Top Ten Tuesday: Amazing Romances Out In 2021

The Broke and the Bookish created Top Ten Tuesday in June of 2010. It moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Romances out in 2021

There are so many amazing sounding romances out in 2021. Some by favorite authors and some by new to me authors. Mostly contemporary with one historical. Just to mix it up.

Accidentally Engaged

First on my list of romances out in 2021 – Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron. Reena Manji doesn’t love her career, her single status, and most of all, her family inserting themselves into every detail of her life. But when caring for her precious sourdough starters, Reena can drown it all out. At least until her father moves his newest employee across the hall–with hopes that Reena will marry him.

Diverse romance with Muslim characters in Canada of Southeast Asian and West African ethnicity. What a charming sounding contemporary faux to real romance.

The Dating Plan

Next on my list is The Dating Plan by Sara Desai. I loved her 2020 debut The Marriage Game – a fun enemies-to-lovers with bonus meddling extended family romance. Read my full review of The Marriage Game.

The Dating Plan promises more of the same Southeast Indian extended family high jinks during fauxmance to real love.

Daisy Patel is a software engineer who understands lists and logic better than bosses and boyfriends. With her life all planned out, and no interest in love, the one thing she can’t give her family is the marriage they expect. Left with few options, she asks her childhood crush to be her decoy fiance..

To Love and To Loathe

I’m shifting gears with my third romance in 2021 and going with a historical, To Love and To Loathe by Martha Waters.

The widowed Diana, Lady Templeton and Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham are infamous among English high society as much for their sharp-tongued bickering as their flirtation. One evening, an argument at a ball turns into a serious wager: Jeremy will marry within the year or Diana will forfeit one hundred pounds. So shortly after, just before a fortnight-long house party at Jeremy’s country estate, he appears at her home with a very different kind of proposition.

Dial A for Aunties

My fourth book is a diverse debut by Jessee Q. Sutanto that sounds laugh out loud funny. I’m a big fan of absurd and dark humor which is what Dial A for Aunties sounds like.

When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate. Then it’s accidentally shipped in a cake cooler to an over-the-top billionaire’s wedding site. The wedding that’s their biggest job ever.

A Lowcountry Bride

My fifth romance out in 2021 is a diverse gentle read. A Lowcountry Bride by Preslaysa Williams tackles some tough topics like racism and grief but it looks like a sweet story.

Maya Jackson has worked for Laura Whitcomb, Inc, a renowned New York City bridal gown brand, for years and dreams of becoming Head Designer. She has the talent; she just needs a chance to showcase her unique style. Due to an illness, she’s always prioritized her career over her personal life. Then her father fractures his hip and Maya returns to Charleston, South Carolina. While home for only a few months, she finds an opportunity at the local bridal gown boutique, never expecting sparks to fly with its owner…

One Last Stop

The sixth romance out in 2021 on my list is one I’m really excited about. I loved Casey McQuiston’s first book Red, White & Royal Blue so hard! So I’m crazy eager for her next book, One Last Stop to come out!

And the description on Goodreads is tantalizingly brief –

A 23-year-old realizes her subway crush is displaced from 1970’s Brooklyn. Now she must do everything in her power to help her – and try not to fall in love with the girl lost in time – before it’s too late . . .

If the Shoe Fits

I’m always up for a fairy tale retelling. If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy is a modern take on Cinderella.

After graduating with a degree in shoe design, Cindy’s trying to get her feet on the ground. She’s working for her stepmother, who happens to be the executive producer of America’s favorite reality show, Before Midnight. When a spot on the show needs filling ASAP, Cindy volunteers, hoping it might help jump-start her fashion career, or at least give her something to do while her peers land jobs in the world of high fashion.

Turns out being the only plus-size woman in a reality dating competition makes a splash, and soon Cindy becomes a body positivity icon for women everywhere.

Talk Bookish to Me

The next romance out in 2021 is a debut, Talk Bookish to Me by Kate Bromley. A second chance romance with a romance book loving and writing Bookstagrammer sounds like so much fun!

Kara Sullivan’s life is full of love—albeit fictional. She’s fine with getting her happily-ever-after fix between the covers of a book.

But right now? Kara’s best friend gets married next week—which means big wedding stress. And the deadline for her next novel is looming, and she hasn’t written a single word. The last thing she needs is for her infuriating first love, Ryan Thompson, to suddenly appear in the wedding party. But Ryan’s unexpected arrival sparks a creative awakening in Kara. It inspires the steamy historical romance she desperately needs to deliver.

How to Find a Princess

I love Alyssa Cole’s royal books! Yay that the second book in the Runaway Royals series, How to Find a Princess, comes out this year. Plus? How could I resist a queer lost princess story?

Makeda Hicks has lost her job and her girlfriend in one fell swoop. The last thing she wants to do is rehash family history. No more listening about Grandmore’s summer fling with a runaway prince. Or the search for a missing heir.

Beznaria Chetchevaliere crashes into her life, looking for a lost princess. But the sleek and sexy investigator exudes exactly the kind of chaos that organized and efficient Makeda finds irresistible.

First Comes Like

The last romance in 2021 on my list comes out in a few days. I love Alisha Rai’s books so I’m definitely excited about First Comes Like third in her Modern Love series. Read my review of Girl Gone Viral, the second book in the series.

Beauty expert and influencer Jia Ahmed wants the prize. First, conquer the internet. Then, the entire makeup industry. And finally, prove herself to her big opinionated family. No time for love and even less patience for the men in her private messages. Until the day a certain international superstar slides into her DMs, and she falls hard and fast.

There’s just one wrinkle: he has no idea who she is.

In conclusion

I’m excited about so many romances out in 2021! Is there a romance that you’re really looking forward to coming out this year?Let me know in the comments below.

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