Book picks similar to
Pure Passion by M.T. Stone


romance
contemporary-romance
new-adult
contemporary

Bound Together


Marie Coulson - 2012
    Always playing by the rules and doing what’s right, she has been the apple of her father’s eye and her mother’s treasure. But moving to college in Long Beach is about to turn Layla’s world upside down. With the gorgeous, pierced, guitar playing, wannabe rock star Oliver living across the hall, Layla finds herself thrown into a world of music, money, torn friendships and blood simmering sexual tension. But on taking a job in a local coffee shop she meets the deliciously handsome Jared Garrett. Convincing herself that he is a waste of oxygen she tries to put the young successful business man out of her mind. But when he continues to show up she finds herself constantly thinking of him. Dazzled by his boyish good looks and discovering a whole new world of carnal and erotic pleasures, Layla finds herself falling head over heels in love but with Jared hiding a vital secret can she ever truly trust him?

Catch My Fall


Ella Fox - 2013
    In need of a fresh start, she settles into a new town and begins to make a new life. Tristan Chamberlain has always kept girls at arm's length and he has no intention of changing. He’s caring, smart, handsome, but he’s also dealing with a lifetime of guilt that’s slowly but surely destroying him.Sometimes what you run from is the one thing that will save you.Separately, they’re both free-falling. Together, they’re about to find that love can create the strongest safety net of all.

Star Struck


Amber Garza - 2013
    He makes me want to take a risk. I just hope he decides to take a risk on me too.

Let Love In


Melissa Collins - 2013
    Ripped from her home and everything that she has ever loved, she is forced to start all over again. The only way for her to move on is to build walls around her heart and keep everyone at a safe distance. Her logic: she can't get hurt if she doesn't fall in love. That theory is blown to pieces when she meets Reid Connely during her freshman year at college. He is gorgeous and darkly mysterious. He understands Maddy's pain all too well, but sharing his pain would mean breaking down the walls he put up around his own heart. Conflicted between loving Maddy and hiding his dark past, Reid starts to reevaluate his world. Maddy's inner strength, snarky personality and breath taking beauty help Reid to make peace with his past. Together they find out what happens when they let love in.

By a Thread


R.L. Griffin - 2013
    She was engaged to a man she adored, and was headed to law school in the fall. Tragically, her perfectly planned future ends just as it was beginning. With no ties to family or friends, Stella finds herself alone in a new city, spiraling out of control. Her typical day comes to a close with her passed out on the floor; sometimes clothed. Luckily, her new roommate, essentially a stranger, is dead set on getting Stella past her grief and back to functioning within society. Putting one foot in front of the other, she climbs up from the bottom of a bottle. Even with all her progress, Stella walks through life unfeeling, numb. Defiant, she sends out warning signals for the world to keep away. But, is that what she really wants? With the steadfast help of a few tight knit friends, she gradually begins to feel again. She starts to savor the flavor of food again; lets herself notice how the handsome bartender glances at her. Still, after allowing herself a fling, she wonders if she will ever be able to let go of her shattered past, fully enjoy the present, or get over what she thought would be her perfect future and with the man who destroyed her heart.

Pointe of Breaking


Amy Daws - 2015
    Pepper POINTEGetting screwed over backstage by my married-ex tears my heart into a million tiny pieces.[Sitting in the audience at the ballet with my former fling wasn’t my idea of fun.]I live in my pointe shoes, not even my ex can taint my love for ballet. [I hate the ballet. This on again/off again crap was getting old.]And then my whole world changes when I notice the smoldering gaze…[Then I look to the stage, and I can’t take my eyes off…]OF...Leo Richards. [Adeline Parker.]Concentrating on anything except his sexy…everything, is impossible.[Her presence commands my attention…I’ve never experienced this before.]He makes me second-guess everything I’ve ever dreamed about.[She makes me question everything I’ve ever known.]Fighting him is a strategic sport—no clothes allowed. [All I can think about are her sexy ballerina legs wrapped around me—tutu definitely on.]BREAKINGOur scandalous rendezvous is plastered all over NYC’s tabloids.[Because of my status in Manhattan, now I’ve dragged her into the limelight.] My ex will stop at nothing to tear us apart. [Seriously powerful people forbid me to be with her.]Rumors about his past keep building. [I can’t tell her this secret.]When it came to Leo, I only knew the big things.[When it came to Adeline, I knew nothing about the little things.]But uncovering those things about him [her] may push us past our breaking point.

