5-Star Contemporary Romance Novels I Know You’ll Love

I might be biased because we have similar ideas about romantic sentiments (“I love you,” he said. “I love you more than I hate everything else.” And Georgie had laughed because only Neal would think that was a romantic thing to say), but I think Neal is an underrated romantic lead. Despite everything going on with Georgie’s ambitious career goals, he remains an incredible father and partner who is worth romanticizing.

My own partner has said his own variation of a rather romantic statement Neal makes to Georgie: “You don’t get me to do anything. I just do things. Because I love you.” Excuse me, is there a fainting couch nearby for swooning purposes?

This is my favorite contemporary romance book (it’s cozy, sweet, and has no spice... pay no mind to the magic time-traveling telephone), and I don’t think it gets enough credit for navigating the difficulties of when love doesn’t feel like enough to sustain a relationship. This is a topic that Rainbow Rowell writes about with an innate ability to be incredibly comforting and poignant, despite being a little sad.

While you won’t find any spice in this book, there is an enemies-to-collaborators-to-lovers storyline, a forced proximity trope, and a depressed guinea pig.

Charlie’s attitude toward romantic comedies is similar to how some people view contemporary romance books; they’re both genres that don’t get enough credit for the comfort they provide. Throughout The Rom-Commers, Emma tries to convince the cynical Charlie that love stories matter, and I just loved how a sceptic forced to work with a believer played out.

This was my first time reading anything written by Katherine Center, and she handled this tension beautifully. If you liked the character dynamic in Emily Henry’s Beach Read, then this book is one you should check out.

I’ve never been engaged, had a partner leave me (for their bestie, no less), or been forced to cohabitate with the ex of my ex’s new lover, and yet Daphne is the most relatable character I have ever encountered.

Like me, Daphne struggles with forming adult friendships and keeps to herself at work, but there is no greater bond than having daddy issues. Emily Henry, I have never felt so seen by an author in all 33 years of my life.

I’ve also never gone on to panic and tell my ex that I’m dating his new girlfriend’s ex, who is also my roommate, but I really understand why Daphne may have panicked.

I told myself I could only pick one Emily Henry book, and even though I love Funny Story a little extra, I sincerely recommend all of her adult contemporary romances. 

That’s right, besties, it’s an enemies-to-lovers second-chance romance, wrapped up in a marriage of convenience with a built-in end date, and featuring the forced proximity trope! To save money during the renovation, LaRynn and Deacon end up cohabitating in a construction zone with faulty plumbing and not enough walls (sadly, there is more than one bed).

A new edition of this book with expanded scenes and bonus content was released on November 11, 2024, but I read the edition that was published in 2022. If you enjoy watching HGTV, playing The Sims, or the building aspect of Legends & Lattes, consider adding The Co-Op to your TBR. 

This was my first Abby Jimenez book, and I was incredibly impressed with how she expertly navigates a multitude of familiar contemporary romance tropes and plot devices.

Just a small sample of the tropes I identified in this book: enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, and the beloved (for a reason), only one bed. While mixing so many of these in one book could be overwhelming, in Yours Truly, it works to create an emotional, funny, and compelling story with minimal camp.

I want to touch on another trope because I was so impressed by the author’s ability to make it feel necessary for the plot and Briana’s narrative journey. To keep this review spoiler-free, I won’t name the trope, but I’m sure most of you can guess what it is. After all, it has merchandise about how hated it is and has been widely declared an automatic DNF (did not finish) by many readers.

I hope anyone who skipped this book because they heard that it included the trope will consider giving it another chance, as it is handled with such meaningful precision.

I have experience letting low self-esteem get in my way, both romantically and professionally, so it’s easy for me to understand where Sally is coming from. All the signals might be there, but unless they’re lit up in bright neon and direct (with no room for any other interpretation), the signs might as well not exist.

This book is for anyone who may have a missed-connection romance they wish had played out differently, and for fans of Saturday Night Live. In the same way that SNL can be raunchy and political, Romantic Comedy is spicy!

This is a dual-perspective book, so you'll get to see Bee as a confident and desirable plus-sized woman through Nolan’s eyes, while understanding that she isn’t immune to feeling insecure and vulnerable.

I appreciate books with plus-sized female main characters who are so body-positive that one sentence addresses how insecurity has no place in their story, but it’s not my lived experience. I feel especially soft-hearted toward Bee for feeling good about herself most of the time, even while still in a place where she can be hurt and have her confidence shaken.

Don’t let the cutesy title fool you, A Merry Little Meet Cute is an incredibly spicy, sex-positive book that does not shy away from debating different flavors of lubricant early on in the story (see: chapter one).

Regardless of whether you're an avid contemporary romance reader or someone who's new to the genre but looks forward to reading romance stories set in the modern day, I hope at least one of these books piqued your interest and landed a place on your TBR list. Happy reading!