Books like 'Light in the Shadows'
Readers who enjoyed Light in the Shadows by A. Meredith Walters also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary young adult dark romance tortured hero second chances bad boys college new adult virgin heroine sassy heroine
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Empire by Rachel Van Dyken
I have lost everything. My purpose. My love. My soul. Death knocks on my door, I want to answer, but every time I reach for the handle--the promise I made her, brings me back. So I breathe. I live. I hate. And I allow the anger to boil beneath the surface of a perfectly indifferent facade. I am broken, I dont want to be fixed... -
![Ember by Rachel Van Dyken]()
Ember by Rachel Van Dyken
Everybody Loves A Bit of Darkness..Until It Consumes Them... I am a Killer. A Rapist. A Monster. I know only pain and survival. That is until the Cappo's sister walked into my life. And changed everything... -
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![Riot Act by Callie Hart]()
Riot Act by Callie Hart
USA Today Bestselling Author, Callie Hart, delivers a twisted and edgy new interconnected standalone dark romance, featuring a girl with nothing left to lose and a broken boy with a heart as black as his soul. Want something? Pax will take it from you. Love something? Pax will destroy it. Love him? Heaven help you. You’d have to be the stupidest person to walk the face of the earth... -
![Jackson by Siobhan Davis]()
Jackson by Siobhan Davis
The devil came to me in disguise. Too bad I didn’t notice until it was far too late. Vanessa:The devil doesn’t always wear an evil mask.Sometimes, he appears in the most beautiful form.Like the super-hot bad boy with the dirty-blond hair and a wicked glint in his blue eyes who swept in out of nowhere, stealing all the air from my lungs.I thought he was my savior. But he’s my ruination... -
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![The Last Piece of His Heart by Emma Scott]()
The Last Piece of His Heart by Emma Scott
At Santa Cruz Central High School, they called them the misfits, the outcasts, the weirdos. But most of us knew them as the Lost Boys... Ronan Wentz has been to hell and back, and he carries the scars to prove it. Worse, the blood of a monster runs through his veins. After ten years in foster care, eighteen-year-old Ronan is finally reunited with family...Categorized as:
new adult tortured hero m-f high-school bad boys multicultural christian young adult -
![Mafiosa by Catherine Doyle]()
Mafiosa by Catherine Doyle
A blood war rages on the streets of Chicago.Protected by an infamous mafia family, Sophie is living a dangerous lie, pretending to lead a normal life. But the deceit can’t last for ever. Her heart belongs to a killer and Sophie’s the prime target of a rival clan... -
![Elicit by Rachel Van Dyken]()
Elicit by Rachel Van Dyken
Cursed, numb, rejected, scorned, wicked, sinister, dark, twisted...my name is Tex Campisi and this is my legacy. I killed my father in cold blood and lost my soul right along with him. I crave war more than peace, and I'm about to take my place in history as the youngest Capo dei Capi in the Cosa Nostra...that is until someone stops me, saves me from myself... -
![Skin by B.B. Easton]()
Skin by B.B. Easton
With Netflix adapting BB's 44 CHAPTERS ABOUT 4 MEN into a new series, you're going to want the full story behind her roller-coaster love story with the ultimate bad boy. Because BB Easton had so much fun writing her bestselling, award-winning memoir, she decided to give each of her four men his own steamy standalone... -
![Logan Kade by Tijan]()
Logan Kade by Tijan
People think that just because they know my name, my reputation, and my family that they know me. They don't.They say I’m a manwhore, but who wouldn’t be with my face and body? They say I’m a partier, and that's not going to change. They say I'm a fighter, and hell yes I am. F*ck with mine, and I’ll f*ck you back ten times worse.So, yes. Maybe what they say is true, but that’s not all of me... -
![Speed by B.B. Easton]()
Speed by B.B. Easton
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsWith Netflix adapting BB's 44 CHAPTERS ABOUT 4 MEN into a new series, you're going to want the full story behind her outrageous adventures. Because BB Easton had so much fun writing her bestselling, award-winning memoir, she decided to give each of her four men his own steamy standalone... -
![Real Girl by Sheridan Anne]()
Real Girl by Sheridan Anne
