Book picks similar to
Without You by Julie Prestsater


romance
new-adult
contemporary-romance
musicians

The Charlotte Chronicles


Jen Frederick - 2014
    Nate Jackson always viewed her as a pesky kid…until the day she got sick. The one bright spot during her illness? He realized she was all grown up. But just when she allows herself to believe that dreams can come true, Nate disappears from her life, taking her heart with him.Nate knows he lost more than his best friend when he deserted Charlotte to enlist in the Navy. He thought he was doing the right thing, sparing the girl he loves from the shame and humiliation of his actions. Nine years later, it’s time to right his wrongs. He returns home determined to win back his first love…only to find that Charlotte's moved on without him.But if there's one thing that being a Navy SEAL has taught Nate? Never give up, even when all hope seems lost. And Nate's never going to give up on Charlotte. Ever.

Louder Than Love


Jessica Topper - 2013
    Lauder Lake is the perfect place to hide and heal.Recluse rocker Adrian "Digger" Graves survived the implosion of his music career, but his muse has long lain dormant. Until Kat hires him to play at her library—not on the basis of his hard rock credentials but rather, because of the obscure kids' TV jingle he wrote years ago. In a case of mistaken identity, Adrian stumbles into the lives of Kat and her comically lovable daughter.Using tattoos as a timeline, Adrian unfurls his life for Kat. But as the courtship intensifies, it's unclear whose past looms larger: the widow's or the rocker's. Will their demons ever rest, or will they break these soul mates apart?

The Sweet Gum Tree


Katherine Allred - 2005
    But nothing was ordinary about the day she met ten-year-old Nick Anderson, a boy from the wrong side of town. Armed with only a tin of bee balm and steely determination, Alix treats the raw evidence of a recent beating that mars his back, an act that changes both of their lives forever.Through childhood disasters and teenage woes they cling together as friendship turns to love. The future looks rosy until the fateful night when Frank Anderson, Nick's abusive father, is shot to death in his filthy trailer.Suddenly, Nick is gone—leaving Alix alone, confused and pregnant. For the next fifteen years she wrestles with the pain of Nick's abandonment, a bad marriage, her family and friends. But finally, she's starting to get her life back together. Her divorce is almost final, her business is booming, and she's content if not happy—until the day she looks up and sees Nick standing across the counter. He's back…and he's not alone.Once again Alix is plunged into turmoil and pain as Nick tries to win her love, something she resists with all her strength. Only one thing might break the protective wall she's built around her emotions—the truth about Frank Anderson's death. But when that truth comes out and those walls crumble, neither Alix nor Nick is prepared for the emotional explosion that could destroy as well as heal.

Fault Lines


Rebecca Shea - 2017
     At eleven he was my first crush. At sixteen he became mine. At nineteen he broke my heart and destroyed me. That was ten years ago and the last time I saw Cole Ryan. They say you never get over your first love...I beg to differ. I left my shattered heart buried in a town I never expected to return to. I erased every thought of him and buried the memories never to be found. I moved on...now ten years later I have the perfect life, the perfect fiancé, the perfect career. Everything I ever wanted until I'm forced to go back and face my past and the man that destroyed me. He won't stop until I know the truth no matter how hard I fight it. In the end, lies will be uncovered, hearts will be broken, and my life as I've come to know it destroyed.

Rock


J.A. Huss - 2016
    They have sentenced me to hell by sending me back to the last place I want to be. They have people watching me twenty-four-seven. They want the truth about how my band mates died, and they’re going to get it, no matter what. No matter how hard I fight. No matter how many times I deny it. No matter what it takes, the truth is going to catch up with me. I am Rowan Kyle Saber. I am RK. I am Rock. Ex-lead-singer for Son of a Jack. Ex-addict, ex-friend, ex-boyfriend, ex-brother… and presently in denial. Welcome to Grand Lake, Colorado, where all my nightmares started. Welcome to the past. Welcome to the present. Welcome to RK’s fucked up life. The only thing holding me together is her. But even that might be a lie.

Don't Let Go


Sharla Lovelace - 2014
    The two had their future all planned out—until one unspeakable decision tore them apart.Twenty-six years later, Jules is living her life by someone else’s plan. She’s running her mother’s store, living in her mother’s house, following her mother’s rules, and keeping the secrets her mother made her bury.Then Noah comes home, and any sense of order and structure flies out the window. Noah’s return does more than just stir up old memories—it also forces Jules to see her life in a whole new way and uncover secrets even she didn’t know were hidden. But can the power of first love triumph over years of pain and lies? Revised edition: This edition of Don't Let Go includes editorial revisions.

