Book picks similar to
The Best Years by Elena Monroe
new-adult
college
arc
dnf
Where I End
Michelle Dare - 2017
Arrogant. Condescending. Cruel.All words I'd used to label him. Exactly what I’d always believed he was. All that changed one spring morning when I realized I didn't know the man behind the facade at all.Angry. Desperate. Broken. Mine.All words I'd use to define him after I interfered. Once our eyes locked, I was all in. There was no turning back. He tried to push me away, but I refused to let him go. I was determined to save him. What I didn't expect was that he would save me, too.CyI was so close to ending my misery. Mere seconds away. Then she stumbled upon our argument, and I changed my plans. She wasn't supposed to be there. She knew too much. Even with my entire world burning down around me, she wouldn't walk away.I’ve always been on my own. No one had ever fought for me before. Why should anyone start now? But she did, no matter how much I tried to stop her. I knew I was nothing, unworthy of her, but she was persistent. Once she got under my skin, I couldn't let her go, because where I end, she begins.
Tasting Never
C.M. Stunich - 2012
She doesn't need any complications in her life, especially not when they're attached to a man that could be her emotional twin.Ty McCabe can't stand Never the first time he meets her. He's aware that the feeling's mutual and the two don't think they'll ever see each other again, but when fate takes a hand and puts them both in the wrong place at the wrong time, Ty and Never form a tentative friendship that opens the door on their dark sides and shows them what it's like to live in the light."Sometimes, the only way to go forward, is to take a few, careful steps back."READING LIST#1: Tasting Never#2: Finding Never#3: Keeping NeverOR Books #1-#3 in one volume: "Tasting, Finding, Keeping: The Story of Never"#4: Never Can Tell#5: Never Let Go#6: Never Did SayTASTING NEVER EXCERPT:Ty's hot mouth is on my neck, and I find myself taking short, sharp, little breaths as I press my shaking hands to his chest. If I sleep with him again, I'll be making the biggest mistake of my life. He's the first real friend I've ever had, and I don't want to cheapen the feelings that are simmering between us. We made that mistake once before, and we survived. We've been through a lot since then, and I know that if I lose him now, I will never be whole again. Ty is my other half, lover or no, and just being around him is enough for me. “Ty,” I say, trying my best to sound stern. Instead, my voice comes out like a butterfly, flutters against Ty's hair and swirls it gently against my lips. I moan and find that my fingers are now curled in the fabric of his T-shirt. “Never,” he says back to me, the word like fire against my skin. In those two syllables, I hear how he feels about me. He thinks he's in love. Ty McCabe thinks he's in love with me. He doesn't say it aloud, but I can tell. Sex isn't the best way for me to show my feelings; I've abused it for far too long that it has somehow lost some of its meaning. I try to tell Ty this, but I can't speak with his lips on my throat and his hand sliding across the nape of my neck. I run my own hands down his chest and put them beneath his shirt, on the hard plane of his belly. His muscles contract as I press my fingers into them, touching, feeling, absorbing the man, the complication, that is Ty McCabe. All the while, my mind is racing in circles trying to talk me out of this.“Kiss me,” Ty says and it's not a question, it's a request, albeit a gentle one. His voice is softer than I've ever heard it. His words are naked, stripped of all the bullshit that's happened to him, all of the horrible things that mirror my own life. Ty and I are like twins, like two halves of the same whole. They say that opposites attract, but Ty and I are very much the same and the attraction between us burns brighter than the sun. “Kiss me,” he says again and I do.
Rising
Jessica Ruben - 2018
Anonymity is key in my neighborhood—particularly as a lone female walking at night. All I want is to leave my crime-ridden shadow of a home in New York City. I’ve done everything I can to keep my head down and focus on my studies. College is my only goal; love has never been on the map… That is, until my sister brings me to an underground fight, where I meet a gorgeous and mysterious man: Vincent. He is the ghost in my shadows, showing up to feed me pieces of his upper-crust life, then evaporating into darkness until his next visit. I’m falling hard and fast. How can I trust him amidst the depth of his secrets? Vincent may be even more dangerous than the dark world I’m trying to escape.
Depraved
Eva Charles - 2019
Wilder, and it takes a lot to shame me, but we’re about to see where you draw the line.
