Book picks similar to
Unavoidable by Yara Greathouse
new-adult
college
romance
abuse
Pure Will
Kristi Pelton - 2014
Will spiraled into a world of darkness following an unbearable hurt…in turn using women and alcohol to dull the pain.Two wounded people…coming together under awkward circumstances…healing each other…until the bad boy from Camden’s past finds her…Does Will have the power to fight for someone worth fighting for?Camden Biggs, the daughter of a professional baseball player…lost her mother at age 9. Eager to be loved, she fell in love with the hottest, bad boy she’d ever met at age 15, Max. Totally off limits and living under the same roof, she succumbed to his manipulations until he was forced out of her life—hanging on to a promise to only give herself to him. Will Denton raised by a trailer trash father and a trust fund mother had a taste of both worlds and all sorts of women—especially when he dove into a world of darkness following a tragedy and loss of his own. Camden, now a senior at the University of Kansas where she tutors the hottest, most talented athletes hides behind her outgoing roommate Kate—who is sexually active enough for both of them; Camden lives vicariously through Kate while still trying to heal her wounds from the past—until Will Denton comes home with Kate one night. Though he slept with Kate, he sets his sights on Cam. Camden finally succumbs to the gorgeous eyes and body of Will Denton. And as Will is finally starting to tear down the walls that Cam has built over the years…Bad Boy Max makes a reappearance to reclaim what was once his.
Black Iris
Leah Raeder - 2015
One stupid gesture for a hopeless crush. Then the rumors began. Slut, they called her. Queer. Psycho. Mentally ill, messed up, so messed up even her own mother decided she wasn't worth sticking around for.If Laney could erase that whole year, she would. College is her chance to start with a clean slate.She's not looking for new friends, but they find her: charming, handsome Armin, the only guy patient enough to work through her thorny defenses—and fiery, filterless Blythe, the bad girl and partner in crime who has thorns of her own.But Laney knows nothing good ever lasts. When a ghost from her past resurfaces—the bully who broke her down completely—she decides it's time to live up to her own legend. And Armin and Blythe are going to help.Which was the plan all along.Because the rumors are true. Every single one. And Laney is going to show them just how true.She's going to show them all.
Following Me
K.A. Linde - 2013
Linde…I didn’t have a game plan when I decided to leave St. Louis on a Chicago-bound train for the summer.Just a reason. One I couldn’t share with anyone.Not Hadley, my best friend from college, who lets me stay in the guest bedroom with no questions asked. Or Hadley’s boyfriend Garrett who befriends me when I have no one else to turn to. Or Brennan, the local bartender, who I find myself falling head over heels for. Desperate to hide, I’m plunged into a new life in the city. Everyone around me starts to reveal sides of themselves I never expected.And just when I start to get comfortable, I find that my past just won’t stop…following me.
Caged in Winter
Brighton Walsh - 2014
She's only seventy-six days away from college graduation--and the future she's dreamed of for so long. She just has to stick to her rules: Don't lose focus. Trust no one. Hookups only--she doesn't want or need a man ruining her plans.But then Cade Maxwell, aspiring chef and Prince Charming in-training, comes swooping in to her life. All brash exterior and marshmallow center, Cade strips away her walls as easily as he strips away her clothes. One of the best in his class, he's on the fast-track to his dream job--as long as he keeps his eye on the prize.This close to graduation, neither of them can afford a distraction. Despite their explosive chemistry, nothing serious can develop between them. Thankfully, Winter's rules are keeping them safe.Except Cade's not playing by her rules anymore.
Set the Pace
Kim Karr - 2016
He protected me. Shielded me. Kept me safe. And I would have done anything for him.Fate tore us apart—leaving a world between us, and both our hearts broken.Now Jasper is Detroit's white knight, a reckless rogue turned sexy savior, pulling the city and himself out of destitution.Everything he does is fast. He talks fast, f*cks fast, and drives fast.I know I should keep my distance. That I should stay away. There's too much history between us. Too much left unsaid.Yet I can't resist him.Just being near him is a thrill—his perfect body, our incredible explosive chemistry, the enticing danger that follows him everywhere he goes.But then the city turns against us, and we can't hold on.
