The Soulmate Equation is a must-read, bestselling romance by Christina Lauren: the mastermind writing duo of Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings.
Laugh-out-loud funny and undeniably sexy, The Soulmate Equation introduces single mom Jess Davis, a sharp and caring woman with little faith in the dating world. That is until she hears about GeneticAlly, a groundbreaking new app that matches up partners using literal DNA. Jess is quickly disappointed when the app matches her with Dr. River Peña, the founder of the app and a man who she already knows well — and knows for a fact that he is not her soulmate.
When the app offers her a large sum of money to try and get to know River, she reluctantly agrees. Maybe there’s more to the science behind a soulmate than Jess had previously expected… or maybe this will be another disappointing attempt at finding love.
If you’re looking for razor-sharp banter and an endearing take on the single dad trope, then look no further than Ella Maise’s stand-alone rom-com To Hate Adam Connor.
What is the hilariously feisty Lucy Meyers to do when award-winning actor and surprisingly handsome single dad Adam Connor moves in next door? Well, maybe spying on him wasn’t the best idea, but it’s what she did anyway — what she didn’t expect was that Adam Connor would have her thrown in jail for it. Not the best start to their relationship, but Lucy and Adam have more interactions ahead of them — hopefully, this first impression didn’t stick.
You can buy To Hate Adam Connor here, and fans of this lighthearted romance read will also enjoy the preceding companion novel, To Love Jason Thorn.
The Match by Sarah Adams
Sarah Adams writes charming closed-door romances that you won’t want to put down, and The Match is no exception.
The novel’s protagonist, Evie, works for a company that matches clients with service dogs — which is how she meets single dad Jacob, who is looking to find a dog for his young daughter. Despite his good looks that she can’t help but notice, Jacob’s personality has her wanting to be as far away from him as possible. But the more she gets to know him, the more she realizes that he isn’t all bad, and dreaming of something she knows she probably shouldn’t be: a family.
Lucy Score’s wildly popular series debut, Things We Never Got Over, will have you laughing, crying, and swooning right along with the lead characters!
Naomi Witt isn’t your traditional runaway bride: she isn’t just running away from her ex-fiance, she is also running towards her twin sister Tina. But Tina hasn’t changed from her irresponsible ways after all, and she dries up all of Naomi’s cash and makes a run for it, leaving behind her eleven-year-old daughter.
With a preteen now in her care, Naomi is lucky enough to receive the help of the town’s resident loner, Knox. Knox doesn’t do drama, and he’s prepared to get Naomi back on her feet and then dip out of her life. But with unexpected feelings thrown into the mix, things are about to get a lot more complicated.
Maren Moore’s The Newspaper Nanny is a short, sweet, single-dad romance read that will have readers turning pages as fast as possible.
The Newspaper Nanny is brimming with lovable tropes as it follows the budding romance between the bright college student Juliet and her boss Liam, a single dad and professional hockey coach. Juliet loves nannying for Liam’s little girls, but a professional line is crossed when the two share a few kisses with one another — can their relationship recover?
Bestselling author Abby Jimenez dazzles again with Life’s Too Short, the third in her loosely connected Friend Zone trilogy.
Vanessa Price is living the dream, traveling the globe with millions of followers and fans supporting her financially. Things take a dramatic turn when Vanessa’s half-sister leaves her with custody of her baby daughter, and Vanessa’s travels are put on an indefinite, baby-induced hold.
Help comes where Vanessa least expects it: from her next-door neighbor and handsome lawyer acquaintance, Adrian Copeland. Adrian comes with an unexpected set of baby-taming skills, and Vanessa is beyond grateful for his assistance. However, when she finds herself catching feelings for him, she begins to fear that she’s falling for a future that might never come to be.
Tarah Dewitt’s lovable rom-com Funny Feelings is the epitome of warmth and wit in perfectly pressed literary form.
Meet Farley Jones: she’s pursuing a career in stand-up comedy and being thrust into fake dating a man who is everything, in both her personal and professional life. It took Meyer Harrigan some time to agree to be pushed back into the spotlight; he’s reserved with the hopes of protecting his daughter from unnecessary media attention. But he’d do anything for Farley — even when helping her is bringing to light feelings that threaten to ruin their relationship forever.