Anywhere with You


Kaylee Ryan - 2013
    Her parents died in a car crash when she was ten, and she has been living with her elderly grandmother who happens to be her only living relative ever since. Allison became best friends with the boy next door, Aiden. Aiden’s family has taken her in as part of their own, which is why when her gran insists that she live in the dorms at college, Allison chooses to attend the same school as Aiden.Liam MacCoy is a college senior and quarterback of his college football team. Liam is rumored to be first round draft pick for the NFL following graduation, as is his best friend, Aiden. Liam has one focus and that’s football, that is until his little sister introduces him to her roommate Allison. Since he met her, he hasn't been able to think of anything else.Liam is not a relationship kind of guy, and Allison wants it all. She wants the romance and the family that she grew up without. Will Liam overcome his fear of relationships as well as the tangle of friendships to give Allison everything she wants?

Deeper


Blue Ashcroft - 2013
    It’s a promise she made the day her boyfriend died in a water park accident, one she still blames herself for. Now she’s a senior lifeguard in a new town with a new pool and she’s just going to keep her head down and everyone safe. Until a mysterious guy follows her into the waves at the pre-season bonfire and kisses her senseless. It’s just one mistake, and Rain is determined to put it behind her, until the dark haired, blue eyed hottie turns out to be her new co-supervisor Knight Mcallister. Knight is hot, tatted, and carrying baggage of his own. He’s not happy about having Rain for a co-supervisor, and he’s even less happy about his attraction to her. But between lifeguard drama, hot underwater kisses, and a growing attraction between them that can’t be stopped, Knight and Rain are being pulled deeper into their pasts, and realizing that sometimes too much broken can make a relationship impossible.Then again sometimes it’s the broken parts of us that fit together best.

Spiral


Mila Ferrera - 2013
    Despite the urging of her mother and her academic advisor to get a life and have some fun, “all work and no play” sums up her plan to survive her grueling internship year at a children's hospital. She doesn't want to end up like her father, whose constant ups and downs broke her family, and avoiding unnecessary emotional entanglements is a must.Then she (literally) runs into Dr. Aron Lindstrom in the middle of her disastrous first day on the job. The attraction is instant—and terrifying. Nessa knows she should stay away—especially when she finds out he has a reputation for being a player—but Aron is brilliant, intense, and as sexy as they come. When he challenges her to take a chance on him, her plans to stay focused on work start to crumble.But what begins as passion takes on a dangerous edge, becoming an emotional roller coaster that’s frighteningly familiar. As things spiral out of control, Nessa must decide whether she should hold on for the ride or run … even if it means leaving her heart behind.

I'll Run to You


Nikki Vale - 2016
    Now, Hunter is back and turning her world upside down once again. Will Evie survive when he tears down the walls surrounding her heart?

Choices


Sydney Lane - 2014
    But being perfect is tiring. So. Very. Tiring. Wanting desperately to step out of her sister's shadow, Quincy jumps at the opportunity to attend college with her best friend. The quiet bookworm with family secrets comes out of her shell. But when Quincy meets not one, but two perfect guys, she has to make a choice. In doing so, she might forfeit the relationship she secretly longed to find. Declan. Sweet, handsome, and perfect. He makes her feel cherished for the first time in her life.Brody. Sexy, hot, and irresistible. He could tear down her carefully built walls.Before she can become the woman she wants to be, Quincy will make mistakes. And suffer one unimaginable loss.Choices is a new adult contemporary romance intended for audiences 18+. Although Choices is included in a series, each book can stand alone.

Dangerous to Know & Love


Jane Harvey-Berrick - 2013
    Moody, with an explosive temper, closed off and sullen, he’s also beautiful, tatted in delicious ways, with a pierced eyebrow and spiky black hair. It’s rumoured he has piercings in other places, too. Is he really mad, bad and dangerous to know?Daniel lives with his older brother, Zef, and their home is party central. You want drugs, a good time, liquor, no questions asked? Colton’s is the place to go.When Daniel and good girl Lisanne Maclaine have to work together on an assignment, Lisanne finds there’s a lot more to the college’s bad boy than his reputation. He’s intelligent and funny and good company. And then she discovers his secret, why he’s so closed off to everyone, and determined to keep people at arms’ length. But being his secret-keeper is harder than she ever dreamed.Recommended for readers 18+ due to sexual references and sex scenes, some coarse language, drug references and drug use.Word Count: 154,726

