From Heartstopper, to Bridgerton, to Off Campus, to Heated Rivalry, the last few years have been fantastic for romance novels that have been adapted into television shows. Romance books make for great movies as well, like To All the Boys I've Loved Before and Love at First Sight, but the television format lends itself particularly well to them. In a TV show, the romance has the opportunity to build over time, there's room to give attention to the side characters, and viewers get to live in that world for a while longer.
While there is a lot to love on television for romance fans right now, there can never be enough romance shows, and there are plenty of great books out there that have yet to be adapted. For fans of subgenres ranging from contemporary romance, to romantasy, to grounded fantasy involving time travel and ghosts, these are the romance books that would be perfect TV shows.
'The Simple Wild' (2018)
Written by K.A. Tucker
Image via Atria BooksThe Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker follows Calla Fletcher, a woman in her mid-twenties who loves her fast-paced life in Toronto. Calla once lived in rural Alaska when she was a baby, but she hasn't been back since her mother left with her in tow, and she barely knows her father, Wren, who still lives there. When Calla learns that Wren is dying, Calla visits to stay with him for a while, and to get to know him in the time that he has left.
While Calla gets reacquainted with Wren and his small town, she meets Jonah, a pilot who works for her dad. Calla and Jonah initially can't stand each other, due to how different they are from one another. They reluctantly end up spending more time together, and in spite of their initial impressions of each other, they slowly fall for one another. The Simple Wild would make a fantastic TV show, due to its idyllic setting and compelling cast of side characters. Initially, Calla and Jonah's journey from annoyance to love would be a lot of fun to watch over the course of a season, and there are two more books in the series that could be continuing seasons.
'Cemetery Boys' (2020)
Written by Aiden Thomas
Image via Swoon ReadsCemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas follows Yadriel Vélez Flores, a teenage boy who comes from a family of brujos and brujas. Yadriel is transgender, and his family is not fully accepting of his gender, so he decides to prove himself as a brujo. In an attempt to prove himself to his family, Yadriel tries to summon the ghost of his cousin, whom he believes has been killed. The ritual doesn't go as planned, though, and he ends up summoning Julian Diaz, a former classmate of his who has just died.
Due to its fantasy elements, many plot twists, and large cast of characters, Cemetery Boys would make for a great TV show. The romantic comedy-esque dynamic between Yadriel and Julian, combined with the high stakes of the supernatural variety, would make for a fun and nailbiting season of television. Additionally, with the sequel, Espíritu, set to release later this year, Cemetery Boys has a lot of content to expand on for a TV series.
'I've Got Your Number' (2012)
Written by Sophie Kinsella
Image via The Dial PressWhen happily engaged Poppy Wyatt loses both her engagement ring and her cellphone one afternoon, she takes a phone that she has found in the trash, and gives out the number in case her ring is found. Unfortunately for Poppy, it is the work phone of a grumpy businessman named Sam Roxton, but he agrees to share it with her, anyway. Such is I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella, an extremely cute rom-com where two polar opposites slowly grow to fall for each other when in a forced proximity situation.
I've Got Your Number would be an excellent TV show, because it could show Poppy and Sam's separate lives over the course of a season, as they gradually begin to communicate more and more through the phone. Their romance is a true slow-burn, and a movie wouldn't do justice to the moments of quiet pining that happen between the two of them throughout the novel, as her wedding day draws closer.
'An Enchantment of Ravens' (2017)
Written by Margaret Rogerson
Image via Margaret K. McElderry BooksThere is definitely a need for more television shows about faeries, and An Enchantment of Ravens would perfectly fill this void. This romantasy novel follows Isobel, a human and a very talented painter. In exchange for enchantments, she paints portraits of the fair folk, who are unable to do any human craft themselves. When Isobel accidentally paints sorrow in the eyes of the autumn prince, Rook, she finds herself in a dangerous situation.
