The 10 (Well, 20) Best Romance Novels of 2022

The Best Romance Novels of 2022

By the Book by Jasmine Guillory

In this escaped retelling of Beauty and the Beast, Isabelle is 25 and inactive an assistant, hopeless to beryllium an editor. Beau is expected to beryllium penning his memoir, but he’s been holed up successful Santa Barbara for a twelvemonth and won’t speech to anyone. So Izzy shows up astatine his doorway and offers her assistance — and helium says she tin stay. Their moving narration is charming and feels truthful real, arsenic she coaxes his communicative retired of him and they some autumn wholly successful love. If you similar the enactment to enactment down closed doors, this is the 1 for you.

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Dating Dr. Dill by Nisha Sharma

Kareena wants a emotion match, but the lone mode she tin support her precocious mother’s location is if she gets engaged ASAP. Prem is simply a bosom doc who doesn’t judge successful love, but needs investors for his caller clinic. They person a combat during his amusement that puts his backing successful danger, truthful helium agrees to play the portion of her fiancé to get them some the currency they need. Fake dating is truthful communal that it often feels silly oregon forced, but this publication ne'er felt thing but existent — and it handles grief nicely, too. Who tin defy a Taming of the Shrew retelling?

The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston

Florence is simply a ghostwriter who tin speech to ghosts. She writes romance novels for a celebrated (and retired) author, but she is precocious delivering the past publication connected the declaration due to the fact that she nary longer believes successful love. Then her exertion leaves, and her replacement, Ben, gives Florence 24 hours to crook successful the manuscript. But Florence’s begetter dies abruptly and she goes home, wherever she runs into the past shade she expected: Ben, who has been deed by a car. I ne'er expected to emotion a shade romance this much. (And I promise, they bash extremity up together, arsenic intolerable arsenic that seems.)

D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding by Chencia C. Higgins

I was amazed to autumn this hard for a world amusement romance, particularly a wedding world show! D’Vaughn and Kris are paired up connected the amusement Instant I Do, wherever they person six weeks to implicit a bid of wedding readying tasks with their families, who they person to person that their engagement is real. Of course, they autumn successful emotion for real, forcing them to determine whether to instrumentality the prize wealth oregon accidental “I do.”

Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman

I emotion a dual timeline book, and this 1 takes america backmost and distant betwixt Chani’s legendary interrogation with histrion Gabe, which launched some of their careers and prompted a batch of rumors astir whether they hooked up, and 10 years later, erstwhile Chani is asked to interrogation him again and each of their feelings from the archetypal clip bubble up to the surface. It includes the nonfiction she wrote the archetypal clip and an assortment of the net speculation surrounding it.

Love and Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

Two world amusement romances? Yes, really! In this one, it’s cooking amusement rivals. Dahlia needs the prize money, and London wants to get retired of their father’s power and commencement their ain company. Their relationship blossoms aft Dahlia gets disconnected to a atrocious commencement connected the show, falling level connected her face. Their communal attraction proves unstoppable, but they person the teensy occupation of being competitors, not to notation starring precise abstracted lives disconnected the show.

To Catch a Raven by Beverly Jenkins

Con pistillate Raven Moreau comes from a agelong enactment of con artists with a household plan. Braxton and his begetter are thrown unneurotic with the Moreaux erstwhile a Pinkerton convinces (read: blackmails) them to propulsion disconnected a heist, stealing a uncommon transcript of the Declaration of Independence backmost from a crooked congressman, with Raven and Braxton posing arsenic husband-wife servants. Their attraction is instant, but they some curse there’s nary emotion match. As always, Ms. Bev’s historicals are a past acquisition and a acquisition successful love.

Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Meteorologist Ari and sports newsman Russell squad up to get their bosses, upwind fable Torrance and her ex-husband, quality manager Seth, to halt warring and get backmost together. Of course, Ari and Russell autumn successful love. I emotion that some leader and heroine are Jewish, and Russell is abdominous and was a teen parent. The idiosyncratic complications successful this publication conscionable consciousness real, positive there’s a cardinal upwind puns.

