Book picks similar to
Never Give Up by Heidi Lis


second-chance
romance
new-adult
others

Very Bad Things


Ilsa Madden-Mills - 2013
    And why wouldn't they? Valedictorian of her class and a Texas beauty queen, she's well on her way to Princeton after kissing everyone goodbye at graduation.Until the day she cracks wide open in front of the entire school.Leo Tate is a tattooed bad boy who's sworn to never fall in love, especially with a high school girl.But she keeps showing up at his gym, wearing short skirts and tempting him with her list of bad things.He wants to resist her, but with one touch of her lips, forbidden love has never tasted so sweet.Welcome to Briarwood Academy . . . where sometimes, the best things in life are Very Bad Things.*Mature Content**Author’s note: Each book in the BW series is written as a stand-alone love story following a new couple, but you’ll enjoy reading the other titles and seeing familiar faces return.1: VERY BAD THINGS (Nora and Leo)2: VERY WICKED THINGS (Dovey and Cuba)3. VERY TWISTED THINGS (Violet and Sebastian)

Damaged But Not Broken


W.H. Vega - 2013
    She's only 15 but she looks like a woman, and for the group of sociopathic rapists that's good enough. The disgusting men hold her down, and one by one they destroy her innocence that night. Paige is forced to flee from her father and vows never to return, never to forgive him for allowing that night to happen. She leaves behind everything, her friends, her hope, her happiness, her life in Nashville, forever. She leaves behind Blake, her first love...her true love. The wounds of that heartbreak never fully heal, she never forgets about the only guy she ever really trusted. Thirteen years later Paige returns to her father's promise of sobriety, a record deal, and a blossoming career in country music.Everything changes when she sees Blake again, playing with his new band in a local Nashville club, the intense feelings she had buried deep inside rise up and refuse to go away. It's as if they never broke apart. Blake is no longer the 15 year old boy she once knew. Now he's a tall muscular front-man of the band Rust who seethes sex appeal and slays hearts. But as they reconnect, Blake's hardened shell begins to fall away as he teaches Paige to love again, to trust, and to give herself away completely.Paige finds a glimmer of hope and happiness again with Blake but is it all too good to be true? Can Paige overcome the hate, anger, resentment and learn to forgive - or will her father betray her? Her heart has been damaged but it's not broken...can she learn to love again?

Underestimated


Jettie Woodruff - 2013
    She's never had anyone to look up to or help guide her in the right direction. She had it rough and never dreamed that it could get worse. However, she finds that it can and it does.She learns what real hell is when she meets the husband that she doesn't want to marry but isn't given a choice. Can she escape? She can and does, only to wake up and find herself right back at square one._____________Warning! This is not your everyday fall in love romance. This book contains disturbing situations, strong language, graphic, sexual content - some forced, some not. If it's a happily ever after love story that you are looking for, you should probably move on. If you are up for the ride, stick around and it may just turn into a love story after all.

Choices


Sydney Lane - 2014
    But being perfect is tiring. So. Very. Tiring. Wanting desperately to step out of her sister's shadow, Quincy jumps at the opportunity to attend college with her best friend. The quiet bookworm with family secrets comes out of her shell. But when Quincy meets not one, but two perfect guys, she has to make a choice. In doing so, she might forfeit the relationship she secretly longed to find. Declan. Sweet, handsome, and perfect. He makes her feel cherished for the first time in her life.Brody. Sexy, hot, and irresistible. He could tear down her carefully built walls.Before she can become the woman she wants to be, Quincy will make mistakes. And suffer one unimaginable loss.Choices is a new adult contemporary romance intended for audiences 18+. Although Choices is included in a series, each book can stand alone.

Back to You


Priscilla Glenn - 2012
    But Lauren saw something in him that caused her to question his bad-boy persona, and against her better judgment, she took a chance. She had no way of knowing that the unlikely friendship they formed would become so important to her.Or that it would end so painfully.Eight years later, when Lauren begins her new job at Learn and Grow Day Care, Michael is the last person she expects to see. Refusing to revisit the hurt and confusion of their past, Lauren vows to keep her distance from him. But staying away from Michael proves to be more difficult than she thought, despite her lingering grief and her instincts for self-preservation.As Lauren and Michael recall the friendship that changed them forever and the events that tore them apart, will they finally be able to heal? Or will the ghosts of Michael’s past prove to be too much to overcome?

