Book picks similar to
One Spark of Magic by Iris Bolling


romance
ebook
contemporary-romance
author-of-color

Bad Boys Break Hearts


Micalea Smeltzer - 2020
    Rich. Hotter than sin. The campus’s reigning bad boy. We knew each other once upon a time, but even if I’m named after a princess, it doesn’t mean my life is a fairytale. My plan is to keep my head down, get my degree, and leave this town.But the moment Mascen Wade recognizes me all my carefully laid plans come crumbling down. He’s decided he wants to make my life a living hell. But I’m not so easy to push around and won’t put up with his bully playground antics. Too bad for me I’ve never been able to resist him.

Making the Call


Amanda Shelley - 2020
    Ha! I can only wish. With a deadline looming, I’ve escaped to my family’s cabin on Anderson Island to free myself from distractions. My plan's great, until a man, who could pass as a cover model on one of my books, comes to my rescue. Is there chemistry? Sure. Is he everything I’d look for in a guy? Absolutely. But will my career be at risk if I give into my desire?LukeFor a player, women line up outside the locker room. For coaches, we're lucky to get in the game. As the youngest NFL coach in the league, I live, eat, breathe, and even sleep football. To gear up for this season, I return to my home on Anderson Island for a much-needed break. When Dani literally crashes into my life, my mind’s suddenly on the sexy brunette with a sailors mouth, rather than my team's next play. She has me dusting off another playbook entirely, making me wonder, did I make the right call?

In Her Neighbor's Bed


Angie Daniels - 2011
    Then to her dismay, her parents call and insist she bring her fiancé home to Virginia for the holidays. With Christmas only three weeks away, Zanaa better find a fiancé quick, fast and in a hurry, otherwise, her family’s going to have every eligible bachelor in town lined up at the door. In a state of panic, Zanaa ask Scott Simmons to marry her. Only it isn’t a real proposal—it’s just to get her family off her back. Except the man she just propositioned, her sexy next-door neighbor, is all too irresistibly real. And now that Zanaa has made the first move, the videogame entrepreneur has every intention of taking the relationship all the way.

Three Years Later


Casey McMillin - 2013
    The first thing she did when she got there, however, was run headlong into her happily ever after. Unfortunately for her, the guy was way out of her league.Collin Blake, along with the rest of his college swim team, was just visiting Los Angeles for a few days. It was something the U Cal swimmers did every year. Falling in love definitely wasn't on his list things to do while he was there.Is love at first sight even possible?Collin and Rachel thought so. They had an instant connection... right up to the point when Rachel disappeared.Can they pick up where they left off even though it’s... Three Years Later

In Love with a Stranger


Rose Von Barnsley - 2016
    She hadn’t given a second thought to running away with her soulmate. Life had been perfect, until tragedy struck.After waking from her coma, she can’t remember the man she had fallen in love with. She had no idea how she ended up in New York, or became pregnant. All she had left of him were teasing memories that played out in her dreams and an adorable little girl. Even after seven years, Hannah couldn’t help it, she was still in love with a stranger.

Moonlight Serenade with the Billionaire


Amberlee Day - 2020
    Dubbed Billionaire Bachelor Cove because of the resident's single status and income portfolios, The Cove is the perfect place to hide away from the world. But, as the residents soon find out, they can't hide from love. 
 Moonlight Serenade with the Billionaire In a world that’s constantly pushing the next new thing, Annie Reynolds finds beauty and inspiration in the past: history, vintage clothing, and a special love for big band swing music. As caregiver for an aging aunt, Annie finds herself championing a cause to protect Aunt Martha’s home in one of Seattle’s oldest buildings. Billionaire real estate investor Dexter Bolt loves nothing more than a city skyline dotted with cranes—a sign of a booming economy. With his eye on his great-grandfather’s fifteen-story “skyscraper,” Dex is hyped to gut and rebuild it, and he’s not going to let anything stand in his way. Trouble starts when Dexter discovers the elderly woman living in his building and goes head-to-head with her beautiful niece. When an iron-clad lease means his threats don’t work, Dexter takes a different approach to freeing up his building: romancing lovely Annie to his side of the construction line. While Dexter and Annie tour Seattle neighborhoods and beyond, Annie has a secret reason of her own for stalling Dexter’s plans. Will they distract each other long enough to move past their differences, and will a desire to be together prove strong enough to keep them from saying goodbye forever?

