Book picks similar to
Blue Hawaiian by Carla Luna


romance
contemporary
arc
contemporary-romance

Just As You Are


Kate R. Mathieson - 2020
    All her friends are married, having babies, and settling into domestic bliss. Determined to catch up, Emma plunges herself headfirst into the online dating world, and discovers single men in Sydney are one of three things; tossers, illiterate, or nerds that work in IT (she must be sending out subtle hints in binary code.)This story, set in the bustling city of Sydney, is a humorous, light-hearted novel for every woman who has ever wanted to find The One. With a clear underlying message – be yourself.

Mr. Nice Guy (Pierce Brothers, #1)


Belinda Williams - 2021
    . .‘Give me a week. Seven days and seven nights. I’ll show you what it’s like to be with a nice guy.’Chelsea’s housemate Tom is tired of her complaining about her boyfriends. Arrogant, sexy, irresistible—bad boys are basically Chelsea’s M.O.Pretty much everything that Tom is not. He’s dependable and sweet. He’s also kind of hot in a cute, unthreatening way. His offer surprises Chelsea. He’s right . . . she’s never really given a nice guy a chance before. And now she’s curious. Hell, it might even be fun.There’s just one rule: this isn’t a friends with benefits arrangement. Except Chelsea never imagined nice guys could play so dirty . . .

Chocolate Cake for Breakfast: (Little Duck Pond Cafe, Book 20)


Rosie Green - 2022
    With her confidence shattered, even leaving the house is scary, and a promising romance with gorgeous Logan is over before it even had a chance to begin. But cheered on by her dad and her great friend, Madison, she makes a decision that could change everything. Can Martha find the courage to step out into the world and love again?

Frenemies with Benefits


Kelly Myers - 2020
    I’ve spent my life running away from my past.And for so long, that’s worked.Not anymore.Now my past is out to get me in the form of Zach O’Malley.He was my first crush, but that was then.My name is still Beatrice Dobbs, but everything else has changed. I’m an adult now. I don’t want to go back to my troubled past.Plus Zach is from the wrong side of the tracks. Sure, back when I was in high school, I had a thing for the Bad Boy, but not anymore.And on top of that, he’s trying to get me to reconnect with my mother. I haven’t spoken to her since I was eighteen, and I would rather re-take the SAT’s than see her again.And yet, I can’t seem to push Zach away.He’s no good for me.But maybe – just maybe– my teenage self was onto something.What’s the harm in a little bit of fun?

Tough Love: A Forced Proximity Romance


Melanie A. Smith - 2021
    Smith comes a standalone steamy contemporary romance about life choices, love, and finding yourself in between. Sometimes you need a bit of tough love to get where you’re supposed to be … Mia Anderson has been living a life that was chosen for her. But her impending thirtieth birthday is the wake-up call she needed to stop wasting time on all the wrong pursuits. Just as she’s figuring out what she wants to do about it, her beloved grandmother falls ill and Mia drops everything to be with her. What she didn’t expect to find in her grandmother’s tiny mountain town is the courage to quit working for her father, supplied by a little tough love from her Gran. Now faced with an uncertain future, the last thing on her mind is finding love. Nate Edwards is living a solitary life deep in the Cascade Mountains of Washington. He’s content, or at least he thinks he is — until the granddaughter of a good friend shows up and he starts having feelings he thought he’d never have again. But Mia’s future isn’t in Alpine Ridge, so acting on it would lead to nothing but heartbreak. Still, their connection is undeniable and circumstances continue to push them together, despite their resistance. Will Mia stick to her decision to carve her own path? And if she does, will it be with Nate? Or is he doomed to an isolated life?

Passion on Park Avenue


Lauren Layne - 2019
    For as long as she can remember, Bronx-born Naomi Powell has had one goal: to prove her worth among the Upper East Side elite—the same people for which her mom worked as a housekeeper. Now, as the strongminded, sassy CEO of one of the biggest jewelry empires in the country, Naomi finally has exactly what she wants—but it’s going to take more than just the right address to make Manhattan’s upper class stop treating her like an outsider.The worst offender is her new neighbor, Oliver Cunningham—the grown son of the very family Naomi’s mother used to work for. Oliver used to torment Naomi when they were children, and as a ridiculously attractive adult, he’s tormenting her in entirely different ways. Now they find themselves engaged in a battle-of-wills that will either consume or destroy them…Filled with charm and heart and plenty of sex and snark, this entertaining series will hook you from the very first page.

