Books like 'The Darkest Secret'
Readers who enjoyed The Darkest Secret by Jessica Pine also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary young adult dark romance suspense friends to lovers new adult
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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... -
Made by J.M. Darhower
Corrado Moretti. The world knows the notorious Kevlar Killer, but few have ever seen what lies beneath his armor. The abused child. The neglected teenager. The broken man. He always did whatever he had to do in order to survive. It's kill or be killed. Throughout his life, he has been there in the shadows, a witness to everything from beginning to end...Categorized as:
suspense friends to lovers new adult contemporary forbidden love virgin hero bad boys alpha male -
Dark Legacy by Tracy Lorraine
USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Tracy Lorraine brings you a new dark mafia, high school bully romance story set in the Knight's Ridge Empire world. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy.That our love could start a war...Dear reader,Dark Legacy is the twelfth book in my Knight's Ridge Empire series, and the third book of Calli and Batman's story... -
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 197 ratingsCheck out the #1 New York Times bestseller Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty, called “a surefire hit” by Entertainment Weekly. "The secrets burrowed in this seemingly placid small town...are so suburban noir they would make David Lynch clap with glee.. -
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The Complete Twisted Series Set by Ana Huang
Twisted LoveAlex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can't escape.Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart.But when he's forced to look after his best friend's sister, he starts to feel something in his chest. A crack. A melt...Categorized as:
suspense new adult young adult contemporary dark from hate to love multicultural forbidden love -
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... -
Stay with Me by Nicole Fiorina
In a desperate final attempt to save nineteen-year-old Mia from herself, she gets transferred to Dolor University, a reformatory college in the UK that housed deranged and dangerous young adults who viewed the private institution as their own personal playground. Mia didn’t care. She needed feelings to care...Categorized as:
suspense new adult friends to lovers dark contemporary angst mental illness young adult -
Heart of Marley by T.K. Leigh
Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTo the moon and back… From the stars to the ocean… That was Marley and Cameron Bowen’s secret code. Twins born just five minutes apart, they have the perfect life… Until tragedy strikes just weeks after their eighth birthday and their father is killed by a drunk driver... -
Pieces for You by Genna Rulon
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsSamantha Whitney survived unimaginable tragedy only to discover she had been betrayed by a man who claimed to love her. Shattered, Sam spends months at a safe haven trying to piece herself back together. Ready or not, the time has come for her to return home. As Sam struggles to resume a life that no longer feels familiar, she finds unwavering support in an unexpected, familiar face... -
Foxes by Suki Fleet
Rated: 4.51 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsWhen Dashiel's body is found dumped on an East London wasteland, his best friend Danny sets out to find the killer. But Danny finds interaction difficult and must keep his world small in order to survive...Categorized as:
new adult friends to lovers suspense m-m contemporary angst young adult mental illness -
Drowning in Stars by Debra Anastasia
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 32 ratings… he walked a tightrope five stories up just to hold my hand.Gaze: I moved into the building next to Pixie when I was eleven. She blew bubbles through my window. I shot my Nerf gun through hers. We both had secrets, but one of us was fated to get hurt. I wanted it to be me.Pixie: When I was afraid of the dark, he would shine a light in my window... -
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... -
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... -
Aggro by Coralee June, Carrie Gray
Two boys.One tragedy.Grief bonds us.The mystery of this murder will break us.My best friend was brutally ripped from this world, but her brother and boyfriend are still here.One of them wants to use me.The other wants to forget me.Both of them make me feel alive.We’ll find Violet’s murderer, no matter the cost.Two boys.One tragedy.Grief bonds us.Love will tear us apart...Categorized as:
suspense new adult friends to lovers heroine sleuth mystery christian love triangle young adult -
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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 friends to lovers young adult contemporary dark bad boys abuse forbidden love -
Before I Break by Portia Moore
