Romance Novels About Grief
Jackie and I were surprised at the number of romance novels about grief we have read. While it might seem that these are not genres that would go together, these are some of our favorite types of romance novels to read. The stories go a little deeper, the characters have a little more depth, and your heartstrings will feel the pull.
Books are a wonderful way to process emotions, and grief is one of the strongest emotions. I have a list of novels about grief, filled with powerful books. But I knew these romance novels about grief needed their own space. Everyone processes loss and heartbreak in a different way. These are the books I always recommend.
The Best Romance Novels About Grief
Each colorful block below represents the best book in a subgenre. Click on the arrow to reveal my “best” pick in any category. You’ll also be able to use a page jump to see more books in that section.
The Best Spicy Romance Novel about Grief
Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Sastone- Jump to Section
The Best Sweet Romance Novel about Grief
This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page- Jump to Section
The Read Carpet Report Podcast
Watch Episode 10: Novels About Grief on YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
*Post contains affiliate links. Purchases made through links result in a small commission to us at no cost to you. Some books have been gifted. All opinions are our own.
Spicy Romance Novels About Grief
Promise Me Sunshine
Author: Cara Bastone
Year: 2025
Genre: Romance
Spice Rating:💋💋💋
Age Range: 18+
Plot
In this wonderful romance story, Bastone deals with the heavier topic of grief as our main character, Lenny, is still distraught by the death of her best friend. As a temporary nanny, she meets Miles, her charge’s uncle, who is newly involved in his half-sister’s life and looking to connect with his niece.
As Lenny helps Miles connect with his new family, he helps her tackle her grief head on, making himself available to her at all hours of the day when she’s at her lowest. Their love story grows from a place of truly seeing each other.
Trigger Warnings
Grief
Why Kirsten loves it
This book broke my heart and put it back together again. The tenderness and compassion I had for all the characters while reading this delightful story really speaks to the author’s talent. I cried numerous times while reading because their sorrow felt like my own and so did their happiness. It was a marvelous book.
Why Jackie loves it
Initially, I was unsure about this book because it deals with grief, and I was not sure how that fit into a romance. I was so wrong. I loved the way the characters came together to help Lenny deal with her grief. Their relationship felt like it was so natural and well-developed. I loved this story. It is unforgettable.
Find this book in: Best Beach Reads 2025 / Novels About Grief/ Best Romance Books of 2025 / Best Books of 2025 / Romance Novels About Grief
Passion Project
Author: London Sperry
Year: 2025
Genre: Romance
Spice Rating:💋💋💋
Age Range: 18+
Plot
Bennett is struggling with her life in NYC after the sudden death of her fiancé. She’s friendless, temping, and just generally miserable when she reluctantly agrees to go on a date that her roommate sets up for her. The date doesn’t go quite as planned – it ends up a disaster, but that night she meets Henry, who wants to help her find her passion and become her friend. As she works to learn to love the city, she begins to face the grief and open herself up to love again.
Trigger Warnings
Grief
Why Kirsten loves it
This was such a cute Rom-Com that also so tenderly dealt with finding love after loss. It was also a love letter to New York City that left me inspired to go explore on my next visit. If you can handle the trigger, it’s worthy of your time!
Find this book in: Books Set in New York / Novels About Grief / Romance Novels About Grief
Dandelion is Dead
Author: Rosie Storey
Release Date: January 13, 2026
Genre: Literary Romance
More info: Debut Author
Spice Rating:💋💋💋
Age Range: 18+
Plot
When Poppy breaks her phone, she decides to go to her late sister’s apartment to get her phone. Then she decides to respond to a stranger on Dandelion’s dating app and then meet him for a date on what would have been Dandelion’s 40th birthday. But the minute she meets Jake, she feels a connection to him, almost as if she pretends to be Dandelion, then Dandelion is not really gone.
Now, Poppy is living a double life. In one, she is in a committed long-term relationship with someone who loves her. And in the other, she is Dandelion- fun, carefree, and alive. She has to determine who she really is and what kind of life she wants for herself. Can she live her life when her sister is gone?
