Book picks similar to
A Much Younger Man by Dianne Highbridge


fiction
romance
50-books-that-will-change-your-life
taboo

Maybe One Day


Melissa Kantor - 2014
    Still, Zoe is determined to put on a brave face and be positive for her friend.Even when she isn't sure what to say.Even when Olivia misses months of school.Even when Zoe starts falling for Calvin, Olivia's crush.The one thing that keeps Zoe moving forward is knowing that Olivia will beat this, and everything will go back to the way it was before. It has to. Because the alternative is too terrifying for her to even imagine.

Pepped Up


Ali Dean - 2013
    It’s all I can think about, and I’m willing to do anything it takes to make it happen. I can handle long miles and hill sprints in cross country, but guys? That’s an entirely different challenge.I’ve kept my feelings hidden from the boy next door all this time. My longtime friend, Jace Wilder doesn’t see me that way. He has the personal magnetism and good looks to hook just about any girl in town -- and he has. Our friendship stands apart from high school social circles, and I’m fine with that, or so I keep telling myself.That is, until running star Ryan Harding moves to town and bridges the gap. Apparently, I’ve caught his eye and suddenly Jace starts seeing me in a different light. Everything changes, for all of us. On the trails, my goals are clear. Train, run, breathe, run, win. But when it comes to Jace and Ryan, it’s nowhere near as simple. This battle can’t be won by crossing a finish line, this war is in my heart.

Taming His Teacher


Tamsen Parker - 2019
    Is it weird that it’s an all-boys boarding school and I’m only four years older than some of my students? Yes. And what makes it worse is Zach Shepherd. He’s my student, but he’s also my biggest crush. To let anything happen with him would be career suicide but to stay away from him might shatter my heart. Shep Three years after I graduated, I’m back on the Hill, this time as a member of the faculty. Some things have changed but I still think Erin Brewster is the prettiest woman I’ve ever seen. I want to be with her more than anything, and I’ve picked up a trick or two while I’ve been gone. Maybe with my new skills, I’ll have Erin begging to be held after class...

My Summer of Wes


Missy Welsh - 2010
    Now, during the summer between high school graduation and going away to college, Mal wants to take control of his life and make some improvements...starting with making a new friend. Wes, the boy across the street, quickly becomes both friend and a sort of mentor to Mal. With Wes's patient guidance and example, Mal's breaking free of his life-long shy shell and taking chances. Mal is also feeling free enough to start listening to the tiny voice inside him that whispers his attraction to Wes. After years of denying it, could Mal be gay after all? Self-acceptance comes easy for Mal with Wes by his side. What about telling Mal's parents? What about being out at college? Mal's about to undergo some very challenging times as he grows up fast and must decide what he'll stand for and against. (AUTHOR'S NOTE: This an extensively expanded second edition of this book.)

One Summer


Karen Robards - 1993
    Now, 10 years later, he's out on parole and Rachel has taken him under her wing, even finding a job for him. It isn't long before their relationship changes and Rachel and Johnny become much more intimate. But when another murder occurs and Johnny is the prime suspect, can Rachel prove his innocence before it's too late? Karen Robards defines passion in this story of love and scandal in a small Kentucky town. One Summer is an outstanding novel that readers will turn to again and again.

Sweethearts


Sara Zarr - 2008
    After losing her soul mate, Cameron, when they were nine, Jennifer, now seventeen, transformed herself from the unpopular fat girl into the beautiful and popular Jenna, but Cameron's unexpected return dredges up memories that cause both social and emotional turmoil.

The Zero Knot


K.Z. Snow - 2011
    In just a few months he’ll be starting college, and it’s time for him to admit the truth: he’s gay, not bi, and only one of his childhood buddies holds any kind of real interest for him. When Dylan Finch, aka Mig, follows his lead and puts some distance between himself and the old crowd, he and Jess give in to a mutual attraction that’s been building for years.But navigating a fledgling relationship isn’t easy for beginners, and forces they can’t seem to control keep tripping them up: sexual appetite, personal insecurities, fear of discovery, and more. They need clarity. They need courage. Just as they’re on the verge of finding both, a vindictive act of jealousy sends one of them to jail. All their hard-won victories are in danger of falling to dust. The only way to save what they have is to recognize it for what it is . . . and fight for its integrity.

Wild Awake


Hilary T. Smith - 2013
    You will remember to water the azaleas.2. You will take detailed, accurate messages.3. You will call your older brother, Denny, if even the slightest thing goes wrong.4. You and your best friend/bandmate Lukas will win Battle of the Bands.5. Amid the thrill of victory, Lukas will finally realize you are the girl of his dreams.Things that actually happen:1. A stranger calls who says he knew your sister.2. He says he has her stuff.3. What stuff? Her stuff.4. You tell him your parents won’t be able to—5. Sukey died five years ago; can’t he—6. You pick up a pen.7. You scribble down the address.8. You get on your bike and go.9. Things . . . get a little crazy after that.**also, you fall in love, but not with Lukas.Both exhilarating and wrenching, Hilary T. Smith’s debut novel captures the messy glory of being alive, as seventeen-year-old Kiri Byrd discovers love, loss, chaos, and murder woven into a summer of music, madness, piercing heartbreak, and intoxicating joy.

