Romance is a literary genre centered on the emotional journey and romantic relationship between characters, often culminating in a satisfying and hopeful resolution.
To go back to genre page, click here.
Persuasion by Jane Austen
I don’t say this to be a contrarian, but rather because I actually mean it - I think Persuasion is Jane Austen’s best novel. At least of the one’s I’ve read ( those being Pride and Prejudice and Emma.) There’s just something relatable to me about 27 year old Anne Elliot, spinster extraordinaire. I think this is some of Austen’s best characterization. Anne’s family is pompous, conceited, and vile in a hilarious sort of way. Her love interest, Captain Wentworth, is interesting and at times even funny. The rekindled love is an engaging plot line. I think Anne as a character brings it home. She is different from Austen’s other heroines, more sure of herself and rooted in life. She isn’t afraid of being alone because she’s resigned herself to the spinster life, which makes love set in this society feel a little more real. A warning though, do yourself a favor and never, never watch the Netflix adaptation. It is wildly bad.
Beach Read by Emily Henry
Emily Henry does many things right in her writing. She is expressive, creates engaging love stories, develops side characters with more life than some main characters in other novels, and perfectly treads the balance between over and under explaining. Her real virtue though, to me, is that she sets many (her best) stories in Michigan beach towns. And as a Michigander myself, I am not immune to some very intense state pride. Beach Read follows Gus, acclaimed literary fiction author, and January, romance writer, as they spend the summer in neighboring beach houses writing their next books. The two are polar opposites, but spark a friendship urged on by their desires to evade writer’s block and get out of a creative rut. For me, romances need to have more plot than just the romance, and Henry does that well. This book also features backwoods cults, for one!
Funny Story by Emily Henry
Another Henry book set in a picturesque Northern Michigan beach town. This one follows Daphne and Miles, two barely acquaintances forced to move in together because their exes - Petra and Peter - decide that they're actually in love with each other. This results in a broken engagement for Daphne and a broken heart for Miles. The two form a plan to take a little power back from the situation, and a fake dating situation ensues. Which shouldn’t work, because Miles is scruffy and spontaneous, while Daphne is a type A introvert. To make this new place Daphne moved only to be unceremoniously dumped feel a bit more life home, Miles pledges to make it a summer of adventures - showing her why she really should love this place, and find her own spot in it. This is a romance book, but it’s also a book about belonging and friendship and over-coming our own circumstances. Of giving and receiving grace, of demanding more for ourselves, and importantly - of a summer in Michigan.
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Time traveling romance!!!! The story follows August (a lot of August’s in romance books, apparently), a 23-year-old cynical loner who moves to New York City in search of a fresh start. On her daily subway commute, she meets Jane, a mysterious, charming woman who seems to be stuck in time. Which turns out to be very literally true. Jane is from the 1970s and is somehow trapped on one of the subway trains, unable to leave. As August unravels the mystery of Jane's situation, she finds herself falling in love with her. The novel explores themes of identity, connection, and the idea that sometimes, the right person comes into your life at the most unexpected moment, even if they're from another time. The side characters in this one are real charmers, I fell in love with the whole cast. I think romance books are at their best when they make life feel like a party. Because it is, isn’t it?
Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
I haven’t read this one in a way, but the feeling the book gave me is still fresh in my mind. The book takes place over two decades, centering on Eva Mercy, a successful and exhausted single mother and bestselling author, and Shane Hall, a reclusive, award-winning novelist. The two share a tumultuous past, having spent a transformative week together as teenagers, which left a mark on both of their lives. When they unexpectedly reunite, old feelings resurface, forcing them to confront their painful histories and the deep connection they still share. As they navigate their rekindled relationship, the novel delves into themes of love, trauma, second chances, and the complexities of Black identity and creativity. This one was pretty unlike romances I’ve read, and I appreciated the way it toyed the line between the joy of love and the hurt it can bring. The way it saves and destroys us, sometimes simultaneously.
To go back to genre page, click here.