Book picks similar to
Starlight by Alexandra Richland


new-adult
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Irreparably Broken


K.J. Bell - 2013
    Liv’s older brother Brady is everything Tori knows is wrong for her, yet he invokes emotions deep in her soul that she’s never felt with anyone else. When the two eventually succumb to their feelings, Tori realizes Brady is not the same confident guy she’s secretly loved for years. Tori desperately wants Brady to confide in her, but he refuses to talk about the secrets that have drastically changed his life. Turning to the one person that always makes her laugh, she begins spending time with the younger brother, Tug. The two grow closer and Tori wonders if her feelings for Tug run deeper than the “just buddies” status they’ve always shared. As she begins to explore her feelings, the conflict between brothers, she’d hoped to avoid erupts. She has to choose. When Brady finally reveals his secrets, Tori makes her decision; one that may leave them all Irreparably Broken.

Bad Romeo


Leisa Rayven - 2014
    She was the good girl actress. He was the bad boy about campus. But one fated casting choice for Romeo and Juliet changed it all. Like the characters they were playing, Cassie and Ethan's romance seemed destined. Until he broke her heart and betrayed her trust. Now the A-list heartthrob is back in her life and turning her world around. One touch at a time. Cast as romantic leads once again, they're forced to confront raw memories of the heartbreaking lows and pulse-pounding highs of their secret college affair. But they'll also discover that people who rub each other the wrong way often make the best sparks

Dare to Kiss


S.B. Alexander - 2014
    She’s on top of the world when Arizona State University approaches her to discuss a scholarship. To be the first girl ever to grace a college boys’ team is beyond what she has ever dreamed.Her fastball is impeccable, her curveball equally as good, and her slider annihilates anyone who dares to step in the batter’s box. But fate has its own way of throwing curveballs. When she loses her mother and sister to a home invasion, baseball and her dreams die with them. Tragedy has a way of seeping deep into her psyche, causing nightmares, panic attacks and blackouts. Diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, her psychiatrist recommends a change of scenery and picking up the things that she loved to do, and for Lacey that is baseball.After a move clear across the country, only two things matter to Lacey—overcome her PTSD and make Kensington High’s baseball team. But trying out for the team comes with obstacles—the captain, Aaron Seever, doesn’t want a girl on the team. Her life is further complicated when she meets Kade Maxwell, a tall, sexy and drool-worthy bad boy who has a magical touch that awakens her feminine side and a kiss that slowly erases her nightmares. But getting involved with him may be dangerous when Kade’s archenemy returns to town to settle a vendetta. To complicate matters, her PTSD has taken a turn for the worse. She has to find a way to heal otherwise she may not have a chance at anything in life, especially love.This is a New Adult Novel and contains strong language and sexual content. Intended for audiences age 17+.

Lifers


Jane Harvey-Berrick - 2014
    He is the local pariah, shunned by everyone, including his own parents. But their hatred of him doesn't even come close to the loathing he feels every time he looks in the mirror.Working odd jobs for the preacher lady, Jordan bides his time before he can leave this backwards town. But can distance erase the memories that haunt him? Trapped in the prison of his own mind Jordan wonders if the pain of living will ever subside?Torrey Delaney is new in town and certainly doesn't behave in a way the locals believe a preacher’s daughter should. Her reputation for casual hook-ups and meaningless sex is the talk of the town. Add that to her budding friendship with the hardened ex-con handyman, and the good Reverend is less than thrilled with her estranged daughter’s path.As friendship forms, is it possible for two damaged people who are afraid to love take their relationship to the next level? Can Torrey live with Jordan’s demons, and can Jordan break through Torrey's walls? With the disapproval of a small town weighing heavily on them, will they find their place in the world? Can they struggle against the odds, or will their world be viciously shattered?Is love a life sentence?Due to scenes of a sexual nature, not recommended for under 18.