Two-Way Street


Lauren Barnholdt - 2007
    Sure, they were an unlikely high school couple. But they clicked; it worked. They're even going to the same college, and driving cross-country together for orientation. Then Jordan dumps Courtney -- for a girl he met on the Internet. It's too late to change plans, so the road trip is on. Courtney's heartbroken, but figures she can tough it out for a few days. La la la -- this is Courtney pretending not to care. But in a strange twist, Jordan cares. A lot. Turns out, he's got a secret or two that he's not telling Courtney. And it has everything to do with why they broke up, why they can't get back together, and how, in spite of it all, this couple is destined for each other.

Judging Books


Shay Savage - 2017
    They define you. They are the aspects by which you are judged.Ashlyn’s world has been one of enlightenment and finesse, and now she is ready to take on the financial world at her father’s company just as he had always planned. Her future had been scripted long ago, but a chance meeting with a beautiful boy on a bicycle gives Ashlyn a new outlook on life. Ethan is far too young, far too tattooed, far too pierced—just far too everything—to ever fit into her world. He has issues, too—major ones. Ashlyn knows he will never be accepted by her friends, let alone her overbearing father, but there is something about his live-in-the-moment outlook that keeps drawing her back into his arms.Ashlyn must make a choice. Can she forgo the family dynasty and live life to the fullest with this fascinating but damaged young man?

It's All Relative


S.C. Stephens - 2010
    Jessie couldn’t keep her eyes off of the exotic man drinking by himself across the room. Kai couldn’t keep his gaze from the buxom brunette laughing with her friends at the bar. Fate pulled them together, giving them a night that neither one would soon forget. But then, you know what they say about fate. While their one night of bliss was perfect, neither Jessie nor Kai could have imagined what would be in store for them the next time they met, when fate again crossed their paths. As they both soon discovered, sometimes life places obstacles in the way that are insurmountable...even for soul mates.

This Much is True


Katherine Owen - 2013
    A ballerina who lies. A baseball player who believes her. Well, the truth changes everything. Tally Landon just wants to escape her tragic story if just for one night. She doesn't count on meeting Lincoln Presley, Stanford's baseball wonder, but plans to add him to her long list of one-night stands. That's the plan. Lying to him about her age and her name is just a part of her don't-get-emotionally-attached style. She doesn't count on being found out, nor on ever seeing Linc again or falling in love. Lincoln Presley's life is all mapped out. There is only baseball. With the major leagues circling their favorite prospect with a lucrative offer, he cannot afford to mess up. And, he doesn't; until he meets up with the girl he saved from the burning wreckage on the 101 on Valentine's Day months before. By the time he learns her real name and of all the lies she's told, he's in far too deep to ever really let her go. When fame and lies tear them apart, one truth remains; and fate, most definitely, has a different set of plans. This much is true.Author's Note: A coming of age story? Could be. A powerful love story? Most definitely. An unforgettable read? Most likely. Intended for mature audiences, ages 17+? Absolutely. This best selling new adult contemporary romance novel will take you on an emotional roller coaster ride and is the first book (which should really be two books) in the Truth In Lies series, but it can be read as a standalone. It is 432 pages long in 12-point type so carve out some time.

Want You


Jen Frederick - 2018
    It’s Leka Moore. I don’t care that he took me in when he was barely more than a kid himself. I don’t care that he raised me. I don’t care everyone thinks being with him is wrong. I know we belong together, and the only person I need to convince is him. Leka I found her in the corner of a dark alley. If I hadn’t taken her with me, she would’ve died that night—or maybe worse. Before I knew it, she became the light in my dark life, the haven from the madness. I watched her grow up. I tried to teach her right from wrong. Now that she’s an adult, I’m feeling things that no good man should ever feel. But then…I’ve never been a good man. I have a chance at redemption by saving her from the greatest danger of all—me. A stand alone novel.

Last Will and Testament


Dahlia Adler - 2014
    But all that changes when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, making her guardian to her two younger brothers. To keep them out of foster care, she'll have to fix up her image, her life, and her GPA—fast. Too bad the only person on campus she can go to for help is her humorless, pedantic Byzantine History TA, Connor Lawson, who isn't exactly Lizzie's biggest fan.But Connor surprises her. Not only is he a great tutor, but he’s also a pretty great babysitter. And chauffeur. And listener. And he understands exactly what it’s like to be on your own before you're ready. Before long, Lizzie realizes having a responsible-adult type around has its perks... and that she'd like to do some rather irresponsible (but considerably adult) things with him as well. Good thing he's not the kind of guy who'd ever reciprocate.Until he does.Until they turn into far more than teacher and student.Until the relationship that helped put their lives back together threatens everything they both have left.

Stay


Emily Goodwin - 2014
    When I jumped, sharp teeth would rip into me and the cold water would steal my breath away. The monsters would take everything from me, leaving me shivering and naked in the water. The only difference was that tonight I would be pulled from the icy darkness and forced to do it again. There would be no release from death, only pain.” Home after her first year of college, Adeline Miller is looking forward to a stress free summer filled with reading, working on her blog, and spending time with friends. But all that changes in an instant when she is witness to something terrible, something she wasn't supposed to see. Beaten, drugged, kidnapped. Adeline Miller is ripped from her innocent and carefree life and thrust into darkness, into a world full of pain and horror. As a sex slave, she is forced to do horrible things, and have horrible things done to her. One of her captors has a past as dark as the world she is now living in. Will getting close to him mean freedom? Or will he pull her deeper into the shadows?