So… Hi there! I’ve been AWOL like so many other times before, but I knew I had to come here and talk about these books I read recently for Valentine’s Day. I did a whole reading vlog where I read 14 books in 14 days so that I could give my subscribers some fresh romance book recommendations. I did this last year as well but I failed to read 14 books then, but this year, I did it!
In today’s blog post, I’m taking you through the 14 romance books I read in the first 14 days of February and hopefully, you’ll get some fresh romance book recommendations from this.
If you’d like to watch the vlog instead, here’s where you can: Reading Vlog – I Read 14 Romance Books in 14 Days.
Before we get on with this blog post, a quick note:
I started reading A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum towards the end of that vlog and will also read Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa this month.
Etaf Rum and Susan Abulhawa are Palestinian authors and in the wake of the violence and the genocide Isnotrael is perpetrating in Palestine, and by mentioning these authors in a blog post about love stories, I’m saying, “Choose love. And STOP THE FREAKING GENOCIDE!”
1. I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
If you ask me for a one-word review of this book, I’d say: disappointing.
Chloe Green attends Willowgrove Christian Academy in a small Alabama town called Willowgrove. She works hard to be a straight A student and all she wants is to win valedictorian. Standing in her way is perfect Shara Wheeler, who is beloved in the community, and who also happens to be the principal’s daughter. But just one month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and on the night of the prom, vanishes. Chloe soon realizes that she’s not the only one Shara kissed. Shara’s boyfriend Smith and her neighbor Rory are also part of what feels like an elaborate scavenger hunt that Shara has organized, the prize being her.
But now that these three are thrown together, layers are about to come off and expose more of Shara, the web that she has woven, and her character, which in turn reveal details and truths that they didn’t want to admit to themselves.
This is such an interesting premise and there was so much promise in it, but it ended up being a mish-mash of all these ideas that kept colliding against each other and intermittently spurted out coherent paragraphs. The classic Casey McQuiston humor is there, but it feels jaded somehow.
Plus, by the time I reached the end, it felt like I’d read two completely different books. One where Chloe and Shara had this whole pissing contest cum power struggle, and the other where suddenly, the whole school had turned into a community of sorts. I mean, I know a book can be two things at once and I agree. But it should also meld those two things seamlessly together so that it feels like one singular thing with different facets.
Yeah, no. Wasn’t a big fan.
2. The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren
This is about Jess, who is a freelance statistician and an almost-30 single mother. She loves her work even though she has to work really hard to keep her head above water, and is tired of the dating ‘market’ because of the kind of men that she has come across. She is all but swearing off of them, much to the horror of her best friend, Fizzy, who happens to be a romance author.
They come to know that the broody man they drool over every morning in their coffeeshop work sessions, is actually one of the founders of GeneticAlly, a company that specializes in compatibility score calculations based on people’s genes. Fizzy pulls Jess along to an intro, and they end up giving in their samples. But Jess gets called in because they have had a never-seen-before compatibility match between her and broody-man, whose name is River Peña. Now GeneticAlly has a proposition for her. They want Jess to get to know River better and are willing to pay her for it. And Jess, in the face of bills and the impossible cost of living, especially with a 7-year-old in the house, accepts.
As Jess and River get to know each other and make appearances at hotshot events, Jess realizes that River isn’t as uptight as she thought him to be. But is the compatibility match the only reason they are willing to try to get to know each other? Is it their choice? Or is it pure fate?
I really enjoyed this book especially because there’s the typical Christina Lauren humor in it. The side characters are fun and funny, especially little Juno, who is a precocious little girl, aware of everything going on around her and knowing how to handle certain things that even adults might not know how to. Jess and River, however, might seem a little meh at times, too bland as characters, but they make up for it with their chemistry.
The concept of genetic testing to see romantic compatibility is an interesting one, even though you have to concentrate really hard to see the fact that it is NOT eugenics, thank the Lord! And what I love most about Christina Lauren is that unlike many authors out there who ignore every other character and culture in their bid to centre their main characters, they bring out the reality of the mosaic that the world is. They do their research and come out with books that are truly enjoyable.
