✨ Welcome back to another week of LTB! ✨
Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and co-hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits and myself! In this discussion meme, participants get to talk about certain topics, share opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! Learn more about LTB, past topics and future topics HERE.
Don’t forget to link back to this post so I can add your link to the list of community posts below!
This week’s topic is:
Non-Romantic Love
Prompts: It’s the month of love but it’s not always about romantic love. What are your favourite non-romantic relationships to read about (i.e. siblings, parent-child, etc.) and what do you love most about them? Do you prefer to read about them over romantic relationships? What books would you recommend with your favourite non-romantic relationships?
I was excited about this topic because as the prompt introduction says: it’s not always about romantic love. As someone who reads a whole lot of romance and loves every moment of it, it’s also refreshing to read stories where non-romantic relationships are the focus or play a big role in the story. You can find this relationship dynamic in romances too and when written well, they serve to make me love the story and characters even more, but that’s not the focus today!
What are your favourite non-romantic relationships to read about (i.e. siblings, parent-child, etc.) and what do you love most about them?
There are so many types of non-romantic relationships I love to read about. I’m a sucker for a good family saga, I love exploring the complex relationships between siblings and parents, but I also love a story with found family and a great group of friends (or even friends who become enemies in the non-romantic sense)! 😉
I enjoy reading about non-romantic relationships because of how complex and messy yet relatable these types of relationships can be depicted in fiction. This is particularly true, I think, for siblings, parent-child, and generally, familial relationships. There’s always an element of relatability that makes reading about these relationships more enjoyable but also, if you’re an emotional reader like me, a bit more painful, lol. I love seeing how authors take that messiness of reality and put into their stories.
When it comes to friendships and found family, I love the joy and hope that shines through in these stories through these relationships. It’s especially fantastic when authors can capture and translate the comfort of these relationships into words. There’s nothing more I love than reading about a ride-or-die friendship or when people find their group where they feel they can finally be themselves. It’s so heartwarming! That said, I can’t deny that I’m also a fan of when relationships/friendships turn into enmity and you see how people grow apart. My favourite example of this is V.E. Schwab’s adult sci-fi series: Villains. Eli and Victor broke my heart but oh gosh, their story was fantastic! ⚡️
Do you prefer to read about non-romantic relationships?
I wouldn’t say that I necessarily prefer to read about non-romantic relationships because I’m a romance girlie through and through and I love my romances too much to stop reading them. But as I mentioned earlier, it’s refreshing to read about different kinds of relationships and I would love to see more books with non-romantic relationships as the focus, especially since not everyone enjoys reading about romance.
What books would you recommend with your favourite non-romantic relationships? (Also featuring titles on my TBR)
Of course, the minute I sit down to create my list, all the book titles that I remembered not even 10 seconds ago, go flying out of my head! 🤣 Let’s see what I can recall…
It’s Family, it’s Wonderful(ly Complicated).
Friendships & Found Family
From the Endless Possibility Pile
Obviously, I can come up with a much longer list of the books that are on my possibility pile because it’s truly endless. I can’t wait to read some of these this year though! 🤞🏽
Don’t forget to check out the other bloggers who joined the discussion this week! 👇🏽
Abyssal Librarian
Elle @ Unwrapping Words
Leyre @ Read You Leyre
Raji @ Worlds Unlike Our Own
Emma @ Pages of Emma
Yolanda @ Past Midnights
Julie @ Bookflowerpath
Lin @ Lin’s Perspective
Leslie @ Books Are the New Black
Lila @ Hardcover Haven
Jillian @ The Bookish Butterfly
If I’ve missed your post this week, don’t hesitate to let me know in the comments and I’ll add you to this week’s list of community posts ASAP!
Do you prefer reading about non-romantic relationships vs. romantic relationships? What are your favourite types of relationships to read about? Have you read any of these books or are they also on your TBR?
dinipandareads 
I love this week’s theme. I do enjoy romance but do love other types of love too. The love that comes into play in found family is probably my favourite. One of the best has to be Frodo and Sam, or actually, all of the members of the Fellowship of the Ring. Did Tolkein write the first ‘found family’ story?
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Found family is a superior trope and it’s so rare for it to not be done well either. I always find the even if the rest of the book falls kind of flat for me, if there’s a found family element to it, I will probably still enjoy it (that part at least)! I still need to read the LOTR books but ooh, you could be right about Tolkien writing about the first “found family” story! I wonder if anyone has written about the origins of found family—I would read that article/blog! 😍
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It would certainly be an interesting read. Tolkien is the oldest one I can think of but I bet there are others. Robin Hood legends have a bit of a found family vibe
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Non-romantic relationships are my absolute favourites! Family, especially siblings for me, are my relationship of choice to read about.
You have some fab picks here, I’ll definitely check out a few of the ones I’ve not read!
Here’s my LTB!
https://pagesofemmacouk.wordpress.com/2025/02/21/lets-talk-bookish-non-romantic-love/
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They are great! There’s just something about family dynamics and especially great sibling relationships/bonds that are so fantastic! They’re so complex relationships and one never feels like another, even if the relationship explored is the same.
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Yes 100%! I always find them so interesting to read too as my own sibling is someone I have a very close relationship with.
