Let’s get it out right up front—I’m not a fan of the traditional straight, white male dukes who overpopulate historical romance novels. Ignoring the fact that there never were dozens and dozens of tall, ripped, chiseled, youthful noblemen with good teeth and better bathing habits in the 19th century, this trope also ignores the richness and diversity of history. Fortunately, there is far more to romance than London Regency ballrooms filled with British nobility.
We are in an era that explores the idea at the heart of the romance genre—everyone, no matter their appearance, gender, sexuality, ability, background or religion is worthy of love and a happily ever after (HEA). While the genre still has a way to go, today’s writers are penning more inclusive stories from the point of view of the modern woman. And no, the #MeToo movement hasn’t ruined romance, in fact consent has never been so sexy.
To put this list together, I consulted friends who were agents, authors, editors, librarians, booksellers and, of course, readers. Many of their recommendations introduced me to new and exciting authors, but ultimately this list is strictly my own. I wanted great writing, great characters, and a story that makes you sigh when you set down the book. So, prepare to fill up your TBR and spend that entire gift card you got for the holidays. You’re welcome.
THE SERIES
The Dreamers Series: Adriana Herrera
After devouring Herrera’s freshman offerings, American Dreamer, American Fairytale and American Love Story, I’d like to encourage more social workers to write romance. Herrera’s background not only gives her characters strong interpersonal development, but she makes sure they model healthy relationships even as she lays on the conflict. Her first book, American Dreamer, pairs a cinnamon roll hero who is wired to take care of people with a sexy librarian who has been thrown out of his fundamentalist family for being gay. The only thing more delicious than watching Nesto and Jude slowly learning to trust and depend on one another was the food. Oh, the food! It made me want to book the next flight to my parent’s old place in Puerto Rico.
The Lilywhite Boys: KJ Charles
There aren’t enough words to express how well KJ Charles writes. A former editor at Britain’s major romance publishing house, Mills & Boon, Charles put in way more than the 10,000 hours required to master an art form. Charles writes historical romance, but there are no straight white dukes here. Her new Lilywhite Series is a subversive and delightful walk along the razor-sharp line between law and disorder. The Rat-Catcher’s Daughter, the novelette prequel, is the sharply drawn story of a fence for jewel thieves who finds love with a music hall performer who isn’t what she seems. It explores sexuality and gender with sweetness and tender care. Any Old Diamonds, the first novel of the series, follows Alec Pyne, the son of a duke who recruits shadowy jewel thief Jerry Crozier to rob his father, and their love story is like an emotional slalom ride with a few truly gasp-worthy twists. The Gilded Cage revisits private detective Susan Lazarus whose prey is Crozier’s light-fingered partner, Templeton Lane. Lane needs Lazarus to help him beat a murder charge. Too bad that she’d happily see him hang. No one combines inner and outer conflict with the seamless skill of Charles. If this series is your catnip, do yourself a favor and read her Society of Gentleman and Sins of the Cities series, all set in the same world. You can thank me later.
Reluctant Royals: Alyssa Cole
You can trust Alyssa Cole to put a fresh spin on romantic heroes. Capping the Reluctant Royals series this year was A Prince on Paper, which follows two characters from the inner circle of the previous books. Nya Jerami hails from the fictional African kingdom of Thesolo; Johan von Braustein is an actual red-headed stepchild of the king of the fictional European principality of Liechtienbourg. It’s enemies-to-lovers as the characters overcome their individual traumas and fall in love. For those who can’t get enough Cole (and really, shouldn’t that be all of us?) there are also two novellas that debuted in 2019. Cole is the queen of the novella, telling stories that never feel artificially shortened or rushed. Can’t Escape Love and Once Ghosted, Twice Shy are highly recommended. The collection should give you a dreamy place to escape to once the relatives leave.
Regency Impostors: Cat Sebastian
This trilogy of historical novels, Unmasked by the Marquess, A Duke in Disguise and A Delicate Deception, is a bit of a departure for Sebastian whose previous romances featured male couples. This time, she’s exploring what happens when the female half of a male/female couple isn’t exactly straight. Sebastian excels at rich, layered and nuanced characters who grow as they explore the possibilities of love. While you might spot an occasional duke, none resemble their romance forebearers.