Draw


Cora Brent - 2014
    A set of fraternal triplets born to a depraved family, they were rough, sexy and wild as wolves."Saylor... I don’t even know if love is real. After running from the bastard who brutalized me, I limped back to Arizona, choosing a vibrant college town in the hopes of starting over. I never expected to find him there. Cord Gentry. He and his brothers were tough, lusty forces of nature I’d known since childhood. Years ago, Cord seduced me as a sick game. I’ve hated him ever since. Now here he is again, a man who beats other men bloody for money. Cord has always been heartless, dangerous, not to be trusted. And I want him so much I can’t think. Cord...They called us ‘those white trash Gentry boys’ until we believed that’s what we were. Our people squatted at the edge of a hellhole prison town for generations. The childhood we endured was the stuff of nightmares. I’d learned early on that my brothers, Chase and Creed, were the only people on earth worth my time. They all told us we were bad, that we’d always be bad. The horrors of the past have scarred my soul. But now I need to be better. For her. Warning: This book contains explicit language, sexual situations, and violence which may be upsetting to some. Draw is the first of the Gentry Boys series, however this New Adult Romance novel can be read as a stand alone.

Rule


Jay Crownover - 2012
    . . except the one that matters Shaw Landon loved Rule Archer from the moment she laid eyes on him. Rule is everything a straight-A pre-med student like Shaw shouldn’t want—and the only person she’s never tried to please. She isn’t afraid of his scary piercings and tattoos or his wild attitude. Though she knows that Rule is wrong for her, her heart just won’t listen.To a rebel like Rule Archer, Shaw Landon is a stuck-up, perfect princess-and his dead twin brother’s girl. She lives by other people’s rules; he makes his own. He doesn’t have time for a good girl like Shaw-even if she’s the only one who can see the person he truly is.But a short skirt, too many birthday cocktails, and spilled secrets lead to a night neither can forget. Now, Shaw and Rule have to figure out how a girl like her and a guy like him are supposed to be together without destroying their love . . . or each other.

Foreplay


Sophie Jordan - 2013
    He’s the key to everything she’s always craved: security, stability, family. But she needs Hunter to notice her as more than just a friend. Even though she’s kissed exactly one guy, she has just the plan to go from novice to rock star in the bedroom—take a few pointers from someone who knows what he’s doing.Her college roommates have the perfect teacher in mind. But bartender Reece is nothing like the player Pepper expects. Yes, he’s beyond gorgeous, but he’s also dangerous, deep—with a troubled past. Soon what started as lessons in attraction are turning both their worlds around, and showing just what can happen when you go past foreplay and get to what’s real…

Connected by the Sea


E.L. Todd - 2014
    Her best friend, Henry, has an invested interest in her, but Sydney never seems to notice. While Henry is the perfect man, she only dates the wrong guys. Her ex-boyfriend cheated on her, broke her heart, and now she’s too shattered to give anyone a chance. Until Coen… A sexy bad boy with a tattoo, he elicits dark desires Sydney hasn’t felt in so long. His intense eyes, the color of the sea, capture her sight, making it impossible to look away. She tries to avoid him, knowing he’s no good for her, but Coen, who always gets what he wants, doesn’t take no for an answer. Will Sydney regret this decision? Or will she find what’s been missing her entire life? The family she lost, the loves she misses, and the trust she never thought she could have for someone else?

Destino


Sienna Mynx - 2012
    In 1989, she is the first prominent African American fashion designer redefining change for both beauty and style among the renowned in Italy. That happens until the evening she meets a tall, mysteriously charming Sicilian businessman who orchestrates a friendship that awakens a wicked sexual heat she has long forgotten. Who is he really? What harm could a little fling in one of the most beautiful countries in the world bring?Plenty.Don Giovanni Battaglia is a man who knows how to get his way. He lives his life on the razor edge of control as he balances family and his dark legacy. He is the leader of a ruthless crime family, and those who intercept his purpose are swiftly made to pay. Mira’s design house opens in Napoli, and unbeknownst to her, the property she occupies is one for which the Battaglia family has big plans. Giovanni’s designs for her business set them on a collision course of heated passion, spine chilling danger, and an unspeakable act of murder.

