Here are 100 books that Twice in a Blue Moon fans have personally recommended if you like
Twice in a Blue Moon.
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I’ve been an incurable romantic for as long as I can remember. In fact, when I was in middle school, my friends and I started writing what would now be considered novellas. We would write our stories during class and trade notebooks in the hallways between bells. That is until I was caught writing one of my opuses in pre-algebra. There was nothing like the dopamine hit of writing those first stories that would deter me! The characters in my head grew up as I did and I found myself passionate about the telling of second chances in life and in love.
Willow Aster’s debut novel is one of my all-time favorite second chance romances. The story of Sparrow and Ian is one of deep love and unbelievably bad timing. Life seems to constantly put them together only to rip them apart but somehow they keep finding each other. True Love Story made me believe in soulmates and the power of letting go of the past to create a beautiful future. It will break your heart and mend it back together in the most beautiful way!
Growing up in an idealistic home, Sparrow Fisher is sheltered and innocent. When she meets Ian Sterling, a musician who is rising in popularity, she instantly falls for his charm. The attraction is instant, but their relationship isn't so simple.At different places in their lives, Sparrow is off to college in New York, and Ian is traveling the country with the band. Over a five year span, Sparrow and Ian run into each other in unusual places. Each time, Sparrow has to decide if she can trust him and if he feels the same for her. It’s hard to not…
I’m a woman. Laughing, crying, and swooning are all things I know intimately—sometimes heart-achingly. I’m living my life with my heart open, learning to be unashamedly me. That means I love, sometimes recklessly. That meant I hurt, sometimes more than anyone could know. And that means I swoon, not only for romance but also for the beauty of this “wild and precious life.” My recommended novels take you through all the feels. My own novels use my roots in Nashville, TN. Family and music are key. But more than that, my books are about learning to love yourself. I’ve learned personally that that’s the true happily ever after.
Swear on This Life is not your typical romance—and I absolutely love it. It’s a soul journey to heal childhood wounds. It’s a “the one who got away” love story. It’s heart-wrenching and elating.
It feels like real life.
(But you do get the HEA!)
Renee Carlino doesn’t stick to the formula for romance novels in the traditional sense, but her writing is still safely classed in the genre. That’s why I love it. It’s not fluff (don’t get me wrong, I love fluffy romcoms as well!) and it’s not a guy with 8-pack abs (also love those heroes!). Carlino writes about vulnerable humans daring to feel even though they know that love, like life, comes with hurt.
Don’t grab Swear on This Life when you need a lighthearted read. Grab it when you want to sit in your feels. I think you’ll love it!
From bestselling author Renee Carlino, a warm and witty novel about a struggling writer who must come to grips with her past, present, and future after she discovers that she's the inspiration for a pseudonymously published bestselling novel. When a bestselling debut novel from mysterious author J. Colby becomes the literary event of the year, Emiline reads it reluctantly. As an adjunct writing instructor at UC San Diego with her own stalled literary career and a bumpy long-term relationship, Emiline isn't thrilled to celebrate the accomplishments of a young and gifted writer. Yet from the very first page, Emiline is…
As a kid I loved visiting the local history museum, wandering through the dusty displays of taxidermy buffalo and medieval helmets. I enjoyed the creepy feeling I’d get when I stood next to the wax figures and looked at their frozen faces and not-quite-right hair. As I grew older, I became more interested in seeking out weird and unusual history, and it became a passion throughout my teenage years and into adulthood. Now, I’m able to combine my love of the creepy and occult with historical research. I teach U.S. history at SUNY Brockport, I co-produced Dig: A History Podcast, and I am the co-author of my new book (below).
Ok, sometimes I just need a little brain candy, and this fits the bill. I’m a historian, and I read a lot of history books that deal with dark subjects. To relax, I like to read rom-coms with a bit of spice.
This feels like watching Practical Magic with a bit of Brigit Jones thrown in. It’s funny, set in a spooky village during fall, and there are witches. Oh, and the main character is a witch and a historian. Win-win in my book.
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins, writing as Erin Sterling, casts a spell with a spine-tingling romance full of wishes, witches, and hexes gone wrong.
