Book picks similar to
Jane: A Retelling by Lark Watson


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contemporary-romance
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Take Hold of Me


Arell Rivers - 2018
    He has the muscle to do it ... but he’s moved on and refuses to look back. A Woman Fighting to Stay on Top After a decade as a supermodel, a younger version of me is scooping up my contracts. To regain my status in the industry, my agency devises a strategy—which so happens to require a bodyguard. And I know the perfect guy for the job: Wills Sumner, the man who saw beneath my veneer. Who currently is evading my texts like a Parisian taxi driver in the rain. A Man Surrendering Hope I need to start over. Watching my partners die on the job cemented my belief that I'm toxic. So, with the money from that fateful gig, I buy my sister’s gym. At least I can honor her in death—considering I failed to step up when she was alive. Now, if only the French beauty Emilie Dubois would lose my number. Emilie is fixated on having me at her side. I'm resigned to doing one final turn and escaping with my heart intact. But neither of us expected to be stripped bare … In the end, she may be the only one who can Take Hold of Me. ***WARNING: Due to strong language and sexual situations, this book is intended for mature audiences. It is the first standalone novel in A Hold Series Spin-off.

To Sir, with Love


Lauren Layne - 2021
    So when her father dies just five months after a lung cancer diagnosis, she sets aside her dreams of pursuing her passion for art to take over his Midtown Manhattan champagne shop. She soon finds out that the store’s profit margins are being squeezed perilously tight, and complicating matters further, a giant corporation headed by the impossibly handsome, but irritatingly arrogant Sebastian Andrews is proposing a buyout to turn the store into a parking garage. But Gracie can’t bear the thought of throwing away her father’s dream like she did her own.Overwhelmed and not wanting to admit to her friends or family that she’s having second thoughts about the shop, Gracie seeks advice and solace from someone she’s never met—the faceless “Sir”, with whom she connected on a blind dating app where matches get to know each other through messages and common interests before exchanging real names or photos.But although Gracie finds herself slowly falling for Sir online, she has no idea she’s already met him in real life…and they can’t stand each other.

Distractions


Tania Joyce - 2016
    I jolted back in surprise as a hot, thrilling, tingling sensation ran up my arm when my bare skin brushed against his… Did he feel that sensation too? How does that happen from touching someone? University student, Wiley Cayton’s world turns upside down when she meets college newcomer Cameron Wilks. With his irresistible good looks, he seems to be nothing but a party-boy and a constant distraction. But is there more to the hottest guy on campus? Even when Wiley finds out about Cameron’s troubled past, she’s determined to keep her distance and her previously shattered heart protected. But with him studying the same degree and falling in with her group of friends, she’s drawn to him in unexplainable, illogical ways. How can one’s heart overrule one’s mind? Inevitably she falls for his charismatic charm and her insecurities take hold. Her life spirals out of control and she struggles to find balance between partying, sex and maintaining her scholarship grades. With her future at risk, her family battle to keep her and Cameron apart, but that only weaves their relationship tighter together. When a college prank goes horribly wrong – threads snap, and just when she needs him most, Cameron disappears. Is their tumultuous romance meant to be or is it just a temporary distraction?

One Little White Lie


Loretta Hill - 2013
    When One Little White Lie turns into a red-blooded reality!What do you do when your best friend is the serial match maker from Hell?Single girl Kate Dreson knows that her friend, Lisa, is not going to leave her alone unless she tells her that she is happily dating someone. Who knew that One Little White Lie could so blatantly backfire?The imaginary boyfriend she described to her friend so lovingly suddenly walks into her life and starts making himself comfortable in it.Trapped by her lie, poor Kate is powerless to stop him. But the real question is, does she really want to?

Cotton Field Dreams


S.E. Gilchrist - 2018
    But when she meets local single dad, Cole, she can't help but be drawn to his warmth and his humour, and his two engaging children. Cole says and does all the right things, and Sasha finds herself falling, but will all of her secrets destroy the relationship before it has a chance to begin?Mindalby, a small town, a community, a home. But when the mill that supports the local cotton farmers and employs many of the town's residents closes unexpectedly, old tensions are exposed and new rifts develop. Everyone is affected and some react better than others, but one thing is certain: living on the edge of the outback means they have to survive together, or let their town die.

