January 2024 Romance Releases
Welcome to 2024! I really hope you had a Merry Crisis and a Happy New Beard. Let’s make this year something special. This is MY list of MY most anticipated new romance books of January 2024! What new books are you looking forward to this month? There are a lot of great new books being published, unfortunately because I’m participating in the boycott of St. Martin’s Press and Wednesday books, there were a few really great titles that I cannot in good conscience include in my list this month. However, I’m so excited to read new books from Opal Wei, Katee Robert, Max Monroe and so many more. There are around 20 romance novels on my list this January.
What new release are you looking forward to this month? If I’ve missed a book that you feel deserves to be on my list, please let me know. Be sure to bookmark this page so you can refer to it when you need to throughout the month.
January 2
Opposites attract when a free-spirited American singer-songwriter with ADHD teams up with a charming Irishman to revitalize his family’s pub in the next heartfelt romance from the author of Luck and Last Resorts.
Raine Hart is used to the challenges of living with ADHD. It’s why she ditched her life in Boston to busk around Europe as a traveling musician. No boss. No schedule. No one to disappoint but herself. But when a careless mistake in Ireland leaves her unable to perform, she sees no other option but to give up her nomadic life.
Since inheriting the Local, Jack Dunne has wanted to make the pub his own. But the baggage of running a family business and the intrusive thoughts that stem from his OCD make changing things a challenge.
Over a pint with handsome, tattooed Jack, Raine accidentally insults him and the pub. Instead of taking offense, Jack, impressed by her vision of what the pub could be, offers her a job bringing it to life.
But when Raine and Jack develop feelings for one another their opposite lifestyles won’t accommodate, it becomes clear the pub isn’t the only thing that needs reinventing. As the end of their business collaboration draws near, they’ll have to find a way past the limits they’ve placed on themselves or let go of a love that could last a lifetime.
Berkley Pub.
“If I’m too much, go find less.”
In the bingo card of life, Piper Delmonico did not expect to mark out the squares “widowed” and “sober” before her ten year high school reunion. Pushing 30, designing lingerie for a manager who wouldn’t know silk from satin, and constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, she finds herself face to face with someone who witnessed, first hand, the very public demise of her good girl reputation. Thrown together a decade later, Piper expects “Marble Man” Fitz Westfall, the golden boy with the stoic face, to be another person telling her she’s too much. But does recently-divorced Fitz, with his head in the sand, really know as much about Piper as he thinks he does? He realizes she may be just what he needs to know that he’s not truly made of stone.
Go Find Less is a first person, dual perspective contemporary romance that highlights the triumph of overcoming grief and loss while creating a new sense of self.
Tropes:
– Grumpy x Sunshine
– Second Chance Romance
– Slow Burn
– Plus Size FMC
Amazon Digital Services Pub.
January 4
A witchy, witty, wickedly sexy tale about love, books, friendship and the unexpected connections that bind us together…
Bookbinding (verb): the art of creating something magical out of fabric, leather and paper.
As a lonely foster kid, Serafina Conte sought refuge in handmaking journals—and writing her wishes within their pages. Now, in the quirky new age store she shares with her two best friends, Sera’s intentions have paid off. Her journals are in the spotlight—and rumored to manifest great things. Whether it’s witchy skills, real magic or not, Sera’s finally ready to be the leading lady of her life story…
Until her plot hits a twist.
After the death of her mentor, Ford Sitwell, all the loneliness and insecurity of her past returns. The only balm is the box of antique books he left to her. But Ford’s suspicious brooding grandson, Wes, is ready to think the worst of her—and get his grandfather’s books back! The first part doesn’t bother her. The second? Forget it. Sera won’t give Wes the books so easily. But it’s clear he’s seeking something more, an emotional connection no book can replace. So she offers a deal—work in her store for six weeks, and in return, she’ll help him get closure by sharing memories of his late grandfather.