Bareknuckle Bastards: Sarah MacLean
No “best of” list is complete without a little something from Sarah MacLean who pens historical romance with one hell of a wallop. Her Bareknuckle Bastards are two brothers and a sister who survived a nightmare childhood by becoming exceptional fighters and ruthless criminals. The first two books, Wicked and the Wallflower and Brazen and the Beast, are vintage MacLean—hard-bitten alpha heroes brought to their knees and utterly destroyed—and rebuilt—by the women they love. Early buzz is that 2020’s Daring and the Duke may be her most fiercely feminist book yet.
Hoops: Kennedy Ryan
Speaking of wallops, Kennedy Ryan writes some of the most gut-wrenching romances today. In 2019, she became the first writer of color to win the prestigious RITA award from the Romance Writers of America for her book, Long Shot, from her Hoops series. This searing examination of the repercussions of domestic and sexual abuse was followed in 2019 by the equally wrenching Hook Shot. Ryan is known for her gorgeous prose and ability to inspire deeply felt emotions. Also recommended are her new novels set in the political world. I haven’t read The Kingmaker or The Rebel King yet, but you’d better believe they’re on my TBR.
The Brown Sisters: Talia Hibbert
If British author Talia Hibbert writes a book, I want to read that book. She had three books in 2019 that had the kind of psychologically layered conflict and emotional sweetness I’ve come to expect from a Hibbert novel. Her lovers are flawed, complex people, often dealing with physical challenges. In Get a Life, Chloe Brown, the eponymous heroine lives with a chronic illness that has kept her from enjoying life. She resolves to make a checklist of all the things she really wants to do, and enlists the building super to help her do them. But Redford Morgan is far more than he seems, and what he’s been hiding behind his motorcycle jacket and tattoos might be exactly what she needs. I’d be remiss if I didn’t give honorable mention to Work for It, Hibbert’s first romance with a male couple, or That Kind of Guy (from her Ravenswood series), which is one of the rare books that looks at romance through the eyes of someone who is demisexual.
INDIVIDUAL NOVELS
To Touch the Light by E.M. Lindsey is the Chanukah novella we need right now. It’s a moving story of a grumpy head chef who falls for a dishwasher. Both men are more than they seem—Mario is a gay trans man who is reluctant to trust anyone. Viktor is a Russian Jewish professor who was thrown out of his country for his stance on gay rights. His undocumented status has him mired in poverty, which might be why he’s slowly going blind. How they come together to heal one another and find a home is deeply moving. The novella is from Lindsey’s 2019 Irons & Works series, which follows a family of gay and bisexual tattoo artists who live with an array of disabilities and find love. Sensitively written and highly recommended.
Proper English by KJ Charles is a return to England in the 1920s and two delightful characters from her earlier book, Think of England. Patricia Merton is the All-England Ladies Shooting Champion. Fenella Carruth is a flighty debutante. Or so it seems at first. But murder is afoot and if you think Pat’s shooting skills will go to waste—or Fen is what she seems—you’ve never read Agatha Christie, or KJ Charles.
Mrs. Martin’s Incomparable Adventure by Courtney Milan may also be the only romance you’ll read about two women over 60 who fall in love. Mrs. Bertrice Martin, who stays young thanks to daily doses of spite and regular baths in man-tears, is aided by bookkeeper Violetta Beauchamps who has her own reasons to help rid them both of Bertrice’s Terrible Nephew. Their shenanigans are tempered by the dark and omnipresent fear of the vulnerability of women in Victorian England, making their eventual HEA even sweeter.
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston knocked everyone’s socks off this year. It was a delightful freshman effort, although many of my U.K. friends pointed out that the author never did her research about how British royalty works. If you can put that aside, this is a charming romance between the son of the first female president and the younger brother of the heir to the British throne. Catnip for royal romance fans.
Poetry in Motion by Samantha Wayland is part of the enormous subgenre of hockey romances. Why hockey? I actually have no idea, but Wayland takes hers beyond the game and has created an extended found family centered around the Moncton Ice Cats that is funny and endearing. While Poetry in Motion is part of this warmhearted world, it takes on a weighty topic—head injuries in professional sports and treats them with the seriousness they require. It’s also the only hockey romance I’ve ever heard of to use poetry as the vehicle to express emotion.
