Book picks similar to
Downright Delinquents by Lauren Jackson


young-adult
wattpad
mental-health
high-school

Backlash


Sarah Darer Littman - 2015
    They've been talking online for weeks, so what's with the sudden change? And where does he get off saying horrible things on her wall? Even worse--are they true?It's been a long time since Lara's felt this bad, this depressed, this ugly. She's worked really hard to become pretty and happy - and make new friends after what happened in middle school.Bree used to be best friends with overweight, depressed Lara, but constantly listening to Lara's issues got to be too much. Secretly, Bree's glad Christian called Lara out. Lara's not nearly as amazing as people think. But no one realized just how far Christian's harsh comments would push Lara. Not even Bree.As online life collides with real life, things spiral out of control, and not just for Lara. Because when the truth starts to come together, the backlash is even more devastating than anyone could have ever imagined

If These Wings Could Fly


Kyrie McCauley - 2020
    For Leighton, it's no stranger than her house, which inexplicably repairs itself every time her father loses his temper and breaks things.Leighton doesn't have time for the crows--it's her senior year, and acceptance to her dream college is finally within reach. But grabbing that lifeline means abandoning her sisters, a choice she's not ready to face.With her father's rage worsening and the town in chaos over the crows, Leighton allows herself a chance at happiness with Liam, her charming classmate, even though falling in love feels like a revolutionary act.Balancing school, dating, and survival under the shadow of sixty thousand feathered wings starts to feel almost comfortable, but Leighton knows that this fragile equilibrium can only last so long before it shatters.

Knowing Xavier


Dolly Lila - 2019
    The scowl on his face? Definitely to warn people to stay away. His deteriorating grades? Obviously maintaining the bad boy façade. The silence he rarely breaks? Clearly so that he doesn't spill his secrets. He's cold. He's fucked up. He's an asshole. Or so they say. They think they know Xavier. They sure as hell don't. It takes one glimpse of Xavier's reality for Haley to realize nobody knows the person they all think they know. Nobody knows the frightened little boy hiding behind the cool façade, the silence brimming with unuttered screams, the grey eyes concealing all that pain. Nobody knows Xavier. But maybe Haley can. And maybe she can save him.

The Storyteller


Antonia Michaelis - 2011
    They are both seventeen and in their last year of school, but while Anna lives in a nice old town house and comes from a well-to-do family, Abel, the school drug dealer, lives in a big, prisonlike tower block at the edge of town. Anna is afraid of him until she realizes that he is caring for his six-year-old sister on his own. Fascinated, Anna follows the two and listens as Abel tells little Micha the story of a tiny queen assailed by dark forces. It’s a beautiful fairy tale that Anna comes to see has a basis in reality. Abel is in real danger of losing Micha to their abusive father and to his own inability to make ends meet. Anna gradually falls in love with Abel, but when his “enemies” begin to turn up dead, she fears she has fallen for a murderer. Has she?Award-winning author Antonia Michaelis moves in a bold new direction with her latest novel: a dark, haunting, contemporary story that is part mystery, part romance, and part melodrama.

What If


Rebecca Donovan - 2014
    After all, no one has seen or heard from her since they graduated over a year ago.Except this girl isn't Nicole.She looks exactly like Cal's shy childhood crush, but her name is Nyelle Preston and she has no idea who he is. This girl is impulsive and daring, her passion for life infectious. The complete opposite of Nicole. Cal finds himself utterly fascinated-and falling hard. But Nyelle is also extremely secretive. And the closer he comes to finding out what she's hiding, the less he wants to know.When the secrets from the past and present collide, one thing becomes clear: Nothing is what it seems.

Silent Night


Robert Thier
    An even darker mission. Mr Rikkard Ambrose is stalking the wintry alleys of London, doing something he has never done before...But does he do it for himself - or is it a sacrifice for someone special?This tale tells the story of an extraordinary moment in the relationship of Lilly Linton and Rikkard Ambrose. And, for the first time on Wattpad, it gives insight into MR AMBROSE'S POINT OF VIEW! Continue on if you'd like a peek into that stony head of his, and maybe, maybe even his heart.

Marriage by Law


N.K. Pockett - 2014
    No matter how they oppose the idea, their parents are hell-bent on marrying them to each other to honor a five-generation-old deal that took place between their ancestors. For Ivory, whose heart has just been broken, her marriage to the handsome but cold Darius Quartz fails to provide her the happy life she wants. Instead, she finds herself in endless boredom and doing the same things she'd been doing the past six months. That is, until Darius arrives home from his training and her ex returns in the picture. Thrown in her loyal best friend, Rose, and Darius's insane cousin, Adrian. Her life suddenly turns upside down and becomes exciting and a whole lot crazier! It's a long journey full of tears, fun, joy, even insanity, and most of all, love.

Scars


Jaimie Roberts - 2016
    At least, that’s what I thought. But you changed all that. You are always there ... Always watching ... Always waiting in the shadows. You send me flowers and messages. You stalk me, trace my every movement... Until that one day, in a silly game of Seven Minutes in Heaven, when I finally get to feel you—have a taste of you ... It left me wanting more. One catastrophic day, my wish is granted. Just past my eighteenth birthday, tragedy strikes and I watch my family die before my eyes. You are there. You rescue me. You choose my life over my older sister’s, and I hate you for that. I hate you for taking me and imprisoning me. You say it’s for my sake, but I know it’s for your own. You make me see that my life could be much worse without you in it... You make me see true darkness. It is in that darkness you make me desperate for your presence, your touch, your caress. You make me need you... You make it impossible for me to live without you… And then, eventually… You make me fall in love with you. Secrets will always wound the ones twisted within their web of lies... But the ones I’m tangled in ... are deadly. WARNING: Although this book (overall) is not a dark read, one chapter is an exception, and contains the following triggers: childhood sexual/emotional abuse with some intensity in one particular scene.