As punishment for making him look weak, Rook brings Isobel with him to his kingdom to go on trial. The journey becomes an epic quest full of unexpected adventures, and along the way, Isobel and Rook slowly start to change their minds about each other. An Enchantment of Ravens would make for an excellent TV series. It has a beautiful fantasy setting, a sweet romance that develops over time, and an exciting quest that builds up to one dangerous event: Isobel's trial.
Collider Exclusive · Game of Thrones Personality Quiz Which Game of Thrones House Do You Belong To? Stark · Lannister · Targaryen · Baratheon · Tyrell
Five great houses. Five completely different answers to the same question: how do you hold power in a world that will take it from you the moment you stop paying attention? Eight questions will determine where your loyalties — and your nature — truly lie.
🐺Stark
🦁Lannister
🐉Targaryen
🦌Baratheon
🌹Tyrell
FIND YOUR HOUSE →
01
Someone powerful is acting dishonourably and everyone knows it. What do you do? In Westeros, the answer to this question has ended more than one great house.
ACall it out, openly and on the record. If honour means anything, it has to mean something when it's costly. BUse it. Information about someone else's dishonour is leverage — and leverage is power. CAct decisively to correct it — with or without the approval of those around me. DChallenge them directly. Strength settles disputes more honestly than courtroom manoeuvring. ENavigate carefully — build alliances, apply quiet pressure, and create a situation where the right outcome becomes inevitable.
NEXT QUESTION →
02
What is the source of your power? Every house endures because of something. What is it for yours?
AThe loyalty of people who trust me — earned over generations, not bought with gold. BWealth, intelligence, and the willingness to use both without sentiment. CA legacy so fearsome and a vision so total that opposition becomes unthinkable. DPhysical strength, military force, and the respect that comes from being the kind of person nobody wants to fight. ECharm, connection, and the ability to make powerful people feel that my success is also theirs.
NEXT QUESTION →
03
Who do you truly fight for? Strip away the banners and the words. The honest answer tells you everything.
AMy family and my people — those who depend on me and have kept faith with me through everything. BMy family — the ones who share my blood, even when they exhaust me, even when they disappoint me. CMy cause — a vision larger than any single person, including me. DMyself, and those few who've proven themselves worth fighting beside. EMy house — its name, its future, the position I intend to leave it in when I'm gone.
NEXT QUESTION →
04
How do you deal with your enemies? A house's method reveals its character as clearly as its words ever could.
AHonestly — I face them directly, and I give quarter when it's warranted. BThoroughly — I don't leave loose ends, and I don't make the same enemy twice. CDecisively — fire answers questions that diplomacy only delays. DHead-on — I'd rather meet a threat on the battlefield than behind closed doors. EElegantly — I prefer to make former enemies into allies, or at least into people who owe me something.
NEXT QUESTION →
05
What kind of ruler do you believe in? Westeros is full of answers to this question. Most of them end badly.
AA just one — someone who serves the realm rather than using it, who leads by example rather than fear. BA capable one — someone smart enough to navigate the game, ruthless enough to win it, and realistic about what winning costs. CA transformative one — someone who doesn't just rule what exists but reshapes what's possible. DA strong one — someone whose authority is beyond question because the alternative is obviously worse. EA wise one — someone who understands that the realm is fed by more than armies, and that a full stomach keeps more peace than a sharp sword.
NEXT QUESTION →
06
You suffer a devastating loss. How does your house respond? How a house handles defeat tells you more about it than how it handles victory.
AWe grieve, properly and together — and then we endure, because endurance is what we do. BWe adapt. We reassess. And we ensure that whoever caused this loss comes to regret it completely. CWe burn hotter. Setbacks don't soften us — they clarify what needs to happen next. DWe hit back. Grief and revenge are the same motion in our house. EWe regroup quietly, rebuild our position, and return when we're ready — on our terms, not theirs.
NEXT QUESTION →
07
Which of these truths about Westeros do you most believe? Every house has a philosophy. This is yours.
AThe lone wolf dies, but the pack survives. Nothing matters more than the people you protect. BA Lannister always pays their debts — in gold or in kind. Reputation is built on consistency. CI am the blood of the dragon. Some destinies are written before the person who carries them is born. DOurs is the fury. When we move, we move completely — and we don't stop until it's done. EGrowing strong means knowing when to bloom and when to wait. Patience is its own kind of power.
