Recommendations based on "The Certainty of Violet & Luke"

There’s complicated. And there’s Rowen Sterling. After numbing pain for the past five years with boys, alcohol, and all-around apathy, she finds herself on a Greyhound bus to nowhere Montana the summer after she graduates high school. Her mom agreed to front the bill to Rowen’s dream art school only if Rowen proves she can work hard and stay out of trouble at Willow Springs Ranch. Cooking breakfast at the crack of dawn for a couple dozen ranch hands and mucking out horse stalls are the last things in the world Rowen wants to spend her summer doing. Until Jesse Walker saunters into her life wearing a pair of painted-on jeans, a cowboy hat, and a grin that makes something in her chest she’d thought was frozen go boom-boom. Jesse’s like no one else, and certainly nothing like her. He’s the bright and shiny to her dark and jaded. Rowen knows there’s no happily-ever-after for the golden boy and the rebel girl—happily-right-now is a stretch—so she tries to forget and ignore the boy who makes her feel things she’s not sure she’s ready to feel. But the more she pushes him away, the closer he seems to get. The more she convinces herself she doesn’t care, the harder she falls. When her dark secrets refuse to stay locked behind the walls she’s kept up for years, Rowen realizes it’s not just everyone else she needs to be honest with. It’s herself.

From “a tremendously talented writer with a real gift for developing relationships between her characters” (Romantic Times)—an omnibus edition of her acclaimed romantic teen dramas Going Too Far and Forget You. In Going Too Far, rebel high school senior Meg has to spend her spring break riding along with a police officer on his nightshift patrol as punishment for getting busted for trespassing and underage drinking. Rookie cop, John After, is only two years older than Meg, and a former classmate to boot. He has nothing but contempt for her childish rebellion, and Meg in turn has nothing but contempt for Officer After's straight-laced, by-the-book attitude. But Meg has her reasons for lashing out, and John has his reasons for his need for law and order. And they're about to discover that they have a lot more in common than either one of them could have dreamed... In Forget You, Zoey’s life in her Florida beach resort town is happy and organized. She’s the captain of her high school swim team, and she works for her dad at his popular water park. Then her dad has an affair, and her mother has a breakdown. When Zoey begins a relationship with a hot lifeguard, she feels stable, and everything is still under control. Until she has a car accident that she can’t remember. She should have been with her boyfriend that night, but he doesn’t seem to know anything about the accident—and he doesn’t seem to care. The person who does care, is Doug, Zoey’s handsome arch-enemy who saved her from the wreckage. As Zoey begins to piece together what happened that night, she finds her sense of control over her life was only an illusion. And she inches closer to discovering the darkest secret of all: why Doug has fallen in love with her.

The fourth interconnected standalone in the universe of Say You Swear, from bestselling author Meagan Brandy. On the outside, it looks like I've got it all together. I'm killing it on the football field, pushing harder than ever before and breaking league records. But on the inside, I'm drowning and there's no one to pull me up. Until her. I tried to stay away, to keep my distance so I wouldn't ruin us both, but I was powerless against her. She's everything I didn't know I wanted and more than I could ever deserve. Just when I think maybe I'm becoming the man I want to be, my world comes crashing down around me, and I'm faced with a choice that has the power to break us both. Suddenly, I'm right back where I started. I'm the guy with nothing to give―and she's the girl who deserves the world.

Lane Parker has suffered a terrible loss: a loss he can't get over, not even years later. Burdened by secrets he won't tell his closest friends and focused on only one goal, he finally gets the phone call he's been waiting for. Luck gives him a precious second chance to get back what was taken from him--and he'll use all his strength to make sure that the tragedy never happens again. Raegan Hayes is a spirited fighter and survivor--and she's furious at Lane, her former employer, after their paths cross at a police station and he accuses her of betrayal. Now, they both must move forward to get past the tragic incident that tore them apart long ago. But the more time Lane spends with the beautiful Raegan, the more he becomes drawn to her...and the more his passion overpowers his hostility. Can a new beginning transform their relationship from suspicion-filled to steamy? Revised edition: This edition of Beautiful Broken Promises includes editorial revisions.

Winner of the 2018 Christy Award Book of the YearAfter a devastating heartbreak three years ago, genealogist and historical village owner Nora Bradford has decided that burying her nose in her work and her books is far safer than romance in the here and now.Unlike Nora, former Navy SEAL and Medal of Honor recipient John Lawson is a modern-day man, usually 100 percent focused on the present. But when he's diagnosed with an inherited condition, he's forced to dig into the secrets of his past and his adoption as an infant, enlisting Nora to help him uncover the identity of his birth mother. The more time they spend together, the more this pair of opposites suspects they just might be a perfect match. However, John's already dating someone and Nora's not sure she's ready to trade her crushes on fictional heroes for the risks of a real relationship. Finding the answers they're seeking will test the limits of their identity, their faith, and their devotion to one another.

