Book picks similar to
In A Heartbeat by Liz King


romance
new-adult
contemporary
music

Real Dirty


Meghan March - 2017
    Until she doesn’t show up for my proposal. The life I thought was so perfect, isn’t. The guy who thought he had everything, doesn’t. I’ve got my heart on lockdown, but life sends me straight into the path of a mouthy bartender who puts me in my place. I thought I was done with love, but maybe I’m just getting started. Real Dirty is the first book of the Real Dirty Duet. Boone's story concludes in Real Sexy. You do not need to read any other books to enjoy this story!

Unraveling You


Jessica Sorensen - 2014
    Outgoing, spunky, and musically talented, she’s constantly surrounded by family and friends, yet she still feels there’s something missing. Then she meets her new next-door neighbor Ayden Gregory. Mysterious, sweet, and sad, Ayden is the exact opposite of Lyric and exactly what she needs to fill the void in her life. Ayden has been through more than most people and believes his life is always going to be rocky, so when he’s suddenly adopted by the Gregorys, he’s thrown for a turn. But even with a new, loving family, he still finds himself haunted by the memories of his old life. The only true breath of fresh air is when he’s with his best friend, Lyric Scott. As Lyric and Ayden grow closer, the lines of their friendship start to blur. But when Ayden's past unexpectedly pushes its way into his new life, their friendship and newfound attraction will be tested. **A novel about Ella and Micha's daughter and Lila and Ethan's son from The Secret Series. However, this series can be read on its own.**

The Scars of Us


Nikki Naravez - 2014
    When her dark past threatens to resurface, she decides to take precautions to protect herself by enrolling in self-defense classes at her gym. Her instructor, Ryker Campbell, is the tattooed womanizer everyone warns about. Kaiya attempts to resist Ryker's advances, but the more time they spend training together, the harder it is for Kaiya to resist him. Ryker's view on relationships is simple: strictly sex, nothing more. Haunted by demons from his past, he never allows himself to become attached to any woman. No attachment means no weakness, no vulnerability, no pain. He doesn't realize that his whole world is about to be turned upside down when Kaiya enters his self-defense class. Determined to have her, at least for one night, Ryker sets a plan into motion that will change both of their lives forever. Will love be able to heal their scars, or are they too deep to overcome?

Bad Things


R.K. Lilley - 2013
    Being insanely attracted to bad boys has never helped make it easier. One look at Tristan, and every brain cell she possessed went up in smoke. This man was trouble with a capital T. It was a given.She knew better. Bad boys were bad. Especially for her. Considering her history, it was crazy to think otherwise. So why did crazy have to feel so damn fine?For as long as she could remember, Danika had been focused on the future with single-minded purpose. Tristan came along and taught her everything there was to know about letting go, and living in the present. She fell, hard and deep. Of course, that only made her impact with the ground that much more devastating.Bad Things is about Tristan and Danika, and their train wreck of a love story. This series can be read as a standalone, or with the Up in the Air series.Bad Things is a full length novel, at roughly 105,000 words.This book is intended for ages 18 and up.

Stoned


Mandi Beck - 2016
    For as long as Stone can remember, Willow has been his music – the notes that weave his soul together. His rhythm. Until he threw her away. All he has left is a handful of pills and a few lines of powder to make him forget her. And he tries, over and over. Clean and ready to make things right, he’s faced with the fact that Willow’s moved on. She’s not the same girl he cast aside. Willow’s a woman sure about her purpose in life. Sure about who she’s meant to love. Stone may be lost without his rhythm, but Willow has found so much more.

