So you devoured the limited series One Day on Netflix, perhaps even read the book and watched the 2011 Anne Hathaway adaptation to fuel your newfound obsession, and now you’re looking for more heart-wrenching stories following years-long friends and sometimes lovers. If so, you’ve come to the right place. If not, perhaps you’ll enjoy this lovely little list of touching (i.e., heartbreaking) romance books.
- Normal People by Sally Rooney
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It would be a crime not to include Normal People by Sally Rooney on this list. Normal People, not unlike One Day, will have you absolutely sobbing as you follow multiple years of Connell and Marianne’s relationship, starting from when they meet in a small Irish high school until post-university. Similar to Dexter and Emma, these two protagonists could not be more different, though they bond over a happenstance, mildly awkward initial conversation.
- Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
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Perhaps the most talked about book on BookTube this year, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow features two friends (like Emma and Dexter) mostly in love but rarely lovers. The book, similar to One Day, explores how the protagonists cope with fame and success after meeting in college and becoming creative partners in video game design. Of course, when reading the novel, you’ll experience your fair share of all of the emotions, ranging from joy to heartbreak.
- Talking at Night by Claire Daverley
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If you’re seeking another tender love story, you’ll find it with Talking at Night by Claire Daverley. Two very different people destined to fall in love? Check. Met as teenagers? Check. Disaster struck, and their future together was ruined? Check. Rekindled their lost love over many years? You’ll have to read to find out.
- Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls
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If you loved One Day and want to stay loyal to its author, David Nicholls, Sweet Sorrow is ideal. This bittersweet novel about first love is a coming-of-age and romance piece wrapped in one (a personal favorite genre of mine), much like One Day. Not to mention, if you loved the 90s vibe of One Day, Sweet Sorrow is set in the summer of 1997.
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
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Seven Days in June is all about reigniting former flames. Eva, a bestselling erotica author (not quite the same as Emma being a best-selling middle-grade author), reunites with another award-winning writer, Shane, fifteen years after spending a romantic week together. Though they pretended not to know each other, they’d been secretly writing to each other in their books over their years apart. The two spend a steamy week together, though Eva becomes weary of the man who broke her heart.
- Maybe in Another Life By Taylor Jenkins Reid
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Who doesn’t love BookTok sensation Taylor Jenkins Reid? Maybe in Another Life is one of her lesser known novels, but certainly not any lesser worth the read. The story follows 29-year-old Hannah, whose fate rests on the decision she makes after running into an old flame after returning to her hometown of Los Angeles after leaving a string of meaningless jobs in other cities. The book raises questions about fate and love, following two separate universes, one in which Hannah goes home with her friend Gabby after running into her ex-boyfriend Ethan at a bar, and another where she leaves with Ethan.
- The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
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Albeit in a very different way, The Seven Year Slip, like One Day, proves that love is simply a matter of timing. In this novel, Clementine, an overworked publicist determined to keep her heart safe, happens to fall in love with her temporary roommate, only to find out he is living seven years in the past. Let’s just say meeting this mysterious man with a Southern drawl and an affinity for lemon pies certainly puts a dent in her plan to preserve her heart.
Heartbreak, fate, love and hope. You’ll find no shortage of any of these in One Day nor any of these similarly heart-wrenching romance novels. Each recommendation captures the intricate complexities of love with characters so realistic you’ll feel like you know them. Whichever one you choose to start with, you’ll be sure to laugh, smile, cry and everything in between.