Clare Mackintosh Books Novels & Stories

I spent years trying to be the perfect wife. I swallowed the insults. Excused the betrayal. Gave up my dreams because I was told they didn't matter. Convinced myself that I was the problem. Then one day, something inside me broke. I thought leaving would end my misery. Instead, it dragged me into a mess I never saw coming. The husband who never appreciated me suddenly refuses to let me go. The man who should have been nothing more than a stranger keeps finding his way into my life, looking at me like I’m the one thing he is determined to have. One is desperate to reclaim what he lost. The other wants me for all the wrong reasons. But after years of living for everyone else, I've made one promise to myself: I will never lose who I am for love again. And if they want a war? They'll have to fight it without me.

On one mid-autumn day, my national classified mission finally came to an end. I dug out the phone I hadn't touched for four years, planning to call my wife, Nora Christie, and tell her that I'd be coming home. But the moment my phone screen lit up, I saw a public court notice declaring me… dead. I froze. Then, I looked closer. The person who had filed the petition to have me legally declared dead was Nora. Frowning with confusion, I dialed her number. With a soft chuckle, she brushed it off, saying that it must have been a clerical error by some court intern. Then, she asked when I would be coming home. Just when I was about to answer, I heard a soft, restrained moan from Nora. "Ah, don't touch me there…" Realizing something wasn't right, I told her that I would be back in a few more years before hanging up. Then, I grabbed the medal I had earned from four years of service to my country, and took the next train home. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw when I arrived. Right outside my front door, Nora was holding a wedding ceremony. The groom was Henry Crowley, the poor student I had sponsored!

As the reigning eight-time champion of the transmigration department, I'm deeply traumatized by the idea of having fight with the fake heiress. Unfortunately, not only is there an 18-year-old fake heiress in my family of this world, but she also has eight older siblings who dote on her endlessly. Seriously, the stereotypical real versus fake heiress plot is driving me crazy. I retreat into the depths of my mom's womb immediately, my tiny hands clamping down on the umbilical cord. My refusal to leave my mom's body is absolute. [Those idiotic brothers of mine keep spoiling that 18-year-old extremely childish fake heiress who insists on sitting in a baby trolley all the time! If I were to leave this place, I'd definitely get assassinated by them!] My mom, who can hear my internal thoughts, is forced to suffer due to the complications in her labor for 72 hours straight. Finally, she yields to me by signing the "Zero-Tolerance Treaty on Unequal Treatment". She also assigns 108 bodyguards to me overnight. Satisfied, I finally release my hold on the umbilical cord and make my flashy entrance to this world. Mom taps me on my forehead. "Natalie is extremely pure and innocent. She would never come up with ways to hurt you." On the first day I go home, Natalie Fairchild, the fake heiress, pushes my crib toward the staircase on purpose. "I wanna see if Nev can fly!" A bodyguard instantly reaches out to catch my crib from coursing through the air. Scared out of her wits, Natalie slumps to the floor immediately. There, she starts crying like a baby. My second brother, Elliot Fairchild, pulls her into his arms lovingly. He says reassuringly, "Don't be scared, Nat. The bodyguard must have frightened you because of his actions, right? Now, now, you can stop crying now. Nev is fine, isn't she?" The next thing he knows, he gets tossed into the heavy downpour by another bodyguard.

She was meant to sell books. Not steal a billionaire’s broken heart. Julian Blackwood is a man of power, wealth, and secrets—his name synonymous with control and cold precision. Since the death of his wife, he’s locked love away and drowned his pain in one-night distractions. No strings. No vulnerability. No heart. Then he walks into a small, struggling bookstore—and meets her. Lena Carter is soft-spoken and stubborn, running a little shop that smells like vanilla and paperbacks, where his daughter finds comfort... and where he begins to unravel. Her kindness disarms him. Her touch ignites something wild. And her innocence? It drives him insane. He tells himself it’s wrong. He’s too broken. Too dangerous. But temptation doesn't ask for permission. And once their lips meet, there’s no going back. He’s the fire she never meant to play with. She’s the quiet he never knew he craved. Together, they’ll burn down every rule they thought they had.

