No Spice Romance Book Recommendations
No Spice / Low Spice Romance Books To Read
If you’re looking for books with no spicy scenes, I’m here to help you discover new authors you’ll love! I rounded up a few options that have no spice anywhere to be found.
The general definition of no spice books is nothing beyond kissing written out on page. That could mean anything further is referenced off page or you’ll find a “fade to black” situation.
These books are known by all sorts of names – clean romance, closed door romance, no spice / low spice. So, whatever you want to call them, you’ll find what you’re looking for in my book list!
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No Spice Romance Books
Meet Me In The Margins by Melissa Ferguson
This is one of those slow burn romance books where you’re not even entirely sure who you’re rooting for the entire time! This is the epitome of a book about books! Claire works at a stodgy publishing house where nonfiction and literary fiction are considered the only books worth reading. Buttttt she’s secretly working on writing a romance manuscript
After a mishap forces her to hide her pages in a secret room, she comes back and finds a mysterious editor has written critical notes all through the margins! She is obviously incredibly offended at first, but can’t deny the suggestions are helpful. When she writes back a few notes, it kicks off a back and forth exchange that becomes more and more personal. There’s something about this person that she can’t deny she’s intrigued about.
However, at the same time, she starts getting to know William, the new head of the publishing house and he’s not as horrible as she first thought. The tension here between her growing feelings for William and the pull of this mystery editor kept me hooked! It was also fun trying to guess who was actually writing her the notes! I feel like this would make an excellent movie..
Melissa Ferguson has a few other titles that would fit this list as well and I’ve enjoyed all of them so far! Plus, she’s a really fun follow on Instagram!! Her life with her family at their farmhouse is fascinating! | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target
To Sir With Love by Lauren Layne
You’ve Got Mail fans will love this slow burn romance!! There’s a similar small business vs big corporation as well as a hidden identity element! Gracie is struggling to keep her family’s small business alive when she’s approached by a big firm with a buyout offer that she patently refuses.
The company representative keeps popping up and over time she realizes he’s not as hard to hate as she would like. Meanwhile though, she’s essentially given her heart to this mysterious online stranger with whom she shares her deepest thoughts and feelings.
The shop that Gracie runs is a champagne shop, which is incredibly unique and also sounds incredible! I enjoyed seeing her take this dream that was her father’s and make it her own. The lives of small business owners are unimaginably hard and the behind the scenes aspects of this book really set it apart.
I also wanted to point out that this author writes a variety of books with different spice levels. I love that Lauren includes a spice guide on her author website, so you can easily find which books fit your desired level, from low spice, to off page to explicit steamy scenes! | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target
The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams
Bree and Nathan live insanely different lives – he’s an NFL quarterback, she’s barely making ends meet as a dance studio owner. But their friendship is rock solid. At least, except for the fact that they’re hiding the fact that they’re head over heels in love with each other.
They’ve been friends for ages and neither is willing to share that romantic feelings have developed and risk their friendship falling apart. However, when a publicity opportunity to fake date arises, they both want to take the chance to see if this could let them admit their true feelings.
I adore this one because it’s as funny as it is romantic! Bree and Nathan are hilarious together and when you throw in Nathan’s NFL teammates, you’ve got a classic rom-com. The title comes into play when his teammates try to come up with a list of ways Nathan can show Bree how he really feels – a Cheat Sheet for him. They’re classic guys and the stuff they come up with is so heartfelt yet funny. I’ve read this multiple times and just can’t get enough.
In terms of spice level, her earlier books up through The Cheat Sheep have no spice, but in her more recent books you’ll find maybe one or two open door scenes. She does usually note which chapters and mentions you can easily skip them without affecting the story! | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center
When a personal protection agent is hired to be the bodyguard for a famous celebrity, the last thing she expected was the role of “girlfriend” to be part of her duties. After coming off her mother’s death and a rough breakup, she’s hoping to get this over with and escape back into her normal travel schedule.
Jack is forced to hire Hannah to deal with an escalating stalker situation, but he doesn’t want to his family to know so she’ll pose as his girlfriend while he’s at home on their ranch. Playing romantic partners puts them in all sorts of tricky situations, and forces them to spend meaningful time together.
Hannah always used work as an escape and valued the high stakes and travel above everything else, but as she spends time with Jack and his family, her priorities start to shift. One reason I enjoyed this book is the fact that a female gets to be the strong, silent type! The gender swap from the typical male bodyguard role is refreshing.
