Here are 100 books that Beyond The Roses fans have personally recommended if you like
Beyond The Roses.
Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.
Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.
I worked for years as a long-haul flight attendant, and met a lot of people. Some travelling for love, honeymoons, anniversaries, some for medical care, to say goodbye to someone. And some for that bucket list item, because they knew it was their last chance. I’ve always been amazed by the human spirit and its ability to love deeply. And I love romance stories! I have read so many. My favourites are the ones about people and the emotional journeys they go on. So combine the two, and you’ve got heart-wrenching stories that make you realise what’s important, even if they do break your heart in the process.
What I love about LM Fox’s books are that she has spent her life working in the medical profession, and so her stories are accurate and true to life in her depiction of certain topics and issues, and the strength of the human spirit in facing them.
The Bitter Rival follows playboy surgeon, Sebastian Lee, and Isabella, who is a single Mom to Austin, who has autism.
There are beautiful depictions of the relationship between Isabella and Austin in this book, and also the introduction of Sebastian into their lives. As always with LM Fox, there is emotion, steam, drama, and twists and turns on the way to their HEA.
I worked for years as a long-haul flight attendant, and met a lot of people. Some travelling for love, honeymoons, anniversaries, some for medical care, to say goodbye to someone. And some for that bucket list item, because they knew it was their last chance. I’ve always been amazed by the human spirit and its ability to love deeply. And I love romance stories! I have read so many. My favourites are the ones about people and the emotional journeys they go on. So combine the two, and you’ve got heart-wrenching stories that make you realise what’s important, even if they do break your heart in the process.
This book is funny. But it is also sweet and touches on some heavy subjects, such as miscarriage and the butterfly effect it can have on an entire family and the way in which the main character, Eden, a dance instructor, is led very much by her past and the deep hurt it holds.
Eden meets Hunter King, a pro-golfer, and this is where the fun and steam come in! V H Nicolson is Scottish, and the book is based in Scotland and uses local terminology, with a fun glossary at the beginning of each chapter.
I worked for years as a long-haul flight attendant, and met a lot of people. Some travelling for love, honeymoons, anniversaries, some for medical care, to say goodbye to someone. And some for that bucket list item, because they knew it was their last chance. I’ve always been amazed by the human spirit and its ability to love deeply. And I love romance stories! I have read so many. My favourites are the ones about people and the emotional journeys they go on. So combine the two, and you’ve got heart-wrenching stories that make you realise what’s important, even if they do break your heart in the process.
I love Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward's way of weaving a beautiful story that makes you say, 'just one more chapter'.
They always pull you into the story and make you feel like you are there. I often read their books in a day because I can’t put them down.
I love the grumpy-sunshine trope in this book. It was fun and sexy and emotional. There is a hidden and very well-portrayed medical issue for one of the characters, which I felt added so much depth to the book and touched on very real, relatable issues.
I worked for years as a long-haul flight attendant, and met a lot of people. Some travelling for love, honeymoons, anniversaries, some for medical care, to say goodbye to someone. And some for that bucket list item, because they knew it was their last chance. I’ve always been amazed by the human spirit and its ability to love deeply. And I love romance stories! I have read so many. My favourites are the ones about people and the emotional journeys they go on. So combine the two, and you’ve got heart-wrenching stories that make you realise what’s important, even if they do break your heart in the process.
It is a beautiful story about childhood friends, Poppy and Rune, who are fated to be together. But circumstances break them apart, and when teenager Rune returns, Poppy has a secret – she has a terminal diagnosis.
This isn’t strictly a romance because the ending isn’t a traditional happy ever after. But it is bursting with love and all the strength that a gripping love story brings. I loved it.
It’s a book that makes you look at life and feel grateful again. To really remember how powerful we all are and can be when we harness our true meaning of loving ourselves and each other.
It is breathtakingly beautiful and will stay with you a long time after turning the final page.
I grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and have always been fascinated by the Wild West. Native Americans, cowboys, rodeos, settlers, farmers, and the great National Parks of the West. I’ve been fortunate to see Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, Glacier National Park, and many western national monuments. My first elementary school was Sequoyah, named for the great Cherokee who created the Cherokee alphabet. While researching early library methods of transportation, I came across books being delivered by stagecoach in the west. That eventually led me to discover the amazing life of Jackson Sundown. I hope these books on cowboys, buckaroos, and rodeos enchant you and your little ones like they have me.
Who doesn’t want to be a cowboy or cowgirl when they grow up? Avery certainly does. Cowboy Dan will help his campers become true rootin’ tootin’ cowboys. Although Avery tries to dress like a cowboy like the other campers, things aren’t quite right for him. He is allergic to grits and beans, he sneezes around horses, and develops rope burn when is tries his hand at twirling a lasso. But his problems come in real handy when Black Bart appears one night.
Giddyup and gallop right over to read this rootin' tootin' tale of an unlikely cowboy. Avery's at camp, training hard with his horse and his lasso. But he's just not feeling up to the challenge. Then a bully threatens all the campers-and Avery proves his mettle in his own unique way. Kids will love the story's lively language and wildly playful pictures.
I’m a Pushcart-nominated writer of (mostly) young adult and adult horror and suspense. I primarily write about the fear of isolated and sparsely populated places, which makes sense: I grew up in the rural hinterlands of northeast Pennsylvania, steeped in dark cornfields, eerie quiet, and weird characters. I now live in the Philadelphia area with my husband and rescue dog in a creaky, century-old house, giving myself agita about the creepy crawlspace in the basement. I’m the author of two novels: A Misfortune of Lake Monsters (YA horror, July 2024) and The Trajectory of Dreams (adult psychological suspense, 2013).
Horror-themed summer camp for Black queer girls? Yes, I don’t mind if I do!
Reading Ellis’ book is like returning to the summer going into my junior year of high school and the angst and drama of summer camp, only with the addition of woods and crappy cabins where the danger is very real and at least one camp counselor has an agenda that involves her genetic legacy of being the daughter of a convicted serial killer.
Temple, our angry (peer) counselor, is on a mission to find her mother’s corpse, even though she doesn’t buy that her dad actually killed her. The novel gives me a real Friday the 13th vibe, mixed with a tangled family history that rivals Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches series. I can't refuse a complicated family mess, and this has it… a lot!
Read this book while you’re taking a break from a solo hike…
A shocking, spine-chilling YA horror slasher about a girl searching for her dead mother's body at the summer camp that was once her serial killer father's home-perfect for fans of Friday the 13th and White Smoke
Temple Baker knows that evil runs in her blood. Her father is the North Point Killer, an infamous serial killer known for how he marked each of his victims with a brand. He was convicted for murdering 20 people and was the talk of countless true crime blogs for years. Some say he was possessed by a demon. Some say that they never found…
As a kid, I had a lot of experience having a close group of friends… and a lot of experience looking into other groups from the outside. I waded from circle to circle, trying on friendships like some people try on hats. The books I’m recommending represent the best of fictional friend groups—the groups that topped any clique I saw in real life. Reading these books made me feel like an in-kid in the best possible way. Many of the characters remain the absolute coolest people I know, and serve as inspiration for the friend group dynamics I get to explore in my own stories.
Nothing bonds friends quite like climbing a disappearing mountain and ending up stranded on a literal cloud. The Lumberjanesseries takes place at the coolest summer camp ever, which was my ultimate dream as a kid. But in addition to all the tropes we love in a camp story, the series also features magical creatures so charming that they ought to star in their own Pixar movies. Plus, the name of the camp is Miss Qiunzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet’s Camp for Hardcore Lady Types. I mean… best friend group setting ever, or best friend group setting ever?
Welcome to Miss Qiunzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet's Camp for Hardcore Lady Types. The five scouts of Roanoke cabin-Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley-love their summers at camp. They get to hang out with their best friends, earn Lumberjane scout badges, annoy their no-nonsense counselor Jen . . . and go on supernatural adventures. That last one? A pretty normal occurrence at Miss Qiunzella's, where the woods contain endless mysteries.