And although The Soulmate Equation isn’t one of my favorite Christina Lauren books, I still like it quite a lot because of these very things. And I’ll consider it my first successful one of my fresh romance book recommendations this year! ❤
3. Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez
I liked this one but I wouldn’t say I would die for it, which is a shame because I picked Abby Jimenez’s books for the vlog especially because I loved The Happy Ever After Playlist so much. But I still ended up loving the two main characters, Jacob and Briana to no end.
Briana is an ER physician whose brother, Benny, suffers from renal failure. Her divorce will be final in a few days and her brother needs a kidney donor soon. But she will get a promotion soon, so she can make things right. Right?
Wrong.
Because there’s a new doctor who’s joined the hospital she works at and she’s just learning that the promotion is on hold because of him. And for more reasons that look legitimate, she’s starting to really hate the guy.
But Jacob flips the script when he sends her a proper, heartfelt, handwritten letter apologising for everything. A lot of back and forth ensues, changing Briana’s mind, and when Jacob decides to become a kidney donor for Benny, it tips her over the edge.
Jacob, on the other hand, is shy and has social anxiety. It is also troubling him that his ex is now getting married to his brother, a fact that his family hates and is prepared to disown both of them for. To avoid this situation, Jacob reluctantly asks for a favor from his new friend, Briana, who is more than happy to grant it to him, given what he’s done for her brother.
And it is about to become one of the sweetest games of either of their lives.
I love Jacob because of the shy, socially anxious, kind, loving introvert that he is and I love Briana for never taking anyone’s shit and giving it right back. But I swear to God, there were times when I wanted to crack their heads together because they were being such dumbasses. I get that you need some amount of dumbassery in a romance novel in order to build tension but this level was just so frustrating! Because if you just bloody talked…
But otherwise, I love the build-up, I love their chemistry, I love how similar but not similar they are, I love how they understand each other. Which is why it frustrated me so much. You’ve got this whole understanding going on. Why would you trash that because of such a flimsy excuse? It is still a laugh-out-loud, enjoyable story, because Abby Jimenez knows how to put humor into her words, how to make the reader keep going because they’re laughing and enjoying the characters and their banter so much.
I mean, I don’t like that every one of her books that I’ve read has ended with the characters getting pregnant, giving the impression that that is what a woman or a couple needs to aspire to as the ultimate happy ending. But the stories themselves are super fun.
If this book hadn’t been so roundabout and frustrating because the characters had selective hearing, I would have given this a 4. But right now, it’s sitting at a 3.5 for me.
4. Icebreaker (Maple Hills #1) by Hannah Grace
I don’t even know where to start with this book. And the thing is, what I love most about it isn’t even the romance, although it is in the top 3.
Anastasia Allen is a champion figure skater who thrives on control. She has a planner, knows what she is doing or supposed to be doing at any time of the day. It is important if she wants to represent the USA at the Olympics. Nate Hawkins is the ice hockey captain and an all-round team player, a model captain.
When there’s a mishap on the hockey rink, the hockey team is forced to share a rink with the figure skating team. And when Stassie’s partner, Aaron gets injured, Nate offers to help her even though he doesn’t know the first thing about figure skating. Snark and sparks are about to fly, but it doesn’t matter because Stassie is focused on her goals and has no time for a relationship.
This book! I tell you, this book turned me into an unhinged hyena! There’s so much witty banter in here and the writing cracked me up to no end. Maybe the reason why the writing comes off so brilliantly is that the author is English but writing about American people. That English wit and sarcasm screams from the pages.
The romance is hot and heavy and steamy but also very sweet. The combination of Stassie, a fierce, sassy, loving, ambitious woman and Nate, an understanding, gorgeous golden retriever of a human feels like divine justice. It just makes sense that they belong together.
