5 Read With Jenna Book Club Picks That Are Perfect For Valentine's Day

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When you picture Valentine's Day, flowers and heart-shaped chocolates come to mind, but why not get into the romantic mood with a good read? There's nothing like getting lost in a heartwarming tale of love to get your heart all aflutter, or a hysterical rom-com for some endorphin-raising laughs. And, while there is no shortage of romances to choose from out there, Jenna Bush Hager's book club has plenty that will tickle your fancy.

On February 14, 2024, Bush Hager couldn't let Valentine's Day go by without combining two of her favorite things: books and love. "I love a love story. Do you want my favorite? It's called 'Love in the Time of Cholera.' Gabriel Garcia Marquez. He can write a great love story," she revealed in a TikTok. The "Today" show host named a few other favorite books, sharing that she likes romances to be "real." Bush Hager stated, "An unrealistic love story just sets you up for disappointment." While she may be correct, we do dig witchy romance books that are perfect for fall. As long as the central theme is love, we're flipping over these five Read With Jenna books for Valentine's Day.

Jenna Bush Hager's December 2025 pick is a book we all know and love — "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen. "My grandmother introduced me to Jane Austen, and I'll never forget how, when I stayed with my grandparents in Maine, we would listen to 'Pride and Prejudice' together and then watch the entire PBS miniseries," the Bush Hager shared on Instagram. She continued, "Jane Austen was one of the first female authors to teach us about love and what it means to be a woman. I hope this new edition introduces a whole new generation to her work."

Published in the early 1800s, "Pride and Prejudice" remains a popular and beloved love story over two centuries later. As we all know, it wasn't smooth sailing at first for Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy's relationship, which starts on the wrong foot when she finds him haughty after he snubs her. However, over time, the two overcome their pride and prejudices (ha!), making Austen's novel one of the best feel-good picks from the Read With Jenna book club.

"This Is a Love Story" by Jessica Soffer is not your typical romance, as readers find out early on that one of the main characters, Jane, is dying from cancer. The book centers around her husband, Abe, who sits by her bedside while recounting memories of their relationship, which began when they met in Central Park over 50 years prior. Throughout their time together, Jane and Abe supported each other's careers, managed post-partum depression, and found their way back together after an emotionally distant time in their lives. The poignant story about love and grief will be sure to tug at your heartstrings, and while Abe eventually loses his wife, you'll appreciate the deep love shared between them.

Jenna Bush Hager chose "This Is a Love Story" for February 2025, just in time for Valentine's Day. "This may be the most epic love story I have ever, ever read. It takes place in Central Park, and it's the backdrop to Abe and Jane's love story filled with desire, ambition, dreams, and, of course, struggles. Every love story has them," Bush Hager shared on the "Today" show. Those who want a realistic look at life and marriage will devour Soffer's novel, with one reader stating on Goodreads, "I loved this book that destroyed me in the best way because it gives so much hope and the reassurance that the best and strongest of marriages aren't perfect because even the best people have flaws. This is one of my favorite books that I have read in the past year."

Valentine's Day wouldn't be complete without some touching poetry, and "Devotions" by Mary Oliver has just that. The Read with Jenna December 2024 book club pick that stands out from the rest is not a novel, but rather a collection of curated poems crafted by Oliver over the course of 50 years. Jenna Bush Hager revealed on Instagram the special reason she chose "Devotions" that month, stating, "I grew up with two grandmothers that loved poetry so much. And my grandmother Jenna, whom I'm named after, we would go and lay out a blanket in her yard in Midland, Texas, and we would look at the constellations, look at the stars, and she would read to us from her poetry books. It's one of my favorite memories that I have with my grandmother, and my sister, and my mom."

Mary Oliver's poems offer meaningful insight about self-love, appreciating nature, and finding the beauty in mundane things. Her words are deep, yet conversational, as if readers are getting a glimpse into her stream of consciousness. "With a style that is as accessible as it is ponderous and moving, Oliver's poetry elegantly examines life from the thin barrier between human and wild animal, our companionship with the world, to the confrontation and acceptance of darkness," a reviewer wrote on Goodreads.

"Evvie Drake Starts Over" by Linda Holmes starts out with a tragic story when the titular protagonist's husband, whom she was about to leave, dies in a car accident. However, fast forward to a year later, and Evvie Drake is living her best life in her Maine house, which gets upended when a Major League baseball player rents a house on her property. Drake can't deny her attraction to Dean Tenney, and he totally falls for her, too. Of course, a rom-com isn't complete without some errors in judgment and self-realization, but Drake ultimately finds her way to a new lease on life and love.

Holmes' debut novel may be centered on love, but the message is full of girl power, making this a perfect Galentine's Day read. Drake has overcome an abusive marriage and found a potential forever partner, and does the work to heal herself by going to therapy and making amends with her longtime friend. Ultimately, Tenney, who has his own issues, is not her knight in shining armor, but when the two begin to heal, their love for each other can truly blossom.

"Writers & Lovers" by Lily King isn't your typical boy-meets-girl romance — it's more about the protagonist, Casey Peabody, discovering herself while finding love along the way. The 30-something-year-old is struggling as a writer, barely making ends meet, when she finds herself caught in a love triangle between two fellow writers, Silas and Oscar. Facing homelessness and health issues while navigating her mom's death, Peabody must learn how to find her voice as a writer and reclaim her dreams. "It is in some ways a love story. That's clear from the title, but I think what Lily King did really well was that when you are done with this book, what you find is that as long as you are true to yourself and you really understand what makes you happy, that is the true love story," Jenna Bush Hager shared, per Today.

Many readers loved how Peabody pushed through to follow her desire to be a published author, despite many roadblocks along the way. "Her writing carries her, and her friends and her work reinforce this need. She has to write, she says, not because she thinks she has something to say. She writes because when she doesn't, everything feels worse. This is not nothing," one wrote on Amazon. Another pontificated, "Some people will say this is a feminist book. It focuses on a woman competing in a male-dominated field without the culturally-enforced confidence of a man. Often all Casey has is her hope of her novel, and trying to find her own path, not filling someone else's ideal."