Romance/Erotica

Find Yourself in 15 of the Best Small-Town Romance Books

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Silvana Reyes Lopez

Senior Contributor

Silvana Reyes is a Mexican book blogger. She enjoys all types of sub-genres, but loves a good love story. Romance fiction is her heart and joy and you might find her screaming about book releases on her Twitter account.

Sometimes you just need to pick up a small-town romance novel and read it, for the comforting emotions that it’ll provide to you at that moment. I wouldn’t change it for anything. Small-town romance books create moments in time that are memorable, inspiring, and romantic. They really have the best of every single aspect of a romance, all put together, to make one amazing experience! If you’re a big fan of small-town romance books, keep reading.

Romance book series set in small towns are probably some of my favorites. You can have a series with 3-5 books where they’re all set in the same town. The amazing thing is that they’re all going to be very different from each other. Yeah, what unites them is the setting, the warmth of a small town that can always be there for you. But we know that no one has the same experience. It’s interesting to see how an author can connect all the dots inside a small-town romance series. That’s why, most of the time, I want to read all the books in the series even though I usually don’t do that when it comes to interconnected book series. But with small-town romances, there’s just something about them that makes me want to always read them.

Cover of Archer's Voice by Mia Sheridan

Archer’s Voice by Mia Sheridan

Archer’s Voice follows Bree Prescott who, after a horrifying night, takes all her things and moves to the sleepy town of Pelion, Maine. There, she meets mysterious Archer Hale, an isolated man who holds too many secrets. Both have things to hide, but it’s possible that, with each other, they might find something great in the midst of pain.

Cover of Bet On It by Jodie Slaughter

Bet On It by Jodie Slaughter

Bet On It is a fantastic story that takes us to small-town Greenbelt, South Carolina. Nothing much happens there. Except for the return of Walker Abbott. After his grandma gets hurt, he’s back for the summer to help her out. But being back in his hometown brings memories he doesn’t want to revisit again. Meeting Aja Owens is the bright light of his day but Walker knows he’s not staying, so starting a relationship is definitely not in the cards. But they can’t deny the simmering sexual tension between them, and so they decide on a bingo-based sex pact.

Cover of Bold Fortune by MM Crane

Bold Fortune by M.M. Crane

One of my favorite small-town romance books is Bold Fortune. It takes place in Lost Lake, Alaska, and features one city girl arriving in town with a business proposal, only to face one man who is adamantly opposed. He makes her a deal: spend one month on good old-fashioned Alaska living and he will consider her offer. Violet’s determination should not be underestimated, but she never thought this hot mountain man would tempt her in so many different ways.

Delilah Green Doesn't Care Book Cover

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care is a swoony small-town romance novel that will make you emotional from the very first page.

Twelve years ago, Delilah moved away from her town and never looked back. When her step-sister calls to ask her to photograph her wedding, Delilah feels torn. Especially when this means coming face-to-face with her childhood crush and step-sister’s best friend, single mom Claire.

Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg cover

Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg

This small-town romance is about chasing your dreams and maybe, in between, falling in love in an unexpected way.

Alisha Blake has big ambitions, like opening a cookie shop in Chicago. She loves her small-town life, but she dreams of bigger places, bigger things. But then, a dinosaur bone turns up in her grandparents’ backyard, bringing paleontologist Quentin into her hometown.

Cover of Flawless by Elsie Silver

Flawless by Elsie Silver

Polar opposites attract in Flawless, a wonderful and exciting small-town romance. In this novel, you’ll get to meet a woman who wants to make it on her own and who wants to show the world she can do anything she sets her mind to. And her opposite happens to be a bull rider who shows a bad boy persona, even though he’s a gentleman who only wants to protect his loved ones.

Cover of Mixed Signals by BK Borison

Mixed Signals by BK Borison

For Layla, finding her one true love is impossible. She has tried everything, but somehow she has never found someone who puts her first, who makes her smile, who gives her the recipes section of the newspaper. After another disastrous first date, Layla finds herself being saved by none other than Caleb. For the past months, he has been ordering custom cakes from her every two weeks…and she doesn’t know why.

