Romance

In We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune, Don and Rodney drive west across a dying America to keep one last promise. A quieter, sadder Klune novel about parenting, grief, queer love, and whether your best is ever enough.

Ana Huang's sixth Kings of Sin book gives Sebastian Laurent and Maya Singh the rivals-to-lovers stage they have been waiting for. A forced collaboration, sharp banter, lush food writing, and a careful slow burn make King of Gluttony a satisfying read, even if a familiar third-act beat and a saggy middle keep it from full marks.

Happy Ending by Chloe Liese follows Thea, a Pittsburgh bookseller, and Alex, a celebrity chef, who fake an old friendship in front of their newly paired exes and accidentally build a real one. Two years later, a forced beach vacation makes them face what they have been hiding. A grown-up rom-com about healing after divorce.

The Auction by Sadie Kincaid is a slow-burn gothic dark romance with a masked hero, a resilient heroine, and Brotherhood secrets that go deeper than anyone knows.

Release Me by Tahereh Mafi is the Book 2 of the Shatter Me: The New Republic series. Three fierce POVs, a devastating slow burn, and a surveillance state that shows exactly what freedom costs.