Yes, Wes seems grumpy, but actually he’s hot …and maybe kind? Deep down? And when desire and vulnerability work their charms, Sera begins to wonder if the best stories aren’t the ones you intend, but the ones that take you where you least expected…
Afterglow by Harlequin Pub.
January 9
This charming fated-love rom-com about two star-crossed lovers will appeal to readers of Helen Hoang, Jasmine Guillory, and Sarah Adams.
Just a date . . . or a twist of fate?
When it comes to love and art, Rooney Gao believes in signs. Most of all, she believes in the Chinese legend that everyone is tied to their one true love by the red string of fate. And that belief has inspired her career as an artist, as well as the large art installations she makes with ( obviously ) red string. That is until artist’s block strikes and Rooney begins to question everything. But then fate leads her to the perfect guy . . . Jack Liu is perfect. He’s absurdly smart, successful, handsome, and after one enchanting New York night—under icy February skies and fueled by fried dumplings—all signs point to destiny. Only Jack doesn’t believe. And after their magical date, it looks like they might be lost to each other forever . . . until they’re given one more chance to reconnect. But can Rooney convince a reluctant skeptic to take a leap of fate?
Forever Pub.
A swoon-worthy debut queer Victorian romance in which two debutantes distract themselves from having to seek husbands by setting up their widowed parents, and instead find their perfect match in each other—the lesbian Bridgerton/Parent Trap you never knew you needed!
Gwen has a brilliant beyond brilliant idea.
It’s 1857, and anxious debutante Beth has just one season to snag a wealthy husband, or she and her mother will be out on the street. But playing the blushing ingenue makes Beth’s skin crawl and she’d rather be anywhere but here.
Gwen, on the other hand, is on her fourth season and counting, with absolutely no intention of finding a husband, possibly ever. She figures she has plenty of security as the only daughter of a rakish earl, from whom she’s gotten all her flair, fun, and less-than-proper party games.
“Let’s get them together,” she says.
It doesn’t take long for Gwen to hatch her latest scheme: rather than surrender Beth to courtship, they should set up Gwen’s father and Beth’s newly widowed mother. Let them get married instead.
“It’ll be easy” she says.
There’s just…one, teeny, tiny problem. Their parents kind of seem to hate each other.
But no worries. Beth and Gwen are more than up to the challenge of a little twenty-year-old heartbreak. How hard can parent-trapping widowed ex-lovers be?
Of course, just as their plan begins to unfold, a handsome, wealthy viscount starts calling on Beth, offering up the perfect, secure marriage.
Beth’s not mature enough for this…
Now Gwen must face the prospect of sharing Beth with someone else, forever. And Beth must reckon with the fact that she’s caught feelings, hard, and they’re definitely not for her potential fiancé.
That’s the trouble with matchmaking: sometimes you accidentally fall in love with your best friend in the process.
Avon Pub.
Co-stars. Fake lovers. Real enemies.
I’ve landed my dream debut role on the TV crime series, Urban Dawn, but my sexy co-star and on-screen beau, Maddox Winter, barely knows I exist. He’s too busy with his gold-digging arm candy—usually D-listers trying to make it in Y’allywood, Atlanta’s hot cinematic scene.
I’m thrilled to see my name, Riley Glenn, at the top of the credits…even if the media has launched a smear campaign against me.
When an accidental naked entanglement lands Maddox and me on the cover of Love Buzz, the news spreads like norovirus on a cruise ship. With ratings skyrocketing, our director casts us into a faux relationship, and my wackadoodle godmother steps in to help out.
In the midst of it all, I’m grieving the loss of my grams. While sprinkling her ashes in Scotland, I experience a new Maddox who brews my coffee and carries me through a field of cow pies. Oddly, our pretend relationship feels like the only real thing in our lives.
But when our secret drops, it could be the end of our act, on and off screen.
*Y’allywood Billionaire is a witty, heartfelt stand-alone romcom mystery with adult language and steamy, open-door chemistry that will have you rooting for a happily-ever-after.