Lucien Valentine must die.It’s the thought that’s kept me going for four long years. I’ve imagined it, dreamed about it, relished in it. I want it so bad, but the question is, do I have what it takes to make it happen?Taking a life isn’t for the faint-hearted. Just ask Lucien, he knows.He’s taken me back to where it all started and I know exactly how it’s going to go... -
![Malum: Part 2 by Amo Jones]()
Malum: Part 2 by Amo Jones
Some girls don’t like pretty things. Some girls like things that are destructive, and toxic. Things that fuel our bodies with adrenaline and bring our demons to their knees. They say magic isn’t real, but it’s it the closest way to describe love? It doesn’t exist physically. It merely exists around us, within us, possessing our souls and making us do stupid shit... -
![Always Crew by Tijan]()
Always Crew by Tijan
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsFor the longest time, I was Bren Monroe.I lived in Roussou, California.I had no parents, no brother, but I had a crew.Then things started to change.I never planned for any of it.I didn’t think I’d fall in love.I didn’t think I’d have a relationship with my brother again.I didn’t think that he’d come back.Now I’m in Cain.My crew is in college.They’re growing, going through their own things... -
![Legend by Tracy Lorraine]()
Legend by Tracy Lorraine
I made one mistake…And she made one phone call that nearly destroyed my life.I’ve spent the past year plotting my revenge and imagining all the wicked things I’d do to her when our paths finally crossed again.I just had no idea it would be so soon.The last thing I expected when I re-entered the world was to find myself right in the middle of hers... -
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![Ten Below Zero by Whitney Barbetti]()
Ten Below Zero by Whitney Barbetti
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 41 ratings“In here,” he said, pushing on the skin above my heart, “you're ten below zero. And you’re closer to death than I am.” My name is Parker. My body is marked with scars from an attack I don’t remember. I don’t want to remember. I choose to live my life by observation, not through experience. While people are laughing and kissing and connecting, I’m in the corner. Watching them live... -
![Break Me by Meagan Brandy]()
Break Me by Meagan Brandy
I had a plan, and it was solid. Track down what was hidden away and take pleasure in toying with it. Toying with her. It worked like a charm.Until it didn’t. Turned out, the feisty little thing I found was far from what I hoped for. She was different from all I knew and more than I expected. She was light, and I’m the bastard who led her into darkness.But this girl.. -
![The Moth and the Flame by B.B. Reid]()
The Moth and the Flame by B.B. Reid
They're the best of friends or the worst of friends. Neither one is letting go.THE FLAMEHere lies Louchana Valentine. She was a homeless, orphaned virgin.I never cared what my gravestone would say until I landed in deep with a powerful gangster. Lucky for me, my best friend happens to be ruthless too. I should feel guilty that he's forced to turn on the man who's been a father to him... -
![The Retaliation You Deliver by Tracy Lorraine]()
The Retaliation You Deliver by Tracy Lorraine
When something seems too good to be true. It’s usually because it is.A lesson I learned the hard way.Every single fear I had about falling for Leon, has just come true in the most brutal way.The sweet guy act he’s been putting on the past few weeks is over.The cold, hard truth is... he never wanted me. He only wanted retaliation.And like a fool, I played right into his wicked scheme...Categorized as:
college new adult second chances m-f contemporary from hate to love cruel hero sports -
![The Resolution of Callie & Kayden by Jessica Sorensen]()
The Resolution of Callie & Kayden by Jessica Sorensen
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsThings are well for Callie and Kayden. They’re still dealing with their past and the pain connected to it, but for the most part they’ve moved on. The biggest decision they have at the moment is what they want to do with their lives in the future. Eventually, though, the past catches up with them and they’re left facing tough choices... -
![Out of the Dark by Danah Logan]()
Out of the Dark by Danah Logan
