Are you someone who loves to have beach romance reads all queued up on your Kindle or your bedside table?
I don’t know about you but I don’t feel relaxed and cozy unless I know I have a stack of at least two or three novels waiting for their turn with me at any time.
Did you know that romantic fiction is BY FAR the most popular genre of literature? Yup, it’s true!
Funny story. The other day I was at my local library returning read treasures and hunting for more. My routine is that before handing over my already-read pile, I stack them in alphabetical order by author and then wander around the fiction section looking for more from those authors that I had just enjoyed.
Imagine my sadness, when I couldn’t find any books by those authors. I know my local La Quinta library is small. But a girl needs her fix of beach romance reads, right? So, I approached the reference librarian figuring I would need to order some of these authors’ works from other libraries. But before she did that for me, she casually asked if I had checked the “romance section”? What? There is a “ROMANCE SECTION” that I did NOT know about! I was SO excited that I raced over and found my latest piece of heaven!
Moral of the story: Never give up on finding your beach romance list. Luckily, I have curated my latest list of beach romance reads below for you to snatch up and maybe even bring on spring break! Let’s get to it!
My Latest Five Favorite Beach Romance Reads:
- THIS SPELLS LOVE by Kate Robb
Gemma tries to heal her heartbreak by casting a spell (from her intuitive but a bit wacky grandmother’s stash of old books) to erase her ex from her past. But she wakes up in an alternate reality where she’s lost more than she wished for in this witty, whimsical friends-to-lovers debut.
What if one little wish changed everything?
When I started this book, I thought it was going to be just okay. But as I got further in, I fell under this author’s (debut novel’s!) spell. I was rooting for Gemma to figure out her life and to see if Dex, her former best friend, shouldn’t become way more than that.
You can see it here:
2. THE GOOD PART by Sophie Cousens
Lucy Young is twenty-six and tired. Tired of fetching coffees for senior TV producers, sick of going on disastrous dates, and done with living in a damp flat with roommates who never buy toilet paper. After another disappointing date, Lucy stumbles upon a wishing machine. Pushing a coin into the slot, Lucy closes her eyes and wishes with all her might: Please, let me skip to the good part of my life.
When she wakes the next morning to a handsome man, a ring on her finger, a high-powered job, and two storybook-perfect children, Lucy can’t believe this is real. Has she really skipped ahead like she’s always wanted, or has she forgotten a huge chunk of her life? As Lucy begins to embrace new relationships and the perks of maturity, she’ll have to ask herself: Can she go back to her previous life, and if so, can she stand to leave the good part behind?
I know what you’re thinking. What, another book about time travel? I swear I wasn’t looking for that but I enjoyed the tale.
And will love conquer all? I think we’ve all wanted at some point in our lives to skip past the challenging times and get to the good part. This sweet story was remarkably tender and you will be racing through this story to see how it turns out!
You can see it here:
3. The Gentleman’s Gambit by Evie Dunmore
This one was a delightful surprise. It’s a historical romance set in England and it chronicles the challenges of the women’s efforts to obtain the right to vote. In addition, it is a love story (shocking, I know!) between Catriona Campbell who is a scholar at Oxford (before that was allowed), and Elias Khoury. Elias is a Middle Eastern businessman pretending to be an ancient artifacts expert who decides he should seduce Catriona to help secure his country’s historical items.
I enjoyed the history and the commentary on the lives and time in England during a tempestuous time. Most of all, I enjoyed the evolution of the relationship between these two main characters. I couldn’t put it down.
You can see it here:
4. TECHNICALLY YOURS by Denise Williams
Pearl Harris has learned to be careful at work and in love. She has the chance to make lasting change at OurCode—a nonprofit aimed at inspiring high schoolers to code—but a recent scandal puts its reputation at risk. Further complicating things, Pearl didn’t expect the one man she never stopped thinking about to join as the newest member of her board of directors.
Cord Matthews fell for Pearl when they met in an elevator eight years ago. She’s just his type: smart, capable, and makes him laugh, but when she broke his heart, he decided love wasn’t for him. When they reconnect after years of no contact, Cord is tempted to consider breaking his ban on serious relationships. But going public with a romance between them might derail Pearl’s career and the progress she’s made at OurCode.
Will they “go for it” and give their relationship a second chance? How will that fly at work? Check out this modern-day beach romance, and see for yourself!
You can see it here:
5. THE BROMANCE BOOK CLUB by Lyssa Kay Adams
OK, I have saved the best beach romance for last! I just finished this book last night and I LOVED it! I especially enjoyed the premise of the story.
The first rule of book club: You don’t talk about book club.
A famous Nashville second baseman Gavin Scott’s marriage is in major league trouble. He’s recently discovered a humiliating secret: his wife Thea has always faked her orgasms. When he loses his cool at the revelation, it’s the final straw in their already strained relationship. Thea asks for a divorce, and Gavin realizes he’s let his pride and fear get the better of him.
Welcome to the Bromance Book Club.
Distraught and desperate, Gavin finds help from an unlikely source: a secret romance book club made up of Nashville’s top alpha men. With the help of their current read, a steamy Regency novel, the guys coach Gavin on saving his marriage. But it’ll take a lot more than flowery words and grand gestures for this hapless Romeo to find his inner hero and win back the trust of his wife.
I loved this book so much because it discussed the issues of emotional and physical intimacy in such a genuine non-technical way. The image of these tough alpha men helping one another (albeit reluctantly at times) was so realistic and of course outrageously funny at times.
If you and your mate have ever struggled with closeness and you want a wonderful solution, read this one!
You can see it here:
I hope you enjoyed my latest list of beach romance novels. I would love to hear from you as to your favorites. Please DM them to me @drjuliemarshall or drop them in the comments below!
Happy reading!
XO,
Dr. Julie
Here are a few more posts for you to enjoy:
My Packing List for Hawaii (for Ten Days)
Really Cute Boho Beach Cover-ups and My New Favorite Swimsuit!
