I decided to analyze the 550 bookstores in the directory (as of September 30, 2026) to determine the most common words and names used.

Naming Tips

Before I dive into the findings, here are a few tips when it comes to bookstore names:

• Do your research. Use the Romance Bookstore Directory as a research tool! Be sure to also conduct thorough internet searches, check local business directories and registries, and reserve available internet domains and social media handles before finalizing your name.

• Think big. I’ve heard the argument that duplication is fine as long as the stores aren’t in the same state/country or same industry. While this may avoid potential trademark issues, remember that the internet is global and having stores with the same name can hurt your SEO and confuse customers, even if they’re physically located far apart or in different industries.

• Make it obvious. To help differentiate between duplicate names, make your location clear on your homepage and in your social media bios. This includes clearly listing your state and country, as not everyone will be familiar with local descriptors or abbreviations.

Methodology

A few points about my methodology:

• I excluded the most obvious words from this analysis, including:

  • romance

  • book/books

  • bookshop, bookstore, librarie (French for bookstore), and other nouns that identify the type of store (boutique, cafe, library, mobile, truck, etc.).

• I only counted stores with multiples locations once.

• I included variations of the words as indicated with brackets in the counts.

• I included nested and compound words in the counts, such as Lovestruck for Love or Unbound and Lovebound for Bound.

• Love and Lover are the only nested words that I counted separately.

33 Most Common Words

Here are the 33 most common words in romance bookstores names.

Given that there are numerous ties on the list, the words are ranked alphabetically within each tied group for the sake of simplicity.

1. Love - 42 stores

2. Chapter(s)- 31 stores

3. Page(s) - 25 stores

4. Read(s) - 19 stores

5. Bound - 18 stores

6. Blush(ing) - 15 stores

7. Ink(ed) - 14 stores

8. Shelf - 14 stores

9. Fiction - 13 stores

10. Spice or Spicy - 13 stores

11. Lit - 11 stores

12. Cover(s) - 10 stores

13. Lover(s) - 10 stores

14. Novel(s) - 9 stores

15. Girl(s) - 8 stores

16. Romantic(s) - 8 stores

17. Sweet(er) - 8 stores

18. Burn(ing) - 7 stores

19. Forbidden - 7 stores

20. Good - 7 stores

21. Swoon - 7 stores

22. Little(st) - 6 stores

23. Lore - 6 stores

24. Nook - 6 stores

25. Romantasy - 6 stores

26. Trope(s) - 6 stores

27. Affair(s) - 5 stores

28. Bad - 5 stores

29. Enchanted - 5 stores

30. Ivy - 5 stores

31. Quill - 5 stores

32. Spine - 5 stores

33. TBR - 5 stores

Those are the 33 most common words, but what are the most common names? I cover that in the next section, but you’ll have to be a paid subscriber to find out! For just US$5/month or US$50/year you can access all my paid content.

Subscribe now

Read more

Free subscribers get access to the Top 20 Ranking, while paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, including the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: September 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on four Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: September 6, 13, 19, and 27, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. Verity by Colleen Hoover

2. 🆕 Burn of the Everflame by Penn Cole

3. 🆕 The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

4. Trust No One by Mary Burton

5. The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson

6. 🆕 Sweet Redemption by Bella Matthews

7. 🆕 Fallen Rook by L.J. Shen

8. Threshing Day by Rebecca Yarros

9. 🆕 Peaks and Promises by Claire Kingsley

10. Just for the Plot by Meghan Quinn

11. 🆕 Until She Dies by Kendra Elliot

12. 🆕 The Daddy’s Girl by Sara Cate

13. 🆕 Blood of Truth and Traitors by Aria Ashbrook

14. The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

15. 🆕 What About Us by Kristen Proby

16. 🆕 Savage Truce by Michelle Heard

17. A Court of Splintered Harmony by Sarah J. Maas

18. 🆕 Magical Midlife Conclave by K.F. Breene

19. 🆕 Web of Vows and Vengeance by Aria Ashbrook

20. Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander

Read more

September had 7 romance and romantasy books on the list, including the first holiday romance to make an appearance this year (Grim Tidings by B.K. Borison). Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis reappeared on the list in time with the release of its movie adaptation on Prime Video, which dropped on September 23.

3 of the 7 books appeared on the September 2026 Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers list (full list and analysis coming soon).

