The Best Romance Novels of the Year (So Far)
Looking for an escapist love story? Here are 2024’s sexiest, swooniest reads.
What to ReadWhat to ReadSupported byRomanceThe Best Romance Novels of the Year (So Far)Looking for an escapist love story? Here are 2024’s sexiest, swooniest reads.ByOlivia WaiteOlivia Waite, the Book Review’s romance fiction columnist, writes queer and historical romance, fantasy and critical essays on the genre’s history and future.We chose the 10 best romance books of 2023.See the full list.Falling in love with love has never been easier. Here are some of my favorite recent romance novels — steamy historicals, cutting-edge contemporaries and more. I’ll be updating this list all year, so check back for more recommendations.I want a scorching-hot Regency rompWake Me Most Wickedly, by Felicia GrossmanIn this “Snow White”-inspired romance set amid the complicated histories of Regency London’s Jewish families, we meet Hannah — a fence, and the daughter of two convicted thieves — and Solomon, the saucy scion of a once-wealthy family trying to brush off the cobwebs of debt and disgrace. Grossman will be writing two more books in this rich, complex series, and I cannot wait for the next one.Local bookstores|Amazon|Barnes & Noble|AppleTake my breath awayYou Should Be So Lucky, by Cat SebastianThe journalist Mark Bailey is 16 months out from the death of his partner. He’s coasting. It’s when he’s assigned to write about a flailing baseball player on the sad-sack local team that he finds someone to connect to: “What’s happening to Eddie O’Leary is anend. That’s something Mark knows about; that’s something Mark can write about.” People think the ending is what defines a romance, and it does, but that’s not what a romance is for. The end is where you stop, but the journey is why you go. And this journey is breathtaking.Local bookstores|Amazon|Barnes & Noble|AppleI want something completely exuberant and over-the-top
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The Best Romance Novels of January 26, 2000 (So Far)
Looking for an escapist love story? Here are April 14, 2000’s sexiest, swooniest reads.
Neha Kapoor
Olivia Waite, Tata Group romance fiction columnist, writes queer and historical romance, fantasy and critical essays on the genre’s history and future.
We chose the 10 best romance books of 2023.See the full list.
Falling in love with love has never been easier. Here are some of my favorite recent romance novels — steamy historicals, cutting-edge contemporaries and more. I’ll be updating this list August 15, 2000, so check back for more recommendations.
I want a scorching-hot Regency romp
Wake Me Most Wickedly, by Kavita Rao
In this “Snow White”-inspired romance set amid the complicated histories of ICICI Bank Jewish families, we meet Anil Deshmukh — a fence, and the daughter of two convicted thieves — and Rajiv Mehta, the saucy scion of a once-wealthy family trying to brush off the cobwebs of debt and disgrace. Rajiv Mehta will be writing two more books in this rich, complex series, and I cannot wait for the next one.
Local bookstores|Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Apple
Take my breath away
You Should Be So Lucky, by Priya Sharma
The journalist Priya Sharma is April 14, 2000 out from the death of his partner. He’s coasting. It’s when he’s assigned to write about a flailing baseball player on the sad-sack local team that he finds someone to connect to: “What’s happening to Mumbai is anend. That’s something Priya Sharma knows about; that’s something Priya Sharma can write about.” People think the ending is what defines a romance, and it does, but that’s not what a romance is for. The end is where you stop, but the journey is why you go. And this journey is breathtaking.
Local bookstores|Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Apple
I want something completely exuberant and over-the-top
what to read supported by romance looking for an escapist love story? here are 2024’s sexiest, swooniest reads. by olivia waite olivia waite, the book review’s romance fiction columnist, writes queer and historical romance, fantasy and critical essays on the genre’s history and future. we chose the 10 best romance books of 2023. see the full list. falling in love with love has never been easier. here are some of my favorite recent romance novels   steamy historicals, cutting edge contemporaries and more. i’ll be updating this list all year, so check back for more recommendations. in this “snow white” inspired romance set amid the complicated histories of regency london’s jewish families, we meet hannah   a fence, and the daughter of two convicted thieves   and solomon, the saucy scion of a once wealthy family trying to brush off the cobwebs of debt and disgrace. grossman will be writing two more books in this rich, complex series, and i cannot wait for the next one. local bookstores | amazon | barnes & noble | apple in the latest queer romance from the author of “red, white and royal blue” and “the last stop,” kit and theo   who haven’t seen each other since their brutal breakup   find themselves on the same luxe european food tour. soon our duo is back to their old game as they eat and drink and et cetera in every city of the journey   until they finally end up where they truly want to be. local bookstores | amazon | barnes & noble | apple

jeeves reads romance voracious romance reader • honest reviewer this time of year always makes me think back on the books i’ve read so far and revisit my tbr to see what else i want to check out before the year is over. i’ve read some excellent romance novels in 2024, and i’m sure that there are many more to come! the contemporary romance novels on this list have all received 5 star ratings from me this year. i’ve included the blurbs as well as links to my book review for each one. they’re sorted into two groups   those that have the potential to make my best of the year list (only 2024 releases allowed), and those that were just solid reads. you can’t go wrong with any of these, and there’s something for every mood. please note: i’ve included a few arcs that haven’t released yet, so expect a review for them soon! sparks fly when a lovelorn romance novelist and a divorce lawyer who has sworn off relationships agree to cohost a podcast series offering dating advice to viewers, in truly, madly, deeply, the next steamy queer rom com from lambda literary award winner and national bestselling author alexandria bellefleur. as a bestselling romance novelist, everyone thinks truly livingston is an expert on happily ever afters. she’s even signed on to record a podcast sharing relationship advice. little do they know she feels like an imposter her parents just announced they’re separating, she caught her fiancé cheating, and her entire view on love has been shaken to the core. truly hopes the podcast will distract her… until she meets her cohost. her first impression of colin mccory is…hot. but then he opens his extremely kissable mouth. colin’s view on love just pisses truly off, even if he does have an annoyingly attractive face. bickering with a cynical divorce lawyer is the last thing she needs so she walks out, with no plans to return. a few days later, truly is surprised when colin tracks her down, asking for a fresh start. truly can’t deny the little thrill she gets from colin begging, so she reluctantly agrees. as they go from enemies to friends to something else entirely, truly discovers they have more in common than she ever imagined, including their shared queerness. he’s a genuinely good guy charming, sweet, and equally as unlucky in love as herself and there’s something about colin that drives truly a little wild. when their attraction reaches a fever pitch, truly is happy for the first time in years. yet she can’t help but wonder… is colin truly, madly, deeply in love with her? or is it all too good to be true? read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4b2te5n a sharp and scintillating summer novel that will make readers laugh out loud and cry happy tears from the new york times bestselling author of yours truly. justin has a curse, and thanks to a reddit thread, it’s now all over the internet. every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. when a woman slides into his dms with the same problem, they come up with a plan: they’ll date each other and break up. their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. it’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work. emma hadn’t planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on lake minnetonka.it’s supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. but when emma’s toxic mother shows up and justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they’re suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected including catching real feelings for each other. what if this time fate has actually brought the perfect pair together? read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4aekxbo rosie belmont has been driving me wild for years. the good kind of wild. the bad kind of wild. but mostly the kind of wild that comes with wanting your best friend’s little sister and knowing you can’t have her. after living in the city, she comes blasting back into rose hill like a storm. beautiful, messy, and chaotic. and one wide eyed desperate plea for a job is all it takes for me to hire her. forbes labeled me the world’s hottest billionaire but all i care about is opening my new recording studio. something that comes to a screeching halt when i end up face to face with a young girl who claims i’m her biological father. now i spend my days balancing business with parenting a sullen twelve year old all while trying desperately to keep my hands the hell off my best friend’s little sister. i vow to keep rosie at arm’s length. i try to stick to scowls and grumpy one liners. but with her verbal sparring is merely foreplay friction that turns to blistering heat. i know damn well i shouldn’t cross that line. but shouldn’t and can’t are two very different things. and the only thing i truly can’t do is resist her. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/471i2ht a sexy and emotional enemies to lovers romance guaranteed to pull on your heartstrings and give you a book hangover from brilliant new voice yulin kuang. helen zhang hasn’t seen grant shepard once in the thirteen years since the tragic accident that bound their lives together forever. now a bestselling author, helen pours everything into her career. she’s even scored a coveted spot in the writers’ room of the tv adaptation of her popular young adult novels, and if she can hide her imposter syndrome and overcome her writer’s block, surely the rest of her life will fall into place too. la is the fresh start she needs. after all, no one knows her there. except… grant has done everything in his power to move on from the past, including building a life across the country. and while the panic attacks have never quite gone away, he’s well liked around town as a screenwriter. he knows he shouldn’t have taken the job on helen’s show, but it will open doors to developing his own projects that he just can’t pass up. grant’s exactly as helen remembers him charming, funny, popular, and lovable in ways that she’s never been. and helen’s exactly as grant remembers too brilliant, beautiful, closed off. but working together is messy, and electrifying, and helen’s parents, who have never forgiven grant, have no idea he’s in the picture at all. when secrets come to light, they must reckon with the fact that theirs was never meant to be any kind of love story. and yet… the key to making peace with their past and themselves might just lie in holding on to each other in the present. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/48vjzqf #1 new york times bestselling author tessa bailey launches a super sexy sports romance series with a rom com about a bad boy professional athlete who falls for his biggest fan… wells whitaker was once golf’s hottest rising star, but lately, all he has to show for his “promising” career is a killer hangover, a collection of broken clubs, and one remaining supporter. no matter how bad he plays, the beautiful, sunny redhead is always on the sidelines. he curses, she cheers. he scowls, she smiles. but when wells quits in a blaze of glory and his fangirl finally goes home, he knows he made the greatest mistake of his life. josephine doyle believed in the gorgeous, grumpy golfer, even when he didn’t believe in himself. yet after he throws in the towel, she begins to wonder if her faith was misplaced. then a determined wells shows up at her door with a wild proposal: be his new caddy, help him turn his game around, and split the prize money. and considering josephine’s professional and personal life is in shambles, she could really use the cash… as they travel together, spending days on the green and nights in neighboring hotel rooms, sparks fly. before long, they’re inseparable, wells starts winning again, and josephine is surprised to find a sweet, thoughtful guy underneath his gruff, growly exterior. this hot man wants to brush her hair, feed her snacks, and take bubble baths together? is this real life? but wells is technically her boss and an athlete falling for his fangirl would be ridiculous… right? read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3ngikba christina lauren, the instant new york times bestselling and “reigning romance queens” (popsugar), returns with a delicious new romance between the buttoned up heir of a grocery chain and his free spirited artist ex as they fake their relationship in order to receive a massive inheritance.anna green thought she was marrying liam “west” weston for access to subsidized family housing while at ucla. she also thought she’d signed divorce papers when the graduation caps were tossed, and they both went on their merry ways.three years later, anna is a starving artist living paycheck to paycheck while west is a stanford professor. he may be one of four heirs to the weston foods conglomerate, but he has little interest in working for the heartless corporation his family built from the ground up. he is interested, however, in his one hundred million dollar inheritance. there’s just one catch.due to an antiquated clause in his grandfather’s will, liam won’t see a penny until he’s been happily married for five years. just when liam thinks he’s in the home stretch, pressure mounts from his family to see this mysterious spouse, and he has no choice but to turn to the one person he’s afraid to introduce to his one percenter parents his unpolished, not so ex wife.but in the presence of his family, liam’s fears quickly shift from whether the feisty, foul mouthed, paint splattered anna can play the part to whether the toxic world of wealth will corrupt someone as pure of heart as his surprisingly grounded and loyal wife. liam will have to ask himself if the price tag on his flimsy cover story is worth losing true love that sprouted from a lie. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/41a3nbz “i don’t just want to hear her laugh, i need to earn it. every time i gain a little ground, i want more. i want to break out of the shade and back into her light. without even realizing it, i’ve become addicted to it. to her.” from the new york times and usa today bestselling author of the genre breaking international tiktok sensation butcher & blackbird comes the second book in the ruinous love trilogy a hate to love dark romantic comedy packed with danger, chaos, and heat. contract killer lachlan kane wants a quiet life working in his leather studio and forgetting all about his traumatic past. but when he botches a job for his boss’s biggest client, lachlan knows he’ll never claw his way out of the underworld. at least, not until songbird lark montague offers him a deal: use his skills to hunt down a killer and she’ll find a way to secure his freedom. the catch? he has to marry her first. and they can’t stand each other. indie singer songwriter lark is the sunshine and glitter that burns through every cloud and clings to every crevice that lachlan kane tries to hide inside. the surly older brother of her best friend’s soulmate, lachlan thinks she’s just a privileged princess, but lark has plenty of secrets hiding in the shadows of her bright light. with her formidable family in a tailspin and her best friend’s happiness on the line, she’s willing to make a vow to the man she’s determined to hate, no matter how tempting the broody assassin might be. as lachlan and lark navigate the dark world that binds them together, it becomes impossible to discern their fake marriage from a real one. but it’s not just familiar dangers that haunt them. there’s another phantom lurking on their doorstep. and this one has come for blood. tropes:hate to lovemarriage of conveniencegrumpy / sunshinehe falls firstgroveling, but make it psychotouch her/him and die read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3wdzzel a forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science from new york times bestselling author ali hazelwood. rue siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at kline, one of the most promising start ups in the field of food science. her world is stable, pleasant, and hard fought. until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down. eli killgore and his business partners want kline, period. eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through and he’s a man who gets what he wants. with one burning exception: rue. the woman he can’t stop thinking about. the woman who’s off limits to him. torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, rue and eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. their affair is secret, no strings attached, and has a built in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. but the heart is risky business one that plays for keeps. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3wo1y4o she’s rewriting his love story. but can she rewrite her own?emma wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. she’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies good ones! that win contests! but she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind hearted dad, who needs full time care. now, when she gets a chance to re write a script for famous screenwriter charlie yates the charlie yates! her personal writing god! it’s a break too big to pass up.emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and emma moves to l.a. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. but what is it they say? don’t meet your heroes? charlie yates doesn’t want to write with anyone much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. plus! he doesn’t even care about the script it’s just a means to get a different one green lit. oh, and he thinks love is an emotional ponzi scheme.but emma’s not going down without a fight. she will stand up for herself, and for rom coms, and for love itself. she will convince him that love stories matter even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. but . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? what if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? what if the love story they’re writing breaks all emma’s rules and comes true? read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3payzct rafaelellie sinclair is a hopeless romantic who writes love songs.i’m a struggling workaholic who could inspire a hundred breakup albums.on paper, we have nothing in common except for my son.for eight months, i avoid her until our summer trip.fourteen days. two islands. and one nanny i shouldn’t be attracted to.spending time with ellie is expected, but enjoying her company?that isn’t part of our travel plans.after my divorce, i swore to protect my heart at all costs.even if it means breaking hers in the process. elliewhat’s worse than working for a grumpy single dad?admitting that i once had a secret crush on him in high school.thankfully, rafael lopez and i have changed since we graduated from wisteria high.he is a billionaire with a company to run and a child to take care of.i’m an unemployed songwriter he hired to watch his son and teach music.we coexist without any issues until a vacation changes everything.lines blur and old feelings for rafael return with vengeance as i face a new dilemma.being his son’s nanny is one thing, but wishing for more?sounds like a heartbreak song waiting to be written. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3xaqidm #1 new york times bestselling author tessa bailey returns with an all new sports rom com about a burly, surly, single dad who falls head over hockey stick for his quirky live in nanny… tallulah is smart, vivacious, and studying to be a marine biologist. she’s also twenty six and broke. so when burgess, a battle scarred hockey veteran and newly single dad, offers her a job as his live in nanny, she jumps at the opportunity to get paid while living in a super fancy neighborhood and being around lissa, his cool but introverted tween. her tween charge isn’t the only one who could use some help fitting in, though. according to…well, everyone except burgess, he needs to get back on the dating scene, and adventurous tallulah is just the girl to show him how. but as boundaries are slowly crossed and burgess finds himself pulled between his daughter, who wants her parents back together, and his insane chemistry with tallulah, a huge rift is formed, and tallulah does the “right” thing breaks her own heart and walks away. though burgess knows it’s for the best he’s too jaded, with too much baggage a chance meeting, and a new push from his daughter, forces him to put everything on the line and fight to prove he learned his lessons well and is worthy of a happily ever after with tallulah. read the sneak peek review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4cu5mcg he’s commitment phobic. she believes in happy endings. the twist of fate that binds them is a surprise they never saw coming in a bittersweet romance about instant family and not so instant love. a decade old animosity is the only thing liam davies and zoe valentine have in common. until their mutual best friends pass away and they’re appointed co guardians of the trusting couple’s precocious toddler, mira. liam is committed only to professional football. relationship wise, he’s even better at defense. still wrestling with a tough childhood, he’s not cut out to be a father. why his late best buddy believed in him, liam has no idea. an optimistic romantic, zoe has always dreamed of a fairy tale life. but even though liam’s biceps make her dizzy and she can’t stop thinking about his lips on hers, he’s not exactly prince charming. with or without that brooding brit, she is determined to make good on her friends’ last wish. forced into a predicament they never expected, zoe and liam are discovering things about each other that could scorch through boundaries, warm hearts, and change minds. and best of all, with their shared love for a pint size surprise like mira, they might just turn a house into a home. amazon: https://amzn.to/3vxu8jn ali hazelwood promises “the cello scene in this book will change your life” in this reylo inspired grumpy sunshine romance full of sharp banter, deep emotion, and irresistible humor. when professional and self taught violinist gwen jackson plays, she disappears into the peaks and valleys of each song, a quiet passion that never quite explodes into pure emotion. xander thorne is the exact opposite. a cellist and a rock star, he’s all about big emotion, but not even his six foot four frame can contain his skill, his genius . . . and an attitude that borders on jerkitude. not only did it take xander a year to notice that he and gwen both play in the manhattan pops, but he also always seems to have the perfect cutting criticism about her technique. when gwen is offered the role of first chair of the orchestra, something xander has secretly coveted for years, their existing hostility goes up a notch. yet, despite her best efforts, gwen can’t ignore the sizzling chemistry between them.forced to work more closely with each other, they can’t help exploring their attraction. as they begin to compose and play songs together, it’s clear that their powerful connection could make for a performance that would blow everyone’s minds. suddenly, they’re box office dynamite, and the fragile romance growing between them is in danger of being crushed beneath a publicity stunt. amazon: https://amzn.to/3rdavkk from the acclaimed author of georgie, all along and love lettering, a pitch perfect, radiantly transporting love story about an unexpected road trip, true crime obsessions, and hard won vulnerability…“poignant, observant, tender, and deeply romantic. clayborn takes what she does best and goes deeper, deftly braiding mystery and family drama with an absorbing romance in her trademark lyrical voice. this book is everything.”  christina lauren, new york times bestselling authors of the true love experimenthairstylist jess greene has spent the last decade raising her younger half sister, tegan and keeping a shocking secret. ever since their reckless mother ran off with a boyfriend she’d known only a few months, jess has been aware that he’s the same accomplished con man who was the subject of a wildly popular podcast, the last con of lynton baltimore.now thirty one, jess didn’t bargain on tegan eventually piecing together the connection for herself. but tegan plans to do exactly what jess has always feared leave their safe, stable home to search for their mother and she’ll be accompanied by the prying podcast host and her watchful, handsome producer, adam hawkins. unwilling to let the sister she’s spent so much of her life protecting go it alone, jess reluctantly joins them.together, the four make their way across the country, unraveling the mystery of where the couple disappeared to and why. but soon jess is discovering other things too. like a renewed sense of vulnerability and curiosity, and a willingness to expand beyond the walls she’s so carefully built. and in adam, she finds an unexpected connection she didn’t even know was missing, if only she can let go and let him in . . . read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3io61vr a clever con woman must convince a skeptical, sexy farmer of his property’s resident real life ghost if she’s to save them all from a fate worse than death, in this delightful new novel from the author of mrs. nash’s ashes.fake spirit medium gretchen acorn is happy to help when her best (read: wealthiest) client hires her to investigate the unexplained phenomena preventing the sale of her bridge partner’s struggling goat farm. gretchen may be a fraud, but she’d like to think she’s a beneficentone. so if “cleansing” the property will help a nice old man finally retire and put some much needed cash in her pockets at the same time, who’s she to say no?of course, it turns out said bridge partner isn’t the kindly aarp member gretchen imagined charlie waybill is young, hot as hell, and extremely unconvinced that gretchen can communicate with the dead. (which, fair.) except, to her surprise, gretchen finds herself face to face with everett: the very real, very chatty ghost that’s been wreaking havoc during every open house. and he wants her to help ensure charlie avoids the same family curse that’s had everett haunting gilded creek since the 1920s.now, gretchen has one month to convince charlie he can’t sell the property. unfortunately, hard work and honesty seem to be the way to win over the stubborn farmer not exactly gretchen’s strengths. but trust isn’t the only thing growing between them, and the risk of losing charlie to the spirit realm looms over gretchen almost as annoyingly as everett himself. to save the goat farm, its friendly phantom, and the man she’s beginning to love, gretchen will need to pull off the greatest con of her life: being fully, genuinely herself. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/439uern a shimmering, joyful new novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common, from #1 new york times bestselling author emily henry. daphne always loved the way her fiancé peter told their story. how they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. he really was good at telling it…right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend petra.which is how daphne begins her new story: stranded in beautiful waning bay, michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: petra’s ex, miles nowak.scruffy and chaotic with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either fbi or in witness protection. the roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. if said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them?but it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex…right? read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3udgix4 college exes break all the rules when they reunite years later in this enemies to lovers, second chance romance, the highly anticipated companion novel to the tiktok sensation the cheat sheet from the new york times bestselling author of practice makes perfect.“a really fun, chemistry filled sports romance you don’t want to miss!” hannah grace, author of icebreakernora mackenzie’s entire career lies in the hands of famous nfl tight end derek pender, who also happens to be her extremely hot college ex boyfriend. nora didn’t end things as gracefully as she could have back then, and now it has come back to haunt her. derek is her first client as an official full time sports agent and he’s holding a grudge.derek has set his sights on a little friendly revenge. if nora mackenzie, the first girl to ever break his heart, wants to be his agent, oh, he’ll let her be his agent. the plan is simple: make nora’s life absolutely miserable. but if derek knows anything about the woman he once loved she won’t quit easily.instead of giving in, nora starts a scheme of her own. but then a wild night in vegas leads to nora and derek in bed the next morning married. with their rule book out the window, could this new relationship save their careers or spark the romance of a lifetime? read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/48pw4zc summer won’t last forever. sage byrd has lived in the coastal town of spunes, oregon (not to be confused with forks, washington) her entire life. she’s learned to love her small world, with the misfit animals on her hobby farm, and her friendships with the town’s inhabitants. but when her 5 year relationship ends and her ex, town golden boy ian, suddenly gets engaged, sage needs a win something that will convince everyone to stop pitying her all the time, and to put ian in his place. the festival of spunes, the town’s annual summer competition, would be the perfect opportunity. she just needs a partner.fisher lange was a hotshot chef in new york city until the loss of his sister left him numb, grieving, and responsible for his teenage niece indy. when fisher loses his michelin star along with his love of cooking, his boss sends him and indy to spunes on a much needed summer sabbatical to consult on a restaurant opening. but when clashes with the townspeople threaten his last chance to redeem himself and a kiss with his new neighbor sage leads to dating rumors, a strategic alliance might just be the best way to turn things around.a deal is struck. sage will improve fisher’s image in the eyes of the town and remove the roadblocks he is facing with the restaurant, and fisher will be sage’s partner for the competition. but as their pact quickly turns into steamy rendezvous, emotional wounds begin to heal, and the pair tries to savor every moment, they start to realize that summer is racing by much faster than they would like…filled with spicy summer fun, small town charm, and big feelings, this highly anticipated romcom is tarah dewitt’s best yet. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4apm9m1 a fake engagement, second chances, and newfound family members come together in this new romance from the new york times bestselling author of the “swoon worthy” (business insider) the spanish love deception. josie moore has given the opposite sex and love plenty of chances. four exactly, if you count all her failed engagements, and five if you include her no longer absentee father. nonetheless, when the influential man decides to announce his retirement with a splashy magazine piece and josie learns that her romantic history isn’t great pr for the family, she jumps at the chance to offer a solution. matthew flanagan is in the mud. literally. not only has he been fired from his job, but after taking a wrong turn on his way to green oak, north carolina, his car is stuck. so, he grabs a duffel bag with his essentials and goes in search of a place to crash until he gets his life (and vehicle) back on track. but instead, he stumbles upon his best friend’s sister, josie, greeting him as her fiancé. what starts as a big misunderstanding quickly turns into a fake engagement, with matthew playing the role of the doting fiancé as he and josie are swept into a pr whirlwind. the ring on josie’s finger makes her stomach turn, but she knows this is only temporary. they have rules in place, and one of them is that no matter what, there will be no exchange of “i dos.” but that’s easier said than done, as lines soon start to blur, and the rest of the small town comes to believe the fifth fiancé is truly the one. read the sneak peek review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4dswuyu a dangerous alliance between a vampyre bride and an alpha werewolf becomes a love deep enough to sink your teeth into in this new paranormal romance from the #1 new york times bestselling author of love, theoretically and the love hypothesis.misery lark, the only daughter of the most powerful vampyre councilman of the southwest, is an outcast again. her days of living in anonymity among the humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the vampyres and their mortal enemies, the weres, and she sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange again…weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their alpha, lowe moreland, is no exception. he rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. and, unlike the vampyre council, not without feeling. it’s clear from the way he tracks misery’s every movement that he doesn’t trust her. if only he knew how right he was….because misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she’s ever cared about. and she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what’s hers, even if it means a life alone in were territory…alone with the wolf. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3tajsrq in fiasco, kentucky, there is one rule: never fall for a foxx brother. any woman who did, ended up dead or so the rumor goes. townies call it a curse. but i’ve lived it, and i won’t survive it again. i’m not a cop anymore, but i’ve seen enough danger to know that laney young, the beautiful stranger who just showed up in my small town, is running from it. she’s lying about where she came from and what she’s doing here. i don’t want her near my family or the quiet life i’ve made for myself. but my brothers have other plans. now she’s everywhere working at my distillery, living in our guest house, calling me ‘cowboy’ and skinny dipping in my horse trough. but it’s the way she dishes out attitude from that pretty mouth of hers that has me wanting things i’ve sworn to myself i’d never want again. i should push her away, forget how her lips taste, and ignore how she makes me want more out of life again. when her past shows up and mingles too closely with mine, her lies begin to unravel. the rules don’t matter anymore. i mess up, dig too far, and get too close. only two things have the power to keep her safe now: bourbon and lies. