73 books like Deliver Me

By Ashley Hawthorne,

Here are 73 books that Deliver Me fans have personally recommended if you like Deliver Me. Shepherd is a community of 10,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

Katrina Kwan Author Of Knives, Seasoning, & A Dash of Love

From my list on romance that will make you believe in true love.

Why am I passionate about this?

Prior to writing my own works of fiction, I actually worked for several years as a romance ghostwriter. I’ve worked for many clients under various pseudonyms, and many of these titles have gone on to the Amazon Top 100 list (I just can’t tell you which one because I signed an NDA). I think that romance as a genre can be a wonderfully cathartic and escapist experience, allowing us the opportunity to swoon, pine, and giddily indulge in the joy of what it’s like to fall in love over and over again. 

Katrina's book list on romance that will make you believe in true love

Katrina Kwan Why did Katrina love this book?

A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon is a laugh-out-loud read with just enough spice and tension to get you squirming in your seat.

I adore the grumpy x sunshine dynamic between the two leads, Mariel (the witch who accidentally summoned the demon) and Ozroth (the aforementioned demon who wants Mariel’s soul). This is a fun, delightful, and heartwarming paranormal romance with great stakes and plenty of shenanigans. If this unlikely pair is able to find love, then so can you!

By Sarah Hawley,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Mariel Spark knows not to trust a demon, especially one that wants her soul, but what’s a witch to do when he won’t leave her side—and she kind of doesn’t want him to?

Mariel Spark is prophesied to be the most powerful witch seen in centuries of the famed Spark family, but to the displeasure of her mother, she prefers baking to brewing potions and gardening to casting hexes. When a spell to summon flour goes very wrong, Mariel finds herself staring down a demon—one she inadvertently summoned for a soul bargain.

Ozroth the Ruthless is a legend among demons.…


Book cover of Forget Me Not

Katrina Kwan Author Of Knives, Seasoning, & A Dash of Love

From my list on romance that will make you believe in true love.

Why am I passionate about this?

Prior to writing my own works of fiction, I actually worked for several years as a romance ghostwriter. I’ve worked for many clients under various pseudonyms, and many of these titles have gone on to the Amazon Top 100 list (I just can’t tell you which one because I signed an NDA). I think that romance as a genre can be a wonderfully cathartic and escapist experience, allowing us the opportunity to swoon, pine, and giddily indulge in the joy of what it’s like to fall in love over and over again. 

Katrina's book list on romance that will make you believe in true love

Katrina Kwan Why did Katrina love this book?

I believe in second chances. That’s why Forget Me Not is one of my favorite romance reads of the year!

Ama Torres is a wedding planner who (ironically) doesn’t believe in marriage. This may or may not be the reason why handsome and brooding florist Elliot Bloom seems so distant and broken-hearted. They were an item—until something went terribly wrong!

This is a swoon-worthy read with snappy banter and plenty of spice. Watching these two fall in love all over again is sweet enough to give me cavities.

By Julie Soto,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Forget Me Not as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A wedding planner and her grumpy ex must work together to plan a celebrity event in this deliciously spicy and funny novel from Ali Hazelwood's "favorite writer." 

Ama Torres is an optimistic wedding planner who doesn’t believe in marriage. But weddings? They’re amazing. Elliot Bloom is a brooding florist who hates owning a flower shop…until a certain bright-eyed, donut-loving workaholic shows up at his door.

Once upon a time, they collaborated on events by day, and by night, Ama traced the intricate flower tattoos etched along his body. Then Ama shattered his heart and never spoke to Elliot again.    

Now…


Book cover of We'd Know by Then

Katrina Kwan Author Of Knives, Seasoning, & A Dash of Love

From my list on romance that will make you believe in true love.

Why am I passionate about this?

Prior to writing my own works of fiction, I actually worked for several years as a romance ghostwriter. I’ve worked for many clients under various pseudonyms, and many of these titles have gone on to the Amazon Top 100 list (I just can’t tell you which one because I signed an NDA). I think that romance as a genre can be a wonderfully cathartic and escapist experience, allowing us the opportunity to swoon, pine, and giddily indulge in the joy of what it’s like to fall in love over and over again. 

Katrina's book list on romance that will make you believe in true love

Katrina Kwan Why did Katrina love this book?

This one will break your heart. It’s more of a romantic tragedy, but I think there’s something wonderful in near-miss romances because it helps you appreciate what you have, when you have it.

