.
The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
Amelia Wilde - 2021
An heiress lost at sea. And the treasure of a lifetime.He’s beautiful. Calculating. Cruel. And he’s taken me hostage.When pirates board my boyfriend’s yacht, I jump overboard to save myself. Drifting asea. Until one man rescues me from the endless ocean.Except he has plans of his own. I’m worth too much money for ransom. He’ll keep me on his ship and in his bed. The real danger lies in his dark-depth eyes. He wants more from me than money. Than passion. He wants everything.He rescued me, but I’m far from safe. There’s an entire sea of danger threatening to drag me under.The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by USA Today bestselling author Amelia Wilde is a dangerously sexy contemporary romance that will blow you out of the water.
The Monster
B.B. Blaque - 2017
Before I was known as His Excellency, The Bishop... Before…I was a Master... I was simply Jordan... I was evil... I was… A MONSTER I prowled the streets of Hollywood, hidden by the shadows. Stalking the minds of women, I fed my insatiable hunger for tears, pain & total control This is my twisted story...in my words It’s not romantic I’m not a hero There is no happily ever after for me (This book can be read as a stand alone)
The Maiden
Celia Aaron - 2018
But I've discovered so much more, and the darkness here is seducing me, pulling me down until all I can think of is him. Adam Monroe, the Prophet's son, a dark prince to an empire that grows by the day. He is tasked with keeping me safe from the wolves of the outside world. But the longer I stay at the Cloister, the more I realize the wolves are already inside and under the Prophet's control. If Adam discovers the real reason I'm here, he'll bay for my blood with the rest of them. Until then, I will be Delilah, an obedient servant of the Prophet during the day and Adam's Maiden at night.Author's Note: If you have a trigger, this book will pull it. The Maiden is the first book of The Cloister Series. The Prophet will release in May, and the conclusion to the series, The Church, will release in June.
Black
T.L. Smith - 2016
I am strong, but I have scars. I am an angel, but the devil. I met her when I was sixteen and she was a breath of fresh air. She swooped in, making me smile. But then she left, taking my next breath with her. Her smile could light up a room, making my black heart pitter patter. I found her again ten years later, with a syringe in her arm. Blood coming from between her legs. She was broken and I was glad she was broken. She wouldn't think less of me and my damaged ways.
Pennies
Pepper Winters - 2016
You'd do best to remember that." Once upon a time, I was an eighteen year old psychology student.Now, I’m a man’s property.Stolen and sold, I’ve been decorated in bruises since the day my world changed two years ago.I suffer in silence, I crave freedom, but I never break.I can’t.Until he arrives.Elder Prest, the only man to look at me and see me. The only man more ruthless than my owner.He wants me for reasons I don’t understand.He claims me for one night then leaves and never looks back.Until he returns.And life becomes much more complicated.
Blind Deception
Sandy Alvarez - 2021
It was an easy choice to make when offered the opportunity to prospect.Time and time again, he has proven his loyalty, and now, years later, Austin proudly wears the club's patch.New Orleans is where he first lay eyes on Lelani. She needs their help, and he wants nothing more than to protect her—to claim her as his own.The moment Austin allows himself to kiss her it become his undoing.At the age of thirteen, Lelani Mancini's world was shattered when she lost her parents, along with her eyesight, in a tragic accident.Lelani's brother blames her for everything.Her parents' deaths leave a gaping hole in the Mancini family.Feeling defeated and lost, Lelani struggles to adjust to a life of darkness. Though terrified of the unknown, she finds a strength within herself to move on.Years later, Lelani uncovers a secret, with her at the center of the deception.She puts her trust in the wrong hands, and it almost costs Lelani her life.Those who should protect her turn out to be the ones she fears the most.All that she has ever known is gone.The darkness Lelani lives in is suffocating.Until she finds light in an overprotective, tattooed Kings of Retribution MC member.Loving Austin is dangerous. Now, to protect her new life, Lelani is the one keeping a secret.
Merciless
Willow Winters - 2018
Women like her are made to destroy men like me. I couldn’t resist her though. Given to me to start a war; I was too eager to accept. But I didn’t know what she’d do to me. That she would change everything. She sees through me in a way no one else ever has. Her innocence and vulnerability make me weak for her and I hate it.I know better than to give in to temptation.A ruthless man doesn’t let a soul close to him.A cold-hearted man doesn’t risk anything for anyone.A powerful man with a beautiful woman at his mercy… he doesn’t fall for her.