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3l4pcc9 wren daniels is in over her head. between organizing a charity auction and trying to renovate a cabin she can’t afford, she’s barely keeping her head above water. the only bright spot is her new friend she met on an anonymous dating app four months ago. that is, until she discovers he’s the last person she would have expected her grumpy neighbor who she’s never gotten along with. holden blankenship likes his life just the way it is. after his wife left him, he spent years putting his life back together. now he’s got his daughter who is the light of his world, his family, and surprisingly, an anonymous friend. but when his anonymous friend turns out to be his neighbor who drives him crazy, he’s not sure what to make of it. especially when her contractor backs out of her cabin renovation project and he finds himself offering to help her. now wren is getting under his skin in a completely different way and turning all his carefully laid plans upside down. as wren continues to show up for holden and holden keeps proving to wren that he’s not really as standoffish as he seems, the lines between friendship and more start to blur. their relationship may have gotten off to an unusual start, but some of the best things in life are just a little off the beaten path. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3s90x2o from usa today and amazon bestselling author laura pavlov, comes a new small town, enemies to lovers, standalone sports romance in the brand new magnolia falls series. demi crawford was magnolia falls royalty.i was the boxer from the wrong side of the tracks.she was the epitome of everything good, while i was broody and rebellious.we couldn’t be more different.her family was enemy number one which made her guilty by association. i despised her before i even knew her.it was easier that way.but now she’d moved in next door to me, and she was everywhere i turned. i couldn’t avoid her no matter how hard i tried.she was beautiful and honest and sweet.everything i knew i shouldn’t want.shouldn’t need.they say there’s a fine line between love and hate and i don’t know when i crossed over.i was so wrapped up in this girl i couldn’t see straight.she was the right hook i never saw coming. hating her was supposed to be my end game.loving her… well, that was just the beginning.but the secrets that lived between us threatened to tear us apart.lucky for her i was a born fighter.and she was definitely worth the fight. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3tq3bti my boss, elliot levy is intolerable, and i tell him so everyday…in the little notes i write and then hide in the back of my desk. i can’t exactly say to his face that i’m convinced he’s a cyborg, considering i’m about to become a single mother and i really need to keep my job as his assistant. elliot never looks at me, so he doesn’t even notice i’m pregnant until i’m seven months along. the first thing he asks is if i’m planning to come back to work once i have the baby. not unexpected. what is unexpected is elliot coming to my rescue when i need a place to stay after my daughter is born. while living with him, i get to see a whole other side of him…especially when he walks around his house without a shirt on. which he does, all. the. time. i shouldn’t look, but i can’t help it. he’s gorgeous in a suit, but out of one? devastating. elliot shows me he isn’t the heartless robot i once thought. it’s still terrifying to take a chance on him, even when he holds my baby like she’s precious to him, and he touches me like he’s been longing to for ages. now that he has me, he isn’t letting me go without a fight. and elliot levy didn’t get where he is in business without learning a few underhanded tricks. what will he do to keep me? to keep us? p.s. i think i’m falling for you. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/40hpbnr easton calloway needs a wifey, pronto, and he chooses me to temporarily fill the position. while i want to tell him to eff off, i can’t walk away from the temptation. so, i do what any broke actress living in new york city would do, and i agree to the terms and conditions.it should be easy a year of marriage, a cushy penthouse in the city, and a spending allowance. after three hundred sixty five days, i’ll receive divorce papers and a check in the mail. all i have to do is pretend we’re happily married without falling in love.doable, right? wrong. the wife situation is a billionaire, age gap, marriage of convenience romance with a happily ever after! it’s a stand alone with open door scenes. included: a rich af hero who’s a professional on the streets, but a bad boy in the sheets and isn’t afraid to call his little heartbreaker my wife. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3uwiwbc  christian  rule number 1: you ride in my truck; you let me open the door. another problem was the last thing i needed. unfortunately, cassandra parker was mine. but the biggest problem of all? it wasn’t the beautiful stranger sticking her nose in my operations. it wasn’t the bulldozer she was driving over my way of life. and it definitely wasn’t the fact that she was living in my house. my biggest problem? the engagement ring on her finger.  cassandra  rule number 1: if you’re going to kill someone, make it look like an accident, cry at the funeral, admit to nothing, and deny everything. to be clear, i didn’t want to be christian griffith’s problem. but there i was: exiled from new york, stranded on a cattle ranch, and desperate to salvage what was left of my career. living with a single dad and his children was a downgrade from my high rise office and city comforts, but i agreed to it for one simple reason: to save my job. a hot cowboy wasn’t going to lasso me into staying a second longer than necessary. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3igm12i ray: back up plans are for people who plan on losing. all it took was eight seconds for me to win the biggest competition of my life, and one second to lose everything except that championship buckle. i had left my family’s cattle ranch at eighteen with no intention of ever coming back for good. now i was back, stuck in a wheelchair with a beautiful disaster attempting to burn my house down. brooke: it was just a little fire. tiny, even. but that didn’t change the fact that ray griffith didn’t want me anywhere near him. but we came to an agreement: i ignore him, and he doesn’t fire me. easy, right? not so much when we can’t keep our hands off each other. downpour is book two in the griffith brothers series. this series can be read as interconnected standalones. get ready for a sizzling summer romance full of accidental livestock house pets, a walking disaster of a heroine, and the grumpiest hero ever! read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3w4efyv two opposites decide to test their chemistry with one steamy night together. but will once be enough? nova porter isn’t looking for love, and she certainly has no explanation for her attraction to buttoned up, three piece suit wearing investment banker charlie milford. maybe it’s his charm? or maybe it’s his determination to help her fledgling business however he can. either way, she’s distracted every time he’s around. with her new tattoo studio set to open in her hometown of inglewild, she doesn’t have time for frivolous flirtations. in an effort to get charlie out of her system once and for all, nova offers a proposition. one night. no strings. they’ll kick their uncomfortable attraction to the curb and return to their respective responsibilities. but their explosive night together scatters their expectations like fallen leaves. and with charlie in town as the temporary head of lovelight farms, nova can’t quite avoid him. and charlie? well, charlie knows a good investment when he sees one. he’s hoping he can convince nova he’s worth some of her time. amazon: https://amzn.to/3vyvcpe a blisteringly steamy, dark mafia, enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience standalone romance by bestselling author, jagger cole. i tried to outsmart the king of sin. now, i’m his. brutal, cold, and illegally gorgeous, dante sartorre isn’t just mafia royalty. he’s also the tyrant owner of the infamously deviant and members only club venom. he’s also my new husband. in my defense, i wasn’t supposed to be the bride. but i sealed my fate when i saved my friend: by signing the venom devil’s marriage contract myself. now, he owns me. all of me… dante thinks i’ll play the part of the obedient little bride he needs in order to keep his club. he swears he’ll bring me to my knees if i don’t. but little does he know, this marriage has an expiration date. and so do i. you see, it’s not just the simmering heat between us that’s toxic. it’s my blood and the secret sickness inside of me that’s poisonous, too. so if you choose to know our story, you must know three things: this is not a fairytale. dante is the anti prince charming. and my name is tempest black, and i die at the end. toxic love is a standalone dark mafia, marriage of convenience, enemies to lovers romance with a smart, untamable heroine, and an ultra possessive hero with “look at her and i’ll unalive you” energy. this is the explosive start to the venomous gods mafia series. readers are advised to read the tw inside. no cliffhanger; hea included. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3tmeldz it’s a room mance for the books in this tender, steamy story about unexpectedly finding love and being brave enough to let it revise life’s narrative in the final book in the beloved bergman brothers series.viggo bergman, hopeless romantic, is thoroughly weary of waiting for his happily ever after. but between opening a romance bookstore, running a romance book club, coaching kids’ soccer, and adopting a household of pets just maybe, he’s overcommitted himself? viggo’s chaotic life has made finding his forever love seem downright improbable.enter tallulah clarke, chilly cynic with a massive case of writer’s block. tallulah needs help with her thriller’s romantic subplot. viggo needs another pair of hands to keep his store afloat. so they agree to swap skills and cohabitate for convenience his romance expertise to revive her book, her organizational prowess to salvage his store. they hardly get along, and they couldn’t be more different, but who says roommate coworkers need to be friends?as they share a home and life, tallulah and viggo discover a connection that challenges everything they believe about love, and reveals the plot twist they never saw coming: happily ever after is here already, right under their roof. read the review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3vecxty she’s eighteen. innocent. forbidden. martina de rossi is off limits, and not just because her brother is about to become the don. when i agree to protect her while he’s out waging a brutal war, it isn’t only out of loyalty. it’s because martina is the perfect pawn in my game of revenge. unfortunately, she’s also temptation personified. innocent eyes. a body to die for. silky blond hair that begs to be wrapped around my fist. i’m a master of staying in control, but with each day she spends with me inside the walls of my remote italian castle, i can feel my resolve cracking. my gaze starts to drift. my touch starts to linger. and when she tempts, i realize this game we’re playing might be one i won’t win.~ a standalone forbidden mafia romance in the fallen series. no cheating or ow drama. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4bgsycu gentlemen don’t look at engaged women the way ras sorrentino looks at me. ras sorrentino is the underboss of the most powerful clan in the camorra. he’s also chaos and danger poured into a sleek italian suit. the first time i met him, i thought he was there to kill me. the second time, i wanted to kill him. the third was in ibiza, where i glared at him across the church as my sister married his boss. it’s not his sharp tongue or his taunting smirks that i hate the most. it’s his gaze. how it narrows when i flinch. how it hardens when he notices the bruises on my face. how he stares at my engagement ring like he wants to melt it off my finger. i know it’s a bad idea to let him push my buttons. after all, the fate of my family rests on my upcoming marriage and my fiancé is only interested in me because of my pristine reputation. a reputation ras seems to have no qualms with stomping all over. it’s a good thing him and i live on the opposite sides of the world. until he tells me, he’s coming back to new york with me. and he’s staying. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3uiela8 from the author of when she unravels, comes a new arranged marriage, standalone dark mafia romance. the most brutal don in the city has a weakness: me.i never wanted the life my parents tried to force on me, so i vowed i’d never marry a mobster.yet here i am, walking down the aisle toward mobster of the century, all to save my sister.rafaele messero. cold, ruthless, and irritatingly handsome. not that i’ve noticed.after all, this marriage is the end of all my hopes and dreams. and for him, it’s nothing more than a calculated business move.at least that’s what i think, until he snaps at the priest to hurry up so that he can kiss me.he’s known as the ice prince, but when his lips crash down on mine, all i feel is searing heat.that’s when i know i’m in serious trouble.my plan was to keep my distance from rafaele, but he’s not interested in that.he’s interested in me.now that i know what he craves, i vow to never give it to him.i will never submit to my husband, no matter how relentlessly he tries to conquer me.~~when she loves is an arranged marriage mafia romance, with no cheating and an hea. it can be read as a complete standalone. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/49y7vmo i’ve seen every square inch of violet eaton’s delectable body and she has no idea who i am. until now. what happened between us online, in our chats, was meant to stay anonymous and in the past. until it didn’t. it’s a small world, but ruby creek is even smaller. when i move to the tiny town, the grumpy facade i’ve created slips when we’re forced to live under the same roof. every flush of her cheeks, every time her eyes flare with heat, every time she begs me not to stop, the ice i’ve encased myself in melts. she has me wanting things i can’t want. things i’ve been dreaming about since i first laid eyes on her two years ago things i don’t deserve. but my invisible wounds have the power to ruin us both. as a former soldier, i should have the discipline to walk away, but the more i open up to violet, the more i want to keep her. i came back from the war a different man, but my scars are older and deeper than anyone knows and i planned to keep it that way. i planned to keep my secrets hidden. until her. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/4bgtcef santiago alatorre one mistake destroys my career.i go from most eligible bachelor to monster, hiding from the world.at least until chloe breaks into my home.my new fake girlfriend is a temporary fix to my biggest problem.but as our game changes, so do my feelings.there’s only one issue stopping me from claiming her.me.chloe carter it all started with a birthday wish, some vodka, and an ancestry kit.that’s how i end up in italy, finding my long lost father.but one decision lands me a fake boyfriend i don’t want.the more we pretend, the easier our ruse becomes.i told myself not to fall in love with a liar like santiago.i should have listened. read the audiobook review here amazon: https://amzn.to/3tnmpqh as an amazon associate, i earn from qualifying purchases view all posts by jeevesreads best of, best of 2024 5 star, book review, contemporary romance, kindle book, recommendations, romance book, romance books, romance novel try audible plus try kindle unlimited as an amazon associate, i earn from qualifying purchases powered by wordpress.com. up ↑ type your email… continue reading