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Period:
September 2026 (4 weeks: August 30 to September 26, 2026)1

Methodology: The romance and romantasy books on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time (if needed).

September 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: September 2026 (full list and analysis coming soon)

1. The Knave and the Moon by Rachel Gillig
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 4)
   All Time: 2 weeks

2. Burn of the Everflame by Penn Cole 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 3)
   All Time: 1 week

3. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 22 weeks

4. Grim Tidings by B.K. Borison
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

5. The Emperor’s Enemy by Jasmine Mas
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 1 week

6. Fallen Rook by L.J. Shen 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 12)
   All Time: 1 week

7. Tempest by Victoria Aveyard
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 15)
   All Time: 1 week

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

Currently, 28 of the 550 bookstores in the directory are Supporters—that’s only 5%. I’d love to see that number grow to at least 10% by the end of the year. If you own or work at a romance bookstore and are interested in becoming a Romance Bookstore Directory Supporter, learn how. It only costs US$5/month or US$50/year, plus you get access to lots of other helpful data.

Overview

According to my research, there are now 335 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world, 235 (or 70%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 534 (384 or 72% of which are in the United States).

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

So far in 2026, there has been a net increase of 101 physical romance bookstores worldwide (106 have opened, 5 have closed). In the United States specifically, there’s been a net increase of 75 physical romance bookstores.

Growth Rates (as of September 30, 2026)

Worldwide

• 2022: 10 stores

• 2023: 33 stores, 230% increase (3.3x)

• 2024: 95 stores, 188% increase (2.9x)

• 2025: 234 stores, 146% increase (2.5x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 609%

United States

• 2022: 5 stores

• 2023: 18 stores, 260% increase (3.6x)

• 2024: 68 stores, 278% increase (3.8x)

• 2025: 160 stores, 132% increase (2.4x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 789%

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the romance bookstore openings and closings! 🗓️

Upgrade to paid

There are now 550 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon).

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently opened and added stores in each category!

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

Read more

Free subscribers get access to the Top 20 Ranking, while paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, as well as the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: August 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on four Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: August 4, 10, 16, and 25, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. 🆕 Just for the Plot by Meghan Quinn

2. Verity by Colleen Hoover

3. 🆕 Cross Check by Chelsea Curto

4. The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson

5. 🆕 Starside by Alex Aster

6. How to Ruin a Wedding by Elba Luz

7. Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune

8. Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander

9. 🆕 Picture This by Devney Perry

10. Rules for the Summer by Meghan Quinn

11. 🆕 The Castle in the Glen by Rhys Bowen

12. 🆕 Marriage & Mockery by Wren Shaw

13. Haunting Adeline by H. D. Carlton

14. 🆕 Philippa Flynn’s Year of Panic and Piracy by Jacqueline Firkins

15. 🆕 How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

16. The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

17. 🆕 King of War by Sadie Kincaid

18. 🆕 Cruel Lies by Nicole Fox

19. 🆕 Our Nanny is a Vampire by Lindsey Devin

20. 🆕 Bookish Girl’s Emergency Contact Is a Lycan King by Elara Haze

Read more

August was a very unusual month, with only 4 romance and romantasy books on the list, all of which were romantasy. Half (2 of 4) of the books also appeared on the Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (as marked below). Elle Kennedy’s Off Campus series completely disappeared from the list, while A Court of Thorns and Roses managed to snag a #15 spot for one week.

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Period:
August 2026 (4 weeks: August 2 to 29, 2026)1

Methodology: The romance and romantasy books on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time (if needed).

August 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: August 2026 (full list and analysis coming soon)

1. Adversary to the Villain by Hanna Nicole Maehrer
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 2 weeks

2. The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 6)
   All Time: 1 week

3. The Lion and the Deathless Dark by Carissa Broadbent
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 1 week

4. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 15)
   All Time: 53 weeks

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

I added several Australian romance bookstores this month, thanks to a reader who directed me to the Australian Romance Readers Association list of romance bookstores (thanks, Jarnae!).

Welcome to new Supporter of the directory, Verse & Vine, a romance-focused bookstore in Poulsbo, Washington. If you’re interested in becoming a Romance Bookstore Directory Supporter, learn how.

Overview

According to my research, there are now 326 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world, 227 (or 70%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 528 (382 or 72% of which are in the United States).

