Book picks similar to
Winner's Curse by Nicole Castro


considering
contemporary
romantic-suspense

12 Dog Days of Christmas


Paula Munier - 2020
    With Zach's mom in Bali and the woman of his dreams gone AWOL, he's facing a Christmas alone with Ringo—until Tessa the cute veterinarian appears at his door with an offer he and Ringo can't refuse.It's a Christmas he'll never forget....

Some Kind of Wonderful


Belle Calhoune - 2016
    When Nor’easter Igor unearths gold coins on Bounty Beach in Treasure Harbor, treasure seekers from near and far converge on the town in hopes of finding the treasure of a lifetime. Set in the Outer Banks of North Carolina in the seaside town of Treasure Harbor, this eight book series features heroes and heroines who are dealing with the fact that their beloved town has gone treasure crazy. Lara Callahan is a journalist living in Philadelphia and working for the Philadelphia Times newspaper. When her job sends her back to her hometown of Treasure Harbor, North Carolina in pursuit of a story about centuries old pirate’s treasure, Lara has mixed feelings. Years ago Lara left Treasure Harbor in order to seek a new life away from talk of buried treasure and the hunt for the elusive pirate’s booty. Her childhood was fractured by her parents’ obsession with finding the lost treasure; Lara still feels jaded about the dysfunction she and her sister, Avery, endured as a result. Now that she’s back in Treasure Harbor, Lara finds herself confronted by the ghosts of the past. Ryan Burton, her childhood best friend and the object of her teen crush, is now a gorgeous, kind man who is determined to find the treasure buried by his ancestor, Drake Burton. Although Lara quickly finds herself falling for Ryan, she isn’t sure that she can bear to watch someone she cares about become so consumed with the treasure. Ryan Burton can’t believe his eyes when Lara Callahan walks into Pirate Pizza looking all grown up and gorgeous. Years ago they were best friends before the enmity of their families and the centuries old Burton-Callahan feud tore them apart. Now an executive at the Burton import-export family business, Ryan is struggling to make his family proud of his achievements. Now that gold coins have washed up on Bounty Beach, the town is in a frenzy over the elusive treasure. Wanting to spend time with Lara, Ryan suggests they pool their resources since she’s writing a series of articles about the treasure and he’s officially become a treasure seeker. When romantic sparks fly between them, Ryan finds himself imagining a future with the spunky journalist. But when tensions rise over the treasure in the small seaside town, Ryan begins to realize that he and Lara are at odds over his pursuit of the treasure. Will Lara and Ryan find their way to a happy ending?

The Day We Met


Ash Keller - 2021
    . . for all the wrong reasons.Chuck:My whole life has been building to this moment. I've studied. I've trained. I've paid my dues. And as of this morning, I'm Engine 17's newest recruit.I've been on the clock for two hours…and I'm ready to throw in the towel. What could bring a fully trained firefighter and EMT to the breaking point? Was it a five-alarm blaze? Or a thirty-car pileup on the interstate?Nope.It's a silver maple tree, a black-and-white cat with eerie yellow eyes, and a platinum blonde with more curves than a rolled-up firehose. Alli O'Malley. Don't let her angel face fool you. I wouldn't be surprised if she has tiny devil horns hidden beneath her hair.*An earlier version of this story was published in the Spring into Love charity collection.Fall in love with the men of Engine 17 one novella at a time! Each standalone rom-com features a different fireman and his quest to find the one woman who will set his soul on fire.

Twisted (Scholarship Mafia #1)


Blair Babylon - 2021
    Tristan is twenty-six years old, six-feet-four, wealthy, frighteningly good at day-trading stocks, and lives on a yacht in Monaco. The Prince of Monaco is his buddy from boarding school, and his other friends are billionaires, politicians, CEOs, actors, and rock stars. He dates heiresses, minor princesses, models, and Fortune 50 VPs. He has it all. But a debt has come due, and Tristan needs a large amount of stock of a certain company, GameShack. If he doesn't produce it, he’ll be in debt for the rest of his life. It’s worth far more money than Tristan has. It's more money than anyone has.To get the stock, Tristan has to destroy GameShack. He haunts the stock forum SherwoodForest day and night, looking for a crack in the company's financial armor, until the forum's moderator, QueenMod, suspects his motives and trolls his every move.But he’ll figure it out. He has to. Otherwise, he’ll not only be broke and in debt, but it will probably cost him his life.What Tristan hadn't counted on was meeting Colleen Frost, a perky, funny GameShack employee while on a recon trip. She has no idea what he's up to, or so he thought. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~By day, Colleen Frost works the register at GameShack, but by night, she's a moderator on the infamous stock market activist website SherwoodForest. She's paid back half her student loans by trolling short-traders who tried to make a quick buck by setting companies on fire and selling the ashes.And it's fun, too. When her sub-forum begins to crackle with rumors that someone is trying to crash GameShack's stock, she suspects forum member TwistyTrader might be in on it. So, she dogs him every time he's online, calling out his baloney and making his forum life a living heck.But when a tall, handsome hunk named Tristan King with incredible sapphire eyes walks into her GameShack store and starts flirting with her, all the while chatting about her favorite videogame, she gives him her online contact info, which turns into a coffee date, which turns into more. And that's when things get TWISTED.