Katherine Center typically toes the line between general fiction and romance, since her books always have a romantic aspect but she focuses on other important topics and relationships as well! I like that they have more depth when I want something a bit more than just a cute, fluffy romance! You can also pick up any of her books and know there’s no spice involved! | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target
My Phony Valentine by Courtney Walsh
A hockey romance with zero spice!? Extremely rare, but I’ve got a great one for you! In My Phony Valentine, a happenstance encounter turns a small town chef into the new girlfriend of a hockey star. This is the first book in her Holidays With Hart series and I enjoyed the second one, My Lucky Charm, just as much. It’s fun to read books set during holidays other than Christmas!
Poppy is a chef in a small town whose days usually consist of agonizing over her failing restaurant, worrying about a mountain of debt and nursing her broken heart. But one morning she bumps into a man in her local coffee shop and ends up claiming he’s her boyfriend to shut up her old high school bully.
As it turns out, he is the nearby NHL team’s most renowned bad boy, Dallas Burke. He actually goes along with her scheme, but it turns into something far more serious than either of them expected. Dallas’ agent sees an opportunity to clean up Dallas’ reputation by being seen dating a sweet, small town chef. On her side, Poppy desperately needs the money to keep her restaurant afloat. A deal is signed and a relationship is born!
Over time, Dallas and Poppy become actual friends and then both realize that romantic feelings are developing too. Throw in a meddling grandmother and all the quirks of a tight knit small town and you’ve got an absolutely charming romance novel! I’m still working my way through all of Courtney Walsh’s books, so I know I have a lot more enchanting romances ahead of me! | Buy From Amazon
Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis
This unique addition to the no spice romance books list actually takes place throughout the year. Noelle gets stranded on a highway during a blizzard and ends up spending hours and hours with a stranger. Over the course of the next year, they flit in and out of each other’s lives by chance.
Noelle and Sam assume this one time connection is just that, a one time spark. However, fate keeps throwing them together in the most unlikely of ways. I really enjoyed reading about the unique circumstances in which they found their way back to each other! It starts as a holiday / wintry romance but escalates throughout the course of a year! | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target
Jenny Colgan
I feel like I’ve been reading Jenny Colgan books since high school – she was one of the first romance authors that I fell in love with and I have devoured literally every single book she’s ever written.
These books are the definition of charming. They are going to make you want to pack your bags and move to a small village or town in England or Scotland, wherever the latest book is set. They are full of lovable main characters, the sweetest love stories, and usually a dose of finding yourself and the life you were meant to live.
Plus there are always quirky side characters, plenty of humor, and the delights or stresses of small town living. I can’t even pick just one book for this list, because not only do they all qualify as being no spice romances, they’re all wonderful and it’d be impossible to choose just one to recommend.
She does write a lot of 3-4 book series, focused on one location or group of characters, so just make sure you’re starting with the first book before you dive in. You can check out my Jenny Colgan guide, so you’ll have all the books in series order. | Buy On Amazon
The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
I was surprised by how much I liked this romance with a magical twist! This got rave reviews in the book community and I had high expectations going in, but it absolutely delivered. The magical realism occurs in the form of a time slip and it was handled well – adding just enough believability to keep you invested without detracting from the romance.
Clementine is a very relatable main character, working far too hard as a publicist and grieving her great aunt. She’s always had her life planned out, except she’s struggling to actually open her heart up to anyone in order to check the perfect husband off her list.
When she moves into her late aunt’s apartment, she’s terrified to find a man inside one afternoon, who seems to believe he’s also allowed to live there. It isn’t until she remembers her aunt’s offhand comment about the apartment’s “unique place in time” that she realizes both her and this stranger are living there, just seven years apart.
The apartment seems to know something that she doesn’t, the scruffy charismatic man who dreams of becoming a chef might be the exact person who’s perfect for her now. These two slip in and out of each other’s lives during the summer he lives there, but face the unfortunate realization that he’s not the same person in her time. When she happens to actually meet him outside of the apartment, he has changed dramatically. I loved how both of them are dealing with serious issues and managed to rely on each other to work through them.
In this one, a few kissing scenes are described and the leadup to more but then the writing fades to black before anything explicit occurs. | Buy From Amazon | Buy From Target