The Butterfly Project


Emma Scott - 2017
    She channels her pain into her art: a dystopian graphic novel where vigilantes travel back in time to stop heinous crimes—like child abduction—before they happen. Zelda pitches her graphic novel to several big-time comic book publishers in New York City, only to have her hopes crash and burn. Circumstances leave her stranded in an unfamiliar city, and in an embarrassing moment of weakness, she meets a guarded young man with a past he’d do anything to change...Beckett Copeland spent two years in prison for armed robbery, and is now struggling to keep his head above water. A bike messenger by day, he speeds around New York City, riding fast and hard but going nowhere, his criminal record holding him back almost as much as the guilt of his crime. Zelda and Beckett form a grudging alliance of survival, and in between their stubborn clash of wills, they slowly begin to provide each other with the warmth of forgiveness, healing, and maybe even love. But when Zelda and Beckett come face to face with their pasts, they must choose to hold on to the guilt and regret that bind them, or let go and open their hearts for a shot at happiness. The Butterfly Project is a novel that reveals the power of forgiveness, and how even the smallest decisions of the heart can—like the flutter of a butterfly’s wings—create currents that strengthen into gale winds, altering the course of a life forever. #standalone #triggerwarning for sibling loss/child loss

Elements of Chemistry: Attraction


Penny Reid - 2015
    Despite her best efforts, she can’t escape the notice of Martin Sandeke—bad boy, jerkface bully, and the universe’s hottest, wealthiest, and most unobtainable bachelor—who also happens to be Kaitlyn’s chemistry lab partner.Kaitlyn might be the only girl who isn’t interested in exploiting his stunning rower’s build, chiseled features, and family's billionaire fortune. Kaitlyn wants Martin for his brain, specifically to tabulate findings of trace elements in surface water.When Kaitlyn saves Martin from a nefarious plot, Martin uses the opportunity to push Kaitlyn out of her comfort zone: spring break, one week, house parties, bathing suits, and suntan lotion. Can she overcome her aversion to being noticed? Will he be able grow beyond his self-centered nature? Or, despite their obvious chemistry, will Martin be the one to drive Kaitlyn into the science cabinet of obscurity for good?Where to read more of the Hypothesis SeriesBook 1 ATTRACTION (ends in a cliffhanger!)Book 2 HEAT (ends in a cliffhanger!)Book 3 CAPTURE (no cliffhanger)Book 4 MOTION (ends in a cliffhanger!)Book 5 SPACE (ends in a cliffhanger!)Book 6 TIME (no cliffhanger)

A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii


Stephanie Dray - 2014
    When Vesuvius erupted in an explosion of flame and ash, the entire town would be destroyed. Some of its citizens died in the chaos, some escaped the mountain's wrath . . . and these are their stories: A boy loses his innocence in Pompeii's flourishing streets. An heiress dreads her wedding day, not knowing it will be swallowed by fire. An ex-legionary stakes his entire future on a gladiator bout destined never to be finished. A crippled senator welcomes death, until a tomboy on horseback comes to his rescue. A young mother faces an impossible choice for her unborn child as the ash falls. A priestess and a whore seek redemption and resurrection as the town is buried. Six authors bring to life overlapping stories of patricians and slaves, warriors and politicians, villains and heroes who cross each others' path during Pompeii's fiery end. But who will escape, and who will be buried for eternity?

Rose of Thorne


Mia Michelle - 2013
    Everything, except… her.Seven years ago, I ripped Skylar Rose’s world completely apart. And not a day has gone by since that it hasn’t haunted me. I vowed to stay away from her, to never get too close.But the powerful attraction between us was just too much to fight. After one sweet taste of her lips, I knew I could never let her go.She has become the most perfect rose in my dark life. But once she finds out my secret, I will become her sharpest thorn.

Edge of Time


Melissa Lynne Blue - 2012
    Confederate Officer Dr. Craig Langston is an enticing man that any woman would long to fall in love with, and now Marissa is torn between rampant desire, for the man ignites her very soul, and a longing to return home.Can she find it within herself to embrace a new life in the arms of her Confederate officer or will more sinister forces intervene before she can discover what may be the greatest love of all time?

Highland Sorcerer


Clover Autrey - 2012
    So when a naked bleeding Highlander materializes out of the air into her kitchen, she does what any rational free-thinking herbalist under the same circumstances would do--she heals him. She didn’t expect to be drawn back to the 13th Century where a dangerous whacked-out witch holds the handsome Highlander captive.Nor is she prepared to be drawn so strongly to him that she’ll do whatever it takes to save him. Imprisoned by the witch, Toren Limont the High Sorcerer and Protector of the Faes’ magic, uses the last of his magical reserves to go forward in time and find a healer the witch doesn’t have any influence over. He merely seeks the small respite a healing can give him in order to continue to withstand the witch’s tortures long enough for his clan and siblings to flee.Until Charity falls with him through time as either his salvation or his entire clan’s downfall.