Book picks similar to
The Art of Us by Symone West


high-school
interracial
suspense
betraying-body-alert

Wicked Knight


Tracy Lorraine - 2021
    I want blood for those who wronged me and my family. And my so-called truth is ripping me apart, in a way lies never could.Everyone else has moved on, but I can’t. Not until someone pays.And it seems that fate is on my side this time, because the hellion girl from the graveyard is going to be my saving grace… and provide me with everything I crave.The pain.The vengeance.The blood.She has no idea what she’s been dragged into, but she’s going to regret every step she’s taken to get here.Stella Doukas isn’t like any other girl I’ve encountered before.She’s fierce, determined, and much stronger than I anticipated.I might have met my match.And that is not a good thing…Dear readers,Wicked Knight is the first to my new angst-filled new adult mafia series.This is my darkest bully romance yet. If the following doesn’t get your pulse racing in all the right ways, you might want to miss this one out…Dub/non-con, bullying, knife and blood play, mutilation, humiliation, somnophilia, sexual violence, exhibitionism/voyeurism. You have been warned. Enjoy!

A Girl by Any Other Name


M.K. Schiller - 2013
    But at twelve, they become friends when he teaches her how to hook a fishing line and she shows him the value of a selfless act. At fourteen, he falls in love with her.At sixteen, she dies.Or so he’s told. But Cal never believes it. Sylvie has become part of his soul. He knows her like the steady beating of his own heart. He’d know if she was dead. Cal looks for her, prays for her and finally he just waits for her.Nine years later, she walks into the community college English class Cal is teaching. Only this girl claims her name is Sophie Becker and she doesn’t know him. Cal knows better. He’s determined to get the girl he loves back—and protect her from the danger that took her away all those years ago.

The Silver Swan


Amo Jones - 2017
    When she begins Riverside Preparatory Academy, the private school her father has swept her into in The Hamptons, she hopes for a fresh start. What she wasn't hoping for was the pack of bad boys who run the school; ten, to be exact. When Madison gains the attention of their leader, Bishop Vincent Hayes, a whole new world that she didn't think existed is exposed to her. A whole world that starts and ends with The Elite Kings Club and these boys, are about to flip her world upside down. Secrets are overflowing and family lies are about to be exposed. Is there more to Madison Montgomery than even she knows?

Paradise Found


Dahlia Rose - 2008
    He thinks that he is going to be immortal and he must accomplish this by taking the heart of women. He has done it before and now since Kelly has seen him, he has decided that she will complete his process. Her heart will be the one to make him a god.. Kelly has stepped into this killer's line of fire and now she is in danger. The one thing she remembers and passes on to the police, is the killer is a soldier. When Lieutenant TJ Chapel questions Kelly, they start out on the wrong foot, but soon they are thrown together. The only way he can protect Kelly from a killer who seems to know their every move is to take her to where she grew up, an island in the Caribbean. There in the lush island paradise of Barbados and the crystal blue sea, Kelly and TJ find passion and love in the midst of danger. Will Kelly be able to escape the madman's clutches? Will they be able to find paradise in each other's arms?

When We Touch (Entangled Hearts)


Renee Williams - 2021
    It didn’t matter what my heart wanted. That organ couldn’t control my emotions. Christian had violated. His pregnant mistress coming to my house crossed every line, boundary, and rule. It was the disrespect for me. She could have him. I was releasing him back into the street from whence he had come. Now, here was another man promising me forever. Could I trust him? I didn’t know, but whatever grip he had on me wasn’t letting go.SethEven as a lawyer, it wasn’t every day I encountered a woman destroying her fiancée’s car. I already knew what was going on. She didn’t have to say it. Somebody had royally screwed up, and she was making him pay the price. The problem was, I couldn’t just walk away. There was something about her. It could have been her pain calling me, or it could have been the fact that something was telling me she was meant to be mine.

The Heir


Sophie Lark - 2021
    Where mafia heirs are trained to control, dominate, infiltrate, and kill.I followed Anna because she’s my best friend. I’ve always been right by her side.She needs me to protect her. Especially from Dean Yenin, a Bratva heir with a lethal grudge.He plans to take everything from me. Starting with Anna...“The Heir” is the first book in the epic dark mafia Kingmakers Series. It’s a forbidden friends-to-lovers romance filled with mystery, suspense, and kindle-melting bedroom scenes that take place everywhere but the bedroom.

Lawless Kingdom


Natalie Bennett - 2020
     Judas Barron, for example. Wicked blue blood and heir to a severely twisted cutthroat society. Everyone knew who he was and what crew he ran with—a clandestine group of filthy rich kids surrounded by ominous secrets. Secrets that were rumored to be dark, dirty, and stained with blood. It was never my intention to get tangled up with them, but Judas and I had a secret too, one he was determined to make sure I took with me to my grave, which meant keeping me by his side. Now forced to be part of a savage coterie, I start to see his world through a new pair of eyes. It isn’t long before temptation becomes something dangerous and wild, breeding the sickest kind of infatuation. And those secrets Judas keeps? They’re about to tear my life apart. **WARNING** Before beginning this series please be aware that while LK is mild in terms of darkness, the following books in this series will be on a drastically different level, containing graphic violence, total power-control, explicit sexual content, and varying triggers. LK is a percursor that sets the stage for the rest of the series. 18+ only.

