Ten top romance reads of the season

Alexandra Cardwell, RubicOnline|February 27, 2023

EMBRACE THE LOVE. Here are 10 top romance and rom-com reads to dive into this season, spanning from classics to recent publishes. (Clara McKoy)

What better time than now, as temperatures are brutal and the snow has no end in sight, to cozy up indoors with a book about love? But really, no excuse is needed to pick up a good romance or rom-com read any day of the year. Here are 10 romance and rom-com books to read this season.

1. Book Lovers by Emily Henry
Protagonist Nora Stephens, a cutthroat literary agent, takes a break from her fast-paced New York City lifestyle to take a much-needed vacation with her beloved little sister Libby. The pair travel to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina—the antithesis of New York. While in this idyllic small town, Nora keeps running into Charlie Lastra, her work enemy. By chance, the two keep meeting and feelings start to blossom.

Book Lovers is a great read for someone looking for an uplifting, charming tale of opposites attract.

2. Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev
In this enemies-to-lover style read, Dr. Trisha Raje, the most acclaimed neurosurgeon in San Francisco, and the up-and-coming chef DJ Caine get off to a bad start. He needs the job Trisha’s influential family offers, but he has too much pride to feed her arrogance. However, Trisha is the only surgeon who can save DJ Caine’s sister’s life. As Trisha and Caine butt heads, their impressions of each other change.

Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors is a great read for those looking for a modern retelling of Jane Austen’s classic or for someone who wants a traditional rom-com read in the 21st century.

3. Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Author Casey McQuiston said it best when they explained this book by posing the question, “What happens when America’s First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?” In Red, White & Royal Blue, Alex Claremont-Diaz, the son of the new president, is cast as a perfect public figure: handsome, charismatic and smart. While these seem like all the necessary characteristics of the First Son and more, there is a problem. Alex has beef with the prince across the pond, Henry, who is the prince of England. What starts as a press-staged friendship soon blossoms into something more.

Red, White & Royal Blue is a great read for someone looking for more rom-coms representing the LGBTQ+ community, but also for anyone looking for a charming tale of forbidden love.

4. It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover
Protagonist Lily had a troubled upbringing, but it couldn’t stop her from working towards the things she wanted. Now a college graduate living in Boston and running her own small business, Lily finds herself in falling in love when she meets neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid. Though stubborn and somewhat self-important, Ryle is stuck in Lily’s mind—until feelings for her first love, Atlas Corrigan, resurface. With Atlas’s sudden reappearance, everything changes.

It Ends with Us makes a perfect read for someone looking for a romantic read filled with drama, twists and turns.

5. Emma by Jane Austen
This classic novel tells a story of self-discovery, friendship and love that stands the test of time. Set in the small village of Highbury, England in the early 19th century, Emma follows the adventures of protagonist Emma Woodhouse, a rich and beautiful young woman. Emma’s meddling in the affairs of those around her often leads to mischievous mishaps, but her sense of self and kindness help her to navigate.

For someone looking for romance, fun and an example of classic literature, Emma is the perfect read.

6. Circling Back to You by Julie Tieu
Protagonist Cadence Lim has worked her way up the ladder at Prism Realty. Cadence goes from a behind-the-scenes role to a crucial part of the sales group. Though Cadence’s complicated family relationships place a burden on her, she is uplifted at the office by her favorite co-worker, Matt Escanilla. Things take a turn between these two workplace best friends when they travel to their shared hometown for a business trip. The constantly-single Matt brings Cadence to a family gathering as his girlfriend so his family will stop pestering him. Both outside of the usual office setting, both Cadence and Matt begin to see each other in a new light.

This is a fitting read for those who admire the love connection between couples like Jim and Pam on The Office, or those looking for a fun rom-com novel in which friendship is the start of something more.

7. The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa
Both for fans of Taylor Swift’s song, “Speak Now,” and for those looking for a charming love story, The Wedding Crasher is a perfect read. What starts out as protagonist Solange Periera helping out her wedding planner cousin soon turns into something more. Solange overhears a conversation leading her to think that the couple is not meant to be. Naturally, she crashes the wedding in order to spare the groom from making a big mistake. Even though the groom, Dean Chapman, was getting married out of convenience rather than love, the wedding is now out of the question. But Dean needs a significant other for an assignment at work that could be key for a big promotion. So, he claims to be in love with Solange, the woman who crashed his wedding. Out of her guilt for ruining the not-so-happy couple’s wedding, Solange goes along with the plan. What started as a charade to appease Dean’s colleagues soon turns into something more.

The Wedding Crasher is the perfect read for someone looking for an unconventional rom-com read. While unlike other books in the rom-com genre, The Wedding Crasher has the same romance, humor and charm necessary for a great romantic read.

8. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Protagonist Belly lives for the months of summer; all of her best times are spent during the days of June and August. Belly and her mom spend every summer at the home of her mom’s best friend, Susannah, and her two sons Jeremiah and Conrad. Jeremiah and Conrad, whom Belly has known ever since her very first summer, have been like brothers, crushes, and everything in the middle to Belly. But this summer, everything changes as Belly must navigate her relationship with both Jeremiah and Conrad.

The Summer I Turned Pretty is a great read for those dreaming of the days of summer, looking for a younger and more relatable protagonist or just looking to enjoy a good read.

9. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Though she received a cancer diagnosis at an early age, Hazel was brought a few more years through tumor-shrinking medical treatments. Despite this glimmer of hope, the cancer had always been terminal. While her state brings Hazel much sadness and grief, everything changes when one day she meets a fellow victim of cancer, Augustus Waters, at a support group for young adults with cancer.

The Fault in Our Stars makes for a great read with its message of finding love in devastating situations, reminding readers to cherish life and loved ones.

10. The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
Olive Torres and her twin sister, Ami, are polar opposites. Olive, the unlucky one, constantly finding herself with unfortunate mishaps–like her recent firing from her job. On the contrary, Ami always finds herself in luck’s favor, even managing to pay for her whole wedding through contest winnings. In addition to her slew of bad luck, Olive must also spend her sister’s wedding day with her biggest rival, Ethan Thomas, the best man. In a turn of fate, the bad luck falls on Ami when her whole wedding party gets food poisoning–besides Olive and Ethan. The pair agree to a temporary truce so that they can enjoy the bride and groom’s honeymoon trip to Maui, they even pretend to be newlyweds. Suddenly, what started as a facade becomes more and more real.

If looking for an escape from the harsh winter and a cute and charming read, The Unhoneymooners is the perfect book.

What romance book should you read?

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