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50 Romance Books to Read Based on Beloved Favorites
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a reader in possession of a large library must be in want of a new book.
But not just any book will do. We know you've already read the classics and the bestsellers. We're here to help you uncover a hidden gem.
We took a look at books with fewer than 50,000 adds—for context, members have added Pride and Prejudice to their Goodreads shelves more than 3 million times—and selected only ones with a 4.0 or higher average rating. Then we broke down the results into recommendations for fans of Colleen Hoover, Jane Austen, J.R. Ward, E.L. James, and Diana Gabaldon. Add what catches your eye to your Want to Read shelf!
But not just any book will do. We know you've already read the classics and the bestsellers. We're here to help you uncover a hidden gem.
We took a look at books with fewer than 50,000 adds—for context, members have added Pride and Prejudice to their Goodreads shelves more than 3 million times—and selected only ones with a 4.0 or higher average rating. Then we broke down the results into recommendations for fans of Colleen Hoover, Jane Austen, J.R. Ward, E.L. James, and Diana Gabaldon. Add what catches your eye to your Want to Read shelf!
(or contemporary love stories featuring young love and angst)
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What's your favorite underrated love story? Share it with us in the comments!
Check out the complete coverage of Romance Week:
26 of the Hottest Romances of 2019
Legendary Literary Couples Live on in Countless Retellings
The Secret Lives of Romance Authors
Comments Showing 51-100 of 203 (203 new)
Judi wrote: "Five Pines by J. Heather Cross. It's more than a love story--it's like if you took 50 Shades of Grey and threw in a liberal dose of A Course in Miracles along with some really radical spirituality ..."j heather cross, is that you?
I love anything by Mary Stewart. My favorites are Madam, Will You Talk, Nine Coaches Waiting, This Rough Magic and The Gabriel Hounds.
I love Paranormal Romances, Time Travel Romance, Sci-Fi Romances, And Fantasy Romances.
Gloria wrote: "Many year's ago I read a book where a woman finds a dress in a trunk and puts it on and goes back in time. I forgot the name and author. I go to a used bookstore and find many old books. I have col..."The Mirror by Marlys Millhiser
most of those covers seem like romance means sex...
Total failure. I hated "Fifty Shades", that's why it has just 1* from me. And "The Siren" is just as horrid a misrepresentation of BDSM, which also will get 1* from me. Your algorithm picked the books I hate and suggests more books I am likely to be disgusted by.
Janet wrote: "Absolutely anything by Betty Neels! She wrote about 140 books and my sister and I have read and reread them so many times they are falling apart!!! Also a tiny book by R.A. MacAvoy called Tea With ..."I LOVE Tea with the Black Dragon
I always recommend "Daughter of the Forest" by Juliet Marillier to "Outlander" fans. It is a favourite of mine, under rated in my opinion.
Can some of you prolific readers suggest romance novels that are as witty and clever as Jane Austen, Jennifer Crusie, Tessa Dare, but have people of color or take place in different countries, not just England, Scotland, and the United States? My own reading has been limited, and I feel like I'm missing 3/4 of the world, and it's not always easy to tell from the cover or the book description.
Thanks in advance!
Gisele wrote: "The Bronze Horseman! And I am looking for something similar if anyone has some recommendations. Thanks"The only book I have found that comes close to "The Bronze Horseman" level of romance and #1 book boyfriend status is "Outlander" by Diana Gabaldon. The Starz TV series is good, but the books are so much better!
Carrie wrote: "If you like Pride and Prejudice, then I suggest Carolyn Miller's new series: The Elusive Miss Ellison, The Dishonorable Miss DeLancey, and The Captivating Lady Charlotte. I also like Julie Klassen'..."I also like Erin Knightley's historicals - definitely more the sweet side with a little added humor.
LJF wrote: "Emma, no question. Pride and Prejudice is Austen's most well-known novel, but Emma is actually considered her best-written work."Definitly. :) It's also the most fun of all her books, in my opinion.
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The FountainPenDiva, Old school geek chick and lover of teddy bears
(last edited Feb 12, 2018 01:42PM)
(new)
Who curated this list??! Where's the diverse romances? No Beverly Jenkins, Shelley Laurenston, Bridget Midway or Nana Malone? No Alisha Rai or Rebecca Weatherspoon? No Jeannie Lin? Seriously in 2018? Come on, someone can do WAY better than this or the algorithm just stinks. To say I'm highly disappointed but unfortunately not surprised is an understatement.
KC Lynn's Men of Honor series.. in a league of its own for beloved characters.. beautifully written.. great storylines.. ANGSTY but always a hea..
