Here Are The Best Romance Novels Of 2020

Is your favorite on the list?

1. The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez

Forever

Two years after her fiancé died, Sloane is still drowning in her grief. But a run-in with a dog, who happens to be the pet of her favorite singer, brings her back to life. Much to her surprise, Sloane falls in love with both the pup and his owner, Jason. Their whirlwind romance comes to an abrupt halt when their pasts get in the way, and only a risk in the right direction can put their relationship back on track.

2. The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel

Forever

Liya Thakkar is a biochemical engineer who is very happily single, so when her parents ambush her with a lawyer — albeit a handsome one — as a prospective husband, she bolts out the back door. However, a week later, that same lawyer shows up to start working at her company. As they start developing feelings for each other, Liya must give up her stubborn ways and give love a chance.

3. Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

Sourcebooks Casablanca

After 20 years, Luc O'Donnell's rock star dad is making a comeback — which means Luc's personal life is back in the public eye. He needs to clean up his image, so he enlists the help of Oliver, a vegetarian barrister who also happens to need a date for a big event. The two make a deal to be fake boyfriends in public and friends in private, but before long the lines get blurred.

4. Take A Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

Avon

When rugby-player-turned-security-guard Zafir Ansari rescues Danika Brown from a workplace fire, his heroic actions go viral and people start shipping #DrRugbae. He convinces Danika to fake a relationship with him to get publicity for the children's charity he works with, but when he develops feelings for her, he works to turn their fake relationship into a real one.

5. Girl Gone Viral by Alisha Rai

Avon

When an innocent conversation with a stranger is live-tweeted and misconstrued by the entire world, Katina King goes into hiding. Her bodyguard, Jas, takes her to his family's cabin to protect her from the #CafeBae drama, as well as anyone from her past who might discover her. But he isn't prepared to protect himself from the feelings he starts to have for her.

6. You Had Me At Hola by Alexis Daria

Avon

Jasmine Lin Rodriguez and Ashton Suárez are two telenovela stars that need a career win. After Jasmine's messy breakup makes the tabloids and Ashton's TV character is killed off, neither of them can do anything to jeopardize the new movie they've been cast in...including starting a steamy romance behind-the-scenes.

7. Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev

William Morrow

When reality series Cooking with the Stars recruits chef Ashna Raje, she thinks it's the perfect opportunity to get some publicity for her restaurant and save it from closing. The last thing she expects is to be paired with celebrity soccer star Rico Silva, who also happens to be her first love who broke her heart years ago. Before long, things start to get steamy...and not just in the kitchen. But Ashna needs to protect herself so she doesn't get burned.

8. No Offense by Meg Cabot

William Morrow

Molly Montgomery moved to a small town in the Florida Keys to pursue her dream job as the head of children's services at the public library...and also to put some distance between herself and her broken engagement. The last thing she expects of her new quiet life is to find a baby abandoned in the library restroom...or to develop feelings for the recently divorced sheriff who's on the case.

9. Not That Kind of Guy by Andie J. Christopher

Berkley

After breaking up with her long-term boyfriend, state attorney Bridget Nolan decides to focus all her attention on work, which would be a full-proof plan if not for the attractive new intern crushing on her. The pair become friendly, and when his internship is over, Bridget asks her new "friend" to accompany her to Vegas for her brother's bachelor party. But what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay in Vegas, because the two wake up married. And to piss off his parents and her ex, they decide to stay that way. What could go wrong?

10. Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory

Berkley

Shortly after moving to LA to start her own law firm, Olivia Monroe meets a handsome stranger at a hotel bar and sparks fly. However, she has no idea he's junior senator Max Powell. To keep their budding relationship out of the public eye, the two have dates in secret and even wear silly disguises. It's all fun and games until their coupledom is made public and really put to the test.

11. Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

Avon

Set up by her brother, no-nonsense and analytical Darcy goes on a terrible blind date with Elle, a popular astrologer and hopeless romantic. But, to keep her brother from playing matchmaker again, she lies and says the date went great. When she gets caught in the lie, she begs Elle to play along and pretend that they're dating. Under the condition that Darcy helps her navigate her own overbearing family during the holidays, Elle agrees. For the next several weeks, the pair fake a relationship neither ever dreamed would turn real.

12. Not Like the Movies by Kerry Winfrey

Berkley

Chloe has been working side-by-side with her boss Nick at his local coffee shop for a while now. Though he has a gruff and grumpy exterior, their quick banter manages to get a smile out of him...sometimes. But there's never been any more to their relationship. Except Chloe's best friend thinks differently and she wrote an entire movie about them and their supposed chemistry, forcing her to reevaluate everything she thought she knew.

13. A Rogue of One's Own by Evie Dunmore

Berkley

Lady Lucie and her fellow Oxford suffragists have finally raised enough money to buy one of London's publishing houses, a move that is essential to their plan of a coup against Parliament. The only thing standing in her way is her old nemesis, who's willing to give her what she wants in exchange for what he wants: a night with her. Now, not only does Lucie have to fight for women's rights, she also has to fight her feelings for the man who drives her crazy.

14. Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Berkley

Liv Papandreas has a dream job working as a sous chef at Nashville's fanciest restaurant. But, when she catches the owner and head chef harassing a hostess, she's abruptly fired. Determined to see justice done, she enlists the help of frenemy and nightclub owner, Braden Mack. However, their plan to expose a predator requires a little help from Mack's Bromance Book Club, who also help him sort through his surprising feelings for Liv.