Sharing Harper


V. Murphy - 2013
    A struggle too deep to reach. A love too complicated to work…but too intense to let go. Harper Mae ran as far away as she could from her abusive past. She went to a different city and numbed her pain by using men, never sleeping with the same guy more than once. Ryder worked at a coffee shop trying blend in with the rest of the world, desperately trying to live a normal life. After leaving a relationship and losing his family, he vowed never to fall in love again.Until one day they are unexpectedly drawn to each other unable to let go.Harper and Ryder’s turbulent relationship, two people who are struggling to find themselves, realize the answer lies within each other. Secrets, so deep, that both have, end up surfacing causing irrevocable pain. Will their love be strong enough to survive or will their pain be the downfall to their relationship? Will Harper open up enough to share her past with Ryder or will he be just another number on her list?

Inky


J.B. Hartnett - 2013
    While working as a bartender to pay her bills, she meets Cole, a sexy divorcee. She denies their mutual attraction and tries to put him out of her mind.When an abusive person from her childhood makes an unexpected visit, Inky’s world is turned upside down. Secrets are revealed and truths are exposed leaving Inky devastated and questioning what she thought was love. As she picks up the pieces and tries to move on, she finds her path crosses with Cole once again and this time, she cannot deny the passion between them.Once she opens her heart again, will she be able to move forward or will her past find a way to stop her?

Whiskey Burning


Bella Jewel - 2017
    Alone at a water fountain, tears rolling down my cheeks. Ready to give up. From the shadows, his voice came to me. Soothing. Comforting. Rough as the blackest night. I didn’t see him. I didn’t even know his name. All I knew was he saved me that night. He put my back on my feet. And he kept me on them. Every single time I needed him, he found a way to come to me. My stranger of the night. My dark warrior. My name is Scarlett. You probably know me. I’m America’s number one country music star. I’m also the loneliest girl you’ll ever meet. He’s as free as a bird. A nomad. Travelling alone. Nobody to hold him back. He holds the freedom I pray for every single day. He shows me that life can be so much more than what I’m living. When danger comes knocking, he’ll also show me a different world. A world I never knew existed. A world that both terrifies and fascinates me. A world that goes against everything I’ve ever known. A world of Iron Fury. **Contains Adult Themes**

Sing Your Heart Out


Crystal Kaswell - 2015
    She aces her classes, excels at her part time job, and carefully avoids trouble--no drinks, no drugs, and especially, no boyfriends.Rock star Miles Webb doesn't do "boyfriend." He skips over intimacy and love in favor of easy distraction--a beautiful woman under him, screaming his name. Meg is drawn to the pain in his gorgeous, tortured voice. But the man she hears on the radio is nothing like the player she meets at a mutual friend's house party. When she walks in on one of his trysts, she's embarrassed enough to die. His merciless teasing leaves her blushed and frustrated, but she's intrigued by his wit, his confidence, his casual offer to give her a night she'll never forget.Neither of them wants a relationship, so they strike up an arrangement: They'll be friends with benefits, nothing more, nothing less. There are only three rules: no secrets, no feelings, no falling in love.Only neither one of them can quite abide by the terms.***Sing Your Heart Out is a full-length, standalone new adult romance in the Sinful Serenade Series.***

Be Here Now


Andrea Wolfe - 2013
    Attacked her. Raped her. Left her for dead. She lost her whole life in New Orleans and fled to Seattle, hoping to find sanctuary from her dark past. Simone LeClair isn't sure if she'll ever love anyone again—or if she even wants to.That is, until she meets the beautiful Aiden Meyers, a man with a myriad problems of his own, a man that wears different masks to keep his conflicting worlds separate from each other. For some strange reason, as soon as Simone lays her eyes on him, she can't look away. He's unlike any man she's ever met, and that makes him all the more unbelievable.When she's with him, all her pain becomes a distant memory, pain that she believed she'd never escape. But as Aiden's walls start to crumble, and the worlds he juggles start to collide, Simone realizes he's dangerous in a whole new way - she's fallen hard for him, even though he's on a downward spiral that threatens to take her down with him.Will Simone sink with him?Or will she pull herself out before it's too late?Full length (93,000 word) New Adult Contemporary RomanceMature Content Warning: Contains adult language and content.HEA ending.

