Romance novels, while wildly popular, are often “loathed by literary critics” and denounced as formulaic “hackwork” (Crusie). However, popular romance novels cannot be ignored; these books make up the largest market share of genre fiction, earning a total of $1.44 billion in 2022 (Curcic). In spite of this popularity, most university libraries have few romance novels or related nonfiction scholarly and non-scholarly sources about romance novels on their shelves.
At UD, lecturer Amy Krug and her English composition students set out to change that. In the fall of 2023, they collaborated with University Libraries Director of Collections Strategies & Services Tina Beis to curate a list of novels and nonfiction resources about the genre and build a circulating collection. Browse them here and use the links provided to view them in the library catalog.
This project was supported by a grant from the Experiential Learning Innovation Fund. Logo design by Shahd Salem.
Sources:
Crusie, Jenny. “Defeating the Critics: What We Can Do About the Anti-Romance Bias.” JennyCrusie.com. Accessed May 15, 2023.
Curcic, Dimitrije. “Romance Novel Sales Statistics.” Wordsrated.com. October 9, 2022. Accessed May 10, 2023.
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The Kiss Countdown
Etta Easton
Etta Easton knocks this romance debut out of the park. The novel features the “fake relationship” romance trope. As Amerie and Vincent live and work together, they find they want to be more than just roommates or friends and start to explore their relationship. It’s a great read for anyone who enjoys exploring different romance tropes and seeing how these tropes can still lead to a fun and enjoyable story.
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The Kiss Quotient
Helen Hoang
The Kiss Quotient is a refreshing and heartwarming romance narrative that follows a young heroine on the autism spectrum. Through navigating her world of relationships and sex, Stella Lane finds herself in a dilemma when she begins falling for Michael Phan, the male escort she hires to help her understand intimacy and love. To explore their complex feelings, the two embark on a beautiful journey. This novel highlights awareness of disabilities, specifically autism, and how it can impact relationships. The novel also breaks stereotypes; sheds light on struggles individuals with disabilities face; creates an environment of communication, consent, and understanding of each other's needs; and empowers readers to embrace their whole authentic selves to achieve happiness.
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The Kiss Quotient
Helen Hoang
The Kiss Quotient, by Helen Hoang, portrays the story of Stella Lane, an econometrician with autism, and Michael Phan, whom she hired to teach her about love and intimacy. Throughout their professional relationship, they begin to develop a strong emotional connection. With social barriers arising for Stella and Michael as Michael is confronted by his past, their relationship is tested with many challenges. This book is important to include in the collection because of its disability representation yet unique storyline.
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The Millstone
Margaret Drabble
Called "ahead of its time" by many who talk about it, The Millstone tackles a lot of the problems of the 1960s. It comments on the sexual liberation of women, unplanned parenthood, single motherhood, and women in academic settings. It’s a good reminder of why feminism is important. Traditional moralism is back on the rise, and this is a great piece of commentary on it from a time when the debate was at its height.
Note: This book belongs to the "Is it a romance?" section. It's up to the reader to decide!
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The Mistletoe Motive
Chloe Liese
Gabby and Jonathan work at a bookstore and are always getting on each other’s nerves. Whether it’s about who gets what in the snack cabinet or how festive one should be over the holidays, they never seem to agree. When they realize one of them will be let go soon, they strike a deal with each other: Whoever gets the most sales in December gets to keep their job. As they both use their own tactics to win, Gabby notices Jonathan in a new light and starts to experience feelings towards him. The book is a mix of character development, romantic tension, and holiday spirit.
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The Notebook
Nicholas Sparks
The Notebook is a phenomenal story that centers upon the endurance of love and the strength to persevere, no matter the situation. The Notebook is a highly acclaimed romance novel and most certainly deserves to be in the conversation of high-end romance.
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The Prospects
K.T. Hoffman
This book is for people who enjoy the “enemies to friends” romance trope as well as sports-related romance. The story follows an openly trans minor league baseball player whose No. 1 rival joins his team, and they have to find a way to coexist. This leads to something more. This book is a great way for readers to view romance through a trans/gay lens.
