Books like 'Fish out of Water'
Readers who enjoyed Fish out of Water by Josie Watts & Janice Whiteaker also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary romance mystery small town suspense cozy forced-proximity multi-pov organized-crime humor
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Gators and Garters by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.72 of 5 stars · 18 ratings‘Til death do us part?Ida Belle, Fortune, and Gertie are gearing up for the big day—Ida Belle’s wedding to Walter—but when the caterer goes missing just a week before the big day, it puts a huge black mark on the joyous celebration... -
![Fortune Funhouse by Jana Deleon]()
Fortune Funhouse by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThe traveling carnival has made its stop in Sinful and everyone is ready for thrilling rides, challenging games, and most importantly, funnel cake. But when a man is murdered in the funhouse and Emmaline LeBlanc is knocked unconscious so the killer can escape, the good times are over... -
![Change of Fortune by Jana Deleon]()
Change of Fortune by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsSinful, Louisiana, is always a hotbed of activity, and despite the steamy heat, August is no exception. Godzilla is terrorizing the town, looking for a home-cooked meal, and Gertie is worried someone will take the gator out before she can get him under control. Francine has a situation of her own at the café, where food is missing from inventory. And Celia is always up to no good... -
![Gin Fling by Lucy Score, Claire Kingsley]()
Gin Fling by Lucy Score, Claire Kingsley
Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA slow grin spread across his face and I had to turn away from the wattage. It was like staring at the sun. The handsome sun that was making my core temperature rise and causing a hormone dump in my brain. — Shelby Thompson Personal trainer Jonah Bodine discovers more than he bargained for with the half-siblings he didn’t know he had in small-town West Virginia... -
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![Endless Shadows by Kathleen Brooks]()
Endless Shadows by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsRyker Faulkner has built his empire by being ruthless. No one knows the full extent Ryker has gone to in order to build himself up from nothing to one of the most powerful men in the country. So when someone comes after him, everyone knows the last thing Ryker will do is sit back and watch it burn.Kenzie Carys was used to being in the shadows. She was a nurse on night shift... -
![Swamp Spook by Jana Deleon]()
Swamp Spook by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWhen black cats roam, and spooks are seen, Come celebrate, it’s Halloween. Sinful, Louisiana, really knows how to throw a party, and it goes all out for Halloween. The weeklong celebration kicks off with a maze of horror in the park built of hay bales. And Fortune has the perfect assignment—the executioner... -
![Cajun Fried Felony by Jana Deleon]()
Cajun Fried Felony by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsVenus Thibodeaux had a reputation for being trouble. Some said she started at birth. When she finally left Sinful shortly after turning eighteen, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. When she blew back into town four years later, no one was happy about her return... -
![Swamp Santa by Jana Deleon]()
Swamp Santa by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIt’s Christmas in Sinful and Fortune is set to participate in all the local hoopla. A Christmas gala, caroling, and a sleigh ride are on the agenda. Murder is not. But when someone bumps off Santa, Fortune is aware a killer is lurking among the holiday cheer... -
![Swamp Sweets by Jana Deleon]()
Swamp Sweets by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIt’s November in Sinful and everyone is gearing up for Thanksgiving. But when Fortune, Ida Belle, and Gertie bag a body on their turkey hunting trip, the quiet enjoyment of fall is over. No one really knew Miles Broussard well, and as he’d recently sold the building his business was in to retire in another state, no one could explain how he’d ended up murdered and dumped in the bayou... -
![Bohemian by Kathryn Nolan]()
Bohemian by Kathryn Nolan
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsTwo souls, drawn together beneath a fierce sky… Calvin Ellis’s neat and orderly life is shattered when his grandfather dies, leaving him ownership of a quirky bookstore in Big Sur, California. The Mad Ones: once a place famous for poetry readings and bohemian rebellion, it now teeters on the brink of financial ruin... -
![Twined Bond by Emma Hart]()
Twined Bond by Emma Hart
