Spring is just around the corner, and it feels like the perfect time for love to bloom! The best romance books of March 2024 are headed your way just in time for a spring thaw.
One of our favorite things about the romance genre is just how broad it really is. There’s something for everything among March 2024 romance books. We’ve got angst, comedy, and mystery. We’ve got scientists, governesses, spies, and podcasters. Everything from questions about fate to goofy rom-com tropes are on the agenda this month. And we couldn’t be more excited!
Get ready to fall in love this month! Check out our picks for the best romance books of March 2024 below.
This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
Release date: March 5
Read it if: You love that particular brand of angst, drama, hope, and romance that has already made Kennedy Ryan a bestseller.
Publisher’s synopsis: Soledad Barnes has her life all planned out. Because, of course, she does. She plans everything; she designs everything; she fixes everything. She’s a domestic goddess who’s never met a party she couldn’t host or a charge she couldn’t lead. The one with all the answers and the perfect vinaigrette for that summer salad. But none of her varied talents can save her when catastrophe strikes. The life she built with the man who was supposed to be her forever, goes poof in a cloud of betrayal and disillusion.
But there is no time to pout or sulk, or even grieve the life she lost. She’s too busy keeping a roof over her daughters’ heads and food on the table. And in the process of saving them all, Soledad rediscovers herself. From the ashes of a life burned to the ground, something bold and new can rise.
But then an unlikely man enters the picture—the forbidden one, the one she shouldn’t want but can’t seem to resist. She’s lost it all before and refuses to repeat her mistakes. Can she trust him? Can she trust herself?
After all she’s lost . . .and found . . .can she be brave enough to make room for what could be?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Lady Charlotte Always Gets Her Man by Violet Marsh
Release date: March 5
Read it if: You’re a fan of historical romance-meets-mysteries like Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Enola Holmes, or Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries.
Publisher’s synopsis: Lady Charlotte Lovett should have never run away upon discovering her betrothal. But when one has been promised to a man who, rumor has it, killed his previous two wives, one does what one must. The only thing that can get her out of this engagement is proving that Viscount Hawley is as sinister as she thinks he is. And the person who would know best is his very own brother.
In many ways, Dr. Matthew Talbot is the exact opposite of his sibling—scholarly, shy, and shunned by society. But like his brother, he has secrets. And he doesn’t need Charlotte exposing them in her quest to take down the viscount. It only seems prudent to help her while keeping her from poking her nose in all the wrong places. But as they put their hearts at risk to grow closer to each other, they are also getting closer to a dangerous confrontation with Hawley.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Kilt Trip by Alexandra Riley
Release date: March 5
Read it if: The Scottish accents (and kilts) of Outlander really do it for you, but you prefer a modern setting.
Publisher’s synopsis: Globetrotter Addie Macrae always follows her wanderlust. As a travel consultant, she jet sets around the world—anywhere but Scotland. But when she’s sent on assignment to help a struggling family-run tour company in the Highlands—and save her own job—Addie packs away her emotional baggage and turns on the professional charm.
Rugged as the land he loves, Logan Sutherland’s greatest joy is sharing the beauty of Scotland’s hidden gems…even if it means a wee bit of red ink on the company’s bottom line. The last thing Logan wants is some American “expert” pushing tourist traps and perpetuating myths about the Loch Ness Monster—especially when Addie never leaves her desk to experience the country for herself.
As they wage an office war, Logan discovers Addie’s secret connection to Scotland: a handful of faded Polaroids of her late mother. Hoping for a truce, he creates a private tour to the places in the pictures to help Addie find closure and appreciate the enchantment in less-traveled destinations, never expecting the off-limits attraction sparking between them. But Addie’s contract is almost up, and magic won’t pay the bills. They can’t afford distractions, but how can Addie do her job if she hasn’t explored all Scotland—and Logan—have to offer?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Trouble by Lex Croucher
Release date: March 5
Read it if: You’ve always had a thing for Captain von Trapp types, or you wish there was more queer rep in historical romance.
Publisher’s synopsis: There’s a new governess at Fairmont House, and she’s going to be nothing but trouble.
Emily Laurence is a liar. She is not polite, she’s not polished, and she has never taught a child in her life. This position was meant to be her sister’s—brilliant, kind Amy, who isn’t perpetually angry, dangerously reckless, and who does (inexplicably) like children.