Torn


K.A. Robinson - 2012
    With a mother who is gone more often than not, she has had to raise herself. After graduating high school, she leaves to start a new life away at West Virginia University with her best friends Amber and Logan, determined to leave her demons in the past. On her first day, she meets a stranger who takes her breath away at first sight. Until she met Drake, no one had ever sparked her interest. Now this tattooed and pierced bad boy is all she can think about, no matter how hard she fights it.Falling for Drake was never part of her plans, but when it happens, things seem to do anything but fall into place.Dealing with a tragic past, Drake has never cared about anyone else but himself and his band. But when Chloe takes the empty seat next to him in class, things start to change. Instantly drawn to her, he begins to wonder if one girl can take a cold hearted womanizer and change every part of him?Long hidden feelings are revealed and friendships tested to the brink.

Paper, Scissors, Rock


Nicole S. Goodin - 2017
    Goodin comes a full length, rock star romance.ParkerCharlotte Watson. She’s the essence of sex appeal.Confident, fiery, beautiful… and completely unimpressed by my celebrity status.It’s been so long since a woman told me ‘no’, I’m not sure I know what the word means anymore, and I have no intention of figuring it out now.CharlotteParker Sloan. He’s the textbook example of a rock star.Reckless, arrogant, talented… and unfortunately for me, persistent.One touch and I’m in big trouble. One kiss, and I’m longing for more.Now I’m the one being reckless, but for Parker, I just might be willing to risk getting burned by fame again…Paper, Scissors, Rock is the first full-length novel in the Rock games series and can be read as a standalone.

Final Serenade


N.N. Britt - 2020
    Now that he’s returned to claim back his crown, Cassy hopes to kill two birds with one stone—secure her magazine a top spot in the rankings and meet with the man of her adolescent dreams.A dinner invitation isn’t what she expects to get out of this interview, but the chemistry between them is undeniable.With paparazzi watching Frankie’s every move as the two jump into a stormy relationship, Cassy risks her career and her privacy—and possibly her heart—to be with the biggest rockstar on the planet. But is Frankie worth it? Is he the humble man she thinks he is or is he just that good at hiding his demons? Final Serenade is the first installment in “The Encore” series. Cassy and Frankie’s story concludes in One Last Verse.

Chasing Dreams


Nicole Edwards - 2013
    And he has knowingly just dropped off the grid. The first decision he has made on his own in quite some time. Cooper only thought he was looking for a challenge when he walked off of that concert stage in Chicago. After finding himself in Devil’s Bend, Texas, he soon realizes that the dream he’s been chasing might not be the one he was after all along. Now he’s found himself not only starting over in a new town, but he’s pretty sure he’s met the toughest challenge of his life... she just happens to be an angel in blue jeans. Tessa Donovan hasn’t been the best of friends with Fate for quite some time now. Owning and operating The Rusty Nail, a small bar in her hometown of Devil’s Bend, has been enough to keep her going through the motions of her life. But it’s the only thing she’s got. After losing her husband fifteen short months after they were married, Tessa has spent the last four years chasing dreams in order to maintain her sanity. Only those dreams are soon ripped right out of her grasp by a sexy country music star who claims he descended on her small town by accident. Coincidence? Or has Fate stepped in once again? Whatever the case, Tessa knows the handsome cowboy might get to overtake her dreams, but she’s bound and determined that he won’t take her heart.

Brooklyn Rockstar


Jennifer Ann - 2016
    He’s America’s hottest rockstar, and he’s harboring a dark secret…one that could end with deadly consequences.She’s a small-town girl from the Midwest, escaping an overprotective family.After catching the first solo gig by the rocker with the looks of a Greek god and the voice of an angel, Evelyn’s a goner.But Charlie Walker is the worst kind of bad boy all wrapped up in a smoking hot body, surrounded by scandal, and completely untouchable to someone as ordinary as Evelyn.Or so she thought.When the chemistry between them is unleashed, the danger involved extends far beyond the threat of their relationship being thrust into the spotlight.