Burn Before Reading


Sara Wolf - 2017
    She's got a foolproof plan; 1. Get into the elite high school Lakecrest Preparatory on a scholarship 2. Study like crazy3. Graduate into NYU and become a shrinkNothing can stand in her way - not even Lakecrest's rich, hot, and notorious Blackthorn brothers. Not Fitz Blackthorn, with his flirting and his elite computer hacking, not Burn Blackthorn, with his intimidating height and emotionless face, and certainly not sinfully handsome Wolf Blackthorn, who hands out 'red cards' to students who displease him, and expels the ones who keep doing it. But when Bee stands up for a student, she pisses off Wolf, and he's suddenly itching to pull her scholarship from underneath her. To keep it, Bee strikes a deal with the devil - father Blackthorn himself; spy on Mr. Blackthorn's sons, become friends with them, and learn their secrets in exchange for staying at Lakecrest.Betraying the Blackthorn brothers' trust is supposed to be easy. Becoming friends with the Blackthorn boys makes it hard.And falling in love with Wolf makes it impossible.((This book contains language and situations that may be inappropriate for younger readers.))

Forever Changed


Tiffany King - 2012
    She is used to a lifestyle where everything comes easy to her, from good grades to being captain of the cheerleading squad.Her entire world is shaken to the core when a fatal accident takes her father, causing Kassandra to re-examine the course her life was on. The actions of one individual forever changes her life, leaving her to pick up the pieces of her broken family. Kassandra begins to question everything she once cherished and the people she disappointed along the way.Maddon Johnson’s life is as different from Kassandra’s as night and day. Abandoned by his mother at a young age, he is left to deal with his abusive, alcoholic father on his own. He has one goal: lay low and get the heck out of dodge as soon as he is legally old enough.Everything changes when his father’s tragic actions send Maddon crashing into Kassandra’s world. Suddenly, getting away is the last thing he wants as he discovers it is possible to believe in love after all.

What Happens Next


Colleen Clayton - 2012
    When she ends up on a ski lift next to handsome local college boy, Dax Windsor, she’s thrilled; but Dax takes everything from Sid—including a lock of her perfect red curls—and she can’t remember any of it.Back home and unable to relate to her old friends, Sid drops her college prep classes and takes up residence in the A/V room with only Corey “The Living Stoner” Livingston for company. But as she gets to know Corey (slacker, baker, total dreamboat), Sid finds someone who truly makes her happy. Now, if she can just shake the nightmares and those few extra pounds, everything will be perfect... or so she thinks.Witty and poignant, Colleen Clayton’s stunning debut is a story about moving on after the unthinkable happens.

The Bet


Kimberly Joy Villanueva - 2013
    His punishment? Make a girl in school fall for him and then break up with her just as shes fallen for him. But who would be oblivious enough to fall for that? Her.Enter Sophia Taylor - quiet, brainy, and unassuming - the perfect pawn for their game. And for Drake, that's all it is - a game. But is it? Drake finds that Sophia is quite more than he bargained for. Perhaps he has her figured out all wrong. The real question is, will Drake win the bet, or will Sophia win him over instead?

Held


Edeet Ravel - 2011
    Waking up from a drug-induced sleep, she finds herself in a squalid warehouse. Chloe can only imagine the worst. After several days of total isolation and utter despair, Chloe faces a new threat when her kidnapper appears, but she also feels a sense of relief. His revelation that she is being held as ransom for a prisoner exchange, however, does little to allay her fears. The weeks pass and, haunted by terrifying dreams and with only her thoughts to keep her company, Chloe fights to remain calm in an impossible situation. At least her kidnapper, although cold and distant, visits frequently, often bringing gifts. Before long, Chloe begins to have feelings for him that take her by surprise. Though still fearing for her safety, she now fantasizes about a life together. And is it her imagination, or does her captor share those feelings? Even when she is finally released, Chloe vows to protect her captor at any cost. This powerful psychological thriller, written by renowned novelist Edeet Ravel, leaves readers wondering at every suspenseful turn: Is Chloe experiencing Stockholm syndrome?

Bad Boys Game


beautifultragedies - 2013
    He drank alcohol, I drank water. He smirked, I smiled. He didn't love me, I didn't love him. He and I together wouldn't last a day. And then the game started... He said he found me intriguing, unique, interesting because I didn't swoon over him. "You and me Grey, let's play a game. We'll date and in three months time I promise you will fall for me. When you fall in love with me between that time span, I win. If in any way you were to win I'll give up all the alcohol, cigarettes, and player ways." It was a game I wasn't willing to lose, but all games had accidents and consequences. It takes a broken heart to know how to break a heart.

High School Hit List


Autheras
    You give and then you take. But, at Arlington College, people take at their leisure. They take their entertainment in the form of humiliation. They get what they want at the expense of their pawns. But they never pay.Chloe Whittaker has a hit list. But not exactly the murder kind. After her best friend is ripped from Arlington, punished for her fascination with climbing the hierarchy, she knows she has to end them. One by one. Revenge is sweet, and inflicting it is even sweeter. Only, what if someone she's determined to destroy, starts to win over her heart?