Emma St. Clair Books in Order, Updated July 2026

Emma St. Clair writes closed door romantic comedies with contemporary, small town, sports, royal, billionaire, and lightly magical settings. Her bibliography includes solo series, shared worlds, collaborations with Jenny Proctor, holiday novellas, and several older books that have changed titles or series placement.

The main reading challenge is not chronology. It is identifying which books belong to Emma St. Clair alone, which belong to multi author projects, and which older editions duplicate stories now sold under different titles.

For most readers, Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin is the strongest introduction to her interconnected romantic comedies. Readers looking specifically for hockey romance should begin with Just Don’t Fall.

Quick Answer

Read Emma St. Clair’s books by series rather than forcing every title into one master timeline.

The most useful starting points are:

1. Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin for the Love Clichés series
2. The Buy-In for Love Stories in Sheet Cake
3. Just Don’t Fall for the Appies hockey world
4. Eloise and the Grump Next Door for Oakley Island
5. Royally Rearranged for royal romance
6. Sandover Beach Memories for her earlier beach romances
7. The Billionaire Love Match for her early billionaire series

Publication order preserves recurring character introductions and relationship updates. Chronological order offers no meaningful advantage in most of her series.

How Emma St. Clair’s Catalog Fits Together

Emma St. Clair’s books fall into four broad continuity groups.

Closely Interconnected Series

These should be read in order because characters and relationships develop across multiple books:

1. The Love Clichés
2. Love Stories in Sheet Cake
3. Sandover Island
4. Oakley Island

Shared World Series

These contain books by other authors as well as Emma St. Clair:

1. The Appies Hockey Romances
2. Sweater Weather
3. Only Magic in the Building
4. Bachelor Texas Rebel Romances

Readers can follow only Emma St. Clair’s contributions, but the full shared order provides more complete background.

Loosely Connected Series

These have recurring settings or related characters, but each romance is designed to stand largely on its own:

1. Sweet Royal Romcoms
2. Billionaire Surprise

Standalones

Managing the Rock Star and If All Else Sails can be read without completing another series.

If All Else Sails contains connections to the Appies world, but it remains a standalone novel.

The Love Clichés Books in Order

The Love Clichés series follows a group of women connected through friendship, shared living arrangements, and an anonymous relationship advice columnist.

The clearest reading sequence is:

1. Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin
2. Falling for Your Boss
3. Falling for Your Fake Fiancé
4. The Twelve Holidates
5. Falling for Your Best Friend
6. Falling for Your Brother’s Best Friend
7. Falling for Your Enemy

The official numbering treats the two shorter companion books differently:

1. Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin, book 1
2. Falling for Your Boss, book 2
3. Falling for Your Fake Fiancé, book 3
4. The Twelve Holidates, book 3.5
5. Falling for Your Best Friend, book 4
6. Falling for Your Brother’s Best Friend, book 4.5
7. Falling for Your Enemy, book 6

There is no separately published book 5 in the current numbering. The fractional numbering accounts for the apparent gap.

Where The Twelve Holidates Belongs

The Twelve Holidates is a Christmas companion novella.

Read it after Falling for Your Fake Fiancé and before Falling for Your Best Friend. It includes familiar characters from the main series and fits naturally at that point.

Status: Optional, but recommended.

Where Falling for Your Brother’s Best Friend Belongs

Falling for Your Brother’s Best Friend takes place alongside Falling for Your Best Friend.

The safest position is immediately after Falling for Your Best Friend. It is a related side romance rather than the main numbered conclusion.

Status: Optional for the central Dr. Love storyline, but included for a complete Love Clichés read.

Why Falling for Your Enemy Should Be Last

Falling for Your Enemy resolves the storyline involving the identity and consequences of Dr. Love.

Starting with it would reveal developments built across the earlier books. Readers interested in the complete series should save it for the end.

Love Stories in Sheet Cake Books in Order

Love Stories in Sheet Cake follows the Graham family, a group of former professional football players whose family purchases the small Texas town of Sheet Cake.