Autumn Sky Books Pub.
January 13
The bad news? Getting hit by a cab can officially get crossed off my bucket list.
The worse news? While I’ve woken up from my coma, the man I’m in love with hasn’t stirred from his.
And the most terrible news of all? A pregnant woman is at his bedside, holding his hand, and saying that he’s the father of her baby.
Sammy Baker is a divorced, single mom trying to find her way again. With two boys and an absent ex-husband, she’s got the world on her shoulders and Legos under her feet.
Amid the chaos lives the dream of, one day, finding love again.
Though, she didn’t think that would land her smack-dab in the middle of two men.
Will Sammy choose the successful businessman who doesn’t hesitate to tell her he’s interested? Or will she go for the eligible bachelor doctor with a constant influx of women vying for his attention?
The smart choice and what the heart wants are two different things. And sometimes, fate has a way of making it so the choice isn’t ours at all.
Independently Published
January 16
Eurydice Dimitriou has always been the innocent sister, but she’s finally ready to step out of the long shadow cast by her powerful family…and the ex who shattered her heart. Perhaps rough hands on soft skin are exactly what she needs to forget her heartbreak once and for all?
Charon Ariti has been Hades’s right-hand man for years. He’s given everything to the lower city, but now he’s ready to take something for himself. He’s only too happy to give Eurydice a special kind of education…but is her heart really free enough to be claimed?
Orpheus Makos will do whatever it takes to make things right. Once the golden boy of the upper city, he’s now a shadow of his former self. He’ll do anything to get Eurydice back…even if it means she’s not coming into his arms alone. Three hearts. Three futures. Countless ways to get it wrong.
But with enemies slipping through Olympus’s faltering barrier to lay siege on the lower city, a trio of broken hearts will be the least of these would-be lovers’ worries…
Sourcebooks Casablanca Pub.
Fortune favors the bold—but is a confirmed spinster daring enough to loosen the reins and accept a favor from the wicked gentleman who haunts her dreams?
Lady Anne Deveril doesn’t spook easily. A woman of lofty social standing known for her glacial beauty and starchy opinions, she’s the unofficial leader of her small group of equestriennes. Since her mother’s devastating plunge into mourning six years ago, Anne voluntarily renounced any fanciful notions of love and marriage. And yet, when fate puts Anne back into the entirely too enticing path of Mr. Felix Hartford, she’s tempted to run…right into his arms.
No one understands why Lady Anne withdrew into the shadows of society, Hart least of all. The youthful torch he once held for her has long since cooled. Or so he keeps telling himself. But now Anne needs a favor to help a friend. Hart will play along with her little ruse—on the condition that Anne attend a holiday house party at his grandfather’s country estate. No more mourning clothes. No more barriers. Only the two of them, unrequited feelings at last laid bare.
Finally free to gallop out on her own, Anne makes the tantalizing discovery that beneath the roguish exterior of her not-so-white knight is a man with hidden depths, scorching passions—and a tender heart.
Berkley Pub.
In this utterly charming debut romance, a teacher with big dreams joins forces with a no-nonsense engineer to survive an ex’s wedding and escape matchmaking pressure from their Indian families. Their plan? Faking an engagement, of course.
Meghna Raman’s parents wanted her to be an engineer, but instead she’s followed her passion, becoming a theater teacher and aspiring playwright. But when she discovers that her beloved writing partner, best friend, and secret crush, Seth, is suddenly engaged—and not to her—she realizes he’s about to become the one-that-got-away. Even worse, he’s asked her to be his best man. And worse than that, she’s agreed. Determined to try and move on and relieve a bit of the pressure she feels, Meghna agrees to let her parents introduce her to a potential match. Maybe she’ll even find the engineer her family wishes she became. . . .