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

So far in 2026, there has been a net increase of 93 physical romance bookstores worldwide (98 have opened, 5 have closed). In the United States specifically, there’s been a net increase of 69 physical romance bookstores.

Growth Rates (as of August 31, 2026)

Worldwide

• 2022: 10 stores

• 2023: 33 stores, 230% increase (3.3x)

• 2024: 95 stores, 188% increase (2.9x)

• 2025: 233 stores, 145% increase (2.5x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 606%

United States

• 2022: 5 stores

• 2023: 18 stores, 260% increase (3.6x)

• 2024: 68 stores, 278% increase (3.8x)

• 2025: 158 stores, 132% increase (2.3x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 778%

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the romance bookstore openings and closings! 🗓️

Upgrade to paid

There are now 539 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon).

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently opened and added stores in each category!

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

Read more

Read more

Free subscribers get access to the Top 20 Ranking, while paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, as well as the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: July 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on four Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: July 5, 14, 19, and 27, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. Rules for the Summer by Meghan Quinn

2. 🆕 Into the Fading Twilight by Catherine Cowles

3. 🆕 Tempting Venom by Rina Kent

4. Haunting Adeline by H. D. Carlton

5. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

6. Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander

7. My Emergency Contact is a Wolf Shifter by Roxie Ray

8. 🆕 Fox by Maya Alden

9. The Better Brother by Kai Lesy

10. The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

11. The Deal by Elle Kennedy

12. Fever Dream by Elsie Silver

13. The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson

14. The Score by Elle Kennedy

15. Crown Me Yours by Liv Zander

16. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy

17. 🆕 Wild Scottish Fate by Tricia O’Malley

18. Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

19. The Sky Beneath Her by Ellen Taylor

20. 🆕 Between Tides & Thunder by Leena Kazak

Read more

In July, only 36% (5 of 14) of the NYT romance best sellers appeared on the Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (as marked below), much lower than last month (78%) . . . plus, they were all titles from Elle Kennedy’s Off Campus series! Interestingly, Daggermouth popped up on the NYT list for the first time after being scooped by a traditional publisher earlier this year.

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Period:
July 2026 (5 weeks: June 28 to August 1, 2026)1

Methodology: The romance and romantasy books on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time (if needed).

July 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: July 2026 (full list and analysis coming soon)

1. The Deal by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 4 weeks (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 11 weeks

2. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 13)
   All Time: 9 weeks

3. The Score by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 14)
   All Time: 9 weeks

4. Daggermouth by H.M. Wolfe
   This Month: 1 weeks (Avg Rank: 6)
   All Time: 1 week

5. The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

6. (tied for #5) Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

7. (tied for #5) Tempting Venom by Rina Kent
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

8. The Legacy by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 9)
   All Time: 1 week

9. Just for the Plot by Meghan Quinn
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 10)
   All Time: 1 week

10. (tied for #9) The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 10)
    All Time: 1 week

11. A Forsaken Prophecy by Stacey McEwan
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
    All Time: 1 week

12. The Goal by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 12)
    All Time: 3 week2

13. Twisted Road by Christine Freehan
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 13)
    All Time: 1 week

14. Enter the Nightmare by Jayne Castle
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
    All Time: 1 week

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

Thanks to this great Instagram post by Sara-Jade Virtue (@BookMinxSJV) highlighting all the romance bookstores in the United Kingdom, I was able to fill in a few that were missing from the directory.

I was excited to be referenced in the recent The Washington Post article, “I love romance novels. Here’s why you should, too”. I’m the “according to one database” the article links to! (see screenshot below)

Romance bookstore Fiction & Friction in Australia made the news recently with this headline:

You can hear owner Brittany Schulz break down what happened in her Instagram reel:

Welcome to new Supporter of the directory, Vellum & Vine, Albuquerque’s first romance bookstore and coffee shop scheduled to open this summer. If you’re interested in becoming a Romance Bookstore Directory Supporter, learn how.

Overview

According to my research, there are now 300 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world, 211 (or 70%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 505 (370 or 73% of which are in the United States).

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

So far in 2026, there has been a net increase of 70 physical romance bookstores worldwide (74 have opened, 4 have closed). In the United States specifically, there’s been a net increase of 54 physical romance bookstores.

