Book picks similar to
The Dirty South by Penelope King
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Wild Child
Molly O'Keefe - 2013
Monica Appleby is a woman with a reputation. Once she was America’s teenage “Wild Child,” with her own reality TV show. Now she’s a successful author coming home to Bishop, Arkansas, to pen the juicy follow-up to her tell-all autobiography. Problem is, the hottest man in town wants her gone. Mayor Jackson Davies is trying to convince a cookie giant to move its headquarters to his crumbling community, and Monica’s presence is just too . . . unwholesome for business. But the desire in his eyes sends a very different message: Stay, at least for a while. Jackson needs this cookie deal to go through. His town is dying and this may be its last shot. Monica is a distraction proving too sweet, too inviting—and completely beyond his control. With every kiss he can taste her loneliness, her regrets, and her longing. Soon their uncontrollable attraction is causing all kinds of drama. But when two lost hearts take a surprise detour onto the bumpy road of unexpected love, it can only lead someplace wonderful.
Two Cabins, One Lake
Shaye Marlow - 2015
She lives a quiet life in the Alaskan bush, alone on her little lake with only a spooky dog and her gun collection for company. But then Gary, the most obnoxious man Helly’s ever met, roars into her life. The mysterious helicopter pilot moves into the cabin across the lake with a vengeance. And fire. And karaoke. He’s a despicably early riser with a penchant for public indecency, a talent for trespassing… and he’s handsome as the devil, with abs she’d like to lick. Helly quickly realizes her little lake isn’t big enough for the two of them. After an initial attempt at being reasonable, and responsible, and mature, she gives up—and gives as good as she gets. What follows is a feud of eardrum-battering intensity; a no-holds-barred water fight to the tune of a screaming chainsaw, with her panties caught in the crossfire. Just when Helly thinks things couldn’t possibly get any worse, her crazy brothers crash the party. In an unforgiving land where even the wildlife is out for blood, can the pair survive long enough for Gary to capture Helly’s heart, along with her wrists? Or will Gary’s past be the final blow, after Helly loses her boat, her dignity, and what’s left of her ammo? For lovers of Alaskan romance and romantic comedy, Two Cabins, One Lake is a sexy, standalone contemporary romance novel with action & adventure, a splash of mystery & suspense, and a satisfying conclusion. Take a vacation to Alaska, where everything's bigger & wilder. You'll laugh out loud!
Missing Wings (Aranysargas, #1)
Andrea Luhman - 2018
The poison meant to kill her father leaves him in a degenerative state. When her eldest brother discovers she has survived, he orders her to stay in hiding. She must wait, concealed in the human world, until the danger of their father’s uncontrolled rages is contained.Grown and adapted to the human world, Katrina encounters one of her kind. The promise of home and first love leads her into a situation capable of starting war among the Veilede. Will a human upbringing, mistakes, and the loss of her abilities bar her from reclaiming her heritage? Will unraveling the mystery of her mother’s betrayal lead her family into even greater danger?
Forever in Florida
Keira K. Barton - 2018
Not sure where to start, and sick of women who aren’t willing to commit, Brad signs up for Dr. Lachele Simpson’s Matchrimony service. Daphne’s life in King, Montana, is turned upside-down after her husband dies in a tragic accident. When Dr. Lachele learns of her dear friend’s loss, she insists on helping her find new love with a guy who recently signed up for her services. Dr. Lachele knows they will be perfect together, but can she convince Daphne and Brad that they can fall in love after they meet at the altar?
Going Under
Georgia Cates - 2012
Growing up in less than desirable circumstances has made him no stranger to the hard knock life but his determination to leave it behind is fervent. He sees an opportunity to snag a college football scholarship when he’s transferred to East Franklin High School but Forbes Henderson has other plans. The player Jesse intends to replace doesn’t plan on giving up his spot as starting quarterback so a rivalry is born. Jesse is determined to show his nemesis that he’s not only going to take his position as first string quarterback, he’s going to take his girl, too.Claire Deveraux is perfection at its best. She’s beautiful, intelligent, and unaware she just became Jesse Boone’s conquest to settle a score with her boyfriend. Like her flawless performance as the perfect daughter and student, Claire’s production of being the perfect girlfriend has everyone fooled, except Jesse Boone. She fears this tattooed bad boy will see her secret desire to explore his crude threats and promises of rocking her perfect world. If she decides to give in to one uninhibited moment with Jesse, will she learn too late that it was all an act of vengeance or will Jesse learn that the taste of first love is sweeter than that of revenge?Going Under is Book 1 of 2 in the Going Under Series but may be read as a stand alone. This is a second edition with new editing and added scenes.This is a mature young adult/new adult novel and recommended for readers 16+ due to sexual content.
It All Comes Back to You
Beth Duke - 2018
War's over, cherry-print dresses, parking above the city lights, swing dancing.