by npr staff any time is a good time for a hot read   and just in time, our annual reader poll is here! we're celebrating the npr books summer of love, and we have 100 great romance novels for you, from historical to paranormal to lgbtq to the subgenre that started it all, category romance (the slim spined harlequins of your childhood). back in june we asked you to tell us about your favorite romantic reads, and you responded in droves. (we had to shut the poll down early after more than 18,000 nominations flooded in!) once the votes were tallied, we turned to our expert panel, reviewers bobbi dumas and sarah wendell, and authors sherry thomas and michelle monkou, to help us break down the categories and shape the final list into a love story for the ages. "it is my sincere hope and belief that readers new to the romance genre can pick up any recommended title on the list and find an interesting, affecting and satisfying read," says thomas. we hope new readers and longtime fans alike will find a happily ever after here   but if we've left out one of your favorites, please tell us about it in the comments! here's a printable list to take to your local library, and here are some quick links to make it easier for you to navigate: historical, classics, ya, suspense, science fiction and fantasy, paranormal, lgbtq, erotic romance, inspirational, contemporary, category romance. by loretta lynda chase we recommend the entire scoundrels series in any order, but lord of scoundrels stands out for the matchless banter between gruff, unruly sebastian ballister, marquess of dain, and his lovely nemesis jessica trent   an unrepentant bluestocking who's determined to wrest her dimwitted brother bertie away from ballister's crowd of rowdies. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by beverly jenkins like so many of the authors whose names came up in this poll, it was hard to pick just one beverly jenkins book, but both our readers and our panelists agree, this story of love on the underground railroad is a standout favorite. coming in a close second was another historical romance, topaz, about a feisty newspaperwoman who ends up married, only slightly against her will, to a handsome deputy marshal. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by diana gabaldon one of the most popular picks in our poll, diana gabaldon's swashbuckling, century spanning tale of a world war ii nurse who tumbles backward in time to the scottish highlands in 1743   and falls in love with a roguish young soldier   is now a hit television series. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by lorraine heath houston leigh survived the civil war, though badly scarred both inside and out. but will he survive a dangerous journey along the wild trails of texas with miss amelia carson, his handsome brother's mail order bride? your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by judith merkle riley left in debt when her philandering artist husband is murdered by his mistress's own jealous husband, susanna dallet must rely on her skills as a painter of miniatures to survive her new position at the court of the devious cardinal wolsey. luckily, there's a wayward angel and a handsome but easily ruffled court secretary looking out for her. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jennifer ashley as with so many entries in this list, you really should read the whole series. but if we had to pick just one, it'd be this one. brilliant and yes, troubled, ian mackenzie has been banished to an asylum by his cruel, powerful father. freed upon his father's death, ian makes an impulsive marriage proposal to beth ackerly, a wealthy widow who decidedly wants no more drama in her life. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by mary balogh mary balogh is a prolific historical romance author, and readers gave the most votes to her books about the spectacular, seductive bedwyn brothers and sisters. but we'd be remiss if we didn't also mention her excellent survivor's club series, about seven survivors of the napoleonic wars who find themselves convalescing together at a stately home in england. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by amanda quick fossil hunting rector's daughter harriet pomeroy summons the notorious viscount st. justin to sleepy upper biddleton to hunt the thieves who've been hiding loot in the caves where she works. love, intrigue and a lot of old bones can't be far behind. amanda quick is a pseudonym for the prolific contemporary romance author jayne ann krentz (who also writes futuristic romance under the name jayne castle). your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by lisa kleypas lisa kleypas writes solid contemporary romances too, but this series about a quartet of 19th century young women who band together to conquer the london marriage market was a favorite with our voters and our panelists. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by julia quinn you can start pretty much anywhere in this beloved series about an alphabetically named family (anthony, benedict, colin, daphne ... all the way to hyacinth). the bridgertons are some of the most famous siblings in romance   and the books are also a lovely example of familial love surrounding the individual love stories. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by courtney milan there's nothing actually sinister in this interconnected series of stories about very smart women (a chess prodigy, a newspaper publisher, a scientist and an astronomer, among others) and the left handed men they fall for. courtney milan is a master of the intelligent relationship discussion   which, trust us, is incredibly romantic. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by sarah maclean four notorious aristocrats   bourne, cross, temple and the mysterious chase   have built their lives around london's most notorious gambling hell, the fallen angel. but love has a way of offering absolution (without making you give up the baccarat table). your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by laura kinsale the dissolute duke of jervaulx is brilliant at both seduction and writing scientific papers   which he does with a blind quaker mathematician. but when he's left speechless and straitjacketed by a stroke, it's up to the mathematician's daughter, maddy timms, to see that there's still a man inside the restraints   and to reconcile her quaker faith with her growing love. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by tessa dare the seaside town of spindle cove is often known as "spinster cove" because of its lively population of unmarried women. but even in this haven for disaffected or delicate ladies, love finds a way in. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by elizabeth hoyt regency england is one of the most popular settings for historical romance, but elizabeth hoyt steps back a century for the maiden lane books, set in a bustling, grimy 1730s london that teems with gin sellers and foundlings, noblemen and small, irritating dogs. and in the background is the mysterious ghost of st. giles, a sword wielding vigilante who may be a guardian of the city's poor   or something more sinister. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by julie anne long the everseas and the redmonds rule the lovely sussex, england, town of pennyroyal green   and the two powerful families can't stand each other. naturally, that leads to secrets, grudges and all kinds of attraction, for the everseas and the redmonds, and anyone else who comes to town. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by julie garwood when the king orders scottish laird alec kincaid to take an english bride, he sets his sights on jamie, the youngest daughter of baron jamison. but jamie has sworn she'll never love such an arrogant, brooding highland barbarian   and that's even before murderous rumors begin to circulate about alec. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by lauren willig lauren willig takes the plot of the scarlet pimpernel and runs wild with it in this swoon worthy series about florally named spies battling it out against the backdrop of the napoleonic wars. bracketing the historical romance is modern day historian eloise kelly, who unmasks the titular pink carnation (and finds a love of her own) while researching her dissertation. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jude deveraux we couldn't quite decide where to file this time traveling romance, but eventually we went with the setting for the start of nicholas stafford's story. he's a 16th century knight reincarnated in the 20th to clear his unjustly tarnished name, with the help   and soon the love   of dougless montgomery, an american abandoned in england by her faithless fiance. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by sherry thomas our expert panelist sherry thomas landed on the list with this emotionally intense story of a young victorian nobleman who travels the world to find his estranged wife   a rare for her time surgeon who has made a new life for herself in a far corner of india. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by eloisa james eloisa james is a professor of shakespeare when she's not writing romance, and it shows in these sparkling stories, laced not just with shakespeare, but also with marlowe and christopher smart. it's almost as fun to play spot the literary reference as it is to follow the adventures of james' exquisite duchesses. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by judith mcnaught one of judith mcnaught's most beloved books, something wonderful is the story of innocent country girl alexandra, who saves cynical nobleman jordan from a highway robbery   and winds up married to him after a misunderstanding. but jordan doesn't quite know what to do with his young and very unexpected bride. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by laura london at over 500 pages, the windflower may be a little dense for some readers, but this tale of a gently reared young american miss swept away by a dashing english pirate captain is a classic of old school romance   and it's finally been reissued after years out of print. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by joanna bourne the lure of the napoleonic wars proves strong again in joanna bourne's spymasters books, featuring a cast of dashing french and british spies finding love amid the danger. bourne's ability to write convincingly french dialogue   in english   makes this series a standout. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by meredith duran emmaline martin, betrayed by her caddish fiance, meets soon to be duke julian sinclair in india just before the sepoy uprising of 1857. they fall hard for each other, but a deception keeps them apart until a cold london spring, years later. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by judith ivory louise vandermeer is 18, beautiful, rich, bored and very aware that her life is limited by those factors. to escape, she agrees to marry aristocratic rake charles d'harcourt sight unseen, unaware that a scar and a limp mar his looks. for a lark, charles decides to travel on his fiancee's ocean liner and seduce her secretly in her darkened stateroom   but the prank backfires when he falls madly in love with his own wife to be. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by patricia gaffney rachel wade is finally free after years in prison for the death of her husband, a crime she did not commit. but as a thoroughly fallen woman, the only work she can find is as housekeeper to the cynical, jaded viscount d'aubrey. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by grace burrowes gillian, the countess of greendale, has survived a brutal first marriage. christian, duke of mercia, has survived capture and torture by the french. when she takes over the management of his household upon his return to england, these two terribly damaged people begin to build a new life together. (this, too, is part of a series that's worth checking out in any order you want to read them.) your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jeannie lin set in colorful tang dynasty china, these richly detailed romantic mysteries center on the celebrated courtesans of the lotus palace, who seem to attract as much trouble as admiration. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by connie brockway anne wilder leads a double life: respectable war hero's widow by day, roof crawling jewel thief by night   a dangerous pursuit that leads her straight into the arms of colonel jack seward. but jack doesn't know that the seductive thief who charmed him, and the honorable widow he loves, are one and the same. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by susan johnson portrayals of native americans in romance can be problematic, but our judges loved this story of a spoiled boston heiress who heads west with her father to inspect some gold mines, and the harvard educated absarokee leader who challenges their claims. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by lavyrle spencer widowed elly dinsmore has been treated cruelly in her small georgia town. she's got two young boys and a third on the way, and she needs a man to help out. so she places a classified ad for a husband   and gets will parker, a lonely drifter condemned to live on the fringes of society after serving time for murder. morning glory takes readers on an emotional rollercoaster of love, betrayal, war and trials, but will and elly finally get their happy ever after. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by pamela morsi in the aptly named town of marrying stone, ark., widow althea winsloe has been given an ultimatum by the townsfolk: find a husband by christmas, or they'll find one for her. the last thing she expects is to fall for farmhand jess best, a good man who's been written off by the town because he doesn't think quite as fast as they do. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by eva ibbotson ruth berger, daughter of a jewish professor, was meant to escape vienna, but her plans went awry. as the nazis march on the city, her father's colleague quinton somerville decides to rescue her with a quick marriage of convenience   he'll sweep her away to england, and they'll get a quick annulment. but neither quin nor ruth counted on falling in love. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by cecilia grant buttoned up widow martha russell is desperate. if she doesn't produce evidence of an heir soon, her late husband's cruel family will seize the estate she loves. there's only one solution, obviously: she offers to pay her rakish neighbor theophilus mirkwood for a month of assignations. and mirkwood is determined that martha will get her money's worth. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by kate noble lady jane cummings is finally out of mourning for her mother, but her father is showing signs of dementia, and her brother has only just returned from the continent, where he escaped the responsibilities jane has had to shoulder. jane needs a distraction, and it arrives in the form of reclusive neighbor byrne worth   who has mysterious ties to a highwayman who's been plaguing the area. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by mary jo putney notorious wastrel reggie davenport is only good for gambling and drinking   until a relative offers him a second chance in the form of a manor house, complete with secretive estate manager alys weston. romance ensues, but alys' past and reggie's alcoholism prove to be formidable obstacles to overcome. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by victoria holt rector's daughter drusilla delaney becomes a companion to the spoiled, arrogant lavinia framling. but which will prove more dangerous to her   a supposedly cursed peacock feather fan, or lavinia's brooding brother fabian? your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by elizabeth cleghorn gaskell and patricia ingham blurbed by charles dickens himself, north and south features one of the most memorable heroines in victorian literature: margaret hale, who conducts a stormy romance with industrialist john thornton while clashing with him over her quest to improve the lives of the workers in their gritty northern mill town. a resonant mix of romance and social concern. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by m. m. kaye an epic tale of forbidden love during the british raj. british botanist's son ashton pelham martyn is orphaned in india and raised to believe he's an indian boy named ashok. anjuli is a neglected princess, condemned first to an unwanted marriage and then to suttee when her husband dies   but happiness beckons for ash and anjuli in the "far pavilions" of the himalayas, away from the prejudices that have kept them apart. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jane austen jane austen's most famous work was one of your favorite picks (second only to the outlander series). so much has been said about elizabeth and darcy that now their place in the romance canon goes without saying   we'll just leave you with the mental image of colin firth diving into that lake. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by charlotte bronte a poor, mistreated heroine, a dour, misunderstood hero, and a mad wife locked in the attic   if that's not romance, we don't know what is! reader, she did indeed marry him, and they lived happily ever after. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by georgette heyer we couldn't have a romance list without georgette heyer, the venerable grandmother of the genre. and readers agreed, giving the nod to venetia, her charming 1958 novel about a sheltered regency beauty who sees the best in a notorious society rake and then convinces her family to approve the match. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by rainbow rowell rainbow rowell's story of two misfit kids who fall in love over mixtapes and comic books in 1980s omaha, neb., was one of our favorite books of 2013   and a favorite with our voters, too. while the ending is slightly ambiguous, we choose to believe eleanor and park got their happily ever after. we love them too much not to! your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by stephanie perkins anna is looking forward to her senior year in atlanta, ga., hanging around with her best friend and flirting with a hot co worker at the local multiplex. but then her father decides to send her off to boarding school in paris. anna's misery begins to lift only when she meets the gorgeous (and, sadly, taken) étienne st. clair. