1. For the quirky nerd
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
This adorable story follows two high school misfits who sit next to each other on a bus and eventually fall in love. Features eighties music, comic books, family troubles, and hand-holding. Read it if you’re in the mood for a puppy-love kind of story that sends you back to your first real crush.
2. For the girl-next-door
My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Sometimes, YA contemporary books seem too impossibly cute to happen in real life. On the other hand, the romance in My Life Next Door feels like a story your best friend could be telling you. By the end of this book, you won’t only fall for the love interest, but his entire family.
3. For the world traveller
Just One Day by Gayle Foreman
Be still, my heart…Just One Day earns a special place in a (long) list of favorite books. This novel is more than a love story; it’s about discovering the world, taking chances, and finding yourself. And if Alyson, the protagonist, happens to fall in love with an amazing Dutch boy along the way? So be it.
4. For the Anglophile
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Doesn’t every girl have a secret dream of falling in love with a beautiful British boy while in Europe? The protagonist of this novel gets to live that dream, but it’s a lot more complicated than you might think. Don’t be dissuaded by the cheesy title; the *feels* in this book are absolutely worth the read.
5. For the fiercely single
Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler
First major reason to read this book: Daniel Handler’s alter ego is Lemony Snicket…YOU GUYS, THIS GUY WROTE A Series of Unfortunate Events. Need more reasons to check it out? Beautiful, stream-of-conciousness prose and delightful, full color illustrations. Warning that should be made obvious by the title: there’s not a happy ending.
6. For the twenty-something
One Day by David Nicholls
This beautifully-written book is pretty likely to make you happy-cry and sad-cry over the course of the plot.  The protagonists meet on their college graduation, and then the story checks in to see what they’re doing on July 15th for the next twenty years. Read this if you like interesting narrative styles or the movie 500 Days of Summer.
7. For the LGTBTQ+ fans
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
This was hands-down the best book I read in 2014. It follows a set of twins, both artists, but their stories are told in different timelines. This is the kind of book that builds a beautiful and tantalizing puzzle, throws it on the ground and completely shatters it, then reassembles it into something even more perfect than before. Read me if you like FEELS, family, love, slight magical realism that doesn’t interfere with the plot, and chaotic collision endings.