Books like 'Duke-ing it Out'
Readers who enjoyed Duke-ing it Out by Jami Albright also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary funny small town from hate to love age difference athletes sassy heroine strong heroine tortured heroine tortured hero
-
Forever Starts Tonight by Karla Sorensen
It’s no secret that I’ve been in love with Jax Cartwright for half my life. A terrible decision, really, and not just because he’s my brother’s best friend or he’s ten years older than me. Thanks to an overprotective family, he’s ignored me for years, but still, I can’t get his grumpy a** out of my head...Categorized as:
m-f cheerful heroine cold hero dual-pov grumpy sunshine age difference contemporary humor -
Made For You by Natasha Madison
From Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY bestselling author Natasha Madison comesA brand new stand-alone enemies-to-lovers grumpy/sunshine sports romance.A spin-off from the Only One seriesVivienneI did the last thing I ever expected to do. I bought a boat. A beautiful boat that was all mine to spend the summer on.Only thing I was looking forward to was the calm being on the water brought me...Categorized as:
athletes dual-pov grumpy sunshine from hate to love cold hero m-f contemporary sports -
Story of My Life by Lucy Score
A Gilmore Girls meets Schitt’s Creek redemption romcom. Hazel Hart was a successful romance novelist until a breakup drives her straight into writer’s block. Having failed (and failed some more) to deliver her new manuscript, she’s hiding from the world behind a wall of old takeout containers until her publisher lays down the law. If she misses her next deadline it’s The End...Categorized as:
small town m-f grumpy sunshine from hate to love dual-pov famous heroine cold hero cheerful heroine -
Resolution by Adriana Locke
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsFrom USA Today Bestselling author Adriana Locke comes a workplace romance between a grumpy, alpha architect and his new client—who just so happens to have the blueprint to bring him to his knees. Romance is not in Wade Mason’s portfolio. This is tragic...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine cheerful heroine cold hero m-f contemporary humor super rich hero christian -
-
One Day Fiance by Lauren Landish
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsI’m Poppy Woodstock.Romance author and wholehearted believer in Happily Ever Afters.A terminal case of writer’s block should be my biggest worry. Then I crash into him—literally—and fall into the most gorgeous pair of blue eyes I’ve ever seen. Connor Bradley.Thief, rebel… and my new neighbor.One slip with the bad boy next door, and my life becomes stranger than any fiction I could ever write... -
She Loves Me by Melissa Foster
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWhat are two besties willing to risk for something more? The New York Times bestselling author of This Is Love has the answer in this fun, sexy, and emotional romance about friendship, family, and giving love a chance. Something is off in Piper Dalton’s life, and she has a feeling it might just be her. All her siblings are blissfully settled with their forever loves...Categorized as:
sassy heroine strong heroine m-f humor contemporary friends to lovers independent heroine -
Good Vibrations by Kayley Loring
A former model, a grumpy lawyer, and a single dad walk into an audition for a children's musical… They’re all Miles Brodie. It’s only cute if you aren’t the director who’s being bribed to cast his daughter. DEAR MS. CROSS, Re: Our discussion 1. True. Casting my daughter as the lead in your musical could be considered bribery if people find out I’m investing in it, but no one needs to know. 2... -
The Lie by Karla Sorensen
Rule number 1 for the team owner’s daughter? Don’t date the players. Especially not hotheaded tight ends with tattoos and impulse control problems. That’s why Dominic Walker is completely off my radar. Sort of. Babysitting the team troublemaker when he’s forced to volunteer for the foundation where I work means I can’t exactly avoid him. I wish I had though... -
The Grumpy Player Next Door by Pippa Grant
An enemies-to-lovers / sports / grumpy-sunshine / neighbor romanceI, Tillie Jean Rock, am not in love with my brother’s teammate...Categorized as:
from hate to love grumpy sunshine cold hero m-f athletes sassy heroine dual-pov small town -
Jock Blocked by Pippa Grant
She can't let him score… Call it superstition, but when a guy bats as hot as Brooks Elliott, you don't mess with what's working. And what's working is him keeping his pants zipped and doing all of his scoring on the field...Categorized as:
from hate to love cold hero dual-pov cheerful heroine sassy heroine athletes m-f contemporary -
Blind Pass by Teagan Hunter
What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay there.I would know. I’m coming home with a brand-new ring on my finger.My wife? Ryan Bell.We’re polar opposites.She’s sunshine and happiness.I’m grumpy and scarred—literally.We could get it annulled and no one would be the wiser.Only problem? We posted about it online, and it’s already making headlines...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine cold hero dual-pov cheerful heroine from hate to love athletes sassy heroine m-f -
Taming Hollywood's Baddest Boy by Max Monroe
Do people say they hate someone’s guts so that they can still fall stupidly, head-over-heels in love with the other parts? Asking for a friend. Okay, fine. I’m not asking for a friend. I’m asking for me—and I’m begging you to tell me that the practice of falling in love with your should-be-enemy is common... -
One Bossy Disaster by Nicole Snow
A wild twist of fate throws together two total opposites in this steamy and hysterical grumpy sunshine romance from Wall Street Journal bestselling author Nicole Snow.Trust me, I'm not falling for a human porcupine.I don't do older men with baggage a mile long.Billionaires? Nope, I'm Miss Independence, thank you very much...Categorized as:
age difference grumpy sunshine tortured hero from hate to love dual-pov m-f humor super rich hero -
Gotta Be Bayou by Erin Nicholas
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsHow do you get over a woman you never should have been, ahem, under in the first place?Just when FBI special agent Spencer Landry had decided to forget about investigative journalist Maxine — Max — Keller and their one hot night together, there's a threat made against her and Spencer's protective instincts get all riled up. Again... -
-
Knockout by Jessica Prince
It wasn’t fair that the man I hated with a passion was so freaking gorgeous.Things in Layla Fox’s life were going great. She had a fantastic job, amazing friends, and a killer apartment. There was just one tiny glitch in all that perfect. Her upstairs neighbor was the very definition of tall, dark, and handsome . . . and she hated the man with every cell in her body...Categorized as:
from hate to love grumpy sunshine cold hero m-f dual-pov small town sassy heroine alpha male -
Jameson Fox by Nina Levine
Rule number one if you’re going to fake marry a billionaire: only marry him if you like him and he likes you. Everything is too hard if you hate each other.Jameson Fox is the most infuriating, arrogant, frustrating, presumptuous, self-important alphahole I have ever met.He stole my company from me five years ago. Now, he’s made me an offer I can’t refuse: fake marry him, and he’ll give it back...Categorized as:
from hate to love sassy heroine m-f dual-pov first-person-pov strong heroine cold hero contemporary -
No Cap by Lani Lynn Vale
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsYou know when you see that big red flag, and you think to yourself, I should probably not go anywhere near there? Yeah, Quincy Carter ignored that big red flag. He walked right up to that red flag, waving blatantly in the wind, and kissed the holy hell out of her. Sure, he probably should’ve arrested her for breaking a restraining order...Categorized as:
from hate to love first-person-pov dual-pov m-f contemporary suspense humor military -
Hauling Ashe by L.B. Dunbar
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLife might be a highway but the last thing this grumpy silver fox expected was a cross-country road trip with a ray of sunshine."My sister is driving to California. She could give you a ride.""What?" Tucker Ashe and I say in unison.Mae FoxSurely, my older sister has lost her mind. There is no way I'm driving her insufferable – albeit sexy silver fox – boss two thousand miles... -
Taming The CEO by Layla Hagen
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA blizzard, a one-bedroom cottage, and one irresistible andarrogant man = A Recipe for Disaster! Maddox Whitley is the most arrogant man I’ve met. He thinks the world revolves around him and everyone else must do his bidding. He’s determined to buy my father’s business, and he’s using dirty tactics to get it. But the Adventure Park is my family’s life’s work, and I’m defending it no matter what... -
This Is Love by Melissa Foster
