Book picks similar to
XO by Melissa Jane
dnf
romance
arc
contemporary-romance
The Sun and Her Star
Dylan Allen - 2018
Once upon a time, that star shone only for me. Now, I have to share him with the rest of the world. For a while, I thought I could do it. Because, beneath the hypnotic smile, gorgeous body and God-given charm that made him famous, I still caught glimpses of my best friend.Of the boy who called me sunshine and loved me. I wore that love like a crown . . . until he placed it on another’s head. Losing him was agony, distance felt like the only cure. When tragedy reunites us after years apart, it only takes one touch to erase the past. Just like that, I'm back in his arms. He promises this time will be different. But I’m afraid to believe him. Because behind his star’s blinding brilliance is a darkness that doesn’t want to let him go. I know a star that bright can’t belong to just one person, but my jealous heart doesn’t want to share him.I want all of him . . . even if wanting what doesn't belong to me leads me to ruin.
The Fragile Ordinary
Samantha Young - 2018
That she’ll be effortlessly cool and light up a room the way a comet blazes across the sky.But from the shyness that makes her book-character friends more appealing than real people to the parents whose indifference hurts more than an open wound, Comet has never wanted to be the center of attention. She can’t wait to graduate from her high school in Edinburgh, Scotland, where the only place she ever feels truly herself is on her anonymous poetry blog. But surely that will change once she leaves to attend university somewhere far, far away.When new student Tobias King blazes in from America and shakes up the school, Comet thinks she’s got the bad boy figured out. Until they’re thrown together for a class assignment and begin to form an unlikely connection. Everything shifts in Comet’s ordinary world. Tobias has a dark past and runs with a tough crowd—and none of them are happy about his interest in Comet. Targeted by bullies and thrown into the spotlight, Comet and Tobias can go their separate ways…or take a risk on something extraordinary.
Black Diamond
Ali Dean - 2016
Not even the boys. Still, Roxie was shocked when she received a scholarship to Stark Springs Academy, a boarding school that churns out Olympians in each graduating class. Entering as a high school junior, Roxie can’t wait to learn from renowned coaches and train with the fastest ski racers from all over the globe. But, upon arrival, Roxie discovers that Stark Springs lives under its own set of rules, and it appears one boy plays dictator. Ryker Black is not friendly and Roxie cannot fathom why everyone wants to be his friend. Sure, he’s gorgeous and rides a snowboard like it’s his fifth limb, but he’s cold, ruthless, and holds way too much power over the Stark Springs population. Roxie won’t put up with it. She’s here to train, and she doesn’t care about impressing anyone off the slopes. The only problem? Ryker Black doesn’t permit defiance. Not without consequences.
The Good Luck Charm
Helena Hunting - 2018
He might think they can pick up just where they left off, but she's no longer that same girl and never wants to be again. Ethan Kane wants his glory days back. And that includes having Lilah by his side. With her, he was magic. They were magic. All he has to do is make her see that. Just when Lilah might finally be ready to let him in, though, she finds out their reunion has nothing to do with her and everything to do with his game. But Ethan's already lost her once, and even if it costs him his career, he'll do anything to keep from losing her again.
Interference
Harlow Cole - 2019
It’s true. Ask anyone. I threw my first curveball the day I was born. The whole damn town is waiting on me. To live up to my father’s famous name. To reach for the stars. All I want to reach for is her. But Ashley is the sweet addiction I can’t afford. She’s my best friend’s sister. Hell, she’s practically my little sister. For years, I’ve protected her from guys that want one thing. What happens now that I’ve turned into one of them? Who’s gonna shield her from the way I was made, from my little white lies and from what I’m about to become?My game plan sounds simple: Pitch my way into the Major League draft and stay out of Ashley Foster’s pants. That first part may be statistically difficult. The second feels damn near impossible. Ashley: From the moment we met, I knew he was trouble. The kind my mother sent me to find. The type that ruins you for any other brand. When we were young kids, I didn’t know what to call the frogs and butterflies that danced in my belly whenever Brayden came near. Now I know they have a name. Those three little words that could heal or destroy him. Before Brayden, my life was normal. And then it wasn’t. It couldn’t be. Ever again. How was I to know stealing his seat would change all our lives?Anger and forgiveness share two halves of the same coin.Our story might make you choose sides.
