Romantic Movies Adapted From Books You Should Add To Your Watchlist

Most of us have loved good romantic movies for as long as we can remember, one that fits every mood and every time of the day. But not all love stories that make it to the screens start with a screenplay. 

Some of the sweetest love stories begin as ink on a page, whispered through bookmarked and highlighted paperbacks with underlined quotes that once wrecked us at 2 a.m. Before they ever made it to the big screen, these romances lived quiet little lives in books, making us want to turn into the same fictional characters as the ones in them, waiting to be discovered, reimagined, and turned into the kind of movies we watch with a tub of ice cream and a dangerously high emotional investment. 

There’s something magical about seeing words transform into frames. The pure intimacy of watching characters we once imagined in our heads-how they looked, how they smiled or even how they loved- step out in high-definition, breathing, laughing, kissing like they were always meant to. From movies like John Greene’s The Fault In Our Star, Cecelia Ahern’s P.S I Love You, or F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby or even Sofia Alvarez’s To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, these films tug at our heartstrings for a little longer and feel rather special and honestly, It’s wild how often the most iconic cinematic love stories are born from someone typing away in a café, probably powered by heartbreak and caffeine. 

Romantic Movies Adapted From Books

A Walk To Remember (2002)

An adaptation of a novel by Nicholas Sparks, this story follows a rebellious teenager who falls in love with the rebellious daughter of a Baptist minister in North Carolina when a prank goes wrong and the teenager is forced to participate in school activities where he meets her. An unlikely romance takes shape between the two that ends up transforming him. The story explores love and faith as the two grapple with secrets buried deep.

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The Lucky One (2012)

A 2012 film, The Lucky One is adapted from a 2008 romance novel written by American Writer Nicholas Sparks and stars Zac Efron and Taylor Schilling. The movie follows the story of a U.S. A Marine who believes that a photograph of a woman he found in the war saved his life. As he returns from the Iraq war, travels to Louisiana to find her. A romance takes shape as he meets the woman in the photograph and tries to overcome his past while dealing with a secret that could change their lives.

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The Longest Ride (2015)

Based on Nicholas Sparks’ 2013 novel of the same name, the film is a story about two love stories that are interconnected. One of them follows a young art student and a bull rider while the other follows the love story between a 91-year-old man and his late wife. The two stories connect when the young art student and the bull rider rescue the old man from a car crash and help him by reading the love letters he had written to his late wife. The love story of the old couple inspires the younger couple to navigate their own challenges and makes the movie rather heartfelt.

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The Hating Game (2021)

Adapted from a contemporary romance novel of the same name written by Sally Thorne, this movie follows the classic enemies-to-lovers trope between two executive assistants. Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman work at the same publishing company and are constantly competing and trying to one-up each other. The story takes a swift turn as their intense rivalry takes a turn and their mutual hatred blurs into a subtle attraction to one another. The movie, similar to the book, explores their relationship as they question the line between hate and love.

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My Oxford Year (2025)

My Oxford Year, an adaptation of Julia Whelan's book, is a romantic drama that follows an ambitious American student who travels to Oxford to study for a year. Anna De La Vega is set to start her career at Goldman Sachs after her year at Oxford, but her life takes a turn when she falls in love with her professor, only to learn he has a rare, incurable cancer. My Oxford Year is a heartfelt movie that is sure to tug at your heart.

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Me Before You (2016)

A British romantic drama, this film is an adaptation of the novel by the same name and written by author Jojo Moyes. The movie follows the story of Louisa Clark who takes a job as a caregiver for a wealthy man, Will Taynor, who was recently paralysed from an accident. While initially Will is cold and withdrawn, the story shifts as Louisa’s optimism and determination slowly breaks through his hard exterior, resulting in a deep bond between the two. The movie explores the dynamics of their relationship as it delved into the complex moral and emotional questions surrounding assisted suicide.

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