I’ve never much cared for the phrase “love triangle.” At best, it feels reductive—a term that flattens a complex web of multi-dimensional relationships into a simple geometrical shape. At worst, it’s a trope. So, while writing pitch material for my debut novel, Slanting Towards the Sea, I was surprised to discover that when I distilled the plot down to its central conflict, it took the shape of a triangle. Perhaps not a traditional one—my novel traces the complications of unconventional, contemporary relationships—but a triangle none the less.
Slanting Towards the Sea is the story of two young college students, Ivona and Vlaho, who at the turn of the millennium in a newly democratic Croatia—a country in the midst of profound change itself—marry, divorce, and remain emotionally entangled. When new partners enter their lives, unexpected friendships develop between the exes and current lovers. Bonds form that are as surprising as they are precarious, until the unusual closeness forces a reckoning for all involved. Obviously, I hadn’t set out to write a love triangle. I was drawn to exploring different territory altogether—the stubborn persistence of love long after a relationship has ended; the challenges of coming of age in a country that’s still figuring itself out; and the slow, often invisible ways that family, culture, and childhood experiences shape what we believe we’ve chosen for ourselves. But, out of that rich context, a triangle is what emerged (or arguably, two triangles with a shared base).
I encountered a similar shock while researching comp titles. As it turns out, many of my favorite novels also center around tripartite dynamics, though I’d never thought of them as “love triangle books.” In these novels, central tension is rarely drawn solely from having to choose between two people. Instead, the “triangle” serves as a lens for exploring deeper questions of identity, longing, and morals. Often, the true conflict lies between two versions of the self, like in Lily King’s Writers & Lovers; between past and future, as depicted in Miranda Cowley Heller’s The Paper Palace; or the pull of societal expectations against the desire for personal freedom I see in Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin. Sometimes the focus isn’t even on a single decision itself, but the quiet reckoning with paths that were taken, and their complicated aftermath. I’ve come to realize that the emotional geometry of a love triangle is fertile ground for exploring these and so many other themes. This is a collection of some of my favorite love triangles in literary fiction.
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller
On an August evening, behind the cabin in Cape Cod where her family has spent every summer for generations, Elle makes passionate love to Jonas, while their spouses chat inside. Over the course of the following day, Elle has to decide whether to remain married to her loving husband, Peter, or to give in to her lifelong desire for Jonas. But the choice between the two is more complex than meets the eye. As Elle takes us back in time, disclosing generational cycles of problematic divorces, family dysfunction, and child molestation, we begin to better understand the real stakes of Elle’s decision.
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
William Waters is a college student with a tragic past who meets and falls in love with Julia Padavano, a decisive and ambitious fellow student at Northwestern University. But Julia doesn’t come alone; she is one of four sisters, and a member of a tight-knit Italian family. While at first it seems like Julia’s drive and clear vision for the future are exactly what rudderless William needs, when tragedy strikes, it isn’t Julia who can understand him, but her younger—and closest—sister, Sylvie. The emergent love between William and Sylvie will spur an epic betrayal and cause a rift between sisters that will ripple through generations. Hello Beautiful explores the strength of three different kinds of bonds—sibling, romantic, and motherly––asking which is the strongest, and what happens when they’re stacked against one another.
Writers & Lovers by Lily King
In this gorgeously written adult coming-of-age story set in 1990s Boston, Casey Peabody is one of the few people from her college days still pursuing the dream of publishing a novel and leading a creative life—and paying a hefty price to be doing so. Broke, working a low-paying job, and living above her obnoxious landlord’s garage, Casey is neck-deep in debt and grieving her mother’s passing. When she meets Oscar, she is drawn to his children first—having recently lost their own mother, she can relate to them on an intimate level, and soon it seems that she will finally slip into the balanced, reasonable, safe life that has always eluded her. But then she meets Silas. Unreliable, grieving the sudden loss of his sister, he is a heartbreak waiting to happen. As Casey’s life gets more complicated, so does her decision: should she finally wave the white flag and opt for a safer, more predictable, adult life, or should she keep vying for the unapologetic, full life she’s always dreamed of, despite the slim odds?
Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers
Set in 1950s London, Small Pleasures is a gem of a novel that follows local newspaper journalist, Jean Swinney, on a task to investigate one woman’s claim that her daughter is the product of a virgin birth. But as Jean interviews the woman in question, Gretchen Tilbury, and her lovely family—the exact kind Jean has always coveted—she finds herself pulled into their life, and falling in love with Gretchen’s soft-spoken, kind-hearted husband, Howard. With sensitivity and wit, Chambers explores the power of self-denial, and why it’s often easier for us to settle for less, than strive for the full scope of what we really want from life.
Dream State by Eric Puchner
In Dream State, Charlie Margolis asks his college best friend, Garrett, to officiate his wedding to Cece, the woman of his dreams, at his family’s idyllic estate in Montana. The request is more than symbolic—it’s Charlie’s way of offering Garrett a lifeline as he grapples with the aftermath of a devastating accident he can’t forgive himself for. In the days leading up to the ceremony, Cece and Garrett form an unexpected connection, and within weeks of the wedding, she leaves her new husband for his best friend. What follows is a sweeping family saga, with Charlie, Garrett, and Cece at its center. The consequences of this choice unravel slowly and painfully, irrevocably shaping their lives and the lives of everyone around them.
Fault Lines by Emily Itami
Mizuki is a housewife in the bustling city of Tokyo. Despite seemingly having it all—a lovely home, two adorable children, and a hardworking husband, Mizuki is lonely and crumbling under the weight of everyone else’s needs and expectations while ignoring her own. On a rainy evening out on the town, she meets Kiyoshi, a handsome, successful restauranteur who sees her as she used to be before assuming her domestic persona: fun, interesting, full of life—a person she herself has forgotten. As the two get closer, it becomes clear that Mizuki will have to make a painful choice between abandoning her family, or returning to the gray oblivion of domestic dissatisfaction.
Leaving by Roxana Robinson
Sarah and Warren fall passionately in love during college, but the relationship ends over a misunderstanding. Now in their sixties, a chance meeting at an opera house brings them back together, and the passion reignites instantly. While Sarah is divorced and ostensibly free to start a relationship, she hesitates to reclaim a chance at love after being devoted solely to her children for so long. Warren, on the other hand, has no such reservations. But when he tries to leave his apathetic, dull marriage, his adult daughter steps up to defend her mother. Ultimately, Leaving asks whether there ever comes a time when parents’ needs outweigh the duty to their children, and where the line lies between obligations to family, and the right to pursue personal happiness.