Use this order:

1. The Buy-In
2. The Bluff
3. A Holly Jilly Christmas
4. The Pocket Pair
5. Upping the Ante
6. The Wild Card
7. To Have and To Fold

The official numbering is:

1. The Buy-In, book 1
2. The Bluff, book 2
3. A Holly Jilly Christmas, book 2.5
4. The Pocket Pair, book 3
5. Upping the Ante, book 3.5
6. The Wild Card, book 4
7. To Have and To Fold, book 5

Are the Sheet Cake Novellas Necessary?

A Holly Jilly Christmas and Upping the Ante are companion stories.

They are not required to understand the five main Graham family novels, but both belong within the series timeline. Readers completing the full series should keep them in the positions shown above.

Can the Sheet Cake Books Be Read as Standalones?

Each main novel completes its central couple’s romance. However, the Graham family remains present throughout the series.

Later books reveal marriages, family changes, and relationship outcomes from earlier installments. Publication order gives the most satisfying progression.

Is To Have and To Fold the Final Sheet Cake Book?

Yes. To Have and To Fold is book 5 and the concluding full length novel in Love Stories in Sheet Cake.

It focuses on the Graham family patriarch and functions partly as a closing visit with the wider cast. It should be read after The Wild Card, especially by readers invested in the family storyline.

Sweet Royal Romcoms Books in Order

1. Royally Rearranged
2. Royal Gone Rogue

These books belong to the same royal romance collection, but each has its own central couple and conflict.

Read Royally Rearranged first. Royal Gone Rogue can be understood independently, although publication order preserves the intended introduction to Emma St. Clair’s royal setting.

The author has described the series as possibly ongoing rather than formally complete. No third released title was confirmed as of July 24, 2026.

Oakley Island Books in Order

Written with Jenny Proctor.

1. Eloise and the Grump Next Door
2. Merritt and Her Childhood Crush
3. Sadie and the Bad Boy Billionaire
4. Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love

The first three books follow sisters who inherit their grandmother’s Oakley Island home under conditions that require them to oversee its renovation.

Read those three novels in order. Each sister receives her own romance, but the inheritance, house project, and family relationships continue across the trilogy.

Where Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love Fits

Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love is a second generation companion story.

It belongs after Sadie and the Bad Boy Billionaire. Reading it earlier would reveal the family outcomes established by the original trilogy.

Original trilogy: Books 1 through 3.

Second generation continuation: Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love.

Collaboration: All four books were written with Jenny Proctor.

The Appies Hockey Books in Order

The Appies are a fictional minor league hockey team based in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina.

The wider Appies series alternates between Emma St. Clair and Jenny Proctor. Emma St. Clair’s own books are not numbered consecutively because Jenny Proctor’s novels fill the spaces between them.

Emma St. Clair’s Appies Books

1. Just Don’t Fall
2. A Groom of One’s Own
3. Runaway Bride and Prejudice
4. As You Ice It

This list is suitable for readers following only Emma St. Clair.

Full Core Appies Reading Order

The shared series begins with books from the multi author Sweater Weather collection and then continues through later Appies releases.

A practical core order is:

1. Just Don’t Fall by Emma St. Clair
2. Absolutely Not in Love by Jenny Proctor
3. A Groom of One’s Own by Emma St. Clair
4. Romancing the Grump by Jenny Proctor
5. Runaway Bride and Prejudice by Emma St. Clair
6. Continue with later Appies books in publication order, including As You Ice It

Because the series alternates authors and has been grouped differently by retailers, numbering may vary between editions. Publication dates and the author names are more reliable than retailer series numbers.

Why Just Don’t Fall Has Two Series Labels

Just Don’t Fall was published as part of the multi author Sweater Weather collection. It also introduced the Appies team and became the first major entry in the continuing Appies hockey world.

It is therefore commonly labeled both Sweater Weather book 1 and Appies book 1. These labels refer to the same novel, not two editions that need to be read separately.

Does If All Else Sails Belong to the Appies Series?

If All Else Sails is officially a standalone.

