These Black Women Authors Are Reclaiming Romance—One Page At A Time

Refinery29

21 hours ago

Word on the street is that folks believe that romance and yearning are dead. But those of us who read Black romance novels know that both are alive and well in the pages of our favorite books.
As more Black women join book clubs and profess their love for romance novels on social media, it has become very clear that the demand for literature that depicts Black women as desirable, autonomous and fulfilled in their romantic lives is sky-high. That's partly due to the still unfortunately limited representation of Black love stories we see today and social media chatter that often disparages Black women. Not to mention the trash dating pool many have to navigate today.
With romance novels, there's a needed level of escape — and hope — that Black women authors, in particular, are providing readers. And ahead of summer 2025, authors are turning up the heat with spicy reads that give Black women the happily ever after their heart desires — and no two endings look the same.
If you're a lover girl, new and forthcoming releases, including Kennedy Ryan's Can't Get Enough, Tia Williams' debut young adult (YA) novel Audre & Bash are Just Friends, Regina Black's August Lane and Danielle Allen's Plus Size Player, are sure to be on your summer reading list.
We asked these authors about their latest Black romance novels, self-love, the importance of fantasy and the message they have for Black women navigating love and romance today.
Kennedy Ryan, author of Can't Get Enough
On Can't Get Enough:
'I wanted plus size women to see someone who is completely confident in her body and has an expectation of being desirable,' Ryan said at Amazon 's Book Sale Event in New York in April.
'I think there's something really powerful about the expectation of the presumption of attraction, which I don't know that we always see with plus-size women in fiction. [Hendrix] is a woman who [knows she's] not 'beautiful to be big,' or 'beautiful to be brown' but just beautiful period.'
On centering self-love with her characters:
'It's really important for women to know ourselves, preferably before we commit to a lifetime partner. If you don't have a strong sense of self, it's very easy to be shaped into what your partner expects. And that's why a lot of my heroines are older. Hendrix, in this book, is 40 years old. She's never been married. She doesn't want children. And [she doesn't] want a man for the sake of him just being in [her] life. I think the foundation of a romantic relationship starts with self-love. That's why in Soledad's book (This Could Be Us), All About Love, was a book that she really leaned into. If you don't have that foundation of loving yourself when you get into a relationship, all those emotions can pull you into a shape that fits the person you're with.'
On what she wants Black women reading her books to know:
'Not to settle. That's easier said than done because we get lonely. And the temptation is to take whatever feels as close to what we're looking for as possible, even if it might hurt us. Love where you are loved. I do think that waiting for the right thing is great, and if you can find somebody who is only for now and get some of those yearnings and desires satisfied, do that. But when you are in the market for something that's permanent, it's a different criteria.'
Tia Williams, author of Audre & Bash are Just Friends
On Audre & Bash Are Just Friends:
'Audre became a huge fan favorite in Seven Days in June,' Williams said via a Zoom interview. 'She was the 12-year-old daughter of my female protagonist. She's just like this wise-cracking, hilarious little lady, wise beyond her years. I would get all sorts of texts and emails and DMs like, 'Where's Audre's story?' So I decided to age her up four years and have her be a teenager and experience first love during one balmy Brooklyn summer.'
On the importance of romance novels:
'I think now more than ever, we really need escapism. We need to dream. We need to raise the bar and aim high. And read about women that are being outrageously loved. If you spend too much time in the wrong [social media] comment thread or listening to the wrong podcast, you would sort of start to feel that you're—as a Black woman—not being appreciated or loved. We need to know that it's real and worth fighting for and know why it's important not to settle.'
On what message she wants Black women and girls to get from her work:
'Audre is a very rigid girl. She has goals and ambitions. But she hasn't really slowed down enough to live her life and learn about what she wants and doesn't want socially or romantically. This is her summer, where she's learning how to live. And sometimes, you get the most important life lessons through play. I think that girls and women can kind of get the same takeaway that being on the path to success is a great thing. But you may be missing the best parts. Slowing down and allowing yourself to be seen and loved is a wonderful thing.'
Danielle Allen, author of Plus Size Player
On Plus Size Player:
'[Our protagonist] Nina has a roster of four men she is navigating, not putting the expectation on one man to fulfill all of her qualities. You get to see her navigating her life as a content creator while she juggles these men and the twists and turns of life. It's also about setting your boundaries and not letting people disrespect them, as well as being clear in your communication. Even though it's Plus Size Player, she's not playing these men. She's very honest about what she wants, who she is, and that she's dating other people.'
On fantasy in Black romance:
'It isn't a fantasy to be treated well, to be loved, well, to be respected. And, unfortunately, those things start to feel like a fantasy world. There's a disconnect somewhere because those things that we are looking for are not ridiculous. It gets lost, and if you aren't seeing it, then that's when it becomes a fantasy because you feel like, 'I'm asking for too much.' But you are disconnecting yourself from that very real desire to be seen, heard, loved and cared for in the right way.'
On what she wants Black women reading her books to know:
'You are deserving of love and romance, no matter what it is that the media tries to imply. Everybody's idea of romance looks different. Know who you are and what you want, and then ask for it. In my experience, Black women don't ask for what they want in romance because it's always presented to us as if we already don't deserve it. So when we get a little crumb, we're supposed to be thankful as opposed to us saying, 'I'd like my meal, please.' I want women to ask for what they want, to stand firm in who they are and know that they are worthy of love.'
Regina Black, author of August Lane
On August Lane:
'I very intentionally wrote a Black romance set in the South in a small town because I wanted to write about my experience,' Black said during a Zoom interview. 'A lot of the content in the book, the experience August has, is based on my life. And it just so happened that Beyoncé released Cowboy Carter. Everybody has started talking about these things that I have been researching, reading and writing about all this time. And so I'm very excited [about it].'
On fantasy in Black romance:
'I do think it's important to buy into fantasies. I think it conveys the message that it's okay to pursue love, particularly for Black women. Many of the messages we receive focus on our strength or perseverance. But we don't get as many messages about vulnerability or softness. But vulnerability is also a strength. Connection is also a strength. And this is what it looks like in this context. And this is what it should feel like when that happens. '
On what she wants Black women reading her books to know:
'The primary love in my books is self-love. Loving yourself is the key to loving someone else. All of the characters in my books go through this journey of forgiving themselves, loving themselves, getting to know themselves and that love story is the way they do it. They are seen by this other person in a way that allows them to heal. The message I always want to convey with my books is that this could be you, and the pathway, the map I'm drawing to that joy and that happy ending is self-love.'