As someone whose path to reading romance included a lengthy period reading X-Files fanfiction (oh, man, who else remembers The Gossamer Project???), I am clearly a huge fan of UST – Unresolved Sexual Tension. In romance, this is the slow burn phase, where the energy of characters’ attraction builds up and up before being released. That’s why I love and developed our Slow burn tag, which I used to make this list of top slow burn romance novels. How “slow” is slow enough and how much you want your “burn” to burn is a matter of taste, so not all of the books listed here will culminate at the same heat level. The blurbs here come from our very own reviews (and every book I featured here is a DIK!)
A lot of well-known favorites fall into this category, such as:
The works of Mariana Zapata: Sometimes called “the queen of the slow burn,” because nearly all of her books use this trope, Zapata came to our attention when you voted the slow-burn The Wall of Winnipeg and Me into our most recent Top 100 Romance Novels.
The works of Penny Reid: A large number of her books, especially in the Winston Brothers series, fit this trope, and have been well reviewed here.
The works of Talia Hibbert: Her books often star characters with past relationship issue which make them move tantalizingly slowly towards their HEAs. Of her Work For It, our reviewer says, “Ms. Hibbert lovingly crafts these wonderful, small, intimate moments between the leads, and when they finally get around to taking off their clothes, well, it’s a wonderfully satisfying relief.” That’s the perfect definition of a slow burn!
The works of Gregory Ashe: It’s pretty much a given in all his books that there will be lots of UST and angst before the MCs get together. We didn’t review all the books in his Hazard and Somerset series (although Em blogged about the series HERE, and Caz reviewed book three, Paternity Case) but the romance is a very slow burn. If Mariana Zapata is the Queen of the Slow Burn, Gregory Ashe is the King of it.
Hook Shot by Kennedy Ryan
The last novel in the Hoops series stars Kenan Ross and Lotus DuPree. Kenan, a veteran basketball player traded to August West’s losing NBA franchise team, meets Lotus DuPree, cousin and best friend to August’s wife, Iris. Lotus is fierce, beautiful, and she isn’t looking for love – with Kenan, or any other man – and she’s spent the last two books dodging Kenan despite the spark of attraction between them. Hook Shot details their delicious slow burn love affair, and the relationship is sexy, sweet and lushly romantic.
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Lucy Hutton sits across the office from Joshua Templeton, and it’s hate at first sight between them. At least Lucy hates Joshua – and she’s pretty sure he hates her too. In spite of that, Lucy finds herself preoccupied trying to figure him out and aware of everything he does. She knows the day of the week by the color of his shirt (Navy leads to Gorgeous Payday Black), and his husky, soft laugh raises the tiny hairs on her arms. The tension and their mutual dislike only escalates after their bosses announce the creation of a third executive position, chief operating officer. Lucy and Joshua are expected to apply and compete for it.
(A very similar, and for some, even better, book is Sarah Mayberry’s Her Favourite Rival)
Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale
Quaker Maddy Timms is the only person who realizes that Christian, Duke of Jervaulx, has not gone mad, but rather has suffered what modern medicine would recognize as a stroke. His family is trying to have him declared legally insane, but Christian enlists Maddy’s aid. Maddy finds herself drawn into a world she was raised to reject, going against many of her basic principles; yet she can’t abandon Christian, for that would mean turning away from the Inner Light. This is much more than a simple story of opposites attracting. It has to do with looking beyond what others see and discovering the real person behind the public façade. Christian uncovers the repressed sensuality hidden in Maddy’s nature, and she learns that in spite of the brave front he puts on, he’s vulnerable, petrified at the prospect of being returned to the asylum.
But if you’re well-versed in recent and canonic romance, and you are hankering for more slow burns, what are some other reads you might like?
It Takes Two to Tangle by Theresa Romain
Napoleonic War veteran Henry Middleton has lost the use of his right arm and his ability to paint. He must marry to support himself. To gain an edge courting a popular widow, he approaches the widow’s companion, Mrs Frances Whittier. Frances and Henry hit it off immediately – she’s clever and witty, and very attuned to him, sensing that he’s having trouble adjusting to civilian life. It’s clear, too, that Frances is very attracted to Henry, but while he enjoys her conversation (the air between them fairly crackles during their exchanges) he is distracted by his plan to court her cousin. The romance is a slow burn but is beautifully developed. The love scenes are sensual, while maintaining a sense of realism by not completely ignoring the problems arising from the fact that Henry has only one working arm.