In a monochrome world, you can only see color once you’ve met your soulmate. The problem is that the main character, Brighton Evans, has been able to see color since forever—so who on earth is her soulmate and how will she ever be able to tell? We’d Know by Then is without a doubt a tearjerker, so prepare yourselves!

By Kirsten Bohling,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked We'd Know by Then as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Fans of bittersweet titles by Colleen Hoover and Jojo Moyes will have you invested in Brighton and Cain's journey from the first page to the last.

In a monochrome world, Brighton Evans is a splash of brilliant color.

She can see the world in its true, kaleidoscopic form-a privilege reserved for soulmates only after they've found their other halves.

Knowing your soulmate when they come along should be easy, but Brighton can't remember a time when she hasn't seen in color. The past has her convinced that life is safer this way; she doesn't need a soulmate.

When Brighton meets…


Book cover of Playing For Keeps

Katrina Kwan Author Of Knives, Seasoning, & A Dash of Love

From my list on romance that will make you believe in true love.

Why am I passionate about this?

Prior to writing my own works of fiction, I actually worked for several years as a romance ghostwriter. I’ve worked for many clients under various pseudonyms, and many of these titles have gone on to the Amazon Top 100 list (I just can’t tell you which one because I signed an NDA). I think that romance as a genre can be a wonderfully cathartic and escapist experience, allowing us the opportunity to swoon, pine, and giddily indulge in the joy of what it’s like to fall in love over and over again. 

Katrina's book list on romance that will make you believe in true love

Katrina Kwan Why did Katrina love this book?

Now, for a light-hearted, fun, and breezy romance! Who doesn’t love plus-sized rep, a grumpy workaholic love interest, and cozy board games to keep things interesting?

Playing For Keeps by Tristen Crone is definitely one of my favorite comfort reads. If you’re ever in a slump, this feel-good romance is a great palate cleanser—just like the honey lemon twice-baked croissant the two main characters fight over in their adorable and memorable meet-cute!


Book cover of 1960s Austin Gangsters: Organized Crime That Rocked the Capital

Scott Montgomery Author Of Austin Noir

From my list on crime with a whole lot of Texas.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have spent over twenty years over (fifteen in Texas) recommending crime fiction as a bookseller in a couple of prominent stores. Texas and its writers have always fascinated me. Now that I get to call myself one, I am connected more to the genre literature of my adopted state and have an insider's view as both writer and resident.

Scott's book list on crime with a whole lot of Texas

Scott Montgomery Why did Scott love this book?

This coverage of the crime wave of the Overton gang who burgled, pimped, and committed various crimes up and down I-35 is nonfiction, but hard to believe at times.

The story paints vivid time in Austin with a supporting cast of colorful lawyers, madams, and even UT Tower sniper Charles Whitman. Jesse Sublett, author, musician, painter, journalist, and photographer is basically as close as Austin has to royalty and portrays the events in a rock n’ roll style.

I’d also recommend Jesse’s fiction series staring bass player and skip tracer Martin Fender.

By Jesse Sublett,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 1960s Austin Gangsters as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Timmy Overton of Austin and Jerry Ray James of Odessa were football stars who traded athletics for lives of crime. The original rebels without causes, nihilists with Cadillacs and Elvis hair, the Overton gang and their associates formed a ragtag white trash mafia that bedazzled Austin law enforcement for most of the 1960s. Tied into a loose network of crooked lawyers, pimps and used car dealers who became known as the "traveling criminals," they burglarized banks and ran smuggling and prostitution rings all over Texas. Author Jesse Sublett presents a detailed account of these Austin miscreants, who rose to folk…


Book cover of A Likeable Woman

Suzy Spencer Author Of The Fortune Hunter

From my list on money-loving, murdering Texans.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve written four true crime books about Texas murders. The first, Wasted, was about the murder of a rich lesbian in Austin, Texas. It was a New York Times bestseller. My last, The Fortune Hunter, was about the murder of a multi-millionaire media mogul. It was the basis of the Lifetime TV movie Secrets of a Gold Digger Killer. I have since started writing memoir. Secret Sex Lives: A Year on the Fringes of American Sexuality was about my journalistic exploration into the worlds of alternative sex practices, written through my uptight, prudish Texan, wide-opened eyes. It was featured on Katie Couric’s talk show, Katie.

Suzy's book list on money-loving, murdering Texans

Suzy Spencer Why did Suzy love this book?