Growth Rates (as of July 31, 2026)

Worldwide

• 2022: 10 stores

• 2023: 33 stores, 230% increase (3.3x)

• 2024: 95 stores, 188% increase (2.9x)

• 2025: 230 stores, 142% increase (2.4x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 597%

United States

• 2022: 5 stores

• 2023: 18 stores, 260% increase (3.6x)

• 2024: 68 stores, 278% increase (3.8x)

• 2025: 157 stores, 131% increase (2.3x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 772%

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the romance bookstore openings and closings! 🗓️

Upgrade to paid

There are now 527 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon)—there was a net increase of 11 stores this month.

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently opened and added stores in each category!

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

Read more

Free subscribers get access to the Top 20 Ranking, while paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, as well as the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: June 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on four Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: June 8, 17, 21, and 29, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. Rules for the Summer by Meghan Quinn

2. The Deal by Elle Kennedy

3. The Score by Elle Kennedy

4. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy

5. Fever Dream by Elsie Silver

6. Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander

7. 🆕 Light Wielder by Rachel Schneider

8. Woman Down by Colleen Hoover

9. 🆕 The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

10. Mile High by Liz Tomforde

11. 🆕 The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez

12. The Goal by Elle Kennedy

13. The Better Brother by Kai Lesy

14. The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

15. Crown Me Yours by Liv Zander

16. 🆕 The Sky Beneath Her by Ellen Taylor

17. 🆕 The Tomorrow Tree by Carolyn Brown

18. 🆕 My Forever Girl by Laura Pavlov

19. 🆕 Sweet Salvation by Bella Matthews

20. Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry

Read more

In June, 78% (7 of 9)1 of the NYT romance best sellers appeared on the Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (as marked below), a bit higher than last month (69%). Surprisingly, there was only 1 Romantasy title on the NYT list this month. Not so surprisingly, the 4 main books from Elle Kennedy’s Off Campus series were on the list!

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Period:
June 2026 (4 weeks: May 31 to June 27, 2026)2

Methodology: The romance and romantasy books on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time.

June 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: June 2026 (full list and analysis coming soon)

1. The Deal by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 4 weeks (Avg Rank: 5)
   All Time: 7 weeks

2. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 4 weeks (Avg Rank: 12)
   All Time: 7 weeks

3. The Score by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 4 weeks (Avg Rank: 13)
   All Time: 7 weeks

4. Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune 🅰️
   This Month: 3 weeks (Avg Rank: 15)
   All Time: 6 weeks

5. Harvest Season by Brynne Weaver
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 5)
   All Time: 1 week

6. Light Wielder by Rachel Schneider 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 1 week

7. Every Summer After by Carley Fortune 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
   All Time: 11 weeks

8. The Goal by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
   All Time: 2 weeks

9. The Someday Garden by Ashley Poston
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
   All Time: 1 week

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

Welcome to new Supporter of the directory, Knotty Novels, Sacramento’s first all-romance book floor located inside Capital Books. If you’re interested in becoming a Romance Bookstore Directory Supporter, learn how.

Overview

According to my research, there are now 289 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world, 205 (or 71%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 492 (362 or 74% of which are in the United States).

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

So far in 2026, there has been a net increase of 59 physical romance bookstores worldwide (63 have opened, 4 have closed). In the United States specifically, there’s been a net increase of 48 physical romance bookstores.

Growth Rates (as of June 30, 2026)

Worldwide

• 2022: 10 stores

• 2023: 33 stores, 230% increase (3.3x)

• 2024: 95 stores, 188% increase (2.9x)

• 2025: 230 stores, 142% increase (2.4x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 597%

United States

• 2022: 5 stores

• 2023: 18 stores, 260% increase (3.6x)

• 2024: 68 stores, 278% increase (3.8x)

• 2025: 157 stores, 131% increase (2.3x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 772%

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the romance bookstore openings and closings! 🗓️

Upgrade to paid

There are now 516 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon)—there was a net increase of 41 stores this month (I discovered a lot of older online and pop-up stores).

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently opened and added stores in each category!