Gabrielle Duval once belonged to me. And like it or not, she'll be mine again. In a world where money, power and corruption rule, I'm prepared to do whatever it takes. Although nothing with that woman is ever easy. But believe me when I tell you, I'll enjoy every minute of the fight. Pick-up a copy of Depraved today, and let Eva Charles take you on a deliciously decadent journey. Buckle up. **Those who are sensitive to dark storylines, please proceed cautiously!**
Elite
Rachel Van Dyken - 2013
But after her grandmother's death, Tracey is all her grandfather has. So when Eagle Elite University announces its annual scholarship lottery, Tracey jumps at the opportunity to secure their future and enters. She isn't expecting much-but then she wins. And life as she knows it will never be same . . .The students at Eagle Elite are unlike any she's ever met . . . and they refuse to make things easy for her. There's Nixon, gorgeous, irresistible, and leader of a group that everyone fears: The Elect. Their rules are simple. 1. Do not touch The Elect. 2. Do not look at The Elect. 3. Do not speak to The Elect. No matter how hard she tries to stay away, The Elect are always around her and it isn't long until she finds out the reason why they keep their friends close and their enemies even closer. She just didn't realize she was the enemy -- until it was too late.
End of Day
Jewel E. Ann - 2015
Stripped of the only life they’ve ever known, the Days say goodbye to San Francisco forever.Six months and two new identities later, the thirty-year-old misfits with elite self-defense skills and penchants for alcohol, sex, and trouble arrive like an earthquake to Peaceful Woods, a retirement community in Omaha, Nebraska, that thrives on rules and gossip. Welcome home, Jackson and Jillian Knight.Jackson celebrates his new beginning by embracing his job and wiping his cavalier past clean with a temporary oath of celibacy. But Jillian’s past is branded into her soul—the deaths, the insanity, Dr. Luke Jones, and the need to make her lovers bleed. Her chance for redemption comes in the form of a next-door neighbor, one Senior Master Sergeant Monaghan. He’s sexy, dangerously alluring, and riddled with emotional issues from years of service. He’s also … So. Damn. Grumpy.Their mission is simple: Let go, start over, don't kill anyone, and pray that nobody resurrects their past.See why critics call this series sexy, mind-blowing, and unforgettable.Their mission is simple: Let go, start over, don't kill anyone, and pray that nobody wakes the dead.**THIS BOOK CONTAINS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE AND SEXUAL CONTENT 18+
Delicate
Sara Cate - 2019
Those are the rules. They come to Wicked every Spring Break, and I make it a rule to never get attached. But this year everything’s changed. That doe-eyed little girl who used to watch me through the window of my tattoo shop is all grown up—and determined to make my life hell. What she doesn’t know is that beneath these tattoos is a seedy habit and a life of crime. Let’s face it, I’ve always had a hard time saying no. If I’m not careful, this girl will be my new addiction. And my ruin. Delicate is the first swoon-worthy installment in the Wicked Hearts series. Warning: this bad-boy romance might leave you breathless and a touch corrupted. Trigger warning: Delicate deals with the very real issues of coping and overcoming addiction. The highs, the lows, and in this case, the happy endings.
Welcome to Wicked Beach…
The Affair
Giana Darling - 2016
But before beginning her new life, she travels to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico searching for a week of relaxation and reprieve before barreling into her turbulent future.She never expected to meet the handsome and enigmatic Frenchman Sinclair on the plane and she certainly never would have imagined herself accepting his proposal for a week long, no-strings-attached affair. Giselle has never experienced anything as heady as Sinclair’s controlled seduction and cool yet devastatingly erotic commands and she finds herself powerless to stop the ferocity of their passions, even when she discovers he has a partner back home. The last thing she needs in her life is another complication, yet as the week wears on, she finds it surprisingly easy to relinquish control to Sinclair, a man she knows nearly nothing about. And to her horror, the one thing she promised never to submit, her battered heart, is just as easily captured in the business mogul’s unyielding hands.