Nine years ago, Vivienne Jones nursed her broken heart like any young witch would: vodka, weepy music, bubble baths...and a curse on the horrible boyfriend. Sure, Vivi knows she shouldn't use her magic this way, but with only an "orchard hayride" scented candle on hand, she isn't worried it will cause him anything more than a bad hair day or two.
That is until Rhys Penhallow, descendent of the town's ancestors, breaker of hearts,…
I spent the majority of my twenties living and working abroad, and I've always been a sucker for a love story that crosses borders. I met my husband while living and working in Turkey, and now I write lighthearted romance novels inspired by the idea that you don't have to choose between catching flights or catching feelings - why not both? While I'm doing less traveling these days, I feel like I still get to experience different countries, cultures, and settings thanks to so many wonderful books that feel like vacations.
I adored the premise of this novel so much—a wee Scottish cafe needs a volunteer to come run it? Yes, please.
The setting was utterly delightful, and I just love a small town full of colorful characters. It made me want to travel back to Scotland as soon as possible.
In this steamy tale by USA Today bestselling author Meghan Quinn, an American searching for her purpose escapes to a Scottish town but finds more questions than answers when she meets a brooding yet handsome handyman.
Freshly fired from her third job in a row, Bonnie St. James has lost her way. So when she and her best friend stumble upon a "help wanted" post to run a coffee shop in the Scottish Highlands, they apply on a whim. Who knows? Maybe traveling to a new place is just what she needs to figure out her next move.
I didn’t grow up with a close family, but I yearned for one. Which is why I gravitate towards books with a cast of characters who are family, or a found family. I also prefer romantic plots or subplots. Combining romance and amazing side characters that are close automatically hooks me. That’s why I always include these dynamics in the books I write. I write my books for my own entertainment and hope others who love romance with swoony leads and a fun cast of characters will find my book and enjoy it as much as I do.
I love stories where neither of the main characters are looking for love, and sometimes are actively avoiding it, and then bam they meet someone they click with and can’t help but fall.
This is one of those books. Both leads are using a sprawling estate as an escape from their pasts and from people in general. They fall in love with the help of a meddling grandmother, forced proximity, baking, and off-the-chart chemistry.
The fact they fight it, and try to deny it, makes it all the more satisfying when they finally give in.
From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Callihan comes a charming, emotional romance about redefining dreams and discovering unlikely love along the way.
Life for Emma isn't good. The world knows her as Princess Anya on Dark Castle, but then her character gets the axe-literally. The cherry on top is finding her boyfriend in bed with another woman. She needs a break, and sanctuary comes in the form of Rosemont, a gorgeous estate in California promising rest and relaxation.
Then she meets the owner's equally gorgeous grandson, ex-hockey player and current recluse Lucian Osmond, and she sees her own pain…
My passion for this theme comes from my own long marriage and my passion for it. Having heard the phrase “I wouldn’t put up with that” so many times, it’s a relief to me to read that yes, many people do. Instead of giving up on something as important to them as a life partnership, they don’t give up until all hope is gone. Marriage resurrected is all about hope.
Achieving happily-ever-after after betrayal isn’t for the faint of heart and this book addresses that. You get the feels and, frankly, you suffer a little bit.
The hero isn’t likable and the reader has to learn to see what she saw. His point of view gives a special “yes, this” quality to the story.
Once upon a time in a land not so far away, a man and a woman fell in love. They were very happy. Until one day they weren’t – their happily ever after disappeared.This is their story.SummerHave you ever been in love?The kind of love that leaves you breathless and makes you feel like you can fly? I have…. It was the biggest mistake of my life. I let him become my everything; my sun, moon and stars but that wasn’t enough for him.What he did nearly destroyed me.My husband’s betrayal taught me the hard way that once trust is…
I’m an author who always finds something redeemable in the most chaotic characters. I not only love to write broken characters, but I search them out while reading. There’s something beautiful in their redemption and their growth. It’s simple to fall in love with the easy heroes, the ones that can do no wrong. The ones that make you stop reading because you don’t think you can take it anymore and cause your heart to race in the middle of the night as you devour their story, those are the heroes that I love. They usually end up being the ones you love to hate.