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

Read more

Free subscribers get access to the Top 20 Ranking, while paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, as well as the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: May 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on five Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: May 3, 10, 16, 25 and 31, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. The Deal by Elle Kennedy

2. 🆕 Rules for the Summer by Meghan Quinn

3. 🆕 King of Gluttony by Ana Huang

4. The Score by Elle Kennedy

5. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy

6. 🆕 Fever Dream by Elsie Silver

7. Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry

8. Dire Bound by Sable Sorensen

9. Crown Me Dead by Liv Zander

10. 🆕 Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen

11. 🆕 Kirill by Lilian Harris

12. Love Song by Elle Kennedy

13. Verity by Colleen Hoover

14. Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry

15. 🆕 The Heart You Kept by T L Swan

16. The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

17. 🆕 The Better Brother by Kai Lesy

18. 🆕 The Goal by Elle Kennedy

19. 🆕 Crown Me Yours by Liv Zander

20. 🆕 Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune

Read more

This month, 69% (9 of 13) of the NYT romance best sellers appeared on the Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (as marked below), a big increase from 39% last month.

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Period:
May 2026 (4 weeks: May 3 to 30, 2026)1

Methodology: The romance and romantasy book on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time.

May 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: May 2026 (full list and analysis coming soon)

1. The Deal by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 3 weeks (Avg Rank: 5)
   All Time: 3 weeks

2. Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune 🅰️
   This Month: 3 weeks (Avg Rank: 12)
   All Time: 3 weeks

3. The Mistake by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 3 weeks

4. The Score by Elle Kennedy 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 3 weeks

5. The Ballad of Falling Dragons by Sarah A. Parker 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 2 weeks

6. Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 9)
   All Time: 2 weeks

7. The Final Target by Nora Roberts
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 3)
   All Time: 1 week

8. Broken Dove by Dani Francis
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 1 week

9. The Daisy Chain Flower Shop by Laurie Gilmore
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

10. Phoebe Berman’s Gonna Lose It by Brooke Averick
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 9)
    All Time: 1 week

11. (tied for #10) Fever Dream by Elsie Silver 🅰️
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 9)
    All Time: 1 week

12. Rules for the Summer by Meghan Quinn 🅰️
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 13)
    All Time: 1 week

13. Starside by Alex Aster 🅰️
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 15)
    All Time: 1 week

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

In other news, I’ve added a listing of physical romance bookstores that have closed in 2025 and 2026 to my subscriber-only calendar (you can find the link below).

I’d also like to welcome two new Supporters of the directory:

• X&O Books, coming soon to Cypress, Texas

• XO Book Co., coming soon to Wellington, New Zealand.

Overview

According to my research, there are now 276 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world, 193 (or 70%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 452 (324 or 72% of which are in the United States).

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

So far in 2026, there has been a net increase of 49 physical romance bookstores worldwide (53 have opened, 4 have closed). In the United States specifically, there’s been a net increase of 39 physical romance bookstores.

Growth Rates (as of May 31, 2026)

Worldwide

• 2022: 10 stores

• 2023: 33 stores, 230% increase (3.3x)

• 2024: 94 stores, 185% increase (2.8x)

• 2025: 227 stores, 141% increase (2.4x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 588%

United States

• 2022: 5 stores

• 2023: 18 stores, 260% increase (3.6x)

• 2024: 67 stores, 272% increase (3.7x)

• 2025: 154 stores, 130% increase (2.3x)

3-Year Growth Rate from 2023 to 2025: 756%

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details…including a list of all the romance bookstore openings and closings! 🗓️

Upgrade to paid

There are now 475 bookstores in the directory (including Coming Soon)—there was a net increase of 11 stores this month.

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently opened and added stores in each category!

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

Read more

I’m answering these questions and more in this next installment of my NYT 15-Year Analysis series, which highlights findings from my research on the 15 years of data available since the The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers launched in 2011.

Some posts in the series will be free, but you’ll need to become a paid subscriber to access all the findings (only US$5/month or US$50/year).

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers1

Sales Period: 2011 to 2025

Methodology: I compiled and analyzed the data to determine the number of unique books and authors that appeared on the list each year during this 15-year time period.

Number of Unique Books

An average of 242 unique books appear on the list each year.

As you can see in the graph below, the annual number hit a high of 303 books in 2014 and a low of 175 books in 2023—a 42% decrease over 9 years (128 fewer books).

It seems very likely that the pandemic (which started in early 2020) had an impact on this number; however, a decrease had already started in 2017.

