“What should I read next?”
To answer that question, here’s an incomplete and constantly-updating list of books I loved and wholeheartedly recommend. (Also available as a list here.)
The Companion
by EE Ottoman
After leaving New York City for a rural getaway, an aspiring writer becomes the lover of both the man she lives with and the woman who lives next door—a man and woman who, she soon learns, also used to be lovers. This queer trans poly romance is beautifully-written, atmospheric, and intelligent.
The Devil Comes Courting
by Courtney Milan
A Black man who wants to run a telegraph line under the pacific ocean turns for help to a brilliant but underappreciated young Chinese woman who was raised by British missionaries. A slow, steady burn of a story that also explicitly grapples with the evils of racism and imperialism.
The Proposition
by Judith Ivory
Imagine a gender-flipped version of My Fair Lady with a few elements of Anastasia thrown in, and you’ve got this utterly delightful novel. Also, it features what may be the greatest dancing scene in the history of romance.
Two Rogues Make a Right
by Cat Sebastian
Estranged childhood friends reunite in this sweet and sexy romance with a few dashes of pining and a little bit of angst. A former sailor with a traumatic past takes his chronically ill friend to a small cottage in the countryside to recuperate, and as the men spend their days together, it soon becomes apparent there was always something more to their lifelong friendship.
When the Duke Was Wicked
by Lorraine Heath
A widowed rake helps a young woman who wants to marry someone who will love her unconditionally to narrow down her list of suitors. I can’t say more without giving away everything that makes this book great, but trust me when I say that it is such a special book.
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
by Talia Hibbert
A disabled heroine who wants to venture outside her comfort zone clashes—and flirts—with her neighbor/building manager, the very attractive man she has occasionally (and mostly accidentally) spied shirtless through the window. One of the best contemporary rom-coms on the market and the audiobook, narrated by Adjoa Andoh, is next level.
Daring and the Duke
by Sarah MacLean
The much-anticipated conclusion to the Bareknuckle Bastards trilogy. A tough-as-nails heroine in the early days of Victoria’s reign reunites with the man whose betrayal shaped her life, and together they burn down the patriarchy.
The Lotus Palace
by Jeannie Lin
A cross-class romance set in Tang Dynasty China, with a wealthy party boy hero and a hard-working heroine who must come together to solve the murder of a popular courtesan.