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsOut of the past six years of my life, I only remember about half of it. After a dozen doctors and thousands in medical bills, I was diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder--one that causes me to lose track of time. Sometimes it’s hours, days or even weeks with no recollection of anything. The good thing is it's been almost two years since I had my last ‘black out’...Categorized as:
suspense new adult young adult contemporary mystery love triangle dark other-man-woman -
Tame by Coralee June, Raven Kennedy
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsI’ve got a secret I’ve got bruises no one can see and the devil’s blood running through my veins. If I want to end my father’s reign, I’ve got to help Rocco Nomar with his daughter. She’s broken, jaded. A sad, pretty little thing with a big heart and eyes that make me feel like I’m drowning. She’s not swayed by the social politics of Savannah, but she has my heart doing double takes... -
Collateral Damage: A Second Chance Mafia Romance by Amy McKinley
Rated: 4.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe spark is real, but the timing’s wrong.When Mafia surgeon, Trey La Rosa, met the one woman who could bring him to his knees, grief from his girlfriend’s recent death loomed between them. He forced himself to walk away. Months later, she’s been kidnapped—and he’ll do anything to save her... -
Rule by Caitlyn Dare
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe Red Ridge Sinners MC series from bestselling author Caitlyn Dare continues…With the threat closer than ever, it's time for everyone to put their differences aside and fight together for the future they all crave. But will they all make it to the end?Rule is a full length dark enemies-to-lovers/bully romance...Categorized as:
new adult friends to lovers suspense contemporary young adult menage age difference bikers -
Reckless Lies by Nikki J. Summers
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThey say when you die, your whole life plays over in your mind like a Hallmark movie. A rose-tinted reflection to remind you what a great life you’ve led.But for me, that wasn’t the case.There was no romantic, nostalgic ending for me.All I had was pain, darkness, and despair on the day I died, dragged by fire into the depths of hell. That’s where I live now. A shadow of the man I used to be...Categorized as:
new adult suspense friends to lovers contemporary young adult fated-mates angst grumpy sunshine -
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...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult contemporary young adult musicians virgin heroine mystery dark -
Foxes by Suki Fleet
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsWhen Dashiel’s body is found dumped on an East London wasteland, his best friend Danny sets out to find the killer. But Danny finds interaction difficult and must keep his world small in order to survive...Categorized as:
suspense friends to lovers new adult m-m disabilities and marks angst dark young adult -
Revenge by J.L. Weil
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWelcome back to Elmwood Academy. The conclusion begins. And the drama continues. The Elite of Elmwood Academy have twisted up my world, but they are mine now. My family. My vengeance. My only way out of hell. Four guys who have become more than just a pain in my ass. And they all want the same thing as me. Revenge... -
Normal by Danielle Pearl
"Normal is a riveting and magnetic story of abuse, love, and hope. It pushes the reader in every way possible. Normal is one of the most thought provoking stories I've ever read." -Biblio Belles "Wow, Normal was intense, gritty, dark, sad, uplifting, and heartbreaking all in one. This was a story rich in detail, and by the end I truly felt as if I lived in between the pages...Categorized as:
new adult friends to lovers suspense abuse high-school contemporary young adult dark -
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A Whole New Crowd by Tijan
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 43 ratingsTaryn grew up in a different world. Her boyfriend was a criminal. His older brother was part of a gang. They weren’t great people, but they were her family. Then everything changes when she’s adopted by a family in the neighboring town. New family. New friends. A new world. She’s elated...Categorized as:
suspense friends to lovers new adult contemporary young adult mystery strong heroine alpha male -
The Dead List by Jennifer L. Armentrout
It's Ella's senior year of high school and she and her best friend Linds plan to make it the best year ever. At Brock Cochran's end of summer pool party, the girls vow to have as much fun as possible before they head off to different colleges next fall. But when Ella is mysteriously attacked on her way home from the party, everything changes... -
Finding the Light by C.A. Rene
