Book picks similar to
Vardin Village by Maggie Spence


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Uncaged


Joe Gazzam - 2013
    Capping off a burglary and bar fight with a brutal car wreck, the seventeen year old finds himself firmly on the wrong side of the law.His behavior isn't winning him any points with his father, who happens to be the state governor. So when Governor Holden learns of a program for troubled youth, he jumps at the chance to deal with Jason's outbursts while cementing his position for being tough on crime.The program is a radical exercise designed to frighten teens from a life of crime. It's called "Scared Straight," and takes them into the heart of Blackenbush Maximum Security Penitentiary.Jason, along with a group of hardened juvenile delinquents, quickly comes face to face with some of the most extreme convicts the state has ever seen. But what's designed as an exercise becomes all too real as a prisoner take-over comes to fruition. Before long the entire penitentiary is under siege, surrounded by feds and overrun with violent lifers loose from their cells.Jason, trapped in the middle of in the chaos, will have to trust in the most unlikely person- Karl Rix, a convict with his own body count. Between them, they just might find a way to save their skin and even a bit of redemption. But at what cost?

You Don't Know Me


Faleena Hopkins - 2015
    Can their rockstar best friend Alec stand up for her... or will he be the spy they want him to be. And what will Rue Calliwell do with all that cash?

Designed for Perfection


Elle Davis - 2013
    This is an alternate cover edition.Original cover edition ISBN: 13: 9781492275534

Black Balled


Andrea Smith - 2015
    . . you probably think this book is about you . . ." Two dominant males, two worthy adversaries, in a business that takes no prisoners, will soon learn that fate refuses to be ignored . . .My name is Troy Babilonia, but I'm best known as Babu, a renowned literary critic with my own online column. I'm followed by thousands! I'm a living god in the literary world. I have no filter, and for that, my flock of humble followers are forever grateful. If it weren't for me, they wouldn't know what to read. I have zero tolerance for the weak-minded attention seekers, nor do I have respect for the self-proclaimed geniuses of the Indie world. My advice to all Indie authors is to never break the cardinal rule in this cut-throat business. Ever.My name is L. Blackburn and I'm an Indie author. My extraordinary genius was loved and worshiped throughout the literary world, until one egocentric critic tried to obliterate my career. It seems I broke some "cardinal rule," and now I'm paying the price for it. But I don't plan on going down without a fight.Sexual Content. M/M - Graphic Sexual Situations

Learning To Love


Lauren Pippa
    When Aimee discovers that Ezra, the drop-dead gorgeous tattooed hunk that rocked her world, is her new professor, she is forced to make a difficult decision between right and wrong. But to Ezra, Aimee is the light in his darkness and he won’t let her go without a fight. With the lines of morality starting to blur, can Aimee and Ezra build their relationship on a secret… or will secrets only lead to heartbreak? - - - - -The unreleased debut: A New Adult Contemporary Romance novel recommended for mature readers over the age of 17 due to strong language, sexual situations and themes of erotica, as well as controversial topics.

Under the Northern Lights


S.C. Stephens - 2019
    Every year she makes a trek deep into Alaska, but this time the unthinkable happens: she crash-lands after her plane stalls out in a storm. Injured, vulnerable, and threatened by the very creatures she loves, Mallory fears the worst—until she’s rescued by Michael Bradley, a mysterious mountain man living in self-imposed exile.Mallory is grateful for Michael’s help but desperate to return home to let her family know she’s alive. Unfortunately, neither of them can leave Michael’s secluded cabin until spring. Mallory’s stuck with a stranger for months.As Mallory recovers, a deep bond begins to form between the pair. Mallory is convinced that fate brought them together, but Michael is buried in his past, unable to move forward. Undaunted, Mallory tends to Michael’s heart as tenderly as he cared for her wounds—but will her love be enough to heal him?

Fifty Shades of Grey, Inner Goddess: A Journal


E.L. James - 2013
    It features a foreword by E L James, brief excerpts from the novels, tips for writers, a writing playlist, elegant color artwork, and fully lined pages throughout. Aspiring writers are encouraged to express their own Inner Goddess, as E L James writes in her foreword: "The best person to write for is yourself--and what better place to start than in a journal." Produced with eye-catching design and details, the journal has a bonded leather cover with foil stamping, rounded corners, endpapers, and a red-ribbon marker. Perfect for gift-giving and portability.

The Continent


Keira Drake - 2018
    It seems an unlikely destination for a holiday: a cold, desolate land where two nations remain perpetually locked in combat. Most citizens lucky enough to tour the Continent do so to observe the spectacle and violence of battle, a thing long vanished in the peaceful realm of the Spire. For Vaela, the war holds little interest. As a smart and talented apprentice cartographer and a descendent of the Continent herself, she sees the journey as a dream come true: a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve upon the maps she’s drawn of this vast, frozen land.But Vaela’s dream all too quickly turns to nightmare as the journey brings her face-to-face with the brutal reality of a war she’s only read about. Observing from the safety of a heli-plane, Vaela is forever changed by the sight of the bloody battle being waged far beneath her. And when a tragic accident leaves her stranded on the Continent, Vaela finds herself much closer to danger than she’d ever imagined—and with an entirely new perspective as to what war truly means. Starving, alone, and lost in the middle of a war zone, Vaela must try to find a way home—but first, she must survive.