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsFall in love in Harmony Pointe, where hearts are lost, found, and sometimes misplaced…and everyone get a happy ever after. If a woman can’t find love in the quaint town of Harmony Pointe, it’s sure to find them—whether they’re looking for it or not. Here, the remaining single Dalton siblings are about to discover that they’re next in line to get swept away by love...Categorized as:
sassy heroine strong heroine tortured hero m-f humor contemporary alpha male forced proximity -
Scrooge and the Girls Next Door: A Holiday Rom Com by Melanie Jacobson
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsWhen the sunniest woman in Creekville buys the house next to the grumpiest man on the street, sparks fly . . . and not just because she keep blowing his fuses...Paige Redmond has done everything the hard way, from her wild child past to being a single mother raising her own delightful wild child now. But since landing in Creekville, she's turned it all around...Categorized as:
age difference grumpy sunshine from hate to love small town contemporary christmas humor clean -
The Bossy One by Leslie North
WANTED: Nanny who will put up with an infuriatingly grumpy Irish billionaire.If you throw Declan Bryne out of a plane at 40,000 feet, would he fly?That's the question I ask myself after he told me that it’d be “grand" if I could stop talking.I can’t help it. I’m a nervous flyer.But that should've been my sign to hit EJECT!Because this hate-hate relationship is doomed to fail.He’s a total grump... -
Houston, We Have a Problem by Dana LeCheminant
Houston Briggs is at a crossroads, facing the possible end of his career after a devastating injury. With an uncertain future ahead of him and his siblings finding their own happy endings, he’s desperately seeking peace and purpose.Enter Darcy Paxton, his refreshing new neighbor who is nothing like the women of his past relationships... -
Are We There Yet? by Savannah Scott
A vintage VW van. Four friends. A cross-country road trip.It will be the best adventure of my life, if only I can shake the feelings I have for Cameron .Cameron Reeves is as gorgeous as his name makes him sound.He’s about six feet tall, which is the height I always wrote in my ideal man list in my journal. Yes. I have a list of qualities I want in a man... -
-
Some Sort of Happy by Melanie Harlow
Skylar Nixon is a twenty-seven year old failed actress with no Plan B. After a humiliating stint on a reality TV show crushes what’s left of her childhood dream, she finds herself back in her hometown with no money saved, no college degree, and no confidence she’s anything but a joke—a small town starlet who couldn’t hack it in the big city... -
Mine To Cherish by Natasha Madison
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsThings are supposed to go smoothly on your wedding day.Aren't they?ClarabellaDid I want to get married today?It's hard to say when he proposed in front of over a hundred people.Everything happened so fast, and I thought it was just nerves.It was not.The knock on the door showed me that what I was feeling was more than just cold feet.I was a runaway bride... -
Real Fake Love by Pippa Grant
If people have polar opposites, Luca Rossi is mine.His butt is in the baseball hall of fame. Mine’s comfortably seated in the hall of lame.When he’s not snagging fly balls out in center field, he’s modeling in shampoo commercials. I once jammed my own finger while stirring cookie dough, and sometimes I forget shampoo is a thing.He’s a total cynic when it comes to love... -
Blurred Lines by Jessica Prince
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThere was absolutely no way she was falling for her neighbor. No matter how gorgeous he was.Aurora Keller thought she’d lucked out when she decided to put down roots in Redemption, Tennessee. She had a new business, new friends, and a picture-perfect little house...Categorized as:
from hate to love sassy heroine tortured hero m-f dual-pov first-person-pov contemporary humor -
Charity Case: The Complete Series by Piper Rayne
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThese three women are the toughest juries they’ll ever have to plead their case to.THIS BOX SET INCLUDES…Clean Slate (Charity Case #0.5)Moving two thousand miles away wasn’t my plan, but when family needs you, you come. Before I can head back to my hometown of Chicago though, I have two men to say good-bye to. Neither one of them will be happy to hear the news... -
Dirty Flirty Enemy by Piper Rayne
He’s the arrogant Manhattan realtor with billboards advertising his six-pack more than his expertise in negotiations. I’m the competing broker who stupidly moved across the hall from his office. From day one, I’ve been his sworn enemy. Okay, so I might have accidentally stolen one of his clients... -