Dizzy


Nyrae Dawn - 2012
    He and his older brother watched their dad go through hell and back, so they made a pact years ago—no girl would come between the Gibson boys. But his brother sells out. He's getting married anyway. To the sister of a chick Dylan met at a party, who's probably the angriest girl he's ever met. Unfortunately, she happens to be hot, too. Ziah’s life is upside down—her safe boyfriend turns out to be not-so-safe, and now her sister is getting married before college is over to the older brother of a spoiled, party boy who drives her crazy. And also makes her heart beat too fast. There’s no denying the attraction, but there's also no denying how much they irritate each other. When they’re thrown together as forced wedding planners, they find an ally in each other--neither wants this wedding to happen. But instead of putting a stop to the crazy nuptials they find themselves at fittings and cake testing. And maybe even…a few dates?Dizzy is a novel about what happens when two people who are determined not to fall in love, maybe do anyway. Maybe.

Tasting Never


C.M. Stunich - 2012
    She doesn't need any complications in her life, especially not when they're attached to a man that could be her emotional twin.Ty McCabe can't stand Never the first time he meets her. He's aware that the feeling's mutual and the two don't think they'll ever see each other again, but when fate takes a hand and puts them both in the wrong place at the wrong time, Ty and Never form a tentative friendship that opens the door on their dark sides and shows them what it's like to live in the light."Sometimes, the only way to go forward, is to take a few, careful steps back."READING LIST#1: Tasting Never#2: Finding Never#3: Keeping NeverOR Books #1-#3 in one volume: "Tasting, Finding, Keeping: The Story of Never"#4: Never Can Tell#5: Never Let Go#6: Never Did SayTASTING NEVER EXCERPT:Ty's hot mouth is on my neck, and I find myself taking short, sharp, little breaths as I press my shaking hands to his chest. If I sleep with him again, I'll be making the biggest mistake of my life. He's the first real friend I've ever had, and I don't want to cheapen the feelings that are simmering between us. We made that mistake once before, and we survived. We've been through a lot since then, and I know that if I lose him now, I will never be whole again. Ty is my other half, lover or no, and just being around him is enough for me. “Ty,” I say, trying my best to sound stern. Instead, my voice comes out like a butterfly, flutters against Ty's hair and swirls it gently against my lips. I moan and find that my fingers are now curled in the fabric of his T-shirt. “Never,” he says back to me, the word like fire against my skin. In those two syllables, I hear how he feels about me. He thinks he's in love. Ty McCabe thinks he's in love with me. He doesn't say it aloud, but I can tell. Sex isn't the best way for me to show my feelings; I've abused it for far too long that it has somehow lost some of its meaning. I try to tell Ty this, but I can't speak with his lips on my throat and his hand sliding across the nape of my neck. I run my own hands down his chest and put them beneath his shirt, on the hard plane of his belly. His muscles contract as I press my fingers into them, touching, feeling, absorbing the man, the complication, that is Ty McCabe. All the while, my mind is racing in circles trying to talk me out of this.“Kiss me,” Ty says and it's not a question, it's a request, albeit a gentle one. His voice is softer than I've ever heard it. His words are naked, stripped of all the bullshit that's happened to him, all of the horrible things that mirror my own life. Ty and I are like twins, like two halves of the same whole. They say that opposites attract, but Ty and I are very much the same and the attraction between us burns brighter than the sun. “Kiss me,” he says again and I do.

The Rules of Regret


Megan Squires - 2013
    Her boyfriend of six years just left for a high-powered summer internship, though in reality he’s been absent for much longer than that. This newfound freedom wasn’t a part of Darby’s plans, but as she’s come to discover, plans only exist on paper, not in reality.And guys like Torin Westbrook aren’t supposed to exist in reality, either. But he does, with his disheveled curly hair, irresistible dimples, and endearingly quirky habit of reciting quotes from classic movies and ancient thinkers. When Darby meets Torin as a fellow counselor at the survival camp she impulsively applies to, she’s certain his main goal is to turn her world upside-down. But Darby’s not sure she can adapt to Torin’s ways of viewing his past and the tragedies he's faced. Because she’s had her own share of heartache, too, and as much as she wants to believe that it’s all been for a purpose, her grief hasn’t allowed her to get to that point. Yet the more Darby is around Torin, the more she craves the freedom to break out of her carefully constructed routine and mindset and fall into something new. She’s just not sure that she should be falling for Torin along the way.(The Rules of Regret is a non-explicit, young/new adult romance.)