Beautiful, seventeen-year-old Violet lives in a perfect world. Everybody loves her.
In 2012, she's still beautiful, charming, and surrounded by admirers.
Veronica "Ronni" Johnson, licensed practical nurse and aspiring writer, meets the captivating Violet in the assisted living facility where Violet requires no assistance, just lots of male attention. When she dies, she leaves Ronni a very generous bequest―only if Ronni completes a book about her life within one year. As she's drawn into the world of young Violet, Ronni is mesmerized by life in a simpler time. It's an irresistible journey filled with revelations, some of them about men Ronni knew as octogenarians at Fairfield Springs.Struggling, insecure, flailing at the keyboard, Ronni juggles her patients, a new boyfriend, and a Samsonite factory of emotional baggage as she tries to craft a manuscript before her deadline.But then the secrets start to emerge, some of them in person. And they don't stop.Everything changes.Alternating chapters between Homecoming Queen Violet in 1947 and can't-quite-find-her-crown Ronni in the present, IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU is book club fiction at its hilarious, warm, sad, outrageous, uplifting, and stunning best. In the tradition of Major Pettigrew's Last Stand and Olive Kitteridge, Duke delivers an unforgettable elderly character to treasure and a young heroine to steal your heart.
Thursday Nights
Lisa N. Paul - 2013
But when fate brings two weak souls together, will the love they find mend the fragments that are barely holding them together, or will the weight of their past finally cause them to crumble?Max DeLucca has spent seven years trying to forget the betrayal of his past. He lives his life from day to day never looking forward and never looking back. The walls around his heart keep anyone from getting too close and prevent him from feeling too much…until he meets her.Her entire life, Janie Silver searched for the kind of love that wouldn’t leave her broken and more importantly, wouldn't leave her behind. She longs for a love that can heal the wounds of her past and give her the future she knows she deserves. She thought she was looking for something that just didn’t exist…until she meets him.Danny’s on Main is where their story begins. A neighborhood bar where strangers become friends, friends become family and some … become lovers… it all started on Thursday Nights
Pieces
Janine Infante Bosco - 2014
He owns a tattoo parlor in the small upstate town and prides himself on being a fun-loving, live by the seat of your pants type of guy. He has everything he wants in life, a thriving business, a great family and a best friend with whom he could never live without.Cara Sloane weaved her way into Jake’s life when they were fifteen years old. After her life fell apart at such a young age, Jake helped her heal, and began to pick up the pieces of her fallen life. His unconventional ways slowly had him becoming the anchor in her life.Now fourteen years later Jake begins to see Cara in a new light. The things he thought he never wanted, he suddenly began to yearn for. The only problem was they were both too frightened to lose the greatest love either of them has ever known. Can Jake convince Cara there is more for them than just a friendship? Is he willing to take that gamble himself?
Set Up
T.C. Matson - 2020
There’s nothing wrong with being single. I’m not a woman scorned. There’s no heartbreak I’m recovering from. I just enjoy not having to answer to anyone and doing what I want when I want. Unfortunately, my two wonderful best friends think the opposite and decide to meddle. Just because they’re both happily taken, they believe I should be too. Their “wonderful” plan? Speed dating… A bunch of men and women tossed into a room for a night of awkward dates. Sounds horrific, right? But because my signature was forged on the contract, there’s no canceling. Three men catch my attention. One steals my heart. Another steals my time. And the last one steals my patience. It doesn’t take long for my heart to betray me and I fall for a wealthy man who shatters me. Now I’m left picking up the pieces and he won’t leave me alone. Great…Just frickin’ great.
Trouble
Samantha Towle - 2013
Running from a person she doesn’t ever want to find her. Running from a past she doesn’t ever want anyone to know. Desperate to find a future, that yesterday, she could only dream of having. Jordan Matthews likes easy. Easy women. Easy life. Then he meets Mia. She’s damaged, troubled and has more baggage than any person can carry. But the more Jordan gets to know Mia-for the first time in his life-he finds himself wanting to try hard for something … for someone … for her.And then life isn’t so easy anymore. Jordan is everything Mia shouldn’t want. A whole bunch of dirty hotness, tattooed, cocky bad boy, who made his money at poker tables and picked his women up in bars. Yet, Mia finds herself falling for him. Then the past Mia was running from, quickly starts to catch up with her. Because that’s the problem with running … you have to stop sometime. And when you stop, you get caught.Full length New Adult Contemporary Romance.Recommended Reading Age 18+
Fight for Her: The Complete Series
J.J. Knight - 2015
What do you do when you’ve just lost everything? You fight. For four years, I’ve been punching and kicking my way through hundreds of unworthy MMA opponents. For four years, I’ve kept seeing her face. Maddie’s face. My one great love. After a brutal cage match that sent me to the ER, Maddie took off across the country. Six months pregnant. She left to have my baby as far from me as she could. No more violence, she said. No fighting. I had to live with it. I had no choice. But last night I got a phone call from my little girl, asking me to come to her fourth birthday party. Her friends all have daddies, she said. Would I be hers? Damn right I will. I decide that when I get to New York, I’m not going to care about Maddie. I’m not going to even look at her. But I do. And the moment I see her again, I know one thing is true. This ain’t over. ____ Don't miss the boxed set of the blockbuster series with Parker, a spin off character from JJ Knight's bestselling series, Uncaged Love. Features appearances by Dylan Wolf from the Revenge series, and Jax DeLuca from Annie Winter's The Vigilante's Lover series.