It's nice to see m/m romances represented in nearly every category. :)
Jane Austen is of course the master of witty banter but my favorite love story is Persuasion. If you love Jane Austen then you must read Georgette Heyer. My favorites are Venetia and Frederica depending on whether I want drawing room comedy or more romance. Jude Morgan comes in a close second to matching the tone of Jane Austen.
FullMoonJuly wrote: "Persuasion by Jane Austen! Always overshadowed by Pride and Prejudice, this beautiful tale of love and longing that stands the rest of time is way high up on my list! Cannot even try to count the n..."Truly, the only of Austen's I've reread & love more with each year I get older (it really holds up well). I know the others get all the fanfare but when it comes to "I can't breathe & if this doesn't work out for them, I'm going to pass right out!" feels, Persuasion wins, hands down, all the time, in perpetuity. Even if academia doesn't agree, I can't see it as anything but her best writing.
Did I mention that I love Persuasion?
Does anyone know any clean fantasy romance series?
Gisele wrote: "The Bronze Horseman! And I am looking for something similar if anyone has some recommendations. Thanks"You might want to check out Tsura by Heather Anastasiu and the sequel Houses of Stone. It's another WWII romance.
Exit Unicorns is the first in a series by Cindy Brandner that you might like. It's set in Ireland in the 1970s
The Russian Concubine by Kate Furnivall has a sequel called The Girl from Junchow and a prequel called The Jewel of St. Petersburg. The trilogy is set in Russia and China.
Hope that helps a bit!
I love seeing a Heyer book on the list! :)
I have to say that Lynn Kurland's Novels of the Nine Kingdoms should be here, as well as C.L. Wilson's the Weathermages of Mystral series. Super engrossing!
I agree that these lists are lousy—they left out so many great romance authors! I prefer historical romance to contemporary, with a healthy dose of humor and wit. My fave time period is Regency England, and the queen of that genre and era is Georgette Heyer — she actually created the entire genre back in the ‘50s. Modern authors in the same vein are Eloisa James and Julia Quinn. Their humor is not as dry or subtle as Heyer, but just as hilarious.
Then there are Lauren Willig and Loretta Chase, Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick. Grace Burrowes whose writing is so polished it’s a treat to read.
I favor historical romance, but also love contemporary romance writers Nancy Warren, Jennifer Crusie, Casey Michaels, Maggie Shayne. And these are just the tip of the iceberg...
“Romance” doesn’t mean explicit sex—that would be erotica. Whoever is responsible for these categories and selections should have their heads examined.
Bibliothekerin wrote: "I agree that these lists are lousy—they left out so many great romance authors! I prefer historical romance to contemporary, with a healthy dose of humor and wit. My fave time period is Regency E..."
How could I have forgotten Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick/Jayne Castle??
Amf0001 wrote: "Judi wrote: "Five Pines by J. Heather Cross. It's more than a love story--it's like if you took 50 Shades of Grey and threw in a liberal dose of A Course in Miracles along with some really radical ..."I was about to reply the same.
What about us Monster/alien lovers? Mind you i am not talking about human looking ones.
I Love Judith McNaughts "Once and Always".One of the best!
YES! Go Mimi! I was wondering that too! Where is Lisa Kleypas?????
Gisele wrote: "The Bronze Horseman! And I am looking for something similar if anyone has some recommendations. Thanks"yes <3 The bronze horseman is a perfect love story, very vivid and very moving
Ambar wrote: "YES! Go Mimi! I was wondering that too! Where is Lisa Kleypas?????"I would like more authors on par with Jane Austen.
Marjorie wrote: "How can Loretta Chase not be here with Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer?! Her Regency novels are right up there for witty dialogue and great characters"Agree 100%
Gisele wrote: "The Bronze Horseman! And I am looking for something similar if anyone has some recommendations. Thanks"Loved that series! Try The Lavender Keeper and The French Promise by Fiona McIntosh. Also the Makepeace Hedley series by Diana Norman. Also Jennifer Donnelly's The Tea Rose series.
Courtney wrote: "Gisele wrote: "The Bronze Horseman! And I am looking for something similar if anyone has some recommendations. Thanks"The only book I have found that comes close to "The Bronze Horseman" level ..."
Just started Outlander series over the weekend and loved the first book! I do not usually do time travel and I still can't believe I even tried it because I am so against time travel books in theory but I am hooked! Starting the next book today.
love Austen, and really enjoyed Cecilia Grant's books; Regency with a bit of heat to them, but a strong POV character throughout each book and more realistic relationship dramas for the period. she has a strong narrative voice. i wish she'd written more in the series (first title is A Lady Awakened).for contemporary, i found myself liking Sarah Morgan's NYC series, and many of Susan Elizabeth Phillip's books. the latter tends to write the same story over and over again, but the dialogue and scenes are usually different and usually hilarious; she does solid dialogue and her characters have great chemistry.