You can purchase Funny Feelings here, and prepare to be swept up into an excellent stand-alone romance that will have you hooked from the first page to the last.
In A Jam by Kate Canterbary
Sweet, swoony, and full of spice: Kate Canterbary’s In A Jam is a deliciously inviting and wholly unforgettable romance read that you won’t be able to put down.
In A Jam follows the precocious Shay Zucconi as she moves back to her hometown to… get married? Shay’s step-grandmother left her a tulip farm when she passed, with two conditions: Shay needs to move back to her small-town home in Rhode Island, and she needs to be married within a year. Good thing she’s moving back to the town where Noah Barden lives, a single dad to his niece and the man who had a crush on Shay for years in high school.
You can buy In A Jam here, and you’re sure to enjoy reading about Noah and Shay’s delightful small-town romance.
Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake by Alexis Hall
Beloved novelist Alexis Hall has baked up something good with Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake, the first in the three-book Winner Bakes All series.
Single mom Rosaline Palmer has just landed a prized spot on a popular baking show, and the prize money is just what she needs to give her daughter the life she knows she deserves. Things heat up when she meets two of her fellow competitors: charming and proper Alain Pope, and the quiet electrician Harry Dobson. Rosaline is no longer just baking to win — she’s baking for her heart now, too.
Two well-meaning matchmakers meet their match in Rachel Lynn Solomon’s charming novel Weather Girl.
Set in the rainy city of Seattle, Washington, a TV meteorologist named Ari and a sports reporter named Russell team up to try and reunite their divorced bosses. Things go well at the start, but when chemistry begins building between Ari and Russell, they’re forced to confront hard truths about themselves that neither of them was ready for.
You can buy Weather Girl here, and prepare for a read that deftly balances moving emotional strengths with light and funny flirtation.
Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover
Colleen Hoover’s writing is wildly popular, and Reminders of Him is one of her finest works, with unique emotional depth and romance that you’ll be rooting for.
Kenna Rowan served five years in prison after a heartbreaking accident, and once she’s released the only thing she wants to do is reunite with her four-year-old daughter. The people in her daughter’s life don’t trust Kenna enough to let her near her daughter, and the only way she has in is through Ledger Ward.
Ledger is the only man who will let Kenna near her daughter, but as the two of them become increasingly involved with one another, the risk of losing her connection to her daughter grows stronger. Kenna will do anything to rebuild what she broke and be granted a life with her daughter and the man she loves — but is it too late?
You can purchase Reminders of Himhere, and you’re sure to enjoy this hopeful story of redemption from literary mastermind Colleen Hoover.
One Plus One by Jojo Moyes
Jojo Moyes is best known for writing tear-jerking, unforgettable beach reads, and One Plus One is no exception.
Jess is a single mom with a little too much on her plate: from being abandoned by her husband to her teenage stepson being bullied. Worst of all, her daughter has an educational opportunity that she would hate to miss, but Jess has nowhere to get the money for it.
Enter Jess’s knight-in-shining-armor, who steps in and pays for everything she needs. The only catch? This knight-in-shining-armor is none other than the arrogant, wealthy techy who she is unlucky enough to house clean for. So why is he doing favors for Jess?
Class Act by Aspen Hadley is a cute, clean, and can’t-miss romance that will have readers flipping pages late into the night.
Meet Hailey Thomas: she’s a second-grade teacher with a knack for internet stalking, and when one of her students keeps bragging about her rich single dad, she can’t help but do some sleuthing for herself. It’s all fun and games until the object of her stalking, Ford Whittaker himself, storms into her classroom and accuses her of scheming with his daughter.
She vows to let the stalking rest, but when she continues running into Ford around town, she starts to wonder whether she misjudged Ford after their first meeting. Maybe they have more in common than she had anticipated.
The Naughty, The Nice, and The Nanny by Willa Nash
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Festive, trope-driven romance rules the page in Willa Nash’s The Naughty, The Nice, and the Nanny.
There’s nothing worse than accepting a short-term nannying job, only to discover that the little girl in question is a nightmare, and her single dad is none other than the elusive billionaire Maddox Holiday. That’s the Maddox Holiday who Natalie, the nanny, had a crush on for years in high school. She can get through seven days of this, right?
