Book picks similar to
The Art of Us by Symone West


high-school
interracial
suspense
disappointing

Saint


E.M. Snow - 2020
    It is not recommended for readers under 17 as it contains dubious situations and triggers that some readers may find offensive. It is NOT a standalone and ends in a cliffhanger.

Tempted


Eve Vaughn - 2018
    The job? A nanny position for two precious children. What she thought would be a piece of cake becomes a challenge in the form of their intimidating and very sexy father. Frustrated and falling… Victor Meade never claimed to have all the answers, especially when it came to his children. However, when a spitfire in the form if a very delectable Jasmine enters his life, his world is turned upside down. With each passing day, he finds himself battling the sweet temptation she presents. When these two can no longer fight the fiery attraction they hold for each other, their flame burns red hot. But will it all come tumbling down when Victor discovers Jasmine’s secret?

Oblivion


Sasha Dawn - 2014
    His blood is on my hands. His heart is in my soul. I KILLED HIM." But she remembers nothing of that night or of the previous thirty-six hours. All she knows is that her father, the reverend at the Church of the Holy Promise, is missing, as is Hannah, a young girl from the parish. Their disappearances have to be connected and Callie knows that her father was not a righteous man.Since that fateful night, she's been plagued by graphomania -- an unending and debilitating compulsion to write. The words that flow from Callie's mind and through her pen don't seem to make sense -- until now. As the anniversary of Hannah's vanishing approaches, more words and memories bubble to the surface and a new guy in school might be the key to Callie putting together the puzzle. But digging up the secrets she's buried for so long might be her biggest mistake.

Shattered Promises


Sage Young - 2019
     Ethan is sure he has found his true soul mate. The moment he laid eyes on Chloe he felt an instant connection. They have been together for almost a year and he is ready to take their relationship to the next level and nothing or no one will prevent him from making her his wife. Chloe never imagined she could fall madly in love with a man, then Ethan walked into her life and she fell, head over heels. She wants to be his wife but their situations are complicated and now she’s pregnant. Haley has the perfect husband, the perfect job and the perfect life. The only thing missing are children, but she is hoping to convince her husband that the time is right for them to have a baby. Her perfect life comes to a screeching halt with one life-changing phone call. Gabriel is home after being deployed for seven months. His marriage of fifteen years was unstable when he left. Now he’s back, determined to try and repair his marriage, but prepared to walk away if he is unable to salvage what’s left of it.

Giving it to the Bad Boy


Jenika Snow - 2013
    He was rough around the edges, tattooed and pierced, and fiercer than any guy she had ever met. He knew too much about sex, got drunk, and started far too many fights. He was a bad boy, but Kiera still wanted him in the worst kind of way.Reese's life is lonely, despite always being surrounded by people. He's only wanted one thing, and that is Kiera Sheppard, the girl he has watched from afar for four years. As they grow closer, Reese wants to give her everything and show her he is worthy of her love. But his sordid past tears their bond and he doesn't know if he can redeem himself and show her she is the most important thing in his broken life.

Shallow River


H.D. Carlton - 2020
    Now she's rebuilding her life with her dream man and life couldn't be better.Ryan Fitzgerald is everything you'd want in a man. Attractive, rich, an aspiring lawyer, and would do anything to keep River. But that's not the only thing that attracts her. It's his attentiveness, his possessiveness... maybe not so much his temper.When her relationship takes a dark turn, Ryan's estranged brother, Mako, is the only one who sees it. He knows exactly what Ryan is capable of, and it's not the first time he had to be a knight in shining armor.River came from Shallow Hill, though. She's never needed saving before. What Mako doesn't see, is that River is perfectly capable of taking care of herself.The only one who should be scared is Ryan.Trigger Warning: Shallow River is a dark romance that contains domestic violence, rape, violence, and sexual situations.

Delusive


Courtney Lane - 2015
    Revenge is my fuel; it energizes me when I'm running on empty. Elias Cari is a tool for retribution and the beginning of the new start. Unbeknownst to him, there is more to me than I will ever show him. He will know exactly who I am when it’s too late—when I’m done with him. I'm quickly closing in on the the perfect place to avenge the crimes committed against my family. The place where Elias is least likely to expect an enemy to be. Beneath him. A problem hits me unexpectedly. Elias has become a welcome addiction, and I've become his obsession. He won't stop exerting control over me until I've become his exclusive possession. How can so many things go wrong and feel so right? My plan is damned…or is it? Content contains violence, graphic sex, coarse language, and scenes that some readers may find objectionable. Reader discretion is advised.

Reckless Hate


Thandiwe Mpofu - 2019
    The results? Reckless Hate & Catastrophe."Westbrook had four boys that ruled my life once.They were hell raisers.Cunning Athletes.Skilled Manipulators.Hateful Assholes.Gorgeous gods.Heartbreakers. . .Only I never counted on them breaking my heart as savagely as they did, sending me away when I needed them the most. Making me spiral into a vicious abyss of darkness where I'm haunted by a pair of frosty blue eyes filled with hate.But now I'm back and this time around, for a reason that makes breathing almost completely impossible.And if they think I won't get revenge for my brother--one of the Blue Boys--then they have another kind of hell to face.Because I'm no longer their little Blue girl from four years ago. . .

