Books like 'If Only'

Readers who enjoyed If Only by Jennifer Gilmore also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

contemporary  realistic  lgbtq  drama  family  literary-fiction

  • Kayla's Trick by Jean Grainger

    Kayla's Trick by Jean Grainger

    Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    ...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  adult  book  contemporary  fiction
  • So Long, Chester Wheeler by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    So Long, Chester Wheeler by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Unlikely road trip companions form an unexpected bond in an uplifting novel about the past—lost and found—by the New York Times and #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author.Lewis Madigan is young, gay, out of work, and getting antsy when he’s roped into providing end-of-life care for his insufferable homophobic neighbor, Chester Wheeler. Lewis doesn’t need the aggravation, just the money...
  • Someone To Love Me by Anne Schraff

    Someone To Love Me by Anne Schraff

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Welcome to Bluford High. This widely acclaimed teen series set in an urban high school features engaging, accessible writing and appealing, contemporary storylines.At first, Bobby Wallace was everything Cindy Gibson hoped for. He was friendly, seemingly mature, and hansome--the perfect escape from her problems in school and even bigger troubles at home...
  • Next to Normal by Brian Yorkey, Tom Kitt

    Next to Normal by Brian Yorkey, Tom Kitt

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    "A brave and breathtaking musical...
  • Where We Belong by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    Where We Belong by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Fourteen-year-old Angie and her mom are poised at the edge of homelessness... again. The problem is her little sister, Sophie. Sophie has an autism-like disorder, and a tendency to shriek. No matter where they live, home never seems to last long. Until they move in with Aunt Vi, across the fence from a huge black Great Dane who changes everything...
  • Le Fils de Mille Hommes by Valter Hugo Mãe

    Le Fils de Mille Hommes by Valter Hugo Mãe

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Crisóstomo, un pêcheur solitaire, décide à quarante ans de prendre son destin en main. Il se construit une famille, puisque l’amour est avant tout la volonté d’aimer. Il choisit un fils en apprivoisant le petit orphelin abandonné par le village, puis une femme au passé tourmenté les rejoint, et autour de ce noyau se forme une famille peu commune de laissés-pour-compte et d’éclopés...
  • When I Fall in Love by Susan May Warren

    When I Fall in Love by Susan May Warren

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Hawaii was the last place Grace Christiansen ever imagined she’d vacation, much less fall in love. But when her family surprises her with a cooking retreat in paradise, she is pulled—or maybe yanked—away from her predictable, safe life and thrown headfirst into the adventure of a lifetime. Max Sharpe may make his living on the ice as a pro hockey player, but he feels most at home in the kitchen...
  • In the End, It Was All About Love by Musa Okwonga

    In the End, It Was All About Love by Musa Okwonga

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    The narrator arrives in Berlin, a place famed for its hedonism, to find peace and maybe love; only to discover that the problems which have long haunted him have arrived there too, and are more present than ever...
  • Tollak til Ingeborg by Tore Renberg

    Tollak til Ingeborg by Tore Renberg

    Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Dei kallar han Tollak til Ingeborg. Den gamle stabukken som bur oppe ved sagplassen. Alle veit at han har gjort ting på sin eigen måte. Alle veit kva han gjorde med dei gutane. Alle veit at ungane hans ikke kjem heim så ofte. Alle veit han tok til seg han dei kalla Oddotosken. Og alle hugsar den gode kona hans, Ingeborg. Men det er noko folk ikkje veit.Det er på tide å fortelje...
  • Spindrift by Anna Burke

    Spindrift by Anna Burke

    Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Can a hot summer fling mend the hearts of two broken women?Morgan Donovan had everything she ever wanted: a dream job as a large animal veterinarian, awesome friends, and a loving and supportive fiancée. But it all comes crashing down when her fiancée dumps her after realizing that Morgan’s job will always come first...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  adult  book  contemporary  fiction  wlw
  • 不便利的便利店 by Kim Ho-yeon, 김호연

