Romance on Fire: 7 Viral Love Stories Dominating BookTok in 2025

There’s something in the air this year—and it’s not just summer heat. It’s romance. Big, emotional, butterfly-inducing, tear-jerking romance. From messy breakups to surprise second chances, BookTok has crowned its new love story royalty in 2025, and these books are ruling timelines, group chats, and bookstore shelves alike.

Whether you’re a hopeless romantic or just someone who loves characters with electric chemistry, these seven viral reads are delivering everything we crave: drama, intimacy, healing, and, yes—some spicy tension that makes you blush in public.

So if you're ready to fall in love with love all over again, these are the couples everyone on BookTok can’t stop screaming, crying, and swooning over.

1. Funny Story by Emily Henry

Tropes: Fake dating, forced proximity, opposites attract

Emily Henry has cemented herself as the name in contemporary romance—and her latest release, Funny Story, is a BookTok sensation. When Daphne is dumped by her fiancé for his childhood best friend, she ends up moving in with—and fake-dating—the ex of that woman. Yep, it’s messy, and yes, it’s delicious.

But what elevates this one beyond the drama is Henry’s unmatched emotional depth. This is a story about finding yourself in the fallout, discovering new love in unlikely places, and healing in real time. Expect snappy dialogue, slow-burning tension, and a relationship that unfolds as naturally as a sunrise. Pure serotonin.

2. Powerless by Elsie Silver

Tropes: Friends-to-lovers, small-town, repressed feelings

If BookTok had a country anthem, it would probably be playing in the background of Powerless. This small-town romance follows a runaway bride and a retired hockey player—childhood friends turned tension-filled adults—who embark on a spontaneous road trip that changes everything.

Silver is a master at emotional tension, and Powerless is her crown jewel. It’s soft, rugged, and full of moments that will make you scream into your pillow (in the best way). The protectiveness. The long-held affection. The slow, slow, slow burn. It's giving emotional wreckage in cowboy boots—and readers can't get enough.

3. Icebreaker by Hannah Grace

Tropes: Grumpy/sunshine, sports romance, found family

A book that launched a thousand fan edits, Icebreaker is one of the most viral romances on BookTok right now—and for good reason. This college-set love story brings together an ambitious figure skater and a cocky hockey player who are forced to share practice space... and eventually, everything else.

What starts as animosity turns into one of the most wholesome, supportive, and heart-melting love stories in recent memory. With spicy tension, mental health rep, and adorable banter, Icebreaker isn’t just a romance—it’s a whole vibe.

4. Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

Tropes: Academic rivals, fake identity, slow burn

Ali Hazelwood brings her STEM girl magic to another BookTok-favorite in Love, Theoretically. This time, we follow a theoretical physicist juggling two lives—her academic one and her fake persona as a girlfriend-for-hire—who suddenly has to confront a man from both worlds.

Expect Hazelwood’s signature charm, scorching chemistry, and one of the most satisfying intellectual rivalries since Pride and Prejudice. The romantic payoff is well worth the burn, and the character growth is as satisfying as the love story itself. BookTok is obsessed, and honestly, so are we.

5. Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune

Tropes: Second chance, summer nostalgia, what-could-have-been

What if you met the love of your life for just one day—and then, years later, they walked back into your life? That’s the heart of Meet Me at the Lake, a quietly devastating and soul-healing romance that’s become a summer staple among BookTok romantics.

Set against a dreamy lakeside backdrop, this novel is filled with longing, vulnerability, and one of the best slow-burning reconnections we’ve read all year. The vibes? Immaculate. The heartbreak? Gentle but real. This book feels like a soft song playing from a dock at sunset—and readers can’t stop playing it on repeat.

6. Before We Were Strangers by Renée Carlino

Tropes: Missed connections, past lovers, emotional prose

Although it’s not new, Before We Were Strangers has made a massive comeback thanks to TikTok readers rediscovering its poetic brilliance. This story follows Matt and Grace—two artists who fall in love as students in New York, only to lose touch and reunite 15 years later thanks to a missed connection ad.

Carlino’s writing is beautiful and aching. This book will make you nostalgic for things you never even experienced. The pacing, the letters, the regrets—it all builds into a love story that feels both cinematic and incredibly raw. Be warned: this one hurts in the best way.

7. The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams

Tropes: Friends-to-lovers, fake dating, cinnamon roll hero

If you’re in the mood for something light, flirty, and full of feel-good vibes, The Cheat Sheet is your perfect match. This story follows a famous football player and his best friend—who he’s secretly in love with—as they enter a fake dating situation for PR. What could go wrong?

This is BookTok’s comfort romance. There’s spice-lite tension, laugh-out-loud moments, and the kind of mutual pining that feels like watching your two best friends finally admit they’re in love. The energy? Soft and swoony. The ending? Worth the wait.

Final Thoughts: Love Stories That Stay With You

What makes a romance go viral? It’s not just the tropes—it’s the way the stories make us feel. These books make us laugh, cry, scream into pillows, and text our friends at 2 a.m. to say, “You HAVE to read this.”

BookTok’s latest obsessions prove that romance is far from formulaic. From lakeside longing to fake dating disasters, these stories deliver emotionally satisfying, character-driven journeys that readers can't stop replaying in their minds.

So grab one (or all) of these books, pour something cold, and let yourself fall in love. Again. And again. And again.

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