When it’s us against the world—will our love survive?
Buried Secrets
Emme Rollins - 2010
But Nick is dead, found murdered in their local cemetery, and Dusty simply can’t rest until she finds out who–or what–has killed her brother.Sure the local authorities aren’t being straight with her–or anyone else–about what’s been going on in their little upper Michigan town, Dusty delays going off to college for a semester, defying her father and stepmother and taking a job in the local bar to start doing some digging.Her focus soon fixes on Shane, her brother’s best friend and the town bad boy. The tension and rivalry between Dusty and Shane has always been palpable and sparks fly as the two collide. Dusty finds herself sinking in deeper with Shane and the mystery of what happened to her brother–and a lengthening list of victims–grows even stranger.When everything comes to a head, Dusty focuses on one thing: What happened the night her brother was killed in the cemetery? She’s sure Shane is keeping a secret and she’s determined to find out what it is, one way or another.
Carter Reed
Tijan - 2013
It was the last easy decision she made because she found her roommate being raped by her boyfriend. She had two choices. Call the cops and be killed by his family’s mafia connections or kill him first and hope to survive. There was no choice to her. She killed the bastard first and went to the one person who could protect her. Carter Reed. He’s a weapon for the rivaling mafia family, but he’s also Emma’s secret. Not only was he best friends with her brother, but she’s the reason he became that weapon in the first place.
Never Me
Kate Stewart - 2014
I was the girl you talked about in your sad inner circle. The girl you shielded your boyfriend from as you cleverly covered him with your body when I came near. I was a threat to you. Keeping him safe in your grasp was smart.One week...one incredible week was all it took to forever change me.I was NEVER going to be you … until I met HIM.*****This is a coming of age ROMANCE with explicit sex and strong language. Mature audiences only.
With Visions of Red
Trisha Wolfe - 2015
Dark and light battle. This explosive first installment of the Broken Bonds series sets the exhilarating pace for a cat and mouse game where no one knows who’s really pulling the strings.Criminal profiler Sadie Bonds knows blood. Her affair with the gruesome, dark world of killers began long before she started applying her analytical skills to investigate gory crime scenes. She gets inside the killers’ heads, breaks them down, relates to them on an arcane level. She prefers it this way—because it’s safer to ally herself with the villain than the victim. At least, that’s how she’s coped ever since she was abducted and tortured as a teen.She will never be a victim again.Now, she’s honed her skills in order to bring justice to these ritualistic offenders. Working alongside her colleagues, armed with sharp wit and a SIG, Sadie always catches her sadist. Until one ruthless serial killer gets inside Sadie’s head, turning the tables. He knows her secrets. Her obsessions. The darkest, most deviant part of her soul.When she meets Colton Reed, dangerous stakes are raised as he threatens to unravel her control and reveal her darkest fantasies. The sexy-as-sin bondage rigger at an exclusive BDSM club pushes her boundaries, forcing her to acknowledge that side of herself she fears. Plunged into a realm of torture and suffering, pain and pleasure, Sadie balances on the razor-sharp edge of two intersecting worlds threatening to swallow her.
Honor
Jay Crownover - 2016
Honor and conscience have no place in my life. But I've fought and I've survived. I've had to.The first time I saw her dancing on that seedy stage in that second rate club, I felt my heart pulse for the first time. Keelyn Foster was too young, too vibrant for this place, and I knew in an instant that I would make her mine. But first I had to climb my way to the top. I had to have something more to offer her.I'm here now, money is no object and I have no equal. Except for her. She's disappeared. But don't worry, I will find her and claim her. She will be mine.Like I said, don't be fooled. I am not the devil in disguise… I'm the one front and center.