I highly recommend Grace Draven.
is a favorite
For me it's Bertrice Small and Kathryn Woodiwiss. You put a book by either one of them in front of me and I am lost in the story. I have all of their books; all first addition.
Lisa Kleypas’ Travis Brothers and her Friday Harbor series. Robyn Carr Virgin River series but my favs are Temptation Ridge and Angel’s Peak. Virginia Kantra Outer Banks series, Diane Chamberlain KISS River Series, Dallas Schultz The Substitute Bride, Rachel Gibson Simply Irresistible, Kristan Higgins, The Best Man, Mary Campisi Pulling Home, any romance by Mary Stewart or Georgette Heyer, Mary Lynn Baxter Like Silk, Laura Brancflower A Sense of Belongings, Barbara Bretton’s books, Suzanne Brockmann’s books, Pamela Clare’s ITeam series, Caitlin Crews’ books, Christina Dodd’s Just The Way You Re Series, Susan Donovan’s books are great,, Srephanie Doyle The Way Back, Judith Duncan’ If Wished Were Horses, Marie Force books, On The Island, Rachel Gibson’s books, Jennifer Greene Blame It On Cupid, Laura Griffin Romance/Suspense/Murder excellent series, Kristin Hannah Home Front, Teresa Hill, Linda Howard, Julie James FBI/DA series,Anne Jeffrey The Love O. Cowboy, Patricia Kay The Other Woman, Susan Lewis The Mill House(bad cheating), Merlin Lovelace Call Of Duty, Mhairi McFarlane Here’s Looking At You, Judith McNaught’s contemporaries. Julie Miller, Laura Moore’s books, Elisabeth Naughton Wait For Me, Janet Nissenson Susan Serendipity, Brenda Novak’s romances, Marilyn Pappano’s books, Susan Elizabeth Phillips books, Mary Jo Pitney The Spiral Path, Tara Taylor Quinn, Karen Robards murder/suspense/romance books, especially Shattered, Nora Roberts contemporary romance/suspense books, joAnn Ross Blue Bayou series, Kathryn Shay, Anne Stuart books, love her heroes, Robin Wells Baby, Oh Baby, love this book, Susan Wiggs books, Mary Anne Wilson The Night We Made Baby.
An oldie: the magic of ordinary days. Set during wwii and very realistic. I don’t readmuch romance these day for a picky reason—cover art. Oh for a real masculine guy with hair on their chests. I like the 6 packs, but not hairless like little boys.
Rosie wrote: "This may sound like a weird choice, but for me it's Mary Stewart's Touch Not the Cat. I absolutely adore the psychic connection between the lovers and Stewart keeps the reader in suspense for a bit..."I so agree! Mary Stewart was one of those authors that I found as a kid living in the library in the summer. I loved her books and books by Phyllis Whitney and Elizabeth Peters then. That 6th grade summer started my life-long romance reading habit!
Captain of My Heart, by Danelle Harmon. I love every one of her books, but the the hero of this one, Brendan Jay Merrick, stole my heart along with the heroines. This is one I will re-read over and over.
Not sure who made this list up but there many great authors left off and no authors of color or books with characters of color or even bi-raciality. What gives? Only white folks can be represented even in THIS genre. Sloppy work on the inclusivity of this list GR. Emma Chase, Tessa Bailey, early JR Ward, SEP and Lisa Kleypas who's Blue Eyed Devil is one of my personal default go-to when there is a romance dry-spell are not here.
Marissa wrote: "Hello. If you love romance, I recommend Judith McNaught and Jude Deveraux books. They are totally amazing! Linda Howard is also good, if you want romance thrillers, that is. Who agrees with me?"I used to live by the clock of Linda Howard's release dates but she has been GWTW for many, many years and that is sad for me.
Mimi wrote: "Why isn't Lisa Kleypas on this list?!"Ditto!
Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati The Wolf and the Dove, and A Rose in Winter both by Kathleen Woodiwiss
Yes Lisa Kleypas, Julia Quinn, Mary Balogh, Celeste Bradley - they are all amazing and funny too!!!
The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie might be my second favorite romance, right after the wonderful These Old Shades. I waited 50 years between readings of These Old Shades. Just as lovely and romantic the second time around.I've just stared reading Lisa Kleypas. Loving them, especially the Wallflower series.
Gloria wrote: "Many year's ago I read a book where a woman finds a dress in a trunk and puts it on and goes back in time. I forgot the name and author. I go to a used bookstore and find many old books. I have col..."This sounds really good - does anyone know the name?
Thank you
Susie wrote: "Susan Elizabeth Phillips books. Usually make laugh out loud and cry"Hi - This author has written a ton of books - where should I start?
Thanks!
Totally SECOND THAT 💖
Let's add LK's Devil in Winter & more 💖