Book picks similar to
For Love or Money by Clodagh Murphy
chick-lit
romance
free
romantic-comedy
Against the Wall
Julie Prestsater - 2012
That is until Chase breaks her heart and leaves her for another teacher at the school. Now Shel is left broken-hearted and trying to figure out what she wants while watching Chase and the home wrecker make moon eyes at each other. Enter Matt Fuller, Shel's friend for the past 5 years and the perfect rebound. He's gorgeous, smart, funny and fits into Shel's idea of the right guy. Only problem is there may be more there than just a simple rebound. Is it a way to fill a void left by Chase, or is there more smoldering between these two friends? Find out what happens when the bell rings and the teenage drama ends and the adult drama begins. Who says being a teacher is boring? They obviously haven't met the teachers at Carver High.Warning: this book contains the following adult content.Sex and nudity: Yes!Profanity: Hell yes!Alcohol: That too!
Meet Cute
Helena Hunting - 2019
On her first day of law school, Kailyn ran quite literally into the actor she crushed on as a teenager, ending with him sprawled on top of her. Mortified to discover the Daxton Hughes was also a student in her class, her embarrassment over their meet-cute quickly turned into a friendship she never expected. Of course, she never saw his betrayal coming either...Now, eight years later, Dax is in her office asking for legal advice. Despite her anger, Kailyn can't help feeling sorry for the devastated man who just became sole guardian to his thirteen-year-old sister. But when her boss gets wind of Kailyn's new celebrity client, there's even more at stake than Dax's custody issues: if she gets Dax to work at their firm, she'll be promoted to partner.The more time Kailyn spends with Dax and his sister, the more she starts to feel like a family, and the more she realizes the chemistry they had all those years ago is as fresh as ever. But will they be able to forgive the mistakes of the past, or will one betrayal lead to another?
Evanthia's Gift
Effie Kammenou - 2015
An emotional novel about family bonds and the difficult pull between home and heritage. In the year 1956, Anastacia Fotopoulos finds herself pregnant and betrayed, fleeing from a bad marriage. With the love and support of her dear friends Stavros and Soula Papadakis, Ana is able to face the challenges of single motherhood. Left with emotional wounds, she resists her growing affection for Alexandros Giannakos, an old acquaintance. But his persistence and unconditional love for Ana and her child is eventually rewarded and his love is returned. In a misguided, but well-intentioned effort to protect the ones they love, both Ana and Alex keep secrets - ones that could threaten the delicate balance of their family. The story continues in the 1970’s as Dean and Demi Papadakis, and Sophia Giannakos attempt to negotiate between two cultures. Now Greek-American teenagers, Sophia and Dean, who have shared a special connection since childhood, become lovers. Sophia is shattered when Dean rebels against the pressure his father places on him to uphold his Greek heritage and hides his feelings for her. When he pulls away from his family, culture and ultimately his love for her, Sophia is left with no choice but to find a life different from the one she’d hoped for. EVANTHIA’S GIFT is a multigenerational love story spanning fifty years and crossing two continents, chronicling the lives that unify two families.
To Catch a Bad Guy
Marie Astor - 2012
When she lands a job at one of New York’s premier boutique investment firms, Janet begins to hope that her luck is finally turning for the better. Not only is she happy with her new paycheck, but things also seem to be looking up on the personal front, as the company’s handsome attorney expresses keen interest in Janet. However, her euphoria is short-lived, as Janet soon discovers alarming facts about her new employer’s business tactics. When her boss dismisses her suspicions as groundless, Janet finds herself confiding to a cute IT engineer, Dean Snider. The closer she gets to Dean, the more Janet is tempted to break her rule of not dating co-workers, but what she doesn’t realize is that everything she knows about Dean, including his occupation and even his name, is a lie.Dennis Walker is a top-notch white collar crime investigator who will stop at nothing to put culprits away. When an opportunity for an undercover assignment at one of New York’s premier boutique broker dealers comes up, Dennis jumps at the chance, adopting a persona of geeky IT engineer, Dean Snider. While he may be an ace at his job, years of experience fail him when Dennis meets Janet Maple and finds himself torn between his professional obligations and his personal desires. Will he have to choose between his feelings and duty, or will he find a way to satisfy both?
Hadley & Grace
Suzanne Redfearn - 2021
A woman who can’t even kill a spider, Hadley soon finds herself pushed to the limits as she fights to protect her family.Grace, new mother of baby Miles, desperately wants to put her rough past behind her for good, but she finds it impossible when her path crosses with Hadley’s, and her quest for a new start quickly spirals out of control and turns into a terrifying flight for survival.Stronger together than apart, the two find their fates inextricably entwined, and as the danger closes in, each must decide how much she is willing to risk for the other.A powerful story of self-discovery, Hadley and Grace is the heart-racing tale of two women facing insurmountable odds, racing to stay one step ahead of the trouble that is chasing them, and discovering new kinds of love and family along the way.
