Book picks similar to
Three Summers by S.J. Sylvis


new-adult
standalone
romance
read-without-synopsis

One Good Thing


Jennifer Millikin - 2020
     Instead of going on our honeymoon, I’ve run home to Lonesome, Oregon. It seems as good a place as any to lick my wounds. It's peaceful, remote, and my favorite person in the whole world lives here: my grandma.  She needs help running the Sweet Escape Bed and Breakfast, and I need a place to lie low while I hide from the mess my life has become.  And it appears I’m not the only one running from something painful.   A gorgeous man with sad eyes has been holed up in cabin seven since he arrived. I told myself to stay away from him, but my curiosity got the better of me.  If only I hadn't knocked on his door.  That’s when things went downhill.  That’s when things got a whole lot more complicated.  I came to Lonesome to recover from a broken heart.  I’m afraid I’ll be leaving with a heart more damaged than it was when I arrived.

Always With You


Hannah Ellis - 2017
    A daughter intent on finding the truth… In 1994, twenty-one-year-old Evelyn Taylor left England to backpack around Australia. When she stopped off in the dusty outback town of Kununurra, she never expected to fall in love with the place - and the people. But Joe Sullivan captured her heart, and when her fun-filled year in Australia came to an end, saying goodbye to him was the hardest thing she’d ever done. In 2017, Evelyn’s daughter, Libby, embarks on her own Australian adventure. Grief-stricken following her mother’s death, she’s determined to find the father she never met. Little does she know that digging up the past will be more complicated than she ever imagined.

Return To You


Leia Stone - 2020
    We were two kids, young and desperately in love, dreaming of a future together. Our love burned as bright as the red rock desert where we grew up, but we learned the hard way that sometimes love isn’t enough. One choice tore us apart, and we stood by helplessly, watching it burn us to the ground. It feels like a lifetime ago, but when I’m called home to care for my sick mother after ten years away, my past with Owen Miller comes charging into the present. I expected him to be the same kind, confident guy he used to be. What I didn’t expect was the fire still raging between us, even after all this time. Years of buried feelings emerge, as scorching as the Arizona sun. Anger, resentment...and passion. And the second time around, we burn even hotter. Giving in to Owen means finally facing the choice I made so long ago, but even old wounds still ache. Is the possibility of a second chance worth the pain it could cause in the end?

The Smallest Thing


Lisa Manterfield - 2017
    She’s descended from ten generations who never left their dull English village, and there’s no way she’s going to waste a perfectly good life that way. She’s moving to London and she swears she is never coming back. But when the unexplained deaths of her neighbors force the government to quarantine the village, Em learns what it truly means to be trapped. Now, she must choose. Will she pursue her desire for freedom, at all costs, or do what’s best for the people she loves: her dad, her best friend Deb, and, to her surprise, the mysterious man in the HAZMAT suit? Inspired by the historical story of the plague village of Eyam, this contemporary tale of friendship, community, and impossible love weaves the horrors of recent news headlines with the intimate details of how it feels to become an adult—and fall in love—in the midst of tragedy.

My Name Is Rose


Alexa Kingaard - 2019
    Life in a hippie commune is her parent's dream come true, not hers. She doesn't share their passion for living off the land, nor does she enjoy the isolation that is thrust upon her. When she convinces them to send her to public school in the nearby town, a new world opens up to her. As she pursues her education, Rose chooses a different path, leaving her parents heartbroken at her insistence they are hiding something from her. She's convinced her father isn't the man her mother married. Although she finds love far away from her roots and upbringing, her wounds only deepen as she keeps her family at arm’s length. What she loses during those years can only be retrieved with her understanding that “a Rose by any other name is still a Rose.”