After reading a lot of true crime, I need a break from reality. That’s when I escape into murderous thrillers by May Cobb, an author many people call the Jackie Collins of Texas.

Whereas Jackie wrote about the glamorous and cosmopolitan, May writes about the small-town scions of East Texas, who think they’re glamorous and cosmopolitan.

A Likeable Woman, which comes out July 11, 2023, revolves around Kira, who has believed since she was 12 years old that her mother was murdered. Everyone else in Longview, Texas, including her grandmother and sister, knows that Sadie Foster committed suicide.

Decades later, Kira learns that her grandmother holds an unpublished memoir written by Sadie that indicates Kira might have been right all along.

A Likeable Woman contains everything that drives my writing passions—murder, memoir, and East Texas—and reads at breakneck speed. 

By May Cobb,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Likeable Woman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Kira’s back in her affluent hometown for the first time in years and determined to unravel the secrets of her mother’s death--hidden in the unpublished memoir she left behind-- even if it kills her. . . .

After her troublemaker mother’s mysterious death, Kira fled her wealthy Texas town and never looked back. Now, decades later, Kira is invited to an old frenemy’s vow renewal celebration Though she is reluctant to go, there are things pulling her home. . . like chilled wine and days spent by the pool . . . like her sexy teenage crush, Jack. But more…


Book cover of The Last Death of Jack Harbin

Linda Howe-Steiger Author Of Terroir: A Morgan Kendall Wine Country Mystery

From my list on cozy mysteries that have a secondary ethical theme.

Why am I passionate about this?

Born in Ohio, transplanted to Northern California, I’ve played many roles in life, including college teacher, environmental writer, urban planner, political activist, and mom. In the evening, when my body aches with tiredness, but my brain won’t stop churning on whatever subject I wrestled with that day, I love a good but “meaty” little cozy—one with a clever puzzle, something to make me smile, and a secondary theme that goes a bit into an important, really engaging topic. Then I snuggle down and enjoy my kind of decompression reading. After retirement, I started to write my own “cozies plus.” I hope you enjoy my picks.  

Linda's book list on cozy mysteries that have a secondary ethical theme

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did Linda love this book?

Shames’s fiction should be better known.

This book wasn’t what I expected, given its set-up in a small west Texas town filled with testosterone-laced popular imagery of today—a fundamentalist cult smelling of illicit sex, anti-feminism, and gun show economics; bored adults insanely consumed by high-school football rivalries; a chain-rattling motorcycle crowd; and far too many sour, flag-waving vets.

Take your pick about important themes to follow in this well-crafted cozy featuring Sam Craddock. Sam is asked to stand in as policeman while the one local cop dries out. He’s cranky, flawed but likable, persistent, competent.

The puzzle mysteries are tricky enough to be interesting, no overwhelming thriller-type fight scenes or chases. I thoroughly enjoyed this surprisingly gentle read. 

By Terry Shames,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Last Death of Jack Harbin as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Small town mystery and veteran's issues collide as retired police chief Samuel Craddock investigates a murder. Right before the outbreak of the Gulf War, two eighteen-year-old football stars and best friends from Jarrett Creek signed up for the army. Woody Patterson was rejected and stayed home to marry the girl they both loved, while Jack Harbin came back from the war badly damaged. The men haven't spoken since. Just as they are about to reconcile, Jack is brutally murdered. With the chief of police out of commission, trusted ex-chief Samuel Craddock steps in--again. Against the backdrop of small-town loyalties and…


Book cover of The Time It Never Rained

Candace Simar Author Of Follow Whiskey Creek

From my list on historical stories with great character development.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve always liked to imagine how things might have been. In my thinking, a good historical novel is a story set inside the larger world of the time, like a nesting doll with a story inside a story. I look for accurate research, well-developed characters, a unique storyline, and dialogue that comes alive on the page. I expect the history to be a backdrop for a story of ordinary people living through extraordinary times. This is what I like to read and how I have written my novels set during the Civil War, Great Sioux Uprising of 1862, and the home front of World War 2.

Candace's book list on historical stories with great character development

Candace Simar Why did Candace love this book?

The Time It Never Rained tells the grim battle between ranchers and drought in 1950s western Texas.

I grew up on a small Minnesota farm and remember my father’s struggle to keep the farm going, but at least he never faced a seven-year drought. A stubborn rancher who reminded me of my father, refuses to give in or ask for help.

