831 Stories – serie

"The best of When Harry Met Sally, Normal People, and Lady Bird all wrapped up in a vintage button-down and sprinkled with Midwestern charm." —Joanna Goddard, Cup of Jo The debut novel from beloved writer Erika Veurink, this is a deeply personal and propulsive romance laced with humor, heat, and high-octane yearning. Perfect for fans of You, Again, One Day, and People We Meet on Vacation.After a postgraduation drive from Iowa City to NYC, Teddy and Marin have both had enough of each other to last the rest of their lives. But that doesn't stop their paths from crossing over eight rocky years, punctuated by chance encounters and transatlantic visits, on a journey that eventually brings them right back to where it all started. "You are going to stay up way past your bedtime devouring this novella." —Molly Prentiss, author of Tuesday Nights in 1980 and Old Flame "Erika Veurink pulls off a fun, charming read with just enough scandalous young-people behavior to remind you that we are all a mess and that falling in love is a journey that's well worth the adventure and the many detours." —Aminatou Sow, coauthor of the NYT bestseller Big Friendship "I've already read it twice." —Caro Claire Burke, author of the forthcoming Yesteryear

“The characters are just as vivid as the setting . . . an addictive contemporary that will delight hopeless romantics and armchair travelers alike.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review "For readers who want their love stories effervescent but also substantive, Grape Juice offers a glass worth savoring to the last drop." —The Masters Review A gorgeous, seductive fiction debut from wine and dating columnist Eliza Dumais, about parsing romantic clarity amidst the mind-muddling effects of fermented grapes, the French language, and exhausting physical labor. Perfect for fans of Under the Tuscan Sun, French Kiss, and The Pairing.Alice is bored—romantically, professionally, creatively. So when her boss, a prominent wine importer, suggests she work a grape harvest in France, she sees it as a welcome opportunity to course-correct her apathy. Though Alice is plenty skeptical of the drink-pray-love premise, she begins to let her guard down when she finds herself picking riesling and practicing her French alongside a charming cast of international characters—and, most notably, Henri, the vineyard owner’s nephew, who’s just as lost as she is. “This book was basically tailor-made for me: a sexy European romance that had me feeling like I’d escaped to France from the very first page.” —Marisa Meltzer, bestselling author of Glossy and It Girl: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin “Grape Juice is the romantic fantasy that has me refilling my glass time and time again.” —Jamie Beck, photographer and New York Times bestselling author of An American in Provence “Our heroine seduces us in a feast of glamorous gluttony. Grape Juice begs to be read ravenously.” —Rachel Seville Tashjian, fashion critic at The Washington Post

For fans of will-they-won’t-they courtship and women’s sports, a queer romance that will leave you breathless until the final buzzer.When Jennifer Felix gets pulled off her NFL beat to cover the WNBA All-Star weekend, she doesn’t expect to find herself so taken with the sport, its fans, or one of its stars, crowd-favorite Natalie Czapski.But as they move past their rocky start in the press room, Felix has to decide if she’s going to risk putting her heart out there for a woman who claims to be married to the game.“Whether or not you’re a sports fan, you’ll cheer on Felix and Natalie, two women figuring out what they want in life. Rooting Interest is smart, nuanced, and desperately sexy.” —Amy Spalding, bestselling author of For Her Consideration and On Her Terms

He’s so off-type that her attraction to him fuels an identity crisis. A steamy romance for fans of You, Again and Never Have I Ever."If big bisexual energy had an official book mascot, it most definitely would be this one . . . meditations on the meaning of queerness, grief, and the ever-evolving definition of identity make this a romance with genuine heart and intellect behind it." —Vogue “People who've been ‘that woman crying on the subway just after moving to New York’ will feel so seen. (It's me. I'm people.) Comedic Timing is a raw depiction of romance and friendship, featuring all the complexity of navigating sex and love as a bi woman.” —Kate Goldbeck, author of You, Again For Naina Rao, moving to NYC means a fresh start: She’s officially entered her mid-twenties, she’s landed a steady job, she’s broken up with her intensely passionate older girlfriend, and she’s committed to hustling her way into a creative career. The city doesn’t exactly embrace Naina with open arms, though—not even her new boss or new roommate seems to know what to make of her. It isn’t until meeting David, an aspiring filmmaker, and his friends that she starts to feel at home. But finding a connection with David makes Naina question everything she thought she knew about her place in the world. Does being open to a relationship with a man mean compromising her sexual identity and her sense of self? “I’ve never read a story that so deftly captures the beauty and overwhelm of expansive attraction.” —Haley Jakobson, author of Old Enough, a NYT Editors’ Choice “831 Stories facilitates literary meet-cutes and brings the finest smut to the thirsting masses.” —Vanity Fair