Wilder Love


Emery Rose - 2019
    He was my strength. Until I destroyed him.I was infatuated with Shane Wilder since the first time I saw him surfing. But we couldn’t be together. Not yet, anyway. I was too young and screwed up. He was too focused on chasing his dream.So we became friends. We met on the rooftop for late-night confessions under the stars. Cruised along the Pacific Coast Highway with the wind in our hair and the sun on our faces.I took photos of all the beautiful and ugly and interesting things, while he traveled the world in search of the perfect waves.I told him I would wait for him. I never meant to lie.I never meant to ruin his life.I. Destroyed. Him. As his star faded, mine burned bright. But as everyone knows, all that glitters is not gold. Now I’m back after seven long years, hoping for a chance to right my wrongs and fix what I’ve broken. This time I can only hope that loving Shane Wilder will be enough to save him.

Under The Same Sky


Tamsyn Bester - 2019
    Thorin Decker.Front man of Eighteendust, one of the world’s most famous rock bands. But before his rise to fame, he was the boy I fell in love with, and the boy who broke my heart. I never expected to see him again, but in a cruel twist of fate, we’ve been tied together in a way neither of us saw coming. If I thought he would be the same boy who left all those years ago, I was dead wrong. But he’s not the only one who’s changed. He’ll soon realize the girl he both broke, and saved, no longer exists. I might have moved on with my life, and let go of our past, but if he thinks a second chance is in the cards, he’s going to have to prove that he’s worth the risk.

Lexi, Baby


Lynda LeeAnne - 2012
    She is madly in love with her sexy, drop-your-panties-at-first-sight, hottie boyfriend who is equally in love with her; more like downright obsessed. He treats her like she is his heart; like he needs her to exist; like he would do anything in his power to make her happy.Lexi knows Landyn James loves her just as much as she loves him, if not more. Deep down, she also knows high school sweethearts aren’t expected to last, but their relationship is different. They are soul mates. Their connection is unbreakable.What could possibly go wrong when you have love like that...?Everything.What will the future hold...?Only time will tell.Author's Note: Contains Adult Content – Namely, a teenager-turned-woman with a very dirty mouth and fiery temper that may or may not know how to throw a punch. Also includes hot and steamy scenes, and a small glimpse into physical/verbal abuse.

Up in Smoke


Hannah R. Conway - 2017
    Her dreams of a high profile law career are reduced to rubble when she returns home to assume custody of her sister, Brie. Without the financial means to take legal custody of her sister—or a binding will to place her safely in her arms—Leanna’s future becomes more uncertain than ever. Already prepared for a blazing custody battle, with less than capable relatives, Leanna’s world is set ablaze when her ex-fiancé complicates matters in an attempt to destroy her future and her faith. US Army, SSG Garrison Burke has spent the last few years alone—balancing flag and fatherhood since the tragic death of his wife. Facing deployment, Garrison is desperate to find a safe caretaker for his son, Ezra—preferably anywhere but the abusive home he grew up in. So, when Leanna Wilson walks unexpectedly back into his life, he’s not sure if she’s a blessing or a curse. More importantly, Garrison cannot seem to forget how he betrayed Leanna many years ago. Yet, as Leanna and Garrison begin to run out of time, they start to see that the solution to their problems might lie within each other, but will they forget the past and allow their broken hearts to mend? As sparks begin to fly and their love is rekindled, a marriage of convenience will either make their wildest dreams come true or cause their best-laid plans to go up in smoke.

The Souvenir


Emma Nichols - 2016
    Snark and heart make The Souvenir a novel that will leave readers desperate for more. Wren Jacobs—a twenty-something corporate trainer— would like to announce the birth of her baby, Taylor, named after the artist singing "Bad Blood" during the conception. Mother and child are adjusting nicely and ready to welcome visitors, especially the father, Brady Conner. Despite a few too many misunderstandings, Wren never stopped loving Brady…and would love the opportunity to thank him for her souvenir from their relationship who weighed in at a whopping 8lbs 5oz, effectively ruining her after an unintentional natural delivery. Taylor's birth will forever remind Wren of the first day of summer, the last time she was ever able to wear a bikini, and that she'll probably never go to a bar again. Follow Wren and Brady as they navigate through the tricky dating scene in this touching romantic comedy, and fall in love with the souvenir of their relationship.