Trick Me Twice
Becca Steele - 2020
That was my plan.The thing about plans? They change.One day, I was an invisible loner, the next, my name was on everyone’s lips.Why?I caught the attention of the wrong person.I tricked Carter Blackthorne, the king of Alstone High.He found out.And now?Now, he’s making me pay.It’s time for you to pay the price.You tricked me once, but you won’t trick me twice.Ready or not, here I come...Trick Me Twice is a standalone new adult high school romance with bullying and enemies to lovers themes. This book contains mature situations and content.
Bastard
J.L. Perry - 2015
I was born a bastard and I’ll die a bastard. I learnt it at a young age, and nothing and nobody can change that. I’m on a one-way path of destruction, and god help anyone who gets in my way. I hate my life. Actually, I hate pretty much everything.That’s until I meet the kid next door. Indi-freakin’-ana. My dislike for her is instant. From the moment I lay eyes on her, she ignites something within me. She makes me feel things I thought I was incapable of feeling. I don’t like it, not one bit. When she looks at me with her big, beautiful, haunting, green eyes, it’s like she can see into the depths of my soul. It freaks me the hell out. She’s like sunshine and rainbows in my world of gloom and doom. I hate sunshine and rainbows.******** I’m Indiana Montgomery, my friends call me Indi. Despite losing my mum at the age of six, I have a wonderful life and great friends. My dad more than makes up for the fact that I only have one parent. I’m his little girl, the centre of his world. I adore him. When Carter Reynolds moves in next door, my life takes a turn for the worse. He’s gorgeous—sinfully hot, but that’s where my compliments end. He seems hell bent on making my life miserable. He acts tough, but when I look into his eyes I don’t see it. I see hurt and pain. To me, he seems lost. I should hate him for the way he treats me, but surprisingly I don’t. If anything, I feel sorry for him. I want to help him find peace. Help him find the light that I know is buried somewhere within his darkness, but, he won’t have a bar of it. He’s warned me time and time again to stay away, but I can’t. I’m drawn to him for some reason. He’s always referring to himself as a bastard. That may be true, but to me, he’s more like a beautifully, misunderstood bastard. Whether he likes it or not, I refuse to give up on him.***WARNING This book is recommended for persons over the age of 18 years, due to sexual content and coarse language.
Crazy For You
S.B. Alexander - 2021
One girl yearning for hope.Colton Caldwell is hotter than I remember—broad chest, muscles in all the right places, wavy brown hair, and eyes that suck me in. All private-school perfection. Pity he can’t drive worth a damn. He hit me with his truck, just backed out without looking, leaving me bruised, aching... and well aware of him. But things have changed since he left. A lot of things. He’s no longer the budding football star, and I’m no longer the gawky kid he never noticed. We have one thing in common now… our tortured past. When I witness a fight between Colton and his dad, I realize just how much we’re alike. The only problem is, he doesn’t seem to think so. But as the darkness we try to leave behind pushes us together…We realize one thing is certain.Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow isn’t given. So what if we live today as if it’s our last?Crazy For You is a standalone boy next door romance with a happily ever after and is suited for mature audiences.
Against All Odds
Angie McKeon - 2014
Our hearts broken... Our souls torn to pieces...He was my world, my whole life. My reason for breathing. I had a perfect marriage, a baby on the way, and I felt fulfilled—almost invincible. Until the day life hit, leaving me broken, vulnerable, and alone.She was my life. My ray of hope on the cloudiest day. With her, I thought I had the ultimate safety. A love that would never hurt or betray me. I gave her my heart, my body, and my soul. Until she broke me, destroying every dream and illusion I had about life, love, and marriage.In our grief, we made a mistake. A mistake I'm not sure we can come back from.
