Top Five Reads of July 2025 – Historical Romance and Contemporary Romance Books

The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam by Megan Bannen (2025)

Fantasy romance. Book 3 of the Hart and Mercy series. Loved this book and great conclusion to the series. The whole book is told from Rosie’s point of view. She’s an immortal demigod who’s really struggling with grief and the lonely life she has ahead of her. It’s been ten years since the events of the last book and she’s starting to see her coworkers and loved ones age. She’s also been somewhat pining over inventor and all-around genius Dr. Adam Lee for the past five years and not willing to do anything about it or get to attached, since she’ll live forever and everyone around her dies. But we get all sorts of forced proximity when we find that the portals in and out of the Tanrian mist have malfunctioned and need to be repaired. The romance is the slowest of slow burns while we work through our malfunctioning portals. We also get our favorite sidekick Duckers throughout this story and revisit the adorable dragons.

Advance ebook provided by Orbit Books via NetGalley.

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Road Trip with a Rogue by Kate Bateman (2025)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of Her Majesty’s Rebels series. I love a good road trip romance, especially when our two travel partners are clearly pining for each other and denying their own feelings about it. Daisy is on a mission to thwart an elopement and runs into Lucien, her brothers’ friend and longtime crush along the way. What she doesn’t know is that he encouraged the elopement of his nephew and an heiress. And she gets thoroughly distracted by Lucien. We’ve got highwaymen, cramped quarters, and even a kidnapping in this chaotic adventure. Loved seeing these two connect and talk to each other, with the most excellent banter.

Advance ebook provided by St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley.

This Much is True by Vivienne Lorret (2025)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of the Liars’ Club series. Everyone is lying here and it’s kinda sorta confusing til we figure it out. Althea is in her third season following a toxic courtship with a playwright last year and in massive writers’ block for her own plays. And for some wild reason, she makes up stories about encountering a highwayman when she’s out in society, mostly because she’s a storyteller and partly because she wants to attention. Unfortunately, Jasper is an actual highwayman and worries he’ll be found out, so he keeps clumsily ruining her gowns to distract from her stories. Jasper has his own problems with an abusive uncle, so he pretends to be a clumsy oaf in public, even though he’s a clever highwayman who’s protecting his family. Oh, and these those are pretty much attracted to each other at first sight. Their relationship is messy and chaotic and loads of fun to read.

Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley. Audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Love Is a War Song by Danica Nava (2025)

Contemporary romance. Standalone novel. Avery is the only Native American pop star around and she makes the horrible mistake of listening to her uninformed mother and team in the process of posing for the cover of Rolling Stone. And so, her reputation is totally tanked, and she’s sent off to stay with her estranged grandmother for awhile til the gossip dies down. Instantly, she’s on the wrong foot with Lucas, the extra handsome man who works at the grandmother’s ranch. Just about as instantly as she’s attracted to him. She’s learning to adapt to a totally new environment, while everyone around her is terribly unhelpful. But the attraction between her and Lucas is super strong, despite all the realities of their lives. This book was funny and emotional and I loved seeing Avery embrace her roots.

Advance ebook provided by Berkley via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Penguin Random House Audio.

The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite (2019)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 1 of the Feminine Pursuits series. Heartbroken Lucy ends up in the care of the widowed countess Catherine in the pursuit of translating a rare astronomy text. They’re both pretty prickly around each other at first, but quickly find their footing as friends and then more. It was so nice watching their romance blossom and Catherine learn things about herself in the process, even as the older and more established woman. I loved seeing them both battle the patriarchy for Lucy’s place in science. A delightful slow burn romance here.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.