Fake-dating books worth the trope
Every book below carries a reasoned genome, and on this list the genome certifies one specific promise: fake dating. 24 books, ordered by readership, each with what it's actually like to read.
FAKE SKATING
Lynn Painter · 2025
A cozy, banter-driven YA romcom that reunites childhood best friends and forces them into a fake-dating charade while family wounds and old feelings resurface.
WE'RE A BAD IDEA, RIGHT?
K.L. Walther · 2025
A swoony, low-angst YA fake-dating romp with a warm ensemble of friends and a perfect-daughter heroine chafing against her rules.
The Love Hypothesis
Ali Hazelwood · 2021
A banter-heavy fake-dating romance set in STEM academia, where a socially awkward PhD student and a gruff professor slow-burn their way toward each other.
Red, White & Royal Blue
Casey McQuiston · 2019
A banter-drenched, email-punctuated queer rom-com where the fake-friendship-to-real-love arc is braided with genuine political stakes and coming-out anxiety.
The Spanish Love Deception
Elena Armas · 2021
A chunky, banter-heavy fake-dating rom-com that leans hard into workplace antagonism and a destination-wedding setup — long, indulgent, and firmly in TikTok-favorite territory.
To All the Boys I've Loved Before
Jenny Han · 2014
A warm, confiding first-person YA romance where a shy daydreamer's private love letters become embarrassingly public — sweet, funny, and full of sisterly family texture rather than high-drama angst.
Catching Fire
Suzanne Collins · 2009
A tightening vise of a middle book: Katniss's first-person present-tense voice keeps the paranoia immediate as the Capitol's screws turn and rebellion catches fire.
The Duke and I
Julia Quinn · 2000
A frothy Regency fake-courtship that slides into real feeling, powered by banter and ballroom social comedy — light on prose ornament, heavy on charm, with one late plot turn that
The Deal
Elle Kennedy · 2015
A banter-heavy fake-dating romance between a driven music student and a cocky hockey captain that turns unexpectedly tender as their tutoring sessions crack open real vulnerability.
Black Ties and White Lies
Kat Singleton · 2023
A trope-stacked contemporary romance that leans hard into fake-engagement banter, forced-proximity tension, and steamy will-they-won't-they beats.
Love Theoretically
Ali Hazelwood · 2023
A banter-forward STEM rom-com built on fake-dating and enemies-to-lovers scaffolding, with a people-pleasing heroine finding permission to be herself.
The Kiss Quotient
Helen Hoang · 2018
A warm, earnest contemporary romance where the emotional discovery — an autistic heroine learning intimacy on her own terms — matters more than the spice, though the spice is generous.
Terms and Conditions
Lauren Asher · 2022
A banter-forward fake-dating romance with a grumpy tech billionaire and a sharp heroine whose contract clauses become the flirtation itself.
The American Roommate Experiment
Elena Armas · 2022
A frothy forced-proximity rom-com with an Instagram-crush-turned-roommate premise, banter-heavy dual-POV chapters, and a ticking six-week clock that keeps the swoon moving.
Neon Gods
Katee Robert · 2021
A steamy, propulsive Hades/Persephone retelling that trades mythic grandeur for intimate first-person heat and neon-noir intrigue.
The Unhoneymooners
Christina Lauren · 2019
A breezy, banter-driven rom-com where a fake-honeymoon premise turns snark into swoon — light on angst, heavy on witty back-and-forth and tropical escapism.
The To All the Boys I've Loved Before Collection
Jenny Han · 2017
A warm, diary-close first-person voice carries a sweet high-school romance across three books — low-stakes, family-centered, and comforting rather than angsty.
The Cheat Sheet
Sarah Adams · 2021
A cozy, banter-forward best-friends-to-lovers rom-com where the fake-dating premise powers swoony pining and low-stakes hijinks.
Happy Place
Emily Henry · 2023
An ache-forward second-chance romance where the pretense is the point — every shared bedroom and inside joke twists the knife while the friend group's last summer glows around it.
Addicted To You
Krista Ritchie · 2013
An emotionally charged New Adult romance where two privileged college students hide their addictions behind each other, blurring codependence and love.
The Spanish Groom
Lynne Graham · 1999
A fast, tropey category romance built on a fake-engagement-turned-real-marriage with a hidden pregnancy twist — glossy wish-fulfillment with a wealthy hero and a virginal heroine.
Blind Side
Kandi Steiner · 2022
A tropey college fake-dating romance built on banter, first-time nerves, and a jealousy-plot gone sideways — plot-light, feels-forward, and clearly aimed at readers who want the trope stack executed with heart.
Boyfriend Material
Alexis Hall · 2020
A fake-dating rom-com powered by a self-deprecating, wisecracking narrator whose messy life bumps up against a buttoned-up barrister — banter-forward, emotionally warm, with a slow romantic thaw.
Impossible Bargain
Patricia Wilson · 1987
A classic category-romance setup: a financially strapped heroine agrees to a fake engagement with a magnetic, unpredictable man, and the promised close contact charges every scene with wary attraction.
Find your next read by its genome
Tell Novelome one book you love — recommendations tuned to how books actually read.
Start free →