Book picks similar to
Double Down by Fern Michaels


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Winds of Change


Jo Grafford - 2021
    And now she’s returning after ten years of being gone, with a PhD and plans to use her new position to transform their struggling high school into a center for educational excellence.She soon realizes that her biggest challenge isn’t going to be the rival gangs embedded in the student body, although they’re a close second on the list. It’s Josh Hawling, who has somehow convinced their aging superintendent that he and his security firm partner can coach their backwoods collection of farm boys into a football team that’ll make the playoffs.How is a woman of her refined background and education supposed to improve test scores and graduation rates when her students’ biggest idol is a man who spent more time in the principal’s office than in the classroom? Even though she feels safer having him on their crime-ridden campus, she’s so not looking forward to her daily encounters with his cocky self. Or being socked in the heart all over again by his devastating smile. Or having to finally face her unwanted attraction that might have kindled into a lot more if she’d never left Texas in the first place.Welcome to Heart Lake! A small town teaming with old family rivalries, the rumble of horses’ hooves, and folks on both sides of the law and everywhere in between — faith-filled romance that you’ll never forget.

The Alibi


Sandra Brown - 1999
    After they spend the night together, she mysteriously disappears. Later, while prosecuting the biggest murder case of his career, Hammond discovers that Dr. Alex Ladd, the prime suspect, is also his mystery woman. Now, he faces a moral dilemma and a haunting question. Is she innocent of the crime or was he used as her perfect alibi? And if she isn't the killer, is she the next victim?

Montana Cowboy Romance


Jane Porter - 2020
     After the only woman Joe Wyatt ever loved marries another, the Montana rancher swears off romance. He's done playing the game. Only problem? He needs a wife, and kids he can pass the Paradise Valley cattle ranch to. So Joe takes the same no-nonsense approach to marriage as he does to running his family’s business...he places an online ad for a mail-order bride. The ad is a lot like Joe, straight-forward and to-the-point: Wife Wanted. When Sophie Correia is left at the altar after her groom runs off with her maid of honor, she wants to get as far away from California and her dairy farming family as possible. Sophie doesn't need hearts and flowers, but she's fed up with men who can't commit. And at thirty, she's more than ready to start a family. When she comes across Joe's ad, she thinks she's found the perfect solution — head to Montana, get married, and move forward. Can a contract for marriage lead to love, or will the arrangement cost them their hearts?

Concrete Evidence


Rachel Grant - 2013
    Now she wants revenge…Accused of stealing artifacts from a five hundred year-old shipwreck, underwater archaeologist Erica Kesling is determined to clear her name. She’s concealed her past and taken a job certain to give her access to the buyer of the missing antiquities. She's finally closing in on her goal, when she's distracted by a sexy, charismatic intern who makes her want something other than revenge.But Lee Scott is no intern. He's looking for the lead conspirator in an international artifact smuggling scheme, and Erica is his prime suspect. He’ll do whatever it takes to win her trust and get her to reveal her secrets, even seduce her.As Erica and Lee struggle to conceal their real agendas, the one thing they can’t hide is the attraction that burns hot between them. When Erica’s quest puts her life in jeopardy, Lee must choose between old loyalties and a woman he never expected to fall for.

Hatfield and McCoy


Heather Graham Pozzessere - 1991
    Julie Hatfield and Robert McCoy pray they never have to lay eyes on each other again. Not going to happen. The psychic and the FBI agent have just been named official partners in finding a missing child—the third in a string of abductions that cross state lines. Haunted by a shattering crime in his past, McCoy is skeptical of Hatfield’s special gifts—until she starts reliving the crime through the eyes of the eight-year-old girl. But it’s only the beginning. Because someone is targeting Hatfield . . . someone who knows everything about her, and not even McCoy might be able to protect the strangely compelling woman who is making him believe in love again. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Heather Graham, including rare photos from the author’s personal collection.

Flawless


Heather Graham - 2016
    Kieran Finnegan, who still works there whenever she can, has become a criminal psychologist—a fitting reaction, perhaps, to her less-than-lawful past. Meanwhile, New York's Diamond District has been hit by a rash of thefts. No one's been killed—until now. FBI agent Craig Frasier is brought in to investigate; he and Kieran meet at a jewelry store in the middle of a heist. She's there to "unsteal" a flawless stone taken by her light-fingered youngest brother as an act of vengeance. He's there to stop the gang. But the police and FBI soon discover that there are two gangs of diamond thieves, the original and a copycat group of killers. And the second group seems to think their scheme is as flawless as the stones they steal. Thrown together by circumstance, drawn together by attraction, Kieran and Craig both end up working on the case. Unfortunately, there's more and more evidence that, somehow, the pub is involved. Because everyone goes to Finnegan's…

The Newcomer


Mary Kay Andrews - 2021
    Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me—it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.” With a trunkful of emotional baggage...So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road with her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a “go-bag” of cash and a big honking diamond ring—but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel. The No Vacancy sign is flashing & the sharks are circling... And that’s the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel’s former storage room, she tries to heal Maya’s heartache and unravel the key to her sister’s shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner’s dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn—or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it’s a race to find the truth and right the wrongs of the past.

They Call Me Crazy


Kelly Stone Gamble - 2014
    But when her good-for-nothing husband, Roland, goes missing, no one suspects that Cass buried him in their unfinished koi pond. Too bad he doesn’t stay there for long. Cass gets arrested on the banks of the Spring River for dumping his corpse after heavy rain partially unearths it.The police chief wants a quick verdict—he’s running for sheriff and has no time for crazy talk. But like Roland’s corpse, secrets start to surface, and they bring more to light than anybody expected. Everyone in Cass’s life thinks they know her—her psychic grandmother, her promiscuous ex-best friend, her worm-farming brother-in-law, and maybe even her local ghost. But after years of separate silences, no one knows the whole truth. Except Roland. And he’s not talking.