Bombshell by Jessica Prince
He'd hated me first, so I figured it was only fair I hate the stupid, sexy jerk back.After ending the world's worst relationship, Marin Grey had sworn off men. So it was rather inconvenient that she couldn't seem to keep her eyes and thoughts off the Ice King himself, Pierce Walton--also known as her ex-boyfriend's older, much hotter brother.He was cold, callous, and rude... -
The Wild Card by Cassie-Ann L. Miller
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt was supposed to be harmless. One fake date with a football player.Except Harry Westbrook is the exact opposite of harmless. My first mistake? Underestimating that boyish smile, those playful eyes, the charming words on those perfect lips. He claims to have a crush on me. But, as hot as he is, I'd bet he's scheduling booty calls like a dentist booking teeth cleanings... -
The Love Interest by Kayley Loring
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsDear Fiona,I hope this letter finds you well—and by well, I mean significantly less infuriated than you were yesterday. I’ve wanted to continue our conversation from the night we met, but there are so many things I can’t say or do, now that I’m your professor.As an anonymous letter writer, I can give you some idea of what I have planned for us, once the year is over...Categorized as:
age difference grumpy sunshine m-f contemporary humor secret-relationship length-medium -
Winning Mr. Wrong by C.W. Farnsworth
A reality television dating show was never part of my post-college plan. Nearly broke, unemployed, recently dumped me let my best friend Haley decide it should be.They say don’t make important decisions after five shots of tequila, and I now believe whoever coined that phrase... -
-
Grumpy the Bear by Marika Ray
He’s a tattooed, blue-eyed jerk who has no business being a single dad. He’s also my next-door neighbor, and after negotiations, my grumpy employer for the summer.I don’t put up with cocky males normally and I certainly won’t put up with that man making noise at all hours of the day and night while he builds his glamp-ground...Categorized as:
from hate to love age difference grumpy sunshine strong heroine small town cold hero m-f dual-pov -
Sweet Sunshine (the Pembrooke series) by Jessica Prince
She’s a romantic at heart. Chloe Delaney had three very specific wishes, growing up. She wished to stay settled in the small mountain town of Pembrooke, where she grew up, to one day be her own boss, and to fall in love with a man who would be willing to go to the ends of the earth for her...Categorized as:
m-f grumpy sunshine small town cheerful heroine cold hero dual-pov humor contemporary -
Duke: Faking the Play by Kayley Loring, Connor Crais
#4 Callum Duquette. Placekicker for the Boston Tomcats. Former underwear model. NICKNAME: Duke. I thought the most annoying thing about being a single dad was that my friends were always trying to find me a date. Until a sassy British ray of sunshine bumps into me at a bookstore...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine athletes age difference cold hero sassy heroine cheerful heroine m-f famous heroine -
Flirting With Forever by Claire Kingsley
He’ll break all her rulesNora Lakes is sophisticated, successful, and happily single. Career problems aside, her life is fine the way it is, thank you very much. Sure, her best friends are all moving into a new season of life—full of husbands and babies and white picket fences. But that’s not what Nora wants. Neither is the gruff, tattooed guy next door. Tattoo artist Dex St... -
Never Say Never by Harlow James
“I need you to pretend to be my girlfriend.”When those words left the lips of Damien Shaw, my childhood nemesis, I should have told him to kick rocks right then and there... -
Home Is Where You Park It by Marika Ray
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHe’s a giant of a man who grunts for words and barks out orders, yet circumstances require I be his fake girlfriend and spend the weekend with him in an isolated cabin.And of course there’s only one bed. Just my luck…But I need this commission check that only Boston can guarantee me...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine from hate to love small town m-f forced proximity contemporary humor military -
The Plan by Karla Sorensen