    不便利的便利店 by Kim Ho-yeon, 김호연

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    ...
    Categorized as:
    family  drama  fiction  contemporary
  • অপেক্ষা by Humayun Ahmed

    অপেক্ষা by Humayun Ahmed

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    মানুষের জীবন কি চক্রের মত? চক্রের কোন শুরু নেই, শেষ নেই। মানব জীবনও কি তাই? রহস্যময় চক্রের ভেতর এই জীবন ঘুরপাক খেতে থাকে? শুরু নেই, শেষ নেই। চক্র ঘুরছে।এই চক্রের ভেতরে ঘুরপাক খেতে খেতে অপেক্ষা করে কেউ কেউ। কিংবা সকলেই কিসের...
  • Step Up by Monica McKayhan

    Step Up by Monica McKayhan

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Indigo Summer and her boyfriend, Marcus Carter, have stayed solid through plenty of drama. Now Marcus is a senior, and he's already received his acceptance letter from Harvard. Indigo knows how hard he's worked for this chance...
    Categorized as:
    drama  realistic  book  contemporary  fiction  young-adult
  • Be Our Guest by CJ Bishop

    Be Our Guest by CJ Bishop

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Blood is just blood. Family ties are knit in the heart and strengthened by love. With most of whom they consider ‘family’ already right there within their tight-knit circle, the Phoenix couples begin to look beyond that circle and contemplate those from the past who rejected and hurt them. Deep down, Dane longs for reconciliation with his parents...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  adult  book  contemporary  fiction  mlm
  • Heaven Adjacent by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    Heaven Adjacent by Catherine Ryan Hyde

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    From New York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde comes a bittersweet novel about healing old wounds and finding a new place to call home… Roseanna Chaldecott spent her life as a high-powered lawyer in Manhattan. But when her best friend and law partner dies suddenly, something snaps. Unsure of her future, Roseanna heads upstate on one tank of gas and with no plans to return...
  • Bittersweet by Deborah Bladon

    Bittersweet by Deborah Bladon

    Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    My world exploded on my wedding day.A dark-haired, gorgeous stranger objected as I stood at the altar in my long, white gown.He told all of my friends, my family, and my fiancé that he was the man for me.I had no idea who he was, but he offered me an escape I was craving, so I left the church with him.He might have been a little drunk and horribly confused...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  realistic  adult  book  contemporary  fiction
  • Hotlanta by Denene Millner, Mitzi Miller

    Hotlanta by Denene Millner, Mitzi Miller

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    Designer clothes. Gorgeous boys. Family secrets. Major drama. Welcome to Atlanta and the lives of the Duke twins, Sydney and Lauren. They don't call it Hotlanta for nothing! The Duke twins, Sydney and Lauren, live the life: They attend the fanciest school in Atlanta, they live in Buckhead, the most exclusive neighborhood, and they only date the hottest guys...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  realistic  book  contemporary  fiction  poc-mc
  • True Biz by Sara Nović

    True Biz by Sara Nović

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 30 ratings
    TRUE BIZ (adj./exclamation; American Sign Language): really, seriously, definitely, real-talkTrue biz? The students at the River Valley School for the Deaf just want to hook up, pass their history finals, and have politicians, doctors, and their parents stop telling them what to do with their bodies...
  • Si Anak Kuat by Tere Liye

    Si Anak Kuat by Tere Liye

    Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Amelia, si bungsu, anak yang paling kuat. Buku pertama sekaligus terbit terakhir dari Serial Anak-Anak Mamak."Kau anak paling kuat di keluarga ini, Amelia. Bukan kuat secara fisik, tapi kuat dari dalam. Kau adalah anak yang paling teguh hatinya, paling kokoh pemahaman baiknya. Kau menyayangi sekitar, dan sungguh-sungguh mau membantu orang lain...
  • The Eye of the Sheep by Sofie Laguna

