Book picks similar to
Chasing Wishes by Nadia Simonenko


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Catch Me


Claire Contreras - 2013
    I've experienced a lot of things in my twenty-five years, everything except the one thing I want. It's the one thing that can’t be bought. It can't even be taken, it has to be given. And nobody has ever given it to me, not really anyway. Not until him.Music is the center of both our lives, but as he found his place in it, I lost my way. He soared, while I spiraled down a destructive path.I lost myself in more ways than I can count.The ironic thing is that I didn’t realize how lost I was until he found me. And now that he has, I have to wonder if he'll stay around long enough to catch me.

Dearest Clementine


Lex Martin - 2014
    It's safe, and after being burned by her high school sweetheart and stalked by a professor her freshman year of college, safe sounds pretty damn good.Her number one rule for survival? No dating. That is until she accidentally signs up for a romance writing class and needs material for her latest assignment. Sexy RA Gavin Murphy is more than happy to play the part of book boyfriend to help Clem find some inspiration, even if that means making out … in the name of research, of course.As Gavin and Clem grow closer, they get entangled in the mystery surrounding a missing Boston University student, and Clem unwittingly becomes a possible target. Gavin tries to show Clem she can handle falling in love again, but she knows she has to be careful because her heart’s at stake … and maybe even her life.DEAREST CLEMENTINE is a stand-alone novel with two companion novels. This New Adult romance is recommended for readers 18+ due to mature content.

Scars


Jaimie Roberts - 2016
    At least, that’s what I thought. But you changed all that. You are always there ... Always watching ... Always waiting in the shadows. You send me flowers and messages. You stalk me, trace my every movement... Until that one day, in a silly game of Seven Minutes in Heaven, when I finally get to feel you—have a taste of you ... It left me wanting more. One catastrophic day, my wish is granted. Just past my eighteenth birthday, tragedy strikes and I watch my family die before my eyes. You are there. You rescue me. You choose my life over my older sister’s, and I hate you for that. I hate you for taking me and imprisoning me. You say it’s for my sake, but I know it’s for your own. You make me see that my life could be much worse without you in it... You make me see true darkness. It is in that darkness you make me desperate for your presence, your touch, your caress. You make me need you... You make it impossible for me to live without you… And then, eventually… You make me fall in love with you. Secrets will always wound the ones twisted within their web of lies... But the ones I’m tangled in ... are deadly. WARNING: Although this book (overall) is not a dark read, one chapter is an exception, and contains the following triggers: childhood sexual/emotional abuse with some intensity in one particular scene.

Shattered Ties


K.A. Robinson - 2013
    Nothing is as perfect as it seems though. After her parents divorce, she’s forced to live with her mother in a private Santa Monica community. Ignoring their parental roles, her mother becomes more focused on climbing the social ladder while her father is off on tour. Growing up in a trailer park with his mother, Jesse is used to people looking down on him. When his mother begs him to submit an application for a scholarship to one of Santa Monica’s top private schools, he never expects to actually get it. When he does, he is forced to attend school with a bunch of rich kids. He ignores their stares as they judge him for having tattoos and a less than impressive car. As long as he has his surfboard and the guys at the tattoo shop, he knows he can make it through. When Jesse shows up on the first day of school, Emma can’t help but be intrigued. Her mother would never approve of Emma talking to someone so poor, but she doesn’t care because something about Jesse draws her to him. Jesse tries to hate Emma, but he discovers that he can’t resist her. Forced to hide their relationship from Emma’s mother and everyone else around them, things start to fall apart. When Jesse’s friend, Ally, decides to interfere, things go from bad to worse. Can they survive their first love? Or will they be left with nothing more than shattered ties?Book 1 of a 2 book series. **18+ for sexual situations, cursing, and adult content.***Book Two: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

3:AM Kisses


Addison Moore - 2013
    Love is the last thing on the list, but when Baya meets her brother’s roommate she begins to have thoughts and feelings that make even her blush.Bryson Edwards has a secret he prefers buried in the past and long forgotten. He prefers loose girls, fast cars, and long nights working at the string of bars his family owns. When his roommate’s sister shows up on the scene, she’s far too innocent and sweet for him but he can’t shake Baya out of his mind and worse, it looks like she’s seeping into his heart as well.Baya seems determined to show her brother she’s not a little kid and equally determined to use Bryson’s body to prove her point. It’s been made pretty clear that Baya is off limits to Bryson but their undeniable sparks explode into a whole lot more than just a few 3:AM kisses.

Wake Up Call


Victoria Ashley - 2013
    Broken from a lifetime of hatred and pain, she grew up realizing that trust and love just didn't exist. Not in her world at least. After turning the age of eighteen, she packed up and moved far away, determined to escape her painful past and start a new life for herself. Once on her own, she comes to the conclusion that the emptiness still exists. In order to survive, she found herself mixed up in exotic dancing and meaningless sexual relationships, numb to any emotion, for anyone. She was sure that her life was worthless and there was nothing left for her, this was the best it would get. After meeting a beautiful stranger, her life suddenly is turned upside down. Everything she believed suddenly gets questioned. She is left to figure out if there is really more to her than she could ever have imagined. Jace, having some secrets of his own, puts the pain of his own past behind to do what he can to help Avery. Can the love of another broken person be enough to help Avery, or is she already too far gone? Avery's life is pulled in many directions as she tries to find herself, and not everyone and thing is what they seem to be in this story of love, trust and opening up. Finding herself and learning to love herself might just be the hardest thing she's ever had to do.

