Book picks similar to
Meet Me at Half Court by Julie L. Spencer
young-adult
ku
ya-romance
romance
Hot by Halloween
Jessica Bucher - 2019
Which is why her senior year goal is to get revenge.Step one: Join the swim team and get seriously fit.Step two: Find some gorgeous new arm candy to take to ex's big Halloween party and make him crazy with jealousy.Step three: Try not to fall super hard for said arm candy.Gray Turner is a California transplant with goals of his own: get the swim team to regionals, get the scholarship he needs, and get out of this town. Too bad some girl with zero swim skills just joined the team. Private lessons seem like a good idea...until lessons start to feel like something more.Addy and Gray started the season with specific plans, but falling for one another wasn't one of them.
Tomboy’s Don’t Wear Pink
Christina Benjamin - 2020
But one viral video gives her more than she bargains for, including a chance to start the softball team she’s always wanted. In love and sports, timing is everything. If Casey doesn’t do what it takes to get her softball team off the ground now, she may not get another chance. The only problem... it could cost her the one thing she loves more than sports — Lucas Hargrove.Lucas Hargrove seems to have it all, money, looks, baseball, Harvard. But looks can be deceiving. The pressure of living up to his perfect image is getting to him. He doesn’t even know if he wants to go to Harvard. The only thing he does know is that he can’t fight his feelings for Casey Beeler any longer, no matter what his parents say. But who gives up Harvard for a girl they’ve only kissed once?Casey attempts to navigate high school mean girls, homecoming dates and her new softball team, all while pursuing her long-time crush. But stealing hearts isn’t as easy as stealing bases.Can these two star-crossed lovers find their way, or will they have to choose between love and the sports they love?
A sweet stand-alone high school sports romance.
The Nerd & the Quarterback
M.L. Collins - 2019
Too bad Jackson High’s star quarterback BLEW. IT. UP.Last year, I was the most hated girl at my old school. This year, my plan was to lay low, keep to myself and graduate. My plan was working. Until the day I ran into Dax DeLeon.It’s impossible to stay invisible when the most popular guy at school claims I’m his girlfriend.Did I mention his ex—the head cheerleader and the most popular girl in school—wants him back? Boom. Now I’ve got a fake boyfriend.And a target on my back. Again. But what’s scaring me the most…If this thing with Dax is fake—why does being with him feel so real?The Nerd & the Quarterback is a *Standalone*clean YA romantic comedy about a nerdy bowler, a hot quarterback, a possible case of mistaken identity, a bunny-napping, ransom notes, a failed ransom drop, thievery, and mean girls being mean. But mostly about a boy and a girl learning to trust. *Warning: this book has a romance so sweet you'll get an urge to call your dentist.*Grab your copy today!Coming next in the Jackson High Series:#2
The Good Girl & the Bad Boy
(Lacey & Grady, An Enemies to Lovers Romance)#3
The Tomboy & the Movie Star
(Bernie & Kingsly, A Fish Out-of-Water Romance)#4
The Shy Girl & the Jock Next Door
(Shay & TJ, A Best Friends to Lovers Romance)*Previously Published as Ali & the Too Hot, Up-to-No Good, Very Beastly Boy
Young Adulting
Maggie Dallen - 2020
Adulting is harder.While the rest of her high school friends are heading off to college, Isabelle Ellis is diving headfirst into real life. Well…if Hollywood can be considered real life.She’s scored the internship of a lifetime with a major production company. And thanks to the script she discovered, she’s certain she can make her temporary position permanent. Even better? The screenwriter might just be her dream guy. Sure, she’s never actually met him in person, but if their email exchanges are anything to go by, he’s her match made in heaven.There’s only one problem. Her screenwriter crush wants TV heartthrob and Hollywood royalty Henry Landon for the lead role. Signing Henry to the project would be a major coup…but having to work with the unbearably egotistical actor might just be her worst nightmare.Isabelle thought she was prepared for life in Hollywood and all the drama that comes with the glitter and glitz, but this might just be more than her little film major heart can handle.Add in four new roommates, backstabbing intern rivals, and the Los Angeles’ public transit system and Isabelle’s new life in La La Land isn’t exactly the dream she’d imagined. Especially when she discovers her screenwriter dream man isn’t who he says he is… And Henry? It turns out the cocky A-list jerk has a heart. But he has secrets too and they could destroy her career goals and break her heart.But no one ever said Hollywood was for the faint of heart.
