Valentine's Day is a great excuse to read a sappy love story. But if you're not in the mood for that, I've got you covered. Here are 30 fantastic books to read for Valentine's (and Galentine's), recommended by mood.
American Royals by Katharine McGee
For glitz, glam, and multiple couples to ship.
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Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
For a love story that traverses decades and crosses continents.
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Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
For a brutally honest and nostalgic look at the life-changing friendships of teenage girls.
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Atonement by Ian McEwan
For a heartbreaking story of a blossoming romance cut much too short.
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Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
For a story that proves love blooms in the most unlikely of places.
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The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson
For epic adventure, misplaced love, magical creatures, and self-discovery.
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The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams
For the self-conscious romance novel that’ll make you fall in love with romance novels.
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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
For a sexy queer romance set in a quirkier version of Hogwarts.
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The Color Purple by Alice Walker
For the classic tale of the unbreakable bonds of female friendship.
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Emma by Jane Austen
For lovers who make each other better.
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Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes
For palpable sexual tension and a story of second chances.
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Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff
For a he said / she said that will have you looking at relationships in a whole new light.
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The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
For an open door friends-to-lovers romp set in a publishing house.
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The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer
For the female friendships that are both profoundly life giving and devastatingly destructive.
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Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquival
For a steamy magical realism romance alongside an entire recipe book.
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Normal People by Sally Rooney
For the dark millennial love story that just may become a modern classic.
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The Only Story by Julian Barnes
For a truly depressing story about how the wrong first love can ruin you.
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The Other’s Gold by Elizabeth Ames
For four unlikely friends who stand by each other through some earth shattering mistakes.
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Persuasion by Jane Austen
For a second chance at love.
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Possession by A.S. Byatt
For a literary mystery and parallel stories of irrepressible passion.
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Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
For the original enemies to lovers novel.
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A Secret Sisterhood: The Hidden Friendships of Austen, Bronte, Elliot, and Woolf by Emily Midorikawa and Emma Claire Sweeney
For the literary Galentines’ bonds you never knew existed.
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Spinster: Making a Life of One’s Own by Kate Bolick
For all the reasons having a forever Valentine is overrated.
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The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
For the original epic turned epic love story.
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Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum
For the sweetest little YA romance you won’t be able to put down.
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To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
For a YA trilogy that’s as much about sisterhood as it is about first love.
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We Two: Victoria and Albert: Rulers, Partners, Rivals by Gillian Gill
For a true royal love story that’s stranger than fiction.
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The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory
For the book that will leave you craving a steamy makeout, donuts, and a cheese platter.
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The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanan
For a creepy Valentine’s Day read with lots of twists and stalking.
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Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson
For a genderless story of love, loss, passion, and pain.
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