Love In the Role of Brie Hutchens...? Readers share 100 books like In the Role of Brie Hutchens......

By Nicole Melleby,

Here are 100 books that In the Role of Brie Hutchens... fans have personally recommended if you like In the Role of Brie Hutchens.... Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Book cover of Keep It Together, Keiko Carter

Laurie Morrison Author Of Keeping Pace

From my list on middle grade novels with romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve always loved books, movies, and shows that feature swoony, satisfying romances. As a middle school teacher and upper middle-grade author, I know it can be tricky to find novels with romance for the middle-grade set. But I also know firsthand that there are many kids who crave these kinds of storiesā€“and that there are major benefits to giving kids a chance to read and hopefully talk about crushes and relationships in all their complexity. Iā€™m always on the lookout for realistic stories with just the right amount of romance to delight middle-grade readers, and these five are some of my favorites.

Laurie's book list on middle grade novels with romance

Laurie Morrison Why did Laurie love this book?

This book is an absolute delight! Debbi Michiko Florence is a master of middle-grade romance, and I love the way she explores all the giddy, awkward, confusing excitement of a middle-school crush.

The romance in this book is especially juicy because sweet, people-pleasing Keiko develops feelings for the one boy sheā€™s sure she shouldnā€™t have a crush onā€“her best friendā€™s older brother!

In addition to the sweet romance, there are plenty of relatable and thought-provoking friendship dynamics in this story, too. And as a bonus, thereā€™s a companion novel, Just Be Cool, Jenna Sakai, thatā€™s every bit as fun!

By Debbi Michiko Florence,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Keep It Together, Keiko Carter as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

Fans of Judy Blume and Jenny Han are sure to fall head-over-heels
for this sweet story about first crushes, friendship
drama, and finding the courage to stand up for yourself.

Seventh grade is supposed to be a game changer. And Keiko thinks
she's got it covered, especially with Audrey and Jenna
by her side to shop for a new look, pick out a prime lunch spot,
and even hit up that cute new bubble tea place after school. Her
trio is ready to tackle life as they always have... together.


But when Audrey decides they need
boyfriends before Fall Ball,ā€¦


Book cover of Maybe It's a Sign

Laurie Morrison Author Of Keeping Pace

From my list on middle grade novels with romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve always loved books, movies, and shows that feature swoony, satisfying romances. As a middle school teacher and upper middle-grade author, I know it can be tricky to find novels with romance for the middle-grade set. But I also know firsthand that there are many kids who crave these kinds of storiesā€“and that there are major benefits to giving kids a chance to read and hopefully talk about crushes and relationships in all their complexity. Iā€™m always on the lookout for realistic stories with just the right amount of romance to delight middle-grade readers, and these five are some of my favorites.

Laurie's book list on middle grade novels with romance

Laurie Morrison Why did Laurie love this book?

I love this book because it somehow manages to be a poignant grief story, a delightful friendship story, and a cute (and funny!) tale of first romance all in one book. And all in one book thatā€™s under 250 pages, to boot!

The voice is engaging, the characters are fully realized, and the tone is as cozy and warm as the special desserts the main character learns to bake. It offers an emotional and fun take on an enemies-to-friends-to-crushes tale for the middle-grade crowd.

By E. L. Shen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Maybe It's a Sign as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.

What is this book about?

Seventh grader Freya June Sun has always believed in the Chinese superstitions spoon-fed to her since birth - but ever since her dad's death a year ago, she's become obsessed, believing that her father is sending her messages through signs from the beyond. Like how, on her way to an orchestra concert where she's dreading her viola solo, a pair of lucky red birds appear, a sure indication that Dad wants Freya to stick with the instrument and make him proud.

Then Freya is partnered with Gus Choi, a goofy and super annoying classmate, for a home economics project. Toā€¦


Book cover of Listen to This

Laurie Morrison Author Of Keeping Pace

From my list on middle grade novels with romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve always loved books, movies, and shows that feature swoony, satisfying romances. As a middle school teacher and upper middle-grade author, I know it can be tricky to find novels with romance for the middle-grade set. But I also know firsthand that there are many kids who crave these kinds of storiesā€“and that there are major benefits to giving kids a chance to read and hopefully talk about crushes and relationships in all their complexity. Iā€™m always on the lookout for realistic stories with just the right amount of romance to delight middle-grade readers, and these five are some of my favorites.

Laurie's book list on middle grade novels with romance

Laurie Morrison Why did Laurie love this book?

