Book picks similar to
The Real Thing by Elizabeth Hollows
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All the Stars
Duckie Mack - 2021
He’s content with random hookups because dating means too much. That’s reserved for the one person he knows he can never have, his best friend, Cameron.After watching his own family fall apart, Cam longs for someone who will stick it out through thick and thin. He’s had a string of girlfriends that never seem to be the right one. The one person he can always count on is Rider.One night out changes everything between them. When Rider ends up telling Cam the secret he’s been hiding, Cam is left reeling. But will an accident end Cam’s chances to figure out what it means for them?All the Stars is a heartwarming story of friendship, love, and finding the one that was right in front of you all along. The Love Bank Romance series features sweet LGBTQ love stories with a little heat.
Grumpy Bear
Slade James - 2021
It’s opening weekend at my clothing-optional campground, guests are starting to arrive, and I’ve got a pool party and a few hundred peoples’ vacations to save while battling Mother Nature’s tantrums.The last thing I need is a temporary employee who can’t even put up a tent.Luke Cody’s not my type. He’s too young, too pretty, and too much like my late partner. Another flaky musician? No thanks. But when a storm blows down his campsite, I can’t just leave him outside and soaked to the bone. Now he’s staying in my cabin, sleeping in my bed, and worst of all, he’s completely ignoring the proverbial sign over my head that says Grumpy Bear: Do Not Approach.I’m not quite as immune to his charms as I want him to believe, but he’ll only be here for a few days.Nothing’s going to happen…
Grumpy Bear is a boss/employee, grumpy/sunshine romance set at a gay campground full of bears. (Not shifters; the other kind of bears.) It’s the first full-length book in the Bear Camp series and can be read as a standalone.
After the Crash
Emma Alcott - 2019
Not only is his high school crush back in his life, but he’s matured into a gruff, brooding, drop-dead-gorgeous specimen of a man that makes Marshall’s wet dreams seem about as exciting as drying paint. The only problem: Fox Fraser, the individual in question, is straight.Super straight.The kind of straight that would make a ruler jealous.But if what Marshall sees when he looks in Fox’s eyes is to be believed, he’s broken, too. There are scars inside of him that no one notices. No one but Marshall. It’s not wrong to want to help him, is it? To hire him to take care of things around the house so he can get back on his feet? It’s just work. Work that leads to lingering looks. To prolonged touches. To… mmph. It’s better not to think about it. Marshall’s fantasies aren’t real. A guy like Fox would never pin him to a wall and do things to him like that. Maybe. Probably. Right?After the Crash is the first book in the Small Town Hearts series, which features heroes scattered across the rural United States who find love where they’re least expecting it. In addition to explosive chemistry, you can expect sneezing bushes, tea that tastes like hay, and a wet wrestling match that's just boys having fun, Mom.
What If It's Us
Becky Albertalli - 2018
If the universe had his back, he wouldn’t be on his way to the post office carrying a box of his ex-boyfriend’s things.But when Arthur and Ben meet-cute at the post office, what exactly does the universe have in store for them?Maybe nothing. After all, they get separated.Maybe everything. After all, they get reunited.But what if they can’t quite nail a first date . . . or a second first date . . . or a third?What if Arthur tries too hard to make it work . . . and Ben doesn’t try hard enough?What if life really isn’t like a Broadway play?But what if it is?
Happy
Chris Scully - 2016
In his early thirties, Peter still lives at home, dates who his parents tell him to, and works at the family restaurant. But watching his two best friends find happiness in each other’s arms has made him worry over his destiny.When Louie Papadakis returns home to nurse his broken heart and start a new life, he can’t believe his sister is dating his high school crush, Peter. There’s a sadness behind Peter’s eyes that draws him in, and a chemistry he wishes he could ignore. After his closeted ex broke his heart, Louie is afraid to fall in love again, especially with a man who's keeping secrets.As Peter finds himself drawn to Louie in unexpected ways, old and new worlds collide. Then a family crisis forces Peter’s hand, and he must decide if he’s willing to sacrifice his happiness for family duty.
Made of Stars
Kelley York - 2013
And it is—at first. But Chance, the charismatic and adventurous boy who made their summers epic, is harboring deep secrets. Secrets that are quickly spiraling into something else entirely.The reason they've never met Chance’s parents or seen his home is becoming clearer. And what the siblings used to think of as Chance's quirks—the outrageous stories, his clinginess, his dangerous impulsiveness—are now warning signs that something is seriously off. Then Chance's mom turns up with a bullet to the head, and all eyes shift to Chance and his dad. Hunter and Ashlin know Chance is innocent...they just have to prove it. But how can they protect the boy they both love when they can’t trust a word Chance says?