A Little Too Far


Lisa Desrochers - 2013
    She just had mind-blowing sex with her stepbrother. In her defense, she was on the rebound, and it’s more of a my-dad-happened-to-marry-a-woman-with-a-super-hot-son situation. But still, he’s been her best friend and confidant for the better part of the last few years … and is so off limits. It’s a good thing she’s leaving in two days for a year abroad in Rome.But even thousands of miles away, Lexie can’t seem to escape trouble. Raised Catholic, she goes to confession in hopes of alleviating some of her guilt … and maybe not burning in hell. Instead, she stumbles out of the confessional and right into Alessandro Moretti, a young and very easy-on-the-eyes deacon … only eight months away from becoming a priest. Lexie and Alessandro grow closer, and when Alessandro’s signals start changing despite his vow of celibacy, she doesn’t know what to think. She’s torn between falling in love with the man she shouldn’t want and the man she can’t have. And she isn’t sure how she can live with herself either way.

Making Faces


Amy Harmon - 2013
    He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have . . . until he wasn't beautiful anymore. Making Faces is the story of a small town where five young men go off to war, and only one comes back. It is the story of loss. Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. It is the tale of one girl's love for a broken boy and a wounded warrior's love for an unremarkable girl. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast, where we discover that there is a little beauty and a little beast in all of us.

Remembering Us


Stacey Lynn - 2014
    I followed it, begrudgingly, because it’s what was expected. And then one day, everything changed. I woke up. Different. Independent. Free from all the rules that had surrounded me. Only I have no idea how I got to where I am. I have no memory of graduating college. No memory of Adam, the boyfriend I live with. He loves me. And I love him. At least that’s what everyone says. Except when my memories return to me as dreams, I see a different man than the one everyone claims is perfect for me. He terrifies me. He makes my heart race and he makes me feel things I’ve never felt before. I have no idea if I want to welcome the emotional roller-coaster that his piercing brown eyes and messy black hair puts me on every time I get a glimpse of him, or if I want to run back to the safe shelter of the scripted life-plan that used to be mine.

Boomerang


Noelle August - 2014
    Ethan Vance has just played his last game as a collegiate soccer star. They’re sharp, hungry for success, and they share a secret. Last night, Ethan and Mia met at a bar, and, well . . . one thing led to another, which led to them waking up the next morning—together. Things turned awkward in a hurry when they found themselves sharing a post hookup taxi . . . to the same place: Boomerang headquarters. What began as a powerful connection between them is treated to a cold shower courtesy of two major complications. First, Boomerang has a strict policy against co-worker dating. And second, they’re now competitors for only one job at the end of summer. As their internships come to an end, will they manage to keep their eyes on the future and their hands off each other, or will the pull of attraction put them right back where they started?

Beneath the Stars


Emily McIntire - 2020
    I loved him before I knew what lovin' was. I pulled, he pushed. I gave, he took. I loved... I lost. Now he's back. All grown up and sexy as sin. But things changed while he was gone. So, he can show those dimples and flex those muscles all he wants. It won't change a thing. Chase Adams is nothin' but a lost memory. I'll do everything I can to keep him that way. Chase Growing up, there were only two women I ever loved. Neither one of them ever really loved me back. Until her. Alina. My Goldi. She was everything that's good. I was the bad. She was the brightest goddamn star. I was the black hole shredding her to pieces.I loved her wrong, losing her to my demons. But now I'm back. A better man. I'll do everything I can to make her remember us, even if all she wants is to forget.***Beneath the Stars is a full-length, interconnected standalone featuring strong language, explicit sexual scenes and mature situations which may be considered triggers for some. Reader discretion is advised. Please note that while there is a HEA for the main characters at the end of this book, since it is an interconnected standalone, there are themes and side stories that run through the series and may not be resolved immediately.

One to Hold


Tia Louise - 2013
    Melissa Jones is a small-town girl trying to escape her troubled past. When the two intersect in a bar in Arizona, their sexual chemistry is off the charts. But what is revealed during their "one week stand" only complicates matters. Because she'll do everything in her power to get away from the past, but he'll do everything he can to hold her. Adult Contemporary Romance: Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of 18. (M/F)

Breathe into Me


Amanda Stone - 2013
    Kane's reputation is far from perfect, but is there more to him than what everyone else sees?Kelsey soon learns that you can’t run from your past, no matter how hard you try. When her nightmares find her once again, Kelsey must find the courage to face the demons that have been haunting her and save the people she loves most.

Where Sea Meets Sky


Karina Halle - 2015
    Working dead-end jobs and living at home has left him exhausted and uninspired, with little energy to pursue his passion for graphic art. Until he meets Gemma Blackburn, a vivacious out-of-towner from New Zealand. What begins as a one-night stand soon becomes a turning point for Josh. He can't get Gemma out of his head, even after she has left for home, and finds himself throwing caution to the wind for the first time in his life.It's not long before Josh is headed to New Zealand with only a backpack, some cash, and Gemma's name to go on. But when he finally tracks her down, he finds his adventure is only just beginning. Equally infatuated, Gemma leads him on a whirlwind tour across the beautiful country, opening Josh up to life, lust, love, and all the messy heartache in between. Because, when love drags you somewhere, it might never let go even when you know you have to say goodbye.

Tattoo Thief


Heidi Joy Tretheway - 2013
    But as his house sitter, she must pick up the pieces for the front man of the white-hot rock band Tattoo Thief. When ultra-responsible Beryl confronts the reckless rock star, she wants to know more than just what to do with his mess. Why is he running? What’s he searching for? And is he responsible for the death of his muse? New York newbie Beryl must find her footing in Gavin’s crazy world of the ultra-wealthy to discover her own direction and what can bring him back.Steamy, sassy and tender, Tattoo Thief is a story of breaking from a comfort zone to find a second chance.