Pianos and Promises


Jennifer Peel - 2016
    Set in Nashville, the City of Music, Pianos and Promises follows the interwoven lives of three different couples.Christopher and JaimeDoesn't everyone say you should marry your best friend?Jaime has two goals in life: marry her best friend, and buy her very own grand piano. Christopher never gets the memo and marries someone else. But when Christopher's wife dies, Jaime finds herself raising his young daughter and on the end of a very unlikely proposal.Can their friendship endure a marriage of convenience?Beck and CallWhat happens when a dashing Englishman and an almost-famous country star collide? Sparks. And lots of them.Call's life always seems to be on the cusp of working out, only to unravel at the last moment. For instance, when she finally meets the guy--the man she's been fantasizing about from afar--their first meeting is nothing like she hoped; in fact, she wishes she never met him.But can the charming Englishman change her mind?Cole and JillianCan a few hours really change your life?Jillian knows a thing or two about the country music scene, and she wants no part of it after her country singer ex-husband. But as fate would have it, she's seated next to country legend Cole Pendleton on a red-eye flight home to Nashville from Las Vegas. Between her emotional state, her fear of flying, and maybe a little vodka, she finds herself taking comfort in Cole's arms and lips during their four-hour flight.Cole is determined to prove to her that he's a man of his word, but can Jillian trust his midnight promises?

Silence


Natasha Preston - 2012
    At the age of five, she stopped talking, and no one seems to know why. Refusing to communicate beyond a few physical actions, Oakley remains in her own little world. Bullied at school, she has just one friend, Cole Benson. Cole stands by her, refusing to believe that she is not perfect the way she is. Over the years, they have developed their own version of a normal friendship. However, will it still work as they start to grow even closer? When Oakley is forced to face someone from her past, can she hold her secret in any longer?

Ryan's Return


Barbara Freethy - 1996
    Ryan, the charismatic "bad boy" son, has returned—stirring up past conflicts like a whirlwind, and throwing Kara Delaney's fragile, passionate heart into turmoil.Kara has struggled back from a disastrous marriage to build a new life for herself and her little girl-—a peaceful existence now jeopardized by vicious, small town politics, by her daughter's fanciful ghost stories, and by Ryan's return. Now nature's impending fury threatens to expose long-buried secrets. Kara must join with the enigmatic, misunderstood Ryan to discover the truth that will save their families...and to explore a dangerous, irresistible love as mighty and enduring as the onrushing river.From # 1 NYT Bestselling Author Barbara Freethy comes an emotional and romantic standalone contemporary novel.

A Wish for Christmas


Michele Brouder - 2018
    After the death of her mother, the last two years have been rough and money is tight. A full-time nursing student, she feels her prayers have been answered with the temporary job of personal assistant to John Laurencelli. The billionaire is rumored to be demanding and difficult but India soon realizes there’s more to him than bad press and weapons-grade dangerous good looks. But with everything on her plate, she doesn’t have time to be falling for her new boss.John Laurencelli lives, eats, and breathes his business and making money. For his own reasons, he’s avoided Christmas for two decades. But it’s proving difficult this year when his new assistant wears vintage holiday aprons, hums Christmas tunes, and likes to spread good cheer. Despite his determination not to celebrate the season, it isn’t long before India opens his eyes to what’s missing in his life.Can they overcome their fears and misgivings to make it a truly wonderful Christmas for each other?Each book in The Happy Holidays Series is a standalone novel and can be read in any order.

Love Gone to the Dogs


Margaret Daley - 2012
    But it is her free spirited beagle who gets her into trouble with her new neighbor, Dr. Shane O'Grady, when her dog makes a move on his champion bichon that he wants to breed.Leah and Shane clash over their dogs that clearly like each other. Leah is determined to ignore her neighbor, but when her youngest son who tries to defy gravity and fly ends up hurt, it is her neighbor, the doctor, who takes care of her son. Can Leah and Shane find love or has love gone to the dogs?

Protect and Serve


Terri Reed - 2016
    But then he discovers Gina Perry hiding nearby—a pretty junior trainer who had the motive, means and opportunity to kill her boss. Gina insists her troubled brother is the real murderer…and this isn't the first time he's killed. And when Gina's brother comes after her, Shane is assigned to protect her and uncover the truth. Suddenly, Shane—a cop who always hoped to join a big-city force—vows to stay by Gina's side as a murderer lurks in the small-town shadows. Rookie K-9 Unit: These lawmen solve the toughest cases with the help of their brave canine partners.

Just Between Us


Rebecca Drake - 2018
    Four friends living the suburban ideal. Their jobs are steady, their kids are healthy. They’re as beautiful as their houses. But each of them has a dirty little secret, and hidden behind the veneer of their perfect lives is a crime and a mystery that will consume them all. Everything starts to unravel when Alison spots a nasty bruise on Heather’s wrist. She shares her suspicions with Julie and Sarah, compelling all three to investigate what looks like an increasingly violent marriage. As mysterious injuries and erratic behavior mount, Heather can no longer deny the abuse, but she refuses to leave her husband. Desperate to save her, Alison and the others dread the phone call telling them that she’s been killed. But when that call finally comes, it’s not Heather who’s dead. In a moment they’ll come to regret, the women must decide what lengths they’ll go to in order to help a friend.Just Between Us is a thrilling glimpse into the underbelly of suburbia, where not all neighbors can be trusted, and even the closest friends keep dangerous secrets. You never really know what goes on in another person’s mind, or in their marriage.