Little Liar
Willow Winters - 2018
That’s how stories like these get started. But every lie I told, he saw through it. I think in his heart he knew I was broken; he felt my pain as if it was his. And that’s what changed everything. He’s the reason it all fell apart.Sometimes it’s a single moment that alters everything in existence.Sometimes it’s the fall of dominoes, lined up in a pretty little row and designed so that each one will cause more and more pain.In a single day, it’s all changed, and there’s no way to take it back.I didn't know what would happen. But secrets and lies ruin everything.“I was captivated from the very beginning, and I couldn't let go until the very end. Winters wove an outstanding tale, which has an even better message within its pages.” - Kendra @ Reads and Treats** It's Our Secret was previously titled Little Liar **
Wicked Liars
Laura Lee - 2020
Every last one of them. The kings and queens of my new high school.The father and stepmother I never knew. Each has more wealth and privilege than I could've ever imagined. Each has a pile of wicked dirty secrets they'd do anything to protect. These people have grown accustomed to getting what they want and what they want is to make my life a living hell. Too bad for them, you can't break someone who's already broken. Too bad for them, I won't give up without a fight. Too bad for them, I'm going to make them pay...even if it's the last thing I do. *Wicked Liars is the first book in the Windsor Academy series and cannot be read as a standalone. This is a dark high school MF bully romance that may contain triggers for sensitive readers. Due to mature subject matter, it is recommended for readers 17+ only.
Desecrated Flesh
C.A. Rene - 2020
All it took was one bad decision,A need to numb the pain that threatened to tear me apart.He was someone I trusted,And he made a decision that would forever ruin me.They used to be my best friends,But after that night, I never wanted to see them again.Now they hate me and will stop at nothing to watch me suffer.But what do they know about suffering?After what I’ve been through,Everything they throw at me is child’s play.One more year and I’ll be free of them,Never having to be reminded of that fateful night.A lot can happen in a year...
Then There Was You
Claire Contreras - 2018
Love is about walking to the edge of the cliff and taking the leap together.Timing was never on our side.My first mistake was hooking up with my best friend.My second came years later, when we met again, and I fell for her. My third was letting her go, because I had to. Because a love like this wasn't built to withstand the winds coming in our direction.Love and timing.I didn't believe in either. Then there was you . . .
Normal
Danielle Pearl - 2014
Starting at a new high school, in the middle of my senior year, in a new town, in a new state. I know no one. No one knows me. That's what I'm counting on.A year ago, Aurora "Rory" Pine was just a normal teenage girl - just as sweet and naive as the fairy tale princess she was named after.But this isn't a year ago.Rory is broken, and now suffering from a debilitating anxiety disorder, wrought with precarious triggers, she moves across the country to escape the source of her troubles. Her plan is anonymity, but that's easier said than achieved for the new girl having a panic episode outside of calculus. The worst part? There's a witness - and a gorgeous one at that.Sam is a walking trigger for Rory. Incredibly handsome, built like the star athlete he obviously is, and undoubtedly popular, Sam outwardly represents everything Rory despises about high school. But as the fates keep throwing them together, a connection sparks that neither ever expected, and certainly couldn't ignore.But Sam has issues too, and Rory's past won't just stay in the damned past. When friendship evolves into something deeper, can a girl utterly destroyed by the worst kind of betrayal and a boy battling demons of his own ever have a normal relationship? Is that even what they want? Find out in NORMAL, a gritty story of trust and abuse, heartbreak and salvation, and if they're lucky - love. This is not a flowery romance - not for the faint of heart.
Devil May Care
Angel Lawson - 2020
They wanted me to leave, too, but I refused. I’m sticking around to make sure they follow through on the deal the snobby, elite crew of jocks made with the administration.The arrangement is simple. No one ever speaks about what happened to Skylar again, and no one gets punished.But that's not exactly true, is it? I still get punished, each and every day that I walk down the halls. No one speaks to me. No one looks at me. No one even admits I exist.It doesn’t matter. I know what they did. And I know who’s in charge; Hamilton Bates.Handsome, smart, and ridiculously privileged.He’s the lead Devil, and my hatred for him is all in the details.All it takes is one slip, one heated argument, one mistake, and everything gets even more complicated.We get complicated.Is this love or has the Devil found a new plaything?Devil May Care is the gripping, angsty, enemies to lovers, bully romance, by USA Today Best Selling Author, Angel Lawson, you’ve been waiting for!
Kings of Mayhem
Penny Dee - 2019
We grew up side by side. Two kids tied together by the Kings of Mayhem Motorcycle Club. But I broke us. I broke her. So, she fled. Now she’s back after twelve long years. And I’m going to show her all the reasons why we should be together and make her forget all the reasons why we shouldn’t. INDY I’m back in town but only because I have to be. I’m here to help my mom bury my father. And the sooner we get it done, the better. Because I want to see Cade as much as I want a hole in the head. He broke me once—no, he broke my everything— and I’ll be damned if I’ll let him do it again. Get in and get out. That is the plan. But you know what they say about best-laid plans.