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsAll is well in Holly Woods. My best friend's love triangle is now a happy little circle. My sister-in-law just gave birth to my gorgeous new niece who is the world's best cuddler, and Nonna's—kind of—not on my back every ten minutes about the fact we're getting married in one month. *Supposedly.* Until the mayor's niece—our baker for the wedding—commits suicide... -
![Forever Concealed by Kathleen Brooks]()
Forever Concealed by Kathleen Brooks
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCan love find a way when truth is concealed? Gabe Ali Rahman is the standby heir to the crown and he’s okay with that. So what that he’s gotten the reputation of being a playboy prince? He’s had a lot of fun along the way. But now he wants more in life than casual flings... -
![Long Gone by Denise Grover Swank]()
Long Gone by Denise Grover Swank
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWelcome to Lone County, Arkansas, where every corner holds a secret, and the past is never really buried.Disgraced ex-detective Harper Adams has traded her badge for a desk job at her father's law firm, a move as dull as the small town she's returned to. But things take a turn when a local woman wants to declare her missing husband dead, five years after his mysterious disappearance... -
![Reel of Fortune by Jana Deleon]()
Reel of Fortune by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsNothing says Welcome Home like a murder. It’s official. Fortune Redding is out of the CIA and a newly minted resident of Sinful, Louisiana. She never expected her homecoming to be all apple pie and hugs, but a murder wasn’t on her list of things to deal with before she’d even gotten her name stenciled on her mailbox... -
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![Moonshine Kiss by Lucy Score, Claire Kingsley]()
Moonshine Kiss by Lucy Score, Claire Kingsley
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAll those years of adolescent fantasies and this was how Bowie Bodine first touched my boobs. And he apologized. Real life was stupid and unfair. Small town deputy Cassidy Tucker’s dating life is a train wreck on repeat. All she ever wanted was a solid partner. A man to share pajamas with. The handsome, big-hearted Bowie Bodine. Wait. Scratch that. Mr... -
![Frightfully Fortune by Jana Deleon]()
Frightfully Fortune by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsRest when you’re dead?It’s time for the annual Halloween festival in Sinful, and Fortune, Ida Belle, and Gertie can’t wait to suit up and enjoy the food and activities. But when a dead man gallops through the park on a black stallion and slides to a decapitated stop right in front of Swamp Team 3, they know another festival is about to be turned on its head…so to speak... -
![Until Susan by C.P. Smith]()
Until Susan by C.P. Smith
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom the world of NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Aurora Rose Reynolds. See how the Mayson clan began. You've read their sons' stories, now it's James and Susan's turn. Experience the boom all over again in this action-packed novella of insta-love and suspense from Author CP Smith... -
![Code Name: Gemini by Janie Crouch, Danielle M. Haas]()
Code Name: Gemini by Janie Crouch, Danielle M. Haas
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTasha Volkov has been on the run for three years from a brutal cartel who want her dead. her family.She already paid a heavy price for crossing them, and has the scars to prove it. Her only choice is to keep running, even if the tiny town of Pine Valley feels more like home to her than anywhere else she's ever been... -
![Axle's Brand by C.M. Owens]()
Axle's Brand by C.M. Owens
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFate is just a made-up word used to give us hope or absolution. We find hope when we believe bad things happen to us for a reason. We find absolution when we feel as though the wrongs of our past were just fate’s twisted design to bring us to our present, and all of it was out of our hands. Of course, I sort of change my mind after meeting Axle. The man with scars and haunted, cold eyes... -
![The Finish Line by Kate Stewart]()
The Finish Line by Kate Stewart
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsSecrets and Lies...I’ve lived the entirety of my life wrapped up in subterfuge for one purpose—revenge.Through the years, I lived more as an enigma than a man.For so long, I denied I had a beating heart of my own. Until her. Until she unearthed the starving vessel inside, forced me to acknowledge it, forced me to understand that I’m capable of bleeding the same as any other.For that, we paid... -
![One Little Secret by Avery Maxwell]()