This is an immersive and insightful slice-of-life story that drew me right in. I read it on vacation, and it was a perfect tween beach read to get swept up in!

The chapters alternate between the perspectives of two main characters, Lily and Will, who feel equally real and equally endearing. I loved getting inside both their heads and seeing their lives intersect and their feelings for each other grow.

The writing is lovely and smooth, and thereā€™s just a light sprinkling of romance to liven up a relatable and authentic friendship story.

By Jennifer Blecher,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Listen to This as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

Secrets, rumors, shifting friendships, overbearing parents, and, on top of all that, a first danceā€”how does anyone survive seventh grade? Told from dual points of view, this novel about two tweens finding their voices and standing up for themselves is for fans of Lisa Yee, Leslie Connor, and Janae Marks.

Lily, Maddie, and Sasha have always been the perfect friendship trio. But this year, everything is changing. Maddie and Sasha made the elite soccer team, and Lily feels that theyā€™re always leaving her behind. And everyone seems to have secrets now: Maddie, and Sasha, and Lilyā€™s sister, and even Lilyā€¦


If you love In the Role of Brie Hutchens......

Ad

Book cover of Artemis Sparke and the Sound Seekers Brigade

Artemis Sparke and the Sound Seekers Brigade by Kimberly Behre Kenna,

Artemis Sparke has had it with humans. She heads to the nearby salt marsh to hang out with the birds, plants, and mollusks who don't make a big deal of her stutter. The shoreline sanctuary is predictable, unlike her family and friends, and the data in her science journal provesā€¦

Book cover of Courtesy of Cupid

Laurie Morrison Author Of Keeping Pace

From my list on middle grade novels with romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve always loved books, movies, and shows that feature swoony, satisfying romances. As a middle school teacher and upper middle-grade author, I know it can be tricky to find novels with romance for the middle-grade set. But I also know firsthand that there are many kids who crave these kinds of storiesā€“and that there are major benefits to giving kids a chance to read and hopefully talk about crushes and relationships in all their complexity. Iā€™m always on the lookout for realistic stories with just the right amount of romance to delight middle-grade readers, and these five are some of my favorites.

Laurie's book list on middle grade novels with romance

Laurie Morrison Why did Laurie love this book?

It isnā€™t easy to find middle-grade rom-coms, but this book checks all the boxes!

I love the conceptā€“an intensely driven eighth grader who scorns the idea of romance and finds out sheā€™s a Cupidā€“and Nashae Jones delivers with a laugh-out-loud enemies-to-crushes tale. A bit of magic and plenty of hilarious shenanigans make this one a winner.

By Nashae Jones,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Courtesy of Cupid as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 13, 14, 15, and 16.

What is this book about?

In this funny and romantic story sprinkled with a dash of magic, a thirteen-year-old girl uses her newfound ability to make people fall in love to sabotage her rival.

Erin Johnsonā€™s thirteenth birthday unfolds like any other day, from her momā€™s quirky and embarrassing choice of outfit to racing her nemesis, Trevor Jin, to the best seat in classā€”front row, center. But her gifts this year include something very out of the ordinary: magical powers.

Erin discovers her mysterious father is actually the love god Cupid and sheā€™s inherited his knack for romance. Itā€™s not the most useful ability forā€¦


Book cover of Desert of the Heart

Mari SanGiovanni Author Of Greetings From Jamaica, Wish You Were Queer

From my list on LGBTQ+ books that are also movies (ā€¦or should be).

Why am I passionate about this?

When I was young and just figuring out the whole gay thing, I had to cross state lines to see the one gay movie and smuggle out the one library book I was too afraid to check out. In the 1970s and 80s I grew up knowing I was part of a group that was rarely talked about, aside from jokes. I've enjoyed so many stories that didn't represent me. If the struggle is real, I want to see, hear, and feel the whole messy bunch of it. I like the uncomfortable process of writing, and make promises that I later break: I can always tone this part down laterā€¦and then I never do.

Mari's book list on LGBTQ+ books that are also movies (ā€¦or should be)

Mari SanGiovanni Why did Mari love this book?

I loved this book because it was the ultimate slow-burn romance coupled with an older woman coming out story, which was truly original at the time. As is almost always the case, the novel is better than the movie, but this one brilliantly made the transition to the film renamed Desert Hearts, which was helped by the amazing chemistry between the actresses and a director that did not shy away from sex scenes which were both graphic, yet beautiful. 

