From best friends to so much more: romances built on years of history and one big leap
In short
The best friends to lovers romance books include People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, Every Summer After by Carley Fortune, Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren, The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams, Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison and Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson. Each one turns a deep friendship into a love story.
Every book on this list is a published romance in the EIKNA catalog where the leads are established friends before they become a couple. We selected titles using catalog trope data and editorial review, favoring well-loved books with a happy ending and a mix of tones and settings. Books are listed in editor's order, not ranked.
by Emily Henry · 2021
Best for: Vacation read
Poppy and Alex have taken a summer vacation together every year for a decade, until something went wrong two summers ago. One last trip is her chance to fix it. Emily Henry's beloved best-friends love story.
Best for: Nostalgic and emotional
Percy and Sam were inseparable every summer at the lake, best friends who became something more, until it all fell apart. Years later she returns to face him. Nostalgic and aching.
by Christina Lauren · 2018
Best for: Laugh-out-loud funny
Hazel and Josh are total opposites who become friends, then set each other up on a series of disastrous blind double dates, while everyone else can see who they should be with. Hilarious and warm.
by Sarah Adams · 2022
Best for: Sports star best friend
Bree and Nathan have been best friends since high school, despite his rise to football stardom. When a televised moment exposes feelings neither has admitted, the friendship is put to the test. Sweet and funny.
by B.K. Borison · 2023
Best for: Cozy holiday read
To save her Christmas tree farm, Stella enters a contest and asks her best friend Luka to pose as her boyfriend. A cozy, festive friends to lovers with a fake dating twist.
Best for: Community and family
To keep their late mother's Harlem knitting shop open, Jesse and his brothers need help, and family friend Kerry, who has always been close to them, steps in. A warm community romance with plenty of heat.
by Alexis Daria
Best for: Steamy reunion
Childhood best friends Michelle and Gabriel drifted apart, until he comes back to Queens and reenters her life. A steamy, heartfelt friends to lovers and second chance.
This is an editor-reviewed reading list. Bibliographic details (title, author, cover, publication year, genre) come from reliable catalog metadata. Editorial claims (heat, trope, mood, reader-fit) are shown only when a book has human-approved intelligence; where absent, only catalog metadata is presented.
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