One Little Secret by Avery Maxwell
Rated: 4.54 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsAshton WestbrookPlaying house with a secret-keeping heiress was not how I envisioned helping when my brothers called me. My expertise is the dirty work, not glorified babysitting. Now Nova Blaine is here in this tiny town. Invading my home, my thoughts, and turning my carefully controlled existence upside down.I’m tasked with finding her assailant, an assignment that requires me to stay close... -
![Riley Thorn and the Blast from the Past by Lucy Score]()
Riley Thorn and the Blast from the Past by Lucy Score
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsRiley Thorn and her hot, tattooed, private investigator boyfriend are all moved into their new fixer upper. Not only do they finally have their own place, they also haven’t found any new dead bodies on the premises.Yep. It looks like summer is over and so is Riley’s bad luck... -
![Edge of Nowhere by Freya Barker]()
Edge of Nowhere by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsOpen roads and honor meets poke bowls and self-controlI’m a homesick nomad.A protégé, a mountain man, an ally, and a seeker.My name is Wapi.I’m a work in progress looking to belong, and though my road has been a winding one, my heart has found focus.I’m a straightlaced hellcat.A princess, a fool, a target, and a handle.My name is Lindsey...Categorized as:
suspense organized-crime forced-proximity crime romance small-town stalking action-adventure -
![The Beat of My Heart by Avery Maxwell]()
The Beat of My Heart by Avery Maxwell
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsOne week. No strings. Sexy stranger. What could go wrong?My name is Julia McDowell. I’m not the pretty girl next door, I’m the boss at work who solves all your problems. I’m an awkward genius with the worst taste in boyfriends; the last one left me with a 6-figure debt to prove it...Categorized as:
billionaire crime forced-proximity multi-pov action-adventure adult book contemporary -
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![10-Code by Freya Barker]()
10-Code by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAs a forty-one-year-old mother of three boys, working two jobs, Marya Berger doesn’t have the time or energy to consider a relationship. Especially after a lifetime of poor choices in the romance department. But when the disappearance of a young boy strikes a little too close to home, and a younger man she’s tried to ignore offers his help, she doesn’t stand in the way... -
![Adverse Possession by Rebecca Zanetti]()
Adverse Possession by Rebecca Zanetti
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe plural form of Nemesis is NemesesAnna Albertini never thought she’d have to look up the plural form of nemesis. In fact, she never thought she’d have one, much less three. But as she and her new partner try to make a go of their fledgling law firm, enemies come from every direction.First, there’s a newspaper reporter trying to make a name for herself by dogging Anna’s every move... -
![Malone's Fate by Laylah Roberts, Golden Czermak]()
Malone's Fate by Laylah Roberts, Golden Czermak
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHe met the love of his life, and then she disappeared without a trace . . .That was it.Tanner wasn’t going to fall in love again. The pain wasn’t worth it. So what if all his brothers had met their soulmate?There had to be one wild, crazy Malone left to live up to their reputation.Right?Wrong.Because he hadn’t counted on fate walking back into his life.Only this time, she's not alone... -
![Thirty-One and a Half Regrets by Denise Grover Swank]()
Thirty-One and a Half Regrets by Denise Grover Swank
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsBook Four in the USA Today bestselling Rose Gardner Mystery Series! While Rose recovers from a broken heart, she finds herself at odds with her sister—and business partner—Violet. Rose buries herself in her landscaping work, but becomes worried when her employee and friend, Bruce Wayne Decker, goes missing. In the meantime, Fenton County assistant D.A... -
![Marriage and Murder by Penny Reid]()
Marriage and Murder by Penny Reid
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe Devil is in the details . . . Cletus Byron Winston wishes to marry Jennifer Anne Donner-Sylvester (aka The Banana Cake Queen) posthaste! He’s spent the last year wanting nothing more than for the celebrations to be brief, libations flowing, and BYOB (bring your own blueberries)... -
![Backrush by Jana Deleon]()