Travis Greene has lived most of his life shrouded in fear and shadows. Fear of a father’s wrath, a mother’s disdain, and a coach’s attention. Love and intimacy came hand in hand with pain and disappointment, but he hid all of it deep inside the shadows of his damaged heart.Adrianna Hinton was the one bright light in his pitiful childhood, the sunshine to his cloudy days...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult suspense dark vengeance praise-kink high-school from hate to love -
Unlit Star by Lindy Zart
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsWe are not guaranteed anything, not even this life. Rivers Young is the popular guy untouchable by reality. He is like a star—bright, consuming, otherworldly. The thing about stars, though, is that they eventually fall, and he is no different. He falls far and he falls hard. Delilah Bana is the outcast enshrouded in all of life's ironies...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult contemporary young adult tearjerkers dark tortured heroine college -
Salvation and Secrets by L A Cotton
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsChastity Falls was supposed to be Ana Parry’s fresh start. But what started as her salvation soon became her undoing. Four months after losing the very thing that gave her reason again, Ana is back at Chastity Falls. Holding on by a thread and trying hard to forget about Jackson isn’t easy when she’s determined to uncover the Donohue’s biggest secrets... -
Law of Attraction by Raeesah Ambarker
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsNyx just can't seem to escape her eternal night, the very darkness she was named after. Angry at the world, her hatred is ravenous for none other than Beckham Hunt, captain of the ice hockey team. Beckham loathes Nyx Taylor, that much he is certain of...Categorized as:
new adult friends to lovers contemporary sports young adult from hate to love dark abuse -
Cruel Legacy by Dakota Lee
A NEW LIFEThat’s what the move to canyon falls was supposed to offer me. A chance to leave my past behind.But day one I manage to paint a target on my back and the vindictive boys who run this school, Pax, Finn and Holdendecide to turn me into their personal punching bag.They try it all. Liquidated accounts. Public humiliation. Every prank and act of horror designed to break me.I’ve endured worse...Categorized as:
new adult suspense young adult contemporary dark mystery reverse harem from hate to love -
Unchained: The Dorms by J.L. Weil
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAinsleyGrayson Edwards is my best friend’s brother and so off-limits. There are a hundred reasons why we don’t make sense.Not my type.Moody AF.Popular.He’s bad.During the day, it all seems so clear, but at night…my dreams paint a different picture.He’s so damn serious, and I don’t care about anything except getting out of Elmwood until I get an unsettling text... -
Echoes by Dylan Page
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsBlurb & cover to come!!Release date is a placeholder...Categorized as:
new adult suspense friends to lovers dark young adult high-school strong heroine contemporary -
Five Things by Violet Paine
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsAfter two years of living in the shadows, I force myself to leave my protective bubble and move to college. When I get there though, and come face to face with the casualty of the greatest mistake of my life, I have to wonder whether I’ve made the right decision. But then, as time moves on, I learn how to breathe again and that’s not something I’m willing to give up on... -
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These Dark Hearts by L.A. Cotton
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsHarleigh Wren Maguire has loved Phoenix Wilder for as long as she can remember.He's everything she isn't.Brave.Reckless.One-hundred percent unapologetic.But it's Halloween... the perfect excuse to dress up and be someone you're not. To step out of your comfort zone and do things you wouldn't usually do.And Harleigh is determined to make her best friend notice her for once.There's only one problem...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult high-school sports contemporary dark young adult mystery -
The Fight In Us by Becca Steele
Lust. Mystery. Betrayal. Weston Cavendish. My brother's best friend. I'd perfected the art of pretending that I didn't want him, that he didn't affect me every time he was near.Or so I thought.When his world comes crashing down, I'm the one he turns to, and I can't deny my feelings any longer.I know there's something between us.Until he finds out that I've been hiding things from him, too... -
Better When He's Brave by Jay Crownover
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsIn New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover’s third novel in her sexy, thrilling Welcome to the Point series, a woman’s search for repentance leads her to the one man from her past she can’t forget as they join forces to save their city—and the explosive love neither can live without. Titus King has always seen his world in black and white...Categorized as:
suspense new adult young adult tortured heroine alpha male contemporary dark bad boys -