Everyone cheered on the most handsome student in our elective class, Jack Anderson, to reveal his ideal type. “My future wife has to be at least five feet five inches tall, and her parents must be professors. She also has to be beautiful and a top student in her field…” While everyone cheered, I immediately looked up. Why did the description… sound like my girlfriend, Cindy Swift? The next second, the professor standing next to the podium, Liam Swift, immediately smiled obsequiously. “That’s great! If Cindy hears this, she’ll be very happy! “You should meet her so that she wouldn’t go overseas over some silly guy.” Our classmates were roaring with laughter. I lowered my eyes and stared at the text message my parents had sent me. [You rascal! Are you sure you want to accompany your girlfriend overseas? No one will take over our family business, then!]

Three years ago, Avery Thorne married Julian Sterling for love. Today, she found out she was actually a human blood bank. While Avery sat in a hospital bed, Julian was busy transferring her patents, her fortune, and her very name to his mistress, Sarah. By the time the divorce papers were signed, the legal system no longer recognized Avery’s face. To the world, she is a delusional stalker named Sarah Vance. To Julian, she is a loose end that needs to be buried. Arrested and erased from her own life, Avery is left with nothing but fifty dollars and the knowledge of every security flaw in the empire she built. But Julian made one fatal mistake: he left her alive. From the shadows of the city she once owned, Avery begins a cold and calculated war. She isn't just coming back for her money or her company—she is coming back for her soul. And this time, she won't be the one bleeding.

Clarkson Roberts is America's youngest shipping billionaire tycoon, ruling his empire with ruthless efficiency. The world views him as immovable, unstoppable—yet behind the button-down collars and billion-dollar deals lies a man tangled in secrets. Jonah Jones is a brilliant marine architect with intransigent principles and a wall of debt. Assigned to revamp Clarkson's private yacht fleet, Jonah sees trouble ahead with his impossible new boss—but not lust. What begins as a sparring over ship designs and price tags quickly ignites into a dangerous passion. But when corporate scandals, shareholder intimidation, and past treachery are thrown into the mix, Clarkson and Jonah must decide: can their love be strong enough to weather a storm that could consume them both?

‘I always thought my wedding - should I ever have one - would be elegant and beautiful, filled with joy and laughter. And whilst this wedding was elegant, it wasn't really mine.’ ~ Dante Rizzo made a big mistake, leading to his rival wanting payback years later in the form of a trophy wife. Out of his four daughters, Rizzo only had the choice of two: an elegant dress-maker or a naive girl who could hardly get a sentence out. But on the day of the wedding, the dress-maker backs out, leaving a new set of options for Rizzo. With the pressure of his rival breathing down his neck, he makes a split decision to switch daughters, and there’s nothing she can do about it.

Ethan Cole built an empire on two things,a ruthless precision and zero tolerance for failure. In four years as CEO of Cole Tech Enterprises, he's gone through nineteen assistants. Some lasted weeks. Most didn't survive the first. Then came Lily. No Ivy League degree. No polished resume. Just hotel management experience, nervous hands, and a habit of knocking things over at the worst possible moments. She was every reason he should've said no. He hired her anyway. And then she did something none of the others ever did She stayed. Not because she was perfect. But because every time he pushed, she pushed back harder. Every time he expected her to break, she showed up the next morning like the argument never happened. He told himself it was impressive in a clinical sense. Useful, even. He told himself he was keeping her around because firing her would be inconvenient. He told himself a lot of things. But Ethan Cole didn't build a billiondollar company by lying to himself and lately, every time Lily walks into a room, the lies are getting harder to hold. She isn't what he planned for. She isn't what he'd ever allow. And she's becoming the one thing he can't control. Now all he wants... is her

Hazel's bloodline is considered cursed anywhere her father has trekked before. Her surname is well-known, even if her face isn't, and when everyone is so scared of your family that you don't even have the chance to change their minds, life becomes lonely. It is a minor additional inconvenience that Hazel is also human, only perpetuating the stigma around her family more. When she ends up in unfamiliar territory searching for a world in which no one knows her, she comes across the exact opposite and is captured by a group of wolves belonging to a large pack. What she finds in the pack is a beautiful alpha with an eye for her, destined for her by the Moon Goddess's wise hand... ... but also a man hell-bent on making sure she does not fall into making the same mistakes as her infamous sister.