Its hero has a connection to the Appies hockey world, and readers may recognize references or characters. However, no earlier hockey book is required before starting it.

The best placement for readers who enjoy crossovers is after the available Appies books. Readers interested only in the standalone can begin with it directly.

Only Magic in the Building Books

Only Magic in the Building is a shared world set in a historic building that appears to influence the romantic lives of its residents.

Emma St. Clair’s contribution is:

• The Serendipity

The story includes light whimsical or magical elements, but it is not dark fantasy and does not involve a conventional magic system.

Because multiple authors contribute separate romances to the shared setting, The Serendipity can be read by itself. Readers following the entire project should use the multi author publication sequence.

Emma St. Clair reading status: Standalone contribution.

Wider continuity: Shared building and recurring setting.

Sandover Island Books in Order

1. Sandover Beach Memories
2. Sandover Beach Week
3. Sandover Beach Melodies
4. Sandover Beach Christmas
5. Sandover Beach Forever
6. Secrets Whispered from the Sea

The first five books are connected sweet romances. Secrets Whispered from the Sea shifts closer to women’s fiction while retaining a substantial romantic storyline.

The books complete separate central relationships, but they follow a consecutive timeline. Reading them out of order can reveal earlier couples and community changes.

Alternate Title Warning

Sandover Beach Memories was previously published as The Sandover Beach Billionaire.

These are the same story. Do not count the older title as a separate Billionaire Surprise book and then purchase Sandover Beach Memories again.

The current Sandover Island placement is the clearest and most useful classification.

Is Secrets Whispered from the Sea Book 6?

The author’s current Sandover Island reading order places it after Sandover Beach Forever.

Some older catalogs separate it into a related Sandover Beach or women’s fiction category. For reading purposes, treating it as the sixth Sandover Island story is the most stable approach.

Billionaire Surprise Books in Order

1. The Billionaire Love Match
2. The Billionaire Land Baron
3. The Billionaire Benefactor
4. The Billionaire’s Masquerade Ball
5. The Billionaire’s Secret Heir

Older lists may add:

6. The Sandover Beach Billionaire

That sixth title is now known as Sandover Beach Memories and is better read as book 1 of Sandover Island.

Readers following current editions should complete the five core Billionaire Surprise books, then begin the Sandover Island sequence separately with Sandover Beach Memories.

Hometown Heartthrobs and Not So Bad Boys

Emma St. Clair’s older Hometown Heartthrobs books were removed and reworked under new titles and series branding.

Older editions include titles such as:

1. Marrying Her Dream Groom
2. Forgiving Her First Love
3. Loving Her Cowboy
4. Taming the Cowboy’s Twin

Retitled versions have been listed as:

1. Stealing the Bad Boy or Managing the Rock Star
2. Forgiving the Football Player
3. Winning the Cowboy
4. Trusting Her Cowboy Poet

The exact relationship between every early edition and later revised version is not presented consistently in current official sales pages. Readers should compare character names and book descriptions before purchasing an older Hometown Heartthrobs title alongside a newer edition.

These books belong to a legacy part of the catalog. They are separate from Love Clichés, Sheet Cake, Oakley Island, and the Appies.

Other Early Series and Shared World Books

Bachelor Texas Rebel Romances

Emma St. Clair contributed:

1. Her Second Chance Dream Groom

This is a multi author series contribution. It can be read as an individual romance, although readers completing the shared series may follow the broader author rotation.

Second Chance with You

• Returned to You

This title is commonly classified as a short second chance romance or a series starter. No substantial continuing sequence is currently promoted on Emma St. Clair’s main books page.

Treat it as a separate early work.

Emma St. Clair Standalone Books

Cold Feet, Hot Summer

Cold Feet, Hot Summer is listed in bibliographic catalogs as an early standalone novel.

It does not have a confirmed reading dependency on Emma St. Clair’s current major series.

Managing the Rock Star

Managing the Rock Star can be read independently.