Set back in the 1950s, this sizzling & heartwarming matchup is the trifecta of opposites attract: class, age, and attitude towards coming out, this book was a romance with substance, sprinkled with a bit of comedy, my favorite recipe. 

By Jane Rule,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Desert of the Heart as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Set in the late 1950s, this is the story of Evelyn Hall, an English Professor, who goes to Reno to obtain a divorce and put an end to her disastrous 16-year marriage. While staying at a boarding house to establish her six-week residency requirement she meets Ann Childs, a casino worker and fifteen years her junior. Physically, they are remarkably alike and eventually have an affair and begin the struggle to figure out just how a relationship between two women can last.

Desert of the Heart examines the conflict between convention and freedom and the ways in which the charactersā€¦


Book cover of The Stars and the Blackness Between Them

Mary Carroll Moore Author Of Last Bets

From my list on badass women who donā€™t start out that way.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve long been intrigued by what makes a woman a hero in her own life. My three novels feature characters who are not obvious heroesā€”they are trying to shed a difficult past, they may run towards risky second chances, and they eventually stand up to their history and heal it and themselves. A lot of my inspiration for my stories comes from my mother, who was a pilot in World War II. I grew up with the legacy of women as heroic; it fostered an intense curiosity about female ambition and morality, women who would risk personal freedom and safety to find something greater than they expected.

Mary's book list on badass women who donā€™t start out that way

Mary Carroll Moore Why did Mary love this book?

After some challenges with reading the dialect, I became so intrigued by this heart-wrenching story of two teenage girls, one Trinidadian and one African-American, who come together unexpectedly in cold Minneapolis. I loved learning about their cultures, and I loved how they grew close despite their differences and supported each other through the crises of lost family and childhood cancer.

The language and pace beguiled me as a reader. The girls' viewpoints of their past and present worlds were engaging. I felt the heroism in each of them, one facing death, one trying to reunite with her family.

By Junauda Petrus,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Stars and the Blackness Between Them as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 14, 15, 16, and 17.

What is this book about?

A Coretta Scott King Honor Book

Told in two distinct and irresistible voices, Junauda Petrus's bold and lyrical debut is the story of two black girls from very different backgrounds finding love and happiness in a world that seems determined to deny them both.

Port of Spain, Trinidad. Sixteen-year-old Audre is despondent, having just found out she's going to be sent to live in America with her father because her strictly religious mother caught her with her secret girlfriend, the pastor's daughter. Audre's grandmother Queenie (a former dancer who drives a white convertible Cadillac and who has a few secretsā€¦


Book cover of The Great Charade

Mavis Applewater Author Of Home For The Holidays

From my list on holiday romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am an award winning author who loves a good romance. I love when two unlikely people meet under challenging circumstance. Bringing these two characters together has been the basis of all fourteen of my books. Home For The Holidays took a series of short stories and blended two of my favorite events finding love and the holidays. 

Mavis' book list on holiday romance

Mavis Applewater Why did Mavis love this book?

Abby finds herself in a miserable position. She must go home for the holidays. Normally, not a dreaded situation. After all her entire family will be there. Including her brother and his fiancĆ©. The only hiccup is her brotherā€™s girlfriend is her ex-girlfriend. She doesnā€™t trust her ex who lures her into bed every chance she gets. Abby comes of with a sure fire plan to stop that from happening, she brings a pretend girlfriend to keep things from getting out of hand. A perfect plan she just hadnā€™t planned on falling in love.

By Gerri Hill,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Great Charade as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Abby Carpenter is in a tailspin knowing she is about to spend ten days in the company of her ex-girlfriendā€”who is now engaged to her brotherā€”for a family holiday gathering in Red River, New Mexico. The same ex-girlfriend who last year at Christmas had lured her into bed. Abbyā€™s solution? A pretend girlfriend for the holidays would surely keep her ex away and in her own room at night, right?

Nic Bennettā€™s life has been far from ideal and Christmas is her most dreaded holiday of all as she relives horrors from the past. When an attractive stranger approaches herā€¦


Book cover of Girl, Woman, Other

Stefania Barca Author Of Workers of the Earth

From my list on sex-race-class intersections in womenā€™s lives.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a female grown up in a working-class neighborhood in East Naples (Italy), and as an academic researching political ecologies in Italy, Brazil, and the USA, I am especially interested in how sex/gender, class/work, and race/coloniality are intersected in peopleā€™s lives, and especially in how this shapes their perceptions and experiences of environmental problems. This approach has led me to look for the connections between labor and the environment both within and beyond waged/industrial work and formal trade unions, including the unpaid housework and subsistence production done in working-class, peasant, Black, and Indigenous communities and the social movements that represent them.

