The Best Black Romance Books for Your Summer Beach Reads

The latest from the author of the acclaimed Idea of You is finally here. Crash Into Me is about two women who crash into each other, literally, and are forced to confront their messy pasts. It’s been 20 years since Cecilia Chen last saw the enigmatic model Anouk Ferrand during a photo shoot in Mexico, and both their lives have changed, prompting them to question their relationships and desires. This sophomore follow-up promises the summer escapism, glamor, and sex appeal Lee is known for across lush settings and through complex characters. Not your traditional summer romance, but you’ll be hooked all the same.

A deliciously voicey debut from Haili Blassingame, They All Fall in Love At the End is about a woman navigating an open relationship and a love triangle with the only two people who are off limits: her boyfriend’s best friend and his girlfriend. For fans of Writers and Lovers and Luster, this novel is about going for what you want, even when it’s the only thing you can’t have.

Dream of living life like Sex & the City or The Devil Wears Prada? This novel follows Nikki Rose, the only Black editor on the staff of a prestigious fashion magazine, as she seeks to save her magazine and protect her heart. Set in the glamorous world of 90s New York, Nikki navigates the fashion and music industries through parties and feature stories, all this while butting heads with her married, powerful ex-boyfriend and former boss, who’s determined to destroy her and her magazine.

Lovers of a second-chance romance will see themselves in Sasha Cruz. As a casting agent, she is always looking for a real-life meet-cute. When Sasha’s seated next to a mysterious, broodingly handsome Italian man on the way to a work trip in Paris, sparks fly—but they miss the chance to exchange contact information. Now, convinced that she’s lost out on her soulmate, Sasha is on a manhunt to find Seat F. Williams fans will love this romp across the world from the author of Seven Days in June.

Another recent release from a beloved author just in time for summer. Kennedy Ryan, known for Before I Let Go, is back with Score, a story for all the yearners out there. More than a decade after their disastrous breakup in college, Verity Hill and Wright “Monk” Bellamy must work together on the set of an epic Harlem Renaissance biopic. This once-in-a-lifetime project could catapult them both to new heights, but they must put the past behind them as they battle old feelings.

A Reese’s Book Club pick and Sunday Times Best Seller, Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola is a genre-defining college romance novel. It follows Kiki Banjo, a witty college radio host, who enters into a fake relationship with Malakai Korede to save her reputation. But when he seems deeper than she thought, Kiki has to ask herself if she’s ready to open herself up to something deeper. Read this one fast to get to the sequel, Sweet Heat, which follows the couple two years later.

Move over, 1920s Paris, give me Black historical fiction set in the culturally rich world of Harlem in 1943. Inspired by real people and real events, this fictional account imagines the life of Hazel Scott, a jazz prodigy, glamorous film star, and fierce advocate for civil rights, as she meets the married Adam Clayton Powell Jr.—Harlem’s most electrifying preacher-turned-politician. The ensuing narrative careens through the city in the summer, featuring icons like Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, and James Baldwin.

A destination wedding? A messy romance in Mexico? Yes please. Dr. Janelle Cross is the sister of the bride and the ex-girlfriend of the groom. When the best man, Rome, proposes they give in to their undeniable chemistry, Janelle agrees, under one condition: their affair can only last a week. As the wedding brings them together, every kiss, adventure, and stolen moment feels right. Janelle and Rome agreed to live in the moment, but are they willing to risk it all for forever?

By the author of Reese’s Book Club selection The Proposal, Flirting Lessons is a queer romance set in Napa Valley over the summer. Fresh off a Breakup, Avery Jensen is on a mission to flirt more and enlists Taylor Cameron, Napa Valley’s biggest flirt and champion heartbreaker, for weekly flirting lessons. A fun twist on fake dating and friends-to-lovers.

Think Book Lovers meets You’ve Got Mail. Shy, bookish, and admittedly awkward, Lily Greene is looking for a date to her sister’s wedding. And the perfect person to help her is Nick Brown, her charming, attractive new neighbor, whom she feels drawn to for unexplainable reasons. Little does she know that Nick is an author—her favorite fantasy author. Nick, who has his reasons for using a pen name and for pushing people away, soon realizes that the beautiful, quiet woman from down the hall is the same Lily he fell in love with over e-mail months ago. This sweet summer romance conjures nights on fire escapes and a character coming into her own confidence.

This novel is billed as Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Survival of the Thickest, so I’m all in. Curvy Girl Summer is about trying to have your best Hot Girl Summer while navigating the ups and downs of the dating app scene. Aaliyah James might be ready to move past casual hookups, flings, and situationships, but is true love on the apps? Or closer than she might think?

This rom-com is as funny as it is sweet. Kian Andrews asks his ex-boyfriend, Hudson Rivers, to pretend to be his boyfriend while his parents are in town. Suddenly, Kian is Hudson’s plus-one to Georgia’s wedding of the season. But their fake relationship is starting to feel like it might be more than a means to an end, and it’s time for both men to fact-check their feelings.

A coming-of-age romance set in the glamorous world of celebrity. Growing up in the public eye, Kia is seeking an escape from the external judgment of her life as the daughter of a reality star. When she meets Cass, he offers a glimpse at ordinary life—until his own star rises, trapping them in rumor and speculation. Can their relationship and Kia’s fledgling sense of self survive?

For anyone who worked (or is working) a summer job and wishes it were more romantic. Also, for movie lovers yearning for cinematic love. Set at a Black-owned movie theater. Rochelle “the Shell” Coleman is laser-focused on only three things: becoming valedictorian, getting into Wharton, and, of course, taking down her annoyingly charismatic nemesis and only academic competition, Amira Rodriguez. When Rochelle gets an opportunity to work at Horizon Cinemas, the beloved Black-owned movie theater, she begrudgingly jumps at the chance to boost her chances of getting into her dream school. There’s only one problem: Amira works there… and is also her boss. But Horizon’s in trouble, and it’s up to the employees to solve the mystery before it’s too late.

The definition of finding love in a hopeless place, this novel follows multiple couples as they navigate the so-called end of the world. When an international warning siren accidentally goes off, convincing everyone that a meteor shower may just be the end of life as they know it, six couples—friends, exes, crushes and rivals—must take shelter. Inhibitions are abandoned, confessions are made, and love blossoms, but what happens when the world doesn’t end?