Hot Stuff: The 10 best romance novels of 2023

From fairytale retellings to historical escapes, there was plenty to love on romance shelves in 2023.

Every year, it seems as if our need for escape and happy endings only grows.

2023 was no exception, with a host of real-world events often making the real world a depressing place to be. Thank goodness for the romance genre and the promise of happily-ever-after (on the pages of a book, at least). Whether you're in search of a contemporary rom-com, a creative retelling of a beloved story, or something that shines a light on a new corner of the world, there was no shortage of great reads. Here, in no particular order, are our 10 favorite romance novels of 2023.

"Technically Yours" by Denise Williams

Denise Williams returns with a STEM-focused romance that is as sexy as it is cozy. Pearl Harris is terrified of letting a man get in the way of her ambitions and her commitment to her family. When her new job brings her back into the path of Cord Matthews, a tech innovator and former coworker she fell for years ago, she finds her rules for romance sorely tested. Williams is a master at crafting relatable characters whose past traumas obstruct their road to happiness, and Technically Yours is no different. She writes with the precision and charm of a classic rom-com, innately knowing the code to what makes an irresistible read. Williams has a gift for making her characters feel like people we know, while also granting them a love story worthy of a novel.

"The Duke Gets Desperate" by Diana Quincy

Any novel that expands the possibilities of the historical romance sub-genre is a win in our books, but particularly when they’re this sinfully readable. When Arab-American heiress Raya Darwish unexpectedly inherits her late cousin’s English castle, she isn’t prepared to face off against Anthony Cary, Duke of Strickland, who feels he’s been robbed of his birthright. But through much glowering and sexy banter, the two come to realize that Raya’s plans for the estate are the only thing likely to save it. The Duke Gets Desperate bursts with old-school romance feels, while also feeling utterly fresh in its more inclusive view of history.

"Once More With Feeling" by Elissa Sussman

2023 brought us the gift of Britney Spears’ memoir, but if you can’t get enough of the pop princess, Once More With Feeling will hit you one more time. Once upon a time, Katee Rose was America’s number one pop star, but her career came to a screeching halt when her boy-bander boyfriend, Ryan, broadcast her infidelity with his bandmate Cal Kirby. Years later, Kathleen gets a shot at the comeback she’s always wanted on Broadway, but it comes with a catch — Cal is the director. Sussman perfectly balances her winking pop culture references with a swoony romance and an interrogation of mid-2000s tabloid culture. Oops, we want to read it again… and again.

"Marry Me by Midnight" by Felicia Grossman

With her new series, Felicia Grossman reimagines classic fairytales with a historical twist — and she gives voice to Jewish communities of the past. In Marry Me By Midnight, she gender-swaps Cinderella with synagogue custodian Aaron Ellenberg as the poor, but kindly figure dreaming of a new life and heiress Isabelle Lira, the wealthy one on the hunt for a spouse. Isabelle is ambitious, tempestuous even, in her determination to prove she can go toe-to-toe with any businessman. But what charms are the sweet and unexpected ways Aaron sneaks into her heart. Fairy-tale retellings abound in romance, but few cast a spell as enchanting as this.

"Business or Pleasure" by Rachel Lynn Solomon

We stan a sex positive manifesto, and that’s exactly what Business or Pleasure is. Ghostwriter Chandler Cohen knows she needs to shake up her life, but she didn’t exactly intend to have a (bad) one night stand with her next client. When C-list actor Finn Walsh hires her to ghostwrite his memoir about his time on a CW-esque show, she struggles to keep things professional. Until their mutual attraction leads her to offer to give him some lessons in the bedroom. Solomon writes even bad sex in a way that crackles off the page, championing the credo that pleasure isn’t about an end goal, but rather enjoying the path to satisfaction along the way. Tattoo that message on our chest, please.