15. The Marriage Game by Sara Desai

Berkley

After her messy breakup goes viral and she loses her job, Layla Patel moves back home to start her own recruiting business out of the office above the family restaurant...except her father has already rented it out to a conceited A-type professional downsizer by the name of Sam Mehta. The two butt heads immediately, but when Layla decides to grant her father's wish and find a husband from a list of candidates, the two call a truce and Sam plays chaperone. To her surprise, Layla's perfect husband turns out not to be a guy on her list, but rather the man helping her follow it.

16. Beach Read by Emily Henry

Berkley

Gus is a literary fiction author known for killing off his characters. January is a bestselling romance novelist known for her happy endings. Not only do the two writers happen to live in neighboring beach houses, but they're both also suffering from a bad case of writer's block. To keep things fresh, they make a deal: Gus will write something happy and January will write something gritty. Over the summer, the two work to get outside of their comfort zones and do something unexpected...and not just with their writing.

17. The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler

Sourcebooks Casablanca

After just two weeks of vacation, Zoey Caldwell has fallen completely in love with Moose Springs, Alaska. And if she's not careful, she'll fall in love with the grumpy local diner owner, too. As for Graham, he's never liked tourists. He feeds them at his diner and sends them on their way. But, after meeting Zoey, he might be willing to make an exception.

18. The Roommate by Rosie Danan

Berkley

The Roommate by Rosie Danan follows Clara, an uptight and a little bit awkward East Coaster who moves to LA to pursue her longtime crush — except when he's actually out on tour with his band, she winds up living with Josh, who just happens to be a porn star. These two clash in personalities and they are very unlikely roommates. But let's just say that the shared space and forced proximity makes them get to know each other, and things get steamy.

19. Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

Avon

Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade is about April Whittier, a geologist by day and a fanfic writer for a Game of Thrones–esque show by night. When she tweets a photo of herself in cosplay in an attempt to make her private life more public, she's met with internet trolls instead. The star of the show, Marcus, not only defends her, but asks her out on a date, and what starts as a publicity stunt quickly blooms into a whirlwind romance. Except it turns out that Marcus just also happens to be April's long-term fanfic friend IRL.

20. Crazy, Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Berkley

After a rocky start, Alexis Carlisle is finally getting her cat café off the ground. The last thing she expects is for one of her customers to claim that the two are long-lost sisters. Alexis enlists the help of her best friend, Noah — a former teenage hacktivist turned (mostly) legitimate cyber security professional — to help her find the truth of the shocking secret. Of course, Noah agrees to help and decides it's time to come clean about a secret of his own — that he's been in love with her for years.

21. How to Fail at Flirting by Denise Williams

Berkley

When she finds out her department at work may be cut, Professor Naya Turner lets loose for a night and meets Jake, a guy who makes her laugh and forget about her problems. After their failed attempt at a fling, Naya tries to put him out of her head. But, that proves impossible when they discover Jake is the person responsible for deciding what happens to Naya's job. Despite the work complications and long-distance, not to mention Naya's trauma from a previous abusive relationship, they begin a relationship and fall in love. But, when more obstacles get in the way of their happiness, they're forced to ask themselves, is love enough?

22. The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

Avon

Wedding planner Carolina Santos was left at the altar. But she's not going to let that get in her way when a life-changing job opportunity is on the line. What may stop her, however, is the fact that she has to work with her ex-fiancé's best man, Max. As if that wasn't bad enough, Max is actually the one who encouraged his brother to jilt Carolina. Her desire for revenge threatens the project, until she realizes that all of her anger for Max might be another emotion altogether.

23. Layla by Colleen Hoover

Montlake

In this thrilling paranormal romance, Leeds meets the enigmatic Layla at a wedding, and she turns his lackluster life upside-down. But their whirlwind romance takes an unexpected turn and Leeds begins to see another side to the woman he loves. Hoping to get their relationship back on track, he takes her back to the place where they first met and encounters Willow. While Layla spends her days by the pool, Leeds gets to know Willow, and soon she's the woman he wants to spend all of his time with. But there's more to Willow than meets the eye, too. Trapped in a remote mansion with two women he's in love with, both of whom have secrets, is not the vacation he was hoping for.

24. In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

Gallery

This novel follows Maelyn Jones, whose life isn't going according to plan. The only thing she has to look forward to is spending the holiday with her family in the same Utah cabin they go to every year, along with two other families they vacation with. But even that tradition is coming to an end. At the end of the holiday, she gets into a car crash and wakes up back at day one to start the festivities all over again.

25. A Taste of Sage by Yaffa S. Santos

Harper

Lumi Santana is a Dominican chef with synesthesia — she can perceive someone's emotions with just one taste of their cooking. So when she starts working alongside Julien Dax, a stuffy, sharp-tongued chef, she vows to never taste his cooking. But when she ultimately gives in, she learns that there's more to him than she originally thought, including his feelings toward her.

26. If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane

William Morrow

Laurie is in shock when her boyfriend of ten years not only ends things out of the blue, but debuts a new, pregnant girlfriend just a few weeks later. With she and her ex working at the same law firm, there's no way she can escape him or her pitying coworkers. That is until she makes a deal with Jamie Carter, the office womanizer. To make her ex jealous and to help him get a promotion by appearing as a stable adult looking to settle down, the two fake a relationship that, to their surprise, quickly becomes real.

27. One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London

The Dial Press

When plus-size fashion blogger Bea Schumacher goes viral for criticizing her favorite reality dating show for its lack of diversity, the last thing she expects is for them to reach out and ask her to be their next main contestant. Bea relunctatly agrees in the hopes of changing societal perceptions and boosting her business — she has absolutely zero intention of falling in love. But as the show films and she spends weeks getting to know each eligible bachelor, the wall she built to protect herself starts to come down. Bea finally lets go and opens herself up to love — but it's a lot harder than it looks when the whole world is watching.

What was your favorite romance novel of 2020? Tell us in the comments!