Stefania's book list on sex-race-class intersections in womenā€™s lives

Stefania Barca Why did Stefania love this book?

I read this book as a fictional rendition of 'intersectionality' theory, i.e. the idea that Black women's lives are conditioned by different power dynamics operating at once. However, this idea is beautifully interwoven in real-life events and conversations that make the book's characters alive.

I simply loved each one of them and very much enjoyed the plot as a whole. With a simple and direct, but also poetic and captivating language, the author takes you through unforeseen turns in the experience and feelings of these characters, and unexpected connections with one another. 

By Bernardine Evaristo,

Why should I read it?

8 authors picked Girl, Woman, Other as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NATIONAL BESTSELLER
WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE

ā€œA must-read about modern Britain and womanhood . . . An impressive, fierce novel about the lives of black British families, their struggles, pains, laughter, longings and loves . . . Her style is passionate, razor-sharp, brimming with energy and humor. There is never a single moment of dullness in this book and the pace does not allow you to turn away from its momentum.ā€ ā€”Booker Prize Judges

Bernardine Evaristo is the winner of the 2019 Booker Prize and the first black woman to receive this highest literary honor in the English language.ā€¦


Book cover of Upright Women Wanted

Liza Street Author Of Blood Bounty

From my list on historical fantasy with a touch of romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an author and a lifelong lover of books, I read all genres. My favorites are set in fantastical worlds with unique settings. The mash-up of history and fantasy is endlessly compelling to me, and I always want to see a romantic subplot (or main plot!) in the books I read. I want a happily-ever-after even when the strange world and its villains are conspiring against the main characters. 

Liza's book list on historical fantasy with a touch of romance

Liza Street Why did Liza love this book?

The romance in Upright Women Wanted is very subtle, but it is more powerful for that subtlety. This dystopian, Wild Western setting is light on the fantasy and is considered ā€œnear futureā€ instead of historical, yet the vibe is distinctly historical. In this harsh world, women are considered property and laws are upheld by a military government. However, librarians are free to travel. When the heroine stows away with them, she embarks on an adventure she never couldā€™ve imagined. I would gladly read ten more books set in this world!

By Sarah Gailey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Upright Women Wanted as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In Upright Women Wanted, award-winning author Sarah Gailey reinvents the pulp Western with an explicitly antifascist, near-future story of queer identity.

"That girl's got more wrong notions than a barn owl's got mean looks."

Esther is a stowaway. She's hidden herself away in the Librarian's book wagon in an attempt to escape the marriage her father has arranged for her--a marriage to the man who was previously engaged to her best friend. Her best friend who she was in love with. Her best friend who was just executed for possession of resistance propaganda.

The future American Southwest is full ofā€¦


Book cover of Patience and Sarah

Ellen Hawley Author Of A Decent World

From my list on LGBTQ you havenā€™t heard ofā€“and should.

Why am I passionate about this?

So many of the books that spoke to both me and other lesbian and feminist activists in the 1970sā€“the books that helped us make sense of our lives and of the worldā€“arenā€™t read much anymore. Times change. Interests change. So thatā€™s natural enough. But damn, I donā€™t want them to be lost. Iā€™d like to call us back to the passion and the ambition of those ground-breaking times. I want LGBTQ+ writers to work as if our words could change the world, because we never know in advance which ones will.

Ellen's book list on LGBTQ you havenā€™t heard ofā€“and should

Ellen Hawley Why did Ellen love this book?

I read Patience and Sarah when I was coming out, and even though by then an entire lesbian community was within easy reach, it still brought me the news that I wasnā€™t alone. Not that I didn't already know that in an abstract sort of way, but on a gut level it was news all the same.

The book spoke to my overcharged emotions at a time when I was still isolated. Itā€™s the only book I remember ever hugging.

By Isabel Miller,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Patience and Sarah as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Important historical novel with lesbian characters based on real women. It was originally self published as A Place for Us. Includes afterword by Isabel Miller [pseudo of Alma Routsong].


Book cover of Keep It Together, Keiko Carter
Book cover of Maybe It's a Sign
Book cover of Listen to This

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

2,007

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in soap opera, the Catholic Church, and presidential biography?

Soap Opera 22 books