Some legacy series records associate it with the rewritten Hometown Heartthrobs or Not So Bad Boys material. Readers should avoid purchasing it together with an older edition that has the same characters and plot.

If All Else Sails

If All Else Sails was published on August 5, 2025.

It is a standalone closed door romantic comedy. The book includes an Appies connection, but readers do not need to complete the hockey series first.

Ava Enters the Group Chat

Ava Enters the Group Chat is scheduled for February 2027.

It is currently presented as a standalone romance rather than a numbered installment in an existing Emma St. Clair series.

Because it had not been released as of July 24, 2026, its final continuity details may still be clarified before publication.

Emma St. Clair Novellas and Shorter Books

The most clearly placed companion works are:

1. The Twelve Holidates, read after Falling for Your Fake Fiancé
2. Falling for Your Brother’s Best Friend, read after Falling for Your Best Friend
3. A Holly Jilly Christmas, read after The Bluff
4. Upping the Ante, read after The Pocket Pair
5. Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love, read after the Oakley Island trilogy
6. Returned to You, separate early work

The first four add context to established series. They are optional for readers following only the full length main novels, but they should remain in sequence when included.

Christmas Books by Series

Emma St. Clair has several Christmas stories that belong to different continuities:

1. Sandover Beach Christmas, Sandover Island
2. The Twelve Holidates, The Love Clichés
3. A Holly Jilly Christmas, Love Stories in Sheet Cake

These are not one Christmas trilogy.

Each should be read within its own series. A holiday bundle may collect all three, but the bundle does not create a shared storyline between them.

Boxed Sets and Bundles

Emma St. Clair has released ebook, audiobook, and print bundles for several series.

A bundle usually contains books already listed in this guide. It does not add another installment.

For example, the Sandover Beach bundle contains:

1. Sandover Beach Memories
2. Sandover Beach Week
3. Sandover Beach Melodies
4. Sandover Beach Christmas
5. Sandover Beach Forever
6. Secrets Whispered from the Sea

Read the books inside a bundle in their normal series sequence.

Special editions, alternate covers, and audiobook releases also do not change the reading order.

Does Emma St. Clair Have a Chronological Order?

A separate chronological list is unnecessary for most of the catalog.

Sandover Island follows a consecutive timeline, but its publication order already reflects that progression. Love Clichés, Sheet Cake, and Oakley Island also work best in publication order because relationship updates and recurring character appearances accumulate naturally.

The Appies are more complicated because several authors contribute to the world. Even there, publication order is safer than attempting to reconstruct an exact fictional calendar.

Chronological rearrangement may place a later published romance before the book that originally introduced its characters. That can weaken reveals without providing a clearer story.

Recommended Reading Plans

The Best All-Purpose Route

1. Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin
2. Complete The Love Clichés
3. The Buy-In
4. Complete Love Stories in Sheet Cake
5. Just Don’t Fall
6. Continue through Emma St. Clair’s Appies books
7. If All Else Sails

This route covers her best known interconnected romantic comedies before moving into hockey and a connected standalone.

The Small Town Route

1. The Buy-In
2. Complete Love Stories in Sheet Cake
3. Sandover Beach Memories
4. Complete Sandover Island
5. Eloise and the Grump Next Door
6. Complete Oakley Island

These are separate towns and continuities. Finish one setting before beginning the next.

The Sports Romance Route

1. Just Don’t Fall
2. Follow the shared Appies publication order
3. Read As You Ice It in its published position
4. Finish with If All Else Sails

If All Else Sails does not require the earlier books, but its connections are more noticeable after the hockey series.

The Shortest Complete Series Route

1. Royally Rearranged
2. Royal Gone Rogue

This two book royal sequence is the quickest way to complete one of Emma St. Clair’s current series groups.

The Early Career Route

1. The Billionaire Love Match
2. Complete the five core Billionaire Surprise books
3. Sandover Beach Memories
4. Continue through Sandover Island
5. Review legacy Hometown Heartthrobs editions only after checking for duplicate revised titles

This route requires the most attention to renamed editions.

