Hot stuff: The 6 best romance novels of summer 2023
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Need a bit of summer loving?
The romance novels of 2023 turned up the heat and brought lots to love, from explosive heroines to clever and quirky fairytale retellings. If you still need that perfect beach read, here's our six favorite romance novels of summer 2023.
<em>Knockout</em> by Sarah MacLean
Summer always gets hotter when Sarah MacLean's latest hits shelves, and Knockout is a doozy. The third in her Hell's Belles series (and her best yet), the book follows pyrotechnic genius Lady Imogen Loveless and Scotland Yard Inspector Tommy Peck. Throughout the series, the two have made sparks any time they've come near each other. Now their story gets to roar to a full-throated blaze. As Imogen tracks the culprit behind a series of fires targeting progressive women's businesses in London, Tommy is hot on her heels, determined to keep her out of harm's way (an impossible task). The two are attracted to each other from the word go, but Tommy frets that his status is too far below Imogen, while she fears that she is too much to be loved by any man. Detectives, police officers, and other members of law enforcement are popular romance heroes, a fact that's been significantly complicated in recent years by movements to defund the police and protest their abuses. MacLean doesn't shy away from the implications of Tommy's job, and in fact, delves headlong into questions of corruption and justice with her signature vigor. Imogen is a marvel, a girl with a sharp mind and a remarkable understanding of explosives. MacLean burrows into Imogen's hurt and sense of muchness with a keenly felt sense of empathy. The Hell's Belles are vigilantes dedicated to making the world a safer place for women, but Imogen fears there is no place for her in it besides that of scientist and spinster. It's hard to understate how meaningful it is to see Imogen's triumphs and fears writ large on the page — the fulfillment she finds with her work and her friends alongside her yearning to be loved just as she is. MacLean ensures that one never negates the other. Tommy is a classic MacLean hero, as big and beefy as a brick wall with a soft spot for the woman he loves. His roughness and overwhelming masculinity is what makes him irresistible to Imogen (and to readers). MacLean is a master at threading social commentary through chapters of high stakes adventure and swoony, steamy love scenes. Quite simply no one does historical romance like her. She is not just the belle of the ball but the queen too.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Grade: A
<em> All the Right Notes </em> by Dominic Lin
Dominic Lim makes his debut with All the Right Notes, a love story built on his experiences as a queer Filipino performer and fan of musical theater. Quito Cruz dreams of writing big Broadway musicals, but he pays the bills working at a piano bar. When his father, their hometown choir teacher, calls and asks him to put on a final concert to celebrate his retirement, Quito is happy to oblige — until his father adds the caveat that he expects Quito to recruit movie star Emmett Aoki to perform a number. Emmett and Quito were unlikely friends in high school, but they haven't spoken in years. Lim crafts a dual timeline narrative, flipping between Quito and Emmett's reconnection and the story of the complicated feelings that drove them apart in their shared past. Lim's voice is distinctive from the word go, the vibrant world of the New York theater scene and the quieter bubble of a Northern California high school easy to envision. He fills Quito's life with an authenticity, from the rich descriptions of Filipino food to the underground theater scene of off-off-Broadway. There's a lived-in quality to the work, and Lim's capacity for biting one-liners and observational humor will make readers eager to keep turning the pages. Drag queen, non-binary Ujima, Quito's best friend, is the book's heart, hysterically funny and real, they blow hurricanes of fresh air into every page they feature on. Lim's book isn't without its melancholy, as Quito wrestles with his identity, his dreams deferred, and honoring the legacy of love and music his parents have left him. But it takes a sharp turn in its final act into outright tragedy — and while I personally feel some angst and conflict are essential to the genre, it comes so late in the game and is so heartbreaking, that it's hard to close the book on a buoyant note. Lim's written a beautiful story of a second chance romance, unpacking the vagaries of coming out and fame. But the novel is weighed down by its heavy conclusion and doesn't have the runway to lift itself back up after so much of the book has been a more spritely endeavor.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥
Grade: B+
<em> Business or Pleasure </em> by Rachel Lynn Solomon
It's a tall order in romance fiction to write one of the most sex positive books to ever hit shelves, but Rachel Lynn Solomon has done just that with Business or Pleasure. The novel follows ghostwriter Chandler Cohen and the hijinks that ensue when she realizes that her next project, actor Finn Walsh, is the man with whom she unwittingly had a one-night stand. To make matters worse, the sex was BAD. So, Chandler and Finn make a deal — while they'll spend their days gathering material for his memoir, they'll spend their nights honing his abilities to deliver satisfaction. It's fairly rare for a romance hero to not be some sort of sex god from the start, particularly in these "Oops, he was my one night stand" narratives. Solomon rips the sheet out from under the trope and delivers instead a heartfelt, joyous, erotic take on the vulnerability required to learn and grow as people. Chandler and Finn are learning to be intimate with each other, emotionally and physically — and they establish a carefully-built trust through weeks on the fan convention circuit. Finn is the star of a Teen Wolf meets Supernatural-esque show (with plenty of shout-outs to his days gracing the cover of EW and EW cast reunions in the making!). Solomon keenly understands the world of fandom, the complicated relationships of actors on cult hit shows, and the challenging politics of stardom. Finn also has OCD, something that has not only impacted his approach to sex, but his entire life. It's Chandler who helps him share his story with the world in a way that he hopes will help others. There is so much deep care and safety within these pages, a sense of what it takes to be someone's confidante and someone's lover. Solomon's book is bawdy and hilarious, but it's also extremely emotionally resonant and smart as it tackles everything from abortion to mental health. Reviewing books for EW might be my business, but reading this novel was nothing but a pleasure.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Grade: A