Friends With Benedicts


Staci Hart - 2021
    Their high school summers were spent wrapped up in each other until she would inevitably go home to California. One season after college, Sebastian finally escaped the little Texas town to travel the world, and they said goodbye for what they thought might be the last time.Sebastian went one way. Presley went the other. For the first time in five years, they’re both in town, but the timing is no better than ever. So the only thing to do is what they do best. Keep it casual. Friends with benefits. They’ve done it before—doing it again will be easy.But their hearts don’t get the memo.When the lines of their arrangement blur, Presley and Sebastian are faced with decisions they’ve avoided for years. And that’s not even their biggest problem.A small town in danger of failing.A secret that could tear them apart.And two hearts that can’t hide anymore.They’ve shared so many summers, but none compare to what they’ll face.Timing is everything.And their time is almost up.

The Long Way Home


Jasinda Wilder - 2017
    For you. For touch. For a kiss. For the scrape of your hand down my stomach. For the slide of your lips across my hipbone. The sweep of your thigh against mine in the dulcet, drowning darkness. For the warm huff of your breath on my skin and the wet suck of your mouth around me and the building pressure of need reaching release...I am mad with need.Wild with it.I cannot have you. I have lost you, as I have lost myself. And so I go in search. Of myself, and thus the man who might return to you, and take you in his arms.I loathe each of the thousands of miles between us, but I cannot wish them away, for I hope at the end of my journey I shall find you. Or rather, find myself, and thus…you. Myself, and thus us. I am taking the long way home, Ava. ***Christian,I’m losing my mind, and I don’t know how to stop it. I shouldn’t be writing to you, but I am. I’m friendless, loveless, and lifeless. You’re out there somewhere, and still you’re all I really have. I hate my reliance and dependence on you, emotionally and otherwise, and that reliance is something I’m coming to recognize. I hate that I can’t hate you as much as I want to. I hate that I still love you so much. I hate that there’s no clear solution to our conundrum. Even if we could forgive each other, what then? I hate you, Christian. I really do.But most of all, I don’t. It’s complicated. Complicatedly (still) yours,AvaTHE LONG WAY HOME is the story of a married couple, Christian and Ava, both writers, as they cope with the loss of their son and the damage that loss causes to their marriage. This moving story, alternately heartbreaking and heartwarming, is the first in a brand-new contemporary romance series by bestselling author Jasinda Wilder.

Tone Deaf


Olivia Rivers - 2016
    Her world is silent.Ali Collins was a child prodigy destined to become one of the greatest musicians of the twenty-first century—until she was diagnosed with a life-changing brain tumor. Now, at seventeen, Ali lives in a soundless world where she gets by with American Sign Language and lip-reading. She’s a constant disappointment to her father, a retired cop fighting his own demons, and the bruises are getting harder to hide.When Ali accidentally wins a backstage tour with the chart-topping band Tone Deaf, she’s swept back into the world of music. Jace Beckett, the nineteen-year-old lead singer of the band, has a reputation. He’s a jerk and a player, and Ali wants nothing to do with him. But there’s more to Jace than the tabloids let on. When Jace notices Ali’s bruises and offers to help her escape to New York, Ali can’t turn down the chance at freedom and a fresh start. Soon she’s traveling cross-country, hidden away in Jace’s RV as the band finishes their nationwide tour. With the help of Jace, Ali sets out to reboot her life and rediscover the music she once loved.

Love Exactly


Cassandra Giovanni - 2013
    Emma Walker was a writer who'd lost herself to someone else's anger--who had given up on ever feeling like herself again.Evan Levesque was a rock-god--the one all the woman wanted, but he'd never gotten used to the loneliness between the stage and real life.With just one cup of coffee they'll begin a journey of self-discovery at each others sides, but can Emma handle Evan's fame while dealing with her own demons? Emma's checkered personal past, a bad relationship that haunts the edges of her memories, threatens to make everything implode on them when Evan takes matters into his own hands.Sticks and stones may break my bones, but your words...they'll destroy my soul--Can Emma handle being put back together and facing who she's become because of it? GENRE: New Adult>Contemporary RomanceMild to moderate sexual content

Forsaking Gray


K.L. Kreig - 2015
    Deception. Betrayal.Within less than twenty-four hours of proposing to the love of Gray's life, Liva disappeared. No note. No trace. No explanation. Nothing. Now, five years later, she’s resurfaced and Gray will stop at nothing to make Livia his again. But is love enough to forgive an unforgivable wrong?Livia had less than sixty seconds to make a decision that would change her life forever. She sacrificed. She suffered. She survived. Now that she's back, she's determined that no one ever discover her shameful secret - especially the only man she's ever loved. But will hiding the past destroy her future?