Fighting to Breathe
Aurora Rose Reynolds - 2015
They never imagined the future could hold anything other than together-forever. When Lea's father dies in a tragic fishing accident, she's crushed under the weight of her grief and catches a glimpse of another type of future, one she knows she's not strong enough to face. Austin is angry. For the past fifteen years, he's believed the woman he loved with every ounce of his soul left him without so much as a backwards glance. When Lea unexpectedly returns to their hometown, all the years of heartache inside Austin bubbles to the surface and presents itself as blinding rage. Faced with the truth about the past, a newly discovered secret, these former lovers will learn that if they want to have any chance at the future they'd given up on all those years ago, they will have to rescue one another from drowning in pain so debilitating it will leave them both fighting to breathe. Contains mature themes.
Everest
S.L. Scott - 2017
Dynamic green eyes. Utterly irresistible. Ethan Everest stole my breath the first time I saw him. He romanced me with skill, dazzled me with his charisma, and proceeded to steal my heart right after. I might have fallen for his easy-going smile the first time we met, but I fell for him the second time.Honey-colored hair. Cherry-kissed lips. Captivatingly gorgeous. Singer Davis was the first, and only, woman to ever intimidate me. She spoke to my heart with her wit, seduced me with her eyes, and became the only thing that made sense in a world that made none. I let her slip through my fingers once. I won’t make that mistake twice.Secrets broke us apart. Can a second chance bring us back together? From New York Times Bestselling Author, S.L. Scott, comes a ROMANTIC SUSPENSE STANDALONE that will have you on the edge of your seat and swooning over this new ALPHA BILLIONAIRE.
Him
Carey Heywood - 2013
She thought she could stay away forever. If it wasn’t for her big brother's wedding, that is. Part of her even feels silly for staying away this long. It's not like anyone even knew what happened. Well, except for him.That guy. The one she compared all others to. The one who set the bar so high no other guy after him could even compete. The one who made her feel like anything was possible. The one she thought she would never be good enough for. The one she spent the last seven years trying to forget.All she needs to do is make it through the next week without running into him.
Worth the Wait
Claudia Connor - 2017
When he finds out just how badly, it will break his too.
Nick Walker found the love of his life when he was just nineteen.Found her.Loved her.Lost her.It's been ten years since Nick watched the only woman he ever loved walk out of his life. Now this FBI Special Agent will do anything to win her back.But it won’t be easy…Mia’s heart was shattered by Nick. They'll have to face their painful past if they want a future, including Mia's own secret about that day it all fell apart. Do you believe in second chances?
Fumbled Hearts
Meagan Brandy - 2017
I'm the impassive new girl with nothing left to give. Things are about to get complicated...After months of refusing, I finally agreed to make the move to Alrick Falls. My family thought it was best - that a new scene would be good for me—and I was sick of having the same conversation. So here I am, and the plan is simple. Smile through each day and avoid her at all costs. It's perfect. Until the cocksure quarterback comes into play. The last thing I want is his crooked grin and dark brown eyes focused on me. Yet here he is, constantly in my space, pushing me, daring me to care. Telling me what I think and feel, as if he knows. He doesn't know anything. And I plan to keep it that way.
Promise Me
Barbie Bohrman - 2013
Drawing strength from him, she left everything behind and sought a new life for herself, far away from the pain and shame.Fast forward ten years: Sabrina is settled in Miami, happy at last—until her best friend urges her to attend her high school reunion and face her painful past once and for all.And…maybe meet the mysterious Tyler once again.Can Sabrina find the courage to face the demons in her past, let go of the pain, and move forward into happiness? Or will insecurity and self-doubt ruin her one chance to get the love she’s not sure she even deserves?