Drops of Rain
Kathryn Andrews - 2014
I now live in a new town, go to a new school, and I’m supposed to be moving on with my new life. Only, I no longer know who I am. Dancing is all I have left and every day I feel completely alone. Silence has become the theme song to my life. She said to find some joy and light, but I don’t know how. Mostly, I feel surrounded in darkness…that is until I meet him.Drew HaleI have only one goal, in 298 days I’m going to drive away from this small beach town and never return. People are always watching me closely, too close, and I’m tired of wearing a mask. I need to be free. Swimming is my ticket out of here and I remind myself daily to fly under the radar, stick to my routine, and under no circumstances let anything distract me. I’m not as perfect as they think, most days I am drowning in guilt. I’m not sure I will ever be able to escape the feelings of shame, worthlessness, and just being unwanted…that is until I meet her.
Stone Cold Bad
Tess Oliver - 2015
A guy like him was the last thing I needed now. A guy like Colt Stone was the last thing I ever needed. -Colt-Emotion, feelings and, hell, even love had been turned off in all of us Stone brothers long ago. Then Jade landed in my life. It was the last thing I ever wanted, to feel this way about someone. Attachments like this were only followed by heartbreak, and I wasn't into heartbreak. I wasn't into f*cking attachments. Bad boy Colt Stone has a notorious reputation for being a tough and dangerous heartbreaker. A brutal childhood hardened him to the idea of any type of emotional attachment to anyone. When he becomes the unwitting accomplice in Jade Morrow's escape from an abusive boyfriend, he soon finds that he'll do anything to keep her safe. Has Colt found the one girl who can break through to his impenetrable heart?When she runs away from her monstrous boyfriend, Jade Morrow has no place to go and no one to turn to. She accidentally lands in the arms of a handsome, tattooed stranger. Colt Stone is as formidable as he is appealing and Jade soon finds that he's equally hard to resist. When her troubled past catches up to her, Jade discovers just how far Colt will go to save her.
Even Money
Alessandra Torre - 2018
A connection of eyes across a room, a quickened heartbeat, and everything changes. I was a cocktail waitress with a fondness for partying and meaningless hook-ups. He owned half of Vegas, with the reputation to match. I should have turned away. Instead, I stepped closer. Then, the lies started. Rumors spread. Stalking commenced. And someone died. It didn't stop me from falling in love. *This is book 1 in a duet. The second book, Double Down, will release on June 18th*
The Weight of Rain
Mariah Dietz - 2015
That's all we had.That's all it took. I woke up the next day with his phone number smeared and illegible. When I couldn’t find him, I tried to forget. But in that one night he’d crawled so far under my skin, I couldn’t erase him.Then, he walks back into my life where I least expect him: my job. He’s just like I remember, except for one detail.He goes by a different name.
Tell Me Lies
Carola Lovering - 2018
The wrong one. The one you couldn’t let go of. The one you’ll never forget.Lucy Albright is far from her Long Island upbringing when she arrives on the campus of her small California college, and happy to be hundreds of miles from her mother, whom she’s never forgiven for an act of betrayal in her early teen years. Quickly grasping at her fresh start, Lucy embraces college life and all it has to offer—new friends, wild parties, stimulating classes. And then she meets Stephen DeMarco. Charming. Attractive. Complicated. Devastating. Confident and cocksure, Stephen sees something in Lucy that no one else has, and she’s quickly seduced by this vision of herself, and the sense of possibility that his attention brings her. Meanwhile, Stephen is determined to forget an incident buried in his past that, if exposed, could ruin him, and his single-minded drive for success extends to winning, and keeping, Lucy’s heart. Alternating between Lucy’s and Stephen’s voices, Tell Me Lies follows their connection through college and post-college life in New York City. Deep down, Lucy knows she has to acknowledge the truth about Stephen. But before she can free herself from this addicting entanglement, she must confront and heal her relationship with her mother—or risk losing herself in a delusion about what it truly means to love. With the psychological insight and biting wit of Luckiest Girl Alive, and the yearning ambitions and desires of Sweetbitter, this keenly intelligent and staggeringly resonant novel chronicles the exhilaration and dilemmas of young adulthood, and the difficulty of letting go, even when you know you should.