But Amy is unwell and needs a doctor, and their father is gone and their mother is useless, so here Emily is, pretending to be something she’s not.
If she can get away with her deception for long enough to earn a few month’s wages and slip some expensive trinkets into her pockets along the way, perhaps they’ll be all right.
That is, as long as she doesn’t get involved with the Edwards family’s dramas. Emily refuses to care about her charges – Grace, who talks too much and loves too hard, and Aster, who is frankly terrifying but might just be the wittiest sixteen-year-old Emily has ever met – or the servants, who insist on acting as if they’re each other’s family. And she certainly hasn’t noticed her employer, the brooding, taciturn Captain Edwards, no matter how good he might look without a shirt on . . .
As Fairmont House draws her in, Emily’s lies start to come undone. Can she fix her mistakes before it’s too late?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Happily Never After by Lynn Painter
Release date: March 12
Read it if: You love quirky rom-com premises and even quirkier rom-com jobs.
Publisher’s synopsis: When Sophie Steinbeck finds out just before her nuptials that her fiancé has cheated yet again, she desperately wants to call it off. But because her future father-in-law is her dad’s cutthroat boss, she doesn’t want to be the one to do it. Her savior comes in the form of a professional objector, whose purpose is to show up at weddings and proclaim the words no couple (usually) wants to hear at their ceremony: “I object!”
During anti-wedding festivities that night, Sophie learns more about Max the Objector’s job. It makes perfect sense to her: he saves people from wasting their lives, from hurting each other. He’s a modern-day hero. And Sophie wants in.
The two love cynics start working together, going from wedding to wedding, and Sophie’s having more fun than she’s had in ages. She looks forward to every nerve-racking ceremony saving the lovesick souls of the betrothed masses. As Sophie and Max spend more time together, however, they realize that their physical chemistry is off the charts, leading them to dabble in a little hookup session or two—but it’s totally fine, because they definitely do not have feelings for each other. Love doesn’t exist, after all.
And then everything changes. A groom-to-be hires Sophie to object, but his fiancée is the woman who broke Max’s heart. As Max wrestles with whether he can be a party to his ex’s getting hurt, Sophie grapples with the sudden realization that she may have fallen hard for her partner in crime.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle
Release date: March 19
Read it if: You secretly (or not so secretly) believe in the meant-to-be.
Publisher’s synopsis: Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend. Daphne has been receiving the numbered papers for over twenty years, always wondering when there might be one without an expiration. Finally, the night of a blind date at her favorite Los Angeles restaurant, there’s only a name: Jake.
But as Jake and Daphne’s story unfolds, Daphne finds herself doubting the paper’s prediction, and wrestling with what it means to be both committed and truthful. Because Daphne knows things Jake doesn’t, information that—if he found out—would break his heart.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
In a Not So Perfect World by Neely Tubati Alexander
Release date: March 19
Read it if: You’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the struggle to balance your professional life and personal life.
Publisher’s synopsis:
Sloane Cooper is up for her dream job as a designer for a top video game company. During the interview, though, she somehow promises the all-male panel that she’ll remain single and fully dedicated to the work. It’s actually fine—after her last boyfriend cheated on her, she vowed to focus on her career anyway.
Enter Charlie, aka Hot Neighbor Guy, a near-stranger who shocks her with the offer of an all-inclusive trip to a Turks and Caicos resort. The catch? Charlie originally planned the trip with his ex, and asks Sloane to pose as his new girlfriend to make his old flame come running back. Against her better judgment, Sloane says yes; she can use the time away to develop a game design that will dazzle the Catapult team and get her a job offer.
Despite sparks flying in paradise, the trip can’t lead to more. As their connection deepens, Sloane is reminded that she can’t fall for Charlie and get knocked off her professional path. Besides, he’s trying to win back his true love.
Can Sloane figure out a way to move past heartbreak, land the job of her dreams, and avoid catching feelings? The zombie apocalypse would be easier to solve—at least she’s prepared for that.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
The Love Remedy by Elizabeth Everett
Release date: March 19
Read it if: You have equal affection for STEM romances and historical romances with a dash of adventure.