The Terrible Personal Shopper
Laura Burton - 2021
I’m nice like that.The plan: Meet the rich client. Take notes of their measurements and fashion tastes. Then hand over to Josie. Job done.But Josie didn’t tell me the client is six-foot-four Hollywood hunk, Blaze Hopkins. My ultimate onscreen crush.I can’t stop my face glowing red as I wrap the tape measure around his hot body.When he asks me questions, I reply with squeaks and giggles. Total fangirl move.But Blaze doesn’t know what a personal shopper does––or does NOT do––and he makes me an offer that makes my jaw drop and toes curl.Join him on his latest press tour. How can I pass up the opportunity to travel the world with this heartthrob?All I have to do is pretend I totally know what I’m doing––I don’t.Play it cool–I’m gonna fail that too.And most-importantly, do NOT fall for Blaze Hopkins.Let’s just face it. I’m doomed.The Terrible Personal Shopper is an opposites-attract, romantic comedy with witty humor and heart-fluttering romance.Author note: This is a steamy clean read. All of the sizzle with steamy kisses, but no sex or swearing.
Amazing Grace
Kim Nash - 2019
Living in the beautiful village of Little Ollington, along with head teacher husband Mark and gorgeous son, Archie, she devoted herself to being the perfect mum and the perfect wife, her little family giving her everything she ever wanted. Until that fateful day when she walked in on Mark kissing his secretary - and her perfect life fell apart. Now she's a single mum to Archie, trying to find her way in life and keep things together for his sake. Saturday nights consist of a Chinese takeaway eaten in front of the TV clad in greying pyjamas, and she can’t remember the last time she had a kiss from anyone aside from her dog, Becks… Grace’s life needs a shake up – fast. So when gorgeous gardener Vinnie turns up on her doorstep, his twinkling eyes suggesting that he might be interested in more than just her conifers, she might just have found the answer to her prayers. But as Grace falls deeper for Vinnie, ten-year-old Archie fears that his mum finding love means she’ll never reconcile with the dad he loves. So when ex-husband Mark begs her for another chance, telling her he’s changed from the man that broke her heart, Grace finds herself with an impossible dilemma. Should she take back Mark and reunite the family that Archie loves? Or risk it all for a new chance of happiness? A funny, feel good romance about finding your own path and changing your life for the better – readers of Cathy Bramley, Jill Mansell and Josie Silver will love this uplifting read.
Another Saturday Night and I Ain't Got No Body
Jennie Marts - 2012
Maybe, when her friends decide to find her Mr. Right. Sunny Vale considers herself a dog-loving, romance-reading homebody. But her life goes from dull to deadly when her book club fires her from her own love life and sets her up on six blind dates--one of whom might be with a murderer. More trouble arrives in the dead of night, in the form of Jake Landon, a mysterious stranger, who breaks into her neighbor’s house and possibly her heart. But Jake is packing more than a loaded gun in his well-fitting Levi’s. He brings an arsenal of secrets and plenty of heat to Sunny’s ho-hum summer.Jake Landon finds himself caught up in the capers of the sexy blonde in the house next door. But he has his own agenda which doesn’t involve playing hero to a curvy second-grade teacher and babysitting her panty-puking puppy. He's got other problems like fiery explosions, a missing person...and a parade of jerks Sunny insists on dating. Could Sunny’s Mr. Right be right under her nose? Even though Jake is gorgeous, likes her dog, and has abs she can crack an egg on, can she really go out with him if he’s just murdered her next door neighbor? Women of all ages will enjoy this tale of humorous, women's fiction that also has a touch of cozy mystery in this small town love story.
Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing
Allison Winn Scotch - 2020
From congresswoman to senator, the magnetic, ambitious single mother now has her eye on the White House—always looking forward, never back. Until an estranged childhood friend shreds her in an op-ed hit piece gone viral.With seven words—“Cleo McDougal is not a good person”—the presidential hopeful has gone from in control to damage control, and not just in Washington but in life.Enter Cleo’s “regrets list” of 233 and counting. Her chief of staff has a brilliant idea: pick the top ten, make amends during a media blitz, and repair her reputation. But there are regrets, and there are regrets: like her broken relationship with her sister, her affair with a law school professor…and the regret too big to even say out loud.But with risk comes reward, and as Cleo makes both peace and amends with her past, she becomes more empowered than ever to tackle her career, confront the hypocrites out to destroy her, and open her heart to what matters most—one regret at a time.
Let Me Be the One
Lily Foster - 2014
Her boyfriend? The guy who came off as sweet and devoted, the life of the party? Try obsessed, out of control and hell-bent on ruining her life.One year later, a new and improved Darcy Donovan is back on campus and she’s got a plan. That plan doesn’t include Tom Farrell, or any other guy for that matter. He’s surfer-boy hot and he talks a good game, but don’t they all?Hell to the yes…She’s back.Going after his friend’s girl is wrong, but Tom is too hung up on Darcy to care. Screw principles, screw ethics, screw the bro code. An hour in her presence would lead the best of men to veer off the high road.And he has his work cut out for him. She still thinks he’s a joke, nothing more than a walking, talking one-night stand. What she doesn’t know is that Tom has spent the past year changing his ways. He’s not all talk, and he’ll do whatever it takes to prove it.But when a menace from Darcy’s past resurfaces and Tom’s past comes back to bite him hard, their one shot at happily ever after may be shot to hell.What you don’t know? Turns out that it can hurt you.Let Me Be the One is the first book in Lily Foster's Let Me series. Gripping and emotional, these stand-alone romances are intended for the 18 and older crowd due to mature language and sexual content.
