It is often the worst of times that bind us most tightly to those we love. In these darker days, we see the essence of a person.
Here are some great love story that take place during on in the aftermath of a flood.
1. Angel's Walk by Kathleen Creighton Free!
Army Corps of Engineers’ John Campbell Harris has no choice--to save Bakersfield, California, he has to raise the height of the local dam in record time. This will flood the homes and destroy the dreams of many on the river, including Susannah Day whose beloved family home, Angel’s Walk, sits on long-designated lake bottom.
Harris didn’t plan to fall in love with an old-fashioned, stubborn, woman-child and then betray her, but who does? As the El Nino soaked the ground, and the water rose towards Angel's Walk, Harris made a dangerous choice for redemption. Would it be enough?
2. Courting Miss Hattie by Pamela Morsi
The news spread like brush fire through the whole county when widower Ancil Drayton announced his intention to start courting Miss Hattie Colfax. She was certainly spirited and delightfully sweet natured, and she'd managed to run her family farm almost single-handedly. But wasn't a twenty-nine-year-old lady farmer too old to catch a husband?
An Irresistable Suitor.
All his life handsome, black-haired Reed Tyler had worked Miss Hattie's farm--and dreamed of one day settling down on his own piece of land with the pretty young woman he'd sworn to marry. Hattie was someone he could tell his hopes and troubles to--someone he looked on as a sister. So he thought, until the idea of Ancil Drayton calling on her made him seethe. Until the night a brotherly peck became a scorching kiss... and Reed knew nothing would bank the blaze--and that his best friend was the only woman he would ever love.
3. All That Remains by Janice Kay Johnson
Wren Fraser can think of better times to go into labor. Say, when she's not on the run, or when there's a hospital nearby. Better yet, when there's not a major flood trapping her in an abandoned house. She needs a rescue…now!
It arrives in one Alec Harper. Strong, competent and goodlooking, the detective keeps her safe and doesn't leave her side. He even takes in Wren and the baby when they have no place to go.
For a woman wanting her independence, it's shocking how quickly she settles in with Alec. The situation seems a bit too domestic. And the sizzling attraction between them is making things worse. She keeps telling herself to walk away, yet she can't. Or should that be, she doesn't want to?
4. Jezebel's Blues by Barbara Samuel
The daughter of two artists who were besotted with each other, Celia has always felt the odd woman out. She yearns to find a place she can call her own, a family of her own, a life that has some stability and meaning. Her grandmother’s farmhouse in Gideon has always represented that.
Eric fled his grim childhood in Gideon to find a life as an acclaimed blues guitarist, but that life has been taken from him, too, and he’s back in Gideon with a chip on his shoulder that hides the vast, hunger he, too, feels to find his place, his home, his life. Waiting out the storm with sunny, optimistic Celia, he wonders if maybe there’s a place in Gideon for him after all, in the arms of a woman who might know more than she thinks about acceptance.
5. Flood Zone by Dana Mentink
Mia Sandoval's friend is murdered under mysterious circumstances—and the single mother is a suspect. Her only ally is a man she isn't sure she can trust. Search and rescue worker Dallas Black has a past as harrowing as Mia's own, and the police are suspicious of them both. With no choice but to work with secretive Dallas, Mia discovers he's as complicated as the murder they're forced to investigate to clear her name. Yet as a flood ravages their small Colorado town, a killer is determined that Mia, Dallas and their evidence get swept away to a watery grave.
6. A Man Like Him by Rachel Brimble
Changing her life…again.
After two years in hiding, Angela Taylor knows her independence is worth it. As long as she can escape her past, she has everything under control. Until a flash flood hits the park where she works, and hot Chris Forrester shows up the exact moment she needs a hero.
Chris proves he can save lives—and weaken a girl's knees. But how can she make him understand that she's off-limits, that getting close to her will endanger his life? Her happiness or his safety: it shouldn't even be a choice. Because when you love someone, you protect them, no matter the cost. At least, that's what Angela keeps telling herself….
7. Rivertime by Rae Renzi
Casey Lord needs a break. Her great-on-paper boyfriend, Reed, is pressuring her to marry him—but she's not sure if he sees her merely as an asset to help his political career. A river-rafting trip in the remote wilderness provides the perfect opportunity to clear her head. Until a flash flood sweeps Casey away from her group—and straight into the arms of Jack, a mysterious man also stranded by the flooding river.
Jack won't tell Casey his last name, and her innocent questions about his life are met with evasive answers. Yet they have to trust each other to survive, and as the pair await rescue, their uneasy truce slowly blossoms into friendship—and love. They agree to keep secret whatever differences may separate them in the real world.
When rescue finally arrives, will it spell an end to their budding relationship or can they find a way to stay in RiverTime?
8. A Bird in Hand by Allison Lane
When Lord Symington tries to save a young woman from drowning he almost loses his own life, and winds up compromised—having spent the night (unconscious) with Lady Elizabeth Fosdale in a country cottage. As any honorable gentleman would, he offers her marriage, but she will have none of it. And his lordship is not quite willing to see Lady Elizabeth disappear.
9. Taken by Storm by Tamara Mataya
Leilani’s plan was simple: Return for her father’s wedding, house sit for the happy couple while they went on their honeymoon, then get the hell outta dodge. She’d thought the worst thing would be returning to the town she grew up in (and despised). She was wrong.
A flash flood hits the small town, stranding firefighter, Ryan, and a few strangers at the local bar. Worst of all, Leilani, his old high school rival – and last night’s scorching one-night-stand – is one of the people stuck in the bar. With waters rising, they need to stick together and wait for rescue.
The power grid’s knocked out, and cell phones aren’t working. When the others panic and leave, Leilani and Ryan are left alone in the dark. Fortunately, words aren’t necessary to keep the former rivals warm. But when they’re forced to leave the refuge of each other's arms, they must navigate the flood-ravaged town in order to find safe shelter.
The rising waters brought them together, but rising tempers might tear them apart.
10. In the Shadow of the Ark by Anne Provoost
When ReJana and her family reach the desert plain where the great ship is being constructed, the world has already begun to change. The waters are rising everywhere, and both people and animals are beginning to panic. This is the dramatic story of the weeks and months that follow, as the rain transforms the earth and the people come to understand the magnitude of the disaster. This is the story of one girl who stows away on the ark for love of Ham, Noah's son. This is her story of survival.
To vote for your favorite Romances featuring a flood, go to my Goodreads list: Flooded: Floods in Romance Novels.