Publisher’s synopsis: When Lucinda Peterson’s recently perfected formula for a salve to treat croup goes missing, she’s certain it’s only the latest in a line of misfortunes at the hands of a rival apothecary. Outraged and fearing financial ruin, Lucy turns to private investigator Jonathan Thorne for help. She just didn’t expect her champion to be so . . . grumpy?
A single father and an agent at Tierney & Co., Thorne accepts missions for a wide variety of employers—from the British government to wronged wives. None have intrigued him so much as the spirited Miss Peterson. As the two work side by side to unmask her scientific saboteur, Lucy slips ever so sweetly under Thorne’s battered armor, tempting him to abandon old promises.
With no shortage of suspects—from a hostile political group to an erstwhile suitor—Thorne’s investigation becomes a threat to all that Lucy holds dear. As the truth unravels around them the cure to their problems is clear: they must face the future together.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
The Other Side of Disappearing by Kate Clayborn
Release date: March 26
Read it if: You’re a fan of true-crime podcasts, or you’ve felt the weight of being labeled the “responsible one.”
Publisher’s synopsis: Hairstylist Jess Greene has spent the last decade raising her younger half-sister, Tegan—and keeping a shocking secret. Ever since their reckless mother ran off with a boyfriend she’d known only a few months, Jess has been aware that he’s the same accomplished con man who was the subject of a wildly popular podcast, The Last Con of Lynton Baltimore.
Now thirty-one, Jess didn’t bargain on Tegan eventually piecing together the connection for herself. But Tegan plans to do exactly what Jess has always feared—leave their safe, stable home to search for their mother—and she’ll be accompanied by the prying podcast host and her watchful, handsome producer, Adam Hawkins. Unwilling to let the sister she’s spent so much of her life protecting go it alone, Jess reluctantly joins them.
Together, the four make their way across the country, unraveling the mystery of where the couple disappeared to and why. But soon Jess is discovering other things too. Like a renewed sense of vulnerability and curiosity, and a willingness to expand beyond the walls she’s so carefully built. And in Adam, she finds an unexpected connection she didn’t even know was missing, if only she can let go and let him in . . .
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
A Governess’s Guide to Passion and Peril by Manda Collins
Release date: March 26
Read it if: You love second-chance romances and witty locked-room mysteries.
Publisher’s synopsis: Jane Halliwell once dreamed of a home of her own—but those dreams (and her dowry) died with her father. Now, she works as a governess, preparing her charge for a future no longer within her reach. When her employer is murdered during a house party, however, Jane is forced back into the world of the ton. But stepping in as hostess will require working with the same lord who once broke her girlish heart.
Lord Adrian Fielding was too consumed with his job at the Foreign Office to pay young Jane much heed, but he always considered her a friend. Which is why he’s confounded by her icy demeanor now. More troubling still is his desire to melt the tensions between them. But his mentor’s murder means he must first find the culprit—and ensure Jane’s safety as she manages a house full of foreign dignitaries.
Only Jane insists on joining the investigation, and Adrian, despite all his diplomatic skills, finds himself seduced by her sharp wit and sparkling eyes. But with a vicious killer circling ever closer, will it soon be too late for their chance at forever?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Maya’s Laws of Love by Alina Khawaja
Release date: March 26
Read it if: You always try to find logical explanations when seemingly-illogical things happen around you.
Publisher’s synopsis: Maya Mirza is so convinced she’s unlucky in love that she’s come up with a list of laws to explain it. Most importantly…
- Maya’s Law #1: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
But that’s about to change. Maya’s headed to Pakistan for an arranged marriage with a handsome, successful doctor who ticks all the right boxes. First comes marriage, then comes love—she’s sure of it. Except…
- Law #4: When you think you’re lucky, think again.
From the start, Maya’s journey is riddled with disaster. And the cynical lawyer seated next to her on the plane isn’t helping. When a storm leaves them stranded in Switzerland, she and Sarfaraz become unlikely travel companions through bus breakdowns and missed connections.
- Law #6: Trips are never smooth sailing.
And before long, Maya’s wondering whether she’s just experienced the ultimate in misfortune—finally meeting the right man a few days before she marries someone else. And Maya might just be the worst person to keep a secret.
- Law #18: If you’re overtired, you’ll always spill your guts.
But maybe, if she’s willing to bend some laws, this detour could take her somewhere totally—and wonderfully—unexpected.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