Jared quickly leaps onto the pages and makes you want to root for him. This has everything to do with Penelope’s undeniable ability to weave a story so beautifully that even when you should hate the hero, you find yourself willing him into the type of character that is worthy of our heroine, Tate. This is an oldie, but a goodie. Personally, this is the original bully romance for me and has set the steppingstones for all the rest.
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Penelope Douglas delivers an unforgettable romance that toes the fine line between love and hate….
My name is Tate. He doesn’t call me that, though. He would never refer to me by a friendly nickname. No, he’ll barely even speak to me. But he still won’t leave me alone.
We were best friends once. Then he turned on me and made it his mission to ruin my life. I was humiliated, shut out, and gossiped about all through high school. His pranks and rumors got worse as time wore on, and I…
A Korean American author myself, I published my first book in 2001, and in the ensuing years I’ve been heartened by the number of Korean Americans who have made a splash with their debut novels, as these five writers did. All five have ventured outside of what I’ve called the ethnic literature box, going far beyond the traditional stories expected from Asian Americans. They established a trend that is happily growing.
In 1950s Sewanee, Chang and Katherine slowly
fall in love and find that the Souths of Korea and Tennessee are not that
different after all, both subject to lingering issues of class, family, race,
and civil war. I love the poetic language in this novel, as well as its
ambitious story and the complexity invested in every relation.
"This wonderful hybrid of a novel--a love story, a war story, a novel of manners--introduces a writer of enchanting gifts, a beautiful heart wedded to a beautiful imagination. How else does Susan Choi so fully inhabit characters from disparate backgrounds, with such brilliant wit and insight? The Foreign Student stirs up great and lovely emotions." — Francisco Goldman, author of The Ordinary Seaman
The Foreign Student is the story of a young Korean man, scarred by war, and the deeply troubled daughter of a wealthy Southern American family. In 1955, a new student arrives at a small college in the…
Fresh from college, I arrived in South Korea in 1976 to teach English as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and despite my naivete, or maybe because of it, I fell in love with the country—the people, the food, the culture, the history. I have since lived and worked in many other countries, but Korea will always be my first love and I have returned many times for both work and pleasure. When I became a fiction writer, I was keen to read the work of Korean novelists who, naturally, had an even better understanding of their culture than I did, and I love staying connected to the country in this way.
This one is set in North Korea and is by a sanctioned North Korean writer. As a result, there is no criticism directed at the North’s restrictive society and on the surface it isn’t at all political. Instead, it shows the mundane existence of a judge and his wife, ordinary people who work hard to contribute to the development of the nation. It seems to be about traditional values, and the rising prevalence of divorce is seen as a problem. Those of us who follow Korea rarely get this kind of insight into what life in the North is really like, and while these characters may be relatively privileged, their existence is tellingly monochromatic.
Paek Nam-nyong's Friend is a tale of marital intrigue, abuse, and divorce in North Korea. A woman in her thirties comes to a courthouse petitioning for a divorce. As the judge who hears her statement begins to investigate the case, the story unfolds into a broader consideration of love and marriage. The novel delves into its protagonists' past, describing how the couple first fell in love and then how their marriage deteriorated over the years. It chronicles the toll their acrimony takes on their son and their careers alongside the story of the judge's own marital troubles.
I wrote my book and selected the five other books listed because I am passionate about women’s agency and how women may be empowered to achieve such. I started my career in a male-dominated profession and have many memories of differential treatment from my male peers. There are a few #metoo tales in there as well. I also grew up shy and studious, too timid to seek out empowerment or speak truth to power. If I could go back in time armed with these wonderful stories of girls and young women overcoming adversity, prejudice, assault, and other gender-based barriers, I think I would take that trip.
Semi-spoiler alert: this book has the best ending line ever so don’t flip to the end or you’ll rob yourself of something very precious. I adore a nice ending twist and although not so much an O’Henry plot twist (love his stories) as an “aha” shift in perspective, it has stuck with me more than any other element of the story.
The book’s blurb very aptly describes The Sea of Tranquility as “... a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.” I’m a sucker for second chance stories, especially following an injustice. The beauty of this story lies not in the how the protagonist, Nastya, recovers her power by confronting and righting the injustice but in how she subtly and simultaneously learns to look forward instead of backward.
I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.
Former piano prodigy Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone learning about her past and to make the boy who took everything from her-her identity, her spirit, her will…