Off the Record


Taylor Danae Colbert - 2019
    “But isn’t he sorta. . .old?” Ugh. Celebrities. I mean, I know I took a job as a reporter for the Celebrity and Pop Culture department of our magazine, but it was just supposed to be a stepping stone to the more real stuff. Despite the fact that Dax Thatcher was the subject of many of my teen fantasies—and I may or may not have an entire playlist made up of his music—he’s still just another star. Until I meet him. Until his golden eyes pierce through me that day on his Malibu deck. Until I find myself having dinner with him, going backstage with him, lying on the beach with him, telling him my deepest secrets. And then I remember my assignment: a four-issue feature on Dax Thatcher. . .and his supermodel fiancée. Yep, he’s getting hitched. I have to focus. I’m a serious journalist, and he is mere months from walking down the aisle with someone else. But that doesn’t stop me from wondering what those tattooed arms might feel like wrapped around me, or how soft the sheets on his California king bed are. Yikes. This celebrity stuff might be a little more real than I thought. Off the Record by Author Taylor Danae Colbert is simply the must read book of the summer. Filled with pure energy it strategically infuses music and romance together with ease. Truly the work of a seasoned pro. and a book that you will not be able to put down from start to finish. - The Baltimore Sun

Picture Perfect


Krista Carleson - 2018
    Sexy and charming, he was the whole package. After a weekend fling, we parted ways and I thought I’d never see him again.But I remembered him. I remembered him very well.How could I forget the father of my daughter?Now, I’ve been hired to take photos at an engagement party, and guess who’s the fiancé?Noah.I want him, but I have to stay away.NoahI met Jessica ‘down under’ four years ago. She was my kind of girl--- curvy, hot, adventurous and I wanted more.But I had to go back home and take care of my father’s business. So I kissed her goodbye and that was it.Only it wasn’t.Now, Jessica’s back in the picture--actually, I’m the one in the picture: She’s been hired as the photographer for my engagement party. Talk about the irony.Seeing her again makes me realize I’m living a lie.Is it too late for a game-changer?Picture Perfect is a 40k word, standalone novella with plenty of steam, no cheating and an HEA. For adult readers 18+.

That Girl: The Montgomerys


Jennilynn Wyer - 2021
    He was that guy; NFL football quarterback and Mr. Popular. He told me he would never leave. He lied. Now he’s back. But I’m not that girl anymore.Aurora St. Claire is that girl. The one who excels at academics. The one from a broken home who lives on the bad side of town. The one with an alcoholic mother who couldn’t care less if she existed. The one with an abusive older sister who would give her bruises instead of hugs. The one who keeps to the shadows, trying not to be seen.Sometimes the best families are the ones you create, not the ones you are born into. Aurora never knows what a true family is like until she has one suddenly thrust upon her at the age of eighteen. It takes a single revelation from a stranger to change her life forever.Then, JD Hallstead comes barreling into her life. He is everything she never thought she wanted, but everything she craves. That is, until the day he destroys her and leaves her heart to burn to ashes in his wake. What is the adage? The flip side of love is hate. Well, her hate burns bright, and it has a name: Jackson Dillon Hallstead.JD Hallstead is that guy. The one who is Mr. Popular and Quarterback King of Highland High. The one voted class president and most likely to succeed. The one who girls go crazy over and guys want to be. The one with a controlling, abusive father who will go to any lengths to keep his son in check. The one with the secrets.Aurora is the girl JD has secretly crushed on for years. It takes a friend’s tragic death to bring Aurora and JD together. It takes JD’s secrets to tear them apart. Aurora tells JD everybody leaves. He promises her he never will.He lied.Now, JD will do anything, fight anyone, give up everything, to get Aurora back. Aurora said JD broke her heart. Who better than him to put it back together?But the thing about secrets is that they always come back to haunt you. The question is: How far will JD go to protect the woman he loves before those secrets destroy them all?Reader’s Warning: That Girl is an enemies-to-lovers, second chance romance with scorching heat that will melt your Kindle and enough twists and turns to keep you guessing what will happen next. It takes place after the conclusion of Broken Butterfly, Fallen Brook Series, Book 3. Even though the book can be read on its own, fans of the Fallen Brook Series will love seeing some of their favorite characters return! That Girl touches upon topics that may be triggering to some readers such as flashbacks to an attempted sexual assault, child neglect and abuse, and violence. The story also contains foul language and sex. Any sexual intimacy between the main characters is consensual. For these reasons, the book is recommended for readers aged 17+.