Grumpy, handsome engineer Karthik Murthy has seen enough of his parents’ marriage to know that it isn’t for him. He only agreed to his mother’s matchmaking attempts to make her happy, never dreaming he would meet someone as vibrant as Meghna. Though he can’t offer her a real marriage, a fake engagement could help Meghna soothe the sting of planning Seth’s wedding festivities and Karthik avoid the absurd number of set-ups his mother has planned for the next year.
But as they find common ground, grow protective of one another’s hearts, and learn to fall for the flaws they thought they hated, an undeniable chemistry takes shape. Soon, Meghna and Karthik’s expectations and insecurities threaten to risk something that’s become a lot more real than they hoped.
Say You’ll Be Mine is a delightful trip back to the heyday of swoony romantic comedies from the nineties, but with a deep and poignant look at the effects of culture and family in our most intimate relationships.
Dell Pub.
Ivy Lawson loves a to-do list, hates surprises, and the only outdoor activity she’s interested in is brunch on a patio.
After catching her long-term boyfriend—and co-worker—cheating, she’s thrown into leading a high-profile client event at The Emerald Canopy Lodge.
AKA: her nightmare destination.
Ivy finds herself desperate and anxious to get her job done and leave the lodge as soon as possible. But when she meets the lodge owner, Holland Holt—a man of few words who prefers even fewer people—she starts to realize that maybe the lodge has a few more charming attributes than she originally assumed.
After one chaotic mishap after another, Ivy is forced to extend her stay and come to terms with her affection toward the lodge’s owner.
As their paths continue to overlap, Ivy must decide if she’s ready to relinquish control over every aspect of her carefully curated life; and Holland needs to find a way to move forward with the hand life dealt him.
A Lodge Affair is a grumpy sunshine, opposites attract rom-com.
Independently Published
Frenemies + Fake Dating = Falling for the wrong person…for all the right reasons
Charity Simmons may have great taste in friends, felines, and fruit tarts, but if there’s one thing the baker and co-owner of Meow and Furever Cat Café knows, it’s that she has horrible taste in men. Case in point: Will Schwartz. He may be the best friend of her best friend’s boyfriend, but after their one night together, Charity is positive Will’s nothing but a womanizing charmer—despite his nice-guy persona and adorable, crooked smile. So why then did she pick him to fake-date to get her parents off her back about being single?
Will Schwartz may give relationships a hard pass, but he’s not about to say no to fake-dating Charity. She’s brilliant, hilarious, and best of all, she’ll put an end to his mother’s interrogations about his love life. And maybe, after all this time giving him the cold shoulder, Charity will finally warm up to him. But it’s not long before Will and Charity realize they got much more than they bargained for–and they’re freaking out. What if what they have isn’t make believe but the real, forever kind of love?
Forever Pub.
January 17
Two athletes, one shared rink, and a rivalry heating up on and off the ice.
LOGAN BECKETT has one final season to secure his pro or college hockey dreams. As the team captain of the Waybrook Winter Wolves, the USHL’s worst-performing team, Logan works tirelessly to transform his teammates from the league’s laughingstock into the next Anderson Cup champions. With the upcoming season and some promising performances under his leadership, all eyes are on him to take the underdogs to victory.
But when a world champion figure skater moves into his small town, taking up rink time and snatching the spotlight away from the team’s efforts, Logan’s determined to hate her. Yet that becomes more of a challenge than he expected when facing off against a gentle, graceful skater like Ava.
AVERIE “AVA” LAURIER plans to spend her first independent season living with her coach in the small town of Waybrook, dreaming of a fresh start. Without her parents looming over her every decision, her hopes to reinvigorate her love of skating seem promising. For the first time in almost nineteen years of life, she has a chance to taste true freedom from the expectations befitting a former world champion and the darling of Team USA.
She doesn’t understand why Logan dislikes her so heavily, but she commits to ignoring him and scoring an all-gold season. However, Waybrook isn’t a big enough town to stop their paths from colliding.
When the gold-medalist skater and the underdog hockey captain clash, it’s only a matter of time before ice-cold hostility melts into passion.
Lucky Ace Pub.