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There You'll Find Me
Jenny B. Jones
There You’ll Find Me is a story about an 18-year-old girl named Finley who is traveling to Ireland to study abroad and to complete her late brother's travel journal. She has an audition coming up, but because of the death of her brother, she needs time to heal. While on the plane, she meets Beckett Rush, a famous teen Hollywood actor. Their characters cross paths many times throughout the story, and it follows the enemies-to-lovers trope. As the story goes on, Finley is assigned to care for a woman from a nursing home. After getting the assignment, she faces many challenges: the woman not wanting to participate; running into Beckett; doubting her religion; and the grief of losing her brother. In the end, Finley and Beckett fall in love. Finley also reconnects with God after all of the battles she faces. The book shows themes of love, grief, spirituality, and healing.
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The Right Swipe
Alisha Rai
Rhiannon Hunter is trying to get over an ex, but the ex shows back up in her life as a dating app business rival. She is a hard-working business woman who only has occasional hookups instead of real romantic dating. Running into Samson, with whom she had a prior fling, leads to a romantic physical partnership. Is it too much of a risk to get back together again? And will this new business venture cause other issues?
We chose this book because it has a unique storyline and revolves around the dating app industry. It will add to the collection by giving a more modern picture of the dating world. We find it intriguing how the woman is the powerful figure and the man is portrayed in a weaker way.
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The Selection
Kiera Cass
We chose this book because it is a very easy read and a great introduction to romance novels. Considering it was the first book in the series, it did not take us long to finish and drew us into the story. It’s a sci-fi/fantasy story about fighting over one’s heart, going out of your comfort zone, and befriending strangers. It was a very heartwarming book, and there were a couple of moments that really surprised us.
This book is a great starter book if you are looking to get into romance. There were very few intimate scenes, and the plot was compelling. It made the book easy to read and really kept you wanting to read more. The interactions between the main character and the love interest are heartwarming, but they keep you on the edge of your seat.
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The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Taylor Jenkins Reid
This novel goes against stereotypical ideas of women in romantic relationships. The book doesn't just explore Evelyn and her seven husbands; it also explores Evelyn’s character in greater depth, which is why it is such a compelling book to read. Choosing this book to be part of this collection relates to the idea that it is not a stereotypical romantic relationship. Adding it to the collection shows a modern take on love, and others need to be exposed to different kinds of love stories.
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The Song of Achilles
Madeline Miller
This book is a beautiful retelling of Homer’s Iliad from the perspective of Patroclus, Achilles’s childhood best friend-turned-lover. It follows Achilles’s journey as a soldier in the Trojan War while reenvisioning Homer’s depiction of a famous war hero. This novel reveals a sensitive and nurturing side of Achilles, which challenges what we know about masculinity, romance, and love.
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The Space Between Worlds
Micaiah Johnson
The Space Between Worlds is about Cara, a woman who can jump between different versions of Earth because the versions of her in those worlds are already dead. She works for a company that uses her to gather information, but things get messy when she finds out they’re hiding some dangerous stuff. While she’s dealing with all that, she’s also trying to figure out her feelings for Dell, her super-calm, super-pretty handler, and their slow-burn relationship becomes a big part of the story. Seeing different versions of the people she knows—including Dell—makes Cara rethink who she is and what she really wants. Overall, it blends a sci-fi story with a surprising amount of romantic identity drama.
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The Sun Is Also a Star
Nicola Yoon
The Sun Is Also a Star, by Nicola Yoon, is a vibrant, emotionally rich novel that follows Natasha, a science-driven Jamaican American teenager facing deportation, and Daniel, a Korean American poet torn between family expectations and his own dreams. Their lives collide over the course of a single extraordinary day in New York City. Yoon weaves their perspectives together with the stories of strangers, chance encounters, and small moments that reveal how interconnected lives can be. The blending romance has reflections on fate, identity, immigration, and the power of choice. The book shows how even brief connections can shift the course of a life. This novel creates a space for readers to believe in possibility and change.
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The Upper World
Femi Fadugba
This fast-paced book interweaves the themes of violence, family, time travel, and loss. While incorporating those themes in the story, the book also brings a sense of diversity by having the protagonists portrayed as persons of color; the setting is an area with minorities being the main occupants. This brings a refreshing spin to romance that cultivates the reader's engagement in the story.