A Crown of Bitter Orange by Laura Florand
The poignant, somewhat bittersweet yet heartwarming friends to lovers romance of Tristan Rosier and Malorie Monsard. Tristan and Malorie are descendants of two great perfume houses, the Rosiers and the Monsards. The Rosier family is still a powerhouse in the fragrance industry, whereas the Monsards have just Malori’s late grandmother’s shop, which Malorie is debating restoring. Tristan courts Malorie by offering to help restore the shop and to make perfumes for her, and eventually Malorie is unable to resist his charms. He comes across as a sweet, fun loving and adventurous man with a zest for life. Theirs is a slow burn romance but heats up over time with some sensual love scenes.
Take Me Home Tonight by Erika Kelly
The third in Erika Kelly’s Rock Star Romance series, this is the story of Mimi and Calix, an aspiring chef and a session musician for the band Blue Fire, respectively. Calix is the band’s temporary keyboardist and Mimi works as their personal cook while she sorts out the rest of her life. The chemistry between the two is immediate, but their intimacy builds with a worth-the-wait sensuous slow burn. Take Me Home Tonight is mysterious without being frustrating, sweet without being saccharine, family-oriented without being schmaltzy. The heroine is self-assured and in need of her own journey. The hero is a quiet Alpha with Beta tendencies. Also, it’s sexy as all get out. Kindle-meltingly sexy.
Again by Kathleen Gilles Seidel
Seidel transports you into the meticulously researched world of a historical soap opera called My Lady’s Chamber (think Downton Abbey, but set in the Regency era), written by Jenny Cotton and starring Alec Cameron as, yes, a lofty, frosty Duke. Alec is immediately captured by Jenny’s creative intelligence and her gift for her job – but Jenny still lives with her long-time boyfriend. It is fascinating to watch Jenny’s real-life relationships play out in her characters. When one of her soap characters does something wonderful, and you realize that it means that Jenny is subconsciously falling for Alec… it’s just magic.
This Is All I Ask by Lynn Kurland
In this medieval, Christopher (a blind warrior) married Gillian (a survivor of abuse) to protect her from her father. Sounds like another “tormented hero/heroine” story? What Kurland does is focus on the changes they both make instead of dwelling on their tragedies. She imagines perfectly how a medieval warrior would handle blindness, and how a gentle soul such as Gillian would act after being abused. Through the story they learn to love and trust each other and themselves, eventually becoming a passionate, teasing, and joyful couple. And although the sensuality rating is PG, there is quite a bit of sexual tension between them.
Wolfsong by TJ Klune
Shifter Joe meets his neighbor Ox in this book our reviewer called “wonderfully nuanced… there are so many layers to the tale, it’s difficult to convey them in a review without spoiling this beautiful – and epic – romance” which “in places reads like poetry. The patient reader is amply rewarded. The book only has a few steamy scenes, but Klune makes the most of them; hot, passionate and delightfully dirty – I loved every moment.”
Still need more? Well, that’s what our Slow Burn tag is for – and also, the comments! Please recommend some of your favorites here!
~ Caroline Russomanno
Interested in finding more books AAR Loves..?
Check out these posts:
Yes We Can! Our Favourite Activist Heroines
Romances featuring Refugee Heroines
Romancing it Royally – Some of our favourite royal romances
AAR Loves… Historical Romances featuring scientist heroines
AAR Loves… Romances featuring music and musicians
AAR Loves… Romances featuring realistic parent/child relationships
AAR Loves… Partners to Lovers romances – Part One (Military, law enforcement etc.)
AAR Loves… Partners to Lovers romances – Part Two
Five Baseball Romances Worth Your Time
AAR Loves… Representation of Disability and Chronic Illness in Romance (Part One)
AAR Loves… Representation of Disability and Chronic Illness in Romance (Part Two)
AAR Loves… Romances featuring marriages in trouble
Another post on a Joanna Bourne book made me remember The Black Hawk. A slow burn over decades (but totally worth the wait!).
SUCH a slow burn but utterly fabulous. Actually a lot of Bourne’s books could be considered slow burns.
If you have specific titles, I’ll tag them!
I personally would call Spymaster’s Lady, My Lord and Spymaster, Rogue Spy and Black Hawk slow burns but that’s by my definition.