    The Eye of the Sheep by Sofie Laguna

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    An alternative cover edition for the ISBN can be found here."Ned was beside me, his messages running easily through him, with space between each one, coming through him like water. He was the go-between, going between the animal kingdom and this one. I watched the waves as they rolled and crashed towards us, one after another, never stopping, always changing...
  • Burlian by Tere Liye

    Burlian by Tere Liye

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Burlian, anak kampung dengan segala keriangan keluarganya. Bercita-cita ingin naik kapal besar keliling dunia. Buku 2, dari Serial Anak2 Mamak. Buku 3, PUKAT terbit Februari 2010, Buku 4, Eliana direncanakan terbit Oktober 2010, Buku 1, Amelia direncanakan terbit Februari 2011...
  • Live for Me by Emma Thomas

    Live for Me by Emma Thomas

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Twenty-seven-year-old Ophelia Lux Taylor is feisty and driven; she also happens to have bipolar disorder. Although she's had her ups and downs, life is good now: she lives with her twin brother, Onyx, and another friend in an artsy community in Cincinnati and is pursuing a master's degree in psychology...
  • 3 stepbrothers by Animallover55

    3 stepbrothers by Animallover55

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Tori lived with her dad and little sister. She never expected to have a stepmother, much less a stepbrother. But whats worse is not only one stepbrother, not two either. No three stepbrothers. But it gets worse, the three boys just happen to be the three triplet sport stars of the school. The same three boys that have gone out with nearly all those girls that wear short short skirts...
  • Fred Gets Dressed by Peter Brown

    Fred Gets Dressed by Peter Brown

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    From a New York Times bestselling author and Caldecott-honor winning artist comes an exuberant illustrated story about playing dress up, having fun, and feeling free.The boy loves to be naked. He romps around his house naked and wild and free. Until he romps into his parents' closet and is inspired to get dressed. First he tries on his dad's clothes, but they don't fit well...
  • O rio que me corta por dentro by Raul Damasceno

    O rio que me corta por dentro by Raul Damasceno

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    "Me leva pra casa..." Em Carrasco, um lugarejo perdido nas entranhas do sertão cearense, corre um rio onde dois meninos gastam suas infâncias em mergulhos. Cícero e Luzimar, amigos inseparáveis, companheiros de aventuras por estas matas acinzentadas...
  • Caitlin's Lucky Charm by Lisa Schroeder

    Caitlin's Lucky Charm by Lisa Schroeder

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Four best friends, one lucky bracelet, and an utterly charming new middle-grade series!Caitlin would stay at summer camp forever if she could. Her new best friends in the world, Hannah, Mia, and Libby are there...
  • The Road Home by Erin Zak

    The Road Home by Erin Zak

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    When she’s passed over for the role of a lifetime, Hollywood actress Gwendolyn Carter is absolutely crushed. That’s when things go from bad to worse. Home to celebrate her dad’s birthday, Gwen discovers her mom is sick and might not have much time left. She stays to help and to repair the emotional rift that has kept them apart for so long...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  adult  book  contemporary  fiction  wlw
  • The Celebrants by Steven Rowley

    The Celebrants by Steven Rowley

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    A Big Chill for our times, celebrating decades-long friendships and promises--especially to ourselves--by the bestselling and beloved author of The Guncle. It's been a minute--or five years--since Jordan Vargas last saw his college friends, and twenty-eight years since their graduation when their adult lives officially began...
  • Invisible Love by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt

    Invisible Love by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt

    Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt is the author of three luminous collections of short stories published by Europa Editions, including the bestselling Most Beautiful Book in the World, and one novel, Three Women in a Mirror...
  • Moga Bonda Disayang Allah by Tere Liye

    Moga Bonda Disayang Allah by Tere Liye

    Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Gelap, Melati hanya melihat gelap. Hitam. Kosong. Tak ada warna…. Senyap! Melati hanya mendengar senyap. Sepi. Sendiri. Tidak ada nada….”Melati, gadis kecil yang berusia 6 tahun. Wajahnya lucu, comel, menyenangkan, namun dia buta dan tuli sejak umurnya 3 tahun. Selama 3 tahun itu dunia Melati gelap, kosong, sepi. Dia tidak mempunyai akses mengenal dunia dan seisinya...
  • The Ones We Choose by Julie Clark

