Book picks similar to
Just One Kiss by Maggie Dallen


ya
contemporary
young-adult
ya-romance

Only a Breath Apart


Katie McGarry - 2019
    But some destinies are meant to be broken.The only curse Jesse Lachlin believes in is his grandmother’s will: in order to inherit his family farm he must win the approval of his childhood best friend, the girl he froze out his freshman year.A fortuneteller tells Scarlett she's psychic, but what is real is Scarlett’s father’s controlling attitude and the dark secrets at home. She may be able to escape, but only if she can rely on the one boy who broke her heart.Each midnight meeting pushes Jesse and Scarlett to confront their secrets and their feelings, but as love blooms, the curse rears its ugly head…

Cinderella in Cleats


Carly Syms - 2010
    But when her dad dies of a heart attack, Whitney doesn't realize her passion for the sport and her friendship with Jason will never be the same. Two years later, Whitney's ready to begin the long journey of re-discovering her love for football, encountering a sexist coach, an unethical but irresistible opponent, a mustard yellow T-shirt, and Jason along the way.How much romance, passion, and hits on the field can Whitney handle before it becomes too much and she's forced to throw in the towel on her dreams?

The Upside of Falling


Alex Light - 2020
    But when her former best friend teases her for not having a boyfriend, Becca impulsively pretends she’s been secretly seeing someone.Brett Wells has it all. Being captain of the football team and one of the most popular guys in school, he should have no problem finding someone to date, but he’s always been more focused on his future than who to bring to prom. When he overhears Becca’s lie, Brett decides to step in and be her mystery guy. It’s the perfect solution: he gets people off his back for not dating and she can keep up the ruse.Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy though, especially when you barely know the other person. But with Becca still picking up the pieces from when her world was blown apart years ago and Brett just barely holding his together now, they begin to realize they have more in common than they ever could have imagined. When the line between real and pretend begins to blur, they are forced to answer the question: is this fake romance the realest thing in either of their lives?

The Revenge Playbook


Rachael Allen - 2015
    One plan. And the night that changes everything.Liv is the girl everyone gossips about. But when the rumors threaten to crack her relationship with her longtime boyfriend, she’s desperate to prove that not everything you hear is true.Peyton is the girl no one knows. But flying under the radar doesn’t mean she’s willing to let people walk all over her.Melanie Jane is the girl everyone wants to be or be with. Beautiful, sassy, and untouchable, she breaks hearts before hers gets broken. Most of the time.Ana is the girl no one talks to. Not after what happened at the party that ended her friendship with Melanie Jane.They have nothing in common…except for revenge.In the small town of Ranburne, high school football rules and the players are treated like kings. How they treat the girls they go to school with? That's a completely different story. Liv, Peyton, Melanie Jane, and Ana each have their own reason for wanting to teach the team a lesson—but it’s only when circumstances bring them together that they come up with the plan to steal the one thing the boys hold sacred.All they have to do is beat them at their own game.

I'll Be Yours


Jenny B. Jones - 2016
    The school’s newest band geek is totally in Harper’s league, yet completely out of this late-bloomer’s reach. Between fitting in with a new family, scoring the first chair in band, and rescuing dogs for the local animal shelter, Harper’s never had the opportunity to hone her dating skills. But even though Harper’s love life is far from perfect, she’s got the perfect plan.Harper knows she’s insane to agree to tutor Ridley Estes, a notorious heartbreaker and the star of her high school’s football team—but in exchange, he’s offered to school her in the game of love. Just when she sees promise with her crush, a football scandal rocks her family, her town, and Ridley’s entire future. Harper suddenly has everything to lose—her family, friends, and even her heart. When the dust of the scandal settles, nothing will be the same. Including the girl who asked the most popular jock to teach her about love.

I'll Meet You There


Heather Demetrios - 2015
    But after graduation, the only thing separating Skylar from art school is three months of summer…until Skylar’s mother loses her job, and Skylar realizes her dreams may be slipping out of reach.Josh had a different escape route: the Marines. But after losing his leg in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be.What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and, soon, something deeper.Compelling and ultimately hopeful, this is a powerful examination of love, loss, and resilience.

The Geek Girl's Guide to Cheerleading


Charity Tahmaseb - 2009
    Who knew cheerleading was so hard? Well, at least there's a manual, The Prairie Stone High Varsity Cheerleading Guide. Too bad it doesn't cover any of the really tough questions. Like, how do you maintain some semblance of dignity while wearing an insanely short skirt? What do you do when the head cheerleader spills her beer on you at your first in-crowd party? And how do you protect your best friend from the biggest player in the senior class? Bethany is going to need all her geek brainpower just to survive the season!

Just Friends


Tiffany Pitcock - 2017
    But after they rescue a doomed assignment with one clever lie, the whole school is suddenly convinced that Little-Miss-Really-Likes-Having-A’s and the most scandalous heartbreaker in school have been best friends forever. It’s amazing how quickly a lie can grow―especially when you really, really want it to be the truth.With Jenny, Chance can live the normal life he’s always kind of wanted. And with Chance, Jenny can have the exciting teen experiences that TV shows and movies have always promised. Through it all, they hold on to the fact that they are “just friends.” But that might be the biggest lie of all.Debut author Tiffany Pitcock delivers a spot-on depiction of first love and the high school rumor mill in Just Friends, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads.

Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend


Cassie Mae - 2013
    It’s even worse to enlist another’s help to win the ex over. But Brody is desperate and Hayley, his partner in American Sign Language, is more than willing to lend him a few tips. She’s the school’s matchmaker,’ and with her bizarre and positive personality, Brody finds her easy to talk to, even about the most awkward situations. Hayley’s tips seem to be working, but as Brody learns more about his matchmaker, he starts finding reasons to spend time with her, and not the girl he thought he was in love with. But Hayley isn’t ready to fall for anyone. Labeled the “Funny Fat Friend” within her group, her self image makes it impossible for Brody to share his feelings without Hayley shrugging it off as a joke. Convincing her Brody can, and did, fall for the “Funny Fat Friend” turns out to be harder than simply falling in love.Written by Cassie Mae under the pen name Becca Ann.

Announcing Trouble


Amy Fellner Dominy - 2019
    Or like him. Garrett Reeves: sidelined player and the embodiment of everything I’ve learned to hate about baseball. He’s gorgeous, he’s cocky, he’s laser-focused on getting back in the game, no matter the cost.When he convinces me to call games alongside him, our chemistry heats up the booth. We’re good together, whether I want to admit it or not. I’m finding that I like baseball again, but even worse, I’m liking Garrett. A lot.But when he has to decide between our future and a new shot at his dreams, I know baseball will win out every time. Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book has tons of hilarious banter, lots of sexual tension, and a hero who will throw a wild pitch right at your heart.

The Peer and the Puppet


B.B. Reid - 2018
    Win the race. Collect the cash. It should've been an easy job. Ran out of town with a broken leg and a lawsuit, my mother's latest flame swoops in like a knight in gilded armor. Blackwood Keep is a place I don't belong, and I'm not the only one who knows. To the boy across the hall, my savior's only son, I'm a stray looking for a bone.He's lord of the manor.King of the academy.And number one on my shit list.THE PEERI have no intentions of becoming a happy family with the social climber and her wild daughter. A bottle of Jameson and a cracked skull gets my problem shipped to reform school, but I didn't bank on her returning.Four's out to get even, and she almost had the perfect plan: expose the privileged kid moonlighting as a gangbanger. She's smart, but she'll have to be smarter. Sending her away won't be good enough this time. I'm going to have to tame the little troublemaker. To the girl across the hall, the one without a name, I'm nothing without my silver spoon.She's lady of the trailer park.Queen of the swamps.And my new favorite pastime.The Peer and the Puppet is a standalone romance, however, the series is one story. The plot introduced in Four and Ever's story will continue in the following novels. Content suitable for 18+.

Fake Fiancée


Ilsa Madden-Mills - 2017
    They say nothing compares to your first kiss,But our first kiss was orchestrated for an audience.Our second kiss . . . that one was REAL.He cradled my face like he was terrified he'd f*ck it up.He stared into my eyes until the air buzzed.Soft and slow, full of sighs and little laughs,He inhaled me like I was the finest Belgian chocolate,And he'd never get another piece.A nip of his teeth, his hand at my waist . . .And I was lost.I forgot he was paying me to be his fake fiancée.I forgot we weren't REAL.Our kiss was pure magic, and before you laugh and say those kinds of kisses don't exist,Then you've never touched lips with Max Kent, the hottest quarterback in college history.Three months. Two hearts. One fake engagement.

So Over You


Gwen Hayes - 2010
    That's all she's ever wanted to be. This year, her senior year, not only does she have to share the coveted Senior Editor position with her arch nemesis, Jimmy Foster, she also has to figure out how to keep the school paper alive. With the local paper closing and the school cutting Journalism from the budget, it's a long shot. Working side-by-side with Foster, the guy she likes to call Lucifer, makes it even worse.The only thing Layney dislikes more than swimming in the high school dating pool is Jimmy Foster thinking he got the best of her, so she takeshis ridiculous newspaper assignment--to go on twelve blind dates--to prove his powers of darkness won't work on her. The trouble is, the more she learns about herself on her journey of bad blind dates, the more she wonders if maybe Foster has known her better than she knows herself all this time. And maybe she should have trusted him with the secret she’s kept for four years—the secret that broke them up to begin with.

The Unloved


Jennifer Snyder - 2012
    Julie Porter learned the hard way that trust is something which must be earned and not something to be given out lightly, those who say they love you are those who hold the power to hurt you most, and best friends can help you survive anything—until they move away.Nick Owen knows a thing or two about a hard life. At a young age Nick learned how to take a hit and to make lemonade out of the lemons life tossed his way. Returning home after nearly two years of being away, all Nick cares about now is protecting his mom from the abusive hands of his father and catching up with his best friend—the girl who lived across the street, the girl he can’t seem to stop thinking about.Finally reunited after two years apart, Nick and Julie are about to learn that age does nothing to protect you from life’s trials and tribulations, heartache and loss, but maybe together they’ll find a way to survive. (Mature Young Adult, contains violence, language, and sexual situations.)

The Summer We Fell


Amber Garza - 2014
    I’ve had a crush on him for years but he never noticed me. Until now.Dating Adam is a dream come true. I should be happy about it, but it’s hard because my best friend Cruz is acting strange. Almost like he’s jealous. But that can’t be. Can it?Cruz and I have been inseparable since we were kids. He’s always been like a brother to me. But lately things have changed. He’s different, and I’m starting to see him in a new light. Our relationship is evolving in a way I never thought possible. I don’t want to lose him, but am I willing to give up Adam for him?