NEXT QUESTION →
08
The Iron Throne is within reach. What do you do? The answer reveals not just your ambition — but your character.
AClaim it only if the realm needs me to — and rule in a way that makes it worth having. BEnsure someone who owes us sits in it. The power behind the throne is safer than the throne itself. CTake it. It was always meant to be mine — I feel that in my bones and in my blood. DSeize it — with both hands, without hesitation. Opportunity in Westeros does not wait to be asked. EPosition my house to be indispensable to whoever sits there — influence outlasts any single reign.
REVEAL MY HOUSE →
The Maester Has Spoken Your House Is…
Your answers point to the great house whose words, values, and way of surviving in Westeros match your own. Bend the knee — or don't. That's very much up to you.
🐺 House Stark
Winter is Coming — and you have always known it. You prepare not out of fear but out of duty, because the people who depend on you deserve someone who takes the long view.
- You lead with honour even when it costs you, because you understand that a reputation built on integrity is the only one worth having.
- Your loyalty to family and people runs deep — not as sentiment but as a code that doesn't bend when things get difficult.
- The North endures because Starks endure — not by being the cleverest players in the game, but by being the kind of people others are willing to follow into the cold.
- You are that kind of person. The pack survives. The lone wolf dies. You already know which one you are.
🦁 House Lannister
You understand the game — its rules, its exceptions, and exactly when the rules become the exception. You play it without illusions and without apology.
- You are sharper than most people realise, and you have learned to use that gap to your advantage.
- A Lannister always pays their debts — and you always keep your word, because your word is an instrument of power, and instruments must be kept in working order.
- You love your family with a ferocity that sometimes blinds you, and you know it, and you do it anyway.
- The lion doesn't concern itself with the opinion of sheep. Neither, in the end, do you.
🐉 House Targaryen
You carry a sense of destiny that is difficult to explain and impossible to ignore — the feeling that you are not simply participating in the world but meant to reshape it.
- You are capable of extraordinary things, and you know it, and that knowledge is both your greatest strength and your most dangerous quality.
- Fire and blood are not just words to you — they are a philosophy about what change requires and what it costs.
- The Targaryens at their best were transformative rulers who broke chains and defied the limits of what anyone thought possible.
- At your best, so are you. The dragon has three heads. You are one of them.
🦌 House Baratheon
You are a force — direct, powerful, and difficult to ignore when you enter a room or a conflict. You do not negotiate with challenges. You meet them.
- Ours is the fury — and yours is a kind of intensity that commands attention, respect, and occasionally fear from those who underestimate what's behind it.
- You value strength and straight dealing. You'd rather know where you stand in a fight than navigate a web of courtly whispers.
- The Baratheons built their house on the back of one of the greatest military victories in Westerosi history — and then struggled with what came after.
- The lesson of your house is that winning is not the end of the story. Governing is. You are learning that too.
🌹 House Tyrell
You understand that power does not always announce itself — that sometimes it arrives with flowers, good wine, and a smile that doesn't quite reach the eyes.
- Growing strong is your house's motto, and you live it: patiently, strategically, always investing in the relationships and resources that will matter most when it counts.
- You are charming by choice and calculating by nature — a combination that makes you one of the most effective players in any room you enter.
- The Tyrells fed King's Landing and shaped its politics without ever sitting on the Iron Throne — and they were arguably more powerful for it.
- You know that the person who controls the food controls the kingdom. And you always know where the food is.
↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ
'One Last Stop' (2021)
Written by Casey McQuiston
Image via St. Martin's PressAfter Red, White, & Royal Blue, it is common knowledge that Casey McQuiston novels make excellent adaptations. McQuiston's One Last Stop would be best adapted as a TV show instead of a movie, though, due to its time-travel elements and dynamic central friend group. One Last Stop follows August Landry, an isolated college student with a complicated family history, who moves to New York City looking for a fresh start. While regularly commuting on the subway, August meets Jane Su, a woman who is always there at the same time as her.