Down on Love
Jayne Denker - 2013
And will share it with you. Even if you don’t ask.Georgiana Down isn’t interested in romance, thank you very much. Newly single after escaping a toxic, emotionally abusive ex, George is perfectly happy being alone, running her successful blog, Down on Love, where she gives gloves-off advice to the lovelorn. And baking the occasional pie as, you know, therapy. When her sister Sera wages a campaign to get her to return to their small hometown of Marsden, a place George had fled fifteen years earlier, it’s the last thing George wants to do. But the pull of family is strong...and no one ever truly escapes the eccentric, insular, odd little town in the heart of New York’s Catskill Mountains. Maybe she can cope if she avoids gossipy neighbors...and one particular Marsden resident who broke her heart years ago...Casey Bowen would know George Down’s unusual pink car anywhere...but he never expected to see it tearing through the streets of Marsden long after George left town and never looked back. Casey manages to escape with his toes intact, but his heart is another matter. As a teenager, Casey had been fascinated by the ethereal, mysterious George, but he never made a move on his friend’s younger sister...until one fateful night....After that, everything went sideways, and George and Casey went on to live very different lives.Now they’re both back in Marsden, both single...and the attraction is still there. George and Casey could have a second chance at happiness...as long as their meddling neighbors don’t screw everything up.
Honeysuckle Season
Mary Ellen Taylor - 2020
Though her new life as a wedding photographer provides a semblance of purpose, it’s also a distraction from her profound pain.When asked to photograph a wedding at the historic Woodmont estate, Libby meets the owner, Elaine Grant. Hoping to open Woodmont to the public, Elaine has employed young widower Colton Reese to help restore the grounds and asks Libby to photograph the process. Libby is immediately drawn to the old greenhouse shrouded in honeysuckle vines.As Libby forms relationships and explores the overgrown—yet hauntingly beautiful—Woodmont estate, she finds the emotional courage to sort through her father’s office. There she discovers a letter that changes everything she knows about her parents, herself, and the estate. Beneath the vines of the old greenhouse lie generations of secrets, and it’s up to Libby to tend to the fruits born of long-buried seeds.
Diving into Love
Kat Bellemore - 2020
She didn’t need another.When Bree Garrett’s former college roommate invites Bree to move to Starlight Ridge, a small tourist town on the Californian coast, she is all too happy to leave the deserts of New Mexico and the memories of her former life. She only has three conditions:One- No one can find out about her fear of water—totally embarrassing when you live next to the ocean.Two- No seafood. She can't stomach it. Yeah, she sees the irony of points number one and two.Three- No blind dates. The last thing she needs is a relationship. Her ex-fiancé would agree.Easier said than done when the only job available is at a surf shop and the owner, Caleb, is under the impression that Bree has applied to be a scuba instructor, and not a cashier, as she had intended.Bree tries to clear up the misunderstanding, but it’s hard when she seems to lose her voice—and her breath—every time Caleb is near. How could she not when he happens to be attractive, single and, as it turns out, also doesn't like seafood?Bree and Caleb struggle against the pull of the tide that seems determined to bring them together. But, despite their differences, maybe this is one battle that is okay to lose.
A Novel Idea
Aimee Friedman - 2005
Once upon a time there was a Brooklyn hipster named Norah. Unlucky in love, and short on extracurriculars for her college apps, Norah decided to start a book group. She knew the perfect locale -- a local indie bookstore with a crush-worthy cutie manning the soy latte counter. When the first meeting arrives, Norah gets a page-turning surprise. The attendees may be bookish, but there are also a few hotties! Most noteworthy: sweet, literary James. He's like a modern Jane Austen hero.... Only, how to snag him? Ever the romantic heroine, Norah devises a secret plan. And if it works, Norah may just find her "Happily Ever After" love story. The End.
My Journey to the Ocean
Lena Mikado - 2015
Her whole picture-perfect existence is planned out and allows for no deviation. She is engaged to be married and intends to be happy. Along with three of her girlfriends, she takes a summer trip across the ocean, to St. Simons Island, United States. Her whole world is about to be rock-n-rolled, and she will have to face a pretty hard choice. It all sounds like a setup for a summer-fling novel, but is it really like that in actuality, or does Miss Real Life have something more conniving under her sleeve? Are there happy endings in real life? This book is a love story. It's about love in all possible representations, forms and masks it can wear. It's a love story of a girl in her 20s, looked back on by a woman in her 30s, who is also trying to take a peek into the future. It's an ageless book, it's a borderless book, it’s a book that focuses on and laughs at our cultural differences, yet sweeps away all man-made boundaries on its way. But I made it sound too complex. It's first and foremost a story about a summer away from home, it's a story about falling in and out of love - it's a story about My Journey to the Ocean.