Book picks similar to
Falling Softly by Maria Duffy


christmas
romance
female-writers
temp

The Bridge


Karen Kingsbury - 2012
    Molly Allen lives alone in Portland, but she left her heart back in Tennessee with a man she walked away from five years ago. They had a rare sort of love she hasn’t found since.Ryan Kelly lives in Nashville after a broken engagement and several years on the road touring with a country music duo. He can still hear Molly’s voice encouraging him to follow his dreams; Molly, whose memory stays with him. At least he can visit The Bridge—the oldest bookstore in historic downtown Franklin—and remember the hours he and Molly once spent there.For thirty years, Charlie and Donna Barton have run The Bridge, providing the people of middle Tennessee with coffee, conversation, and shelves of good books—even through dismal book sales and the rise of digital books. Then in May, the hundred-year flood swept through Franklin and destroyed nearly every book in the store.Now the bank is pulling the lease on The Bridge. Despondent and without answers, Charlie considers the unthinkable. Then tragedy strikes, and suddenly, everything changes. In the face of desperate brokenness and lost opportunities, could the miracle of a second chance actually unfold?The Bridge is a love story set against the struggle of the American bookstore, a love story you will never forget.

Daring Deeds of a Forbidden Duchess


Violet Hamers - 2020
    But yet, she wants more... For Miss Isabel Chenieux, the thought of attending London Season is nearly too much to bear. Ward of the Duke of Ventury after the tragic loss of her parents, she is torn between apprehension and a forbidden yearning for his affection.The passing of his parents leaves David Thorough not only with the title of Duke but also a ward. And, as he quickly finds out, she gains a dangerously bewitching hold of him.But the night is the time for shadows and Isabel's unknown past is rife with them.A note delivered by a stranger is followed by Isabel's disappearance. And David has but a single old letter to help him find Isabel and guide him on the right trail. A trail that leads to a conspiracy twenty years in the making...

Wet


Ashley Bostock - 2016
    But that’s not how things work in Lone Star. Here, they’ll never see me as anything more than the troubled girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Thankfully, I’ve learned not to let that stand in my way. I know who I am now, and go after what I want. Which is exactly what I did when I ran into Ryan John in a dark hallway. He’s carved perfection teeming with good ole boy charm, and I ached to indulge in our sizzling attraction.I knew I was playing with fire, but he was worth risking the burn. RyanFor two months, I’ve avoided Miranda. But the taste of her lips and feel of her body against mine hasn’t left my mind for an instant. Everyday is a fight against temptation as I focus on my farm and raising my brother and sister. Yet when a mysterious letter arrives, announcing a company wants to buy my water rights, I know I need her whip-smart reporter instincts to help me get to the bottom of this. The fact that it gives me a reason to spend another night with her is just icing on a deliciously inviting cake. With my life overrun by family obligations and responsibilities, all I can allow myself is one night.One taste...is exactly what I need. And what I should avoid.

The Vineyard in Alsace


Julie Stock - 2017
    She knows this is the push she needs to break free of him and to leave London. She applies for her dream job on a vineyard in Alsace, in France, not far from her family home, determined to concentrate on her work. Didier Le Roy can hardly believe it when he sees that the only person to apply for the job on his vineyard is the same woman he once loved but let go because of his stupid pride. Now estranged from his wife, he longs for a second chance with Fran if only she will forgive him for not following her to London. Working so closely together, Fran soon starts to fall in love with Didier all over again. Didier knows that it is now time for him to move on with his divorce if he and Fran are ever to have a future together. Can Fran and Didier make their second chance at love work despite all the obstacles in their way? A romantic read set against the enticing backdrop of the vineyard harvest in France.

Trusting Jake


Lauren Giordano - 2015
    In need of a jumpstart. Tired of playing by other people's rules, the widowed single mom guards her new freedom by keeping her deadbeat husband alive... in name only. But meeting Jake Traynor gives her hope and makes her question the merits of lying. Will he break down the fortress around her heart? Love under construction: Falling for a married woman was never in the blueprint. The definition of responsible son, executive Jackson Traynor is driven to prove his father right. Jake runs the family construction company. The workaholic millionaire is all business. No pleasure. Until assisting a beautiful redhead with her broken down car reminds Jake what he wants. But what if the only person you want is the one you can never have? Battling their deepening attraction, Jake must question everything he's ever believed -- because Jen and her kids are the family he's always dreamed of. Jenna must choose between a safe life and the one of her dreams. When Jake's company is threatened, she will risk everything to protect him -- even if it means exposing old secrets.