For fans of Romantic Comedy and Notting Hill (so, everyone?!), a second-chance celebrity / normal person romance you’ll read in one sitting."Second chance romance, celebrity/normal person, Hollywood highjinks…this checks a lot of romance boxes." —The Skimm “A total delight—I read it in a single sitting, right to the perfect Hollywood ending.” —Annabel Monaghan, bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script “Everything I’m always looking for in a romance: smart, warm, and sexy as all hell.” —Katie Cotugno, New York Times bestselling author “Set Piece has more heart and more action than you'll ever get from Us Weekly.” —Lindsey Weber, co-host of Who? Weekly "A snappy appetizer of a romance." —Kirkus Reviews Even a year ago, no one would have recognized Jack Felgate at a bar. But after his steamy breakout TV role, he’s surprised to be swarmed by fans during a night out with friends. When the practical bartender CJ intervenes to fend off his admirers, he’s grateful—and more than a little eager to stick around for an after-hours drink–turned–tryst. Five years later, Jack shows up to set for his starring role in (yet another?!) adaptation of The Great Gatsby only to find CJ is the film’s production designer. But neither of them is the same person they were back then: CJ is a single mom with a four-year-old, and Jack is a bona fide celebrity managing ceaseless demands on his time and attention. Their chemistry hasn’t dimmed since they saw each other last, but is there room in their lives for anything more than one very memorable night together? “Everything I’m always looking for in a romance: smart, warm, and sexy as all hell.” —Katie Cotugno, New York Times bestselling author “Set Piece has more heart and more action than you’ll ever get from Us Weekly.” —Lindsey Weber, co-host of Who? Weekly

For fans of How to Fake it in Hollywood and Before Sunrise, a romance about how a chance encounter can rewrite a story—and change everything.This is the night Shera's been waiting for: She’s at a trendy Silver Lake bar to finally get a drink with the handsome, charming filmmaker she's been pining after for months. But when Max King—the alluring and mischievous frontman of an Irish punk band—enters the picture, an electric attraction ignites between them. Shera’s evening begins to unfold in ways she never imagined, and she surprises herself by getting swept up in his energy and daring to feel again after past heartbreak. But how does she know their passionate encounter won't expire in the morning? And is she ready to shed some of her hard-earned armor for this disarming stranger? The second book from 831 Stories, a modern romantic fiction company that prioritizes pleasure reading and the genre’s enthusiastic fans.

The widow of a tech mogul is determined to give her wealth away—and keep one secret from the journalist tasked with telling her story. A hot new take on the billionaire romance.When Ndidi Davis’s husband unexpectedly dies, she’s left bereft—and with $2.1 billion in the bank. She channels her grief into launching a charitable foundation, but the endeavor is made more complicated by Geoffrey Campbell, an ambitious, perceptive journalist assigned to profile her philanthropic pursuit. Geoffrey’s reporting slowly uncovers Ndidi’s whole heart—and some parts of her past she’s worked hard to keep out of the public eye.

From the beloved cookbook author Julia Turshen, a queer love story set in your new favorite town, Sungold.Frankie doesn’t quite know what to make of Paige, who’s just moved from Brooklyn to her quiet Upstate New York hometown with all the pressed-clothes polish of a city girl. Paige, with her eight-year-old son in tow, is seeking refuge from a rocky relationship and is equally thrown by Frankie: Why can’t she stop thinking about this eternally single, charming, gay vegetable farmer? And could the attraction she’s feeling grow into something more?

"Thomas spins romance gold in this un-put-downable contemporary." —Starred, Publishers Weekly They both need each other—in more ways than one. A Hollywood fake-relationship romance heats up in Nashville.Freshly minted leading lady Ana Barlow is living the dream, preparing to go on location to film a Greek-god epic at Nashville’s replica of the Parthenon. But when a sighting with her married co-star threatens to tank her career, she comes up with a plan: She’ll pretend to date his stunt double, Levi Stephens, and let everyone believe he’s who she was spotted with. Luckily, Levi, an industry newbie, needs to leverage this movie’s potential as much as she does.

Emmy Gold—the frontwoman of an indie-sleaze breakout band who’s since gone solo—is back on tour with her former collaborator and first love, Bishop Ward. She's always trusted she can write a hit song, and now she’s finding out if she can rewrite her past.Deja View, an iconic early-aughts indie trio that released one perfect album two decades ago, broke up at the peak of their stardom, thanks to an unexpected schism between Emmy, the lead singer, and Bishop, the bassist she yearned after for years. Since then, Emmy has gone on to a successful career as a singer-songwriter, one who never revisits her younger days—until a reunion tour to support their drummer’s medical bills forces her to reckon with who she and Bishop once were, and who they have since become.

She’s a therapist helping a struggling pitcher get out of his brain and into his body. The curveball she doesn’t see coming is the impact he has on her head and heart.When Valley Magnolia accepts a sports psychologist role with the San Francisco Seals, she knows it will mean contending with both her father’s legacy and her own grief: He was the baseball team’s pitching coach for decades, and even after his death, he looms large in the stadium. But it’s pitcher Cal Monte who catches Valley off-guard. As she treats the yips that have derailed his career, the two grow closer in a way that threatens to upend both of their lives.

After rocketing to pop stardom practically overnight, all Marceline wants is a calm holiday at home. What she gets is a run-in with her bad-boy high-school crush, Lucas. Could this Ghost of Christmas Past also become her new muse?When Marceline Freeze went to Juilliard to study violin, she didn’t expect it to lead to a Best New Artist Grammy. Now, after a whirlwind tour and early-onset fame fatigue, she’s looking forward to a normal Christmas in her snowy North Carolina hometown. But all bets are off the second she walks into My Place, the coffee shop that was her refuge growing up. It’s gotten an infuriating Scandi-chic makeover courtesy of its new owner: Lucas North, the rebellious firestarter she worshipped from afar as a teenager.

A scorching-hot romance about what happens when you break a golden rule: Don’t get hooked on your hookup.When Lucy, a recent NYU law grad with plans to work abroad, and James, a caterer who dreams of opening a small-town restaurant, indulge in a summer fling, they know there’s an expiration date: They’ll be moving to opposite sides of the planet in six weeks. But is their fantasy sexcapade screwed when real feelings get in the way? Or do they let whatever is blossoming between them trump their career ambitions?