I especially liked the secondary story of illegal immigrants, attitudes of ranchers toward the Feds tasked with arresting and deporting them, and the government programs that backfired in the end. It’s an excellent read that left me thankful for every drop of rain and blade of green grass. Its lessons of racism and kindness are pertinent to today’s world.

By Elmer Kelton,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Time It Never Rained as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the 1950s, West Texas suffered the longest drought in the memory of most men then living. By that time, Charlie Flagg, the central character of this novel, was one of a dying breed of men who wrested their living from the harsh land of West Texas. The struggle made them fiercely independent, a trait personified in Charlie’s persistence throughout the seven dry years, his refusal to accept defeat, his opposition to federal aid programs and their inevitable bureaucratic regulations, his determination to stay on the land he loves and respects even as he suffers with that land. Charlie is…


Book cover of 6000 Miles of Fence

Mark Mitten Author Of Sipping Whiskey in a Shallow Grave

From my list on the Old West from people who lived in the Old West.

Why am I passionate about this?

Born in Texas, raised in Colorado, I’ve always had one foot in the working cowboy world and the other in the Rocky Mountains. I’m a member of the Western Writers of America, and I’ve summited all 54 fourteen-thousand foot peaks in Colorado. For a number of years, I worked with horses at a therapeutic riding center, as a barn manager. After that, I worked as an equine veterinary assistant, driving around with the vet in a pickup truck to doctor horses. Following that, I pursued the arts. Over the years, I’ve recorded and performed western/folk music (find me on Bandcamp), acted in western films (check my YouTube channel), and written western novels (Sunbury Press/Milford House).

Mark's book list on the Old West from people who lived in the Old West

Mark Mitten Why did Mark love this book?

In 1886, the XIT became the largest cattle brand in Texas. They ran 150,000 head of cattle on three million acres—that’s most of the Texas Panhandle. The author, Cordia Duke, was married to one of the division managers. Over the years, she asked the cowboys to write down their memories and experiences, which she eventually published. For me, as a western author, these stories were (and still are) vital for authenticity, and I keep going back for inspiration. The cowboys’ voices are crystal clear, and we get to read firsthand descriptions of cattle roundups, branding, prairie fires, rustlers, fine cowhorses (good horses), spoilt gotch-eared outlaws (bad horses), and even a recipe for “son-of-a-gun stew,” straight from the mouth of a chuckwagon cook.

By Cordia Sloan Duke, Joe B. Frantz,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 6000 Miles of Fence as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The fabulous XIT Ranch has been celebrated in song, story, and serious history. This book of reminiscences of old XIT cowmen puts on record the everyday life of the individuals who made the ranch run. Their forthright, yet picturesque, discussion of ranching hardships and dangers dissipates Hollywood and TV glamorizing. They relate in honest cowboy language what actually happened inside the XlT's 6,000 miles of fence. Cordia Sloan Duke, wife of an XIT division manager, Robert L. Duke, many years ago realized that only those who had experienced ranch life could depict it with deep understanding. As the young wife…


Book cover of The First Days

Daniel Cotton Author Of Life Among The Dead

From my list on the end of the world and being the last person on earth.

Why am I passionate about this?

What would I do if I was the last person on Earth? I have wondered this since I was a child after watching apocalyptic movies; Damnation Alley, Night of the Comet, and of course the Romero Living Dead movies. Would I be able to make it? Could I not only survive but contend with whatever menaces there were to face be they aliens, monsters, the living dead, or the actual living. My imagination would run loose, putting myself in the shoes of the characters to see how I’d fare, what would I do differently. These little escapes grew and matured into my own stories.

Daniel's book list on the end of the world and being the last person on earth

Daniel Cotton Why did Daniel love this book?

This book captures the horror of a sudden onset of the end of days. Zombies are suddenly real and rising all over as two badass female characters unite to survive. As a writer of zombie fiction, I am very choosey, often I find myself Monday morning quarterbacking the choices characters make when I read or watch them, this one impressed me.

By Rhiannon Frater,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The First Days as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Rhiannon Frater's As the World Dies trilogy is an internet sensation. The first two books, The First Days and Fighting to Survive, have won the Dead Letter Award for Best Novel from Mail Order Zombie. The First Days was named one of the Best Zombie Books of the Decade by the Harrisburg Book Examiner. AmericanHorrorBlog calls Rhiannon Frater "a writer to watch."

The morning that the world ends, Katie is getting ready for court and housewife Jenni is taking care of her family. Less than two hours later, they are fleeing for their lives from a zombie horde.

Thrown together…


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