My One and Only


Kristan Higgins - 2011
    Bad enough that she runs into her ex-hubby, Nick, at her sister's destination wedding, but now, by a cruel twist of fate, she's being forced to make a cross-country road trip with him. And her almost-fiancé back at home is not likely to be sympathetic.Harper can't help that Nick has come blazing back into her life in all of his frustratingly appealing, gorgeous architect glory. But in Nick's eyes, Harper's always been the one. If they can only get it right this time, forever might be waiting—just around the bend.

BAILEY BROTHERS CHRISTMAS TREE FARM: A Holiday Romance Collection


Lana Dash - 2021
    Women from all over flock to the farm, hoping to meet the shirtless sexy lumberjacks from the video.With this twist of holiday fate, can the brothers save their farm and find love before Christmas?ETHANI thought the biggest thing I'd have to worry about this holiday was keeping the family Christmas tree farm afloat with my brothers. But when a news crew shows up to do a story on us, I come face to face with the girl whose heart I broke in high school. She's here for a story, and I'm ready to give her the one I should have told her all those years ago.CHRISTOPHERNone of us could have expected the response we'd get after we attempt to market the family farm with the video, but I can't deny I love the attention we are getting from it. But when my best friend calls me out on my new behavior, the dynamic of our friendship shifts, and I see her in a new light. Will we go back to the way things were before, or will we get a chance at a new beginning?LUKEThe farm is swarming with women, but the only one who isn't here for the "sexy lumberjacks" in the video is the only woman I can’t get out of my head. Can I find a way to show the gorgeous single mom that even though I’m younger than her, I might just be the man she didn’t know she was looking for?BAILEY BROTHERS CHRISTMAS TREE FARM is a three-story collection of sweet and steamy romances about brothers trying to save their family Christmas tree farm and finding love during the holiday season. If you enjoy second chance, friends to lovers, and older single mother/younger man romances—you won’t want to miss this!

This Won't End Well


Camille Pagán - 2020
    It’s bad enough that her boss sabotaged her chemistry career and her best friend tried to cure her with crystals. But after her fiancé, Jon, asks for space while he’s gallivanting around Paris, Annie decides she needs space too—from everyone.Yet when Harper moves in next door, Annie can’t help but train a watchful eye on the glamorous but fragile young woman. And if keeping Harper safe requires teaming up with Mo, a maddeningly optimistic amateur detective, who is she to mind her own business?Soon Annie has let not one but two new people into her life. Then Jon reappears—and he wants her to join him in France. She’s pretty sure letting anyone get close won’t end well. So she must decide: Is another shot at happiness worth the risk?

The Sheikh's Tempting Assistant


Leslie North - 2018
    With the sun going down and Laura seriously worrying for her life, she stumbles across a tent that looks more like a palace than a campsite. Dehydrated and burnt, it seems like salvation — until men wearing desert garb and toting AK47’s ride out in jeeps to gather her. Sheikh Raheem can barely believe his luck when an American woman is brought into his tent. He is passionate about his country’s natural splendor, but its PR is in desperate need of a makeover — perhaps as much as the dirty beauty in front of him. He makes an offer: Laura, with her eye for finding the beauty in a location, will help him craft a campaign promoting his country, and when she completes the project he’ll send her back to America with a paycheck she can live on for years. Seeing a chance for financial freedom, Laura jumps at the opportunity. As Raheem shows off the magnificence of his land, Laura finds herself getting swept into a fairy tale full of palaces, five-star luxury, and the most sensuous sex she’s ever experienced. Though she values her independence, the temptation to stay — not just for Raheem, but for the beautiful country that isn’t getting the attention it deserves — holds her in place. But when the country’s natural treasures are threatened, Raheem and Laura must decide what means more to them: their love for one another or their original plans.