Backrush by Jana Deleon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe sea heals all things.Tempest Island has weathered the worst of storms and still stands proud, providing its residents with the healing power of the sea and sun. When Alayna Scott’s life falls spectacularly apart, both professionally and personally, the executive chef’s only thought is getting back home to the island and her aunt Bea... -
![Blind Bake by Denise Grover Swank]()
Blind Bake by Denise Grover Swank
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen a young woman is at the wrong place at the wrong time, she becomes a person of interest in a murder investigation. Maddie Baker just wants to make ends meet. She gave up her school librarian career to return to her hometown and take care of her elderly aunt... -
![Scheming Heart by Ivy Layne]()
Scheming Heart by Ivy Layne
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsScarlettI don’t want to lie to him. I really don’t.First of all, he's hot. Really hot. I know I swore off gorgeous men for the rest of eternity, but Tenn Sawyer has me questioning all of my choices. At least, any choices that mean I can’t have him.Second, he isn’t just hot, Tenn is bossy and domineering and patient and his smile makes my panties melt. And that was all before he kidnapped me.After... -
![Back in Bliss by Sophie Oak, Lexi Blake]()
Back in Bliss by Sophie Oak, Lexi Blake
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRe-released in a second edition with new content. Logan Green is back in Bliss, but only for a few weeks to help out at the sheriff’s office. Everything changes when Seth Stark strolls into town with Georgia Dawson on his arm. Seth’s arrival is anything but a happy accident. He always dreamed of a big house on the river and a wife he could share with his best friend, Logan... -
![Found in Bliss by Sophie Oak, Lexi Blake]()
Found in Bliss by Sophie Oak, Lexi Blake
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsRe-released in a second edition with new content. Holly Lang has a hard time trusting men. Eight years ago, her husband tossed her aside and took her son away from her. Finding the little town of Bliss has given her a second chance at life, new friends, and sense of belonging. Unfortunately, Bliss also seems to have filled her days and nights with dreams of two beautiful men... -
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![Buried Bones by Melinda Leigh]()
Buried Bones by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA college student’s murder shines light on community secrets left in the dark in the seventh Widow’s Island novella by #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh.All communities have their secrets…but on Widow’s Island, there’s a skeleton in every closet, as Deputy Tessa Black knows all too well... -
![Black Moon: MM Romantic Suspense by Elle Keaton]()
Black Moon: MM Romantic Suspense by Elle Keaton
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsOne corpse, two corpse, old corpse, new corpse.Summer is crashing into fall and Mat and Niall have a wedding to overthink.A body is discovered floating in the harbor and this time it's the missing ex-Piedras Marine officer Duane Copper... -
![Rest in Pink by Jennifer Crusie, Bob Mayer]()
Rest in Pink by Jennifer Crusie, Bob Mayer
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFrom the NY Times Bestselling duo that wrote Agnes and the Hitman, the second book in a new series.Liz Danger is a ghostwriter, trapped in her old hometown for the summer... -
![Dirty Devil by Liliana Hart]()
Dirty Devil by Liliana Hart
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA series of bizarre murders that are seemingly unrelated turn out to be the work of a serial killer in the newest installment of the New York Times bestselling J.J. Graves Mystery Series.Coroner J.J. Graves and Jack Lawson investigate the murder of a victim who got exactly what he deserved. But justice is blind, and they have to put their personal feelings aside to hunt a ruthless killer... -
![Hopelessly Devoted: by Bink Cummings]()
Hopelessly Devoted: by Bink Cummings
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMust read: Hopelessly Shattered & Hopeful Whispers previously. Pregnant- ✔ Deaths - ✔ A Baby – ✔ Stress that could make even the strongest woman crack – ✔ ✔ A year ago if you told me I’d wind up where I am today, I’d have you committed for insanity... -
![Sin's Enticement by Ciara St. James]()
Sin's Enticement by Ciara St. James
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAfter years of serving his country, Sin reclaims his life and forms the Ares Infidels MC, with like-minded military brothers. They decide his home town of Tenillo, Texas is the perfect place to build their futures. By forming a club where they get to make the rules and determine what orders to follow... -
![Espresso and Evil by Agatha Frost]()
Espresso and Evil by Agatha Frost
