When the nights are cooler, the back-to-school supplies appear at Target, and pumpkin spice flavored goodies start popping up, I automatically crave a college romance novel.
From Ivy League colleges brimming with small town charm to magical universities teeming with mythical creatures, college campuses are the perfect backdrop for a love story. Grab your bookbag and go back to college life with some of the best college romance books out there!
1. “The Deal” by Elle Kennedy
Garrett is the captain of the hockey team at Briar University and his father is a hockey legend—to say he’s under a lot of pressure is an understatement. He’s handling things as well as can be expected until his ethics midterm causes his grade to start slipping, jeopardizing his position on the team.
College student Hannah is nursing an unnoticed crush on a football player in her ethics class when Garrett swoops in to cut her a deal: He’ll help her make her crush notice her and make him jealous if she helps him ace the midterm retake.
If you like a bad boy falling for a good girl, the fake dating trope, and the he-falls-first kind of romance, you’ll love this! It’s the first in the series and sets the stage for the rest of the excellent Briar University series, the companion Off Campus series, and the next-generation Campus Diaries series. All are available on Kindle Unlimited, so do yourself a favor and get lost in the Briar universe!
2. “The Love Hypothesis” by Ali Hazelwood
If you like your romance with a side of academia and women in STEM, this book is for you.
Olive is a post-doc student at Stanford University and Adam is the grumpiest professor on staff. When Olive panics and accidentally kisses Adam, she worries she’s going to be fired or deported back to Canada. To her surprise, Adam agrees to a fake relationship to keep her nosy best friends from meddling in her love life.
Both Adam and Olive love their work so much and the academia background is well-developed (there’s a lot of time spent in the labs and they even travel to an academic conference). It’s a perfect late-summer/early fall read that will have you itching to grab your backpack and head back to campus.
3. “Lecture Me” by Dipsea
In this steamy audiobook, Jane has just successfully defended her thesis and decides to celebrate by heading to her favorite professor’s lecture to tell him the good news. Even though it’s been a whole semester since she was in Professor James’ class, he’s just as handsome and charming as she remembers.
A trip to his office to catch up turns into a steamy hookup that they can’t walk away from. Even though he’s not her teacher anymore, they have to keep their blooming relationship underwraps or risk ruining their reputations and careers.
4. “Icebreaker” by Hannah Grace
Anastasia has her hands full as a college student and competitive figure skater at University of California, Maple Hills—she doesn’t have time for romance in her jam-packed schedule. As team captain, Nate’s sole focus is keeping his hockey player teammates focused on the ice.
A mishap on campus leaves one of the school’s rinks inoperable, forcing the hockey and skating teams to train on the same ice. Anastasia and Nate butt heads repeatedly, eventually forming a tentative truce when Nate steps up to fill in for Anastasia’s injured skating partner.
It’s sweet, funny, and spicy (aka everything you could ever want in a romance novel). You can read this as a standalone or keep going with “Wildfire” and “Daydream.”
If you already finished this book and want more, check out our list of books like “Icebreaker.”
5. “Spring Tide” by Ki Stephens
A physical therapy student, Harper wants to score an internship with the college’s baseball team to spend more time with her crush. But when her little white lie about dating one of the football players turns into a wild rumor, she’s not sure what to do.
Luca is secretly nursing an injury and trying his best to stay on the football field. He turns to Harper with a deal: He’ll play along as her (fake) football player boyfriend if she uses her physical therapy knowledge to help him secretly rehab his injury. What could go wrong?
This is the first in the Coastal University series and there’s also a related Coastal Rivals series if you get obsessed!
6. “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros
If you haven’t heard of “Fourth Wing,” are you even on BookTok?! This extremely popular series is well worth the hype, IMO.
War college isn’t your average college campus, but nothing about this series is average!
Violet is set to attend Basgiath War College to train to be a scribe, a recorder of history and war. Instead, her mother (who happens to be the commanding general of the army) forces her into the Riders Quadrant. Now, she’s stuck trying to bond a dragon and survive the first of three brutal years training to become a dragon rider ready for battle.
