The Best Feel-Good Books to Read Right Now—Because We Need It

The Everymom’s Editor-in-Chief Roberta deemed this book her feel-good favorite. Creative Executive at Clearwater Studios Jane Jackson lives her life on the idea of “fake it till you make it,” until faking it turns into a big fat lie. In order to get her first project greenlit, Jane promises an original song for the soundtrack from the one and only pop star Jack Quinian. In order to get to Jack, she has to go through the closest connection she has (and the last person she wants to be in close proximity to), Dan Finnegan. For Jane, maybe telling a lie can unexpectedly put you in the right place.

From the beloved Emily Henry, People We Meet on Vacation has been described as an “amazing mashup of When Harry Meets Sally; Love, Rosie; and One Day.” Poppy and Alex were the opposites-attract type of friends, but when one summer vacation was ruined two years ago, it seemed like their falling-out was beyond repair. For Poppy, her relationship with Alex was the last time she seemed happy. With the hope to settle everything once and for all, Poppy convinces Alex to go on one more trip together. Read it before its film adaptation comes out on Netflix in January 2026.

A TikTok sensation, this book chronicles a fake relationship between two scientists. But when their romantic experiment starts to feel dangerously close to combustion, Ph.D. candidate Olive realizes it’s complicated to put your heart under a microscope.

Alexa Martin’s newest rom-com recently hit the shelves, and if you’re looking for a steamy (but scheme-y) story, it’s one to pick up. When kindergarten teacher Emerson Pierce turns to an MLM to make extra money selling makeup products, her side gig turns into taking down the pyramid scheme herself. But she doesn’t do it alone. Lucas Miller, an investigative reporter with a personal tie to the company—an ex-wife who drained all of his savings—is on a mission to expose the company, too.

The Rom-Commers is a fun, laugh-out-loud read. Emma isn’t a “failed” writer by choice, but when she gets the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to write with her all-time favorite screenwriter, she takes it. Question is, is he everything she imagined? They say to never meet your hero.

Alli Frank’s Tiny Imperfections is said to be “The Devil Wears Prada meets Class Mom.” In this hilarious and heartwarming novel, director of admissions at a sought-after private school—and single—Josie Bordelon is busy with keeping her 17-year-old daughter, Etta, in line. But Etta and her Aunt Viv have other things in mind. Work, family life, and a dry spell on all things intimacy bring drama and finding love where you least expect it. “This humorous and touching debut novel explores how being a Black woman affects [a] protagonist’s personal and professional experiences in a tale that will resonate with readers of all demographic backgrounds,” says one review.

For Stella Lane, her life choices and success are fueled by algorithms and using math for all logic. However, the one thing she can’t mathematically explain is love. It doesn’t help that Stella has autism spectrum disorder, and the idea of tongues touching “reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish.” So, Stella comes up with a brilliant plan to hire Vietnamese and Swedish heartbreak Michael Phan, an escort, to help her practice her kissing game. While the main goal is to learn all about kissing, the two learn much more about the equation of love.

Part of The Wedding Date Series, The Proposal is the love story that unfolds after a proposal goes completely wrong. Nikole Paterson’s boyfriend proposes to her in front of a stadium filled with thousands of Dodgers fans, but she can’t say “yes.” And when bystander Carlos Ibarra saves the day by whisking her away from her almost-fiancé, fans, and the camera crew, they develop a relationship that isn’t anything serious. It’s purely all rebound… or is it?

The San Francisco Chronicle labeled this novel as a “smart love story that will make anyone, man or woman, laugh out loud.” For professor of genetics Don Tillman, life is formulaic and coded. And when it comes to love, Don just simply doesn’t fit its formula. When love seems completely out of the question, someone tells Dan he’s husband material. On a quest to find the best partner, all scientific hypotheses on his ideal relationship get turned upside down when he meets Rosie Jarman, who needs an expert on DNA to find her biological father.

“An unlikely friendship blooms between the book’s non-human narrator—Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus—and his caretaker, Tova, in this very human story. Don’t let having an octopus narrator make you second-guess picking this one up. This novel gave me a book hangover in the best way, and its film adaptation is coming soon to Netflix with Sally Field as Tova.”—Kathy, Senior Editor

If you’re waiting for your hold on Atmosphere to come up, grab this 2016 novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid. It’s a story that makes you wonder: What would I do in this situation?

Emma was lucky enough to have two great loves of her life: Sam, her adoring, ever-supportive fiancé, and her late husband, Jesse, who was lost at sea three years ago. As she’s beginning to plan a new life with Sam, Jesse is found alive. Now she must choose between the two people she loves most.