Unfortunately, the relationship can go nowhere, because Jane is actually from the '70s, and she's been trapped on the subway for as long as she can remember. While working at a local pancake restaurant and becoming friends with her new roommates, August spends her time trying to help Jane reignite memories from her past — even if it means that she will lose her. One Last Stop would be a perfect TV show, to show August and Jane's relationship developing over time, and it could even have a flashback episode dedicated to Jane's past.
'The Song of Achilles' (2011)
Written by Madeline Miller
Image via Ecco PressThe Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller would make for an absolutely devastating historical romance miniseries that leaves viewers heartbroken at the end. The novel is a retelling of the story of Patroclus and Achilles, from meeting and becoming friends while young, to falling in love in spite of everything that stands in their path. Set over a long period of time, and with a significant portion of the novel against the backdrop of The Trojan War, The Song of Achilles would make an amazing TV show.
There is something so compelling and captivating about a tragic romance, and a TV show would give The Song of Achilles the room it needs to explore the dynamic between Patroclus and Achilles with the nuance it deserves. Additionally, the time jumps in the novel could naturally occur at the beginnings of specific episodes, in the way that the adaptation of One Day did.
'Get a Life, Chloe Brown' (2019)
Written by Talia Hibbert
Image via Avon BooksGet a Life, Chloe Brown would make an excellent first season of a TV show, and the following novels about Chloe's sisters, Dani and Eve, could easily be the second and third seasons, in the style of Bridgerton. The contemporary rom-com follows Chloe Brown, a chronically ill woman whose life has slowly and increasingly become much smaller than she ever intended. Finally, after a scare, Chloe decides to change her life.
Chloe creates a list of items to push herself out of her comfort zone, and she vows to complete the list with the help of her handsome new neighbor, Red. Get a Life, Chloe Brown would work so well as a TV show. Each episode could have Chloe and Red checking a separate item off of the list as they gradually fall for each other. Additionally, Chloe's journey of fighting to get her life back while suffering from chronic pain is incredibly moving, and it would translate beautifully to the medium of television.
'Anna and the French Kiss' (2010)
Written by Stephanie Perkins
Image via SpeakAfter XO, Kitty, television fans may be looking for another boarding school romance about an American girl who goes to school abroad. One such novel that fits the description is Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. The novel follows Anna Oliphant, a teenage girl entering her senior year of high school. With a great best friend, and a job at a local movie theater where she gets to work with her crush, Anna is very upset when her father sends her to boarding school in Paris against her wishes.
Anna soon finds herself joining a close-knit friend group at School for America in Paris, also known as SOAP. This is where she meets Étienne St. Clair, with whom she immediately feels an intense spark. Unfortunately for Anna, St. Clair has a serious girlfriend, though. The two become extremely close friends, and he helps her get to know the city, as she gradually falls in love with both Paris and St. Clair. Due to its picturesque setting, sweet central love story, and hilarious dialogue, Anna and the French Kiss would be an amazing TV show.
'Check, Please!'
Written by Ngozi Ukazu
Image via First Second BooksCheck, Please! by Ngozi Ukazu is a series of two graphic novels that follows all four years of college for Eric "Bitty" Bittle, a former figure skating champion who loves to bake. Now on a scholarship to play hockey for Samwell University, Bitty has to adjust to the unexpected parts of playing hockey– namely checking, which scares him a great deal. Over time, Bitty slowly gets the hang of hockey, thanks to his reluctant team captain, Jack Zimmermann, who doesn't seem to like him all that much.
With an entertaining and hilarious cast of characters, as well as a really lovely slowburn romance, Check, Please! would make for an amazing sitcom. Bitty and Jack's love story develops very slowly, with Jack initially coming off as a mean grump, before gradually revealing his kind and caring nature. A TV series would allow the romance to take its time, while also giving focus to Bitty's teammates, and to his vlog. With the success of Heated Rivalry and Off Campus, it's safe to assume that audiences would welcome another hockey romance.
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