Perhaps I’m impatient, but I tend to think of “slow burn” as any book where the first penetrative sex (as opposed to making out or non-penetrative sexual activity) doesn’t take place until well past the 50% point in the book. Lol! I don’t have a problem with how long it takes for the main characters to get to that point as long as there’s lots of angst and sexual tension along the way. The most recent slow burn I read was a book AAR (deservedly) raved about: MY CHRISTMAS NUMBER ONE by Leonie Mack. I was so caught up in the gradually-evolving love story between the two musicians, it wasn’t until I finished the book that I realized there were very few sex scenes in the story and what scenes there were could best be described as if not “closed door” then “door only slightly ajar.”
Sherry Thomas ‘The Luckiest Lady in London’ comes to mind, though I’m not sure if others would agree. The hero and heroine only have sex once they are married (which I think is around the halfway mark of the book), but their courtship practically bubbled over with sexual tension and attraction.
The Sherry Thomas that works for me on this topic is His At Night, which is a DIK for me, but it got a B+ from our reviewer. I had to be strict with myself and not use it in this post but I’ll happily recommend it here!
Possibly my favorite Thomas. And when they do make love properly… whew.
Thomas, Sherry. His at Night (The London Trilogy Series) (p. 241). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
Oh I love that book too – that’s an excellent recommendation! I love how they gradually learned to love and trust each other. There are several passages which I have re-read over and over again. Surprised it got a B+, it would be an A for me:)
A DIK for me too!
Good definition, but it doesn’t work if there’s too much mental lusting prior to that. I’ve read books where it seems every other page has the hero or heroine thinking about bedding the other, so when it finally happens it doesn’t quite feel “slow burn” to me. I’m more appreciative if the romance is slow to simmer and it takes a while for them to reach the boiling point.
I just finished reading Olivia Dade’s fantastic Spoiler Alert (for review), which is a lovely slow-burn.
I’ve been really looking forward to this. I’m so happy to hear it is good!
My top favorite slow-burn romance is Mary Balogh’s THE SECRET PEARL, where it’s incredibly intimate and moving when the hero and heroine, seated beside each other, touch their little fingers together. And when they finally went to bed together, it was so cathartic.
I really like romances where the characters struggle against their attraction to each other (for good reasons), so slow-burn works well for me.
Absolutely second The Secret Pearl. Truly beautiful story..
I’m a bit impatient and so slow burn has to work really well for it to appeal to me. Holly Black does it brilliantly in her The Folk of the Air trilogy. And the wait for when Malloryn and Adele finally consummate their marriage in Dukes Are Forever was oh so worth it.
The Folk of the Air trilogy was amazing – though I thought the hero was a bit too cruel at first! I devoured the entire series in a weekend…
He was which made his ultimate persona all the more amazing!
THIS. I just finished Holly Black’s The Folk of the Air trilogy over the weekend and it was phenomenal! Excellent slow burn, excellent enemies-to-lovers, and excellent subversion of the traditional bully romance.
I wouldn’t have known about the series without AAR so thank you for the helpful reviews of these books! :)
It blew me away when I read it. I’m so happy it worked for you!
I’m a bit on the impatient side too, but I’ve seen a lot of category romances lately that have the characters jumping into bed not too long after they first say “hello” to each other. Sure, there are times where a romance setup is conducive to sex that early in the story, but I think authors and publishing houses must be trying to nab 21st century readers’ shrinking attention spans ASAP.
Personally, I don’t necessarily want to wait until the last chapter for consummation (although it wouldn’t bother me too much if the tension remains high throughout the story), but I don’t necessarily need a sex scene in Chapter 3 either.
One thing I’ve found I dislike in romance is the “no burn” or “simmer without payoff.” If the author builds all this tension and then closes the door or uses overly purple prose, I get a bit perturbed. This is why the few Historical Inspirationals I’ve read- mostly for the interesting plots- ultimately end up being disappointing for me. (Not that I was expecting anything more than a chaste kiss in something clearly labeled as an Inspirational, but still…)
The suggestions here are great! I am updating our database with your ideas!
These are all good picks; Hibber remains the queen of the slow burn for me.
Carla Kelly is great at the slow burn. Some of her best are Miss Whittier Makes a List, The Surgeon’s Lady, With This Ring and The Lady’s Companion. But there are tons more.
I think Meredith Duran is another slow burn master, by the time the main couple gets together I’m usually like ‘YES, finally!”
I hadn’t even heard of Carla Kelly before I found this site. Since then, I’ve enjoyed every book I’ve read from her and feel so grateful for everyone here who has recommended and reviewed her works. Of your suggestions I’ve only read The Lady’s Companion, which was fantastic, and will definitely check out the others. Thank you!
