Book picks similar to
You Only Get So Much by Dan Kolbet


fiction
contemporary
romance
contemporary-romance

The Color of Heaven


Julianne MacLean - 2011
    When it seems nothing else could possibly go wrong, her car skids off an icy road and plunges into a frozen lake. There, in the cold, dark depths of the water, Sophie experiences something profound and extraordinary--something that unlocks the secrets from her past, and teaches her what it means to truly live"--Publisher description.

Pause to Rewind


Aimee Alexander - 2014
    She doesn't look back. Why would she? A broken engagement to her fiancé, Dave. A falling-out with her parents. And a night in a hotel room best forgotten. Life is simple now. Jenny's little boy, Charlie, is starting school, beginning to build a life independent from her. She needs to get her own back. Life, though, has other plans. When Charlie's diagnosed with leukaemia, Jenny is forced to confront her past and all that she has turned from. But she will do anything for Charlie. Aimee Alexander is the pen name of traditionally published author, Denise Deegan. Pause to Rewind was originally published as Time in a Bottle, a bestseller in Ireland, Germany and Holland. What the critics have to say:'entwines the threads of mystery, plot and character into a compelling yarn that charms and chills - but always captivates.' EVENING HERALD 'a moving story of a mother's love and a woman's personal development.' IMAGE 'the author fizzes through the pages, bringing out the positive in tragic events and manages to inject humour and pace, as well as empathy, into a harrowing topic.' IRISH INDEPENDENT 'could only have been written by a woman who loves children and their ways because the dialogue so authentically captures the child's voice and personality.' EVENING HERALD. 'Given that this is a cancer journey and the sufferer is a wonderful, energetic little four-year-old boy then this could be a tough read. But the skill of the author brings us along this path with skill, compassion, knowledge and a gritty sense of humour as Jenny, the single mother of Charlie, slowly comes to terms with her son's diagnosis. We get to know and love Charlie. The writing is direct and very much on the pulse - the medical information is delivered skillfully without slowing the story which also highlights Jenny's past and the consequences of a night she's never been able to forget. As Charlie struggles through his illness, his cocky sense of humour never falters. The dialogue is authentic; you can hear his voice in your head as you read. In these most difficult of circumstances can romance raise its head and dare to hope? Can lost relationships be repaired, regained? Read Pause to Rewind and travel that journey with Charlie. You will not be disappointed. Highly recommended.' AUTHOR, LAURA ELLIOT 'Five Stars.' AUTHOR CLARE DOWLING'Once I started this book, I knew I wouldn't stop until I finished it. It's been a while since I read a book that drew me in straight away and held me there until the end. The book is beautifully written with wonderfully drawn characters and realistic dialogue that flows wonderfully. The author deals with some very big issues and does so with compassion, honesty and attention to detail. A mother's love is central to the story and I don't mind saying there were tears! But there's also humor mixed with the sadness which in my opinion makes the book such an accomplished and enjoyable read. One of my favourite books of the year.' AUTHOR, MARIA DUFFY 'With crisp, gorgeous writing, this is an incredible story about hope and a mother’s love. I cried but also laughed - a lot. The book is set in Dublin’s Glenageary but it wasn’t just the area that kept reminding me of Maeve Binchy. Alexander clearly loves people-watching; she has them down to a tee. And her dialogue is the best I've ever read. Watch this space. AUTHOR, NIAMH O'CONNOR 'This was an exceptionally well-written story.

Saving Grace


Sandy James - 2013
    The victim of a violent rape at the hands of a rich politician’s son, she must “disappear” to escape his constant attempts to recapture her. Moving from cattle drive to cattle drive as a cook, she avoids her tormentor for nearly twenty years. When she discovers that the brother she gave up for adoption after their mother died in childbirth was orphaned at an early age, she is frantic to verify that he’s safe. She tracks him to a cattle ranch in Montana.Widower Adam Morgan owns the Twin Springs ranch, but finds himself falling into a life of loneliness. Although he enjoys spending time with his grown daughter and the two men he rescued when they were living on the streets, he longs to meet a woman he can love. Living in the Montana territory where men greatly outnumber women makes finding a new wife difficult. Weary of working cattle, he is ready to make some changes in his life.Grace falls ill on her journey, but she manages to make it to the Twin Springs ranch where her brother is supposed to be living. Adam takes her in, concerned for her health and the reason she’s searching for one of his adopted sons. Their chemistry is immediate and intense, but can Grace heal from her past of pain and fear? When her secrets are finally revealed, can Adam forgive her deceptions and learn to love again?

Make Me Forget


Anna Brooks - 2014
    She knows she’ll see him when she moves back to Wisconsin. She’s planning on it, the connection she still feels to him after all these years is undeniable. But one lie tore them apart years ago, and she’s afraid some mistakes can’t be forgiven.Travis Parker doesn’t like liars. When he was younger, lies burned him in a bad way. It only took one summer with Charlotte’s innocence to know that she was it for him. When he thought he finally had something to look forward to, one misguided lie shattered everything he believed.Now, Char’s back, but she’s not the same girl he once knew.Make Me Forget is the first book in a series of second chance romances featuring the most loyal men as they battle their past in order to secure a future with their one true love. Defeat is not an option when their hearts are on the line. Each emotional and angsty story can be read as a standalone.