Xaden has every reason to hate Violet (their families have major beef) and they don’t quite get off on the right foot. But whether they like it or not (and they don’t), they’re stuck with each other, so they have to find some way to get along.
This enemies-to-lovers romance with a heaping dose of forced proximity is sure to capture your heart (and make you wish you were at a magical war college).
7. “Blind Side” by Kandi Steiner
Fresh off a breakup from his high school sweetheart, Clay is a bit of a mess. He used to be the easiest football player to manage for Gianna, the team’s public relations coordinator. Now, he’s become her biggest headache.
After Clay watches Gianna try to clumsily flirt with her crush, he hatches a plan: They pretend to date to make his ex jealous and snag the attention of her crush. Due to her lack of dating experience, Gianna is hesitant but agrees on the condition that Clay teaches her what to do in the bedroom.
This is the second in the Red Zone Rivals series, but you can definitely read it as a standalone.
8. “The Perfect First” by Maya Hughes
On the surface, Reece and Persephone have nothing in common. She’s a sheltered whiz kid and he’s a popular football player. Persephone is armed with a list of things she wants to do for the first time (drinking at a bar, skinny dipping, losing her virginity) and she’s on a mission to check them all off.
Reece offers to help her with her list, with one caveat: He’ll help her find the perfect guy to help her lose her virginity, but it won’t be him. He’s got way too much baggage for someone as sweet and kind as Persephone. One kiss is all it takes for Reece to change his mind—but can he convince Persephone to give their future a shot?
9. “The Dugout” by Meghan Quinn
College baseball player Carson was primed to turn pro when an injury forced him into another year at Brentwood University in Chicago. While his friends all move onto the majors, he’s stuck at Brentwood for a lonely senior year, proving to potential teams that he has what it takes to make it.
If there’s one thing Milly loves above all else, it’s baseball. She grew up around the sport and is a staple at all of Brentwood’s games, so it’s not hard for her to see that something just isn’t right with Carson’s game. She’s the only one who can help him turn things around—that is, if she agrees to help him out.
This is the second in the Brentwood Boys series, but you can read it as a standalone if you prefer. There are eight books in the series and half of them are college sports romances, while the others take place in the major leagues and have more of a new adult/contemporary romance vibe.
10. “The Year We Fell Down” by Sarina Bowen
Corey was supposed to be playing varsity hockey at Harkness College, but an accident has her in a wheelchair and off the ice. In the other handicap-accessible dorm room is Adam, a hockey player with a leg broken in two places. Who happens to have a girlfriend.
Between their love of video games and hockey and their shared disappointment of not being able to be on the ice, Corey and Adam bond quickly. One night is all it takes to move out of the friend zone and into uncharted territory.
This is the first in the Ivy Years series. You can dive headfirst into the whole series or read as a standalone if your Goodreads TBR is too long.
11. “Waking Olivia” by Elizabeth O’Roark
College track star Olivia is starting over at a new university after being kicked off her last squad (she doesn’t look for trouble, it chases her!). She might be one of the best long distance runners in the country, but even she can’t outrun her past.
Her coach, Will, is determined to help her get back on track. When he pushes her to open up, she does, just to get him off her back. To her surprise, Will meets her every revelation with kindness and warmth. Soon, they’re closer than either could have imagined.
This book has angst, emotion, passion, and one heck of a slow burn. Run, don’t walk!
12. “Wait for You” by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Avery moves across the country for college with a single focus: show up to class on time, keep her head down, and try to move on from her debilitating past. One thing that wasn’t in her plan? Falling for Cam, the gorgeous, witty, charming guy she can’t seem to stop running into.
But what should be a happy time turns dark when Avery starts getting threatening messages and phone calls. Someone from her past is back and wants to expose everything Avery has worked hard to keep locked away.
If you liked Tammara Webber’s “Easy,” you’ll love this!
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