Where Sea Meets Sky


Karina Halle - 2015
    Working dead-end jobs and living at home has left him exhausted and uninspired, with little energy to pursue his passion for graphic art. Until he meets Gemma Blackburn, a vivacious out-of-towner from New Zealand. What begins as a one-night stand soon becomes a turning point for Josh. He can't get Gemma out of his head, even after she has left for home, and finds himself throwing caution to the wind for the first time in his life.It's not long before Josh is headed to New Zealand with only a backpack, some cash, and Gemma's name to go on. But when he finally tracks her down, he finds his adventure is only just beginning. Equally infatuated, Gemma leads him on a whirlwind tour across the beautiful country, opening Josh up to life, lust, love, and all the messy heartache in between. Because, when love drags you somewhere, it might never let go even when you know you have to say goodbye.

Grace Doll


Jennifer Laurens - 2012
    Fortune. Beauty. Everything except her freedom. So when a powerful movie producer forces an experimental treatment on Grace--one that's purported to make beauty immortal--she stages her own death to escape him. With the help of trusted friends, Grace slips into hiding. She's forever flawless. Forever young, and forever pursued by her past. But when a stranger arrives on her doorstep, holding the key to a life she thought she'd left behind, Grace must decide between the safety she's known...and embracing the role she was born to play.

The Moon, the Stars, and Madame Burova


Ruth Hogan - 2021
    She and her trusty pack of Tarot cards have seen the lovers and the liars, the angels and the devils, the dreamers and the fools. Now, after a lifetime of keeping other people's secrets, Madam Burova is ready to have a little piece of life for herself. But she still has one last thing to do--to fulfill a promise made in the 1970s, when she and her girlfriends were carefree, with their whole lives still before them.In London, it is time for another woman to make a fresh start. Billie has lost her university job, her marriage, and her place in the world when a sudden and unlikely discovery leaves her very identity in question. Determined to find answers, she must follow a trail...which leads to Brighton, the pier, and directly to Madame Burova's door.In a story spanning over fifty years, Ruth Hogan has conjured a magical world of 1970s holiday camps and seaside entertainers, eccentrics, heroes and villains, the lost and the found. Young people will make careless choices which echo down the years....but it's never too late to put things right.

Ellie and the Harpmaker


Hazel Prior - 2019
    And in that barn, you’ll find Dan. He’s a maker of exquisite harps - but not a great maker of conversation. He’s content in his own company, quietly working and away from social situations that he doesn’t always get right.But one day, a cherry-socked woman stumbles across his barn and the conversation flows a little more easily than usual. She says her name’s Ellie, a housewife, alone, out on her daily walk and, though she doesn’t say this, she looks sad. He wants to make her feel better, so he gives her one of his harps, made of cherry wood.And before they know it, this simple act of kindness puts them on the path to friendship, big secrets, pet pheasants and, most importantly, true love.

If You're Lucky


Yvonne Prinz - 2015
    Lucky was smart. He wouldn’t have surfed in waters more dangerous than he could handle. Then a stranger named Fin arrives in False Bay, claiming to have been Lucky’s best friend. Soon Fin is working for Lucky’s father, charming Lucky’s mother, dating his girlfriend. Georgia begins to wonder: did Fin murder Lucky in order to take over his whole life?   Determined to clear the fog from her mind in order to uncover the truth about Lucky’s death, Georgia secretly stops taking the medication that keeps away the voices in her head. Georgia is certain she’s getting closer and closer to the truth about Fin, but as she does, her mental state becomes more and more precarious, and no one seems to trust what she’s saying. As the chilling narrative unfolds, the reader must decide whether Georgia’s descent into madness is causing her to see things that don’t exist–or to see a deadly truth that no one else can.  “A remarkable page-turner . . . Keep[s] readers wondering, twist by twist, if Georgia’s universe will simply burst apart.” —Andrew Smith, author of Grasshopper Jungle

We Can't Be Broken


H.K. Christie - 2017
    Once Anna is born everything changes for the better: a new sister, a new house and a perfect life. It’s as if nothing can go wrong—until Anna gets cancer. 

 In the wake of seemingly never-ending hospital stays and chemo treatments, Casey and her older siblings, Kelly and Sam, are suddenly forced to fend for themselves while constantly adapting to a new normal, which is anything but. Now growing up in the shadow of their sister’s cancer, Casey and her siblings try to survive as well as figure out their own place in the world. 

 With the family they once had no longer in existence, Casey finds herself wondering what’s next. Will they ever again find peace, happiness or each other? We Can't Be Broken is a novel inspired by true events.

Questing Sucks!


Kevin Weinberg - 2014
    His only wish is to conquer the world and enslave its population. Yet to his shame, he learns he must be the one to save it.