Mad Love


Colet Abedi - 2014
    With her two best friends along for the ride and to help her find herself again, Sophie is not prepared for the enigmatic Clayton Sinclair. Clayton comes from another world of privilege that seems like a fantasy to Sophie. Can this man introduce her to the passion & seduction she never realized she was desperately searching for? Sophie quickly becomes ensnared in Clayton's seductive web until a shocking treachery makes her question her judgment and actions...

Megan's Way


Melissa Foster - 2009
    What would you give up for the people you love? When Megan Taylor, a single mother and artist living on Cape Cod, receives the shocking news that her cancer has returned, she's faced with the most difficult decision she's ever had to make. The love she has for her daughter, Olivia, and her closest friends will be stretched and frayed. Megan's illness reawakens her best friend, Holly Townsend's, torment of a long-held secret and years of betrayal. How does one choose between a daughter and a life-long best friend? Can the secret she has been keeping be revealed after years of lying without destroying everyone in its wake? Meanwhile, fourteen-year-old Olivia's world is falling apart right before her eyes, and there's nothing she can do about it. She finds herself acting in ways she cannot even begin to understand. When her internal struggles turn to dangerous behavior, even the paranormal connection she shares with her mother might not be enough to save her - her life will hang in the balance. Megan's Way is a journey of self discovery and heartfelt emotions, exploring the depth of the mother-daughter bond, and the intricacies of friendship. WINNER, READERS FAVORITE AWARD: Fiction/DramaWINNER, BEACH BOOK AWARD: SpiritualFINALIST, Next Generation Indie Book Awards: New AgeFINALIST, READERS FAVORITE AWARD: Women's FictionHONORABLE MENTION, NEW ENGLAND FILM FESTIVAL: Spirituality***Olivia's story will be continued in LOVING LIVI, Harborside Nights new adult romance series. Sign up for Melissa's newsletter and follow her on her author page here on Amazon to be notified of this release!

Miranda Warning


Heather Day Gilbert - 2014
    The Glock-wielding, knife-carrying housewife knows how to survive whatever life throws at her. But when an anonymous warning note shows up in her best friend Miranda’s mailbox—a note written in a dead woman’s handwriting—Tess quickly discovers that ghosts are alive and well in Buckneck, West Virginia. Hot on a cold trail, she must use limited clues and her keen insight into human nature to unmask the killer...or the next victim might be Tess herself.Tinged with the supernatural and overshadowed by the mountains' lush, protective presence, this twisting psychological mystery is the first in A Murder in the Mountains series.

Set the Night on Fire


Jennifer Bernard - 2016
    The town bad boy is back to clear his name Firefighter Sean Marcus left Jupiter Point in disgrace, but now he’s coming home to clear his name. As the man in charge of setting up the new Jupiter Point Hotshots wildfire crew, he’s out to prove he’s no longer the troubled boy who fled after a night of violence. He’s back for one reason only--and it isn’t to fall in love. The town sweetheart has a secret Evie McGraw has never spoken about that night. But she can’t escape it, especially now that her brother’s wild friend Sean is back. Rugged, sexy and irresistible, he’s the only one who knows what happened. Evie put her life on hold to protect her family, but now, she has to make a choice. Keep silent…or put her heart on the line and let Sean help heal the past?

Wind Chime Café


Sophie Moss - 2014
    Hearing rumors that a developer is about to build a five-star resort on the sleepy Chesapeake Bay island, she plans to transform the café into a premier upscale bistro. But Annie’s life is about to get a lot more complicated.Back on Heron Island for the first time in ten years, Navy SEAL Will Dozier has no intention of selling his grandparents’ property to a developer. As he works on renovating the house and trying to find another buyer, he’s forced to face a painful reality—that he’s secretly struggling with PTSD. Determined to hide his troubles from the rest of the islanders, Will decides that a fling with the new girl is the perfect way to help him “get his head straight.” The last thing Will expects is to fall in love…with his hometown and with Annie. But Will’s life and career are in San Diego with the SEALs. Can Annie’s love and the healing magic of the island be enough to convince him to stay?

Lengths


Steph Campbell - 2012
    She promptly finds a job at a tattoo parlor, a craptastic first apartment, and one friend—Ryan—who is a little less friend, a little more benefits. Deo Beckett is a soulful surfer with a passion for tattoos and beautiful women. On the eve of his twenty-second birthday, he finds himself living with his grandfather, recently unemployed, and seriously adrift. He doesn’t know much about what he wants out of life, but he does know his current situation isn't cutting it. When Deo meets Whit, she’s all sexy makeup and fierce, smart-ass fun. It doesn’t take him long to see past her tough shell. And when he gets a good look at what's under all the superficial stuff that usually gets his attention, it leaves Deo wondering if there might be more to life than living fast and free. Too bad Whit has a past she doesn't plan on sharing—no matter how hot Deo is. She might want him, but she knows better than to let her guard down. Deo falls for Whit, and falls hard. But everything about her, down to that mysterious tattoo and the way she thrashes in her sleep, tells him that the girl he loves is hiding something. And the more he pushes for answers, the more Whit pulls away. Having your guard up is one thing, but are the lengths Whit goes to to protect her secret worth throwing away the second chance she has at happiness with Deo? LENGTHS is a Contemporary New Adult Romance to be released August 2012.