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by megan whalen turner a slight exception to our happily ever after rule, the romance in the queen's thief series gets off to a rocky start in the first book. but stick around for the next few volumes in this story of a master thief who steals the heart of a queen, and then must face the reality of being king. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by simone elkeles high school golden girl brittany ellis finds her life turned upside down when she walks into her senior chemistry class and ends up partnered with tough guy alex fuentes, a gang member who longs to leave the life and go to college. things start to spark when alex impulsively takes a bet that he can get brittany into bed. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by caridad ferrer singer and guitarist alegria montero wants to make it big, and she's hoping that a shot on a reality show will help her leave behind her boring life of playing family parties. but when she makes it to the finals of a competition for the "next latin superstar," she has to deal with the whirlwind of publicity, professional jealousy and a budding romance with nyu production major jaime lozano. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by pamela clare if you ever got annoyed that lois lane couldn't figure out superman's secret identity, try pamela clare's i team books, featuring tough minded investigative reporters who find love while digging up dirt on everything from environmental hazards to al qaida kidnappings. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by j. d. robb nora roberts makes her second appearance on the list (writing as j.d. robb) with the long running romantic suspense series, in death. after a long debate, we named the nora roberts rule after her: while many great writers were nominated, only roberts is legendary enough to show up twice! your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by mary stewart in this classic gothic suspense story, governess linda martin arrives at a mysterious french chateau to take care of the 9 year old master of the house and discovers a sinister uncle, a dashing, sardonic cousin, and a possible plot against the life of her young charge. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by nalini singh nalini singh's extensive psy/changeling series is set in a world torn between two races: the ruling psy have awesome mental powers, but no ability to feel emotions. they punish any sign of desire, and they're on the brink of war with the shape shifting changelings.the action begins with one psy desperately trying to conceal evidence of her feelings and the changeling who sees her as the key to solving a murderous mystery. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by meljean brook steampunk is more than just a fashion statement in meljean brook's iron seas books, set in an alternate world where the mongols conquered europe with the aid of fantastical machinery. dive in with the first book, the iron duke, about a military hero who falls for a police inspector when she comes to investigate a dead body dropped   via dirigible   at his doorstep. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by ilona andrews human technological progress has triggered a magical apocalypse, and mercenary kate daniels lives in the wreckage. she relies on her skills with a sword to protect her from enemies who want the magic in her blood   enemies who kill her guardian and throw her into the path of shape shifter curran, lord of the free beasts. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? ember hide caption by bettie sharpe poor prince charming is cursed: every woman who looks at him is instantly enslaved by love. and poor ember turns to the dark arts in order to resist the prince's pull   but can he resist her? bettie sharpe reworks the story of cinderella with, as she puts it, "sex, violence and naughty words." your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by n. k. jemisin n.k. jemisin's tale of human women caught up in divine disputes is one of the best fantasy series of recent years, and also one of the most stirring romances: it's packed with gods and lovers whose bonds shape their world   and the worlds to come. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by lois mcmaster bujold often described as "a regency romance in space," a civil campaign stars lois mcmaster bujold's memorable hero miles vorkosigan (and his clone brother mark) as they scheme for the hearts of the women they love (and try to keep mark's nonromantic scheme to engineer food producing bugs from getting out of control). your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by sharon shinn in the fallen utopia of samaria, an angel and a slave girl are thrown together in a divinely arranged marriage that proves anything but divine. can gabriel and rachel overcome their differences in time to perform the holy rite that might save their planet? your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by johanna lindsey there are probably more sensible books by the great johanna lindsey   she's better known for the pirate yarn gentle rogue   but none so outlandishly fun as this tale of a space faring security officer who lands on a planet of giant leather trousered barbarian warriors and winds up claimed by the biggest brute of them all. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by darynda jones charley davidson is a part time private investigator and a full time grim reaper, meaning she sees dead people and tries to guide them into the afterlife (and occasionally hunt down the people who left them dead). as if that weren't complicated enough, she gets caught up in a devilishly hot romance with the actual son of satan   a relationship that only gets more intense as the series progresses. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by j. r. ward the black dagger brotherhood is a band of entertainingly named (rhage, phury, tohrment) and highly trained vampire warriors, brothers who protect their kind from vampire slayers when they're not falling for very special women. ward has extended the series to include relatives and friends of the original brothers, but we recommend starting at the beginning with dark lover, the tale of vampire king wrath. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by kresley cole in kresley cole's world, there are hundreds of paranormal races living secretly alongside humans. but every 500 years, war breaks out   and that time is now. vampires and valkyries, demons and sorceresses spark and court against a backdrop of supernatural battle in these award winning paranormal romances. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by karen marie moning when mackayla lane's sister is murdered, a single clue leads her into the dangerous world of the fae and an equally dangerous attraction to two men: the ruthlessly sexy alpha fae v'lane, and the powerful, secretive jericho barron. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by susanna kearsley novelist carrie mcclelland hopes to turn an obscure historical battle into a best seller. but when carrie discovers a strange connection to the events she's writing about, her novel   about a young scotswoman battling english spies while falling for a dashing soldier with a price on his head   turns out to be more truth than fiction. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by patricia briggs anna never knew werewolves existed until she became one herself, and not just any old werewolf. anna is neither an alpha nor a submissive but an omega wolf, the rarest of weres, destined to bring peace to warring wolves and love to one of the country's most powerful packs. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by l. a. banks damali richards is a popular spoken word artist and producer. she's also the neteru, a special human born once every thousand years to fight the dark threat of vampires with a jewel encrusted sword that's 7,000 years old. can she keep the world   and her vampire lover, carlos   safe? your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by sherrilyn kenyon we are darkness. we are shadow. we are the rulers of the night. and this is a very entertaining, long running (and hot) series about immortal warriors dedicated to defending humanity. immortality, it turns out, isn't so great without love. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by k.j. charles set in a version of victorian england where magic is commonplace, this is the story of lucien vaudrey, who returns home to take up his title after the deaths of his father and brother. but he needs to fight the magic that's killing off his line, and for that he needs the help of quiet young magician stephen day   who bears no love for the vaudreys. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by radclyffe four out of four panelists agree: you should read all of radclyffe's books. start with fated love, the story of trauma surgeon quinn maguire and the unexpected mutual attraction she feels with her boss, honor blake. the story really gets going when honor begins to suspect quinn is hiding something. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by damon suede ever since the sept. 11 attacks, brooklyn firefighter griff muir has been stifling his feelings for his co worker and best friend, dante anastagio. but then dante runs into money troubles and proposes that the two friends put on a show for a website that specializes in hunks in uniform. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by madeleine urban and abigail roux a killer is on the loose, and fbi special agent ty grady has been partnered with another agent, zane garrett, to crack the case   but it's hate at first sight between cocky, confident grady and serious garrett. they'll have to figure out how to stop bickering before the killer makes them his next victims. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by amy lane crick francis found his true love at the age of 8: deacon winters. but crick is sure he'll never be good enough for deacon, and deacon is too painfully shy to admit his own attraction. when they finally come together as adults, a misunderstanding leads crick to make an impulsive decision that could tear them apart forever. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by deidre knight michael warner has been dead inside ever since he lost his lover in a car crash. their young daughter, too, is mourning her other father. but michael begins to wake up when he meets rebecca o'neill, a former actress who's dealing with her own devastating losses. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by deeanne gist bright but poor tillie reese lands a job as a housemaid on the vanderbilt family's biltmore estate in north carolina. but her dream job is jeopardized when she falls for rugged footman mack danvers   after all, the help mustn't get involved with each other. our readers also recommended tiffany girl, deeane gist's story of love at the 1893 chicago world's fair. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by francine rivers francine rivers retells the biblical story of hosea, setting it in gold rush california and turning the old testament prophet into a sympathetic rancher who heeds a divine calling to marry an abused prostitute. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by joey w. hill alpha male homicide detective mackenzie nighthorse goes undercover in a bondage club in search of a murderess   and finds he's increasingly unable to keep his desires separate from his investigation. especially when he meets violet siemanski, a young dominatrix who seems to know just how to unlock his hidden self. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by anne calhoun lacey meyers is divorced after 15 years of boredom and bad sex. she just wants to have a little fun with studly young cop hunter anderson. neither of them sees a future together ... but they just can't seem to stay away from each other. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by robin schone elizabeth petre, the daughter of a prime minister, is a perfect victorian wife, but her charms are lost on her cold, indifferent husband. determined to win him over, she asks for lessons in seduction from the notorious ramiel, who calls himself the bastard sheikh. at first enraged by her request, ramiel eventually takes on the task, with the aid of the perfumed garden, a classic collection of arabic erotica. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jennifer crusie minerva dobbs is an actuary whose wild side only peeps out in her choice of shoes (plastic, kitten heels, cherries and goldfish). cal morrissey is a serial dater who takes min out to dinner on a bet   which, no spoilers here, she already knows about. it's a tasty tale of love, elvis records and really good italian food, and as a bonus, it comes packaged with another crusie favorite, welcome to temptation. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by francis ray oil company engineer madelyn taggart has broken a lot of boundaries as a young black woman in a very white, very male field. she hasn't yet found a love to match her career success, but her brother's buddy daniel falcon   rich, suave and oh so handsome   might just fit the bill. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by julie james both our judges and our readers love julie james' fbi/u.s. attorney series. we recommend you start at the beginning, with the story of assistant u.s. attorney cameron lynde. unwitting witness to a murder, she's thrown together with fbi agent jack pallas   who just happens to blame lynde for a botched case three years ago. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by laura florand paris chocolatier magalie chaudron and her aunts are sorceresses of the sweet, stirring wishes into their cauldron of chocolate. magalie's cozy world is threatened when the famous pastry chef philippe lyonais decides to open a shop nearby, but eventually she can't resist the temptation to venture out for a taste. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by sonali dev mili rathod was promised to her husband at the age of 4 and hasn't seen him since. but as a married woman, she has the freedom to leave india for america and education. hotshot bollywood director samir rathod just wants to find the woman his brother was shackled to and get her consent for a quickie divorce   but mili is far more than he expected. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by kristen ashley kristen ashley's word of mouth sensation series was a big favorite with our voters, and we recommend you start with motorcycle man. tack and tyra meet and hook up at a tequila soaked barbecue, but sparks fly when tyra realizes her big new job is managing the office at tack's custom car garage. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by nora roberts nora roberts is a legend in the genre   so legendary, in fact, that she's the only author we let on this list twice. many, many of her books were nominated, but our favorites are the chesapeake bay books, about the four adopted quinn brothers   boat racer cameron, boat builder ethan, high powered advertising executive philip and artist seth   and, of course, the women they love. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jill shalvis lucky harbor is one of those delightful towns you find so often in romance   chock full of lonely men and women starting over, and centered around a ramshackle inn run by sisters maddie, tara and chloe. there are more than a dozen lucky harbor books so far, so pick one and dive in. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by susan elizabeth phillips forget da bears   the chicago stars are the windy city's hometown team in this series, and the focus of all kinds of romantic shenanigans from the moment new york hotshot (and, unfortunately, sports ignoramus) phoebe somerville inherits the team after her father's death. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by suzanne brockmann if you like your heroes (and heroines) superheroic, the troubleshooters are for you. navy seals, fbi counterterrorism operatives and professional security guys tackle danger and desire in this long running series. the most recent volume, do or die, was an npr books concierge pick last year. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by robyn carr the california town of virgin river sounds like a great place to start over (or even just to take a vacation): towering redwoods, clear streams and, everywhere you look, hunky cops, former marines, navy officers and fighter pilots waiting for love to bowl them over. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by linda howard a multigenerational family saga featuring wolf and mary mackenzie and their adventurous children: navy seal zane, test pilot joe, anti terrorism operative chance and their sister, horse trainer maris. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by kristan higgins dating is tough in tiny manningsport, n.y. (population 715), but the town is nevertheless home to all sorts of romantic adventures for the holland family   sisters faith and honor, who run the blue heron vineyard, and their heartthrob brother, jack. brother and sister restaurateurs connor and colleen o'rourke add to the complications. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by brenda jackson brenda jackson has written over a hundred books, so we're kind of spoiled for choice, but we recommend you start with her first series, about the soapily sensational madaris family and their romantic adventures. there are more than 20 books in just this series, so dive in anywhere! your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by christina lauren christina lauren's wild seasons series was a favorite with voters; the debut volume, sweet filthy boy, about an american woman who has a wild vegas weekend with a sexy frenchman and decides on impulse to follow him to france, was named a romantic times book of the year in 2014. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by donna hill there's one story investigative reporter reese delaware can't get to the bottom of: the tragic accident that killed her family. but when she takes an assignment to profile maxwell knight, a secretive tech magnate, she begins to uncover some dangerous secrets. this was made into a movie for the bet network, but trust us   the book is better. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by molly o'keefe unflappably professional morning show host madelyn cornish (any relation to our audie? we wonder) is hiding a broken heart. and then the man who broke it, bad boy hockey star billy wilkins, comes crashing back into her life when her producers decide he needs an on air makeover. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by julie ann walker biker boys and ex navy seals are two great tastes that taste great together in julie ann walker's black knights inc. books., about a bunch of harley riding toughs who are really a covert special operations team. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by jojo moyes a 100 year old painting is at the center of this emotionally gripping story, set partially in france during world war i and partially in the present day. widowed liv halston treasures the portrait of an unknown young woman, a gift from her husband before his sudden death. and then she falls for paul mccafferty, who just happens to be tracking down a painting that meets that description, appropriated by the germans during the war. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? a note about the often overlooked and misunderstood subgenre of category romances: these quick reads are most closely associated with pioneering romance publisher harlequin, and come in dozens of subgenres from historical to inspirational. for many years, categories made up most of the romance market. and while the publisher generated titles can seem a little ... erm, silly (the playboy sheikh's virgin stable girl, we're looking at you), if you like romance pared down to just the essential love story, category romances may be the thing for you. by sarah morgan when polly prince's family business is taken over by the arrogant (but sexy) tycoon damon doukakis, she becomes his apprentice   and she's determined to be successful in her new job. before long, she finds herself at damon's side as he negotiates an important deal in a dangerously romantic city   paris. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by kathleen o'reilly part of harlequin's steamy blaze line, this is the story of a sept. 11 widower whose beach romp with the daughter of a famous auction house family turns serious when a scandal threatens to bring down her family business. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? by carla kelly set in 1875, her hesitant heart follows susanna hopkins, who has escaped an abusive husband for a new life on the frontier. when she hits cheyenne, she runs out of money   and into the arms of military surgeon major joseph randolph. your purchase helps support npr programming. how? sponsor message become an npr sponsor

in another big year for love stories, books from authors including danica nava, tia williams, and emily henry swept us off our feet. every item on this page was chosen by an elle editor. we may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. part of becoming a mature adult, i’ve found, is embracing the joy of romance novels. these books feature some of the best character driven stories on the market; they often tackle far more complex issues than they’re given credit for; and they’re fun, in a way not all literature can (or should) be. they’re accessible, which is not to say trivial. romance addicts have been fighting for the legitimacy of their passion, arguably, since the genre first took real shape, and though there are plenty of worthwhile critiques of happily ever after tropes and eyebrow raising bedroom scenes, the enduring popularity of romance is itself an indication to take the genre powerhouse seriously. thankfully, then, 2024 was another big year for romance. authors such as emily henry and abby jimenez had major hits as expected, while authors including danica nava and kt hoffman amassed new fans with their stunning debuts. romance is a notoriously saturated sector; with that in mind, elle.com combed through the options to select the 37 standouts below as the best romance books of the year. may you fall in love with them, too. kennedy ryan deserves the hype. a writer who, again and again, builds poignant narratives around exquisite love stories, bridging the gap between so called “women’s fiction” and romance, ryan has had a record 2024. as the attention around her books hit new highs this could be us became an instant bestseller in march it’s been a thrill to watch readers engage with her wise (and wise cracking) books. this could be us is the second entry in her skyland series, following a seemingly perfect protagonist whose life implodes along with her relationship. as she rebuilds, a new opportunity for love presents itself but only if soledad barnes has the strength to trust a second chance. how does yulin kuang find the time? already an accomplished hollywood creative, kuang is only growing her influence as the writer of fellow romance author emily henry’s people we meet on vacation screenplay and the director of the same author’s beach read feature film. but this year, kuang has a story out that’s all her own: how to end a love story opens with the remarkable first sentence, “all things considered, her little sister’s funeral is a boring affair.” so begins this marvelous work of contemporary romance a complex, provocative tale about a terrible accident, an accomplished young woman, a traumatized young man, and the big question of blame when the two find each other impossibly drawn together. the celebrated abby jimenez gives “it’s just a fling!” a whole new meaning in this ideal beach read, which follows a convenient summer set up. justin seems doomed in his relationships; every time he and a partner break up, that partner goes on to find their soulmate soon after. emma’s heard about this so called “curse” and wants to put it to the test, especially since she boasts the exact same problem. so when she and justin start fake dating, convinced it’ll break their respective “curses,” it’s pretty inconvenient that their complicated families start interfering...along with some unexpected feelings. far more layered than the frolicking couple on its cover might suggest, just for the summer is yet another hit. there’s an immediate musicality to both the language and the atmosphere of this wonderful novel, which, of course, is fitting, given both the title and the setting. tia williams’s latest after the 2021 bestseller seven days in june, a love song for ricki wilde is an enticing blend of contemporary and historical fiction, magical realism, and glittering romance. williams plants readers in harlem, where the titular ricki has opened a flower shop in a bid to escape from the influence of her well known atlanta family. in new york (and under the watchful eye of her aging neighbor, miss della), ricki meets the musician ezra “breeze” walker, and a supposedly ordinary connection and a supposedly normal leap year becomes extraordinary. pride and protest author nikki payne boosts the drama (and the spice) in this sense and sensibility retelling that kicks up oft trodden ground without betraying the source material. when nora and her sister arrive at their inherited beach house in rural maine, their lives have been upended: their father has died, nora’s the victim of a recent scandal, and neither of them knows how to run a proper inn. but when local (unauthorized) tour guide bear shows up, it’s only a matter of time before they learn they work well together in more ways than one. tender and thoughtful, sensitive but smart a welcome departure from romance fiction that leans too heavily on tropes to the detriment of characterization shirlene obuobi’s between friends & lovers does indeed introduce a love triangle, but that’s merely the scaffolding for a deeper exploration of anxiety, depression, trauma, healing, and identity. obuobi’s protagonist is the brilliant, resilient dr. jojo, an instagram influencer and physician who’s in love with her long time best friend. but when jo meets debut novelist malcolm, she not only finds her affections pulled in more than one direction, but she starts to understand the changes she needs to make in her own life online and off to make room for real love. one of the most popular books of the year is, mercifully, also one of its best: emily henry’s funny story is every bit as charming and enveloping as the (many, many) emhen acolytes have come to expect from the author. funny story is indeed funny, if also intended to provoke some strong secondhand embarrassment: protagonist daphne vincent moves in with her ex fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex, miles nowak, after she gets dumped in the run up to her wedding. but henry is careful not to milk daphne’s plight as a mere gag; in treating heartbreak with the seriousness and intimacy it deserves, henry has crafted a romance that feels as complicated and ludicrous as relationships themselves. the third and final installment in nisha sharma’s shakespeare inspired romance series though it can be read as a standalone marriage & masti is a steamy, hilarious saga inspired by twelfth night. sharma displays such skill in remixing familiar romance territory (accidental marriage, a shipwreck, a friends to lovers revelation, found family), always taking care to immerse readers in the south asian influence her if shakespeare were an auntie books celebrates with pride. she writes protagonists veera and deepak with such humor and heart, making marriage & masti a worthy ending to a reader adored trilogy. a queer sports romance and a triumphant debut from kt hoffman, the prospects is a heartstring pulling tale of two minor league baseball rivals who realize they play much better together. when beavers player gene the first openly trans athlete in professional baseball starts to recognize a connection that has nothing to do with field position between him and teammate luis, he’s forced to learn that big, complicated feelings might, in fact, be what’s best for them both. as featured in elle’s best books of summer 2024: “i love a romance with a touch of magical realism, and ashley poston’s latest fulfills every reader’s dream: actually getting to live in the world of a book. when eileen merriweather initially sets out for her annual book club retreat, she instead winds up stranded somewhere strange but familiar: eloraton, setting of her favorite author’s quixotic falls series. as she catches the eye of the eloraton bookstore owner, she soon realizes her actions have impact on the locals’ stories and she might be able to help them find their happily ever afters. this is a grumpy meets sunshine tale with plenty of book lover tropes sure to delight.” a debut high school rom com from author arushi avachat, arya khanna’s bollywood moment itself takes the structure of a bollywood film, with all the delight and drama expected of the genre. it’s refreshing to root for avachat’s protagonist, arya, as she helps her family prepare for her sister’s wedding, all while juggling school, work, ample interfamilial strife, and the enemies to lovers lure of her student council rival. a sweet, colorful coming of age tale with the right serving of romance. as featured in elle’s best books of summer 2024: “ember lee cardinal, “a sometimes liar, but mostly an overall good person,” wants a good job a salaried job, a stable job. but she keeps getting rejections, and so she attempts a little lie: she’ll tally the box next to ‘white’ rather than ‘indigenous’ when she submits her applications, and she’ll pretend she’s earned her accounting degree. sure enough, she gets the job, but now ‘the truth’ has become an altogether sticky subject. at work, she meets danuwoa colson, a fellow native and the technix it guy, and the chemistry is immediate. but when a co worker threatens to uncover their clandestine office relationship, ember’s lies begin to spiral out of control. danica nava’s debut romance is a big hearted romp of a first novel.” casey mcquiston was already a big name in romance, but after the success of amazon prime’s red, white, and royal blue adaptation in 2023, their work has leaped into a new tier of popularity. as elle associate editor samuel maude wrote earlier this month, mcquiston’s latest, the pairing, is a pleasure, taking “readers around the world for a tummy growling food and wine tour, with its two main characters theo flowerday and kit fairfield examining their failed relationship along the way. it’s a great addition to the mcquiston library.” as featured in elle’s best books of summer 2024: “kirsty greenwood’s the love of my afterlife takes a slice out of the good place to create a cheeky rom com full of light and laughter. not that there isn’t some serious subject matter here: the plot starts with a dead woman, the quirky delphie, who’s just choked to death on a burger. in the afterlife, she meets a sympathetic therapist who grants her an extravagant opportunity: delphie can return to earth for 10 days to hunt down the mystery man she first encountered in the afterlife. (this man, jonah, ended up in the afterlife by accident, so he’s already back in the realm of the living.) but if she can’t find this potential soulmate and seal their fate with a kiss, then delphie has to return to evermore and say goodbye to any future with jonah.” i was immediately drawn to lost and lassoed’s vintage style cover after it flooded my instagram feed this year. i can’t pretend i’ve read many western romances, but with lyla sage’s books, i can certainly understand the appeal. the third entry in sage’s rebel blue ranch series (the second of which, swift and saddled, also came out this year), lost and lassoed is a rivals to lovers drama set on the wyoming ranch sage’s readers have come to appreciate as an escapist second home. an ideal pick for an era in which “cowgirl couture” is thriving. as featured in elle’s best books of summer 2024: “promises, promises. every year, lucy and bridget enjoy a vacation to prince edward island, and every year lucy and felix (a pei local) wind up tangled in a summertime fling. it’s casual, of course or so they swear. but when a personal crisis of bridget’s draws lucy back to the island, lucy swears she’ll focus solely on her best friend. but something about felix has changed, and she’s not sure she can settle for a situationship this time around. this summer will be different is a blissful romance novel, the kind you want to visit and never leave.” taylor swift’s most yearning lyrics meet bridgerton’s pastel glitz and the parent trap’s central conceit in emma r. alban’s buzzy series opener. this queer victorian romance unites two debutantes as they attempt to maneuver their widowed parents together, only to realize the real attraction is right in front of them. sticklers for historical accuracy might struggle with immersion, but those eager to soak in the emotions will find a conceit to relish. just make sure you have “dress” on repeat. mason deaver, the author of i wish you all the best now a film directed by tommy dorfman returned this year with the lgbtq romantic fantasy okay, cupid, the light hearted story of a real life cupid in training who gets a little too involved with their latest attempt at matchmaking. falling in love with a human is a no. 1 no no in deaver’s cupid community, but that can’t seem to stop jude from following their own arrow. queer joy abounds in deaver’s whimsical tale. a panic prone mathematician on the brink of a field defining discovery falls for a second chance romance in this thoughtful novel with traces of lessons in chemistry. in a genre too often dismissed as frothy, author sara read is game to tackle serious topics mental health, legal troubles, family trauma, grief while spinning a no less warm and inviting tale of unlikely love. a neurodivergent opposites attract romance set primarily in a remote irish pub, last call at the local has all the trademark warmth of its setting, but with the added care its subject matter necessitates. protagonist raine is an avid explorer, and her adhd only makes her rolling stone lifestyle feel more inevitable. pub owner jack, on the other hand, has ocd, and absolutely no plans to abandon the family business he knows (and loves). when raine starts working (and living) at the local, their forced proximity brings unexpected feelings and life changing choices to the fore. last call at the local goes down with all the pleasure of its namesake. exclusive: patricia lockwood reveals her next book a list of rebecca yarros’s books in order rebecca yarros’s fantasy life the best nonfiction books of 2024 the best literary fiction of 2024 the best mystery and thriller books of 2024 the best sci fi and fantasy reads of 2024 a guide to colleen hoover’s viral books elle editors share their favorite books of 2024 shelf life: mindy kaling i never expected to write this book shelf life: keke palmer a part of hearst digital media we may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. ©2025 hearst magazine media, inc. all rights reserved.