    The Ones We Choose by Julie Clark

    Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Lisa Genova meets 23andMe in this exploration of the genetic and emotional ties that bind, as debut author Julie Clark delivers a compelling read about a young boy desperate to find his place in this world, a mother coming to terms with her own past, and the healing power of forgiveness...
  • We Could Be Rats by Emily R. Austin

    We Could Be Rats by Emily R. Austin

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 7 ratings
    A moving story about two very different sisters, and a love letter to childhood, growing up, and the power of imagination—from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead and Interesting Facts About Space...
  • Los llanos by Federico Falco

    Los llanos by Federico Falco

    Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Finalista del 38.º Premio Herralde de NovelaUna novela sutil que aborda el duelo de una ruptura. Un libro sobre el tiempo que pasa y sobre el llano en el que habita un hombre que cultiva una huerta y mira y recuerda y escribe.«En la ciudad se pierde la noción de las horas del día, del paso del tiempo...
  • Rough Music by Patrick Gale

    Rough Music by Patrick Gale

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Beautifully written and deeply compassionate, Rough Music is a novel of one family at two defining points in time. Seamlessly alternating between the present day and a summer thirty years past, its twin stories unfold at a cottage along the eastern coast of England.Will Pagett receives an unexpected gift on his fortieth birthday, two weeks at a perfect beach house in Cornwall...
  • The Promise: A Passionate Romance by M.V. Kasi

    The Promise: A Passionate Romance by M.V. Kasi

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Two billionaire brothers. Two village belles. A promise. A charade. And falling in love... Vikram and Vishal are the heirs to the well-known Saaho Group fortune. London bred and educated, the handsome brothers are accustomed to a jet-setting lifestyle while they win cutthroat business deals, date beautiful women and spend time with their doting family...
  • War Against the Animals by Paul Russell

    War Against the Animals by Paul Russell

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Cameron Barnes, formerly of New York City, lives in a small town in upstate New York. After having nearly succumbed to AIDS, he's recently regained a measure of his health but his long-term lover has moved away, and Cameron faces the daunting prospect of learning how to live with the idea of a future in mind again...
  • Sea of Tranquillity by Paul Russell

    Sea of Tranquillity by Paul Russell

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Paul Russell's delicately layered, richly textured novels have won him widespread acclaim as one of the finest contemporary American novelists...
  • Five Night Stand by Richard J. Alley

    Five Night Stand by Richard J. Alley

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Legendary jazz pianist Oliver Pleasant finds himself alone at the end of his career, playing his last five shows, hoping the music will draw his estranged family back…Frank Severs, a middle-aged, out-of-work journalist, is at a crossroads as his longtime dreams and marriage grind to a standstill…And piano prodigy Agnes Cassady is desperately grasping for fulfillment before a debilitating disease...
  • Arnco by Ben Muse

    Arnco by Ben Muse

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Jake Brigham, a wildly successful first time author is drowning in the undertow of his newfound success. After years of "winning," he realizes he has only lost--a beloved mother, a marriage, even his ability to create. Eventually, he leaves the demands of New York and returns to a place once close to his heart: Arnco, a dying Georgia mill village...
  • The Redshirt by Corey Sobel

    The Redshirt by Corey Sobel

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Corey Sobel challenges tenacious stereotypes in this compelling debut novel, shedding new light on the hypermasculine world of American football. The Redshirt introduces Miles Furling, a young man who is convinced he was placed on earth to play football. Deep in the closet, he sees the sport as a means of gaining a permanent foothold in a culture that would otherwise reject him...
  • A Life Without Water by Marci Bolden