The Christmas Promise


Nikki Larson - 2020
    But now that her dear husband has died and her money is running out, she reluctantly returns home to the small town of Crystalline Falls.Hunter Flynn is restless. Expected to work on his dad’s Christmas tree farm with his older brothers, he dreams instead of traveling and settling in some tropical location where he can enjoy the sun and the surf and keep his troubles at bay.Sabrina Townsend knows what she wants, and nothing will stop her from getting it. And this year, she’s decided, she wants Hunter Flynn back. If only Elise Silverstein would get out of the way.When Hunter runs into Elise, who broke his heart several years ago when she married Wesley, he is reeled in once again by her captivating personality. They were so young the last time they fell in love, and foolish. Now he is tempted to let himself become all wrapped up in her again. But wouldn’t that be a colossal mistake? An enchanting story about the joy of Christmas, the importance of family, and falling in love in the most magical holiday season of the year. This is a Sweet Contemporary Clean Romance with Christian themes, perfect for holiday reading.

On a Night Like This


Lindsey Kelk - 2021
    Yet Evan belongs at the Crystal Ball and Fran is a gatecrasher. They may be soulmates, but their homes are an ocean apart, and their lives a world apart. They’ll never meet again – unless, on a night like this, everything can change forever…____________________Don’t miss the most romantic story of 2022!

Business or Pleasure?


Raquel Belle - 2019
    I’m about to get really pissed off. Maybe I should just go (in hindsight…even based on what happened next, I’d probably do it all the same!) As is, I hate blind dates! I usually create this “picture perfect” guy in my head and then reality generally walks in! Ohhh god, and reality can be REALLLLLY cruel at times (MOST of the time!!!).Anyway…I’ve just moved back to Seattle to work with my dad at his law firm. We haven’t always had the best relationship…I’m really hoping that this is him reaching out to me. Honestly, blind-dates are the last thing I need right now in my life!I’m about to give up on this night and leave when the most delicious looking specimen of a man comes up to me. I honestly thought I was hallucinating! This guy is ravishing…the type of “stop and stare” guy. Mr. I LITERALLY felt I wanted to get pregnant just by looking at him, says...“Please, tell me I’m the one you’ve been waiting for!” with a naughty smirk on his face.“Are you David Blake?” I ask.“No, but I can be anyone you want me to be.” He smiles, and my head…ohhh god…my head is filled with strong dose of naughty thoughts (a “bit” of an understatement actually!). It’s not my blind-date…and I think to myself (well, I’M TRYING to think!!!) What the hell should I do?I don’t know what the heck happened to me but I stare right into his eyes and say “Tell you what, I’m staying upstairs.” I pause. I could feel his eyes penetrating me. And then I drop the bomb… “Let’s skip the drinks and the preamble, you follow me to my room, and let's have one hell of a one-night stand. You don’t even have to tell me your name.”I couldn’t believe I just said that!He’s shocked. I’m shocked. I don’t normally do this kind of thing. But we do it. Oh, boy…do we do it. We have the most amazing, earth shattering night that I could ever dream of. And THAT was the gift…now comes the SLAP…When the weekend is over and I go in to work on Monday morning. The secretary shows me in to my dad’s office. What the heck is he doing in here? Mr. I LITERALLY felt I wanted to get pregnant just by looking at him turns and smiles.Guess what? My one-night stand is my dad’s billionaire best friend, Jared Hawthorne. He’s my new client. Things are about to get really complicated!Business or Pleasure? is a stand alone romance book with an amazing HEA!

Christmas with Hamish


Sophie Penhaligon - 2021
    When her younger sister sends her an invite to her Christmas wedding on the other side of the country in Vancouver, she decides to kill two birds with one stone and plans a ski trip to Whistler with some old friends. However, her dreams of a snowy Christmas on skis are thwarted by her sister’s dog sitting crisis.Instead of spending Christmas enjoying the après ski alcohol, she is instead stuck minding Hamish McDuff for the next week. They say that every cloud has a silver lining and for Verity, the silver lining comes in the guise of her sexy new neighbour, Nikau Taylor. Nikau seems determined to help Verity eradicate her ghosts of Christmas past, but what will happen when her time is up and it’s time to go home to Toronto?