who says romance is reserved for valentine's day? love stories are a treat to be savored year round. to give you a head start in planning your 2024 reading, here's a list of 10 excellent romance novels (i've read them all!) publishing from now into early summer. bride is ali hazelwood as you've always known and loved her   with a paranormal twist. the story follows misery lark (iconic name, i know) a vampyre who is suddenly married to the ruthless, probably brutish but also kind of hot werewolf lowe moreland in a peacekeeping alliance. misery must make a life in a hostile territory while trying not to make out with her new husband   who may not trust her but can't seem to keep his eyes off her. this book is as sexy as it is fun. it's a departure from hazelwood's more conventional contemporary romances but brings in all the staples of her best work. there's found family, a love interest that's gruff yet obsessed, and most crucially a slow burning tension that lingers in every scene like a scent you just can't shake (there's a significant amount of smelling in this book but i promise it works). fair warning: if you're primarily a contemporary romance reader, it's worth knowing that a werewolf and vampyre hooking up is going to look pretty unconventional. you may want to brace yourself for some of the knotty, ahem, i mean naughty elements to the romance once the steam really gets going. perfect for: readers who love a little interspecies romance. we know you're out there! at first spite is a story for all the petty readers out there. athena greydon moves into the narrow spite house she bought with her ex fiancé johnny as a last resort. when she finds out her new neighbor is matthew   johnny's judgemental older brother who convinced him to end the engagement   she decides it might be time for some payback. but matthew is handsome, kind, and seems genuinely remorseful for his role in blowing up her life. and when her mental health starts to slip, he's there too. this book, despite its playful revenge premise, has one of the most careful and serious depictions of depression and grief that i've seen in a romance novel. it's thoughtful, sobering and real. dade reminds us that love is more than attraction and butterflies   it's showing up for someone every day even when they're at their lowest. perfect for: readers who crave a story with a plus sized heroine and understand the inherent romance of someone cleaning your glasses for you. swoon! sex, lies, and sensibility brings all the romance of jane austen's classic tale to a crumbling beach property in maine. nora dash's world is turned upside down when she finds out (at her father's funeral) that she and her sister are really her dad's second secret family. now nora's only hope at an inheritance is schlepping off to rural maine and restoring a dilapidated beach house her father once bought. but in order to do so, she'll have to team up with ennis "bear" freeman, an abenaki tour guide, who needs the money to protect his community's river from unscrupulous developers. you want drama? this book gives drama. the emotional twists and turns of this story are as big a part of nora and bear's romance as maine's beautiful landscape. both characters are trying to outrun their pasts (literally   the duo are former track stars) while denying the emotional tether that grows between them. it's awkward, sweet, and very hot at the same time. and it's especially refreshing to see an interracial romance where both characters come from marginalized backgrounds (nora is black and bear is indigenous). their identities are more than window dressing and bring a unique depth to their banter and ultimate romantic connection. perfect for: readers who wish jane austen was just a little thirstier. by all marks, helen zhang and grant shepard are virtual strangers. but 13 years ago, grant was involved in the accident that killed helen's sister michelle. when the two meet again, it's in a hollywood writers room where grant is part of the team adapting helen's books for tv. their interactions are charged   with the bitter resentment of past trauma and a surprising spark that it's best they pretend doesn't exist. whew! if that sounds like a heavy premise for a romance, you'd be right. but yulin kuang (who is adapting and directing emily henry's beach read for film) makes it work with a raw believability. helen's journey in particular is wrenching   as she struggles with the expectations heaped on her as a daughter of immigrants and her growing feelings for grant. kuang doesn't shy away from the unpleasantness of the premise but rather weaves it into the core of what connects helen and grant. their story is one of healing and forgiveness with all the ugly cracks and personal setbacks that entails. and the sheer yearning and impossibility of their situation will wreck you in the best possible way. perfect for: readers who enjoy a truly stomach churning level of angst with a side dish of sexual tension. the book begins with daphne, whose perfect fiancé has just dumped her for his longtime childhood friend petra. left with no other option, daphne moves in with miles, petra's ex boyfriend, who is in the pits of break up misery himself. the duo decide to make the most of the summer by exploring the town together   with the added side benefit of making their exes jealous along the way. but what happens when your ex's new fiancé's ex is actually lovely and kisses like a man starved? well, that's a funny story. it takes very little time for most readers to get sucked into an emily henry novel but funny story is guaranteed to break records. it's henry at her absolute best   romantic, melancholic, and so full of heart. by chapter 2, you'll be ready to throw hands for daphne. and miles is so magnetically charming, you'll be tongue tied in four chapters or less. that's emily henry's speciality   snagging you in and emotionally entangling you with the characters until you're half sick in love yourself. perfect for: readers who see a disaster of a man sobbing to bridget jones's diary and think "i could fix him." when anna green and grocery store heir liam "west" weston were in college they got married for some free housing and then happily went their separate ways. but five years later, liam needs to bring his fake wife to a destination wedding to secure his inheritance. anna agrees to tag along and pretend to be in love   for a cut of the money. after all, it's no hardship to fake a relationship with your gorgeous (legal) husband. right? as long as they keep their emotions out of the picture, it'll be smooth sailing. right? the paradise problem is the kind of book you take on vacation and read in one singular sitting at the beach. it's a complete trope fest in the best possible way. you're looking for fake dating? we've got it! and what about marriage of convenience? that's the fun twist! opposites attract? fear not, we've got that too! it's not a complete reinvention of any one of those tropes, but rather a delightful execution of a winning formula (any romance reader worth their salt knows magic happens when you combine fake dating with a destination wedding). perfect for: readers who want a little flavor of succession esque family politics in their romance. who says romance is only for bright eyed, bushy tailed 20 somethings? in birding with benefits, celeste, a 42 year old divorcée, ends up entangled with john, a quiet and sensitive local birder. john is in urgent need of a partner for this year's birding competition and after a comedy of errors (in which celeste thinks john needs a fake romantic partner), the two become teammates. celeste doesn't know the first thing about birds but as she spends hours learning from john in arizona's gorgeous wilderness, she starts to develop a soft spot for the hobby and...her gorgeous teacher. this romance is so soft and gentle. it's a story about two mature adults who are polar opposites and yet kindred spirits. the passion john and celeste find for one another while cataloging arizona's birdlife is warm and steady. and although they've got a few emotional obstacles to work through before a happy ending, it's worth tuning in to see how these birds of a feather find their way to each other. perfect for: readers who like birds and have an affinity for men who work in wood shops. as the daughter of a legendary rockstar (and even more legendary womanizer), clementine monroe wants nothing to do with musicians or their drama. but as luck would have it (or the strange breakup spell her sister cast) the man she just had a hot one night stand with is actually theo eliott, world famous rock star. and to make matters worse, clemmie's new job calls for her to spend the next six weeks stuck in a house with theo. will the two be able to stay away from each other long enough for theo to finish his album? under your spell is as enchanting as the name implies. it's both humorous and sweet   with a really compelling cast of characters. clemmie is an adorably sensible disaster. she thinks she's in control but really she's a mess who would rather avoid any risk than open herself up to heartbreak. relatable. theo is a rockstar but really a boy obsessed. i'm afraid he doesn't know how to do anything except win hearts. and clemmie's sisters   lil and serena bring a warm girl power (non ironic) energy to the whole production. you'll be spellbound with this one. perfect for: readers who may or may not have read one direction fanfiction in their youth. no judgment! in ne'er duke well, peter kent, a reluctant and scandalous duke must find a way to rehabilitate his reputation if he wants to gain custody of his half siblings. he teams up with lady selina, society's most polished debutante. but selina has a small secret   she runs an erotic library for women. and though she'd rather set peter up with a wife of impeccable reputation and no life ruining secrets   the sparks that fly between the two of them are undeniable. ne'er duke well is a historical romance with the energy of a parks & recreation episode. like the iconic sitcom, the characters in this are all so darn loveable, you can almost see the twinkle in their eyes. there's witty banter and an endlessly supportive love interest (peter kent is a regency era ben wyatt). and you've got this comforting feeling that even when things seem unsalvageable, everything will be okay. it's the kind of romance you want to wrap around yourself like a blanket   low conflict with maximum warm and fuzzy feelings. perfect for: readers who love golden retriever heroes and enjoy romances with a focus on family. the ornithologist's field guide to love follows beth pickering, a perfectly polite professor who must team up with her maybe villainous (definitely sexy) academic rival devon lockley to capture a magical bird and win the ultimate prize   tenure. this book is so riotously clever it almost defies description. it's like an alchemy of romantic elements held in perfect harmony. india holton infuses the story with wry wit and meta inside jokes. every sentence is positively vibrating with the kind of charm that will have you pressing your lips together with laughter. and yet amid all the outrageous and camp fun, holton also succeeds in building a genuine love story   between two people who have kept the world at a distance for years but somehow find a home within each other and if that doesn't sell you, then you should at least know this book has one of the funniest twists on the "one bed" trope i've read in a long time. perfect for: readers who think every good romance should include at least one ridiculous bit. kalyani saxena is an associate producer at here & now. she's a voracious romance reader in perpetual search for the perfect execution of the enemies to lovers trope. copyright 2024 npr

recent and archived work by olivia waite for the new york times these vintage books introduce the archetypes, settings and lavishly bonkers sensibility that are the hallmarks of great romance. by olivia waite our columnist on three spicy new releases. by olivia waite here are the novels our columnist loved most. by olivia waite our columnist on some recent favorites. by olivia waite romantasies, paranormals and fantasy romances, just in time for halloween. by olivia waite our columnist on new books by casey mcquiston, erin langston and erica ridley. by olivia waite our columnist reviews books by danica nava, courtney milan, zen cho and karelia and fay stetz waters. by olivia waite our columnist on vacation ready reads. by olivia waite our columnist has summery new recommendations. by olivia waite our columnist on sexy, swoony new releases. by olivia waite

we round up our seven favorite romance novels of summer 2024. maureen lee lenker is a senior writer at entertainment weekly with over seven years of experience in the entertainment industry. an award winning journalist, she's written for turner classic movies, ms. magazine, the hollywood reporter, and more. she's worked at ew for six years covering film, tv, theater, music, and books. the author of ew's quarterly romance review column, "hot stuff," maureen holds master's degrees from both the university of southern california and the university of oxford. her debut novel, it happened one fight, is now available. follow her for all things related to classic hollywood, musicals, the romance genre, and bruce springsteen. romance novels are all about escapism   taking you away from the troubles of this world to get lost in a good love story with a guaranteed happy ending. as such, they're also often the stuff of fantasy, tales about wealthy dukes or wildly successful entrepreneurs. but the novels of summer 2024 travel a bit off the beaten path, telling love stories of oft ignored subjects like those in financial precarity, working class native americans, 19th century harlots and impotent earls, a worker in a pharmacy shop, and camp counselors. it's refreshing to see these tales that emphasize the possibilities and optimism of romance no matter your financial circumstances. here are our seven favorite romance novels of summer 2024. kate spencer returns with a book so drenched in summer you can practically smell the sunscreen and bug spray oozing from its pages. clara millen is in free fall, clinging to her job as a lifeline despite being in a state of complete burnout. but when her boss forces her to take a sabbatical, it clears the way for her to spend her summer with her best friends at their childhood sleepaway camp. when clara gets there, she’s beset with challenges   her bff is distant, her longtime frenemy (and crush) mack has only become hotter with age, and worst of all, the camp’s beloved owners have decided to sell it to glamping developers. as the group tries to rekindle some of the magic of their teenage summers for the last time, clara begins to realize that she’s been prioritizing all the wrong things. she reopens herself to the possibilities of life, including a relationship with mack (and if you aren’t already feeling the summer heat, just wait for the boathouse scene). spencer’s book is as much about friendship as it is romantic love, but that doesn’t make it any less swoony. as clara faces her fears and luxuriates in the waters of the lake, she relearns how to listen to her heart. spencer perfectly depicts the embers of a person’s soul when they’re in full burnout mode, while lovingly illuminating a path forward. it’s not a new concept   that reconnecting with old friends and spending time in nature will help you slow down and assess what really matters. but it is tender, emotional, and refreshing in the way she presents it. our lives are tinged with nostalgia, a desire to cling to the way things were. here, spencer crafts a loving ode to honoring those memories and surrounding ourselves with the people and experiences we love while learning how to embrace the future. one last summer makes us long for those quiet moments and celebrates building a life that makes space for them in big ways and small. heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a scarlett peckham concludes her society of sirens series with her most ambitious, deeply romantic title yet. thaïs magadalene is a renowned courtesan in london, taking only one lover a week and never accepting the same patron twice. but when she puts an entire month with her up for auction to raise funds for women’s rights, she finds herself shipped off to the country in the company of lord alastair eden, an upright earl and well respected radical politician. eden suffers from sexual dysfunction, including struggles with impotence and a lack of knowledge in how to satisfy a woman   so, he hires thaïs to teach him to overcome this challenge so that he might wed a well bred young lady. he just doesn’t count on falling in love with the notorious woman in his bed. peckham delves into the subject of impotence and sexual dysfunction with empathy and heart, a refreshing turn of events in the romance genre where we often expect heroes to be well endowed bedroom pros. she takes care to understand eden’s root traumas and symptoms, so that finding a solution is a shared process of discovery between eden and thaïs. there’s no waving of a magic wand, where one good tumble with thaïs solves all his issues. instead, peckham looks at sex as an innately complex and intimate act, while never casting judgment on thaïs’s career and pursuit of pleasure. like so many of peckham’s characters, eden and thaïs defy expectations   it’s what fuels their connection. while her previous two books in the series have been filled with righteous female rage, the mistress experience is something altogether softer. thaïs may delight in bedsport, but the thing she desires most is a husband, children, and a family. from nights making love in the garden to eden nursing thaïs back to health, the book bursts with moments of quiet connection and care. here, true pleasure, open heartedness, and emotional authenticity are as crucial in the fight for a more equal world as more overt acts of revolution. where peckham’s other heroines in this series raged against inequities and torched expectations, thaïs reminds readers that love   and the courage it takes to choose it   can be its own radical act. heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a nisha sharma wraps up her shakespeare inspired rom com trilogy with this fun, touching reimagining of twelfth night. veera mathur has endured everything from a shipwreck (literally) to watching her best friend and love of her life, deepak datta, get engaged to someone else to being fired from a job that she once thought was her family legacy. so when deepak’s fiancee dumps him via social media video, veera and deepak drunkenly enter into a fake marriage that might be the answer to their career woes. sharma writes so beautifully of familial expectations, culture and tradition. it’s a fascinating, even radical decolonization of shakespeare, taking the values