Rachel Winters’ Would Like to Meet is a cute and quirky contemporary romance that’s littered with well-written characters and laugh-out-loud dialogue.
Evie Summers is a cynic through and through, but nothing can stop her from re-enacting as many rom-com tropes as she can manage in the hopes of convincing her client Ezra to produce the romantic screenplay she’s been waiting for. Evie can’t seem to stop embarrassing herself in front of the father-daughter duo of Ben and Annette, but that won’t stop her from trying to find a meet-cute of her own — that is, for the good of her career, of course.
Allie Marie’s False Start has everything a good rom-com needs: from fake dating to office rivalry and a passionate single father.
Office rivals Annie Ainsley and Will Greenfield cook up a plan to save them both from holiday loneliness: pretending to date one another over Christmas. But when real chemistry gets in the way of their almost perfect scheme, the two of them have to decide what’s really worth fighting for (or over).
You can buy False Start here, and check out the rest of the Beachside Stories series for more sizzling romantic reads!
The Mostly Real McCoy by Julie Christianson
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The first in the four-book Apple Valley Love Stories series, The Mostly Real McCoy is a must-read, sweet and soft romance by novelist Julie Christianson.
The Mostly Real McCoy is a charming love story, told from the perspectives of both the leads, single dad Mac and temporary nanny Brooke. Brooke falls for the warm and caring Mac and his precious daughter Daisy soon after she steps foot in their home — but the last thing she wants to do is hope for a future that she knows will never be hers.
However, the more Brooke gets to know Mac, the more she begins to see that their future expectations might be the same. Can Brooke and Mac find love together, even when their pasts are practically worlds apart?
If you’re looking for a book that’s as full of depth as it is full of laughter, then Helena Hunting’s Meet Cute is the right book for you.
Daxton Hughes betrayed Kailyn Flowers once before, and she isn’t keen on letting him do so a second time. But when he comes to her for help after becoming the legal guardian of his thirteen-year-old sister, Kailyn knows she wants to do everything she can. As long as she keeps her guard up, she should be fine — no matter how strong their chemistry is.
Jennifer Peel’s The Valentine Inn is an inviting romantic novel that’s sure to charm even the most reluctant of readers into submission.
Meet Charlotte Valentine: having a crush on her boss was going just fine until they spent a night of passion together and then she ended up… pregnant. So maybe that wasn’t part of the plan, but it’s not her fault that Drake, the father of her child, literally never answers his phone. Years down the road, Drake still doesn’t know about his son, Jameson, until he shows up at Charlotte’s new place of work unexpectedly and gets the surprise of his life!
Helen Hoang writes hilarious, multicultural romances that are the perfect blend of sexy and sweet, and The Bride Test is no exception.
Khai Diep is convinced that he can’t ever find love, and he sees his autism as a defect, despite the reassurance and care of his family. Esme Tran travels from Vietnam to America to meet Khai, thanks to the arrangements of his mother, but with a child to worry about and Khai’s resistance to Esme’s affection, she fears she may have to return home without having found love. Can Esme and Khai bridge the gap between each other and find their own way to love before it’s too late?
The single parent trope in romance books is when one-half of the romantic duo is a single parent.
What is the most popular romance trope?
Some of the most popular romance tropes include the single parent trope, enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, and forbidden love.
What are the best single-parent romance books?
The above list of thirty romantic novels is undoubtedly some of the best and most entertaining single-parent romance reading material out there.
What is the best romance subgenre?
Although each subgenre has something unique to offer, contemporary romance is the most widely popular romantic subgenre in today’s literary communities.
Why do people like single-parent romance books so much?
The single-parent romance trope is popular due to the emotional depth it adds to a story, as well as adding a layer of drama or complexity to what could otherwise have been a fairly simple attraction.
What are the benefits of reading romance books?
Romance books build empathy in readers, as well as being entertaining, heart-warming, and offering escapism from the troubles of the real world.
Layla Hughes is a professional writer who grew up on the Central Coast of California, and later studied English at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. Her love for reading started when she was young, as she has been an avid reader ever since she mastered her ABC’s. She loves the classics, YA fiction, and loves keeping up with current reading and writing trends. She is currently traveling full-time in a converted camper van around the US, Mexico and Canada, enjoying living out a story of her own creation. find Layla on Instagram @laylabeth
