It’s Fall, your summer fling has trickled away, and cuffing season is on your mind. Only problem is, it’s 2020 and the Pandemic is still ongoing. Not to worry, I’ve got you covered for some romance recommendations to get you through cuffing season without inviting COVID into your dating life. Not a big reader? These recommendations go down easy, you’ll be turning pages before you even know it.
Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating – Christina Lauren
First off, Christina Lauren is a brilliant romcom writer, that’s why half the books in this article are by her. I haven’t met a book of hers that I haven’t liked yet because her characters are so believable and sweet, you want to jump right in and get to know them. Also, the sex scenes aren’t straight up pornographic, just spicy enough to get you in the right mood for romance. In this book, Hazel is a little bit of an odd duck and unapologetically herself, even when that means most men run for cover. The only man who can stand her is her best friend, Josh Im (the blueprint for the perfect man, but they’re not compatible, so they say…) When Josh and Hazel start setting each other up on a terrible series of double blind dates, they find out that they might be a little more compatible than they originally thought…
My Favorite Half-Night Stand – Christina Lauren
Another Christina Lauren book with lovable characters, My Favorite Half-Night Stand is about Millie, who’s always been one of the guys. Her friend group of grad-school guy friends decides that they all need dates for the graduation gala, and they’re going to find them through a dating app. One thing leads to another, and Millie finds herself wooing her best friend under a pseudonym on the dating app while also falling in love with him in real life. That has to end well, right?
Twice in a Blue Moon – Christina Lauren
My favorite of Christina Lauren’s books so far, Twice in a Blue Moon is the story of a sheltered girl who gets swept off her feet by a handsome boy on her graduation trip to London. At the end of their passionate two weeks, her life story is mysteriously leaked to the tabloids and she is swept up into a life of glamour in Hollywood following in her famous-actor-dad’s footsteps. Fast forward 14 years, and she’s landed her dream role in a movie opposite her father. Only problem is, the handsome boy wrote the script. How can she step into the role of a lifetime with his anxiety-inducing presence hovering around the set?
The Kiss Quotient – Helen Hoang
Stella needs to practice her romancing. Sex and love have never come easy for her because of her high-functioning autism, so she tries to find a no-strings-attached way to work around her idiosyncrasies by hiring a male escort to help her. Only problem is, she gets attached and so does he. This is the first in a series about members of a vietnamese-american family who all find love in unique ways, but just a warning this series is a bit more steamy than previous recommendations! This book was chosen as an #ownvoices book in 2018 as was its sequel “The Bride Test” – third book coming next year.
Crazy Rich Asians – Kevin Kwan
If you awwww’ed your way through the 2018 movie, you’ll find the book to be even better. When Rachel agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her fiancé, she doesn’t quite know what she’s in for. Nicholas is rich, like crazy rich, and she is not the ideal bride for him according to his mother. Rachel must prove herself to the family using her natural attributes: her brain, sense of humor, and personality. Funny from start-to-finish, the book series kicks off with a wonderful page-turner of a novel with little bits of romance everywhere.
Hopefully one or more of these books caught your eye – if you want to find more romance recommendations to keep your Fall spicy, check out this list of RomCom reads on Goodreads.