<em> The Secret to a Southern Wedding </em> by Sny
Synithia Williams is quickly becoming a go-to for cheeky romance edged with something a little bit taboo. In The Secret to a Southern Wedding, she tackles the attraction to your stepbrother trope with panache. Dr. Imani Kemp is considered the best doctor of her Florida-based hospital, but she returns to her home in Peachtree, GA when she learns her divorced mother is rushing into a new marriage. Imani is still recovering from the trauma of her father's mistress attempting to kill her mother years before. But things get complicated when Imani meets Cyril Dash, her mother's intended's son, before she knows who he is and an instant attraction sparks. Williams' characters are almost always dealing with deliciously soapy secrets — Cyril's father was also a suspect in his own wife's murder — but she grounds the outsized drama with empathetic, emotionally intelligent characters. Imani is caught between running from her past and wanting to finally be able to move forward as a doctor who makes a difference. Williams gives Cyril and Imani a crackling chemistry, while also building up the small town around them with quirky characters that we can't wait to spend more time with. The climax is handled a smidge too swiftly, but it doesn't make the story any less engaging. Cyril runs a local bar/brewery, and we'd like a glass of his finest to raise to this Southern summer escape.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Grade: B+
<em> Marry Me By Midnight </em> by Felicia Grossman
One of the best trends of recent years is the increasing number of historical romance authors that expand the boundaries of the worlds we can visit. In Marry Me By Midnight, Felicia Grossman takes us into the Jewish communities of 19th-century London to explore their own unique histories and lives on the fringes of British society. She gender bends the Cinderella story, with poor synagogue custodian Aaron Ellenberg called to attend three festivals to help wealthy businesswoman Isabella Lira suss out a perfect husband. Isabelle is locked in a battle of wills with her late father's business partners, the Berab brothers, and she seeks a husband powerful enough to face off against them while still willing to do her bidding. Aaron is meant to seek out blackmail materials to ensure such a thing could come to pass. But as Aaron comes to her garden and her grandiose parties, the two can't help but be drawn to each other — Aaron reveling in Isabelle's strength and ambition, while Isabelle is touched by Aaron's care and kindness. Grossman breathes enchanting new life into the well-trod tale, with clever twists on Cinderella's penchant for animal friends and a fairy godmother. But it's the peek into a world we rarely see in historical fiction that elevates the book beyond a satisfying fairy-tale retelling. Grossman sprinkles Yiddish and Jewish turns of phrase throughout the book, and the central conflict hangs on the push and pull between the characters' standing within their own community and their effort to gain legitimacy in the eyes of gentiles. There's a rich, untapped history here and Grossman gives us a flavor of it that promises more enchanting, insightful reads to come. Isabelle's luxurious gowns and Aaron's moral code make for pure reader catnip. Isabelle is the best kind of heroine — ruthlessly ambitious, determined to prove herself, and utterly convinced her life has left no room for love until she must face the idea of living without it. Grossman bibbidi-bobbidi-blasts us into a new corner of Victorian England, proving that the best fairy-tales don't need to fit into a box (or even a shoe) but rather defy them.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Grade: A
<em> Kiss the Girl </em> by Zoraida Córdova
Disney continues their Meant to Be series with this winking retelling of The Little Mermaid infused with Latinx characters and culture. Ariel del Mar is one of the most famous singers in the world, thanks to her success with her sisters and their band, Siren Seven. But when Ariel finally gets a chance to find her own voice, only to have it quashed by her controlling father, she decides to make a run for it. Traveling with up-and-coming band Star Crossed, Ariel becomes Melody, an anonymous merch girl drawn to the band's dreamy lead singer, Eric Reyes. Still, Eric is a dangerous temptation for more than one reason — can Ariel find her voice and her happy ending all at once? Zoraida Córdova has a playful writing style full of clever nods to everything from Little Mermaid characters to the cherished dinglehopper. She skillfully pays tribute to her source material while crafting a story all her own about familial control, romantic connection, and what it really means to be part of the world on your own terms. Perhaps more than any of the Meant to Be novels prior, Cordova leans into the sexy, passionate sides of the love story here (though it's still virtually closed door), and she even features two queer supporting characters. The ways in which she pushes the more traditional Disney boundaries (even tentatively) are a striking parallel to Ariel's own rebellious streak and determination to forge her own path. Kiss the Girl might be based on a Disney princess movie, but it's a complex romance with its exploration of familial trauma, found family, and the highs and lows of the music industry. If you need a last splash of summer, don't miss this bubbly addition to the Meant to Be series.
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥
Grade: A–
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