The 50 best romance novels of all time
The best romance novels ranked: contemporary romance, historical romance, romantic comedy and love stories you will want to re-read. Top 50 with where to read.
Romance is the best-selling fiction genre in the world, and it covers more ground than most people expect. From Jane Austen to romantic comedies, slow-burn contemporary love stories and sweeping historical sagas, this list gathers the books readers return to again and again.
These are editorial picks, ranked for readability and lasting appeal, and nobody pays to be on the list. Not sure where to start? Try the book finder and get three picks for your mood.
Top 50 romance novels, ranked
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Pride and Prejudice
Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy must move past first impressions and pride to find love.
- Cozy
- Funny
Where to read
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Jane Eyre
An orphaned governess holds on to her independence while falling for her mysterious employer.
- Thoughtful
- Inspiring
Where to read
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Outlander
A World War II nurse is swept back to 18th-century Scotland and caught between two worlds.
- Gripping
Where to read
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The Notebook
A love story told across decades, from a summer romance to old age.
- Moving
Where to read
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Me Before You
A young woman becomes carer to a paralysed man, and each changes how the other sees life.
- Moving
Where to read
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The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
A reclusive Hollywood icon finally tells her life story to a little-known journalist.
- Moving
- Gripping
Where to read
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It Ends with Us
Lily falls for a charming surgeon while a first love returns. Contains domestic abuse.
- Moving
Where to read
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Beach Read
A romance writer and a literary novelist swap genres for a summer and find more than inspiration.
- Funny
- Moving
Where to read
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Book Lovers
A sharp literary agent and a book editor keep running into each other in a small town.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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The Hating Game
Two rival office assistants trade barbs until the line between hate and attraction blurs.
- Funny
Where to read
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Red, White & Royal Blue
The son of the US president falls for a British prince.
- Funny
- Moving
Where to read
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The Love Hypothesis
A PhD student fakes a relationship with a famous professor, and the pretend starts to feel real.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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One Day
Two friends are checked in on every year on the same date across two decades.
- Moving
- Funny
Where to read
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The Time Traveler's Wife
A man with a genetic disorder keeps slipping through time, and the woman who loves him waits.
- Moving
Where to read
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Bridget Jones's Diary
A year in the life of a single woman in London.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Persuasion
A woman gets a second chance with the man she once rejected.
- Moving
Where to read
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Sense and Sensibility
Two sisters navigate love and money in Regency England.
- Cozy
- Moving
Where to read
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Normal People
Two Irish teenagers drift together and apart over the years.
- Thoughtful
- Moving
Where to read
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The Rosie Project
A genetics professor designs a questionnaire to find a wife.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Anna and the French Kiss
An American teenager is sent to boarding school in Paris and falls for a classmate.
- Cozy
- Funny
Where to read
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Emma
A confident young woman plays matchmaker and gets it wrong.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Wuthering Heights
A stormy love and revenge story on the Yorkshire moors.
- Moving
- Gripping
Where to read
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The Bridges of Madison County
A photographer and a farm wife share four days that change their lives.
- Moving
Where to read
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Beautiful Disaster
A good girl and a college fighter with a bad reputation.
- Gripping
- Moving
Where to read
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Gone with the Wind
A headstrong Southern woman survives the Civil War and Reconstruction.
- Moving
- Gripping
Where to read
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The Fault in Our Stars
Two teenagers with cancer meet at a support group and fall in love.
- Moving
- Funny
Where to read
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Twilight
A teenager moves to a rainy town and falls for a mysterious classmate.
- Gripping
- Moving
Where to read
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Ugly Love
Two people agree to a relationship with no strings attached.
- Moving
Where to read
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November 9
A writer and an aspiring actress meet on the same date each year.
- Moving
Where to read
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People We Meet on Vacation
Two best friends try to rekindle their summer trips.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Happy Place
A broken-up couple pretends to still be together on a holiday with friends.
- Funny
- Moving
Where to read
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Funny Story
Two people jilted by their exes become roommates.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Part of Your World
A doctor and a small-town carpenter come from very different worlds.
- Funny
- Moving
Where to read
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The Kiss Quotient
A woman with Asperger's hires an escort to teach her about relationships.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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8 Rules of Love
A woman's rules about dating are tested.
- Funny
Where to read
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The Unhoneymooners
Two enemies pretend to be newlyweds on a free honeymoon.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Love & Other Words
Two childhood friends meet again as adults.
- Moving
Where to read
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Attachments
An IT worker reads employees' emails and falls for one of them.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Fangirl
A shy fan-fiction writer starts college and learns to open up.
- Cozy
- Moving
Where to read
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Eleanor & Park
Two misfit teenagers fall in love on a school bus in 1986.
- Moving
Where to read
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To All the Boys I've Loved Before
Lara Jean's secret love letters get sent to every boy she has ever had a crush on.
- Cozy
- Funny
Where to read
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The Selection
Thirty-five girls compete to marry the prince.
- Cozy
- Gripping
Where to read
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A Court of Thorns and Roses
A huntress is taken to a faerie land and discovers a dangerous romance.
- Gripping
- Moving
Where to read
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Fourth Wing
A young woman enters a brutal war college for dragon riders.
- Gripping
Where to read
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The Duke and I
A duke and a debutante pretend to court to fend off marriage pressure.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Devil in Winter
A woman on the run agrees to a marriage of convenience.
- Funny
- Gripping
Where to read
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The Wedding Date
A woman hires a stranger as her date to a wedding.
- Funny
- Cozy
Where to read
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Daisy Jones & the Six
The rise and fall of a 1970s rock band, told as an oral history.
- Moving
- Gripping
Where to read
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P.S. I Love You
A widow receives letters her husband left before he died.
- Moving
Where to read
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A Walk to Remember
A rebellious teenager and a minister's daughter fall in love.
- Moving
Where to read
Each link opens that store’s search for the book. Availability and prices vary by store and country. We may earn a commission from some stores, which never changes the ranking.
Types of romance books
Looking for something more specific? These are the main kinds of romance, with the sort of story or subject each one covers.
Contemporary romance
Modern settings and relationships.
Historical romance
Regency, Victorian and earlier love stories.
Romantic comedy
Banter, mix-ups and a happy ending.
Enemies to lovers
Rivals who cannot stay apart.
Slow burn
Tension that builds across the whole book.
Clean and sweet romance
Warm love stories without explicit scenes.
Want to write and publish your own romance book?
Many readers of this page are also writers. The stores in the lists above are where readers find books, while Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, IngramSpark, Lulu and Draft2Digital are the tools authors use to publish and distribute a book to those stores. You can also publish to Barnes & Noble Press and Google Play Books directly.
Our free KDP calculators help with print cost, royalties and cover size, and our publishing services can take care of setup for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best romance novel to start with?
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is the classic starting point. For something modern and light, try Beach Read or The Hating Game.
Are romance novels always a happy ending?
In the romance genre, yes: a happy or hopeful ending is the rule. Love stories that end sadly are usually filed under literary or general fiction.
Where can I read or buy the best romance novels?
Each of the 50 books has links to Amazon, Kindle, Barnes & Noble and Google Play Books. Authors who want to publish their own romance book can start with our free guides to Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, Lulu and Draft2Digital.
Not sure what to read next?
Pick a genre and a mood and the book finder will suggest three books to try.