The 25 best romances
The 25 highest-ranked romances in our ranking of 2,816, scored on how much readers love them, their prize, best-list and bestseller record, and current buzz. We rank 233 romances in all. How we rank
- 1
Gone with the Wind94.6Must-Read ScoreGone with the Wind
It's 1861 in north Georgia, and sixteen-year-old Scarlett O'Hara, the spoiled, scheming belle of the plantation Tara, cares about nothing but the man she can't have, Ashley Wilkes.
Why it made the listPulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (1937)One of the best-selling books ever (about 30 million copies)#1 New York Times bestseller (33 weeks at #1)TIME All-TIME 100 Novels - 2
The Nightingale90.0Must-Read ScoreThe Nightingale
France, 1939.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)One of the ten best-selling books of 2015 (Publishers Weekly) - 3
Lonesome Dove89.6Must-Read ScoreLonesome Dove
In the dusty Texas border town of Lonesome Dove, two retired Texas Rangers, the talkative, easygoing Gus McCrae and the hard, silent Woodrow Call, run a small cattle business and have settled into old age.
Why it made the listPulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (1986)NBCC Award (Fiction) finalist (1985)PBS Great American Read - 4
Pride and Prejudice88.4Must-Read ScorePride and Prejudice
In early-1800s England, the Bennet family has five unmarried daughters and no son to inherit their home, so their mother is desperate to see them married well.
Why it made the listOne of the best-selling books ever (about 20 million copies)Bokklubben World Library (100 greatest books)PBS Great American ReadBBC's The Big Read - 5
Verity88.1Must-Read ScoreVerity
Struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh is offered the job of a lifetime: finishing the bestselling series of Verity Crawford, a famous author left unable to work after a car accident.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)One of the ten best-selling books of 2022 and 2023 (Publishers Weekly) - 6
The Song of Achilles88.1Must-Read ScoreThe Song of Achilles
Greece in the age of heroes.
Why it made the listWomen's Prize for Fiction winner (2012)104 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2012 - 7
House of Earth and Blood87.6Must-Read ScoreHouse of Earth and Blood
Bryce Quinlan, half human and half Fae, works by day at an antiquities shop and parties by night in Crescent City, a modern metropolis of angels, shifters, witches and mortals.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (romantasy) winner (2024, for House of Flame and Shadow)Goodreads Choice (fantasy) winner (2022, for House of Sky and Breath)#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)33 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2020 - 8
Quicksilver87.1Must-Read ScoreQuicksilver
Saeris Fane is a thief and secret-keeper in a desert city ruled by an undying queen, where water is precious and powers like hers are dangerous.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)56 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2024Goodreads Choice (romantasy) finalist (2024) - 9
A Man Called Ove86.7Must-Read ScoreA Man Called Ove
Ove is a curmudgeon with strict routines, strong principles and a short fuse, the neighbor everyone calls bitter.
Why it made the listOne of the ten best-selling books of 2016 and 2017 (Publishers Weekly)98 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2015 - 10
A Court of Thorns and Roses86.3Must-Read ScoreA Court of Thorns and Roses
Nineteen-year-old Feyre keeps her impoverished family alive by hunting in the forest near the wall that divides the human lands from the faerie realm of Prythian.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (fantasy) winner (2021, for A Court of Silver Flames)One of the ten best-selling books of 2024 (Publishers Weekly)96 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2024 - 11
Atmosphere85.9Must-Read ScoreAtmosphere
Joan Goodwin has loved the stars all her life, and in 1980, as a reserved physics professor in Houston, she's chosen as one of the first women to train for NASA's space shuttle program.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (historical fiction) winner (2025)#1 New York Times bestseller (2 weeks at #1)31 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2025 - 12
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo85.7Must-Read ScoreThe Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Evelyn Hugo, the reclusive Hollywood icon, is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life, and she chooses Monique Grant, an unknown magazine reporter, to write it.
Why it made the listOne of the ten best-selling books of 2022 (Publishers Weekly)163 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2021 - 13
Sophie's Choice85.6Must-Read ScoreSophie's Choice
Brooklyn, 1947.
Why it made the listNational Book Award (Fiction) winner (1980)#1 New York Times bestseller (6 weeks at #1)One of the ten best-selling books of 1979 (Publishers Weekly)Modern Library 100 Best Novels - 14
Me Before You85.1Must-Read ScoreMe Before You
Louisa Clark is twenty-six, cheerful and stuck in a small English town, until she loses her job at the café.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (7 weeks at #1)128 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2013 - 15
The Thorn Birds83.2Must-Read ScoreThe Thorn Birds
In 1915 the Cleary family moves from New Zealand to Drogheda, a vast sheep station in the Australian outback owned by Paddy Cleary's wealthy sister.
Why it made the listOne of the best-selling books ever (about 33 million copies)#1 New York Times bestseller (16 weeks at #1)BBC's The Big Read - 16
Lessons in Chemistry83.1Must-Read ScoreLessons in Chemistry
In early-1960s California, Elizabeth Zott is a brilliant chemist in a research lab where men take credit for her work and treat her as a secretary.
Why it made the listOne of the ten best-selling books of 2023 (Publishers Weekly)99 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (historical fiction) finalist (2022) - 17
The Four Winds83.0Must-Read ScoreThe Four Winds
In 1934, the Texas Panhandle is in the grip of the Dust Bowl: years of drought and dust storms have destroyed the farms, and families are leaving.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (5 weeks at #1)One of the ten best-selling books of 2021 (Publishers Weekly)Goodreads Choice (historical fiction) finalist (2021) - 18
Reminders of Him82.7Must-Read ScoreReminders of Him
Kenna Rowan has spent five years in prison for a mistake that cost a young man his life.
Why it made the listOne of the ten best-selling books of 2022 (Publishers Weekly)Goodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2022) - 19
Just for the Summer82.2Must-Read ScoreJust for the Summer
Justin has a curse: every woman he dates finds her soulmate right after they break up, and the internet knows it.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)23 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2024Goodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2024) - 20
Alchemised82.1Must-Read ScoreAlchemised
Helena Marino was a healer for the resistance in a war against necromancers who raise the dead to fight for them.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)27 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2025Goodreads Choice (romantasy) finalist (2025) - 21
Heated Rivalry81.9Must-Read ScoreHeated Rivalry
Shane Hollander, the clean-cut captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, and Ilya Rozanov, the cocky Russian captain of the Boston Bears, are hockey's fiercest rivals.
Why it made the list22 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2025 - 22
Shield of Sparrows80.7Must-Read ScoreShield of Sparrows
In a realm where the gods have sent monsters to keep mortals humble, a young princess has spent her life obeying her father and staying in the shadow of her sisters.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (romantasy) finalist (2025) - 23
Taiwan Travelogue80.4Must-Read ScoreTaiwan Travelogue
In May 1938, Aoyama Chizuko, a young novelist from Nagasaki, arrives in Japanese-ruled Taiwan at the government's invitation.
Why it made the listInternational Booker Prize winner (2026) - 24
Acheron80.2Must-Read ScoreAcheron
Eleven thousand years ago, a god was born cursed into a human body, and he endured a lifetime of hatred.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1) - 25
Water for Elephants80.0Must-Read ScoreWater for Elephants
Jacob Jankowski is ninety, or ninety-three, and living in a nursing home when the circus comes to town and brings back 1931.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (8 weeks at #1)179 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2008