Shattered Skull
Tabatha Vargo - 2020
The second time, he was putting his fist through my brother’s face. Now he’s everywhere I look. He’s making my life hell with his vulgar remarks and seductive lure, but it’s not my fault my brother joined The Border Lords, his rival crew. I keep my nose out of their business and my head in the books, yet he’s always there provoking me. Dragging me into their conflict.Everyone in town knows you don’t mess with the Sons of Sinister, but no one ever told me what to do when a Son of Sinister messes with me.New York Times bestselling author Tabatha Vargo invites you to fall in love with the Sons of Sinister! A new adult spin on MC books with all the grunge, angst, and dirty, foul-mouthed biker boys who know how to handle curves.The Sons of Sinister consists of four standalone novels. Shattered Skull, Dirty Saint, Ruthless Crow, & Joker’s Wild.This series is the Blow Hole Boys meets crotch rockets meets naughty, bully bastards who don’t give a f*ck and the good girls who can’t help but fall for them! They run the streets, the money, and can outride any other crew on the streets.
Protector
Michelle Horst - 2016
A Stand Alone Suspense Romance I’ve always been a hunter, ruthless to the core. I don’t take prisoners and I show no mercy. Then my best friend and his family are taken. Only one member of his family survives the assault. Riley. Her wounded eyes beg me to keep her safe, but she’s only a reminder of the failure I am. Being stuck in the same house, I’m forced to acknowledge her. Her hot body. Her sweet smile. Her seductive mouth.I can only lie to myself for so long before I have to face the truth. It’s not just her forgiveness I want. I want to make her mine. All of her. The broken pieces as well. I want to feel her trembling under my touch. I want to hear her breaths racing as I take her. But there’s still someone out there hunting us. He’s taking out my team and now he’s coming after Riley. Let him come. I’ll make him suffer for threatening to hurt her. I’ll kill him for murdering those closest to me. The killing comes easy. But loving is hard. I’ll always have enemies and to protect Riley I might just have to let her go. ** A Stand Alone Romance. Not recommended if you don't enjoy dark romance with sensitive scenes. +18 Only. All books have HEA and no cheating. **
Alarick
Bella Jewel - 2020
When her mother marries into the King’s Descendants Motorcycle Club, everything she thought she knew is about to change. A world she didn’t even know existed is going to consume her. Her new step brother and friend, Alarick, is the only thing that keeps her sane as she begins to learn that the life she knew and trusted, and the life she’s now living, are two very different things. As she discovers the club, and all the dangers it holds, she finds herself tangled in a world she can’t even begin to comprehend. It’s dangerous. It scares her. He’s dangerous. He scares her. Their love will become toxic. Their hearts will become entangled. Everything about him will make her question herself. When tragedy strikes, Briella knows she needs to run. Needing freedom and time away from the pain more than she needs anything else, she leaves her family behind, she leaves him behind, and starts her life anew. However, like all good things, an end is in sight to her new found freedom and she’s forced to go back home to the place she vowed never to return. A place where Alarick is now President. A place where her sister is now missing. A place where so much pain hides in the darkest of corners. A place where secrets and lies fill all the broken gaps and happiness is a deadly trap. A place where he does not want her. Briella will return with her own secrets. She will have to face the man she ran from. She will discover everything she thought she knew was a lie. She will enter a world that is so much darker than she remembers. She will go back to where it all began, to the King’s Descendants Motorcycle Club.
XV
Lana Sky - 2019
Armed with only her instincts, Ellen must resist her captor for as long as she can—which is easier said than done the more she's exposed to the complex man beneath the beast.Because Mischa Stepanov isn’t a mindless monster—he’s a wolf, and she’s the unwitting doe caught in his midst. Unraveling the torment of his past may be her only hope of salvation...Or the secrets uncovered may destroy them both.
Trigger
M. Piper - 2019
Every time the girl looked at me it was like she knew exactly what I was thinking. And why I was thinking it. It’s the why part that bothered me the most. I never wanted a girl like Sienna in my life. I never wanted a girl to embed herself into my soul so deep just trying to forget about her felt worse than slicing layers of skin off. I never wanted to feel like this. For anyone. But I had her and I fucking let her go. I let her go, and she filled the void. A void I’ve never been able to fill. Not in the ten years since I created it. I’ve tried my hardest, but nothing I do makes the hole feel any less painful. But now she’s here. In my city. In my shop. And I’ve been handed my second chance on a silver platter. I’ll show her what she’s missing. I’ll show her exactly why I’m the only guy for her. And then I’ll make her hurt. Just as bad as I have. **18+ FOR ADULT CONTENT**
Covered in Coal
Silla Webb - 2014
Just like any little girl would, she assumed her daddy would always be by her side. Unbelievably, he turned his back on her when she needed him most, leaving her with no one in her life to turn to for support. Without options, Carly runs away from the only home she's ever known, leaving behind her heartache and the betrayal of the two men she loved most.Seven years later, Carly reluctantly returns to Kentucky. Her daddy is dying of cancer and Colton is nothing like the boy she once loved and left. After her daddy passes, Carly must uproot her life in South Carolina and take control of Simon Coal Company, where she has no choice but face the pain of her past.Can Carly keep her secrets buried deep beneath the black Kentucky coal and her heart safe from the fiery Colton Weston?