Once Broken


D.M. Hamblin - 2016
    It's a story about a single mother, Jackie Martin, who has two objectives: First to raise her daughter, Gina with her self-esteem unscathed by her father’s abandonment; Second, to see her daughter’s father, Tony Salvucci suffer for his abandonment. Both objectives come to pass. With lots of twists and turns and memorable characters, Once Broken is an inspirational story about forgiveness vs. revenge and living one's life moving forward, no matter how painful the past.

Finding Southern Comfort


Barbara Lohr - 2013
    She’s desperate when he sends her home. Jobs are scarce and eviction looms. Former boyfriend Billy took off for California and she’s too proud to head home to Chicago. Although Cameron may not go for her cheerleader kicks, he does admire Harper’s spunk. When she answers his ad for a nanny, she’s horrified to find herself back at his mansion. But she can’t turn down the generous salary or Bella, the toddler with troubled eyes. Youngest in the Kirkpatrick clan, Harper’s not an expert on kids. Neither is the young widower. Her head-strong personality soon puts her at odds with Cameron and his TV personality girlfriend, Kimmy Carrington. When she stands in for Kimmy at a Savannah gala, Harper and Cameron spark a fire that nearly burns down the dance floor. Never has the wrong man felt so right. Never has a boy from the south worked so hard to rev up the charm. Will the Windy City girl be able to put the heart back in his home? Can he convince her that his southern comfort has staying power?

Long Time Coming


Edie Claire - 2003
    But back at home, the past is ready and waiting to haunt her...Eighteen years have passed since Joy's childhood best friend, Jenny, met her death in a tragic car accident just a few days after their senior prom. A broken Joy left their small Kentucky hometown shortly after - determined never to come back. But when her father's illness forces her to return, she realizes that neither time nor distance have truly healed her troubled soul.Plagued with nightmares of the accident and crippled by a vague fear whose source she can't identify, Joy realizes that in order to move on she must face the truth behind several disturbing gaps in her memory of that fateful spring. But the only person who can help her is a man she despises - Jenny's erstwhile boyfriend Jeff, now a respected doctor, whose carelessness as a teenager was the cause of Jenny's horrendous death - and Joy's own emotional destruction. Can she ever forgive? She may have no choice but to try. Because both the danger she sensed - and the childhood friendship she treasured - now suddenly seem very much alive...

Tell Me When It Hurts


Christine M. Whitehead - 2009
    A magna cum laude graduate of Smith College, with a law degree from Columbia, Archer has a great husband, a wonderful daughter, and a fulfilling career. Add to that a slot on the U.S. Equestrian Team and Archer can almost forget her mysterious past, her violent history. Almost perfect. But nothing stays at equipoise forever. When Archer's daughter, Annie, is murdered, her life shatters and deadly skills, long dormant, emerge as highly relevant. As Archer embarks on her own path to salvation, she snips all ties with the past. Love is now an extravagance, no longer affordable for her.At her darkest ebb, Connor McCall, Harvard-educated financial baron turned Wyoming rancher, stumbles into Archer's life and presses her to start reconnecting the dots. It's an edgy blend of La Femme Nikita, The Horse Whisperer, and something else.In Tell Me When It Hurts, memories can sustain or sink you, all in the same night and all the same memories*READERS FAVORITE HONORABLE MENTION AWARD8

The Wager


Calista Kyle - 2013
    This unassuming book shop owner would rather spend a night in with a good book rather than hobnob with the rich and famous.When her best friend Mel begs her to attend a charity gala with her, Lily reluctantly agrees. All she wants is to get through the night without embarrassing herself or snapping someone's head off. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen. Lily causes a bit of a stir when she berates another guest for spilling his drink on her. ...and a Billionaire Roman Conrad is rich, bored and too handsome for his own good. He's never had a problem attracting women. When he sees Lily at a charity gala, she's already made a little name for herself as an Ice Princess. Seeing the perfect opportunity to alleviate his boredom and to get one over an acquaintance, he makes a bet that he can make Lily fall in love with him.What he never expected was that he would be the one in danger of falling in love. The Betrayal After a painful past, Lily is gun-shy when it come to love and trusting her heart to anyone. She suspects Roman may be too good to be true, but against her better judgment, she can't help being drawn to him anyway.She has no idea about the bet and Roman wants to keep it that way, but fate has other plans. After spending his whole life waiting for a woman like Lily will one careless wager ruin everything and tear them apart?