The Good Girl: A Pacific High School Bully Romance (A Pacific High Series Book 2)


Ashley Rose - 2020
    The good daughter. The good student. I’ve been keeping it together. But I’ve lost track of who I need to be—for myself. Because I can’t be everything for everyone else. Not when the attacks keep coming. They tried to destroy me once and I fought back. And they haven't given up. But I'm not the new girl anymore. They have no idea what this “good girl” is capable of doing if they push me too far ...

Tempting Heat


Sara Whitney - 2019
    It's the ice protecting Finn's heart that Tom has to melt.Tempting Heat features a dirty-talking hero, a schedule-obsessed heroine, and—wait for it!—only one bed. While Tempting Heat is a novella, the rest of the books in the sassy, steamy Cinnamon Roll Alphas series are standalone full-length novels.

Thanks, Carissa, For Ruining My Life


Dallas Woodburn - 2022
    But when Carissa breaks up with Brad, his carefully constructed life comes crashing down. Convinced everything would be perfect if only Carissa would take him back, Brad creates a “self-improvement plan” and vows to re-win her heart.Rose wishes she were having a normal senior year like everyone else, but leave it to her twin sister Carissa to butt in and ruin her life. Carissa secretly nominated Rose for the reality TV show Help Me Lose Weight and Live Again—and now Rose is on her way to Texas for three months of calorie-counting, marathon-exercising hell. Rose already felt overshadowed by her “perfect” sister, and collapsing on a treadmill on national TV is not making things any better. Plus, Rose can’t squash feelings for her sister’s boyfriend Brad (even though she knows he would never see her as anything but a friend.)For fans of friends-to-lovers romance comes a heartwarming novel about self-improvement, identity and acceptance in our image-obsessed culture.

The unEXpected Plan


Leddy Harper - 2019
    It was brilliant...until the unexpected happened.I was supposed to be getting over my ex...Not getting under my best friend's brother.

Pinky Promises


Deana Birch - 2019
    But the yogini's brash spunk leads to an immediate social gaffe when she insults her new landlord, carpenter Adam Fields, and must backpedal to save face.Watching Adam wallow in solitary confinement after a brutal break-up will never do. Motivated by her own need for physical contact, Leyla happily offers herself as the perfect rebound. She'll be gone in a couple of months, no one has to know, and she can wipe his ex right out of his mind... and body. After all, if anyone knows how to turn up the heat, it's her.But when the studio owner realizes she can't return to teaching full-time and asks Leyla to stay, the fish-out-of-water must make a choice. Can she abandon her commitment-free lifestyle for small town drama and a chance at love with a hunky hammer wielding man?

Welcome to Pembrooke: The Complete Pembrooke Series


Jessica Prince - 2019
    After eight years spent trapped in a miserable marriage, he's made a vow to never take the plunge again. The only problem is, he didn't have a plan in place to protect his heart from Chloe Delaney. COMING FULL CIRCLE Ethan Prewitt dreamed of escaping the small town of Pembrooke and building a life where he didn't have to depend on anyone but himself. What he never expected was for his friendship with Eliza Anderson to grow into something that would change everything for him. A BROKEN SOUL Quinn Mallick already had his happily-ever-after, and in the blink of an eye it was ripped away from him. He's convinced he doesn't deserve a second chance. But when the town's beautiful dance teacher, Lilly Mathewson turns her sights on him, he finds himself questioning everything.

Come Break My Heart Again


C.W. Farnsworth - 2021
    The exterior of Eleanor Clarke’s life looks just as pristine up close. The scars and scratches are all hidden. They were all inflicted in the same place: an overgrown field of wildflowers in an affluent suburb. The scenic spot is where her older sister died, leaving Elle to shoulder the crushing expectations of being a Clarke alone. It’s where she spent forbidden moments with Ryder James, the last person she should have turned to for an escape. And it’s where her world fell apart during senior year of high school. Seven years later, everything’s been carefully glued back together. She’s got the prestigious job, the perfect guy, the polished life. Until one phone call cracks it all back open.Does it hurt more or less when the same person breaks your heart again?