Jessica Pryde is a member of that rare breed that grew up in Washington, DC, but is happily enjoying the warmer weather of the desert Southwest. While she is still working on what she wants to be when she grows up, she’s enjoying dabbling in librarianship and writing all the things. She's the editor of Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happily Ever Afters, and her fiction has been published by Generous Press. She can be found drowning in her ever-growing TBR and exclaiming about romance on When in Romance, as well as on social media. Find her exclamations about books and internet ridiculousness on BlueSky (JessIsReading) and instagram/threads (jess_is_reading).
New month, new romance books! September doesn’t particularly herald Fall anymore; it’s still hot in most places in the Northern Hemisphere, and the trees aren’t going to start giving us a show for another month or so. But it does begin the Fall season when it comes to two things: school and books. Unless you’re like Arizona, where we’ve already been back for a month, you’ll notice a change in climate and traffic after Labor Day. And of course, we’re going to start seeing books celebrating the late-year holidays—spoopy season stuff is working its way out now, and we’ll probably start seeing the books focused on the winter holidays soon. But we’re not going to think about that now, because this is a good month for books, friends!
We’re putting together a resource guide about reading diversely in 2025, and you can help by taking this survey! Let us know what questions you have about reading diversely, and we’ll answer them in a new series.
If you (unlike me) actually get around to continuing series and reading companion novels, you’ve got a few great titles to pick up, including Ghost Business by Jen DeLuca, Ladies in Hating by Alexandra Vasti, With Stars in Her Eyes by Andie Burke, Facing Off by Sookh Kaur, and The Earl That Got Away Diana Quincy. You can also enjoy Resonant Solace by Tiye, a book set in the same universe as the lovely Rifts and Refrains. There are probably other series continuations I missed, but these are some from those authors you just have to keep reading when you see them!
And while I was unfamiliar with Ariana Godoy, her newest book, Follow My Voice, was apparently a Wattpad and Booktok sensation and already has a Prime adaptation! So if you haven’t already read it in its OG iteration, the new publication will be available at the end of this month.
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Otherwise, we’ve got an interesting selection of contemporary romances and a nice batch of fantasy and fabulism on top of them. There’s some darker stuff, but also a few that promise to offer a laugh and a lark. Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg of what’s coming out this month. Happy hunting!
New Romance Books: September 2025
The Underachiever’s Guide to Love and Saving the World by Sloane Brooks
Two slackers who have recently become neighbors and nemeses find themselves falling through a portal to another world. When they’re informed that one of them is the Chosen One (but not which, apparently?), they end up causing more chaos than good. But they have to figure out how to work together (and get people to like them) to get back to their world. Best of luck, friends.
It Had to Be Him by Adib Khorram
I happened to start reading this one a bit early, and whoo man, y’all are in for a treat. This is Adib Khorram’s second adult romance, and he’s definitely brought the vividness of his YA into the world of grown-ups with him. Ramin and Noah were friends in high school but lost track of each other after graduating. Each of them ends up in Italy for different reasons at different points in their lives, and they just…keep running into each other. Ramin is certain that his youthful crush was unrequited, because Noah is straight, but there are a few things he doesn’t know about his old friend.
The Austen Affair by Madeline Bell
Apparently nemeses getting transported somewhere together and having to rely on each other to make it home is a theme this month, because here it is again! Tess and Hugh have been cast as costars in an upcoming adaptation of Northanger Abbey, and neither of them is particularly happy about it. But some kind of electrical shock transports them back to the Regency period, and—you guessed it—they have to work together if they’re going to figure out how to make it back to the present.
The Princess and the P.I. by Nikki Payne
While the titular private investigator appears to be Maurice from Pride and Protest, this book isn’t an Austen retelling like Payne’s first two books. Fiona (the princess) can usually solve minor mysteries from the privacy of her own home, but when she is framed for murder, she goes to Maurice Bennett for help. She wants him to teach her real-life detective skills, and the time they spend together leads to a good amount of frustration…but it leads to other things, too.
Lassoed by a Maverick by Rochelle Alers
Sometimes you just want a category romance about a quiet rancher who’s given up on love and a rodeo star in town to visit her family. A quiet friendship is born out of their curiosity about each other, and their respective places in life (and in love) mean neither is what the other is looking for right now. Or are they?
The Most Unusual Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy by Roan Parrish
Roan Parrish is back to her cozy roots in this story about Jamie, who designs haunted houses for a living and is pretty sure ghosts are nothing but bells and whistles on the human plane. But then they meet Edgar Lovejoy, who has been haunted by ghosts his entire life. It’s been a few years since we’ve gotten anything new from Parrish, and this sounds like another delightfully cozy, sobworthy hug of a book.
A Lord in Want of a Wife by Jade Lee
Cedric, Lord Domac, meets Lucy, an heiress, on a voyage from China to London. It’s serendipitous, as he has been searching for the right monied partner to help support his sisters. But Lucy’s father thinks she’s too young and will therefore not offer a dowry. What’s a man to do when he’s captivated but has to marry up?
Off Script by Ava Freeman
When Roxanne and Arabella end up in the same rideshare, they initiate a friendship that burns with chemistry. Publicist Arabella takes Tony winner Roxanne on as a client, and they have to rely on each other for even more. But when Roxanne decides to fake-date a famous friend with Arabella’s help selling it, the chips begin to fall, and the two have to determine what they want out of life and out of love.
Much Ado About Soulmates by Elsie McLean
The Soulmate AU from fanfiction has started to wander into published romance, and I am here for it! Also, this is the first in a series of Shakespeare-inspired stories, so all the best things are coming together here. In Much Ado About Soulmates, people see in black and white until they meet their soulmate. As a Much Ado About Nothing retelling, this one is particularly interesting because Beatrice and Ben know they’re soulmates, but aren’t together for Reasons. So when they and their friends gather for a wedding, all the truths must come out.
Honey and Heat by Aurora Palit
We like to joke about the “we slept together once and now you’re my boss” trope, but in this case, Cynthia’s one-night stand turns out to be the guy her father chose as his successor instead of her. As she and Rohit battle each other to introduce solutions for the failing company, though, they realize (surprise, surprise) that they have to work together to move forward.
Fake it Till Forever by J. Nichole
Amara has a problem. Her ex was supposed to come on this couple’s trip to Jamaica, but obviously, that’s not going to happen. So when she invites Nasir, her brother’s best friend, it’s supposed to all be pretend. But during that trip, and back on solid ground at home, questions arise. Could they have found something real?
The Dating Prohibition by Taj McCoy
Here’s another brother’s best friend book, except this one involves everyone’s favorite setback: he thinks she’s “off limits”. Kendra is back home and trying to get her supper club started, and BJ is ready to help in whatever way he can. Also, regardless of the chemistry they share, he considers her off-limits because Patriarchy.
There are a few other books out in September that stood out, but I can’t tell if they’re actually romances or just have romantic elements and no HEA. So if you get your hands on It’s Me They Follow by Jeannine Cook, Sorry, Not Sorry by Frances Mensah Williams, or The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez, and let me know how they end!
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