New episodes of the Bridgerton Netflix series are finally here, but if you're finding Penelope's new look to be the highlight and Colin to be mostly forgettable, try one of these books! The romantic leads will be living in your head rent-free.

For more regency vibes

Reputation by Lex Croucher

Reputation by Lex Croucher is as much about friendship as it a romance, but it has the diversity (and wilder side) of the Bridgerton show, with even more wit and heart. Plus, while it might be sharing the spotlight, the romance plot is sweet, passionate and unfolds over a flirty letter exchange that even Jane Austen couldn't top.

Thomas Hawksley, the romantic hero, is cut from the same cloth as Mr Darcy — quiet, reserved, (maybe a little judgemental) but with a warm and loyal heart beneath the surface, not to mention a gloriously dry sense of humour. And if Reputation leaves you wanting more, Lex Croucher has other regency romances you can jump into, include a sapphic friends-to-lovers and a glorious governess romance between two grumpy bisexuals.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian

Like Romancing Mr Bridgerton, the budding romance in The Queer Principles of Kit Webb is threatened by secrets from the past, but the dashing highman-turned-coffee-shop-owner, Kit Webb, definitely has a lot more flair than Colin Bridgerton. The reformed highwayman is recruited to help a young nobleman perform a heist under his own father's nose, but a mutual attraction soon turns their transactional relationship into something even more dangerous...

This is a swoonworthy queer romance from a critically acclaimed author, so if Bridgerton has whet your appetite, make sure to pick it up.

For more plus size leads

Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey

This is a steamy contemporary romance that will not only get your pulse racing, but also gently deals with issues of mental health and grief. Hallie is a curvy and chaotic gardener still reeling after losing her grandmother, and is thrown even further off balance when her former crush, Julian Vos, comes back to town. Julian is clinging to timetables and stucture to keep himself steady, so at first he and Hallie clash dramatically, until their fiery attraction burns through all his reservations.

Tessa Bailey writes great male leads, but Julian is probably my personal favourite — he's a buttoned up intellectual but when he catches feelings for Hallie he falls hard.

Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake

This sweet, sapphic romance follows a jaded photographer, Delilah, returning to her picturesque hometown in Oregan for her step-sister's wedding. Back in Bright Falls, Delilah is shocked by her attraction to her sister's best friend, Claire, and even more shocked when Claire recruits her to help get the wedding called off.

This is a must-read for fans of grumpy x sunshine dynamics — Delilah is broody and always ready with a smirk to hide her real feelings, while Claire is warm and sweet enough to melt anyone's heart. You'll fall in love with both of them, and fortunately this is the start of a trilogy, so you won't have to say goodbye on the last page!

Keep it classic

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Go back to the queen of regency romances, Jane Austen herself. Persuasion is one of Austen's less talked about novels, but it's a frankly under-appreciated masterclass in how well-written eye contact can send readers swooning. Don't let Netflix's disappointing 2022 adaptation bias you — Persuasion is a beautiful and tender novel following Anne Elliot and her second chance at love.

At nineteen, Anne Elliot was persuaded to call of her engagement to the dashing but poor young naval officer, Frederick Wentworth; now she is twenty-seven, with no marriage prospects and still pining for the man she gave up. When Wentworth, now a wealthy Captain, returns to England, he and Anne are thrust into the same social circle. The Captain is cold and aloof, but is that because he doesn't care for her, or because he's still nursing his heartbreak from all those years ago?