Tomboy Crazy for My Brother's Best Friend (Tomboys Like Us Book 2)
Stephanie Street - 2020
A dude ranch. And her brother's best friend. What could possibly go wrong?NatalieYes, it’s true and embarrassing. For years, I’ve crushed on my brother’s best friend, Finn Moore. After graduation, I flew halfway across the country to spend the summer with my grandparents at their dude ranch, hoping to escape my humiliation. Too bad the day after I arrive, I find out my brother is coming, and he’s bringing Finn with him!Somebody shoot me now!FinnSure, I know Natalie’s got the hots for me. I’ve known for years. It’s not like it’s a secret. But you know what is a secret? I’ve got the hots for her too. So, when her brother invites me to his grandparent’s ranch for a month, I go. Why? Because Natalie will be there, too. She’s finally graduated high school. Now I need the stars to align because I’ve waited long enough for my best friend’s little sister to grow up.Will Natalie and Finn finally get their chance at happily ever after? Find out in Tomboy Crazy for My Brother’s Best Friend.
Wilder Games
Ali Dean - 2021
Nothing, that is, except the sight of Jude Wilder sitting in the stands with his little sister on his lap. He’s never watched me play. Never even noticed me before. And yet his eyes are on me now. I know what he must be thinking. I’m not just an outcast, I’m a social pariah thanks to my family being the town’s most notorious con artists. Jude is on the opposite side of the spectrum. Not only is he accepted, he’s worshipped. I’m nobody to him, and yet I’ve got this chance to impress him.As it turns out, he isn’t at all impressed when I win the match, and I’m worse than a nobody to him. Jude thinks I’m a threat to his family. This should alarm me. It should scare me. Jude in protective mode is hot, all right, but I can’t afford to be on his radar. I’ve got one year to secure a college scholarship. It’s hard enough keeping a low profile with my tennis success, and the last thing I need is Jude Wilder of all people drawing more attention my way. Especially if it’s hostile. Even if I like it.
XOXO, Piper
Ginger Li - 2021
He hates donuts.2. He hates chocolate.3. He hates me.Ash may be East Beach High’s valedictorian and captain of the water polo team, but to me, he’s always been a grade-A jerk.Now, I'm taking on a project to help a local preschool, and guess who shows up to plan the fundraiser?Yup. Him.It doesn't make any sense. Why would Ash help someone he hates so much? And why does my heart race every time he’s near?XOXO, Piper is the first book in the East Beach High Series. Fans of enemies-to-lovers, first love, romantic grand gestures, and donut puns will adore this sweet novel.
Ninja Girl
Cookie O'Gorman - 2017
She teaches at her family-owned martial arts gym, The Academy, and cares more about training to be the next Bruce Lee than hooking up. In fact, Snow's never even been kissed. But when Girls Night rolls around, Snow decides to prove to her friends (and herself) that she's not just some boring tomboy. Impulsively, she kisses a hot stranger and even manages to escape his two security guards. One stolen kiss… Ash Stryker's senior year sucks. His politician father pulled him out of Chariot High, separating him from his championship-winning soccer team. Now he's stuck at a prissy private school with no friends, no team and no chance of being scouted. On top of that, thanks to the death threats his dad's received, Ash has a security tail aka professional babysitters. When the mystery girl from the movies shows up at his school, rappelling from the rafters, Ash knows one thing: he won't let her get away again. One interesting job proposition… After a seemingly random attack, Ash's mother surprises everyone. She hires Snow to be Ash's personal bodyguard until after the election. But can Snow's kick-ass skills hold up against the rising threats to Ash's family? More importantly, can Ash convince his ninja girl to screw ethics and kiss him again? Opposites attract in this YA romance where a smooth talker meets his match in the tough girl who (literally) sweeps him off his feet. Moral of the story: Sometimes even bad boys need a bodyguard.
the Trouble with Hate is...
Elizabeth Stevens - 2019
…it’s safer. …it’s often not hate at all. The Granger and Drake families have been through everything together; the suicide of the eldest Granger son, the Drake patriarch’s cancer diagnosis, family holidays with only slight maiming, and more dance recitals than anyone would care to remember. Leilani Granger can’t stand the person Casper Drake has become, and Casper doesn’t even recognise his best mate’s little sister anymore. Loving each other is second-nature, but they don’t know how not to hate each other either. As they face losing Leilani’s only remaining brother and Casper’s best mate to his inner demons, old habits lead them back to each other for comfort. But, after one night of a deeper connection than either of them were ready for, the lines between the emotional and the physical start to blur. Leilani wasn’t the kind to lose herself in meaningless sex. Casper’s been doing it for years. It's the only time they can forget the storm clouds in their lives. It’s the only time they can remember the sunshine. It’s the only time hate doesn’t get in the way. But, the trouble with hate is…it’s often not hate at all. NB: Contains mature content. Not suitable for younger readers. Please be aware that this story is set in Australia and therefore uses Australian English spelling and syntax.