January 18
Things Pippa her job, airplanes, synonyms and tropical fish.
Things Pippa does not enjoy: repeating patterns, tight clothes, people asking why she’s single and school reunions.
After four months of only speaking over intercom, when air-traffic controller Pippa Edwards finally meets pilot Andrew Boyce-Jones face-to-face, they discover they’ve got much more in common than simply working at the same airport. In fact . . . they both need a date. Tired of every relationship ending before it’s even begun, Pippa wants to evade the inevitable questions at her dreaded ten-year school reunion in Cape Town. And Andrew needs to get his well-meaning family off his back about settling down. The solution seems simple. A pact – a fake dating pact – for as long as it’s mutually beneficial. It’s perfect.
Or at least it would be if their very real attraction wasn’t about to make Pippa question everything she thought she wanted. . .
Headline Eternal Pub.
I have two goals this season:
1. Stay single.
2. Get Rory Sinclair to admit she doesn’t completely hate me.
When I find a stray dog roaming the streets of Seattle, the last place I expect to end up is in the office of a grumpy veterinarian—the one woman who can resist my charm. Twin to my teammate’s girlfriend, Rory is full of fire, but I’m not afraid of her flame.
It doesn’t take long for me to realize that the more time we spend together, the more I want it to last. But no matter how hard I try, Rory only sees me as a playboy, refusing to take me seriously.
One weekend trip to a cabin later, I think I have my in…but only if I can get her to admit her feelings toward me aren’t all bad.
Only one of us will win this face-off, and I intend for it to be me.
FACE OFF is a standalone hockey romance novel. It has a golden retriever hockey player, a grumpy veterinarian who is unamused by him, rowdy teammates, absurd text conversations, the perfect amount of steam, and a happy ending.
Independently Published
January 20
Driven and smart, Marissa Mayer has worked her way to COO at a major Fintech startup as well as launching her own successful app on the side. Now what she wants more than anything is a baby. And having given up on love after her heart was broken by the boy next door, she’s prepared to do it alone.
Recently returning to New York from LA, Dr John Raikes is an expert in his field of neonatal medicine. But when John introduces himself as Marissa’s doctor, sparks fly, and not in a good way. Because Dr John Raikes is no he’s her teenage sweetheart all grown up.
Marissa knows she should keep John at arm’s length, lest she have her heart broken again… But there’s something about a man in a white coat. And with John determined to show Marissa he’s changed, can she keep saying no when her heart is saying yes?
A gorgeously funny enemies-to-lovers, second-chance rom com, perfect for fans of Sarah Adams, Lynn Painter and Jo Watson.
Boldwood Books Pub.
January 23
They’re walking on the wild side…
The Plan was simple: find a cure for the cancer that nearly took her sister’s life. But for Zoey Fong, something about The Plan isn’t working anymore. Maybe it’s her unsuccessful research, maybe it’s burnout. But when a crucial tissue sample accidentally winds up in the hands of a very distracting—and disarmingly handsome—visitor, Zoey jumps at the chance to follow him home to retrieve it.
Davy Hsieh’s rugged island estate is no manicured suburban park. His plan is simple: establish a legitimate animal sanctuary and embrace life as a hermit to make up for a sketchy past. Zoey invading his fortress of solitude should not, under any circumstances, be a romantic development.
And yet it’s the single most invigorating week of their lives…when they’re able to set their many differences aside and embrace it. Stranded amid all manner of flora and fauna—including a semidomesticated cougar called Baby—Davy and Zoey first have to survive the island. Then they’ll need to take a leap of faith, maybe even trusting in each other, to save it.
Harlequin Pub.
A rising-star musician has a second chance at love with an old flame she remembers all too well in this swoony romance from the acclaimed authors of The Roughest Draft .
Riley Wynn went from a promising singer-songwriter to a superstar overnight, thanks to her breakup song concept album and its unforgettable lead single. When Riley’s ex-husband claims the hit song is about him, she does something she hasn’t in ten years and calls Max Harcourt, her college boyfriend and the real inspiration for the song of the summer.