I’ve so far read four books by Duran (I’ve only been reading romance for 7 years, starting when I was 30 and I really wish it hadn’t taken me such a long time to embrace this genre), but they have definitely been of the slow burn variety so yes, I agree.
Carla Kelly never lets you down :-)
So glad you discovered Carla Kelly and enjoy her! I also discovered her as a recommendation many years ago as well. I think it may have even been Suzanne Brockmann’s praise of her (talk about authors of different genres) many years ago that induced me to try her books.
Duran is wonderful as well. I know when I pick up a book of hers I will be transported completely.
Carla Kelly is a Queen!!! Such a gorgeous historical writer.
This is so great! I love slow burn romances and am always on the lookout for more.
These are the slow burn romances from my most recently read list that I really liked: My Christmas Number One by Leonie Mack (which DiscoDollyDeb already mentioned), The Lord I Left by Scarlett Peckham, Cant’s Help Falling and Just A Heartbreak Away by Cara Bastone, Breathe The Sky by Michelle Hazen, Carry The World by Susan Fanetti, The Reckless Oath We Made by Bryn Greenwood.
And a few all time favorites from the top of my head: It Started With A Scandal by Julie Anne Long, Simple Jess by Pamela Morsi, The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary and all of Lucy Parkers books would probably fit the bill too. And Kate Clayborn’s Love Lettering and Beginner’s Luck. (Gah, I could go on forever…)
Thanks to all for the suggestions; I’ve now added several recommendations to my always expanding TBR pile. I have a suggestion of my own: Alissa Johnson’s “Tempting Fate”. It got a B here at AAR, but I gave it a B+ because I so enjoyed Whit and Mira’s verbal sparring. It’s clear that their hyper awareness of each other indicates more than the mere annoyance they each assume it is. It’s not a perfect book, but it had great banter and watching them wake to the true meaning of their feelings about each other was so much fun.
Wow, this has been an eye-opening and thought provoking post for me. My initial feeling about slow burns is a big “No, thank you!” — it hasn’t been my favorite trope (I didn’t care for the only Mariana Zapata book I read, The Wall of Winnipeg & Me), but I love Flowers from the Storm and The Hating Game. I’m also a huge fan of Sherry Thomas, Carla Kelly, Holly Black and Meredith Duran, who other commenters have pointed out are great at slow burn.
I think the difference between snooze-y slow burn and great, achingly romantic slow burn is sexual tension and conflict. If an author can manage tension and conflict over the long arc of a slow burn, I’m 100% invested. If not, I start to get bored and grow impatient for the main couple to finally get together.
Great list, Caroline!
Thank you!!
So many awesome books on this list! Hate Thy Neighbor by Sm Soto was a great slow burn too!
Love the post and the comments. But it made me wonder, what is NOT a slow burn romance? Romance is all about getting to an HEA . . . so, by definition, aren’t all romances “slow burn”? It would seem to me, the “better” the romance, the slower the burn. I’m not mocking here. Genuinely curious. Leaving “erotica” aside for a moment, what is the difference between the “average” romance and slow burn? Can anyone think of a truly great romance that is not a slow burn?
Great question! I don’t have any recs offhand of “a truly great romance that is not slow burn,” but I think lots of category romances today rush into the sex scenes early in the story instead of letting the tension simmer until near the end of the book.
“But it made me wonder, what is NOT a slow burn romance?”
Just as a recent example that’s still fresh in my mind, the other evening, I read the Harlequin Historical Western The Ballad of Emma O’Toole. It was a forced proximity/enemies-to-lovers/marriage of convenience story where the characters ended up having sex for the first time within the first 20-30% of the book. Given the tropes employed, the progression from “I hate your guts” to “Let’s have a roll in the hay” felt way too fast and definitely not slow burn.
If I had to offer a comparison using a favorite author I’d say Joanna Bourne’s book “The Forbidden Rose” is not a slow burn as the main couple get together physically and emotionally well before the last part of the book. In the first third they are physically and emotionally entangled pretty seriously.
In her other books like The Black Hawk and My Lord and Spymaster and even The Spymaster’s Lady the couples aren’t together until towards the end of the books. There is definitely an emotional connection but commitment and physical consummation happens much later.
If the book prior to coitus is entirely taken up with mental lusting, then I think it doesn’t qualify as slow burn. I read a recent Harlequin where all the H/h do is think about sex with the other, to the detriment of plot and character development. It wasn’t awful, but it was boring (lust, rinse, repeat).
