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.

Much Ado About Nothing

by William Shakespeare

Publication year 1598

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Love, Marriage, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Classic Fiction, Elizabethan Era, Comedy & Satire, Modern Classic Fiction, Love & Sexuality, Relationships, Social Class, Gender & Feminism, Renaissance, Education, Education, Romance, Humor

Much Ado About Nothing, a comedy dating from the mid-career period of William Shakespeare was probably written just prior to 1600. The play has the trappings of a theatrical farce with its use of assumptions and misunderstandings. Main characters Benedick and Beatrice are duped into announcing their love for each other while Claudio is fooled into spurning Hero at the altar when he mistakenly believes that she has not been faithful to him. The theme of lovers being tricked... Read Much Ado About Nothing Summary

Murder by Cheesecake

by Rachel Ekstrom Courage

Publication year 2025

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Grief, Love, Nostalgia, Shame & Pride, Femininity, Gender Identity, Death, Appearance & Reality, Family, Friendship, Community, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction

... Read Murder by Cheesecake Summary

Murder Road

by Simone St. James

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Fear, Love, Revenge, Gender Identity, The Past, Self Discovery, Justice, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt

Tags Science Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Religion & Spirituality

... Read Murder Road Summary

My Cousin Rachel

by Daphne du Maurier

Publication year 1951

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Appearance & Reality, Loyalty & Betrayal, Fear, Mental Health

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Gothic Literature, Historical Fiction, Romance

Published in 1951, My Cousin Rachel is a Gothic psychological novel by British author Daphne du Maurier, who is best known for her novel Rebecca (1938). The story takes place on an isolated Cornish country estate, a setting that du Maurier frequently used. The narrator, a naïve young man named Philip Ashley, gradually becomes convinced that his beloved guardian, Ambrose, may have been murdered in Italy by the mysterious Rachel, the woman he spontaneously married... Read My Cousin Rachel Summary

My Life With the Wave

by Octavio Paz

Publication year 1951

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Love, War, Hate & Anger

Tags Romance, Symbolic Narrative, Latin American Literature, Surrealism

“My Life with the Wave” is a surrealist prose poem written by Mexican poet and author Octavio Paz, first published in 1951 as part of Paz’s collection ¿Águila o sol?. The English translation (Eagle or Sun?) by Eliot Weinberger was published in 1976. Paz’s poetry, essays, and prose frequently underscore Mexican identity, culture, and politics, especially during his time as a Mexican diplomat and ambassador. His travels exposed him to surrealism and existentialism, which had... Read My Life With the Wave Summary

My Name is Lucy Barton

by Elizabeth Strout

Publication year 2016

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Memory, Childhood & Youth, Mothers, Fathers, Love

Tags Trauma & Abuse, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Elizabeth Strout’s New York Times bestselling novel My Name is Lucy Barton follows the titular character on a journey of healing. Published in 2016, My Name is Lucy Barton explores the impact of trauma as Lucy navigates her reunion with her estranged mother. Longlisted for the 2016 Man Booker Prize, My Name is Lucy Barton was adapted for the stage as a one-woman show featuring acclaimed actress Laura Linney in 2018 and 2020. Strout’s novel... Read My Name is Lucy Barton Summary

My Name is Red

by Orhan Pamuk

Publication year 1998

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Art, Guilt, Love, Shame & Pride, Gender Identity, Future, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Teamwork, Globalization, Beauty, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Historical Fiction, Middle Eastern Literature, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Asian Literature, World History, Arts & Culture

My Name is Red (originally titled Benim Adim Kirmizi) is a 1998 historical novel by the Nobel Prize winning Turkish author Orhan Pamuk. Set in late-16th century Istanbul, the novel explores cultural tensions stemming from contemporary philosophical understandings of visual art. Told from the viewpoints of many different animate and inanimate characters—including Muslim and Jewish individuals, a corpse, the color red, and paintings of a horse, a devil, and a dog—the novel integrates elements of... Read My Name is Red Summary

My Oxford Year

by Julia Whelan

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Love, Literature, Fear, Grief, Hope, Memory, Regret, Sexual Identity, Coming of Age, Death, Appearance & Reality, Fathers, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Politics & Government, Trust & Doubt

Tags Romance, British Literature

... Read My Oxford Year Summary