Bayou Devils MC 5-8


A.M. Myers - 2020
    She was smart as a whip and challenged him at every turn and Noah wasted no time in winning her heart. They were inseparable until the club got in the way. A jealous competitor, carelessness and his own ambition cost him everything.Now, after being released from prison, he's determined to rebuild his life and find the one girl who has always owned his heart. The problem is no one has heard a word from her in seven long years.But that was before Noah joined the hunt.NEVER LET ME GO:Juliette Shaw has everything a girl could ask for – a thriving business, a beautiful home, loyal friends, and a gorgeous fiancé – but she doesn’t remember any of it.After a horrific car accident steals her father’s life and five years of her memory, she is lost in a world she doesn’t recognize and is desperately searching for answers. Nothing feels right and behind each clue from her past are more questions, so she does the only thing she can do – run.Sawyer Michelson, brother of the Bayou Devils MC, looks intimidating as hell and a smart girl like Juliette knows better than to accept a ride from a stranger but there’s something about his deep blue eyes that puts Juliette at ease and pulls her in. He makes her heart race and the longer she spends with him, the more she discovers the sweet, funny, and loyal man beneath the mask. But even a thousand miles from home, danger seems to find her, leaving Juliette to wonder if it’s just bad luck or if she is in more trouble than she realized.Can Juliette recover her past and find answers or will she lose more than just her memories this time?EVERY LITTLE THING:Army veteran, ex-cop, and brother of the Bayou Devils MC, Wyatt Landry is a man on a mission. He’s always wanted a family, but after being blindsided and betrayed by his ex-wife, Piper, he’s hesitant to try again… until now. He’s done letting the woman who abandoned him years ago control his future.Piper Landry knows a thing or two about trauma and she has the emotional scars to prove it. In a moment of weakness, she made the biggest mistake of her life, walking away from her husband and the love they shared. It haunts her every day, but she's trying to move forward and rebuild her life, without him.When fate brings Wyatt and Piper together again, sparks fly and old wounds are torn open, leaving them stranded in a minefield of secrets and lies. But the pain of their past isn’t the only thing standing in their way.WICKED GAMES:The only remaining single member of the Bayou Devils MC, Travis Broussard, refuses to fall in love. His brothers may have found happiness but with his dark past still haunting him, he can’t afford to let any woman get too close.Rowan Archer has had her fair share of heartbreak, but after the sudden loss of her mother and finding her boyfriend in bed with another woman, she reaches her breaking point and moves across the country to be closer to her brother in Baton Rouge.One drunken night and the need for a temporary relief bring two broken hearts together. Sparks ignite between Travis and Rowan but it can’t last. It’s clear there is no future for them and they each agree to keep things casual but you know what they say about best laid plans.Someone begins to target the club, tormenting them in a sick little game of cat and mouse as he makes promises of pain and bloodshed in the name of revenge and Travis’s past catches up to him when he least expects it, forcing him to make a choice.Saving those he loves means pushing Rowan away but Travis has no other option with the dark threat looming over all of their heads.

Escape To...The Little Beach Cafe


Sarah Hope - 2018
    Does she risk the little she does have to follow her dreams? Moving her young son to the seaside to run The Little Beach Cafe proves harder than Pippa ever imagined, particularly because she can't actually bake.With the help of new friends, can she make a success of her new venture or will she have to return to her old life in the City? When her son's father turns up, will he be able to win her back or will she find love elsewhere? A single parent romance filled with self-belief, love and second chances.

Christmas With You


Sheila O'Flanagan - 2017
    Now with two poignant new stories added.Tucked away in the Irish countryside, the Sugar Loaf Lodge is opening its door for the festive season. With snow falling on the mountains outside and warm fires roaring inside, it's the perfect place for guests to celebrate the happiest time of the year. But what if you've just had your heart broken? Or discovered that the man you're married to has lied to you? What if a secret from your past has finally come back to haunt you?For some of the guests arriving at the Sugar Loaf Lodge, Christmas is looking far from tranquil. But can they find the magic and romance of the season within the walls of this beautiful hotel?

Life's a Beach and Then...


Julia Roberts - 2015
    she must keep it secret, and that means telling lies. Holly hates telling lies. Her latest assignment has brought her to the paradise island of Mauritius where she meets a British couple, Robert and Rosemary, who share a tragic secret of their own. The moment they introduce Holly to handsome writer, Philippe, she begins to fall in love, something she hasn't allowed herself to do for twenty years. But Philippe has not been completely honest and when Holly stumbles across the truth, she feels totally betrayed. "A slice of sheer escapism which packs an emotional punch" Jemma Forte This is the first book in the Liberty Sands trilogy. Read on at the end of this book to find out what happens to Holly next in the preview of If He Really Loved Me..., book two in the series.

The Girl I Was Before


Izzy Bayliss - 2016
    Lily thinks things can't get any worse when she sees photos of her husband and his new lover splashed across the glossy magazine pages, but when she loses her job too, she is at her lowest ebb and turns to baking to soothe her soul. Wounded and broken she has to try and pick herself up again with the help of her best friend Frankie and with her encouragement, Lily decides to turn her hobby into a business and sets up Baked With Love. However whatever Lily does, it seems disaster soon ensues and when handsome stranger Sam comes to her rescue, Lily isn't quite ready to turn her back on her marriage. Can Lily risk opening her heart again or is she destined to allow Marc to shadow her life forever?