But as much as I’m extolling the virtues of this book, I must warn you that if you are a minor or if you don’t like steamy scenes, DO NOT pick this book up because many scenes are R-rated. I wish I could remove those and get you the G version of the book because it will still be entertaining as hell. But I can’t, so I’ll settle for this disclaimer.
Let it be recorded that this is, officially, my favorite of the fresh romance book recommendations I’m giving you this year. It’s SO GOOD!
5. Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess because something traumatic has happened. Her only concern right now is to take care of her family and for that, she works at a mechanic shop, trying to make ends meet. One day, she gets talked into participating in a charity chess event by her best friend and there, she ends up beating the current world champion, Nolan Sawyer. Her life takes a drastic turn for the better, what with cash prizes rolling in and opening her eyes to the fact that this is a way in which she can give her family a good life – the life that she thinks she deprived them of.
As the story progresses and we see Mallory go to different tournaments and start winning big, she comes face to face with the sexism that Reigns in chess as a sport. And even though all of this is happening, her long banished love for the sport comes crashing back down inside her. Alongside this is the fact that the most famous man in chess, World Champion Nola Sawyer, is now her rival. And since Mallory has promised herself that she is going to look at this as just another job and not do anything about it, how is she going to contend with her growing love for the sport that’s returning? And how will she contend with this whole situation?
This is one of the cutest stories to have come out in a long time and I don’t use ‘cute’ that easily. It has simple, easy, flowy but witty writing. Ali Hazelwood has a way with words that will keep you invested and laughing and giggling. And even though you won’t understand most of what they are doing because it’s heavy chess, like some of the gameplays are not really easy to understand, you can feel that tension, you can feel the emotion behind it. You’re learning while you’re getting entertained and it makes this book that much lovelier.
I love the bond between Mallory and her sisters, but sometimes, I just wanted to punch Sabrina in the face. I mean, I know she’s a teenager and all, but just stop with your attitude already! But as I’ve learned in life, everybody has issues and everybody needs to work through them.
Check & Mate is one book that I will definitely recommend. It is a great YA sports romance that will keep you entertained for its entirety!
6. The Fine Print (Dreamland Billionaires #1) by Lauren Asher
I’d been seeing great reviews about this series everywhere but I should know by now that a majority of these books don’t work for me. This book, The Fine Print, which is the first in the Dreamland Billionaire series, isn’t as bad as the other series but it definitely is irritating on some level.
Rowan Kane is the youngest of 3 brothers who have each been left behind a task by their late grandfather. Brady Kane wants Rowan to think of ways to revamp Dreamland, the insanely successful theme park that Brady created and built, and to take over as Director for the six months’ deadline that he’s been given. Now, Zahra works at a salon on the park premises and when Creator submissions open up, she starts working on a proposal but she accidentally sends it in without proofreading it, much to her horror. But she is shocked when she is offered her dream job because of how honest she was, despite her rude phrasing. And in yet another twist, things are about to get much more complicated when Rowan Kane kisses her.
Rowan is a fiery cynic and believes love is crap, but finds himself being pulled towards Zahra. Zahra has been burned before but she chooses to believe in the goodness of people. What happens when these two are thrown together forms the entire story.
The premise was so promising, honestly, because of the story being set in a theme park full of roller coasters and rides. But it just hovers at the level of ‘okay, fine.’
The back and forth snark between Zahra and Rowan is mostly entertaining if you put aside the fact that no employee talks like that to their boss without getting fired. Instead, Rowan is intrigued by her and even goes on to chat with her under an alias because god forbid the world knows that he can feel!
And why is everyone laughing so much in this book? Zahra bursts out laughing, snorts with laughter, giggles, throws her head back and laughs – I mean… Okay… But sometimes 4 or 5 times a page? Like… Why? Granted, some of these are truly funny but some of these are so unfunny, even a glacier wouldn’t move. And that’s saying something given the current climate situation.
Plus, Rowan is so far out of being a decent human, given the decisions he’s made against the employees that it’s suspicious that it doesn’t get brought up for a major portion of the book, especially since Zahra is one of those employees and is affected by those decisions. I mean, to each their own, I know, but you’ll see why I find this book average and was irritated WHILE being invested in the characters and their arcs.