The number of books per year was the lowest from 2022 to 2024, but has made a substantial jump in 2025, increasing 28% in just one year (from 190 to 243 books).

Number of Unique Books on the List

• 2011*: 221 books

• 2012: 233 books

• 2013: 291 books

• 2014: 303 books

• 2015: 275 books

• 2016: 297 books

• 2017: 261 books

• 2018: 261 books

• 2019: 262 books

• 2020: 218 books

• 2021: 215 books

• 2022: 183 books

• 2023: 175 books

• 2024: 190 books

• 2025: 243 books

*Pro-rated as list started in February 2011

Number of Unique Authors

An average of 179 unique authors appear on the list each year.

Similar to the unique number of books, the number of unique authors hit a high of 209 authors in 2014 and a low of 135 authors in 2023—a 35% decrease over 9 years (74 fewer authors).

The number of authors was the lowest from 2022 to 2024, but has made a substantial jump in 2025, increasing 25% in just one year (from 147 to 184 authors).

Number of Unique Authors on the List

• 2011*: 167 authors

• 2012: 172 authors

• 2013: 202 authors

• 2014: 209 authors

• 2015: 202 authors

• 2016: 206 authors

• 2017: 191 authors

• 2018: 192 authors

• 2019: 197 authors

• 2020: 179 authors

• 2021: 172 authors

• 2022: 137 authors

• 2023: 135 authors

• 2024: 147 authors

• 2025: 184 authors

Note: I counted various writing duos and groups as unique authors. For example, James Patterson has published books with several different co-authors, so books by each unique pairing were counted separately as a unique author.

*Pro-rated as list started in February 2011

Percentage of Unique Authors

The percentage of unique authors represents the level of author variation on the list—the lower the number means less variation, i.e., a smaller number of authors overall, meaning more authors with multiple books on the list.

Interestingly, the highest level of author variation was in the early pandemic years, 82% and 80% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. The lowest level was 69% in 2013, 2014, and 2016.

Percentage of Unique Authors on the List

• 2011*: 76% (167 authors of 221 books)

• 2012: 74% (172 authors of 233 books)

• 2013: 69% (202 authors of 291 books)

• 2014: 69% (209 authors of 303 books)

• 2015: 73% (202 authors of 275 books)

• 2016: 69% (206 authors of 297 books)

• 2017: 73% (191 authors of 261 books)

• 2018: 74% (192 authors of 261 books)

• 2019: 75% (197 authors of 262 books)

• 2020: 82% (179 authors of 218 books)

• 2021: 80% (172 authors of 215 books)

• 2022: 75% (137 authors of 183 books)

• 2023: 77% (135 authors of 175 books)

• 2024: 77% (147 authors of 190 books)

• 2025: 76% (184 authors of 243 books)

*Pro-rated as list started in February 2011

2013 vs 2020

Check out this comparison:

• In 2013, 25 authors had 3 or more unique books on the list

• In 2020, only 6 authors had 3 or more unique books on the list.

In 2013, a number of romance authors started appearing on the list for the first time with multiples titles, often from the same series. A few of these authors/books were also self-published.

For example:

• Abbi Glines: 5 books from the Too Far and Perfection series (primarily self-published)

• Christina Lauren: 5 books from the Beautiful series

• H. M. Ward: 5 books, including installments from the Damaged and The Arrangement series (self-published)

• J. Kenner: 3 books from the Stark series

• J. C. Reed: 3 books from the Surrender Your Love series (self-published)

• Katy Evans: 3 books from the Real series

• Kyra Davis: 3 books from the Just One Night series

This increase in authors with multiples titles on the list helps explain the lower level of author variation in 2013.

In 2020, the pandemic started and it appears that a lot of authors who regularly had multiples titles on the list in a year were not able to achieve the same.

The 6 authors who managed to have 3 or more unique books on the list in 2020 are:

• Christine Feehan: 6 books

• Danielle Steel: 6 books

• Stuart Woods: 5 books

• Julia Quinn: 4 books (mostly backlist, thanks to Bridgerton!)

• David Baldacci: 3 books

• John Grisham: 3 books

This dramatic decrease in the number of authors with multiples titles on the list helps explain the higher level of author variation in 2020.

Most Books in One Year

Which authors have had the most books on the list in one year?

