Books like The Ex Talk
The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon reads as witty, emotional. These 12 books share its genome — matched by how they actually read, not just their shelf label.
What The Ex Talk is like to read
A workplace enemies-to-lovers premise built around a juicy deception hook — the fake-exes gimmick fuels both banter and mounting dread as the lie snowballs. Best for: readers who want a contemporary rom-com with a high-concept media-industry setup and coworker banter.
The Wedding Date
Jasmine Guillory · 2018
A flirty, low-angst contemporary romance built on a classic fake-dating meet-cute, following two accomplished professionals navigating a bicoastal fling that keeps threatening to become more.
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.
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.
Things We Never Got Over
Lucy Score · 2020
A bantery grumpy-sunshine romance that leans hard into small-town found-family warmth, with an instant-parent subplot and a late-book danger arc giving it more propulsion than a pure cozy romcom.
The Soulmate Equation
Christina Lauren · 2021
A witty contemporary romance built on a DNA-matching premise, blending science-y hook with warmth and single-mom stakes.
The Bride Test
Helen Hoang · 2019
A tender cross-cultural romance built on a neurodivergent hero convinced he can't love and a determined heroine whose seduction plan ends up teaching her own heart the lesson.
Love on the Brain
Ali Hazelwood · 2022
A banter-heavy STEMinist rom-com where a purple-haired neuroscientist and her glowering nemesis are forced into NASA co-leadership — light, funny, workplace-sabotage-plotty, and squarely inside the Hazelwood formula.
It Happened One Summer
Tessa Bailey · 2021
A frothy fish-out-of-water rom-com: a Los Angeles influencer exiled to a Pacific Northwest fishing town clashes and flirts with a taciturn boat captain.
One Last Stop
Casey McQuiston · 2021
A queer, big-hearted NYC romance where a cynical waitress falls for a punk girl stuck in time on the Q train — warm, horny, funny, and unabashedly hopeful, with a found-family ensemble carrying the emotional weight.
Just for the Summer
Abby Jimenez · 2024
A high-concept fake-dating romance that pivots from breezy summer fling into heavier territory as family obligations and a toxic parent crash the plan.
The Hating Game
Sally Thorne · 2016
A snappy, banter-driven office rivalry that slow-burns into swoon — first-person Lucy is neurotic, funny, and painfully self-aware, and the tension is all in the glances, games, and one very charged elevator ride.
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
Talia Hibbert · 2019
A warm, banter-driven contemporary romance built around a bucket-list premise, pairing a chronically ill list-maker with a tattooed handyman hiding his art.
About The Ex Talk — what the genome says
Is The Ex Talk a complete story or a cliffhanger?
It's a complete, standalone-satisfying story.
How spicy is The Ex Talk?
Moderate heat — some open-door scenes.
Who is The Ex Talk for?
readers who want a contemporary rom-com with a high-concept media-industry setup and coworker banter
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