Valentine's Day Reads: The Theme of Love

Our Valentine's Day Reads: The Theme of Love Collection features titles centered on love and all of its complexities. This Collection represents authors who have grappled with romantic, familial, and other forms of love through writing. With titles ranging from contemporary romance picks to works by Shakespeare, this Collection has something to offer any reader who has ever lost or found love.

From Sand and Ash

by Amy Harmon

Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Religion & Spirituality, Perseverance, Disability, Race, Coming of Age, The Past, Self Discovery, Community, Politics & Government, War, Equality, Good & Evil, Justice

Tags Historical Fiction, Romance, World War II

... Read From Sand and Ash Summary

Full Measures

by Rebecca Yarros

Publication year 2014

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Fear, Grief, Love, Memory, Sexual Identity, Coming of Age, Death, Future, Family, Fathers, Friendship, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery, Community, War, Fate, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

... Read Full Measures Summary

Game On

by Navessa Allen

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Forgiveness, Grief, Loneliness, Love, Revenge, Mental Health, Sexual Identity, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Family, Fathers, Mothers, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Romance, Horror & Suspense

Navessa Allen’s Game On (2026) is the third novel in the interconnected dark romantic comedy series Into Darkness, following Lights Out and Caught Up. The story centers on Tyler Neumann, an underground bookie who engineers a blackmail scheme against Stella McCormick, a tattoo artist. To clear her younger brother’s massive gambling debt, Stella must pretend to be Tyler’s girlfriend and introduce him to her family’s wealthy social circle, which he plans to exploit for his... Read Game On Summary

Garden Spells

by Sarah Addison Allen

Publication year 2007

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Shame & Pride, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery

Tags Magical Realism, Fantasy

Garden Spells is the debut novel by American author Sarah Addison Allen, published in 2007. The novel, an example of the urban fantasy genre, relates the story of a pair of Southern sisters coming to terms with their heritage. The book became a New York Times bestseller, was recognized on the American Library Association’s Reading List for Best Women’s Fiction of 2007, and won the 2008 SIBA Book Award for fiction. Following the success of... Read Garden Spells Summary

Get a Life, Chloe Brown

by Talia Hibbert

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Disability, Death, Loyalty & Betrayal, Social Class, Friendship, Art, Forgiveness, Animals, Safety & Danger, Perseverance, Love, Hate & Anger, Grief, Fear, Conflict, Loneliness, Hope

Tags Romance, Humor, Health, British Literature, Disability, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read Get a Life, Chloe Brown Summary

Ghosted

by Rosie Walsh

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Science & Technology, Family, Siblings

Tags Romance, Modern Classic Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense

Ghosted is British novelist Rosie Walsh’s first novel, published in 2018. After a career in television that included extensive travel, Walsh settled in the United Kingdom with her family, and Ghosted is set primarily in Gloucestershire and partially in other parts of England and Los Angeles, California. Released in the UK as The Man Who Didn’t Call and Ghosted in the United States, the novel addresses the phenomenon of “ghosting” in which a potential partner... Read Ghosted Summary

Gilded

by Marissa Meyer

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Loneliness, Love, Revenge, Appearance & Reality, Self Discovery, Community, Good & Evil, Justice, Power & Greed

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Fairy Tale & Folklore

... Read Gilded Summary

Girl In Hyacinth Blue

by Susan Vreeland

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Art, Love, The Past

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Life-Inspired Fiction, Arts & Culture, Poverty, World History

Susan Vreeland, author of Girl in Hyacinth Blue, (Penguin Books, 2000) was an internationally known author of art-related historical fiction who, after a long and notable literary career, died in 2017. A New York Times bestseller, the novel was originally published in 1999 by McMurray and Beck, but subsequent editions were published by Penguin Books. The novel’s popularity gave rise to a 2003 Hallmark Hall of Fame production based on the novel. The painting in... Read Girl In Hyacinth Blue Summary

Girls Like Girls

by Hayley Kiyoko

Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Fear, Grief, Guilt, Loneliness, Love, Shame & Pride, Femininity, Gender Identity, Mental Health, Sexual Identity, Coming of Age, Self Discovery, Equality, Loyalty & Betrayal, Trust & Doubt

Tags Romance, LGBTQ+, Modern Classic Fiction

Girls Like Girls (2023) is the debut young-adult romance novel by American pop singer, actor, and director Hayley Kiyoko. The book expands upon the narrative of Kiyoko’s breakthrough 2015 song and viral music video of the same name, which became an important touchstone for LGBTQ+ representation. Set in the summer of 2006, the story is told from the perspective of 17-year-old Coley, who’s sent to live in rural Oregon with her estranged father following her... Read Girls Like Girls Summary

Gleam

by Raven Kennedy

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Hate & Anger, Love, Gender Identity, Politics & Government, Power & Greed

Tags Romance, Fantasy

... Read Gleam Summary

Glow

by Raven Kennedy

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Mental Health, Self Discovery, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger

Tags Fantasy, Trauma & Abuse

... Read Glow Summary