Books like “One Day in December”

What to read after “One Day in December” by Josie Silver: a list matched by tropes, mood and atmosphere. Under each book you will see what it has in common.

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1
Love and Other Words
Christina Lauren · 2018
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
As teenagers Macy and Elliot spent every weekend trading books in a closet and slowly falling in love, until one night tore them apart. Eleven years later they meet again in San Francisco, and the friendship and heartbreak they buried come rushing back as they decide whether to try once more.
2
Before We Were Strangers
Renée Carlino · 2015
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Mutual Pining
- Friends to Lovers
In college, Matt and Grace were inseparable neighbours in their NYU dorm who fell in love, until lost contact after graduation pulled them apart. Fifteen years later, a missed-connections post brings Grace back into his life, and the two have one chance to understand what happened and decide whether their story is really over.
3
People We Meet on Vacation
Emily Henry · 2021
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
Poppy and Alex have been best friends for years, spending one week of every summer travelling together, until one trip ends in a falling-out. Two years later Poppy suggests one more holiday to repair things, and a week of shared rooms and old memories forces them to face what they never say.
4
The Cheat Sheet
Sarah Adams · 2021
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
Ballet dancer Bree has been secretly in love with her best friend Nathan, a football star, for years. When a publicity plan calls for Nathan to have a girlfriend, Bree agrees to play the role, risking the friendship she cannot imagine losing.
5
Funny Feelings
Tarah DeWitt · 2022
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
Stand-up comic Farley and her grumpy manager Meyer have been best friends and secret crushes for years. When a television opportunity requires a stable image, they fake a relationship, and the line between performance and real love disappears.
6
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
Talia Hibbert · 2019
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Friends to Lovers
- Slow Burn
Chloe, who lives with chronic pain and a careful routine, draws up a list of things she wants to do to get a life. To tick off the first item she asks Red, the tattooed handyman who looks after her building, for help, and their cautious friendship deepens into more.
7
The Love Hypothesis
Ali Hazelwood · 2021
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Mutual Pining
- Slow Burn
Olive, a third-year biology PhD student, kisses the first man she sees to convince her friend that her dating life is fine, and it turns out to be the famously severe Professor Adam Carlsen. To keep the story convincing, the two agree to fake a relationship, and their staged arrangement slowly becomes real.
8
The Charm Offensive
Alison Cochrun · 2021
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Friends to Lovers
- Forbidden Love
Anxious tech genius Charlie is the reluctant star of a reality dating show, and producer Dev is tasked with helping him connect with the contestants. Behind the cameras their unlikely friendship turns into a romance that neither can script.
9
The Flatshare
Beth O'Leary · 2019
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Friends to Lovers
- Slow Burn
Tiffy needs somewhere cheap to live, and Leon, a night-shift nurse, needs money, so they share one bed in shifts and never meet. Through the notes they leave around the flat they slowly get to know each other, and a practical arrangement turns into something else.
10
Every Summer After
Carley Fortune · 2022
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Friends to Lovers
- Slow Burn
Every summer Persephone stayed at the lake and grew up alongside Sam, the boy next door, until one mistake ended everything. Twelve years later she returns for a funeral and finds Sam again, reopening the past they both buried.
11
Seduce Me at Sunrise
Lisa Kleypas · 2008
Similar plot moves: “Mutual Pining” and “Friends to Lovers”
Win Hathaway has loved Kev Merripen, the brooding Romany boy taken in by her family, since childhood, and has spent years recovering from illness for his sake. Kev believes he is too dangerous to deserve her, and keeps his distance even as she decides to make him hers.
12
Beach Read
Emily Henry · 2020
Same genre: “Contemporary romance”
- Friends to Lovers
- Slow Burn
Romance writer January and literary novelist Gus become summer neighbours in a lakeside town, both blocked and both skeptical of each other's genre. They make a bet to write in the other's style and slowly trade barbs for late-night talks, discovering the grief and hope behind their different worldviews.