Stormy Surrender


Nicole Andrews Moore - 2013
    Sometimes the pain of the past overshadows the future. And sometimes to start over you have to go back to where it all began. That’s how it was for Joe Masters. That’s how he ended up back in New Hope. And that’s why he was in his thirties and had nothing to show for his life. He needed a complete overhaul, just like his father’s old house. Instead of a fast track, he had slowed down and was on a ten year plan. These days that was more his speed. And as much as he tried to fight the inevitable, he was learning to accept and surrender.Martha had weathered her fair share of storms in Vermont, was accustomed to the cold, both the chill in the air and the cold shoulder in her marriage, but after the miscarriage she felt like she would never get warm again. So she did the research from the laptop while sitting in front of the fireplace. She knew what she needed when she Googled ‘hope,’ she just never imagined that it would bring her to New Hope, South Carolina. She never imagined that her husband would trick her into leaving and never follow. She never imagined that a southern storm with all its force and fury could be so destructive. But after the storm, the land is washed clean. It’s perfect for a fresh start, a clean slate, and a new love.

A Ruthless Lust


Raquel Belle - 2019
    I couldn’t seduce a geriatric with a blue pill hard-on if he’d had a twenty year dry spell and I was the only woman in a thirty mile radius. Now, I’m kind of new to the whole stealthy, espionage sort of vibe. I’m no femme fatale and this ain’t no comic book! I’m an art student for crying out loud. This really isn’t my scene……however, my family has different ideas.They don’t seem to care. Anyway, they dress me up like Cinderella going to the ball and I’m looking all over for this guy…more than an hour goes by and I can’t find him anywhere. So I think…heck, might as well entertain myself…and that’s when I start knocking back the champagne. (Two at a time)A Ruthless Lust is a stand alone romance book with an amazing HEA!

Want You Back


Lulu Pratt - 2018
    I’ve spent the last two years staring at that message, hearing his gravelly voice loud and clear in my head as I read the words over and over. We were supposed to be forever, instead he’s forever frozen my heart. It’s been rough but at least my career is going great. Or at least it was until I accidentally posted a vibrator video to my company’s Instagram account. They failed to see the funny side. Now I have one shot to smooth things over with my boss - pretend to be in a relationship with a stranger for the weekend to impress a potential new client. Except it turns out it isn’t a stranger after all, it’s Jacob. ***no cliffhangers, no cheating, and guaranteed happily-ever-afters.***

The Resurrection of Dylan McAthie


Nancee Cain
    An accident leaves him dependent on the family he once ran from, with no choice but to return to the small town of Pine Bluff, Alabama. Hired by Dylan’s estranged brother, private-duty nurse Jennifer Adams remembers the charming boy Dylan was before fame and misfortune. And she notices he’s developed a knack for blaming everyone else for his problems, rather than bothering with introspection. She's not having it. Despite their clashes, as her patient heals, the chemistry between them grows undeniable—until scandal finds Dylan again, threatening to destroy the progress he’s made and the couple’s growing respect and affection. Can Dylan fix what fame has so easily broken? Or will his public resurrection mean the death of any relationship with Jennifer?

Emerge


S.E. Hall - 2013
    And though change is an inevitable, scary part of life, just lying in wait around the corners and milestones you thought you had a lock on, there's no way I could've known just how much change, that would never change back, I was driving right toward. But... by shutting the door to my old life, the door to my new one opened- and in strolled Dane Kendrick, awakening the wildest of dreams, delights, and desires, that I never even knew slept inside me. And now, it's time to let the real Laney Jo Walker emerge.Evolve & Full Circle Series suggested reading order:*Emerge*Embrace*Entangled*Entice*Sawyer Beckett's Baby Mama Drama Guide for Dummies*Endure*Sawyer Beckett's Guide for Tools Looking to Date My Daughter*Entwined*Embody (Full Circle Series/Spinoff from Evolve Series Book One)*A Crew Christmas*Elusive (Full Circle Series/Princess Presley Duet Book One)*Exclusive (Full Circle Series/Princess Presley Duet Book Two)