The Dawn Of Grace


Randy Mixter
    A time for joy. A time for tears. A time for reflection. A time for hope.And a time for miracles.This Christmas season Dave and Karen Brenner have welcomed a stranger into their lives. A stranger who may change their lives forever.

A Soldier's Protection: An Eagle Security & Protection Novel (Beyond Valor, #4)


Lynne St. James - 2019
    Now he has a second chance. All he has to do is keep her alive.Ex-SEAL Chase “Frost” Brennan was sure he’d never again see the only woman he’d ever loved. Faith Murdock was the civilian psychologist who’d brought him back to life three years ago, and now she was a seductive, alluring, burlesque dancer who’d hypnotized him. She had a story to tell, but before he could ask, all hell broke loose at the club.Faith started dancing for release but when her fan mail turned threatening, it terrified her. When Chase showed up her relief was staggering. He was the one man she trusted with her life. She’d never gotten over the pain of having to push him away for his own good, even though it broke her heart.Faith wasn’t the same woman he’d known, and Chase wanted to know why. He was determined to break down the barriers to her heart, but first he had to catch a killer and it quickly became clear he was no ordinary stalker. Even with the help of his ESP team and his best friend, Chase would have to put his life on the line for his woman. But he was willing to do anything to give Faith the happily ever after she deserved.

A Magnolia Wedding (The Red Stiletto Book Club #5)


Anne-Marie Meyer - 2021
    

The Wishing Tree


Kay Bratt - 2022
    Someone's hopes. Another's dreams.Welcome to Linden Falls, a quaint Vermont town where friends, family, and guests put their trust in the local lore and branches of the Wishing Tree to bring their hopes to life. Enjoy the introduction of Linden Falls and a peek into the lives of its residents and guests in this free prologue novella, then join six bestselling authors as they bring you six heartwarming stories of love, loss, and the hopes of turning of turning lost dreams into second chances. Don’t miss a Wishing Tree book! Book 1: The Wishing Tree – prequel/prologue book Book 2: I Wish.. by Amanda ProwseBook 3: Wish You Were Here by Kay Bratt Book 4: Wish Again by Tammy L. Grace Book 5: Workout Wishes & Valentine Kisses by Barbara Hinske Book 6: A Parade of Wishes by Camille Di MaioBook 7: Careful What You Wish by Ashley Farley

Love at Wild Harbor (Wild Harbor Beach Book 1)


Grace Worthington - 2021
    Two fixer uppers. Three feisty sisters. One sweet love story to bring it all together.Lily Woods never expected to start life over again at thirty. But when she opens a chocolate shop and buys a dilapidated beach cottage in Wild Harbor, she’s ready to begin a new chapter, spending her days and nights creating fabulous chocolate treats.TV star Alex Briggs isn’t about to put his heart on the line. He’s finally landed his dream job as the host of a wildly popular home renovation show. Now he’s returning to Wild Harbor to flip a beach cottage, but he never imagined the project would land him next to the captivating girl who rejected him in high school.Alex never recovered the piece of his heart he gave to Lily all those years ago. How will he keep his distance now that he can’t escape the girl next door?Lily’s determined to fix up her beach bungalow on her terms, but Alex isn’t about to let her do it alone. Before Lily can stop him, Alex is on a mission to renovate her home and prove he’s the kind of man she can trust. But secrets from their past threaten to destroy their relationship before it begins.Can this small town girl and big city star overcome their differences and find love again?Love at Wild Harbor is the first novel in the Wild Harbor Beach series. These clean romances are set in Wild Harbor, a quaint small town full of happily ever afters.