Team Hate


Rebel Hart - 2020
    After my father died in a car accident when I was sixteen, I decided to pursue football as a tribute to him. I struggled my way through college coaching for experience, always trying to prove I belonged to the field. And now I’m excited to finally jump into the big leagues as a strength and conditioning assistant coach of the North Carolina Knights.I’ve always been a stubborn, short-tempered, swearing-like-a-sailor tomboy. But it's a different ballgame with the football players.They can be crass, rude, misogynistic.One in particular, the arrogant and egotistical star quaterback, John Scepter.He thinks there’s no place for women in professional football and is not subtly trying to force me out.I hate him.Yet, no one makes my heart race like he does…And that makes me hate him even more.

A Lie for a Lie


Helena Hunting - 2019
    I just want to be a normal guy for a few weeks. So when I leave Chicago for some peace and quiet, the last thing I expect is for a gorgeous woman to literally fall into my lap on a flight to Alaska. Even better, she has absolutely no idea who I am.Lainey is the perfect escape from my life. My plan for seclusion becomes a monthlong sex fest punctuated with domestic bliss. But it ends just as abruptly as it began. When I’m called away on a family emergency, I realize too late that I have no way to contact Lainey.A year later, a chance encounter throws Lainey and me together again. But I still have a lie hanging over my head, and Lainey’s keeping secrets of her own. With more than lust at stake, the truth may be our game changer.

Breaking Free


Juliana Haygert - 2013
    To others, her family and her relationship with Eric is perfect. But she knows the truth. She lives it.After a fire takes her grandma's life and kills her horse, Hannah's immaculate life spirals out of control. Her father disapproves of her decision to run her grandma’s ranch instead of focusing solely on learning the family business; Animal Control brings her Argus, a mistreated horse that she can't turn away even though she's not ready for another horse; and her boyfriend, Eric Bennett, a world famous polo player, becomes possessive and authoritarian. Despite her best efforts to disguise it, Hannah grows wary of him.Then, Leonardo Fernandes struts onto the polo scene. A cocky rookie with a messy life of his own, he’s drawn to Hannah and isn’t afraid of showing it, even when Eric makes it clear she is his and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep it that way. Hannah suffers for Eric’s jealousy. The abuse only gets worse when Leo steals the title of best polo player in the world from Eric.But the title isn’t enough for Leo. He wants Hannah too, and she can’t deny her attraction to him either. Somehow, she must find a way to break free from abusive Eric before he breaks every bone in her body.Author's note: this book contains scenes of domestic violence, mentions of animal cruelty, strong language, sex scenes (no rape!), and a HEA.The Breaking Series:Breaking Free (Book 1)Breaking Away (Book 2)Breaking Through (Book 3)Breaking Down (Book 4)*All books are standalone and can be read out of order.

Game, Set, Match


Nana Malone - 2010
    On the court, he's down forty-love. A knee injury is shutting down his game, and the paparazzi are splashing his love life on every magazine. A comeback is in order, but the makeover he needs to save his faltering career is in the hands of the woman he loved and left fifteen years ago.While single-mom, Izzy Connors, sees people for who they really are through the lens of her camera, even without it, she knows Jason isn't the star he appears to be. Although his charm and good looks haven't dimmed since he broke her heart, all she sees is his wasted talent and playboy lifestyle.Can Izzy put the past behind her and help Jason get his game, and his image, back on track? Or will the click of her camera shatter his world as well as his heart?Librarian's note: Alternate cover edition of ASIN B0090QWA1M.

