15 New Romance Books Out April 2024 to Make You Smile
It’s finally April, and the Spring seems to have sprung (generally speaking). Now is the time for garden parties and Easter dresses. (Look, Easter might have been in March this year, but Easter dresses feel incredibly April-y to me!) There are flowers blooming and baseball games. In the US, we celebrate National Library Week and scramble to get our taxes done. And for most of us in the northern hemisphere, the warmer weather will finally prevail!
There are so many great-looking books coming out this month; it was almost impossible to narrow it down to just the 15 that are shared here! You all don’t need me to tell you that the big ones like Emily Henry’s Funny Story and Just For The Summer by Abby Jimenez are coming out — I’m sure you’ve got them preordered already. But I also had trouble cutting lesser-known gems like My Season of Scandal by Julie Ann Long or Finders Keepers by Sandra Kitt. And I’m sure I’ve missed some great titles that you all are excited to read, but I’ve got limited space, my friends, and there is so much to talk about!
There are fewer enemies-to-lovers romances this month than there were last month, but there are plenty of fake-dating ones, still! There are also plenty of complicated interactions and fateful reunions. And no matter what you pick up, there’s plenty of pining. Wooing. Swooning. Kissing.
All the -ings.
Here are some of the April releases that I’m looking forward to enjoying!
Wake Me Most Wickedly by Felicia Grossman
This follow-up to Marry Me By Midnight introduces us to Sol and Hannah, two people with complicated sibling relationships. They also each have complicated relationships with the Jewish community in which they live, which leads to — you guessed it — a complicated relationship between the pair of them. Where Marry Me By Midnight has clear Cinderella Vibes, this one is a take on the story of Snow White.
When I Think of You by Myah Ariel
Seven years ago, Danny and Kaliya had a passionate romance. Now, the film school colleagues, at different places in their careers, are reunited in Hollywood. When Danny invites Kaliya to take a part in his upcoming production, it seems like the best of both worlds, but you know how Hollywood gets. Will there be a scandal that tears them apart for the second time, or will they find happy endings for both their romantic and professional lives?
Truly, Madly, Deeply by Alexandria Bellefleur
The pitch: a romance novelist and a divorce lawyer team up on a podcast offering dating and relationship advice.
I know, right?
Alexandria Bellefleur is back with her easy charm and delightful setups with a couple who are absolutely not interested in love, and definitely not with each other. But they spend a lot of time together, allowing their enmity to develop into something different, and they’re both the better for it.
The Kiss Countdown by Etta Easton
Amerie is an event planner. Well. An “event planner.” She doesn’t really have much going for her right now, but that all changes when she convinces a hot guy in a coffee shop to pretend to be her boyfriend in a moment of panic. A one-time thing turns into a three-month arrangement set to help her get back onto her feet — and the astronaut that Amerie finds herself living with (sort of) is not only too hot for words, but also has a magnetic personality that Amerie can’t resist.
What is Love? by Jen Comfort
What happens when two trivia buffs who once butted heads on a popular gameshow join forces to take on an even bigger rival? I’ll take “It Gets Complicated” for 1000, LeVar! (Please let me live in my fantasy world where LeVar Burton took over as the host of our favorite nightly trivia show.)
Maxine and Teddy are two very different types of people with one thing two things in common: their love for trivia and their need to win. After having both done well on the show Answers!, they find themselves once again invited to participate on the show, this time in a tournament-of-champions-esque showdown. They aren’t worried about beating each other, but they have another opponent to take down, and decide the best way to do so is to combine their powers and become the ultimate trivia duo.
It Started With a Secret by Tif Marcelo
After making an impassioned connection with Matilda (whom he dreads never seeing again) while searching for information about his birth family, Jared is surprised to find her managing the B&B the family owns. Searching for a way in without disrupting the balance, Jared comes in as a much-needed cook but isn’t satisfied with the limited relationship he has with anyone in the house…especially Matilda, who has been burned before and isn’t looking for a relationship. Especially with a younger man.