Hard Hart
E. Davies - 2019
He’s ditched his no-good ex, sworn off men, moved to a new town with his four best friends, and started the pottery business of his dreams. And then he slept with his hunky new neighbor. Oops. Jesse needs to focus on work, but all he can think about is getting Finn between his hands like a perfectly-shaped work of clay.Trouble just blew into town, and his name is Jesse. Finn Hart knows that pursuing Jesse will ignite old family tensions, but he can’t stay away. The construction foreman has never built a lasting relationship. He’s too busy keeping the peace in a town that was founded by one Hart, but is slowly being strangled by another—Finn’s grandfather.Finn and Jesse are on the same page: they want to save Hart’s Bay, and it starts by bringing tourists in with Jesse’s new art gallery. But their hearts are bruised, and taking a chance comes with a price. Not everyone in Hart’s Bay wants change. For a few narrow minds, nothing good should come to Finn’s branch of the Harts, and that includes love.Can love wash away twenty years of bad blood and bring a new dawn for Jesse, Finn, and all of Hart's Bay?Hard Hart is the first book in the new Hart’s Bay series about a small town full of nosy but well-meaning neighbors and brotherly banter. It’s a standalone novel with a happily-ever-after ending, and plenty of smiles and steam along the way. If that cove could talk… oh boy, has it ever seen things. The second Hart’s Bay novel, Changed Hart, will be released September 3rd, 2019!
What Happens at Christmas
Jay Northcote - 2015
Christmas is coming, and he doesn’t want to face his ex alone at their office party. So Sean—Justin’s best mate and long-time secret crush—volunteers to go with him and pretend to be his new flame.Sean has always lusted after Justin from afar, but there’s never been a good opportunity to ask him for more than friendship. Posing as Justin’s boyfriend isn’t a chore, and if Justin wants to rebound onto him, Sean’s more than willing. At the party pretence and reality blur, and a kiss on the dance floor leads to a night of passion.In the aftermath, they both assume it was a one-time thing until fate intervenes. Stuck together in London over the holidays, they give in to temptation again. But what happens at Christmas stays at Christmas... right?
Wanted: Gentle Daddy
Sammi Cee - 2022
Did I mention that I also managed to lose my dream job on top of everything else?When my only real friend secures a position for me waiting tables at The Tap Tavern, I don’t really expect it to work out. Nothing else has. But it ends up coming with an unexpected perk, a group of boys who seem to really accept me. Which would be pretty cool if they hadn’t decided that I should be the guinea pig for their new scheme to find us each the perfect Daddy.When Tucker responds to the wanted sign to be my Daddy, my heart stops. He doesn’t realize he knows me—that I was the virtual assistant who disappeared—but I’ve been lusting after him from the other side of the computer screen for years now. How can I not? He’s sexy, confident, and he makes things happen with a finesse that makes my mouth water.I would love nothing more than to be his boy, but I’m too awkward, my issues have issues, and eventually, he’ll figure out I’ve already let him down in a spectacular way.Will Daddy Tucker’s gentle touch and soothing presence reassure Joey that he can trust him with all his pain, or will his fear of being broken beyond repair keep him from letting down all his walls?Welcome to The Tap Tavern where this chosen family of boys are braver than they think, and their Daddies are ready to be what they want and so much more.
Forget Me Not
Felice Stevens - 2020
Big plans. Still mourning the loss of his beloved father, he’s finally ready to sell the Forget Me Not ranch. He’s dusting off his boots, packing up his cowboy hat, and moving to New York City to make his dreams come true. So what if he won’t have his horse to ride or a place to call home? He’ll make it work. Somehow. First, he has to deal with a bunch of corporate types who don’t know the front end of a horse from the back.Especially this one guy who can’t seem to stay out of trouble.Or out of Shea’s mind.Jake Axelrod’s perfect family is shattered when his daughter stops speaking and his husband ends their marriage. Two years later, she remains locked in silence and Jake has closed himself off. His life is structured to the minute, and Jake is convinced he’ll be alone forever, until he’s forced to attend a company retreat at a dude ranch in Texas where he meets a cowboy who sends him spinning out of control.Jake can’t help falling…off his horse, out of a rowboat, and into Shea’s arms.And Shea is more than willing to catch him.Neither man wants to let go, and the time they spend together only makes it harder to be apart. A decision needs to be made: work it out or say good-bye. Jake’s life is in New York, but he can’t walk away from Shea or the ranch, and Shea must decide if the dream of a lifetime will lead him right back to the place where he started, where his heart belongs.