The car accident was Hannah Price's fault--a few seconds of inattention that changed Gabe Holbrook's life forever, destroying everything he'd been or ever wanted to be. He was a man who'd had it all. Intelligent, handsome, talented, rich, he'd been one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Now he's come home to Dundee, the small town where he was raised, but he's a stranger to the people who once knew him. Folks think he's bitter and withdrawn; he knows he's just focused on recovering. But thanks to Hannah Price, there are some things that can't be fixed. Hannah has been struggling to recover from that fateful night, too. Unlike Gabe, she sustained only minor injuries. But she's not sure she'll ever be able to forgive herself for making a mistake with such far-reaching consequences. Especially when Gabe becomes her older son's football coach, and she begins to fall in love with the man she nearly destroyed... Look for all eight books in Brenda Novak's Dundee, Idaho series, available now. And don't miss her new romantic Whiskey Creek trilogy, available from Harlequin MIRA!

From the fanfic phenom whose debut A Pound of Flesh had over 4.5 million reads, this sequel, An Ounce of Hope, tells the passionate love story of Carter’s best friend, Max.Max O’Hare can’t seem to let go of his past: his drug habit, the end of his relationship with Lizzie Jordan, the woman he knows he’ll never get over, and the loss of their unborn son. After successfully completing rehab and learning to explore his deepest fears and dreams through painting, Max meets Grace Brooks. With her innate optimism, and her love of art and photography, Grace appears to be the perfect girl. Yet no one knows where she came from, or why she keeps her past so closely guarded. Over time, Max and Grace gradually allow each other in—but will he ever be able to fully let go of his past? Or will his heart remain closed forever?

He has watched her from afar... Paul Reed has been raising children since he was a child himself, but he wouldn't change his life, even if given an opportunity. That is, until one of his brothers says four little words that shake the foundation of his world. "She's not a lesbian," shouldn't be quite so earth shattering, but suddenly the woman he loves is available, and he'll do whatever it takes to win her over. They call her Friday, and she's hiding more than just her name... Friday has worked in the Reeds' tattoo parlor for four years. She's become more than just an employee, and she loves being in the middle of something so wonderful. She treasures the way the Reeds live for one another, and she adores the way they take care of their family. She would do just about anything to be part of it, if not for the fact that she doesn't deserve a family of her own. Or does she? Friday is punishing herself for her past, and by doing so, she pushes away the one man who could truly love her. Separately, they're strong. Together, they're vulnerable. As a team, they rock.

THE PERFECT BLEND, by Donna Marie Rogers: Carrie Lowell swears off men for good after nearly losing her business in a bitter divorce settlement to her abusive ex-husband. She's on the verge of filing bankruptcy when handsome librarian Matt Jacobs walks into her shop and offers sound-if unwanted-business advice. Sure, financially he's a godsend, but emotionally he's a threat to the barricade she's built around her heart. Heir to a vast fortune, Jacob Spalding flees LA for the tiny Midwest town of Redemption, Wisconsin to escape the scandalous nightmare his life has become. Now known as Matt Jacobs, he buys a little cottage and settles in to small town life. Soon, he finds himself infatuated with the owner of the coffee shop across the street. Too bad the infuriating woman is as contrary as she is beautiful. GROUNDS FOR CHANGE, by Stacey Joy Netzel: Charlie Russell lived with a secret for fourteen years, but now guilt has pushed him to the breaking point. He meets psychologist Dana McClain and feels an instant connection that has nothing to do with his Great Dane, Sugar, spilling coffee down her shirt. Dana switched to counseling animals because she has a history of becoming too emotionally involved with her clients. She figures she's safe helping Charlie with Sugar's issues, until he reveals his secret and asks for her help. She tries to convince herself it's all about the dog, not the guy, but history has a way of repeating itself. GROUNDS FOR CHANGE Excerpt: "So, what is it you do when you're not on vacation, Charlie?" She obviously intended the question as cover, but just like that, his humor evaporated. He kept his tone even with effort. "I'm an emergency medical technician." Dana's attention switched directly to Charlie. "EMT? Really?" "Certified for six years now." "Wow. I'm...impressed," she murmured. Impressed my ass-shocked was more like it. Maybe it was the tattoos; he got that a lot. Too bad she hadn't met him when he was riding his Harley dressed in his leathers, then her snap judgment would've really been justified. So hypocritical, that she'd preach to him about not judging people, yet she did it herself. Irritation over her reaction swelled. Heat climbed his neck and into his face-and then reality hit. Was this how she felt when he'd made that crack about her being a dog shrink? The humbling realization went no further as Carrie's raised voice caught his attention. Charlie happened to glance at Dana and was captivated by a wide smile spreading across her face. His gaze zipped from her, to the unfolding action behind the counter, and back again. "What's so funny?" he asked in a low tone. Dana drew him in with the merriment dancing in her green eyes. "Don't you see it?" "They've practically started World War Three-of course I see it. I hear it, too." "Not that," Dana said. "It's Matt. He's got it bad for her." "What?" Charlie sat up straight and openly listened. After a moment, he gave a snort of disbelief. "Yeah, right." "I studied human behavior," she reminded. "I know what I'm talking about." "And that's why you only work with animals now?" Dana's eyes widened. A fleeting expression of hurt was quickly replaced by anger. The first emotion made him wish he could take the teasing, sarcastic words back. The second resulted in the remainder of her tea being dumped in his lap.

TRN