Christmas on Maplewood Mountain


Elizabeth Bromke - 2018
    Her business has been steadily dwindling. Her relationship prospects, too. But, her sister, Anna, has an idea that just might change Mary’s luck. Unfortunately, their own sisterhood might be working against them. Worst of all, it’s all coming to a head during the holidays, making Mary feel lonelier than ever.Meanwhile, Kurt Cutler is living the high life in the tech world. Fresh on the heels of wild success in the uncharted world of cryptocurrency, he looks for a way to ensure his young company doesn’t lose its grip. When his right-hand woman suggests a get-away at her sister’s snowy mountain retreat, he jumps on the opportunity to unplug and unwind.If Mary’s sister, Anna, can back off, Mary has every chance of enjoying the magic of the holidays. But when Mary and Kurt have to choose between love and their own priorities, what will win?Find out if a wintry weekend can become more for people from two opposite worlds in Elizabeth Bromke’s cozy romance, Christmas on Maplewood Mountain.

Oh, Come On, Be Faithful


Cami Checketts - 2016
    His ex-wife cleaned out his savings account and abandoned their son. Sadly, he has no presents stashed.When he finds a job as a bodyguard for Mikayla Lambert, a billionaire heiress who has been tormented by a stalker for four years, he’s caught up in family drama that threatens this beautiful woman he’s becoming enamored with and might also endanger his son. Can Matt protect everyone and save Christmas for his son, or will the stalker succeed at kidnapping Mikayla and destroying any chance at love between them?

Love & Other Chaos


Jackie Walker - 2020
    Brody’s my friend - just a friend. He’s also my autistic son’s favorite teacher.He’s as off limits as they come, no matter how drop dead gorgeous he is. Falling for him would be wrong. Resisting him though, is becoming pure torture. After being burned by men who can’t handle dating a single-mom of a special-needs child, I refuse to date anymore. Not until my son is grown. My plan is working fine until my trouble-making bestie presents me with a dare that I can’t resist. I’m a sucker for a good dare - especially when margaritas have been consumed. And she’s just dared me to plant a surprise kiss on Brody’s sexy lips, while she records it for a trending TikTok challenge video. But if I do this, it could change everything. My life is already pure chaos and maybe now is not the best time to shake things up even more. Is it worth risking our friendship and his important role in my son’s life for one kiss? What if he wants more? What if I do? Love & Other Chaos is a hilarious, steamy, friends-to-lovers romantic comedy featuring a drop dead gorgeous and seriously buff teacher with the hots for a single-mom of an autistic pre-teen son... who happens to be one of his students. This story also includes wise-cracking grandparents with zero respect for personal boundaries, swoon-worthy beach scenes, a jerky boss with no concept of personal space, nosey siblings and a foul-mouthed best friend who loves to instigate trouble. If you don't like sarcasm, steam, sexy-times, heroines who drink copious amounts of margaritas and laugh-a-minute dialogue, then this might not be the book for you. It’s a stand-alone novel with a happy ending, because cliffhangers will kill your margarita buzz.

Turning Back Time: Sweet and Wholesome with a Fun Matchmaking Twist (Crestfield Inn, #1)


Elsie Davis - 2020
    He’s intent on filling in the missing links on his family tree. When they both end up researching the early 1800s, will history get in the way of the future?All Sarah’s life, stories had been told—handed down from generation to generation. Captain Tremont had gone to his watery grave committing a crime…bootlegging. But a message discovered in her grandmother’s trunk addressed to her great-grandfather six times removed, leads Sarah to believe there is another explanation.Blake is delivering a load of antiques to the local B&B when a gorgeous woman just about knocks him off his feet—literally and figuratively. An antique lamp gets broken and the air is rife with tension, but when they meet again at the library, Blake offers to team up in their research efforts by way of apology. Strictly business of course.But as they wind their way through history, it would seem there are some strange things happening when the resident spirit gets involved. Will the truth bring them happiness or drive them apart forever?

Ace (The Jacksons Book 1)


Brenda Barrett - 2020
    Ace Jackson Jr. resembled the Wileys and not his father, Ace Jackson Sr. His mother, Celia Jackson, told him to ignore the whispers and the innuendos, he was Ace Sr.’s son and not the son of their former gardener, Micky Wiley. For thirty-six years Ace Jr. managed to do just that. He ignored the speculation because he didn’t want to upset the status quo. However, a part of him was curious as to what was the truth of the situation, but he would honor his mother’s wishes. And then he met and developed feelings for Kiya Brady, the rumored love child of Micky Wiley, and then he realized that maybe he shouldn’t be honoring his mother’s wishes after all…