Max hasn’t spoken to Riley since their relationship ended. He’s content with managing the retirement home his family owns, but it’s not the life he dreamed of filled with music. When Riley asks him to go public as her songwriting muse, he agrees on one he’ll join her in her band on tour.
As they perform across the country, Max and Riley start to realize that while they hit some wrong notes in the past, their future could hold incredible things. And their rekindled relationship will either last forever or go down in flames.
Berkley Pub.
January 24
Mirror mirror made of gold,Here’s the story you were never told . . .
I’ve always suspected some sort of mystery surrounding my adoption—I mean, who doesn’t remember anything before they were five? But the tall, dark, axe-wielding fae huntsman showing up at my door yelling that I’m a lost princess and the Unseelie Queen is coming to kill me? That I didn’t see coming.
It’s hard to argue with a pack of evil wolves on your doorstep, so I grab my sword, my cookbook, and my seven chickens (yes, you heard me right), and follow him to Faerie. I’m all for not being eaten by wolves. I’m less excited about the fact that the huntsman seems to think I’m the only one who can defeat the Unseelie Queen and save Faerie. I’m not powerful or magical, even if my baking skills are legendary.
But the longer I stay in Faerie, the more I want to help its people. And the more time I spend with the terrifyingly handsome huntsman, the more I want to convince him that he’s who I need by my side while I do. He’d do anything to protect me, but it’s my heart he’s putting in danger.
Do I have what it takes to go from baking pies to saving kingdoms? Who will take care of the chickens if I fail?
**This sweet and cozy retelling of Snow White is a stand-alone novel in the Faerie Tale Romances series. If you like a little cottagecore slice-of-life with your fantasy romance, read The Frost Gate today!**
Phouka Pub.
January 30
Fate brings together a ballet teacher and a hockey player in this big-hearted novel about second chances and taking risks.
Once upon a time teenage Aurora Evans met a hockey player at the Mall of America. He was from Canada. And soon, he was the perfect fake boyfriend, a get-out-of-jail-free card for all kinds of sticky situations. I can’t go to prom. I’m going to be visiting my boyfriend in Canada. He was just what she needed to cover her social awkwardness. He never had to know. It wasn’t like she was ever going to see him again…
Years later, Aurora is teaching kids’ dance classes and battling panic and eating disorders—souvenirs from her failed ballet career—when pro hockey player Mike Martin walks in with his daughter. Mike’s honesty about his struggles with widowhood helps Aurora confront some of her own demons, and the two forge an unlikely friendship. There’s just one problem: Mike is the boy she spent years pretending was her “Canadian boyfriend.”
The longer she keeps her secret, the more she knows it will shatter the trust between them. But to have the life she wants, she needs to tackle the most important thing of all—believing in herself.
Forever Pub.
January 31
Free-spirited coffee shop owner meets uptight coffee addict. Is an opposites-attract match brewing… or burning? Crushed under the weight of writer’s block and a looming deadline, Mack escapes from New York to Seattle. She meets Charlie, a beautiful, generous, nearly bankrupt coffee shop owner recovering from heartbreak. For the first time, Mack has a muse. And then Mack starts using Charlie’s private stories in her novel…When a storm traps Mack and Charlie in the coffee shop, they share a mind-bending, knee-shaking kiss. But Charlie is an eternal optimist who sleeps with fairy-lights on, while Mack is an ironing-at-5am worrier who sleeps with… everyone. They could never turn this chemistry into something real, right?And if Charlie finds out what Mack has been doing, turning Charlie’s most intimate secrets into a juicy page-turner, will they even have a chance to try?
A swoony, steamy queer romcom perfect for fans of Ashley Herring Blake, Casey McQuiston, and Alexis Hall.
Storm Pub.
If you read any of my suggestions, please come back and tell us what you thought. For last month’s list, click here.