    A Life Without Water by Marci Bolden

    Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Healing can take a lifetime...Carol Denman divorced her husband over twenty years ago and has never looked back. But on the day before their daughter’s thirtieth birthday, John barges back into Carol’s life with a request that threatens the fragile stability she has built.John Bowman is sick. Very sick. While he still can, he has some amends to make and some promises to fulfill...
  • Cien cuyes by Gustavo Rodríguez

    Cien cuyes by Gustavo Rodríguez

    Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Cuando Eufrasia Vela empieza a trabajar como cuidadora de ancianos, no sospecha que su oficio la llevará a una encrucijada existencial...
  • How to Breathe Underwater by Julie Orringer

    How to Breathe Underwater by Julie Orringer

    Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    In her dazzling first book Julie Orringer dives into the private world of childhood and immerses us in its fears and longings: the jealous friendships and the bitter sibling battles; the parents that row and the boys that won't dance with you. Then, in a voice that is equally tender and compassionate, she reminds us of those rare, exhilarating moments of victory...
  • A Beginner's Guide to Free Fall by Andy Abramowitz

    A Beginner's Guide to Free Fall by Andy Abramowitz

    Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Husbands and wives. Brothers and sisters. Mothers and daughters. Okay, everybody. Hold on tight. Davis Winger has it all. A respected engineer who designs roller coasters in theme parks across the country, he is deeply in love with his wife and has a beautiful young daughter and a happy home. Until an accident strikes on one of his rides. Nothing fatal—except to his career...
  • Learning to Breathe by Karen White

    Learning to Breathe by Karen White

    Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    Brenna O'Brien doesn't believe in happy endings. Not since the love of her life, Pierce McGovern, left her years ago without a word. Now, she leads a quiet life surrounded by her four matchmaking sisters, running a historic movie theater and collecting old wartime letters. But she leaves the letters unopened, preferring to imagine their possibilities rather than risk being disappointed...
  • Virgínia mordida by Jeovanna Vieira

    Virgínia mordida by Jeovanna Vieira

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Ao retratar um relacionamento marcado sobretudo pela violência psicológica, Jeovanna Vieira apresenta uma das estreias mais empolgantes da ficção brasileira.Virgínia é uma carioca convicta radicada em São Paulo, que trabalha como advogada de dia e desfruta da cidade à noite...
    Categorized as:
    lgbtq  drama  fiction  contemporary  romantic-love
  • Missing by Susan Lewis

    Missing by Susan Lewis

    Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    It's an early autumn day like any other as Miles Avery drives his wife, Jacqueline, to the station. There's a smattering of rain in the air, the traffic is in its usual snarl, and the radio's churning out the latest news. Nothing remarkable crops up in conversation, nor do either of them appear anything other than their normal selves. At the station, Miles draws up just past the taxi rank...
  • Baby Brother's Blues by Pearl Cleage

    Baby Brother's Blues by Pearl Cleage

    Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    When Regina Burns married Blue Hamilton, she knew he was no ordinary man. A charismatic R&B singer who gave up his career to assume responsibility for the safety of Atlanta’s West End community, Blue had created an African American urban oasis where crime and violence were virtually nonexistent...
  • Seaside by Terri Blackstock

    Seaside by Terri Blackstock

    Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Sarah Rivers has it all: successful husband, healthy kids, beautiful home, meaningful church work. Corinne, Sarah's sister, struggles to get by. From Web site development to jewelry sales, none of the pies she has her thumb stuck in contains a plum worth pulling.No wonder Corinne envies Sarah. What she doesn't know is how jealous Sarah is of her...
  • Changing Tides by Michael Thomas Ford

    Changing Tides by Michael Thomas Ford

    Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Few authors write about the full spectrum of gay men's lives with as much warmth, honesty, humor, and compassion as Michael Thomas Ford. Now the bestselling author of Last Summer , Looking For It , and Full Circle , delivers a shimmering, heartwarming story of one summer in the lives of three people, of the elusive search for human connection—and the necessity of love...
    Categorized as:
    drama  family  lgbtq  literary-fiction  adult  age-gap  audiobook  book
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