It’s a three-way tie between:

• Nora Roberts: 9 books in 2016

• Colleen Hover: 9 books in 2022

• Freida McFadden: 9 books in 2025

Stay tuned for more from the NYT15 series! Next I’ll be looking at trends in the average number of weeks on the list over the years.

I’m always fascinated by the differences between The New York Times and Amazon Kindle Store best sellers. This month, only 43% (6 of 14) of the NYT romance best sellers appeared on the Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (as marked below).

Data Source

List: The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers

Sales Periods:
April 2026 (5 weeks: March 29 to May 2, 2026)1

Methodology: The romance and romantasy book on the list are ranked by:

• number of weeks on the list this month

• then average rank this month

• then number of weeks on the list all time.

April 2026

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: April 2026

1. Game On by Navessa Allen 🅰️
   This Month: 5 weeks (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 5 weeks

2. The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez 🅰️
   This Month: 4 weeks (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 5 weeks

3. Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 5)
   All Time: 2 weeks

4. Purple State by Dana Perino 🅰️
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 2 weeks

5. (tied for #4) Starside by Alex Aster
   This Month: 2 weeks (Avg Rank: 7)
   All Time: 2 weeks

6. King of Gluttony by Ana Huang
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 3)
   All Time: 1 week

7. Twisted Pawn by L.J. Shen 🅰️
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 8)
   All Time: 1 week

8. Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 17 weeks

9. Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter
   This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 11)
   All Time: 1 week

10. Bulletproof by K.M. Moronova
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 12)
    All Time: 1 week

11. Lights Out by Navessa Allen 🅰️
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
    All Time: 31 weeks

12. Bloodsinger by Juliette Cross
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
    All Time: 1 weeks

13. (tied for #12) The Throne of Broken Gods by Amber V. Nicole
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 14)
    All Time: 1 weeks

14. The Auction by Sadie Kincaid
    This Month: 1 week (Avg Rank: 15)
    All Time: 1 weeks

Happy reading! Let me know if you have any questions.

Leave a comment

Paid subscribers get access to the full analysis, as well as the Top 100 list data I’ve compiled in Airtable—perfect for fellow data nerds who like to get into the details! Here’s a peak at what the spreadsheet/table looks like on desktop:

Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission.

Upgrade to paid

Data Source

List: Amazon Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid), US Kindle Store. Data accessed from Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter.1

Sales Period: April 2026

Methodology: This is an exclusive monthly ranking I’ve created in consultation with Kindletrends. It’s based on four Kindle Store Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) lists pulled throughout the month (accessed from the Kindletrends Romance Weekly Newsletter: April 4, 12, 19 and 26, 2026), which I’ve then compiled and ranked using a sum of ranks calculation. The Monthly Top 100 list generated is the basis for the analysis that follows.

Table of Contents

1. Top 20 Book Ranking (Free, all other sections Paid)

2. Overview

3. Publisher

4. Price

5. Publication Age

6. Point of View (POV)

7. Subgenre

8. Authors

9. Representation

10. Covers

11. Length

12. Series

13. Reviews

14. Ratings

1. Top 20 Book Ranking

Top 20 of Kindle Store Monthly Top 100 Best Sellers in Romance (Paid) list this month.

🆕 = New on Top 100 list this month compared to last month

1. 🆕 Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry

2. The Deal by Elle Kennedy

3. 🆕 Twisted Pawn by L.J. Shen

4. A Court of Thorns and Roses 6 by Sarah J. Maas (Pre-order)

5. A Court of Thorns and Roses 7 by Sarah J. Maas (Pre-order)

6. 🆕 Lift Me Up by Milly Johnson (First Reads)

7. Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry

8. In Her Own League by Liz Tomforde

9. 🆕 Wake-Up Calls by Mariah Stewart (First Reads)

10. 🆕 The Wrong Catch by C.R. Jane

11. 🆕 Game On by Navessa Allen

12. 🆕 The Ruler by Penelope Sky

13. The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

14. 🆕 Sweet Oblivion by Bella Matthews

15. Mistakes Were Made by Lucy Score

16. 🆕 The Wild Card by Piper Rayne

17. The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez

18. The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson

19. 🆕 My Dreadful Darling by H. D. Carlton

20. 🆕 Captivation Creek by Claire Kingsley

⬇️ Paid subscribers can see the full list below

Read more