Wicked White


Michelle A. Valentine - 2015
    The phony people, the meaningless one-night stands: he doesn’t want any of it anymore. Quitting in the middle of a sold-out tour, Ace sets out to find some place—any place—where he can be alone.Aspiring singer Iris Easton’s life has never been easy. First, her mother walked out on her when she was a kid. Now she’s buried in debt, weeks after losing her beloved grandmother. When a mysterious and sexy new guy moves in next door, Iris can’t help but be drawn to his soulful gaze. She can tell there’s something from his past haunting him—something he’s not telling her.Just as Ace starts falling for Iris, the media go on a worldwide hunt to find the missing rocker. Will true love conquer all, or will the truth be the very thing that tears the couple apart?Join Michelle's Facebook Reader Group: Valentine Vixens

Promise Me Always


Kari March - 2014
    After being left with a broken heart by his only girlfriend, Blake swore off relationships for good and turned to the only two things that made him feel sufficient - sex and firefighting. Tessa Collins was brought up in the traditional 'perfect' family - loving parents, great sister, and amazing friends. After falling in love with Jared, her life was perfect - until he betrayed her. She has no idea that his betrayal could end up costing her more than just a shattered heart.Blake and Tessa have been friends since high school. Never wanting to admit their attraction for each other, the two always remained close friends. Now, three years later, Blake and Tessa find themselves being pulled together by a force much greater than friendship. Blake and Tessa have promised to be friends forever, but as fate pulls them together, they embark on a roller coaster ride of a lifetime. Will his self doubt and her insecurities keep them apart? Or will they be able to promise each other always? **content is for +18yrs.**

To Have It All


B.N. Toler - 2017
    Liam had set up shop there. After an accident left him injured and unable to work, it wasn’t long before he ended up on the street with his dreams in the gutter. This was it. This was his life. Until the day he met Max Porter—a man who appeared to have it all. They didn’t meet so much as made eye contact as Max sneered at Liam, the bum occupying precious space on the sullied New York City street.When Max stepped into oncoming traffic, a lesser man might’ve let him. But Liam risked his life to save Max only to be left to die without a second thought. When Liam woke up days later, he wasn’t himself…at least he wasn’t in his body. He was in Max’s.And with Liam’s body on life support, there was only one logical conclusion: Max was trapped in Liam’s comatose body. Somehow the twisted hands of fate had given Liam a second chance; a chance to have it all. But with all the perks of Max’s life also came his problems. Finding balance in his new identity was challenged more so once Liam fell for Waverly, Max’s beautiful ex. Could Liam live out his life as another man or would he pull the plug and let fate decide? Would he lose his chance at true love?Would he lose the chance to have it all?

The Do-Over


Julie A. Richman - 2017
    Richman a new, stand alone Second Chance Romance ~ Sometimes, one degree is all that separates you from the one you were meant to be with ~ Wes Bergman was sex on a stick. We’d been circling one another our entire lives, mingling at the same clubs... attending the same events…sharing mutual acquaintances…yet we’d never actually met. Until…we both boarded a Windjammer Cruise in the Caribbean. And it was like meeting my long, lost best friend for the first time. I hadn’t ever connected with a guy that way before.But Wes had a girlfriend. So, when the week was over, he walked off the ship, unknowingly taking a piece of my heart with him.Now, over a decade later, newly divorced, I’m the proverbial fish out of water. Dating has totally changed. Apps. Swipe left. Swipe right. Catfishing. Men my age want two things: twenty-five-year-olds—like my ex’s new child bride of a wife—or just a quick hook-up.After a string of bad dates, I finally did something I never thought I’d do. I had a hot one-night stand with a really handsome guy I met online who didn’t even know my real name.Turned out Mr. Fling is a big shot for my company’s newest client. And just my luck, that client’s CEO is none other than...Wes Bergman.Now I’m separated by one degree again from the man who stole my heart. And Mr. Fling could destroy my chance of what I want most – a Do-Over with Wes.