Christmas at Holly Wreath Inn


Rachael Eliker - 2019
    She slammed the door in his face. Only their mutual dislike of Christmas will bring them together. Billionaire Ethan Wilder has a lot of reasons to hate Christmas, but being dumped by his cheating fiancée and ending up in Holly Wreath, Wyoming to hide out is currently the biggest. The next person on the receiving end of his bad attitude is the waitress serving him cold diner food.Olivia Campbell hates waitressing but has to do something to pay the bills when customers at her bed and breakfast are slow. She puts on a happy face for her daughter, but after her husband walked out on them right before Christmas five years earlier, the season holds painful memories. To make matters worse, she opens her front door to discover her new houseguest is the cantankerous man from the diner with the gorgeous hazel eyes.Living in close quarters should be unbearable, but as they share some of the simple pleasures of the holidays together, Olivia and Ethan find themselves enjoying Christmas for the first time in a long time—but when Olivia discovers just who Ethan is, they’re reminded they come from two very different worlds. Will this Christmas produce a miracle that will keep them together? ★★★ Includes Olivia's secret hot chocolate recipe at the end of Ethan and Olivia's happily ever after★★★

Torrents of Destruction


Robin Caroll - 2015
    When sabotage becomes apparent on a weekend rafting trip, Katie must determine who she can trust—and who has their own agenda. Hunter Malone has a mission on a business adventure trip on the Gauley River, a mission that didn’t include a spunky guide who could handle the class-five rapids better than he’d ever imagined. But can she handle the truth?

A Single Year


Renee Hart - 2016
    It is a standalone story with HEA and no cliffhanger. Several clean romance stories have been included for your enjoyment. A successful journalist, Lauren has her dream job of writing for a magazine in Boston. When she's confronted by her boyfriend's secret lover at a company party, Lauren vows to swear off men for at least a year, maybe two or three. Luckily her cousin, Amber, invites her to share in an adventure, which is exactly what she needs after her public humiliation at work. She'll have to ditch her business suits and high heels for this undertaking. Amber lives in Alaska and has some friends that need someone to house-sit for them at their "off the grid" homestead. Their horses, chickens and goats need tending, but Amber can't do it alone. She asks Lauren to come and join her. Lauren takes a sabbatical from her job to get inspiration to write the "great American novel" and get over her broken heart, but the peace and quiet her cousin promises isn't working out quite the way they planned. BOOKS IN THE SERIES: A Single Year In The Bush A Summer Nanny In Fairbanks / The River Home Homer: End Of The Road Together In The Wild Something Wild In Anchorage Yesterday Island

Searching for Anna


Jenifer Carll-Tong - 2019
    A wealthy suitor. An entangled past that could tear them apart. A historical Christian romance from debut author Jenifer Carll-Tong. As the Great War rages in Europe, Anna Gibson struggles to make ends meet as a seamstress in a small dress shop in Lansing, Michigan. She is content with her life. Or, so she thinks. However, a handsome suitor from her former life unexpectedly reappears, and she finds herself questioning her future when he begins to open doors to her past. Warren Mallory has never taken life too seriously…until now. Suddenly, he is very serious about finding the amber-eyed beauty that has haunted his thoughts since she left him standing alone on that street corner. And once he has, he doesn’t plan to let her vanish again. But even as fate draws them together, the sparks of chemistry are doused when a mysterious package and a long-hidden secret threaten to drive them apart. Can Anna forgive the past in order to be with Warren, or will pride and misconceptions make her walk away from the only man she has ever loved? Buy Searching for Anna, the first book in the Love in Lansing series, today!

Secret Snowman


Alayna Fox - 2019
     The first snowman appeared just outside of Pepper’s retirement home with a woman’s brooch on it. When more snowmen start popping up all over town, with items from her neighbors, Pepper realizes Dream Cove has a secret snowman on its hands. Read along as Pepper and her best friend, Tessa, follow the snowman’s trail until it leads directly to the biggest snowman of all. Secret Snowman is a clean cozy mystery. Read it for free with Kindle Unlimited.

Out of the Darkness


Anne Patrick - 2010
    Hoping to put the past behind her, she sets off across country with a truck driver she barely knows. Royce McIntire knows Alex is on the run from something or someone, but he doesn’t care. He’s fallen in love with her and is finally getting his life back on track and wants to win back custody of his son. The killer is hot on Alex’s trail though. Determined to find the one victim who got away, he tracks Alex down and lies in wait. When Alex realizes the killer is drawing near, she has no choice but to tell Royce who she really is. Will the news destroy their relationship and can Alex stop the killer in time?