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... -
Wrong Crowd by Lisa Helen Gray
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsMy entire world was turned upside down the day my mum died. I feared what my life would become when an aunt I never knew about came swooping in and threw me into the unknown. She was rich. I couldn’t even afford a pack of gum. We were complete opposites, yet I wanted a fresh start in life, and she was promising to give me that. I just had to live with her for a year, until I graduated college...Categorized as:
new adult suspense from hate to love dark young adult contemporary betrayal length-short -
Their Kingdom Come by Logan Fox
We're ready to die for the sins of our fathers, but is she? Zac, Apollo, Cassius, ReubenThey told us we were the cure.That we were special.That we were pure.It was all a lie.We were just like all the others they defiled, abused, neglected.We formed a brotherhood and vowed to have our revenge. Now no one stands in our way.No one, except one girl.Trinity Malone doesn't know about our past... -
The Heist by Julie Weaver
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFreya I’ll do anything to escape the controlling monster who’s tormented me for years, even if it means putting my life at the mercy of a criminal. When Kane Daniels breaks into my gilded cage, he doesn’t realize his loot will include more than gold and diamonds—it’ll include me...Categorized as:
new adult suspense friends to lovers forced proximity humor dark young adult contemporary -
Friends by J.M. Darhower
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsFriends: One moment. One wrong choice. That was all it took to destroy a friendship. *takes place before Sempre* Forever: Halloween. With a three year old. 'Nuff said... -
Hometown Girl Memories by Kirsten Fullmer
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratings"I was crying one minute and laughing the next. A definite must read!" Winnie is content in her role as the reining matriarch of Smithville, but when a letter arrives from a long-lost friend, the door to her past is reopened. Memories come flooding in, drawing her back to 1968, her college days; a time filled with people and events she hasn’t allowed herself to recall... -
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Broken: The Dorms by J.L. Weil
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsKenna: Growing up, everyone thought I was in love with my brother’s best friend. They were right. They just had the wrong friend. Fynn Dupree broke my heart, and he didn’t even know it. Well, as much as a fifteen-year-old girl’s heart could break. The night Fynn rejected me, my entire life changed... -
Ruthless Princess by Rachel Van Dyken
A mafia romance about best friends turned enemies by Rachel Van Dyken, the number one New York Times bestselling author of the Eagle Elite series.The enemy of my enemy is my friend…I never thought my father would ask this of me, to become the second generation at Eagle Elite University, to rule with an iron fist, and to take care of anyone who gets in our way.But ever since the incident...Categorized as:
new adult suspense friends to lovers contemporary mafia from hate to love college tearjerkers -
Diamond Fortress by Morgan Elizabeth
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsBook Two in the Mastermind Duet“I don’t want to be a princess. I don’t want to be pretty. I want to fight!”“But you’re in a castle. You’re in a princess tower.”“Nope! I’m in a…” I try and think of the word I read from Lola’s vocabulary homework. “A fortress.”“A fortress, huh? So you can fight?”“Yup. Made of diamonds.”“Well, of course. You can fight in style... -
Remember Me Forever by Sara Wolf
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsIsis 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 and sort-of-maybe-definitely hated has dropped off the face of the planet in the face of tragedy, leaving a Jack Hunter–shaped hole. Determined to be happy, Isis fills it in with lies and puts on a brave smile for her new life at Ohio State University... -
Bang Bang by Rachel Van Dyken
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsHe was my best friend. Until he became my enemy. All within the span of one night. Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang. The rapid fire of gunshots became the soundtrack to my life. This is the Mafia. Lines are blurred. Choices are never black and white. And the life you thought you knew is... one giant lie. He was dead. And I didn't want his life to be in vain, so I tried to make something of myself...Categorized as:
suspense friends to lovers new adult contemporary young adult vengeance virgin heroine dark -
Naked or Dead by A.E. Murphy
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsSmall town, small-minded people, small expectations, and big A-holes.Lilith Deville is the new enigma at Lakeside Preparatory Academy, a prestigious high school by a river and not a lake, which makes sense, not. Already she hates it despite its beautiful landscape...
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