Trigger Warnings
Death of a sibling, grief
Why Jackie loves it
This is an unforgettable book about love, grief, and finding yourself and your path. It is also beautifully written and feels like the ups and downs Poppy experiences mimic real life. I was invested in the story the entire time with these imperfect characters whom I loved. #gifted
Find this book in: Novels About Grief / Literary Romance Novels / Romance Novels About Grief
The Seven-Year Slip
Author: Ashley Poston
Year: 2023
Genre: Fantasy
More info: A Most Anticipated Book by Entertainment Weekly ∙ Harper’s Bazaar ∙ PopSugar ∙ Real Simple ∙ BookRiot
Spice Rating:💋💋💋
Age Range:
Plot
Clementine has had her heart broken one too many times. She has inherited her beloved aunt’s apartment and is constantly mourning her loss. When she comes home one day and finds a man sitting there, she realizes that he exists seven years in the past. When she steps out of the apartment, their paths are uncertain.
And, the more time they spend together, the more she realizes she is falling for him. But she can never figure out when their paths will collide! This is a fantastic pick if you are looking for romantic comedy books.
Why Jackie loves it
Dead Romantics (GMA Book Club Pick July 2022) was one of my favorite books last year and this book did not disappoint! This is such an adorable time travel romance book. And if you are not a fantasy lover this is the perfect one to blur the lines between genres. The story is so unique and refreshing,
Find this book in: Best Rom-Com Books / Ultimate Beach Reads 2023 / Time Travel Romance Books / Best Adult Fantasy Novels / Ashley Poston Books Ranked / Romance Novels About Grief
The Heartbreak Hotel
Author: Ellen O’Clover
Year: 2025
Genre: Romance
Spice Rating:💋💋💋
Age Range: 18+
Plot
When Louisa catches her superstar boyfriend cheating on her, she has one thought -she can’t lose her house. Unable to afford rent, she decides to ask her landlord, Henry Rhodes, if she can rent out the rooms in the house as a bed and breakfast. He agrees, and she is shocked when she learns that he is not only young and handsome, but single and heartbroken as well.
Louisa opens the door to the Comeback Inn, a hotel for the brokenhearted, and Henry, while sceptical of her marketing, ends up helping her run it while she’s waiting to get certified as a therapist. As the two get to know each other, they cannot deny their chemistry. And as Louisa helps her guests to get over their heartbreak, she is also able to help herself and Henry heal.
Trigger Warnings
Grief
Why Kirsten loves it
I listened to this story on a crisp fall day while I was clearing out my garage, and it was the perfect distraction to an otherwise terrible task. The story was more emotional than I was expecting, but the character growth felt so realistic that I just know Louisa and Henry are going to last.
Find this book in: Hotel Novels / Romance Novels About Grief
Sweet Romance Novels About Grief
This Book Made Me Think of You
Author: Libby Page
Release Date: Feb 3, 2026
Genre: Fiction
Spice Rating:💋
Age Range: 14+
Plot
Tilly is trying to navigate life without her husband Joe, who died five months ago. When she gets a call from a local bookstore saying a birthday gift from her husband is waiting for her, she is shocked. Alfie, the owner of the bookshop, explains that her husband left her a year’s worth of books. He carefully chose one book a month to help her navigate the first year without him and included a note with each one.
The book follows Tilly over the course of the year as she navigates her life without her husband. She looks at her life, her job, and her relationships with a new eye. Each book seems to come at the exact right time.
Trigger Warnings
Death of a spouse
Why Jackie loves it
I absolutely loved this book. At its heart, it is a book about the power of books to help with healing and overcoming grief. I laughed with Tilly and felt her pain. I was rooting for her from the first page.
Find this book in: Novels about Grief / Romance Books About Books / Romance Novels About Grief
Me Before You
Author: Jojo Moyes
Year: 2012
Genre: Romance
More info: Me Before You #1, New York Times Bestseller
Spice Rating:💋💋
Age Range: 16+
Plot
When a young man becomes paralyzed, his parents hire a young woman to be his companion. As love blooms, and she tries to convince him that life is still worth living, the reader questions what they would sacrifice to make a loved one happy. This novel about grief deals with grieving before the person has passed.
Trigger Warnings
Assisted Suicide
Why Jackie loves it
Me Before You has quickly become a classic story – and a movie to boot. But beware! This is one of the grumpy sunshine romance books that will emotionally wreck you that you don’t want to read in public!
Find this book in: Grumpy Sunshine Trope Books /Sad Books That Will Make You Cry / Romance Novels About Grief
Plot
It’s been two years since Kate lost her husband, Cameron, and her life is still upside down. She’s struggling to be a single mom while working in fundraising.
When mechanical issues cause Emma to be stranded in Australia with her boss, Hugh, for a weekend, she thinks she finally has the break she deserves. As she takes time to process her grief, she realizes that Hugh has feelings for her, but she’s unsure if she’s ready to move on.
