Who needs a valentine when you can commit to a good book? We asked some
of our favorite authors to share their picks for their top romantic
reads.
Emma Straub
Author of “Other People We Married”
Her pick: “You cannot beat Jane Austen for Valentine’s Day. ‘Emma’ and ‘Pride and Prejudice’ are my favorites, both funny and sharp and yes, swoon-worthy. Is it so wrong that I’m a sucker for a happy ending?”
Rachel Hore
Author of “A Place of Secrets”
Her pick: “My current favorite romantic read about love and relationships is ‘The Very Picture of You’ by Isabel Wolff Bantam. It’s the moving story of Ella Graham, a portrait painter, who falls in love with someone she’s not supposed to, and eventually finds happiness in an unexpected way.”
Hilary Winston
Author of “My Boyfriend Wrote a Book About Me”
Her pick: “My pick for most romantic book is Graham Greene’s ‘The End of the Affair.’ Set during World War II, this book brings all the best romantic novel elements together: Unrequited love, undying love, a love triangle, betrayal, jealousy, misunderstandings, bomb explosions and death. Well, maybe bomb explosions aren’t one of the best romantic novel elements, but you get the point. Read it and weep.”
David Levithan
Author of “The Lover’s Dictionary”
His pick: “As someone who boards every plane in the hope that true love will be found in the seat next to him, I was predisposed to love Jennifer E. Smith’s ‘The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight.’ Granted, her pair meet at the airport before the flight even begins — but what starts off as ‘meet cute’ becomes something much more serious and much more interesting, as all great romances should be.”