Have you ever fake dated your bodyguard? I don't recommend it. Especially if he's anything like Erik Wilder: former football player, world class know-it-all and unapologetic grump. To be clear, I didn't want a bodyguard (hence the fake dating idea). Most days, I can’t figure out why he wants the job either. We drive each other insane, probably because we’re as opposite as two people can be...Categorized as:
age difference from hate to love grumpy sunshine cold hero m-f contemporary humor sports -
Neighbor Dearest: by Penelope Ward
The New York Times bestseller... After getting dumped, the last thing I needed was to move next door to someone who reminded me of my ex-boyfriend, Elec. Damien was a hotter version of my ex. The neighbor I'd dubbed "Angry Artist" also had two massive dogs that kept me up with their barking. He wanted nothing to do with me... -
Some Kind of Blunderful by Livy Hart
If you ask Mia Madden, the road to dating hell is paved with suspiciously hot online profiles. Take tonight’s date, for example. Alex Conroy’s whole “boardroom in the streets, lumberjack in the sheets” thing totally works for her, but his profile did not convey that he represents everything she loathes about corporate hustle culture. He’s not even worth her bottle of purse wine...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine from hate to love dual-pov m-f humor forced proximity contemporary new adult -
The Christmas Fix by Lucy Score
From the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Things We Never Got Over She'll save Christmas just to spite him… There's only one thing standing in the way of Cat King saving Merry, Connecticut's Christmas Grumpy town manager Noah Yates. Single dad Noah takes his responsibilities seriously... -
-
More Than I Could by Adriana Locke
This grumpy single dad falls hard for the nanny. Chase Marshall is many things: · An attentive single dad · Jaw-droppingly gorgeous · My employer for the next thirty days He’s also the bane of my existence. He swears I’m a never-ending headache—the most infuriating woman he’s ever met... -
Doppelbanger by Heather M. Orgeron
Doppelbanger; A person who bangs someone solely because they look similar to another person they want to bang. At thirty-five, Gina Bourque is still playing the field. If he's single, in his early twenties with dark hair and brooding eyes, there's a damn good chance you'll find him in her little black book... -
Billionaire Boss by Julie Capulet
Our deal was simple. One night. Fake names. No strings attached.Until it turns out he’s my new boss...I couldn’t believe my luck when I got sent to a work conference in Hawaii. Living the dream after years of pulling myself up by my bootstraps.The sand, the palm trees and the blue water were straight out of a romantic fantasy.So was the guy at the beachfront bar, let’s be honest. Blue eyes...Categorized as:
dual-pov age difference grumpy sunshine m-f first-person-pov super rich hero contemporary office -
My Vigilante Valentine: A Super Romantic Comedy by Jess Mastorakos
When my oh-so-handsome coffee shop regular turns out to be The Blade—the city’s most infamous vigilante—I do the most logical thing appoint myself as his partner in crime-fighting.Sure, Jax isn’t exactly thrilled. He’s the type who insists he doesn’t need a team, prefers to brood alone, and thinks opening up is a tactical error...Categorized as:
m-f sassy heroine cold hero dual-pov humor length-medium glimpses-kisses contemporary -
Set My Heart Bonfire by Marika Ray
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHe's a dashing millionaire who thinks everything in life is one big joke, probably because he bathes in piles of money each morning. He’s also my new neighbor, and after a humiliating experience in the cemetery that is my backyard, he becomes my shadow, showing up everywhere just to annoy me.I’m not a fan of happy people...Categorized as:
grumpy sunshine from hate to love small town m-f contemporary super rich hero humor length-medium -
No More Secrets by Lucy Score
“I can’t wait anymore.” His mouth claimed hers in a storm of heat and power. Carter Pierce is a man who believes in signs. He just doesn't know what to do with this one. In the small town of Blue Moon Bend, where everybody is a matchmaker, Carter wants to be left alone to tend the family farm. After returning from Afghanistan with scars, his only goal is recovery...Categorized as:
small town strong heroine tortured heroine tortured hero cheerful heroine cold hero m-f humor
Find out more about romance.io.
Get recommendations by genres & tropes
Use the romance book finder to mix and match over 100 content keywords to find the books that match your preferences

Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.