Today is no exception. When challenge-loving April leads the girls on a hike up the TALLEST mountain they've ever seen, things don't go quite as planned. For one, they didn't…
Both of us grew up in the suburbs, which were honestly kind of boring, especially in the summer—so early on, we turned to books and telling stories to entertain ourselves and others. Susan writes stuff that relies on imagination, fantasy, and creepy stuff—and because she’s kind of immature (what nice people call “a kid at heart”), she also writes a ton of kids’ TV. Laurence’s imagination is more about mysteries and humor—he’s written detective novels and short stories. Writing together is awesome: despite minor differences, we share anxiety, similar senses of humor, and a love of storytelling. In addition to Brain Camp, we wrote the graphic novel City of Spies, as well as the YA dystopian trilogy, Wasteland.
Chiggers is both funny and painful in the way it captures that terrifying turning point of growing up: when your former besties become strangers, when you go out on a limb befriending someone new, and when falling in love complicates everything. (Oh, and it teaches you how to make a friendship bracelet!) Camp was intense for both of us: Laurence went to one where they forced the kids to watch a horror movie and when he tried to cover his face with his sweatshirt, a counselor literally yanked it away. Susan went to Korean-American camp, where everyone was supposed to be learning about their culture, but instead focused on what all kids do: first crushes, ghost stories, and intense friendships and betrayals.
Abby thinks the new girl at summer camp, Shasta, is great because they both like all the same things, but Abby's friends can stand her, leaving Abby in the middle of a tough situation. Simultaneous.
The human mind fascinates me. Perhaps that’s why I got a PhD in Psychology, and have spent decades in the counseling field. That, of course, brought me in touch with all kinds of minds. Why do people do the things they do, make the choices they live with? We learn patterns in childhood that keep us safe. What if those patterns no longer work in adulthood, or worse, were built on false beliefs? Do life’s events shape us or do they merely show who we were all along? In my psychological thrillers, I explore such things. Even the bad guys have their stories.
I love kids. Maybe that’s why a child in peril story pulls me in. I can feel the parents’ desperation and the urgency of the detectives. A book like this shows the terror, without any gore. Not only do we feel for the families, but the detective has her own story and personal demons. The story is full of twists, and you don’t truly know who the bad guy is until the end.
When twelve-year-old Sophie Williams went on a Girl Scout summer camp, she never returned home.
Three months later, her body is found inside her sleeping bag in the most frequented area of Cocoa Beach, and the town is outraged.
The girl isn't just any child. She's the town's most beloved surf idol, and it was believed that she could be the next Kelly Slater.
As another child, the son of a well-known senator is kidnapped, and the parents receive a disturbing video, FBI profiler Eva Rae Thomas — who has just returned to her hometown, divorced and out of a…
Being a petite person, I can’t move furniture by myself or lift heavy boxes. It’s freaking annoying. I dream of having a magic wand or some sort of power that would make me stronger. If there was a potion to turn me into a Buffy the Vampire Slayer, kick-butt type of girl I’d drink it in a second. Since there is no such potion, I write and read books about supernatural girls who don’t take crap from anyone, especially the guys in their lives.
Kylie has always played by the rules. One bad decision sends her to Shadow Falls Camp, a place for troubled teams which isn’t what it seems. Kylie finds herself surrounded by vampires, werewolves, and shifters. Believing they exist is difficult enough, facing the fact that she’s one of them is impossible. Especially when they can’t figure out what she is.
Step into the world of Shadow Falls, a camp that helps teens tap into their special talents. Once you visit, you'll never forget it - and you'll never, ever be the same. One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever. Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls - a camp for troubled teens, but the kids at Shadow Falls are far from ordinary. They're supernatural-learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world. And from the moment Kylie Galen arrives this world…
Interested in
summer camp,
terminal illnesses,
and
ancient Rome?
11,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them.
Browse their picks for the best books about
summer camp,
terminal illnesses,
and
ancient Rome.