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Ezemi

Artist Feyi wants to commencement surviving again, aft 5 years of grieving her dormant fiancé. She begins dating and agrees to instrumentality a travel to the Caribbean with a feline who seems cleanable — but erstwhile they’re there, she finds herself drawn to his father, a cook who is besides grieving a mislaid love. This caller doesn’t shy distant from its exploration of grief and queerness, portion not skimping connected the romance.

By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate

Romance exertion Lanie has the vocation accidental of a lifetime: to enactment with legendary writer Noa Callaway. Noa has writer’s artifact and Lanie has to assistance her done it…but there’s much astir Noa that Lanie doesn’t know, and it’s not conscionable that he’s really Noah. They some person immoderate pressing beingness issues to get past if they privation to beryllium together.

I’m So (Not) Over You by Kosoko Jackson

Kian, who is wholly implicit his ex, Hudson, agrees to conscionable with him for what helium hopes volition beryllium an apology. Instead, helium finds himself pretending to inactive beryllium Hudson’s boyfriend, astatine archetypal for a household meal and past for a week successful Georgia for a household wedding.

In A New York Minute by Kate Spencer

Franny is laid disconnected and, arsenic if that isn’t atrocious enough, her formal rips unfastened connected the subway, baring her full backside. A handsome alien gives her his overgarment and she makes it home, lone to find retired that idiosyncratic posted a video of their gathering and the full net ships them. Hayes, a.k.a. the handsome stranger, is starting his ain concern and hires Franny to plan his offices.

Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

When ER doc Alexis drives disconnected the roadworthy to debar hitting an animal, she is rescued by section Daniel. After a steamy nighttime together, she goes backmost to the metropolis wherever she is going done an disfigured divorcement and dealing with her parents’ stressful expectations for her beingness and vocation — but she keeps uncovering herself backmost successful Daniel’s tiny town, wherever she gets to beryllium who she wants to be.

The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes by Cat Sebastian

Highwayman Rob blackmailed Marian, the Duchess of Clare, and their letters backmost and distant got alternatively flirtatious…right up until she kidnapped him and near him tied up and incapable to assistance his dearest person clasp up her husband. In the robbery, Marian is forced to sprout her husband, and finds herself with lone 1 idiosyncratic to crook to: Rob.

Queerly Beloved by (Book Rioter!) Susie Dumond

Amy is simply a lesbian moving astatine a blimpish bakery successful 2012 Oklahoma, and she is fired aft being accidentally outed. She finds enactment arsenic a bridesmaid for hire, helping different (straight) couples person their cleanable time portion dating technologist Charley. But Amy inactive can’t beryllium herself retired loud, and it’s putting a strain connected her idiosyncratic beingness — with Charley, with her closest friends, and with her family.

Other Rioters Recommend (Even More Best of)

The Romantic Agenda by Claire Kann

Joy has been successful emotion with her champion person Malcolm for years, and helium has ever enactment her archetypal — to the detriment of his romanticist relationships. But present helium wants her to travel connected a travel with him and his caller girlfriend, Summer, and distract Summer’s person Fox. Joy and Fox hold that they volition walk clip together, but with the explicit intent of making Malcolm and Summer spot what they’re missing. Except…there mightiness beryllium thing determination for Joy and Fox.

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen

In a satellite with magic, demigods, and zombies, Mercy is an undertaker and Hart is simply a marshal who brings successful bodies. Mercy is stretched bladed with obligations, and Hart is lonely. So helium pens a letter, addressed simply to “a friend,” and expects thing successful return. To his surprise, helium gets a missive back. And truthful helium and Mercy autumn successful emotion connected insubstantial portion despising each different successful person.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

Mika Moon is simply a existent witch pretending to beryllium a fake witch. It’s not harmless for existent witches to marque themselves known, but witchcore is each the rage connected societal media, truthful Mika pretends to bash magic connected her fashionable account. Then she gets a connection from idiosyncratic who needs a magical tutor for 3 young witches, and she agrees. But the charismatic librarian who lives determination doesn’t o.k. of this plan.