Category Archives: Contemporary

You Must Not Miss by Katrina Leno

You Must Not Miss by Katrina Leno

Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day after her family self-destructed. The day her father ruined her mother’s life. The day Eryn, Magpie’s sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. The day of Brandon Phipp’s party. Now Magpie is called a slut in the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won’t speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who’ve all been as socially exiled as she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a magical place called Near. Near is perfect–a place… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Bimisia
  • Transmisia
  • Slut shaming
  • Victim blaming
  • Rape & date rape
  • Child neglect
  • Cheating
  • Anxiety & anxiety attacks
  • Suicide
  • Suicidal ideation
  • Alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption & abuse
  • Drugging
  • Murder
  • Bullying

Everything All at Once by Katrina Leno

Everything All at Once by Katrina Leno

Lottie Reeves has always struggled with anxiety, and when her beloved Aunt Helen dies, Lottie begins to fear that her own unexpected death might be waiting around every corner. Aunt Helen wasn’t a typical aunt. She was the author of the best–selling Alvin Hatter series, about siblings who discover the elixir of immortality. Her writing inspired a generation of readers. In her will, she leaves one last writing project—just for Lottie. It’s a series of letters, each containing mysterious instructions designed to push Lottie out of her comfort zone. Soon, Lottie’s trying some writing of her own, leaping off cliffs, and even fall… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Queermisia
  • Child abuse
  • Anxiety & panic attacks, on-page
  • Suicide mentioned
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Terminal cancer
  • Hospital
  • Emesis mentioned
  • Grief & loss depiction (theme)
  • Death of an aunt
  • Death from a fall
  • Drowning mentioned

The Half Life of Molly Pierce by Katrina Leno

The Half Life of Molly Pierce by Katrina Leno

You live and you remember. Me, I live and I forget. But now—now I am remembering. For all of her seventeen years, Molly feels like she’s missed bits and pieces of her life. Now, she’s figuring out why. Now, she’s remembering her own secrets. And in doing so, Molly uncovers the separate life she seems to have led…and the love that she can’t let go.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Dissociative Identity Disorder (theme)
  • Depression
  • Suicidal ideation discussed
  • Thwarted attempted suicide by drug overdose, on-page
  • Blood depiction
  • Hospital
  • Emesis
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a friend
  • Death of a brother
  • Car accident involving a truck hitting a motorcycle, on-page
  • Death of a pet goldfish mentioned

The Lost & Found by Katrina Leno

The Lost & Found by Katrina Leno

Frannie and Louis met in an online support group when they were both younger. They have never met face-to-face. They don’t even know each other’s real names. All they know is that they both have a mysterious tendency to lose things. Well, not lose them, exactly. Things just seem to…disappear. They each receive news in the mail that sets them off on a road trip to Austin, Texas, looking for answers—and each other. Along the way, each one begins to find, as if by magic, important things the other has lost. And by the time they finally meet in person, they realize that the things you lose might be things you weren’t meant to have at all,…Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Self-harm
  • Schizophrenia
  • Amputation
  • Death of a parent

There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon

There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon

Ashish Patel didn’t know love could be so…sucky. After he’s dumped by his ex-girlfriend, his mojo goes AWOL. Even worse, his parents are annoyingly, smugly confident they could find him a better match. So, in a moment of weakness, Ash challenges them to set him up. The Patels insist that Ashish date an Indian-American girl—under contract. Per subclause 1(a), he’ll be taking his date on “fun” excursions like visiting the Hindu temple and his eccentric Gita Auntie. Kill him now. How is this ever going to work? … Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Cheating

Make Up Break Up by Lily Menon

Make Up Break Up by Lily Menon

Love, romance, second chances, fairy-tale endings…these are the things Annika Dev believes in. Her app, Make Up, has been called the “Google Translate for failing relationships.” High-efficiency break-ups, flashy start-ups, penthouses, fast cars…these are the things Hudson Craft believes in. His app, Break Up, is known as the “Uber for break-ups.” It’s wildly successful—and anathema to Annika’s life philosophy. Which wouldn’t be a problem if they’d gone their separate ways after that summer fling in Las Vegas, never to see each other again. Unfortunately for Annika, Hudson’s moving not just into her office building, but into the… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Terminal illness
  • Death of a parent
  • Serious physical injury
  • Car accident

Wild Highway by Devney Perry

Wild Highway by Devney Perry

Gemma Lane built an empire. Not a small feat, considering her home as a teenager was a makeshift tent in a California junkyard. She’s dedicated her life to turning pennies into millions. She has power, fortune and prestige. And she’s leaving it all behind. Gemma is headed across the country in her best friend’s Cadillac when a detour in Montana reunites her with old acquaintances and a man who hasn’t changed. Easton Greer challenges her every word and tests her every limit because he doesn’t believe she’s really abandoned her riches. She ignores his snide remarks… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Child sexual abuse recounted, off-page

Tragic by Devney Perry

Tragic by Devney Perry

Kaine Reynolds wants nothing more than solitude. After an unthinkable tragedy destroys his family, he’s cut off all ties to his former life so he can battle his grief the only way he knows how. Alone So when Piper Campbell knocks on his door, rambling on about being his new neighbour, he slams the door in her face. But Kaine’s gruff demeanor doesn’t scare her. She’s set on living in Montana and starting over after a terrible divorce. And she wouldn’t mind having a fling to chase away the pain of her husband’s betrayal. Her handsome, albeit rude, neighbour is the perfect candidate… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Unplanned pregnancy
  • Infertility issues
  • Death of a child

Timid by Devney Perry

Timid by Devney Perry

Willa Doon has always been shy. Her quiet demeanour was something she’s always embraced. That is, until Jackson Page moves to town. The one man she desperately wants to take notice struggles to remember her name. Year after year, Willa stands by, watching as the bartender slash playboy drowns his demons in beer and sex. Then one night, he shows up at her door, suddenly aware that the girl he’s seen around Lark Cove is now a beautiful woman. Except what he doesn’t remember is that this visit isn’t his first… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Parental abandonment

Tattered by Devney Perry

Tattered by Devney Perry

Thea Landry has always known her place in modern-day society. It’s somewhere just above the trash can her mother dumped her in as a newborn but below the class where much comes easy. With her tattered shoes and bargain-bin clothes, her life has never been full of glamour. So when a rich and charismatic man takes interest, she doesn’t fool herself into thinking their encounter is anything more than a one-night stand. Months later, she’s kicking herself for not getting his phone number. Or his last name. She’s given up hope of seeing him ever again. Until one day, years… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Child neglect
  • Unplanned pregnancy, off-page
  • Physical assault,
  • Stalking, on-page
  • Poverty recounted