Trust Me
Melanie Walker - 2013
Pain, Anger, Terror…she also knew Trust. Of all the things her father taught her and her brother, it was her brother Noah who taught her to trust.At fourteen and awakened in the middle of the night by her eighteen year old brother Noah, they run and escape a fate that is worse than death. Years of abuse so severe has left them both strong, wounded and careful. They know to trust one another above all things and promise then and there they will never look back.The summer before her final year at UW Carrie agrees to a date with her long time crush who happens to be her brother Noah’s best friend Chad Blake. The tattooed and sexy as sin front-man for rock band Thick as Thieves and the crowned King of Gig Harbor’s bad boys, Chad is a known for a good time, great music, killer tats and a sweet goodbye the morning after as long as the girl knows the score. Everything he is, is everything Noah wants her safe from. Chad has wanted his best friends sister since she was eighteen but stayed away after Noah warned him that Carrie was off limits. Having been burned in the past, Chad focused on his day job as a tattoo artist and his dream of making it big with his band Thick as Thieves; keeping his bed warm until he had the chance to get Carrie Beckett there and never let her leave. Noah sheltered Carrie as best he could, keeping her as far from his personal life and Chad Blake as he could. He wanted nothing but happiness and freedom for the sister he watched suffer day in and day out.But Carrie is innocent and smart, strong willed with a sassy mouth, all the things Chad loves about her and refuses to deny himself of anymore.Risking it all on a whim, he shows up and asks Carrie to go “All In” and betray her brother for a chance to be together.Carrie is brought into the world of parties, concerts, fangirls and sex - that forces her to face the memories of her past in order to move on with Chad as her future.Knowing that love is a reward, trust, a gift, Carrie and Chad fall with a passion so strong, it threatens to break them both. They will battle back all the bad things in life for just a second of good and all the insecurities will come to an explosive head that may just destroy them both.
Within Temptation
Tanya Holmes - 2014
This is not erotica or romantica. This is a romance centered around a murder mystery. Heat Factor: 3 out of 5 -- The sexual tension is high, and the burn is slow. Sex is character-driven, rather than plot-driven.================================Love, betrayal and murder in a small town.Twelve years after her mother's murder, Shannon Bradford fears she may have helped convict an innocent man. Even worse, her prominent family may have had something to do with it. Desperate for answers, she seeks help from the one person least likely to give it. Her best friend and childhood crush, Trace Dawson. The man she sent to prison. Serving hard time for murder has left Trace angry and bitter. As far as he's concerned, digging into the past won't replace the years he's lost or erase the hell he's lived. Now that he's free, Shannon Bradford tops his list of bad memories. But he never counted on falling in love. Set in a sleepy little town during the dead of winter, this award-winning romance novel is a tale of one woman's quest for truth and a man's struggle to forgive…
Kiss and Break Up
Ella Fields - 2019
Dashiell Thane wasn’t a nice guy. He was an abrasive, demanding, conniving, intolerable brat. Yet somehow, we’d been best friends our whole lives. Until our senior year when I finally decided to dip my toes into the dating pool. All it took was one kiss for jealousy, lies, and betrayal to sweep in and propel us heart first into dizzying, hostile depths. You’re not supposed to kiss your best friend. You’re definitely not supposed to kiss your best friend while you’re dating someone else. And the absolute worst thing you could do is fall for your best friend. Unless, of course, you want to ruin everything.
Say Something...
T.A. Roth - 2015
So when her best friend Vonne guilts her into going to a frat party, she couldn't think of a worse way to spend a Thursday night. That's until she sparks the interest of love’m and leave’m Ben Rodriguez. The electricity she feels when they lock eyes is something she's never felt before.22 year old Ben Rodriguez has it all. He's a football star, president of his fraternity, and well known ladies’ man. His endless pick of beauties, makes him the envy of all of his fraternity brothers. So why are a pair of long legs and hazel eyes making him want to throw out all of his rules?*This novel deals with adult themes and language. 18+ please. This is book 1 in a series and contains a cliffhanger.