LillyMy name is the only truth they didn’t take from me.Betrayed by my family, my desperate need for answers put me back on his radar.The one person who was never supposed to find me.Again.I was unprepared for the world I got thrust into—the connection we shared.The deeper I dug, the more unstable my future became.With Rhys as my anchor, I will fight to bring my past out of the dark... -
![If You Dare by Shantel Tessier]()
If You Dare by Shantel Tessier
The game was over. The dares were getting old, and the secrets were piling up faster than the bodies.But someone had other plans. They wanted to play a new game.Becky Holt was the love of his life until he found out what she was hiding. Now he wants to seek his revenge in the most daring way.Deke Biggs has always been a shark. He's not afraid to kill, and he's about to become her worst nightmare... -
![Enforce by Rachel Van Dyken]()
Enforce by Rachel Van Dyken
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsThere’s two sides to every story… And ours? Isn’t pretty… Then again, what’s pretty about the mafia? Trace Rooks, that’s what. But she only wants one of us, and I’ll kill him before I let him have her. The only problem ? We’re cousins . And she may just be our long lost enemy. Whoever said college was hard, clearly didn’t attend Eagle Elite University... -
![Reckless Dynasty by Tracy Lorraine]()
Reckless Dynasty by Tracy Lorraine
USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Tracy Lorraine brings you the next installment of her dark mafia, high school bully romance story set in the Knight's Ridge Empire world.My life has been full of half-truths tangled in lies—I’d been to hell and back more times than I could count... -
![Kess by Tijan]()
Kess by Tijan
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsShe's one of two females in Roussou's Crew system.He was sent to protect her. She never knew.Until now...A short standalone based in the Crew/Roussou world... -
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![Ghostgirl by J.B. Salsbury]()
Ghostgirl by J.B. Salsbury
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsShe was brainwashed into believing she could save mankind.Now, she’s the one who needs saving. Abandoned with his two younger brothers, Milo Vega was placed in foster care. Now a twenty-year-old high-school senior covered in gang tattoos and working as the school’s janitor, he is living a life vastly different from the one he was destined for...Categorized as:
new adult bad boys virgin heroine friends to lovers young adult contemporary dark abuse -
![VICIOUS by A.E. Murphy]()
VICIOUS by A.E. Murphy
Imogen Hardy hit the dirt hard and often when in the presence of Kane Jessop, not because she was so besotted with him and clumsy that she fell at his feet, but because he put her there. Usually with a hard shove or a swift swipe of her ankles.He was a vicious and unruly child; then a boy, now a man. He is in every bad memory Immy has ever had...Categorized as:
second chances angst new adult high-school virgin heroine bad boys sassy heroine cold hero -
![Dusty by YellowBella, TeamBella23]()
Dusty by YellowBella, TeamBella23
Now published as InnocentsShe loves him. He loves her crazy. She's a hopeless romantic. He's just hopeless. She's afraid to let go. He won't let her. A story about a silly girl in love with a foolish boy. Here, forever is a lie... -
![River Knight by K. Webster]()
River Knight by K. Webster
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsLife was nearly stolen from me. In the blink of an eye, everything changed. I'm no longer the charismatic, hot playboy Hornet. I'm irrevocably altered. Damaged both inside and out. I can't think. I can't function. I can't live. Not with all this darkness and pain dragging me into unknown depths. Some days, I wish I never woke up. But then life takes an unusual turn...Categorized as:
new adult virgin heroine angst m-f sassy heroine high-school multicultural contemporary -
![The Saint by Kelsey Clayton]()
The Saint by Kelsey Clayton
DELANEYCruel.Heartless.A mistake waiting to happen.Knox Vaughn is the epitome of a bad boy.He's trouble in a sexy-as-sin package. I know it.They know it.Even he knows it. But, it's like a moth to the flame.I can't stay away—even though I'm going to get burned.You know what they say,The sinners are much more fun. And this saint is changing the game.KNOXSweet.Innocent.Valedictorian...Categorized as:
new adult virgin heroine angst tortured hero bad boys high-school college sassy heroine -
![Shame by Rachel Van Dyken]()
Shame by Rachel Van Dyken