The Sweetest Remedy


Jane Igharo - 2021
    Because of this, Hannah has always felt uncertain about part of her identity. When her father dies, she's invited to Nigeria for the funeral. Though she wants to hate the man who abandoned her, she's curious about who he was and where he was from. Searching for answers, Hannah boards a plane to Lagos, Nigeria.In Banana Island, one of Nigeria's most affluent areas, Hannah meets the Jolades, her late father's prestigious family--some who accept her and some who think she doesn't belong. The days leading up to the funeral are chaotic, but Hannah is soon shaped by secrets that unfold, a culture she never thought she would understand or appreciate, and a man who steals her heart and helps her to see herself in a new light.

Discovering Us


Harper Bentley - 2013
    but sometimes forever's not that easy.Ellen has loved Jagger since she was five and he was seven when they kissed through the chain link fence at school. She’s had their wedding planned since she was twelve and is ready for a happily ever after with him, but life just isn't that neat and tidy. Although they lost contact over the years, which broke her heart, during Jag's senior year in high school, sophomore Ellen catches his eye once again and their friendship is back on. When things between them gradually develop into something more, Ellen wants to give herself completely to Jag, but he’s not so sure he wants to risk their relationship in taking things to the next level. When Jag is drafted to the Dodgers as the hot, new pitcher of the team, Ellen decides to go with him, transferring colleges and leaving her friends and family behind. But things get more and more complicated when busy schedules, a slimy agent and a supermodel disrupt their lives, which makes Ellen question whether they’ll ever get their perfect forever.This is the first book of the True Love Trilogy.Due to language and sexual content, this book is not recommended for readers under age 17

And it was Beautiful: Marcelo Bielsa and the Rebirth of Leeds United


Phil Hay - 2021
    

The Fastest Way to Fall


Denise Williams - 2021
    Plans change and it’s unclear if love, career, or both will meet them at the finish line. Britta Colby works for a lifestyle website, and when tasked to write about her experience with a hot new body-positive fitness app that includes personal coaching, she knows it’s a major opportunity to prove she should write for the site full-time. As CEO of the FitMe app, Wes Lawson finally has the financial security he grew up without, but despite his success, his floundering love life and complicated family situation leaves him feeling isolated and unfulfilled. He decides to get back to what he loves—coaching. Britta’s his first new client and they click immediately.As weeks pass, she’s surprised at how much she enjoys experimenting with her exercise routine. He’s surprised at how much he looks forward to talking to her every day. They convince themselves their attraction is harmless, but when they start working out in person, Wes and Britta find it increasingly challenging to deny their chemistry and maintain a professional distance.Wes isn’t supposed to be training clients, much less meeting with them, and Britta’s credibility will be sunk if the lifestyle site finds out she’s practically dating the fitness coach she’s reviewing. Walking away from each other is the smartest thing to do, but running side by side feels like the start of something big.

Reel


Kennedy Ryan - 2021
    Nor do they cheat on anyone else.*Award-Winning Wall Street Journal Bestselling author Kennedy Ryan launches a brand new series with a Hollywood tale of wild ambition, artistic obsession, and unrelenting love.One moment in the spotlight.For months I stood by, an understudy waiting in the wings, preparing for my time to shine. I never imagined he would watch in the audience that night.Canon Holt.Famous film director.Fascinating. Talented. Fine.Before I could catch my breath, everything changed. I went from backstage Broadway to center stage Hollywood.From being unknown, to my name, Neevah Saint, on everyone’s lips.Canon casts me in a star-studded Harlem Renaissance biopic, catapulting me into another stratosphere. But stars shine brightest in the dead of night.Forbidden attraction, scandal and circumstances beyond my control jeopardize my dream.Could this one shot—the role of a lifetime, the love of a lifetime—cost me everything?