Dirty Forty
Mia Monroe - 2021
Business partners, roommates, best friends...we do everything together. But the last thing either of us expected was to be staring forty in the face just as single as we both were when we made a silly, drunken marriage pact twenty years ago. The problem? Zach is gay…and, well, I’m not. Under pressure from family, that pact comes rushing back, and I lock us into a fake engagement. But is it possible some part of me wants it to be real?Convincing Zach I’m legit is another story. With each passing day, I wonder if my feelings of affection for my best friend can morph into the love I desperately want in my life. Something in Zach’s eyes tells me we can have it all if we just try. It may have taken me a lifetime to see Zach with new eyes, but with every touch and discovery, it’s been worth the wait. On the edge of Dirty Forty, it’s time to go for it.All I have to do is convince Zach it’s real.Dirty Forty is a best friends to lovers, marriage pact, demi/bisexual awakening featuring thirty years of pining, a fake engagement, curious kisses, and two guys finally embracing what’s always been in front of them.
How Not to Blend
Susan Hawke - 2019
Corbin Davis is a busy guy just trying to do his best as a single parent. He may be oblivious to a lot of things, but surely he would’ve noticed something as important as his fifteen-year-old son, Grayson, being bullied, right? And what the heck is non-binary, and why hasn’t Gray shared this all-important part of himself with his own dad? Plus one sassy Southerner… Andy Ferguson, or Kandi as the Thursday night drag community knows him, is just trying to get along in a small town and hold things together while he takes care of his beloved Gam-Gam. If she’d just get off his back about finding himself a man, that would be fantastic, thank you very much. He’ll get around to love… one of these days. Equals a pair of fake-boyfriends who will keep you in stitches. When Corb gets the wild idea to ask Andy to pose as his boyfriend to let Gray know that his dad is bisexual and open-minded enough to talk to about his nonbinary status, Andy is amused and just intrigued enough to say yes… especially since he seems to be in the market for a fake boyfriend himself, if it will get Gam-Gam to quit nagging. This is the first book in the LOVESTRONG series about finding love and being yourself in a small town. Intended only for 18+ readers, this is an mm romance fill with all the fun, fluff, and feels you’d want from an S. Hawke book.
Shouting Match
Pandora Pine - 2022
Putting his own love life on the back-burner, he’s spent the last five years ensuring the family restaurant, Lombardi’s, thrives. It’s pretty sad that the closest he’s gotten to cuddling is nearly being arrested by a ridiculously hot cop with a hard-on for speed limits.Forty years old and sick of one-night stands and prowling the bar scene, Detective Fuller Sims goes to local Italian restaurant, Lombardi’s, one night for drinks. What he’s not looking for is the youngest Lombardi brother to talk him into his matchmaking scheme. But Fuller is tired of being alone, and Brando Lombardi insists he knows exactly where to find the man of Fuller’s dreams—his overworked older brother, Capone—the guy Fuller almost arrested a few hours earlier.Taking a chance on each other, Capone and Fuller find out that Brando might have matchmaking skills after all. When a blizzard sets its sights on the rugged Maine coast, a shouting match between the new lovers sends Fuller out into the raging storm. Can Capone find him before it’s too late?Shouting Match is book one in the exciting Amore Matchmaking series. It features four gay brothers, their eccentric mother, an ornery goat, and way too much pasta.
Striking Distance
Sarah Rees Brennan - 2020
Pacat and Johanna The Mad.Sixteen-year-old Nicholas Cox is the illegitimate son of a retired fencing champion who dreams of getting the proper training he could never afford. After earning a place on the elite Kings Row fencing team, Nicholas must prove himself to his rival, Seiji Katayma, and navigate the clashes, friendships, and relationships between his teammates on the road to state championships—where Nicholas might finally have the chance to spar with his golden-boy half-brother.Coach Williams decides to take advantage of the boys' morale after a recent victory and assigns them a course of team building exercises to further deepen their bonds. It takes a shoplifting scandal, a couple of moonlit forest strolls, several hilariously bad dates, and a whole lot of introspection for the team to realize they are stronger together than they could ever be apart.The first installment of this enticing original YA novel series by Sarah Rees Brennan, rich with casual diversity and queer self-discovery, explores never-before-seen drama inspired by C.S. Pacat's critically acclaimed Fence comic series and boasts original cover and interior art by Johanna The Mad.Text and Illustration copyright: © 2020 BOOM! StudiosFence(TM) and © 2020 C.S. Pacat
Loving a Warrior
Melanie Hansen - 2018
It’s survival of the toughest, and Matt Knytych is determined to come out the other side a navy SEAL. Distraction is life or death. And just the sight of former marine Shane Hovland is enough to shake Matt’s concentration.Shane came to BUD/S training ready to prove himself—again. Semper Fi is forever, but he needs a new start. Not this dangerous heat with a man he barely knows.Everything they’ve ever wanted is riding on a thin, punishing line. And they’ll have to fight for more than just each other if they want to make it through intact.After all, the only easy day was yesterday.