Sweeter Than Candy


Shyla Colt - 2018
    The sexy brunette in the custom suit dismissed her like a peasant thanks to a case of mistaken identity. It doesn't matter that he’s completely devoted to his baby sister and her newborn. Right? Looks can be deceiving ...Asher didn’t expect a lactation specialist to look like that. The brown-skinned beauty with curves in all the right places and a stunning jawline caught him off guard. A spark of attraction lit, and he deviated from the cool composure he’s known for. When life continues to throw them together, they’re forced to explore the potential for happiness between them.

Distorted Love


T.L. Smith - 2018
    Hated him from the age of eighteen. He disappeared at the age of nineteen. We started off as enemies, then fast became lovers. But our story isn’t a happily ever after. It was a story of a king and a peasant. Can you guess which I was? I knew we weren’t meant to be. You see, he fell in love with her first. He loved me last.I'm not someone's second choice.Not even for the boy who stole my heart. I'm someone's first. Now, I just have to remember that.

Ten Thousand Words


Kelli Jean - 2016
     Reclusive author, Xanthe Malcolm, likes her private and quiet life. However, when her wildly-popular series Paranormal Hunters gets picked up by a big-time publishing agency, she’s thrust into the limelight alongside sexy, photographer-turned-cover model, Oliver Fairfax. Upon meeting, the chemistry between the quirky writer and arrogant model quickly intensifies, creating a steamy page-turner of events made for romance novels. Then comes the plot twist. Xanthe has secrets that have kept her bound to silence. And the truth has Oliver questioning every unspoken word.

Wicked Titan


A.J. Logan - 2020
    I won’t bow.He can’t break me.Because I’m already in hell.

The Commander's Warrior Mate (The Vitruvian Chronicles)


A.R. Kayne - 2019
    That was Jess’s life after the Ghul invaded. With civilization in ruins and her family dead, she fled to the woods and clawed for survival. Fifteen years later, the Alliance came in the dark of night and tore her life apart again.Now she’s being held on an Alliance starship against her will. Its captain looks at her with a glint in his eye and says there’s a man on board for her, a man who’ll cherish her.But why would she want that? Men are terrifying! No, all she really wants is her freedom. If the captain will just undo her cuffs - or come within reach so she can bash him over the head - she’ll let herself out and find her own way home. Surely it can’t be that hard to fly a spaceship! Captain Pryce Adamson isn’t looking for a life mate. He certainly doesn’t expect to find one shackled in his ship’s interrogation room, spewing lies and threatening violence. But within minutes of pitting his wits against hers, he knows she’s his match. Shipboard tests merely confirm what he already knows: this feral, outrageous nymph of a woman is his shot at a lifetime of joy and passion. But her time in hiding has left her badly scarred. A man is the last thing she wants. It’s going to take every bit of patience and cunning he has to win a chance with her … and even then, he may find a knife between his ribs!

Guarding Light: Book 1 of the Dark Series trilogy


Cate McKoy - 2013
     Jack Gard and Catlyn Lyte’s budding romance begins in high school. Although Jack cares for Catlyn, he refuses to get into a relationship with Catlyn because of her age. Then Catlyn is assaulted, and her world is torn apart when Jack sides with his best friend, giving him an alibi. Devastated, Catlyn flees Newburgh, NY. Twenty-five years later, someone is assaulting and killing young, African-American women in Chief of Detectives Jack Gard’s hometown. Working against an escalating killer, Jack requests help from a special division of the FBI. Enter Supervisory Special Agent Catlyn Lyte. She has always done her job well but is wary of working with someone she doesn't trust. Nevertheless, Sparks fly between the two officials as Catlyn puts herself in the path of their quarry. Can two ex-friends try to bury their differences to solve, not only the mystery of the Newburgh Slasher, but also the mystery that ruined their budding romance twenty-five years ago?

Bad Cop


Linda Verji - 2018
    He’s the kind of man they warn women about. Checkered past, man-whore, cocky… and hot as sin. Good girls can’t handle him. And that’s exactly what Jasmine ‘Jaz’ Mitchell was when they first met; a dewy-eyed good girl who believed in love, roses and everything nice.Then he broke her heart!Now she’s back in his life and she’s different – feisty, a little cruel and outrageously irresistible. Innocent, sheltered Jasmine was cute, but this brave, new Jasmine is sexy as hell. Lucas knows that he shouldn’t get close to her because he’ll just hurt her again. However, that doesn’t change the way her sweet-as-sin kisses have his heart racing and blood boiling. Worse, she keeps diving head-first into danger and has somehow landed on a dangerous murderer’s kill list. Lucas will do anything to keep her safe. But can he keep his desire on a tight leash while he does it?*This sexy bwwm romantic suspense is a standalone novel with a little bit of crime, a happily ever after ending and no cliff-hangers.

Echoes of You


Margaret McHeyzer - 2020
    until it wasn't.A catastrophic incident unearthed echoes of my past.It left me no choice but to confront my inner demons.Will I be able to live through this again?Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3ccwu3sAmazon UK: https://amzn.to/2RsKr5lAmazon AUS: https://amzn.to/2yc6sywAmazon CAN: https://amzn.to/2wxKJRr