Latest Emma St. Clair Book

As of July 24, 2026, Emma St. Clair’s newest released book is To Have and To Fold.

It was published in July 2026 and concludes the main Love Stories in Sheet Cake sequence as book 5.

Readers may see different July release dates across catalogs. The stable facts are that it was released in July 2026 and that it is the final numbered Sheet Cake novel.

Upcoming Emma St. Clair Book

Ava Enters the Group Chat is scheduled for February 2027.

It is the next reliably listed Emma St. Clair release after To Have and To Fold. No additional 2026 novel was confirmed on the author’s current main catalog at the time of this update.

Release dates can change, particularly for books announced well in advance.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Emma St. Clair’s first book?

Bibliographic catalogs identify The Billionaire Love Match, published in 2018, as one of her earliest major romance releases.

Several additional books appeared during 2018, including her early billionaire and Sandover Island stories.

What is the best Emma St. Clair book to read first?

Begin with Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin for a broad introduction to her romantic comedy style.

Choose Just Don’t Fall instead for hockey romance, or The Buy-In for a family centered small town series.

Are Emma St. Clair’s books clean romance?

Emma St. Clair describes her books as closed door romantic comedies with romantic chemistry but no explicit on-page sex.

Some earlier books also include light Christian themes. Content details can vary by series.

Do the Love Clichés books need to be read in order?

Yes, especially for readers following the Dr. Love storyline.

Each book resolves a romance, but the friendships, household dynamics, and central secret carry through the series.

Is The Twelve Holidates a standalone?

It can be understood as a short Christmas romance, but it is a Love Clichés companion novella.

Read it after Falling for Your Fake Fiancé for the proper character context.

How many Sheet Cake books are there?

There are five full length numbered novels:

1. The Buy-In
2. The Bluff
3. The Pocket Pair
4. The Wild Card
5. To Have and To Fold

There are also two companion stories, A Holly Jilly Christmas and Upping the Ante.

Is To Have and To Fold the last Sheet Cake book?

Yes. It is the fifth and final main novel.

It should be read after The Wild Card because it closes the wider Graham family story.

Did Emma St. Clair write the entire Appies series?

No. The Appies are a shared hockey world written alongside Jenny Proctor.

Emma St. Clair wrote Just Don’t Fall, A Groom of One’s Own, Runaway Bride and Prejudice, and As You Ice It.

Is Just Don’t Fall part of Sweater Weather or the Appies?

It is associated with both.

The novel was part of the Sweater Weather multi author collection and also introduced the Appies hockey setting used in the continuing series.

Can If All Else Sails be read first?

Yes. It is a standalone.

Readers familiar with the Appies may recognize connections, but no previous book is necessary.

Are The Sandover Beach Billionaire and Sandover Beach Memories different books?

No. The Sandover Beach Billionaire is an earlier title for Sandover Beach Memories.

Count it once and use Sandover Beach Memories as the first Sandover Island book.

Should Secrets Whispered from the Sea be read with Sandover Island?

Yes. The author’s current reading order places it after Sandover Beach Forever.

It leans more toward women’s fiction than the first five romances, but it remains part of the same island continuity.

Are Oakley Island and the Appies connected?

They are separate collaborative series written by Emma St. Clair and Jenny Proctor.

Oakley Island follows an inherited beach property and a family of sisters. The Appies follows a minor league hockey team.

Conclusion

Emma St. Clair’s catalog is best approached as a collection of separate romantic comedy worlds.

Begin with Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin for the most representative starting point. Follow every Love Clichés book through Falling for Your Enemy, placing the two companion stories in their proper positions.

For small town family romance, start Love Stories in Sheet Cake with The Buy-In and finish with To Have and To Fold. For hockey, start with Just Don’t Fall and remember that the Appies sequence alternates between Emma St. Clair and Jenny Proctor.

The main duplication warnings concern legacy editions. The Sandover Beach Billionaire is Sandover Beach Memories, and some Hometown Heartthrobs books were later retitled or revised. Check descriptions before buying both an older and a newer edition.