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The Veiled Kingdom
Holly Renee
The Veiled Kingdom is a romance novel where the main character, Verena, escapes from the king, her father. Verena was faced with the choice to turn and join the rebels or to stay in the castle, locked up. She was captured by a rebel and was taken to the hidden city, where she would learn to fight. Everyone was born with powers except for Verena, so when the rebels find this out, they thought she was lying and didn’t trust her. Over time, Dacre teaches her what she needs to know to be successful, and they start to fall in love. At the end, Dacre’s father, who is the leader of the rebels, finds out that Verena is the princess, and she must run away.
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The Wedding Date
Jasmine Guillory
The Wedding Date follows Alexa and Drew, two strangers who meet in a stuck elevator. Drew is in town for a wedding, and Alexa decides to impulsively attend as his date. This fake arrangement quickly turns into something real as their chemistry deepens past that weekend. Navigating through the challenges of long-distance love, separate work fields, and each other's respective insecurities, Alexa and Drew find that love can be unexpected and transformative. This book mixes modern relationships with diverse representation. This represents the contemporary romance subgenre.
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The Worst Best Man
Mia Sosa
The Worst Best Man, by Mia Sosa, is a lively, heartfelt romantic comedy that explores second chances, vulnerability, and the messy beauty of love. Through the fiery dynamic between Lina, a determined wedding planner, and Max, the brother of the man who once left her at the altar, the novel blends humor with a deeper story about healing, trust, and choosing joy after disappointment. Sosa’s writing celebrates cultural identity, family bonds, and the courage it takes to open your heart again. The book is warm and an empowering reminder that love often finds us where we least expect it.
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They Both Die at the End
Adam Silvera
They Both Die at the End is a gripping sci-fi thriller romance in which new technology makes it possible to inform people of the day of their death. After receiving their death notifications, Mateo and Rufus meet on “The Last Friend” app for people looking to make friends on their last day. Embarking on an emotional journey to affirm their lives, they create lifelong memories together.
Note: This book belongs to the "Is it a romance?" section. It's up to the reader to decide!
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Things We Never Got Over
Lucy Score
Things We Never Got Over follows Naomi, who runs to a small town to help her twin sister but gets abandoned and left with her niece instead. Broke and starting over, she meets Knox, a grumpy local who reluctantly steps in to help. As they navigate chaos, danger, and family issues, the two slowly fall in love and learn to heal together. The book is a mix of humor, drama, and romance that portrays the growth in their emotions as they navigate through drama and learn to love, trust, and accept help.
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This is How You Lose the Time War
Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
This book depicts a time war within a dying world between two teams, Blue and Red. Two agents from these opposite teams fall in love. They write letters to each other about their experiences and battles that they encounter. The Blue and Red teams are determined to win because winning has become their only purpose.
We chose this book because it has an interesting story where the main characters are connecting to each other on different timelines through letters. The idea of being in a time war and having two agents from different sides of the war was an interesting dynamic with the characters. This is a very nontraditional romance novel.
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This Is How You Lose the Time War
Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
We chose this book because its complex story makes it unique compared to other romance novels. Although a more challenging read compared to the other books we selected, it rewards the reader with its elaborate use of wordplay. It tells its story through two time-traveling agents' love letters that create a personal connection not found in other novels. This book is worth reading.
This book is great for representing feminism in romance literature. Both of the protagonists in the book are female, and overall the book seamlessly integrates this into the story. This book does a phenomenal job of breaking gender norms; for example, these two protagonists hold a high-ranking position in the war.
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Twilight
Stephenie Meyer
Love it or hate it, any romance collection has to have Twilight. It ushered in a new era of YA paranormal/fantasy romance so loved that its fanfiction even spawned the erotic series 50 Shades of Grey.
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Twisted Love
Anna Huang
Twisted Love is the first book in a four-book series with dual points of views. The book is about a young photographer named Ava who suddenly falls for her older brother's best friend, a billionaire named Alex. As the two try to navigate the obstacles of their past while keeping their relationship a secret from her brother, many other secrets come to light. These secrets could bring an ugly and dramatic end to their relationship. This book explores themes of childhood trauma, revenge, betrayal, and redemption.