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe 6th book in the BESTSELLING Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery series!When a coffee shop opens in the village, Julia is surprised when her customers flock to the new business, leaving her café almost empty... -
![Blazing Summer by Denise Grover Swank]()
Blazing Summer by Denise Grover Swank
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSummer Butler is killing it in the ratings—and all of America is tuning in as New York Times bestselling author Denise Grover Swank greenlights a new season of TV’s hottest sleuth… Summer Butler had no idea that Darling Investigations would be such a smash. But ratings don’t lie—fans love watching the former star solve real-life crimes in her hometown... -
![Burned by Her Devotion by Melinda Leigh]()
Burned by Her Devotion by Melinda Leigh
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn the second Rogue Vows novella, the town of Solitude, Oregon, will learn that good TV makes for terrible reality. When Chase Ryan, a popular crime TV star, turns up dead, the entire town of Solitude is shaken—but the show isn’t over yet. The confessed murderer is violently abducted on the way to the county jail, and now Detective Seth Harding must find both the killer and the kidnapper... -
![Corruptor's Claim by K. Loraine, Meg Anne]()
Corruptor's Claim by K. Loraine, Meg Anne
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsI’m in love with my brother’s wife.When River came back, I thought I’d gotten a second chance to make her mine. I had Mama’s ring ready and everything. Until the moment I found out she was already married–to Cross.On paper, it’s a good thing, especially since the head of the Russian Bratva has her in his sights...Categorized as:
suspense crime forced-proximity organized-crime billionaire romance western reverse-harem -
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![Real Good Love by Meghan March]()
Real Good Love by Meghan March
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsFrom USA Today bestselling author Meghan March comes a sexy new duet with a hero you won't want to miss. I’ve had my fair share of bad boys, but nothing prepared me for what it was like to be with a real good man. Logan Brantley changed everything. Somewhere along the way, what started as a fling became the best part of my life... -
![Dirty Money by Liliana Hart]()
Dirty Money by Liliana Hart
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen the past meets the present… King George County, Virginia has it’s share of crime, but it’s generally a good place to live and raise a family. So when a string of violent murders sweeps through the county, J.J. Graves and her husband, Sheriff Jack Lawson, are left scratching their heads. It’s soon discovered all the victims have a connection—Malachi Graves—J.J.’s father... -
![A Dirty Job by Liliana Hart]()
A Dirty Job by Liliana Hart
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA new chapter begins...J.J. Graves is trying to put the wounds caused by her father behind her. She and Jack have a shot at peace for the first time in their marriage, and it's new territory for them.A mortuary convention on a South Carolina island has J.J. and Jack combining work with pleasure... -
![Guilty as Sin by Rosalind James]()
Guilty as Sin by Rosalind James
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThere are secrets. There are guilty secrets. And then there's switching places with your twin. Paige Hollander and her identical twin Lily stopped switching places a decade ago. But Lily's run into trouble, and Paige is on leave from the SFPD, recovering from a traumatic shooting. It's not like she has anything better to do, and she remembers how to be feminine. Sort of... -
![Jason by Nyssa Kathryn]()
Jason by Nyssa Kathryn
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsDanger throws them together. Attraction keeps them from parting. Having lost her best friend, Courtney Davies lives every day like it's her last. Because if life has taught her anything, it's that some are cut far too short without warning. So when sexy former soldier Jason moves to Cradle Mountain, she shouldn't hesitate to express her immediate interest... -
![Marshal by Jodi Burnett]()
Marshal by Jodi Burnett
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe U.S. Marshals service seeks a K9 Unit for their elite strike team tasked with hunting down America's most wanted criminals. Caitlyn Reed and her K9 partner, Renegade, are called up to the varsity to face this harrowing challenge. Has she bitten off more than she can handle?Moose Creek Sheriff Colt Branson finds himself in the foray as a part of the U.S...
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