On the other hand, Mary Balogh’s “The Notorious Rake” is not a slow burn but is one of my favorite romances. The H/h actually have sex very early in the book, which was shocking in a trad Signet Regency at the time the book first appeared. They are merely acquaintances and aren’t even sure they like each other. The rest of the book is him pursuing her and her regretting what she feels was an enormous mistake that she just wants to forget. At first he simply wants her to be his mistress but then, bit by bit, he falls in love with her. There is also a secondary plot of him becoming reconciled to his family, from which he’s been estranged for many years. It’s a lovely book, IMHO.
I second this!
I get that lust is important in romance, but when that lust seems exclusively physical and characters mentally objectify their partners all the time, it’s boring and infuriating.
I mean, physically attractive people are (obviously) attractive, but aren’t we all attracted to kindness, intelligence, humor, etc. too??
I liked this definition of slow burn up thread, from DiscoDollyDeb:
If I get into a pattern of reading a bunch of traditionally or big mainstream published romances, I notice the progression of physically intimacy from kisses to penetrative happens at roughly the same time in every book. For me, that’s not a knock against them, those novels are just hitting familiar beats.
Slow burns break up that pattern. The couple don’t have penetrative sex until after the halfway point or they don’t substantively “come together” (physically or emotionally) until the end.
And, maybe this seems crazy, but I like love-at-first sight or insta-lust stories too. I think that there are great romances that aren’t slow burns.
“And, maybe this seems crazy, but I like love-at-first sight or insta-lust stories too. I think that there are great romances that aren’t slow burns.”
Agreed, sometimes I want a fast pace or even one where they jump into a relationship or just a tryst and then have to back into the feelings or the relationship.
I know a lot of people don’t like Kristen Ashley but Motorcycle Man hooked me from the first chapter due to the crazy set up. Woman meets a guy at a party on a Friday night, falls head over heels and hooks up with him for the best night of her life thinking he fell in insta love too. He pats her on the behind, thanks her and basically tells her fun’s over time to go. She then has to show up at her new job on Monday (which she really really needs) knowing he’s her boss- but he doesn’t know. On the way into work that first Monday morning she sees him kissing another one night stand goodbye. That’s all the first chapter. I kept thinking how is this going to turn into a happily ever after?
Yes, exactly! I actually think this as difficult to manage successfully as slow burns. Just like it’s challenging for an author to maintain pining, sexual tension or conflict during a long slow burn, it seems challenging to write a love story that begins with sex or the couple falling in love-at-first-sight and then having them figure out their relationship…but it can be done well! And it’s so much fun.
I’ve been meaning to read Kristen Ashley for awhile — I love a good alpha (problematic as they are sometimes) & Motorcycle Man sounds bananas! :)
Your comment “it seems challenging to write a love story that begins with sex or the couple falling in love-at-first-sight and then having them figure out their relationship…but it can be done well!” perfectly describes one of my all-time favorite romances, LIBERATING LACEY by Anne Calhoun (who, after an amazingly prolific decade, stopped publishing in 2017). The h&h of LIBERATING LACEY hook up the first night they meet, then spend the rest of the book figuring out their relationship. The complete opposite of a physical “slow burn,” but it takes the entire book for them to get from sex to love.
Ok, this seals the deal. 2020 will be the year I finally read Anne Calhoun!
Uncommon Passion, though not even vaguely a slow burn love story, is sublime.
I’d also recommend TURN ME LOOSE, which has so much sexual tension, you could cut it with a knife. In fact, almost everything Calhoun wrote was good—even THE LIST in which I think you can see Calhoun struggling against the HEA requirements of a romance novel. I think if she’d published THE LIST as women’s fiction, the h&h would not have remained together at the end. It’s still very good, though; it just struggles to be a romance.
It is bananas! That’s just a few pages in.
Ashley’s books are not for me but I get their appeal. I love Shannon McKenna’s books which are batshit crazy in a totally different way.
I love a good batshit crazy book when I’m in the mood. Unfortunately Ashley can also just go to plain boring when she gets into a ten page description of someone’s “kickass” kitchen or living room, lol.
I got tired of every hero dropping his g’s. Too many darlin’s for my nerves!
I don’t know why it makes me laugh but when her heroes just say “gratitude” instead of thank you back to someone it cracks me up. I’ve never heard that done before. “Gratitude, Darlin’” Or sometimes just “gratitude”.
Also- the voice of the hero in Motorcycle Man sounds like Sam Elliot in my head when I read it.
This reminds me of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood. It sounds like a mixture of cringe, laughter, and world-building.