Romancing the Data

Romancing the Data 📚 Combining romance books + spreadsheets
📊 Charts, graphs, lists, rankings + more
🏆 Home of
💯 Derek Craven WOULD follow

I’m Lady Jane, a communications professional based in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I've been combining my love of romances books and spreadsheets at Romancing the Data since 2024 💜

I organize and analyze data to help readers navigate the wonderful world of romance books. My 3 main goals for Romancing the Data are to:

1. Conduct and share awesome data analysis about romance books
2. Create helpful resources for romance readers
3. Spread joy within the romance community

Happy reading!

NEW YORK TIMES ROMANCE BEST SELLERS: MAY 2026Here is my monthly ranking of the romance and romantasy books on The New Yo...
06/05/2026

NEW YORK TIMES ROMANCE BEST SELLERS: MAY 2026

Here is my monthly ranking of the romance and romantasy books on The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers for the May 2026 sales period.

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: May 2026

1. The Deal by 🅰️
2. Our Perfect Storm by 🅰️
3. The Mistake by 🅰️
4. The Score by 🅰️
5. The Ballad of Falling Dragons by .a.parker.author 🅰️
6. Fury Bound by 🅰️
7. The Final Target by
8. Broken Dove by
9. The Daisy Chain Flower Shop by
10. Phoebe Berman’s Gonna Lose It by
10. Fever Dream by 🅰️
12. Rules for the Summer by 🅰️
13. Starside by 🅰️

ROMANCE BOOKSTORE UPDATE | May 2026There are now 276 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world; 4 new...
06/03/2026

ROMANCE BOOKSTORE UPDATE | May 2026

There are now 276 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world; 4 new physical stores opened in May.

PHYSICAL ROMANCE BOOKSTORES
🌎 Worldwide: 276
↳ 🇺🇸 USA: 193 (70%)

ALL ROMANCE BOOKSTORES
🌎 Worldwide: 452
↳ 🇺🇸 USA: 324 (72%)

I just released the latest romance bookstore update to my subscribers. I share the high-level numbers with everyone, but you’ll need to become a paid subscriber for all the details—including a calendar of bookstore openings and closings.

Become a paid subscriber to receive the full monthly updates at blog.romancingthedata.com/subscribe (only US$5/month or US$50/year).

🔎 NYT15: NYT Combined Fiction Best Sellers List - 15 Year Analysis (2011-2025)❓HOW MANY BOOKS AND AUTHORS APPEAR ON THE ...
05/21/2026

🔎 NYT15: NYT Combined Fiction Best Sellers List - 15 Year Analysis (2011-2025)

❓HOW MANY BOOKS AND AUTHORS APPEAR ON THE LIST IN A YEAR?

SLIDE 1: Number of Unique Books
-An average of 242 unique books appear on the list each year.
-The annual number hit a high of 303 books in 2014 and a low of 175 books in 2023—a 42% decrease over 9 years (128 fewer books).

SLIDE 2: Number of Unique Authors
-An average of 179 unique authors appear on the list each year.
-Similar to the unique number of books, the number of unique authors hit a high of 209 authors in 2014 and a low of 135 authors in 2023—a 35% decrease over 9 years (74 fewer authors).

SLIDE 3: Percentage of Unique Authors
-The percentage of unique authors represents the level of author variation on the list—the lower the number means less variation, i.e., a smaller number of authors overall, meaning more authors with multiple books on the list.
-Interestingly, the highest level of author variation was in the early pandemic years, 82% and 80% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. The lowest level was 69% in 2013, 2014, and 2016

Check out the blog post for the full analysis!

NEW YORK TIMES ROMANCE BEST SELLERS: MARCH 2026Here is my monthly ranking of the romance and romantasy books on The New ...
05/11/2026

NEW YORK TIMES ROMANCE BEST SELLERS: MARCH 2026

Here is my monthly ranking of the romance and romantasy books on The New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Best Sellers for the April 2026 sales period.

🅰️ = Also appeared on Amazon Kindle Store Romance Best Sellers: April 2026

1. Game On by .allen 🅰️
2. The Night We Met by 🅰️
3. Rites of the Starling by 🅰️
4. Purple State by Dana Perino 🅰️
4. Starside by
6. King of Gluttony by
7. Twisted Pawn by 🅰️
8. Heated Rivalry by
9. Blood Bound by
10. Bulletproof by .m.moronova
11. Lights Out by .allen 🅰️
12. Bloodsinger by
12. The Throne of Broken Gods by .v.nicole
14. The Auction by

ROMANCE BOOKSTORE UPDATE | April 2026There are now 272 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world (add...
05/04/2026

ROMANCE BOOKSTORE UPDATE | April 2026

There are now 272 physical romance bookstores in 12 countries around the world (added Sweden this month!); 12 new physical stores opened in April.

PHYSICAL ROMANCE BOOKSTORES
🌎 Worldwide: 272
↳ 🇺🇸 USA: 189 (69%)

ALL ROMANCE BOOKSTORES
🌎 Worldwide: 444
↳ 🇺🇸 USA: 317 (71%)

I just released the latest romance bookstore update to my subscribers. I share the high-level numbers with everyone, but you’ll need to become a paid subscriber for all the details—including a calendar of upcoming openings!

Become a paid subscriber to receive the full monthly updates at blog.romancingthedata.com/subscribe (only US$5/month or US$50/year).

According to my research, which 10 U.S. states don’t currently have a physical romance bookstore?Guess in the comments!C...
04/24/2026

According to my research, which 10 U.S. states don’t currently have a physical romance bookstore?

Guess in the comments!

Check out the full directory and map at romancingthedate.com/bookstores

It’s the countdown to Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday! Here’s a breakdown of all 267 physical romance bookstores...
04/23/2026

It’s the countdown to Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday! Here’s a breakdown of all 267 physical romance bookstores by country.

Check out the full directory and map at romancingthedata.com/bookstores

How are you celebrating Independent Bookstore Day? 📚🎉

Countdown to Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday! Here’s a breakdown of all 267 physical romance bookstores by count...
04/23/2026

Countdown to Independent Bookstore Day this Saturday! Here’s a breakdown of all 267 physical romance bookstores by country.

Check out the full directory and map at romancingthedata.com/bookstores

How are you celebrating Independent Bookstore Day? 📚 🎉

02/14/2026

STARTING LINEUP: Heated Rivalry “Best Line” Voting Bracket 🏒 🥅

I carefully selected 20 and you voted for the remaining 12…here are the final 32 lines entering the voting bracket next week!!

On Wednesday, February 18, the Heated Rivalry “Best Line” Voting Bracket kicks off to determine the best line from Season 1. Voting will take place daily from February 18 to March 4, 2026.

Each day of Round 1, four popular lines will face off against each other, with the winner moving on to the next round. The final head-to-head battle for the cup will take place on March 4, 2026.

32 lines will compete, but only one can win the cup!

Stay tuned for more details, including the bracket groupings! Follow for updates.

02/03/2026

COMING FEB 18: Heated Rivalry “Best Line” Voting Bracket 🏒 🥅

From the ice to the cottage, Heated Rivalry has brought us so many iconic lines. On Wednesday, February 18, the Heated Rivalry “Best Line” Voting Bracket kicks off to determine the best line from Season 1. Voting will take place daily from February 18 to March 4, 2026.

What’s your favourite line?

Each day of Round 1, four popular lines will face off against each other, with the winner moving on to the next round. The final head-to-head battle for the cup will take place on March 4, 2026.

32 lines will compete, but only one can win the cup!

Stay tuned for more details! Follow for updates.

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