7. The Lover by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
This is a short book that I found on Kindle Prime Reading and oh my gods, I’m so glad I did!
It starts off pretty calmly, following Judith, who is the younger sister who is expected to do all the work while her older sister, Alice, preens. Judith and her friends cast a spell to find men to love after which they are sent signs indicating when they will find those men. So when Nathaniel walks in, asking to rent a room, Judith is convinced that he is the one. But he decides to marry Alice instead.
Another stranger has also entered her life, looking like a vagrant and asking her for things that can be classified as indecent, given that they are coming from a stranger.
But how will Judith handle the presence of both these men in her life, given that the whole village is on tenterhooks no thanks to the wolf prowling the forest, forms this entire story.
I really enjoyed this story because for half of it, I was wondering where it was going to go, and when I realized what was happening, I was really interested in seeing how the author was going to take it there. And the end wasn’t even close to what I was expecting! It was creepy, it was horrifying, it was validating for any woman who has ever been strung along, it was satisfying – oh, it was so good! I mean, it was gory, but it was GOOD!
So if you’re looking for a short romance read that will also send chills down your spine, this is one of my fresh romance book recommendations you should definitely check out. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a whiz when it comes to stories like this!
8. Wildfire (Maple Hills #2) by Hannah Grace
Aurora is determined to make her life better and to stop acting out to get her Dad to notice her. But at a party thrown by the hockey players, she meets shy Russ and they hit it off almost immediately. They end up sleeping together and Aurora slips out of his room soon after, deciding that this one-night stand will be her last. Especially since she’s going to a summer camp as a camp counsellor and there’s a no-fraternization policy in place there.
Russ is a shy hockey player with confidence issues. So when Aurora shows an interest in him, and when he finds himself attracted her, he decides that enough is enough. He has got to get his act together, especially since he’s going to be camp counsellor in the summer.
Imagine their shock when they see each other at camp, not even 24 hours after that night. How they will handle seeing and keeping their hands off each other, given that Aurora ‘escaped’ after their night together, forms this entire story.
I love this book in a different way than Icebreaker because of how different the characters are. Russ is a tall, muscular, good-looking hockey player and he is also shy, sweet, loving, caring, with a bunch of confidence issues. Aurora is a gorgeous, bubbly woman who is a motormouth who hates silences. But as loud as she can be, she’s loving, understanding, and gives too many chances to people who have wronged her. Especially her dad. To see how these two characters interact with each other was an absolute delight especially because like Nate and Stassie from Icebreaker, they make total sense.
The humor, again, is off the charts and in this book, we have Emilia and Xander providing the comic relief, although I must say Xander does most of the heavy lifting. And I love him for it!
There’s a lot of steamy scenes in here, and coupled with the sneaking around they have to do at camp, it feels even steamier. So once again, if you’re a minor or you don’t like steamy scenes, this is not a series for you. On the other hand, if you like a well-written college romance with a lot of steam, then this is one you should definitely pick up.
9. Rosie and the Dreamboat by Sally Thorne
A previous book by this author is The Hating Game, a book I really liked when I read it in 2022 for a vlog I did where I read popular Booktok romances. This is part of the Improbable Meet-Cute series by 6 authors and I absolutely love this one because of how funny, how cute, and just how lovely this meet cute is!
Rosie and her sister Bree are at an expensive spa where Rosie has bought Bree a coupon as a promotion gift. Bree is a lawyer and Rosie, an indoor plant salesperson. And Rosie feels like Bree is the better sister and that Rosie herself has the worst luck, a fact that’s quickly supported by the event where she gets stuck in a flotation tank and the fire department has to be called in. Leo, a firefighter/first responder keeps her sane during this harrowing time and their whole interaction is the stuff of wholesome dreams.