"Knockout" by Sarah MacLean

If you haven’t read a Sarah MacLean book by now, what are you doing with your life? The perfect gateway drug to historical romance, MacLean delivers fierce, feminist, fresh takes year after year. Knockout is no exception, as it follows Lady Imogen Loveless, explosives expert, and her romance with detective Thomas Peck. The further MacLean moves away from ballrooms and Debrett’s, the better her work gets, as she delves into the underworld of the Hell’s Belles and their secret network of women helping women. When Peck agrees to keep an eye on Imogen for the sake of her safety, he isn’t prepared for just how explosive a woman she is. Or for the rot lurking in the heart of Scotland Yard. MacLean writes yearning, groveling men, and ferocious women with a quill pen worthy of a Pulitzer, and this book in particular is a K.O.

"Exes and O's" by Amy Lea

With Exes and O’s, Amy Lea subverts and reaffirms some of romance’s best tropes. Romance-obsessed Tara Chen is tired of hunting for The One when no one can measure up to the heroes on the pages of her favorite books. So, she decides to turn to the trope of “second chance romance” and seek out each of her exes in a quest to discover whether she might have let the right guy pass her by. Her roommate, hunky firefighter Trevor Metcalfe, reluctantly agrees to help her with her mission — but things get messy when he’s the one who starts catching feelings. Exes and O’s is a book for every romance reader who’s ever been told that their favorite genre is giving them “unrealistic expectations,” spearing just what such expectations may be, while offering up a squee-inducing love story of its own.

"An Island Princess Starts a Scandal" by Adriana Herrera

Adriana Herrera returns to her Caribbean heiresses in An Island Princess Starts a Scandal, offering readers a sapphic romance as lush as one of her heroine’s paintings. With the opportunity to show her art at the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris, Manuela del Carmen Caceres Galvan is determined to enjoy a summer of freedom before resigning herself to a loveless marriage. But when she crosses paths with business-woman Cora Kempf Bristol, Duchess of Sundridge, all bets are off. Manuela agrees to sell Cora a coveted piece of her land, if the Duchess will spend one libidinous summer in her company. Herrera captures the bohemian ethos of turn-of-the-century Paris with a sparkling, colorful eye. But more impressively, she negotiates the challenges of life in the past for queer people and people of color with honesty while never losing the joie de vivre that makes her stories sing.

"Raiders of the Lost Heart" by Jo Segura

We're still waiting for adventure romance to become the next hot trend, but in the meanwhile, we have Raiders of the Lost Heart. The book is just what the title might lead you to expect — an enemies to lovers tale of two rival archaeologists, who are forced together on the dig of a lifetime. Dr. Socorro “Corrie” Mejía has spent her career fighting to prove herself as more than her Lara Croft-worthy curves and harrowing adventure stories. And no one rubs her the wrong way like Dr. Ford Matthews (yes, he’s named after Harrison), the man in charge of her dream expedition. Their bickering seems to be their biggest problem, until suspicious entities begin to close in on their camp. Segura has a wicked sense of humor, a divinely filthy imagination, and a knack for probing questions of identity, sexism, and racism. She combines delicious enemies to lovers banter with a high dash of danger and action, as she plunges her characters into the jungle in an adventure that thrills and titillates in equal measure.

"Kiss the Girl" by Zoraida Córdova

Reinventing a Disney classic is such a challenge that even the studio itself has often stumbled with their efforts. That’s part of what makes Zoraida Córdova's Kiss the Girl, the third book in Disney’s Meant to Be series, so splashy. Córdova takes The Little Mermaid out of the sea, instead reimagining Ariel Del Mar and her sisters as hit pop girl group, Siren Seven. When Ariel bristles against her father’s demands, she strikes out on her own, joining up-and-coming rocker Eric Reyes on tour as a merch girl in disguise. As they travel, Ariel struggles with keeping her true identity a secret and her growing feelings for Eric — all at risk from her father’s wheeling and dealing. Córdova takes a beloved fairy-tale and gives it legs by transforming it into a heartfelt story of finding your voice (and honoring the love of someone who gives it the space to shine).

Related content:

• Hot Stuff: Our favorite 2023 fall romance novels

• Hot stuff: The 6 best romance novels of summer 2023

• Hot stuff: The 8 best romance novels of spring 2023

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.