Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, Bookish Wisdom earns from qualifying purchases. This doesn't change our picks or your price.
Quick answer: If you loved The Kiss Quotient, try The Bride Test, The Heart Principle, The Love Hypothesis, The Soulmate Equation, Get a Life, Chloe Brown and Act Your Age, Eve Brown. Each one is a warm, steamy romance with a smart heroine, a lovable hero and real emotional depth.
Helen Hoang's debut follows Stella Lane, a successful autistic econometrician who decides she needs practice at dating. She hires Michael Phan, a mixed-race Vietnamese Swedish escort who is working to pay his mother's medical bills, and their lessons soon turn into something real. Readers love the heart, the heat and its sensitive take on autism and family. These books share its charm, its diverse leads and its tender humor.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Setting | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Bride Test | Helen Hoang | California | readers who want the next Hoang book |
| The Heart Principle | Helen Hoang | California | readers who want Hoang at her deepest |
| The Love Hypothesis | Ali Hazelwood | Academia | readers who love smart heroines |
| The Soulmate Equation | Christina Lauren | San Diego | readers who like math and romance |
| Get a Life, Chloe Brown | Talia Hibbert | England | readers who like a list-making heroine |
| Act Your Age, Eve Brown | Talia Hibbert | England | readers who want an autistic lead |
| Take a Hint, Dani Brown | Talia Hibbert | England | readers who like fake dating |
| The Rosie Project | Graeme Simsion | Melbourne | readers who want gentle comedy |
| A Princess in Theory | Alyssa Cole | New York | readers who like royal fantasy |
| The Wedding Date | Jasmine Guillory | California | readers who like fake dates |
| Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine | Gail Honeyman | Glasgow | readers who like awkward, moving narrators |
| The Hating Game | Sally Thorne | Publishing | readers who like rivals |
| Beach Read | Emily Henry | Michigan | readers who like grief and humor |
| Love, Theoretically | Ali Hazelwood | Massachusetts | readers who enjoy the paid-relationship premise |
| Mr. Wrong Number | Lynn Painter | Nebraska | readers who like playful banter |
1. The Bride Test by Helen Hoang
A woman from Vietnam comes to California to win over a man who says he has no heart.
Best for: readers who want the next Hoang book.
2. The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
A burned-out violinist hires a tattoo artist for a one-night stand, and caregiving changes everything.
Best for: readers who want Hoang at her deepest.
3. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
A PhD student fake-dates a notoriously grumpy young professor.
Best for: readers who love smart heroines.
4. The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren
A single mother takes a DNA matching test and scores high with an enemy.
Best for: readers who like math and romance.
5. Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
A chronically ill web designer teams up with her tattooed building superintendent.
Best for: readers who like a list-making heroine.
6. Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert
A chaotic heiress runs into an autistic innkeeper who is not impressed by her.
Best for: readers who want an autistic lead.
7. Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert
A viral video makes a PhD student and a security guard fake a relationship.
Best for: readers who like fake dating.
8. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
A genetics professor designs a survey to find his perfect wife.
Best for: readers who want gentle comedy.
9. A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole
A graduate student keeps deleting emails that claim she is betrothed to a prince.
Best for: readers who like royal fantasy.
10. The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory
Strangers stuck in an elevator agree to attend a wedding together.
Best for: readers who like fake dates.
11. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
A lonely office worker slowly learns to connect with others.
Best for: readers who like awkward, moving narrators.
12. The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Two office nemeses compete for one promotion.
Best for: readers who like rivals.
13. Beach Read by Emily Henry
Two rival writers swap genres over one summer.
Best for: readers who like grief and humor.
14. Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
A physicist who works as a fake girlfriend falls for a rival.
Best for: readers who enjoy the paid-relationship premise.
15. Mr. Wrong Number by Lynn Painter
A woman keeps getting wrong-number texts from a very charming stranger.
Best for: readers who like playful banter.
How to Choose
Read The Bride Test and The Heart Principle first to finish Hoang's series, which grows more emotional with each book. Talia Hibbert's Brown Sisters trilogy is the best next stop, and Act Your Age, Eve Brown has an autistic hero who should interest fans of Stella. For a similar smart heroine, try The Love Hypothesis or The Soulmate Equation. If you want a gentler story without much spice, The Rosie Project and Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine share the same interest in people who think differently. Note that Hoang's books are quite explicit, while others on this list vary in heat, so check the reviews first if that matters to you.
Related: 15 Books Like Wings of Fire Kids Will Love: Dragons, Quests and Animal Adventures · 12 Dystopian Books Like the Hunger Games | Best Books to Read Like Hunger Games
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Kiss Quotient about?
An autistic econometrician hires an escort to teach her how to date, and they fall in love.
Is The Kiss Quotient a series?
Yes. It is followed by The Bride Test and The Heart Principle.
Is Stella autistic in The Kiss Quotient?
Yes, and the author has written about being on the spectrum herself.
Is The Kiss Quotient spicy?
Yes. It has several explicit scenes and is an adult romance.
Where is The Kiss Quotient set?
It takes place in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Do I need to read them in order?
Each book has its own couple, but reading in order introduces the family in the best way.