The Day She Cried


K. Webster - 2017
    Broken. Lost.And for the first time in a long time, I feel free.Free from our past. Free from my present that suffocates me. Free to destroy her future.Her misery is my music.Thrilling. Invigorating. Intoxicating.For so long, all I’ve done is hate her.So why do I love her?

Tarnished


Indie Black - 2021
    Instead, he made me fear the dark. He was supposed to love me. In the end, his love was sickening, cruel and filled with malice.Five years ago, the only bright lights in my world were extinguished. One decision. One text. One sentence and my fragile life shattered. I never expected the depravity and lies that greets me when I return to Montecito, leaving me with one goal... To flee and never look back.Everything changes when three gorgeous guys crash into my life. They’re determined to mark me as theirs, and make me question everything I hold true.But when the ghosts of my past and future collide, who will be left standing? Me… or the monster who coveted me for all of the wrong reasons, turning me into what I am today…Tarnished. *Tarnished is the first book in the Tainted by Ruin Trilogy and cannot be read as a standalone. It is a Dark High School Reverse Harem Romance that contains scenes that may be triggering to some. Including : sexual assault (minor), physical abuse & self harm. Recommended for readers 18+.

Broken Elite: An Angsty College Romance (The Darlington Elite)


Waverly Alexander - 2021
    I don't know what she's hiding, but I've made it my mission to break her down until I know every last detail. Our broken pieces will match, and she'll know the soul-crushing agony I feel when I look at her. I hate that I want her. Unequivocally, the need I feel for her is stronger than I'll ever be. If she thinks she isn't still mine, she's lying to herself, too. She used to look at me like I was everything to her. She'll look at me that way again. I can promise you that. Everly My best friend is dead, and I can't tell anyone her secret. Patrick thinks I'm protecting myself. But really, I'm protecting him. He's in pain, and knowing I'm the reason is utter torture. The truth will cut him far deeper than losing whatever it is we had. I'll give him what he needs, even if it means he'll hate me forever. He wants to break me. He's too late. My world shattered the day I chose to lie to him. Includes a happily ever after, but main plot points continue on to the next book in the series. Each book features a new couple in The Darlington Elite world. This book discusses adult themes and is suitable for 18+ readers.

Kiss Me With Lies


S.M. Soto - 2019
    One unsolved murder. A sickening plot for revenge. When Mackenzie Wright attends her first real high school party, held somewhere deep in the woods of her small California town, no one expects to wake up the next morning to news of a gruesome murder. Especially not her own sister’s. No suspects.No motive.No convictions.Just one unsolved murder and whatever’s left of the now deserted town. Mackenzie has spent years with her sister’s death weighing heavily on her shoulders, but it isn’t until she stumbles across a photograph that changes everything for her. The memories, everything from that night, come flashing back in high-speed technicolor and Mackenzie soon finds herself obsessed with the truth. Determined to find out what really happened to her sister, Mackenzie relies on that one photograph to give her the answers she needs by embedding herself into the lives of five of the wealthiest men in Los Angeles. Consumed by her need for revenge, Mackenzie infiltrates the world of the rich and elite, only to come face-to-face with an alluring complication in the form an elusive playboy. When enemy lines are drawn, Mackenzie has to choose between her loyalty to her sister and the man who has stolen her heart.

The Villain In My Bed


D.S. Wrights - 2020
    As he too has escaped a prison of pain, torture, poking and prodding. When Tommy turns up at Alana's doorstep, ready to threaten her life, he has no idea that Alana is not going to be his victim this time. He's going to be Kain's.This book is a standalone pitch-dark romance with a paranormal twist.

King


L.J. Woods - 2020
    Or so he thought. He might be the King but I won’t be his pawn.—Eden - the other side of the tracks full of elite hacks.This town is as high-class as he is but it’s far from a garden.Too many thorns. Way too many pricks. The Academy alone has plenty of snakes, all serving one god. Damien King. The devil himself. He’s as seductive as his smirk. A sinful delight.And I should know better than to eat from this fruit. He wants to break me. Humiliate me. Make me buckle under his power.But I’m not an easy target so now I’m his biggest enemy. The leaders of the pack think they’re in charge, and I’ll play their game.Damien has Isaac and Christian - other royals in his kingdom,but I’ve got guts and I’m not afraid to play dirty.Secrets sit behind that heart-pounding gaze and I’m going to use them.Time’s up class-holes.Checkmate.—KING is a full-length 85,000-word new adult/high school bully romance novel with mature themes. This enemies-to-lovers romance is recommended for readers over 18. This is NOT a standalone but if you’re a fan of alpha possessive bad boys, this book is for you!

Lotus


Jennifer Hartmann - 2021
    While there are references, and it does feature a secondary character from Still Beating, this is a standalone novel.