It’s Valentine’s season! The perfect time to read about love. I’ve been reading a lot of contemporary literature lately, but I’m definitely not a romance novel reader. Nope. However, I do love a good love story. Frankly I have a hard time with any book that has zero romantic content. Love is a huge part of the human experience, especially for young female protagonists. In honor of Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d share my favorite love stories so others can appreciate them too.
To Build My List of Favorite Love Stories, I Went Straight to My Bookshelf
I have a personal library that is my pride and joy at home. Obviously any love story deserving of this list would have been memorable enough to add to my collection. Nine titles drew my eyes, and I can honestly say that I recommend all of these books.
1. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
One of my absolute favorite love stories EVER. If I had to pick my all-time favorite book that pointed me to the genre I write, Ella Enchanted is that book. And the love story between Ella and Prince Charmont is to die for. Most young adult relationships don’t make it past the googly-eyed, puppy love stage. But the thing I love about Ella and Char is their perfect combination of fun sweetness and genuine substance. Their relationship goes through a lot of development, and I always appreciate love that feels truly earned by the end of a book.
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
There are lots of classics with great romance. One that had a lasting impression on high school me and makes my list of favorite love stories is Jane Eyre. Jane is the ultimate relatable heroine for the shy, bookish girl who dreams of finding love with a handsome stranger. And Edward Rochester? He’s a brooding dark love interest who made women swoon long before that trope got overused (move aside Edward Cullen). Jane and Rochester both have beautiful growth arcs as individual characters and as a couple. Highly recommend.
3. Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
One of my favorite books ever! I read this in one summer night when I was teenager, and rereading it as an adult was just as fun. Flipped is a junior high rom com featuring two POV characters, Julie Baker and Bryce Loski, who can’t seem to get on the same page about their feelings for each other. This book makes me laugh out loud while also hitting me right in the feels. Its lessons about communication, compassion, and growing up are good enough to easily earn a spot on my list of favorite love stories.
4. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
If you’ve never read The Lunar Chronicles, the whole series is delightful and packed with romance and fairy tale flair. But of all the books, I enjoyed the love story in the second installment, Scarlet, the best. This book is such an immersive read with its sci-fi setting in futuristic France. It’s a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood with a suspenseful relationship between teenage Scarlet Benoit and a defected super-soldier with decidedly . . . wolfish characteristics. This book is loads of fun and has a kissing scene that will make any book lover swoon.
5. The Princess Bride by William Goldman
A CLASSIC. Seriously, if you like the 1987 movie but haven’t read the book, today is your day. Buttercup and Wesley’s relationship isn’t the most modern or substantive on this list of favorite love stories, but the trials they go through to be together and the powerful nostalgia of this pick go a long way for me. Plus the book is absolutely hysterical. The Princess Bride is an abridgment of a famous classic that doesn’t actually exist, and the whole story is packed with wit, romance, and swashbuckling goodness.
There have been five great kisses since 1642 b.c. . . . The precise rating of kisses is a terribly difficult thing, often leading to great controversy, because although everyone agrees with the formula of affection times purity times intensity times duration, no one has ever been completely satisfied with how much weight each element should receive. But on any system, there are five that everyone agrees deserve full marks.
Well, this one left them all behind.
William Goldman, The Princess Bride
6. Spells for Lost Things by Jenna Evans Welch
This is a brand new addition to my library and my favorite read of 2022. In Spells for Lost Things, two wonderful and grieving teens meet in Salem, Massachusetts, and go on an adventure to solve two family mysteries. It’s hard for me to explain how much I love Willow and Mason’s chemistry in this book. But I was rooting for them even before their meet cute happened. This novel is overflowing with warmth, charm, and emotional depth. I’m not too proud to admit that the big climax made me cry, something I never do when reading books.
7. Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
I had to include Shakespeare on this list. My bookshelves are filled with The Bard, but Romeo and Juliet seemed like too obvious a choice. So I went with one of my other favorite love stories: Much Ado About Nothing. If you’ve never been exposed to this play, it’s an absolute delight, and I can’t recommend Kenneth Branaugh’s movie adaptation enough. If you want a snappy, comedic version of the enemies to lovers trope, this play is for you. Beatrice and Benedick are a riot, and their pretzel of a love story is pure joy.
8. The Words in My Hands by Asphyxia
Another recent release that I absolutely adore. This author is an artist and also a member of the Deaf community in Australia, so this is an #OwnVoices pick filled with beautiful sketches. This book tells the story of Piper, a high school girl who’s deaf and has struggled her whole life to read lips, keep up in school, and hide her disability. It isn’t until she meets a beautiful boy who is well versed in Australian Sign Language that Piper’s world finally opens up. Not just to love, but also to her true identity. This book is GREAT and filled with so much heart.
9. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
This choice might feel like a mismatch on a list of favorite love stories, but honestly there’s no book that embodies pure, unconditional love more perfectly. Tuesdays with Morrie had a huge impact on my life when I read it for the first time as a high school senior. It’s the true story of a sports journalist who befriends his former college professor during his final months of fighting ALS. This entire book is a love letter to an amazing man’s legacy and all his lessons about life. It’s a heavy read, but it’s also gorgeously real. The bond that Mitch and Morrie share in these pages is a testament that two people of any age can connect on the deepest level if they simply take the time to listen.
What Love Stories Do You Recommend?
Of course this is a season for couples and romance, but even if you’re not in a long-term relationship, Valentine’s Day is a nice time to curl up with a warm blanket and a book about love. And maybe eat your weight in your favorite brand of chocolate too. No judgment. ❧