It’s funny, it’s emotional in places, it has that romance-y climactic feeling in the end – it’s just the whole package. You don’t need to read the happily-ever-after in a story like this because there is so much heart in the body itself, no pun intended. I was so surprised at how much I love this book, which is why it takes a place of honor on my fresh romance book recommendations of 2024. Highly recommend!
10. The Exception to the Rule by Christina Lauren
The Exception to the Rule is a little book, the first in the Improbable Meet-Cute series, and it starts off with a string of emails between two people who call themselves T and C. C has accidentally emailed T about an assignment instead of his teacher. From there starts a yearly Valentine’s Day tradition where they email each other, even competing to see who emails first. They become close somehow, through those yearly emails, and on Valentine’s Day 2024, decide to meet each other back in their hometown. How their discovery of who the other is goes forms the crux of this story.
I must say that at one point, I was exasperated at both of them but that feeling was fleeting. For a majority of the second half, I couldn’t keep the smile off my face, grinning stupidly at my Kindle as I sat in a café, reading this in full public. It’s sweet, it’s cute, and that moment of revelation sent butterflies through my stomach.
Christina Lauren are masters of this genre and I love, I love, I love them for it, for always entertaining me, no matter what. And to have a hold on the short form of the story and to wrap it up as well as they did? That’s something!
11. Terms and Conditions (Dreamland Billionaires #2) by Lauren Asher
Let me preface my thoughts on this book by telling you how tired I am of this trope where younger sunshine women “with ambition” are expected to make older a-hole billionaire businessmen see the wrong of their ways only to have said a-hole billionaire businessmen treat them like crap in crucial moments. And this whole series is one sunshine x a-hole grump trope after another.
Terms and Conditions follows the oldest Kane brother, Declan, who is expected to get married and have a child if he wants to keep his inheritance. Declan doesn’t have time for all this love crap, so he’s planning to enter into a contract with a willing woman for the next three years where they get married and have a child, barring all feelings. It’s all going to be a façade they put up for the public.
Only, Declan scares the woman away and Iris, his secretary who has been helping him plan all of this, is irritated because they’re literally standing outside the venue where they’re supposed to announce Declan’s engagement. In a desperate move, Iris volunteers to be his fake wife, thinking that she’s been working for his dictatorial ass for 3 years, what could possibly go wrong?
But a lot of developments are about to take place. Some they will love, most they will hate. But what happens when each realizes that the other has found a way to look into their very soul?
I’d really thought that book 2 was going to be better because of all the reviews. But nope. It’s a tad bit worse than the first book and part of it is because there are a lot of structural problems.
Like I said for the first book, this one also has so much laughing, it grated on my nerves. I’m irritated just thinking about how often Iris needs to be shown laughing because she’s such a ray of sunshine. I mean, okay, but nobody laughs this much! My particular problem with this book is not that, though. It is that there was no smooth transition from when they were platonic to when they realized their feelings. It felt like there was a huge gap in between or rather, a huge leap across that gap. What’s baffling is that I cannot pinpoint where that gap is.
The characters’ actions are sometimes so contradictory and I know that can’t be character quirks. I could have overlooked it if it was only one, but these contradictions are scattered throughout the book. And while some can be overlooked, others can’t. And what is it about the sunshine x grumpy trope that allows for the man to be an a-hole to the woman and get away with it most times? “I understand why you are the way you are,” or some such variation of it the woman says, and I’m like, “But that’s just an excuse, babe!”
But I’ll give Lauren Asher one thing. The female main characters in her books do not let these billionaires steamroll all over them. They put their foot down when they go too far. They are forgiving too and I wish they wouldn’t give in in a few days, but that’s their beauty. They will show how strong they are by putting an end to the Kanes’ a-holery but will also be forgiving and understanding of their failings as human beings. And for that alone, I applaud the author.
Overall, I sped through this book, yes, but I didn’t like it as much.
