Books like Bad Influence by Susanne McCarthy

Twenty‑five year‑old Belly Conklin returns to the family summer home on the coast, where a cancer diagnosis forces her to confront love, loss, and growing up amid the familiar rhythm of beach life.

When five Bayview High students gather for detention, one is murdered in a shocking twist of betrayal. With secrets, motives, and a hidden app, the mystery forces the four remaining classmates to confront lies and uncover the truth.

High‑school juniors Spencer, Aria, Emily and Hanna keep both petty secrets and a darker one: the disappearance of their friend Alison, which threatens to unravel their lives and friendships.

15‑year‑old Janie Johnson discovers a missing girl’s picture on a milk carton and faces a moral dilemma between loyalty and doing what’s right.

A tense romance unfolds when Lacey Tyrell is stolen by her stepfather Jon Parrish to protect her from scandal, only to spark a forbidden attraction that threatens to unravel both their lives.

Maggie Concannon, gifted Irish glass designer, lives in seclusion with her late father’s memories and her sister. A visionary gallery owner invites her to international markets, sparking a passionate, career‑driven romance set against the windswept hills of County Clare.

Jessica, a former lingerie model, tries to save McGill Construction while navigating a complicated relationship with Chief Engineer Sam Ryder.

Ros, tempered by past heartbreak, keeps her heart guarded until the dazzling rocks‑star Jordan Griffin enters her life, challenging her self‑protection and rekindling hope.

A contemporary romance that follows Joan Somers as she navigates a career resignation and the surprising demands of her boss, Brandt, forcing her to re-evaluate her personal and professional priorities.

When soap‑opera writer Bess McNee is sent to jail, she uses the experience to write about a New York detective, leading to a risky romance and a clash of careers.

A smart, beautiful geologist hides a secret that pulls a corporate investigator into a passionate and risky romance.

Executive Trenton St. James III seeks to purchase his dream house in Maine, only to clash—and then fall for—Catherine “C. C.” Calhoun, a spirited businesswoman defending her family’s historic estate.

When treasure hunters pursue fabled emeralds at the Calhoun home, Lilah Calhoun meets professor Maxwell Quartermain—whose past expertise and quiet presence will both reveal secrets and stir her heart.

When Samantha Kingston suddenly dies, she wakes to the uncanny ability to relive her final day seven times over. Each repetition reveals new twists that force her to re‑evaluate friendships, love, and the choices she prized most.

After her husband’s death, widowed mother Rachel returns to the Highland village of Gandiegow to honor her late husband’s grandfather and finds a romantic second chance with an old flame.

Graduate student Ashley Davison and former army intelligence officer Dashiell Tyler are forced to share a cramped car from San Francisco to Seattle during the holiday season, where a series of misadventures sparks an unexpected romance.

Rachel knew what she wanted next Now at the top of her profession as a TV host, she was ready for a husband and family. Unfortunately, self-made London golden boy Nick Farlowe wasn't about to be tied down. Oh, his kisses were excitingly different and he showed her good times--but permanence wasn't a word in his vocabulary. So the choice was Rachel's. The simple contentment of being a wife and mother--or loving Nick. And that meant throwing a lifetime's caution--and dreams--to the wind.

When a dead girl’s twin takes her place, a chilling game of deception and murder unfolds as the living sister hunts the killer hiding in plain sight.

After a romantic rejection, Jake Taverner storms into a scheme of blackmail and seduction, luring Mercedes Alcolar into a fake engagement that leads to one month of passionate romance.

"When Rory Macintosh's roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they'll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job...unbeknownst to Rory. Tyler has told Rory that he's not good enough for her. She's smart, doctor smart, while he's barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can't seem to stay away from her, and even when Rory knows she should push him away, something about him makes it nearly impossible for her to resist--even though her heart is at stake... Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler's broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost.."--

In the sequel to Naughty or Nice, the McBroom sisters face new dangers, broken expectations, and hidden desires—each battling personal secrets that threaten their tight bond.

After her charming husband turns out to be unfaithful, Lynn’s love begins to wane. A chance meeting with the selfless Philip Castle offers her a fresh perspective on loyalty and true affection.

Gracie MacDougal returns to Seagull Point, Virginia, to escape her workaholic lifestyle, only to find her dream bed-and-breakfast house and a formidable southern charm in Kevin Daniels, both threatening to derail her plans.

Liza Lithgow, a celebrity devoted to her sister, thinks she’s escaped the red‑carpet grind, only to find a publisher’s kiss‑and‑tell deal threatens her new start.

Andrea had wanted to confront E. J. Preston, but she had never intended that her protest group kidnap him! Forced into close contact with the international industrial tycoon, she soon realized that he played deadly games -- and that she must set him free. But E. J. blamed her for his imprisonment, and what better way to make Andrea pay than to blackmail her into accompanying him on a business trip to beautiful, mysterious Japan -- the perfect backdrop against which to explore their mutual, magnetic attraction?