Sri Lanka
USA
Canada
India
UK
UAE
What used to be brushed off as guilty pleasure reading is now at the heart of Australia’s hottest literary trend: romance fiction. Independent bookstores like Romancing The Novel in Paddington are packed, sometimes so full it’s hard to move, as hundreds of readers flock to find their next swoon-worthy read.
Romance fiction sales in Australia more than doubled between 2019 and 2024, with Aussies spending over $50 million on the genre last year alone. And the momentum hasn’t slowed—some readers now spend up to $1000 in a single visit for special editions and collector’s copies.
Thanks to platforms like BookTok (TikTok’s book community), the genre has shed its stigma and emerged as a powerful space of female-driven storytelling, community, and empowerment.
Scarlett Hopper, owner of Romancing The Novel and a romance author herself, credits the genre’s rise to women reclaiming their love for emotionally rich, empowering stories. “Romance has always had a place—it just wasn’t always respected,” she says.
Other indie bookstores like A Thousand Lives in Yarra Valley and Books Ever After in Bowral are seeing the same trend: more readers, bigger purchases, and a thirst for real-world connection in cozy, inclusive spaces.
Book crawls like Bound to Roam are fueling the surge, drawing crowds of romance lovers who travel long distances not just to buy, but to belong.
Even Netflix has taken notice. When Bridgerton’s press tour hit Bowral, sales exploded for Kat T. Masen’s bookstore. Now she’s planning a second location as Australia’s romance scene proves that bookstores—and happily-ever-afters—are far from dead.