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsEverything done in darkness, will eventually be brought into the light. I ran, but all it did was keep me one step ahead of my past. I tried to start over; new name, new identity. But you can't change your soul. A fresh start at college was just what I needed. For a while, it worked. I was the party girl, the one that seemed confident, but it was a lie. When guys kissed me--I felt only pain... -
![In Her Wake by K.A. Tucker]()
In Her Wake by K.A. Tucker
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsBefore you knew him as Trent in Ten Tiny Breaths , he was Cole Reynolds—and he had it all. Until one night when he makes a fatal, wrong decision…and loses everything. When a drunken night out at a Michigan State college party results in the death of six people, Cole must come to terms with his part in the tragedy... -
![Unraveling You by Jessica Sorensen]()
Unraveling You by Jessica Sorensen
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 37 ratingsLyric Scott has always had a good life. Outgoing, spunky, and musically talented, she’s constantly surrounded by family and friends, yet she still feels there’s something missing. Then she meets her new next-door neighbor Ayden Gregory. Mysterious, sweet, and sad, Ayden is the exact opposite of Lyric and exactly what she needs to fill the void in her life... -
![Touched By The Devil by Angel Lawson, Samantha Rue]()
Touched By The Devil by Angel Lawson, Samantha Rue
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsFights, sex, and fast cars. Those are what Sebastian Wilcox is all about.On the outside he’s easy smiles and a quick temper, but on the inside, a war rages on. He told the Devils his biggest secret; during a vicious fight, he accidentally hurt someone who didn't deserve it. For months now, he's been cursed by the memory of her screams. But that’s not his only hidden truth... -
![A Deal with the Devil by Angel Lawson, Samantha Rue]()
A Deal with the Devil by Angel Lawson, Samantha Rue
Sometimes The Devil Hides in Plain Sight...One fateful night. Two lives forever changed.Sometimes the bonds of tragedy are stronger than blood.When Vandy Hall got into a stolen car with Reynolds McAllister-her brother's best friend, her childhood crush-she had no idea the lifetime of pain it would cause her... -
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![Brutal Precious by Sara Wolf]()
Brutal Precious by Sara Wolf
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsLife meets death. The end meets the beginning. Eighteen-year-old Isis Blake hasn’t fallen in love in three years, forty-three weeks, and two days. Or so she thinks. The boy she maybe-sort-of-definitely loved has dropped off the face of the planet after his girlfriend's death, leaving a Jack-shaped hole... -
![The Probability of Violet & Luke by Jessica Sorensen]()
The Probability of Violet & Luke by Jessica Sorensen
Luke Price and Violet Hayes haven’t seen each other in a couple of months, not since they discovered Luke’s mother’s connection to Violet’s parent’s murders. But when Luke gets into some gambling trouble with the wrong people, destiny decides to throw the two of them together and they head out to Vegas to try and settle Luke’s debt... -
![The Devastation You Reap by Tracy Lorraine]()
The Devastation You Reap by Tracy Lorraine
He never wanted me. He only wanted retaliation. But I’m not the monster he thinks I am... -
![Just Like Heaven by Trilina Pucci]()
Just Like Heaven by Trilina Pucci
He’s a criminal—an abomination. We’re wrong in every way. If only I could’ve convinced my heart. His lips whispered promises of all the stars in the sky.I dreamt of a love that would last forever.We were gorgeously young and desperate for one another.But we're star-crossed.Fate had decided our course.Leaving us to cling to each other as we crumbled to ash.His need became possession... -
![Perfectly Flawed by Nessa Morgan]()
Perfectly Flawed by Nessa Morgan
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsI thought I was okay.I mean, I went through my days just fine, pushing toward a goal I could easily achieve. I had friends that loved me, an aunt who adored me, and everything was just okay.But what I thought was okay and fine, all of that changed... -
![Finders Keepers by Nicole Williams]()
Finders Keepers by Nicole Williams
There’s tortured. And there’s Garth Black. His life has been a constant carousel of tragedy and disappointment, including his love life. Of course, applying the term “love” to Garth’s conquests is a gross misuse of the word. Some people were made to give and accept love, and others weren’t. Garth Black redefines the “others” category...Categorized as:
second chances virgin heroine bad boys college m-f young adult contemporary friends to lovers -
![Wreck Me by Jessica Sorensen]()
Wreck Me by Jessica Sorensen
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhen Avery Hensley met Conner Wellings, she thought she’d found the guy she was going to spend the rest of her life with. She got married young and had the most beautiful son in the world. Life seemed perfect. But not everything is what it seems. Turned out Conner had another side to him, a darker side that Avery didn’t see coming... -
![The Deceit of a Devil by Holly Renee]()
The Deceit of a Devil by Holly Renee
Sinless. Stunning. Damaged. Tempting. Allie Taylor had been the girl I hated for as long as I could remember. And now she loathed me just as much. It didn’t matter that I betrayed her to save her. Completely devastated and infuriated by my dishonesty, she had no intentions of ever trusting me again. Her trust was shattered, her hate raging on with each second... -
![Black Tangled Heart by Samantha Young]()
Black Tangled Heart by Samantha Young
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsThe New York Times Bestselling author of the On Dublin Street series and As Dust Dances brings readers an addictive and passionate new standalone romance about love, revenge, and surviving both.To the McKenna sisters, Jane was a friend. A pseudo-sister, the girl they grew up with. To Jamie McKenna, she was everything. Their youthful passion consumed them...Categorized as:
new adult angst second chances high-school tortured hero virgin heroine m-f contemporary -
![Glass Heart Hero by Lindsey Iler]()
Glass Heart Hero by Lindsey Iler
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLoyalty. Corruption. Family.A gauntlet rooted in love and jealousy may be the destruction of the students at Glass Heart Academy.DelaneyParts of me were stolen in the confines of a dark room. No matter how hard I fought, I got nowhere. The damage has already been done.Now I find myself in the arms of an unexpected boy...Categorized as:
high-school new adult tortured hero dark cruel hero contemporary tortured heroine love triangle -
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![Tarnished Crown by Caitlyn Dare]()
Tarnished Crown by Caitlyn Dare
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsWaking up the morning after the night before, Bexley soon realizes his life will never be the same.He’s Electi now.One of them.Everything that Mia despises.She says she’s done, that his betrayal is too much of a burden to bear, but Bexley refuses to let her go.When Mia wakes up the morning after the night before, she realizes she has two choices: accept her fate or fight.She’s stronger now... -
![Echoes by Dylan Page]()
Echoes by Dylan Page
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsBlurb & cover to come!!Release date is a placeholder... -
![Savage Royals by Callie Rose]()
Savage Royals by Callie Rose
A long time ago, I was one of them. Now I’m back, and they hate me for it. Plucked out of the harsh life I was living and thrust into a world of unimaginable wealth, power, and privilege, all I want to do is keep my head down and survive until graduation. But they have other plans—Mason, Finn, Elias, and Cole... -
![The Vengeance You Crave by Tracy Lorraine]()
The Vengeance You Crave by Tracy Lorraine
It’s been almost six years since she ruined what we had. Her lies shattered years of friendship and ripped apart the future we planned. After I called her a liar and revoked my trust, she left town and never looked back. In a cruel twist of fate, she’s returned. But I’m not the wounded boy she left behind. I’m a man now. A man full of anger, resentment and loss... -
![Trust by Kylie Scott]()
Trust by Kylie Scott
Being young is all about the experiences: the first time you skip school, the first time you fall in love…the first time someone holds a gun to your head. After being held hostage during a robbery at the local convenience store, seventeen-year-old Edie finds her attitude about life shattered... -
![Left Drowning by Jessica Park]()
Left Drowning by Jessica Park
What does it take to rise from life’s depths, swim against the current, and breathe? Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College...Categorized as:
virgin heroine college angst m-f young adult contemporary tearjerkers friends to lovers
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