12. Stage Dreams by Melanie Gillman
This is a graphic novel set in the New Mexico territory of 1861 where we follow Grace, who is a trans woman running away from home in Georgia to avoid conscription. She is in a stage coach trundling towards freedom when Flor, the Great Hawk, robs the coach and takes her ransom. But when Flor realizes Grace’s situation and tells her about her plans to steal plans from a Confederate gala, Grace offers to help her, much to Flor’s shock.
How these two make it in and out of this gala, and how their equation shifts and changes over all this forms the entire story.
This is a short queer historical romance graphic novel that gives you a taste of the old Western landscape through its panels. It transports you back there and is thrilling towards the end, and even if you don’t know American history, you’ll be rooting for these two. And if you want to know a bit of American history, cartoonist Melanie Gillman has included historical snippets towards the back through which you get a little idea about what it is about and why what Flor and Grace do is important.
Stage Dreams is short, sweet, thrilling and queer, and I loved it! If you can get your hands on this book, please do read it!
13. Drop, Cover, and Hold On by Jasmine Guillory
This was another book in the Improbable Meet-Cute series and an author I hadn’t read before. Unfortunately, this wasn’t a writing style that I enjoyed.
Daisy, a serial smiler is fixating on how she won’t go into her usual bakery today on Valentine’s Day because the baker always glares at her. Instead, she’ll spend her day at home watching rom-coms. But she is tempted in the end – because who can say no to blueberry hand pies? – and enters the bakery. The baker in question, Harris, looks up and immediately scowls at her, but before she can do anything, an earthquake strikes and she is trapped in the bakery with this handsome but rude owner. She knows that she is finally going to wipe that scowl off his face. But how she does that is what this little story is about.
Listen, I really wanted to like this book, okay? But I don’t think Daisy’s brand of humor is for me. It is kind of awkward and half-baked at best – pun fully intended – and even though it’s not technically insta-love because they have met before, at that end, I was like… Girl, what are you doing? And boy, you’ve got to do better! You can’t go around glaring at women you like. What is this, middle school? “Oh, he treats you like that because he likes you.” Just no.
14. Worst Wingman Ever by Abby Jimenez
The last book I read for this vlog was another in the Improbable Meet-Cute series and yes, I kept going back to this series because I mostly had a great experience with it .
Worst Wingman Ever is about Holly, who is a hospice nurse and is caring for her dying grandma. She returns to her car one day to find a Valentine’s Day card on her windshield and is amused to see what it actually contains. This mistake leads to an exchange of notes and little gifts, and a burgeoning affection between these two anonymous strangers. But what happens when Holly stops coming to this apartment building?
This is such a sweet story, more about Holly’s relationship with her grandma and her and her sister reminiscing about Grandma’s badassery than anything. But it also impresses upon you the importance of being kind, even to strangers, or especially to them. Holly and John might not know who the other is, but to see them be understanding of each other without any expectation is somehow reassuring.
Since this is part of a series, only by different authors, the fact that Kintsugi Spa, of mud wraps and flotation tanks from Rosie and the Dreamboat, makes an appearance here, put a huge smile on my face. I think there’s a trend with the books in this series where everything puts a smile on my face. But it’s a great series. And I’m glad I picked the sweetest, most emotional story of the lot, Worst Wingman Ever, to round off that vlog.
So those were some fresh romance book recommendations I had for you for this Valentine’s Day! I can’t believe I actually finished 14 books, even if not all of them were on my initial TBR. But I’m proud I did because I did find a few favorites in here while getting you those book recommendations I promised you.
What did you think of this blog post? Did you like it? Did you not like it? What did you think of these fresh romance book recommendations? Did you like them? Will you pick any of these after reading my reviews? What are some of your favorite romance books or stories? Let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
If you’d like to watch my romance reading vlog instead, here’s the link: Reading Vlog – I Read 14 Romance Books in 14 Days.
I’ll see you in the next blog post.
Until next time, keep reading, keep watching, and add melodrama to your life! ❤
The Melodramatic Bookworm 
Wish I could read so much!! Love the recs! I LOVED Icebreaker
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Thanks so much, Sarah 😊 Icebreaker was just ❤️
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