The Prospects by KT Hoffman
What’s better than baseball season? Baseball ROMANCE season!
Gene is the first openly trans professional baseball player. He loves baseball and loves playing on his team (the Beaverton Beavers, lol), but his game is turned upside down when his rival is traded to the Beavers. They start off as vicious antagonists, but if there’s one thing forced extended proximity is going to do, it’s make the pair come to some kind of truce, and then some kind of understanding. The more they work together, play together, and dream together, the more the future seems like its own kind of dream.
Out of Office by A.H. Cunningham
A.H. Cunningham has been an indie fave, and I’m excited for her traditional release with the new Harlequin Afterglow imprint, which promises sexy, sensual, soulful stories! In this one, Genevieve is ready for a vacation after the grueling process of opening up a new hotel in Panama. She makes a deep connection with her local driver, Adrián, and the two weeks she’s taken off promise more than just laying on the beach.
Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings
Opal has trouble saying no. Which can be a problem when you’ve just won the lottery, and people won’t leave you alone. So when she decided to take drastic action, she saw no harm in disappearing to a failing flower farm to get some privacy and to get her business off the ground. But there’s someone there who claims she already owns the farm. When they agree to share the farm, or at least living space, they can’t help but clash at every turn. But all that time together is sure to lead to something else, isn’t there?
Good Bones by Aurora Rey
When Kathleen abandons academia to write full-time, she knows exactly what her future will look like: living in the farmhouse of her dreams, once she gets it fixed up. She enlists Barrow Brothers Construction to help her with that part of it, but her meeting with Logan, the youngest member of the team, leaves much to be desired.
This is the second in a series, but can be read on its own!
Earls Trip by Jenny Holiday
Three ride-or-die Earlfriends (sorry, I had to) live for their annual trip as a trio. But when a family friend of Archie’s needs someplace to go for Scandal Reasons, the trip becomes an earls-plus-girls trip, and none of the three really knows what to do about it. The women are friends, but also strangers — the girls he knew when they were younger are not the grown ladies he has to hang out with now. And the most intriguing one — as any logical woman nearing spinsterhood might — solicits Archie’s guidance in the more sensual benefits of adulthood.
Leather, Lace, and Locs by Anne Shade
Anne Shade returns with a new book centering three friends, all on their own paths towards love.
Melissa explores different sides of her personality when she becomes a domme and might learn more about herself and love with a new client. Golden abandons her dance dreams for a steady paycheck, but is able to still find that spark when she discovers burlesque. And Zoe, who never puts herself first, gives a woman a haircut that might change both of their lives.
Fake Flame by Adele Buck
You know that meme with the piano on fire on the beach? That’s how this one almost starts. Eva’s ex rolled a piano out onto the quad to woo her back, John Cusack style, and she isn’t having it. When firefighters are called upon to talk her down, there’s one particular fireman that Eva can’t help but find attractive. And when he offers to pretend to be her boyfriend to get her ex off her back, she takes him up on it.
King of Sloth by Ana Huang
This fourth book in the Kings of Sin series brings us into the world of billionaire Xavier Castillo, who wants nothing more than to be left alone by the women who seem to always chase him. The one woman he does want is the one he can’t have: his publicist. And she is determined to keep it that way. But when a tragedy brings them together, there is change on the horizon.
The Lady He Lost by Faye Delacour
Who’s been looking for a friends-to-enemies-to-lovers historical romance? Here’s one for you! Eli was supposed to be lost at sea, but now he’s back two years later. Everyone has moved on without him, including the one who got away. Now he’s determined to get her back, but she’s not having it — he almost married her cousin, after all. He works hard to get back into her good graces, and heaven help her, she might let him.
Looking for more new-ish releases? Check out last month’s list of awesome new titles. If backlist is more your thing instead, here’s a great list of completed historical romance series. And there are tons more squee-worthy books to discover on the Book Riot romance page.
As always, you can find a full list of new releases in the magical New Release Index, carefully curated by your favorite Book Riot editors, organized by genre and release date.