Trigger Warnings
Grief, Infertility, Suicidal Thoughts
Why Kirsten likes it
This novel has two love stories at its center, and Grey respectfully gives each relationship its own depth. As I read, I felt deep compassion for all Kate had gone through. I just wanted to reach through the pages to hug her.
Find this book in: Romance Novels About Grief
Forever, Interrupted
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Year: 2013
Genre: Romance
More info:
Spice Rating:💋💋
Age Range: 16+
Plot
In the story, told in a dual-timeline narrative, newly married Elsie loses her husband of 9 days. As her timeline as a widow moves forward, we also get to see her romance with Ben unfold in the previous narrative. As she struggles to overcome her grief, Elsie connects with Ben’s mother who was unknown to her prior to the tragedy.
Trigger Warnings
Grief
Why Kirsten loves it
This is Taylor Jenkins Reid’s debut novel, and while it is good, it’s clear that she has grown her craft a great deal from this book. I found the story to be compelling, but it didn’t get me choked up the way TJR books can usually do.
Adaptation
Laura Dern and Margaret Qualley are set to star and produce the Netflix adaptation of Reid’s novel. Julia Bicknell is writing the script and running the series.
Find this book in: Books Becoming Tv Shows / Romance Novels About Grief
The Two Lives of Lydia Bird
Author: Josie Silver
Year: 2020
Genre: Fiction
Spice Rating:💋
Age Range: 16+
Plot
Lydia’s fiance dies in the first chapter but when she goes to sleep, she is able to live her alternate life by his side. We see her try to adjust to life without Freddie in one life, and her trying to find her new self, the one that remembers that he isn’t alive, trying to remain who she used to be in her dream life. Don’t go in expecting a romance. It’s a raw look at grief and how it changes us.
Trigger Warnings
Grief
Why Kirsten loves it
Wow. I wasn’t expecting this book to be such a serious look at life after the loss of a loved one. It was moving in multiple places and I was full-on SOBBING at the end. The concept is fascinating.
Find this book in: Books with Numbers in the Title / Romance Novels About Grief
Plot
Maddie is grief-stricken over the loss of her older brother, Josh. She is not surprised that he asked her to scatter his ashes. She is shocked that Josh asked his best friend, Dominic, to go with her. Now Maddie must spread his ashes in eight destinations with the one person who broke her heart. Dom has the notes and the instructions to ensure that everything will be completed the way Josh wants.
Trigger Warnings
Loss of a brother
Why Jackie loves it
This is such a wonderful book about dealing with grief and finding love! The trips that Maddie and Dom have to take are sad and healing at the same time. I love the adventures that they take in this book. They learn how to navigate tremendous loss together. It was such a great love story.
Find this book in: Second Chance Romance Books / Fiction With a Funeral / Books About Road Trips
Plot
Emily Stone’s last book was my favorite Christmas book of 2021, so I knew I would love her newest book. This story is heartbreaking as well, but not in the same way.
Cassie has relied on her brother, Tom, since they were orphaned when she was 5. Each year, Tom creates a Christmas scavenger hunt for her, but after a sudden accident kills Tom, Cassie is left bereaved and celebrating Christmas without him. Until she finds his final scavenger hunt. As she begins to solve the clues, her heart begins to heal, and love forms as well.
Why Kirsten loves it
This book is like the Christmas version of P.S. I Love You in the best possible way. I adored this Christmas romance novel about grief.
Find this book in: Fiction Books about Grief / Christmas Books for 2022 / Christmas Book Club Books / Emily Stone Books Ranked / Romance Novels About Grief
Expert Tip
If you are wondering which of these books is right for you, I have a few tips
- Jackie and I have read all these books. There is a description as well as triggers for each book. Have a look at these and see if the book appeals to you.
- If you have experienced loss and are looking for a romance novel, these books are the perfect place to start. You may be able to relate to some of the emotions the characters are experiencing.
- If you are suffering from persistent grief or are thinking about hurting yourself or others, please speak with an expert or call/ text the Suicide Hotline at #988
Frequently Asked Questions
Isn’t a romance novel about grief a bit of an oxymoron?
That is what I thought before I read these books. In a romance novel about grief, one or more of the main characters will find love despite experiencing a loss. It is uplifting to see that even heartbroken people can survive loss and move on.
What is a romance novel about grief?
A romance novel about grief is a fiction book in which grief is one of the central themes. Often, it is the main character who is dealing with the loss of a loved one. At the end of most of these books, the characters will find love again. If it is not love they find, they find peace and ways to deal with their losses.
Related Content
Epilogue
What are your favorite romance novels about grief?