Forever Blue (The Weight of the Badge, #2)


Kaylee Rose - 2021
    In her, he sees someone who understands his law enforcement career and is strong enough to accept all that comes with it. But the universe has other ideas and throws the good and bad when least expected, turning Lance’s world upside down. Kellie Bryant always believed in the happily-ever-after. All that changed the day Lance Malloy left town, taking her hopes and dreams with him. Falling in love with a man she barely knew wasn’t planned but ruled by her heart, she gambled her future, and that of her niece, Rory.With her world spun on its axis, Kellie can’t afford to hold on to a man who isn't able to love her back.**Forever Blue is the second book in The Weight of the Badge series and is meant to be read in order.

The Party Crasher


Sophie Kinsella - 2021
    Since then, she's become estranged from her father and embarked on a feud with his hot (and much younger) girlfriend, Krista. And now, more earth-shattering news: Greenoaks, the rambling Victorian country house Effie called home her whole life, has been sold.When Krista decides to throw a grand "house cooling" party, Effie is originally left off the guest list--and then receives a last-minute "anti-invitation" (maybe it's because she called Krista a gold-digger, but Krista totally deserved it, and it was mostly a joke anyway). Effie declines, but then remembers a beloved childhood treasure is still hidden in the house. Her only chance to retrieve it is to break into Greenoaks while everyone is busy celebrating. As Effie sneaks around the house, hiding under tables and peeping through trapdoors, she realizes the secrets Greenoaks holds aren't just in the dusty passageways and hidden attics she grew up exploring. Watching how her sister, brother, and dad behave when they think no one is looking, Effie overhears conversations, makes discoveries, and begins to see her family in a new light. Then she runs into Joe--the love of her life, who long ago broke her heart, and who's still as handsome and funny as ever--and even more truths emerge.But will Effie act on these revelations? Will she stay hidden or step out into the party and take her place with her family? And truthfully, what did she really come back to Greenoaks for? Over the course of one blowout party, Effie realizes that she must be honest with herself and confront her past before she'll ever be able to face her future.

Coming Up Roses


Staci Hart - 2019
    Maybe it’s the day-to-day grind. Maybe it’s that client who never knows what they want, or the guy who always cooks fish in the microwave.But not me. I love every corner of the Longbourne Flower Shop, every flower, every petal, every stem. I love the greenhouse, and I love Mrs. Bennet, my boss. I love creating, and I love being a florist. I don’t hate anything at all.Except for Luke Bennet.The Bennet brothers have come home to help their mom save the flower shop, and Luke is at the helm. His smile tells a tale of lust, loose and easy. He moves with the grace of a predator, feral and wild. A thing unbridled, without rules or constraint. When he comes home to save Longbourne, I almost can’t be mad at him. Almost.He doesn’t remember that night I’ll never forget. That kiss, touched with whiskey and fire. It branded me like a red-hot iron. But it meant nothing to him.Everyone hates part of their job, and I hate Luke Bennet.Because if I don’t, I’ll fall in love with him.

A Sweet Mess


Jayci Lee - 2020
    When a cake mix-up and a harsh review threaten all of her hard work and her livelihood, she never thought the jaded food critic would turn out to be her one-night stand. And she sure as hell never thought she’d see her gorgeous Korean unicorn again. But when Landon Kim waltzes into her bakery trying to clean up the mess he had a huge hand in making, Aubrey is torn between throwing and hearing him out.When she hears his plan to help save her business, Aubrey knows that spending three weeks in California wine country working with Landon is a sure recipe for disaster. Her head is telling her to take the chance to save her bakery while her heart—and her hormones—are at war on whether to give him a second chance. And it just so happens that Landon’s meddling friends want them to spend those three weeks as close as possible...by sharing a villa.When things start heating up, both in and out of the kitchen, Aubrey will have to make a choice—to stick it out or risk her heart.

One Little Heartbreak


Avery Maxwell - 2021
    They’re a family that grows every time a wayward soul crosses their path, and now I’m an honorary member. A former spy, I was married at twenty-two—a father at twenty-six and a widow by thirty. To say my life is in transition would be an understatement. Winding up in small-town Vermont was a curveball I didn’t see coming, but I’m learning that the Westbrooks take their motto of Welcome to the Chaos seriously, and I’m in over my head. Having taken down one of the most notorious crime families of our generation, I thought it prepared me for anything. Then I met Ari, and Ari met the Westbrooks, and their chaos consumed us. My daughter will always come first, but when Ari gets under my skin, will I find the courage to love again? Or will the lure and danger of my old profession prove to be the only commitment I’m able to make?