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I’m not taking part this week as I really didn’t know what to write LOL! I was so brainfried…
I enjoy reading family sagas too, found family is also a good one.
When will the March topics be up?
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We’re aiming to get the topics up by the end of this week!
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Hello!! here my LTB Topic for this week 🙂
http://bookfllwerpath.art/2025/02/21/non-romantic-love-lets-talk-bookish/
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I really enjoyed reading your post! Thanks for joining LTB this week 💜
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This is my first LTB meme, and it is both interesting and refreshing. As you mentioned, some of our books align, and I enjoyed every aspect of them. In particular, Celeste Ng’s book really resonated with me. I will be adding more books to my neverending TBR, haha.
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I’m so happy that you joined LTB this week! I hope that you will continue to find the topics interesting and refreshing and if you also happen to have any suggestions, we’d be happy to receive them! 😍
I can’t wait to read more by Celeste Ng (I’m so glad she has a decent backlist to explore)! I hope you enjoy the books you’ve added to your never ending TBR 😂
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Thank you! And so am I. I’m sure I’ll enjoy the topics, if not all, then most of them 🙂 as for Celeste, I love her books. I hope you’ll like those from the blacklist as much as I did.
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With the Fire on High and Nevermoor are two of my favorites! I love found families.
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Found families are truly superior! 😍
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Ahhh, I did found families!! <3<3 I almost added Nevermoor, but was in a hurry. I’m so late posting!! lol Great topic discussion though. I definitely read more romantic love, because that’s what most books have. I do love love some books that feature found families though!
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Found families are truly superior. I know how busy you are and I’m so happy that you were still able to make a post and participate in the discussion, Leslie. You are the best! 💜 I also do read more romantic love but even in those romance driven stories, there can be some really great friendships and siblingships that make the story even more wonderful!
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I want to do all I can to support you!! ❤ I am going to try hard to make next month's posts and schedule them. Oh yes, I love when a romance has amazing supporting friends or even pets!!
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Reading your post reminds me that yes, I like reading romance, but I also love some family drama! And healthier/more normal families too 😅 I think stories about siblings or parent-child relationships are the ones that touch me the most. Is ‘The Astonishing Color of After’ one that you read or one on your TBR list? I read it a long time ago, but I remember thinking I didn’t like it as much as I hoped. Another book that I read ages ago is ‘Life on the Refrigerator Door’ by Alice Kuipers – I did like this one though.
Also, I love the found family trope in dramas, but I don’t have any book ones that come to mind for me at the moment.
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Haha, we do love a good family drama! Wholesome and healthy family relationships are also fun to read about but we do love a good realistically messy and complex family dynamic because families are complicated! The Astonishing Color of After is one that I read and I think I also had different expectations going in but I ended up loving it. I got very emotional over it! I haven’t heard of Alice Kuipers before but I will have a look at the book—what an interesting title! I can already visualise it so clearly.
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Let me know what you think! I read it when I was younger so I’m not sure if I’d have a different perspective on it now, but I remember enjoying it.
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Im certain I found my soulmate in the form of my bestfriend. Even with a 3hrs car drive & a child between us, I don’t know what I would do without her. Same with my pets, the topic I choosed to write on for this valentines day!
Im an only child so I gotta say I dont always understand the sibling dynamic 😅 but found family is a definate love!
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Pets are the best and I’m kinda surprised that no one mentioned human-pet relationships this week! I feel like those stories always end up feeling a bit more sad or melancholy though—the only book I can think of personally is about a dog that gets cancer (I’ve heard it’s amazing and emotional but obviously, super sad). 😭
Found family is definitely superior! I love them so much!
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Yes! Lily and the octopus! If you’re interrested, I got a few more on my post eheh
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I like reading about all kinds of relationships that are positive. You have some many great examples up there. There as a book by Wendy Wunder, The Probability of Miracles, where the mother makes this speech that was so defining of how much she loved her child. It’s a parent/child relationship that really stands out for me.
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Oh, you’ve piqued my interest with that comment about the speech. I’ve never heard of the book or author before but I will keep an eye out for it! I do love reading about all kinds of relationships that are positive and “healing” as well. 💜
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It’s a tough one, about a kid with terminal cancer, but there was something ultimately uplifting about it too.
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I love the found family trope!
I think one of my favourite examples is the crew in Six of Crows! I love the way that they look out for each other and the moments of banter between the group.
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I feel like at this point, Six of Crows is synonymous with found family because it’s the book that people always mention when they bring up that trope or type of relationship. I fully agree with everyone and I think that says amazing things about the book and how well the relationships are done! 😍 It’s honestly kind of nostalgic but also very comforting, lol
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[…] Let’s Talk Bookish: Non-Romantic Love […]
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[…] the blogosphere, I really enjoyed this week’s Let’s Talk Bookish topic hosted by Dini at Dinipandareads which was all about non-romantic love. I love a good family relationship but my favourite […]
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I do enjoy romance, but I also love found family and multi-generational friendships (which also have a bit of a found family vibe). I think the best found family I have read recently are the Cerulean Sea books. There are so many good multi-generational stories like Ove, Eudora Honeysett, Lennie and Margo and more. Great topic!
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[…] Dini’s Let’s talk Bookish post talking about non-romantic love. […]
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