The Spanish House


Cherry Radford
    One Spanish summer. One huge family secret.Juliana makes a modest living as an 'ethnic' TV/film extra – even though the only connections with her Spanish heritage are her cacti, Spanish classes, and some confused memories of a Spanish mother she hasn't seen since she was seven.When her beloved Uncle Arturo offers her the chance to discover her roots while housesitting his coastal home in a quiet corner of Andalusia, Juliana can't believe her luck. Especially when he reveals that the house will be hers if she fulfills ten life-enhancing 'Conditions' within 90 days.Redecoration of the house and a visit to the old film studio where her mother used to sew costumes seem ridiculously simple tasks for such a wonderful reward. But little does Juliana realize that there are family secrets and inherited rivalries awaiting her in sunny Spain, and the condition that she has to 'get on with the neighbors' – who include a ruggedly handsome but moody artist – may be harder than she thinks.The perfect escapist read for fans of Rosanna Ley, Jo Thomas, and Sue Moorcroft.

Pretty Crooked


Elisa Ludwig - 2012
    Bilking her “friends”-known to everyone as the Glitterati-without them suspecting a thing, is far from easy. Learning how to pick pockets and break into lockers is as difficult as she’d thought it’d be. Delivering care packages to the scholarship girls, who are ostracized just for being from the “wrong” side of town, is way more fun than she’d expected.The complication Willa didn’t expect, though, is Aidan Murphy, Valley Prep’s most notorious (and gorgeous) ace-degenerate. His mere existence is distracting Willa from what matters most to her-evening the social playing field between the have and have-nots. There’s no time for crushes and flirting with boys, especially conceited and obnoxious trust-funders like Aidan.But when the cops start investigating the string of burglaries at Valley Prep and the Glitterati begin to seek revenge, could he wind up being the person that Willa trusts most?

Off-Limits


Ava Storm - 2019
    I fell for my brother's best friend. Forbidden but so exciting... He was totally off-limits. And my brother would kill both of us. But we're both adults now. And I'm a widowed single mom. But he needs me and my brother more than ever. Because him and his dad are in grave danger. And my brother is the only one who can help. But will he, knowing his best friend already claimed me?

One Fine Day


Teresa F. Morgan - 2015
    He’s miserable because the woman he was planning on marrying has dumped him.He’s now worried that with his A-list celebrity status he won’t find a woman who genuinely loves him. Ruby devises a plan to disguise Steve, so that he is unrecognisable as the famous Hollywood actor, in a hope to help him find true love. It worked for Clark Kent, right?As Steve searches for his not-so-perfect woman and has a taste of normality, his relationship develops with his sister. But will he find the right woman before he has to head back to his real life in Hollywood?

My Bossy Protector: A Best Friend’s Brother Romance (My Hungry Boss Book 3)


Charlize Starr - 2018
     Ivy My life wasn’t supposed to look like this. I wasn’t supposed to be stuck in this small town. So, when my best friend gets me an internship at her brother Simon’s company in California, I would be stupid to refuse. The only catch is, I’d never quite gotten over the kiss he and I shared on my nineteenth birthday. The day before he skipped town. But he’s my boss now. And even though that dimpled smile still gets to me, I’m not going to let him break my heart again. Simon Ivy Soleman, with her strawberry blond curls, delicious pouty red lips and legs that make every man drool themselves dry. I should have forgotten her by now. She was nothing but a distant memory from a past I’d left behind in our godforsaken town. But now she’s in my office. And as much as I try to deny it, the truth is that I like having her around. Watching the way her body moves in those pencil skirts. The thing is that I’m not the only one looking. I don’t like the idea of other guys fighting over her. My need to protect her and her perfect shapely hips kicks in. But I’d left her once – had I lost my chance forever? This is a 30,000 words standalone story with a HEA. 18+ readers only.

Sunrise Over Pebble Bay


Della Galton - 2021
    Talented, yet relatively unknown actress and celebration cake baker extraordinaire Olivia Lambert is running out of time.Approaching forty, she’s yet to land the role that will launch her television career and she’s desperate to be a mum.Her new man, Phil Grimshaw from the Bluebell Cliff Hotel, seems the perfect match, but seems to be in no rush to settle down.Having ditched her childhood sweetheart and fiancé, Tom Boyd, when he backtracked about being a dad, Olivia dreads making the same mistake again.Rocked by confessions from both her sister Ruby and Tom, Olivia knows it’s time to make some life changing decisions.Then a terrifying incident off Chesil Beach changes the course of her future and brings Olivia to question everything she values and loves.