Michele Gorman Books in Order (Updated March 5, 2026)

Michele Gorman is an American-born, UK-based romcom and women’s fiction author. Under her own name, her books split into two true mini-series plus a set of standalones you can read in any order.

She also writes cosy romantic comedies as Lilly Bartlett. That is a separate continuity shelf and not required for reading Michele Gorman’s main novels.

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The order question that actually matters

If you only want one rule

Keep the “Hannah in London” books together and in order. Everything else is flexible.

Pick your entry point by vibe

• Fish-out-of-water London, expat dating + culture shock: start with Single in the City (2010).
• Body-confidence friendship ensemble (with a direct sequel): start with The Curvy Girls Club (2014).
• Modern big-cast holiday-family chaos: start with The Staycation (2020).
• Best-friends romcom with dating/relationship “systems” at the center: start with Match Me If You Can (2016).

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Series that should be read in order

1) Single in the City / “Expat Diaries” (Hannah in London) – publication order

These follow the same central storyline, so reading out of order blunts the character growth and the relationship beats.

1. Single in the City (2010): Hannah lands in London with big expectations and zero infrastructure, and the series begins its long lesson in how reinvention looks from the inside.
2. Misfortune Cookie (2012): The expat dream hits its second-act complications, where “romantic decisions” start behaving like life decisions with consequences.
3. Twelve Days to Christmas (2012): A holiday deadline forces clarity on the central relationship, making it the most “commit-or-collapse” installment of the trio.

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2) Confidence is the New Black (Curvy Girls) – publication order

This is the other clear continuity pair: same group, same world, and a direct follow-on.

1. The Curvy Girls Club (2014): A friendship-first rebellion against diet culture becomes the engine for real change, and the series stakes its claim: confidence is a practice, not a mood.
2. The Curvy Girls Baby Club (2015): The same social circle moves into a new life stage, where bodies, relationships, and expectations all renegotiate at once.

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Standalone novels (read in any order)

These are written to work as one-book experiences. Reading by year is useful if you want to follow her style shift, but it’s not required for spoilers.

Early “life pivot” standalones

• Life Change (2013): A suddenly unplanned reset forces a heroine to rebuild without the safety net she assumed was permanent, turning panic into momentum.
• Perfect Girl (2014): A perfection-performance story where the heroine’s “having it together” becomes the very thing that starts to crack first.
• Christmas Carol (2013): A short festive relationship pressure-cooker that uses the season as a deadline for truths people keep postponing.

Mid-period best-friends romcoms (dating logic, upgrades, and consequences)

• Match Me If You Can (2016): Three friends throw themselves at modern dating with a systemized approach, and the book’s joke turns into a serious question about what’s worth optimizing.
• The Boyfriend Tune-Up (2016): A relationship “reset” premise that pushes the same world into sharper stakes, where love and business decisions collide fast.
• Boyfriends Recycled (2016): A variation on the upcycling-exes concept that leans into friendship dynamics, where the real risk is what happens when you treat people like projects.

Dogs + friendship + messy domestic life (also retitled)

• Love is a Four-Legged Word (2016): A friendship-and-marriage triangle set against a dog-training world, where loyalty gets tested in public and in private.
  • Also published as: The Truth About Love and Dogs (same story, later retitling).

Recent “bigger cast, bigger house, bigger chaos” standalones

• The Staycation (2020): Two families and one disrupted plan turn into a forced reset, where the summer setup becomes a microscope for long-running resentments and hidden tenderness.
• Bad Penny (2021): A life-and-love shake-up story where old patterns return with a new face, and the heroine has to decide what she’ll stop excusing.

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Retitles and edition traps to watch once (then ignore forever)

• Love is a Four-Legged Word was later republished as The Truth About Love and Dogs. If you own one, you likely don’t need the other.
• Some listings treat The Boyfriend Tune-Up and Boyfriends Recycled as closely related branding around the same “recyc-love” concept. If you’re trying to avoid accidental doubles, compare subtitles and cover copy before buying.

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Recommended reading orders (three different “right answers”)

Option A: The continuity-first path (least confusing)

1. Single in the City
2. Misfortune Cookie
3. Twelve Days to Christmas
4. Then choose any standalone by premise

Option B: The modern-entry path (fastest hook for new readers)

1. The Staycation
2. Bad Penny
3. Then jump back to Match Me If You Can and The Curvy Girls Club when you want lighter, friend-group energy

Option C: The “friendship ensemble” path

1. The Curvy Girls Club
2. The Curvy Girls Baby Club
3. Match Me If You Can
4. Love is a Four-Legged Word (or The Truth About Love and Dogs)
5. Then read anywhere

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Latest release status

The most recent widely listed Michele Gorman novel is Bad Penny (2021). No later Michele Gorman title is consistently confirmed across major bibliographic listings as of March 5, 2026.

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FAQs

Do I need to read everything in publication order?

No. Only the Single in the City trio and the Curvy Girls pair benefit strongly from strict order.

Are Lilly Bartlett books part of Michele Gorman continuity?

No. Treat Lilly Bartlett as a separate pen-name shelf unless a specific edition explicitly states it’s a retitle of an earlier Michele Gorman novel.

What’s the safest single-book trial read?

If you want one modern standalone with a complete arc, The Staycation (2020) is the cleanest “one book tells the whole story” entry point.