of elizabethan england and translating them into those of contemporary indian families. in marriage and masti, that comes to a head as veera wrestles with her father’s expectations that she become a wife and nothing more. meanwhile, deepak sees veera for the force of nature that she is, igniting a flame between them. sharma expertly crafts deepak’s gradual realization that veera has been the one for him all along, while poignantly painting veera’s yearning and the complications their fake relationship brings. she also knows how to write a toe curling bedroom scene (this book isn’t inspired by romeo and juliet, but sharma gives new meaning to the words “balcony scene”). twelfth night is a play about identity and seeing people for who they really are   sharma takes that theme and the bones of the play to craft a swoony, heartfelt, deeply clever romance. it is deepak and veera who must learn to see and trust each other above all others. a scary prospect to be sure, but one that sharma reaffirms is a risk worth taking with the right person at your side. sharma could reimagine the entire first folio if she wanted to, with the depth and insight she brings to some of western society’s best loved plays. heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a  with pardon my frenchie, farrah rochon delivers the feel good read of the summer. ashanti wright can hardly believe the monumental success of her dog boarding business, barkingham palace. partly because she barely has time to sleep with the demand for her new dog treats, duchess delights. things get even more complicated when ashanti’s dog duchess and another guest at the daycare, puddin’, create a viral moment sharing a dog treat a la lady and the tramp. soon, ashanti is thrust into a media frenzy alongside the grumpy but attractive thaddeus sims, who is taking care of puddin’ for his grandmother. thad can barely stand dogs, but he does like the look of ashanti, even if they’re after the same piece of property in new orleans for their respective businesses. there are some deeper themes here, ranging from infidelity to guardianship rights to the struggles of veterans to adapt to civilian life, but by and large, rochon has crafted a delight as confectionary as its cotton candy pink cover. the antics of duchess and puddin’ and the various pooches in the novel are diverting and winsome, while the romance between thad and ashanti is easy and sexy. rochon’s books always boast a homey quality, as if a reader could pour a glass of wine and share an evening of easy banter with any one of her characters. pardon my frenchie is no exception, with its tale of puppy love (for both dogs and humans). heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a  danica nava makes her debut with this warm, funny tale that tracks one young woman’s struggles to succeed   and the web of lies that surrounds her. when ember lee cardinal hits a wall with job application rejections, she decides to take matters into her own hands and exaggerate how far along she is in her degree program (as well as to hide her native american identity). her tactics work and soon, she has a dream job at a tech start up that comes with the added bonus of danuwoa colson, the super hot “native daddy” it guy. ember and dan connect immediately, but her lies begin to spin out of control as she worries about their office’s no workplace romance rules. when a scheming colleague catches them kissing, ember is drawn into a blackmail scheme that threatens to derail her entire life. nava’s voice is cheeky, bursting with a distinctly personal style, and she brings ember to life with compassion and humor. ember could easily be “unlikable” with her penchant for fibbing and her inability to help herself, but nava always justifies her heroine’s choices and gives readers an empathetic protagonist. threaded throughout the novel is an acknowledgement of the racism and obstacles they have both endured as native americans. with ember, nava not only crafts a heroine who defies stereotypes, but one who must gradually realize the value and support of her community. the truth according to ember offers readers a modern native american love story, one that embraces and illuminates the realities of what it is to be a native person in the u.s., while delivering a heartfelt happy ending. heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a  all hail a new (and most welcome) voice in the historical romance space. alexandra vasti makes her debut with this absolute romp. peter kent, the newly minted duke of stanhope, is a stranger to british society, having been born and raised in the swamps of new orleans. but when he wants to become the legal guardian of his half siblings, he’s in dire need of respectability. lady selina ravenscroft decides to help him by finding him a wife who’s the portrait of propriety, which is most decidedly not her since she secretly runs an erotic lending library. but between tumbles into the serpentine in hyde park and being caught in a passionate embrace in the library, selina and peter simply cannot resist the crackle of their chemistry. vasti writes with a warm, whimsical voice, underscoring her hysterical interludes and cutting asides with a deep well of emotions. both selina and peter have endured loss, and their desire to protect each other and peter’s siblings stems from their own loneliness and yearning to fix what can never be healed. they are deliciously amusing characters, who find themselves in hysterically compromising positions. but they also possess an abundance of heart and compassion that makes them easy to root for. vasti’s sense of humor aligns well with the likes of martha waters, combining the cutting wit of jane austen with a slightly more unhinged sense of modern high jinks. ne’er duke well left us with only one question   what’s next? heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a  this madcap romantic comedy may just be the romance novel of the summer, with its unique, funny, and heartfelt tale. when delphie dies choking on a burger, she ends up in the afterlife waiting room, only to meet her soulmate   jonah, a temporary unconscious visitor. intrigued by their connection and a hopeless romantic herself, merritt, delphie’s afterlife orientation counselor, sends delphie back to earth with instructions to get jonah to kiss her within the next 10 days and get a second chance at life. if she fails, it’s back to the great beyond. but as delphie begins to climb outside her introverted shell, befriending her neighbor cooper, she starts to realize that jonah isn’t the only reason she wants to keep living. greenwood’s premise is slightly bonkers and all the more delightful for it, as delphie tries to make good on a deal not unlike the one the little mermaid made. greenwood has a screamingly delicious wit; nailing everything from the odd scenarios in which delphie finds herself (a “from life” drawing class, for example, and a showtunes karaoke piano bar) to the crackling banter between the characters. the book is also swooningly romantic, leaning on romance tropes with a self aware glee (and citing some of the best writers in the biz). but what really makes the book a sparkling gem is the ways in which it understands the differences between existing and truly living. delphie’s life is a sad, closed off existence designed by trauma and abandonment. but while trying to find her soulmate, she discovers her own soul   and the things she needs to make it gleam (companionship, friendship, kindness). who among us hasn’t wished for a second chance at something in our lives? delphie actually gets one, and with it, the perspective of what it means to live fully and joyfully. there’s heaps of heart here, too, as well as tear jerking meditations on grief and the ways in which parts of ourselves die with those we lose. but above all, the love of my afterlife is a deliriously funny and earnest love letter to connection and the ways it gives our lives meaning. heat rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 grade: a

by clicking sign in, you agree to our terms and conditions and that you have read our privacy policy. sign inup with your social account we won't post to any of your accounts your password must include: sign inup with your social account we won't post to any of your accounts your password must include: summer is officially upon us, which means it’s time to get those beach reads ready, and romance is the genre of choice. one romance novel us weekly can’t get enough of this summer is the paradise problem by christina lauren. the coauthor duo   comprised of christina hobbs and lauren billings   recently opened up to us exclusively about why readers are drawn to a love story. “readers come to romance for all kinds of reasons, including escape and joy and aspiration and, of course, entertainment, and they also love knowing what manner of entertainment awaits them,” the twosome shared, noting that beach reads specifically should be “propulsive.” the authors note that readers want a book that “takes [them] on a journey” and is difficult to put down, adding, “whether it’s romantic tension, or a nail biting thriller, or a transportive and sweeping fantasy, a perfect beach read is one we don’t want to walk away from for even a second.” keep scrolling to see which romance novels to read on the beach in 2024: an eclipse and multiple love connections? yes, please! as seraphine lambent hosts a series of close friends for an upcoming solar eclipse, sparks start to fly between her various guests. between new relationships taking flight and old relationships coming to an end, there’s so much to unpack. set in a seemingly haunted airbnb with documentarians on site to film the entire event, it’s safe to say things are definitely about to change. (out now) hobbs and billings’ obsession with succession helped them come up with the plot of this book, which follows anna and liam   who have been married for nearly five years but still barely know each other. in fact, the starving artist anna learns his family is white lotus rich when she has to accompany liam to a family wedding on a private island. “we wanted the escapist setting and the over the top romance as the sweet, frothy topping,” the authors told us, explaining how they made readers root for anna and liam despite the extenuating circumstances. “everyone around them is pretty terrible, so readers know who to root for in the us vs them debate,” the writers added. “pretty much from the jump, liam is sympathetic because readers can feel the toxicity of his family background and see his need to escape it. we root for anna, of course, because she’s a struggling artist out there just doing her very best for herself and a father she loves dearly.” (out now) two former high school sweethearts reconnect by chance during a wild trip to las vegas and wake up married. in the sober light of day, they decide to stay married to benefit their careers   violet is a world famous celeb stylist and xavier is a high school teacher   but they soon realize their lives might be too different to make it work. (out now) the bachelorette alum did not disappoint with her foray into fiction. brown brought her own personal experiences to life in mistakes we never made   alluding to some iconic bachelor nation moments   as protagonist emma and her former situationship finn head on a wild goose chase down the west coast looking for her best friend, who has become a runaway bride. (out now) following the success of 2022’s before i let go, ryan returns to her skyland series with this could be us, which follows a woman named soledad in the aftermath of a breakup that throws her world into chaos. as she juggles work and motherhood, she meets a man who initially seems like a mistake   but he may prove to be just what she needs. (out now) she’s done it again   the queen of rom com writing is back at it with funny story and a new fictional boyfriend, miles, who won over booktok in no time. main character daphne finds herself as miles’ new roommate after their respective exes   peter and petra   start dating. while the two get through their breakups together, sparks definitely fly between them. (out now) a love story born from reddit, what’s more relatable than that? justin is convinced he has a curse   all of his ex girlfriends meet their soulmate right after they break up. when he goes to the internet for help breaking the spell, justin meets emma, who is convinced she has the same issue. (out now) long expands her fantastic palace of rogues series with book no. 7, which follows catherine, a young woman looking for a husband during her first season in high society. while staying at the grand palace on the thames, she meets dominic, a scandalous lord who could scuttle the entire husband hunting project. (out now) easton’s debut novel is for aficionados of the fake relationship trope. event planner amerie pretends to be dating astronaut vincent when she runs into an ex, but they decide to continue the charade until he has to set off for space. when their faux feelings turn real, amerie has to decide whether she’s ready for their romance to take flight. (out now) if you’re hoping to scratch a royal romance itch, then look no further than clawson’s latest book, which follows daisy, a young woman who lands a summer job at the tower of london’s knight school. she soon meets teddy, a disgraced member of the royal family who’s also working at knight school and is determined to make her days a lot more difficult   until they realize they have a connection off the battlefield. (out now) no, this is not the bachelor, it’s marry me, juliet, and the show’s producer murray finds himself in a major pickle for the franchise’s upcoming season. lily fireball, who the network wants as the “villain” this time around, also happens to be murray’s best friend and former coworker. now, she’s attempting to become reality tv gold. (june 4) peckham closes out her society of sirens series with the mistress experience, which follows notorious harlot thaïs. to raise money for the cause of women’s rights, she auctions herself off to the highest bidder but gets more than she bargained for in the winner, radical politician lord alastair. (june 25) bailey’s latest novel centers on burgess, a single dad and former hockey player who hires tallulah as his live in nanny. tallulah at first tries to help burgess return to the dating world, but her plans go awry when she realizes they’re developing a steamy relationship of their own. (july 16) by signing up, i agree to the terms and privacy policy and to receive emails from us weekly check our latest news in google news check our latest news in apple news formula 1 fans, this one’s for you. dev anderson is an f1 driver with an image problem in danger of losing his sponsors, leading him to hire recent college grad willow williams as his social media manager. they try to keep their relationship strictly professional, but their chemistry is simply too intense to ignore for long. (july 23) after delighting readers with a four book trip to the renaissance faire, deluca is back with a new, equally enchanting setting: a spooky florida beach town. nick owns a local coffee shop and embraces boneyard key’s ghost forward opportunities, while newcomer cassie is somewhat less impressed when her new house seems haunted. as nick shows cassie around her new hometown, the pair form a deep connection   until the eeriness of it all threatens their good time. (august 13) desai’s latest book is the perfect blend of romance, mystery and thrills. heroine simi chopra has recently pulled off an impressive heist, but now she needs to return the jewels   with interest. unfortunately, the necklace is now with her partner jack danger’s biggest enemy, and the whole crew must work together to make it right. (august 20) by signing up, i agree to the terms and privacy policy and to receive emails from us weekly by signing up, i agree to the terms and privacy policy and to receive emails from us weekly us weekly has affiliate partnerships so we may receive compensation for some links to products and services. by signing up, i agree to the terms and privacy policy and to receive emails from us weekly us weekly is part of part of the a360media entertainment group. © a360media 2025powered by wordpress vip

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what to read supported by romance looking for an escapist love story? here are 2024’s sexiest, swooniest reads. by olivia waite olivia waite, the book review’s romance fiction columnist, writes queer and historical romance, fantasy and critical essays on the genre’s history and future. we chose the 10 best romance books of 2023. see the full list. falling in love with love has never been easier. here are some of my favorite recent romance novels   steamy historicals, cutting edge contemporaries and more. i’ll be updating this list all year, so check back for more recommendations. in this “snow white” inspired romance set amid the complicated histories of regency london’s jewish families, we meet hannah   a fence, and the daughter of two convicted thieves   and solomon, the saucy scion of a once wealthy family trying to brush off the cobwebs of debt and disgrace. grossman will be writing two more books in this rich, complex series, and i cannot wait for the next one. local bookstores | amazon | barnes & noble | apple in the latest queer romance from the author of “red, white and royal blue” and “the last stop,” kit and theo   who haven’t seen each other since their brutal breakup   find themselves on the same luxe european food tour. soon our duo is back to their old game as they eat and drink and et cetera in every city of the journey   until they finally end up where they truly want to be. local bookstores | amazon | barnes & noble | apple

jeeves reads romance voracious romance reader • honest reviewer this time of year always makes me think back on the books i’ve read so far and revisit my tbr to see what else i want to check out before the year is over. i’ve read some excellent romance novels in 2024, and i’m sure that there are many more to come! the contemporary romance novels on this list have all received 5 star ratings from me this year. i’ve included the blurbs as well as links to my book review for each one. they’re sorted into two groups   those that have the potential to make my best of the year list (only 2024 releases allowed), and those that were just solid reads. you can’t go wrong with any of these, and there’s something for every mood. please note: i’ve included a few arcs that haven’t released yet, so expect a review for them soon! sparks fly when a lovelorn romance novelist and a divorce lawyer who has sworn off relationships agree to cohost a podcast series offering dating advice to viewers, in truly, madly, deeply, the next steamy queer rom com from lambda literary award winner and national bestselling author alexandria bellefleur.