Jesse's Girl
Miranda Kenneally - 2015
So when Maya Henry said she wanted to be a rock star, she never imagined she’d get to shadow *the* Jesse Scott, Nashville’s teen idol.But spending the day with Jesse is far from a dream come true. He’s as gorgeous as his music, but seeing all that he’s accomplished is just a reminder of everything Maya’s lost: her trust, her boyfriend, their band, and any chance to play the music she craves. Not to mention that Jesse’s pushy and opinionated. He made it on his own, and he thinks Maya’s playing back up to other people’s dreams. Does she have what it takes to follow her heart—and go solo?
Meet Me There
Judy Corry - 2018
A fake British accent. It's all fun and games until somebody falls in love.When sixteen-year-old, Ashlyn Brooks, runs into a sweet British guy in the dark Chemistry lab, she has no idea she's actually sitting in the pitch black room with her longtime rival, Luke Davenport. She also doesn't know that she's stepped into another one of the football captain's pranks. It isn't long before she's sharing things she's never told anyone, and starting to fall for the mysterious guy with a sexy accent who seems to understand her in a way no one ever has before.When Luke's mom dies the summer before his senior year, he turns to pranking Ashlyn to keep his mind off his loss. But the more he gets to know her, the more he regrets using his fake British accent in the first place. Soon Luke is walking the thin line of keeping his lies a secret and wishing he could tell her that the boy she's falling for is really him.Meet Me There is a standalone novel in The Ridgewater High series, a collection of simmering YA contemporary romances. If you like sweet romance with ballad-worthy chemistry, swoony kisses and endearing characters then you'll love Judy Corry's latest book.
All Laced Up
Erin Fletcher - 2016
Everyone except Lia Bailey. When the two are forced to teach a skating class to save the rink, Lia’s not sure she’ll survive the pressure of Nationals and Pierce’s ego. Not only can’t he remember her name, he signed her bottle of water like she was one of his groupies. Ugh. But if there’s one thing Lia knows better than figure skating, it’s hockey. Hoping to take his ego down a notch—or seven—she logs into his team website under an anonymous name to give him pointers on his less-than-stellar playing. Turns out, Pierce isn’t arrogant at all. And they have a lot in common. Too bad he’s falling for the anonymous girl online. No matter how much fun they’re starting to have in real life, she’s afraid he’s going to choose fake-Lia over the real one…
Center Ice
Cate Cameron - 2015
After her mother’s death, she moved to Corrigan Falls to live with strangers—her dad and his perfect, shiny new family—and there doesn’t seem to be room for a city girl with a chip on her shoulder. The only person who makes her feel like a real human being is Tyler MacDonald.But Karen isn’t interested in starting something with a player. And that’s all she keeps hearing about Tyler.Corrigan Falls is a hockey town, and Tyler’s the star player. But the viselike pressure from his father and his agent are sending him dangerously close to the edge. All people see is hockey—except Karen. Now they’ve managed to find something in each other that they both desperately need. And for the first time, Tyler is playing for keeps…This Entangled Teen Crush book contains adult language, underage drinking, sexual situations, and crazy squirrels. It may cause you to become a fan of hockey - or at least hot hockey players.
I Hate You, Fuller James
Kelly Anne Blount - 2020
It’s just such a cliché.I hate that I’m being forced to tutor you in English and keep it a secret from everyone. Because otherwise it might put our basketball team’s chances at winning State in jeopardy, and even though I hate you, I love basketball.I hate that it seems like you’re keeping a secret from me…and that the more time we spend together, the less I feel like I’m on solid ground. Because I’m starting to realize there’s so much more to you than meets the eye. Underneath it all, you’re real.But what I hate most is that I really don’t hate you at all.
The Boys Next Door
Jennifer Echols - 2007
She spends all season wakeboarding, swimming, and hanging with her friends—including the two hotties in the house next door. With the Vader brothers, Lori's always been one of the guys. But while Lori and the "baby" brother, Adam, are inseparable friends, she can't deny a secret crush on Sean, the older Vader boy. This year Sean's been paying Lori a lot of attention, and not in a brotherly way.But just as Lori decides to prove to Sean she's girlfriend material, she realizes that her role as girlfriend to Adam may be even more important. And by trying so hard for the perfect summer romance, she could be going way overboard....