Obviously, she doesn’t realize he has had an enormous crush on her. And maybe, it’s finally his time to shine.

Cover of Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey

Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey (Feb. 7, 2023)

Bailey’s upcoming steamy rom-com is hands down fabulous. Steamy, funny, and beautiful, Secretly Yours tells the story of Hallie who finds out her high school crush has returned home.

If you have a soft spot for grumpy/sunshine romances, this book will be right down your lane.

Cover of Sweeter Than Honey by Joy Avery

Sweeter Than Honey by Joy Avery

There’s just something about small towns and baked goods…they make everything ten times sweeter *wink*. Sweeter Than Honey follows a talented baker (Rylee) and a sheriff (Canten) who decide to fake-date in order to save face after Rylee invented the relationship with him! But the feelings that start appearing definitely don’t feel fake to them.

Cover of Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score

Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score

Score’s hilarious rom-com is everything you need. One of my favorite small-town romance books, Things We Never Got Over follows a runaway bride and…the grumpy local who dislikes that he likes her so much.

Knox prefers a life of solitude. He’s fine being alone. I mean, he has his dog, a nice job, and good people who care for him. But when a runaway bride named Naomi comes to his town, everything soon changes. He doesn’t want to help her out, but somehow, some way, he finds himself always being there for her when she needs him the most.

Cover of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen

This fantastic fantasy rom-com is one for the books. The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy is the story of the titular characters, Hart and Mercy, two people who can’t be in the same room without arguing. They have hated each other since their first meeting, so whenever they have to work together, they do it with disdain. You see, Hart is a marshal, tasked to bring dead bodies to Mercy’s family business, Birdsall & Son Undertakers.

One day, after an exasperating run-in, Hart pens a letter to someone anonymous: “A Friend.” He never thought the letter would reach Mercy, his nemesis. But now, Mercy thinks she has a friend out there…even though the one writing the letters is none other than Hart himself.

Cover of When in Rome by Sarah Adams

When In Rome by Sarah Adams

For a celebrity romance pick, When In Rome has to be on your list. Sarah Adams’ book is a fascinating, heartwarming story of a famous pop star who is in dire need of some rest and relaxation. Because her favorite film is Roman Holiday, she drives to the Rome closest to her. And it happens to be Rome, Kentucky, a small town where nothing really happens.

Unfortunately, Amelia’s car breaks down in front of Noah Walker’s lawn. This grumpy pie baker doesn’t want anything to do with love, but the arrival of Amelia soon changes his outlook on this topic.

where the honeybells grow cover

Where the Honeybells Grow by Ruthie Lenor

Quinn ran away from his hometown twenty years ago, but now that his best friend is getting married, he’s back. He only plans to stay long enough to see them say “I do,” except his plans go south when he meets newcomer Gerti!

Cover of Work for It by Talia Hibbert

Work For It by Talia Hibbert

In his small village, Griffin Everett doesn’t fit in. He’s the outcast as a man who prefers gardening his plants to interacting with people. One night, he meets Olu, a man looking to escape his past. They’re both lonely and yet, even if they dislike each other after their first meeting, they can’t help but reach out to the other person.

Xeni by Rebekah Weatherspoon Book Cover

Xeni by Rebekah Weatherspoon

This book is pure fun. If you’re familiar with Weatherspoon’s work, you know that she always creates amazing stories with beautiful characters. Her books are going to bring so much joy to your world.

Xeni follows the titular character Xeni who suddenly gets an inheritance when her aunt dies. But of course, with an inheritance of that size, there come certain terms and conditions. One of them is to get married. And her aunt Sable was perfectly clear on who Xeni is supposed to marry.


I live a small-town life. But I still haven’t found my small-time romance *sad face*. All these romance books I read that show me the cutest, most beautiful, and heartwarming small-town romances…and I can’t seem to find one for myself! But the good thing is that I will always have books to fill me with joy and love in the meantime.

If you’re looking for more books based on your favorite tropes, Book Riot is the perfect place to find them. From low-drama romances to celebrity romances, there’s something for everyone here. The clock is ticking, get to reading!