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If “Cardigan” Was a Book: Hauntingly Romantic Books You’ll Love
It’s 2020. You’re in quarantine, Taylor Swift drops folklore out of nowhere, and suddenly, everyone is crying into their sweaters while whispering, “I knew you’d linger like a tattoo kiss.” Taylor Swift’s Cardigan is the kind of song that makes you stare out of a rainy window, even if it’s 90 degrees outside and your air conditioner is blasting.
Originally released as part of her Folklore album (aka the album that single-handedly helped me survive pandemic depression), Cardigan tells the story of young love, heartbreak, and that one person you can never quite shake, no matter how many years (or therapy sessions) go by.
At its core, Cardigan is about nostalgia, longing, and the bittersweet ache of remembering a love that once felt like magic.
And what better way to extend that beautifully tragic feeling than with a stack of books that capture the same wistful, aching, “I wore your cardigan, but you left me in the cold” kind of vibes?
From lost loves to time-bending romances to the kind of stories that make you question all your life choices, these novels will hit you right in the Cardigan-shaped hole in your heart.
If you haven’t read my “Books That Hit Like a Taylor Swift Folklore Album”, be sure to check it out too.
What Makes a Book Feel Like “Cardigan”?
First, let’s define what kind of books that feel like a “Cardigan.” Not every romance novel has Cardigan energy. Some love stories are light and fluffy, Cardigan is not that. Let’s define what makes a book fit the Cardigan mood:
- Bittersweet romance: Love that’s beautiful but complicated, the kind that might not last but you’ll never forget.
- Nostalgia: Small towns, boarded-up mansions, or memory-haunted beaches.
- Emotional damage: If it doesn’t leave you staring at the ceiling at 2 AM, does it even count?
- Beautiful, poetic writing: These books should read like lyrics to a sad indie song.
- Bittersweet endings that leave you staring at the ceiling, questioning your life choices.
Now, onto the recommendations.
11 Books That Hit Like a “Cardigan” by Taylor Swift Song
1. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
If Cardigan were a book, it would be Rebecca, haunting, melancholic, and full of longing for a love that feels just out of reach. The novel follows a young woman who marries a wealthy widower, only to find herself living in the shadow of his late wife, Rebecca. The air of mystery, the obsession, and the way the past lingers like a ghost in every corner of the grand estate make this book a perfect match for Taylor Swift’s nostalgic ballad. Like Cardigan, Rebecca explores love that is both intoxicating and devastating, with a protagonist who slowly realizes that she may never truly measure up to the memory of someone else.
What makes Rebecca feel so Cardigan-coded is its gothic, atmospheric storytelling. The protagonist clings to a love that seems to slip through her fingers, much like the way Cardigan captures the ache of being cherished and then forgotten. The novel’s dreamy yet unsettling prose feels like stepping into a foggy, windswept memory, one where love and obsession blur until you’re left wondering if you ever really knew the person you adored.
2. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
This novel unravels the quiet tragedies of a Chinese-American family after their beloved daughter, Lydia, is found dead. The book is less about solving the mystery of her death and more about uncovering the hidden expectations, regrets, and missed moments of connection between family members. The story is deeply introspective, showing how love can be both comforting and suffocating and how the people we cherish can slip away before we ever say what we really mean.
Ng’s writing style is gentle but piercing, full of nostalgia for what could have been. The novel moves between past and present, peeling back the layers of each character’s life to reveal all the small decisions that led to heartbreak. Just like in Cardigan, the story reminds us that sometimes we don’t realize how much we mean to someone, or how much they mean to us, until it’s too late.
3. Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman
If Cardigan makes you yearn for summers drenched in golden light and love stories that feel fleeting yet eternal, then Call Me by Your Name is a must-read. Set in an Italian villa, the novel follows a summer romance between two young men that is as intoxicating as it is temporary. The story captures the bittersweet nature of first love, the kind that burns brightly but is destined to fade.
This book lingers in nostalgia. It’s about looking back on a love that shaped you, about memories that remain vivid even when the person is long gone. Aciman’s prose is lyrical and aching, making every moment feel both intimate and devastating.
4. Atonement by Ian McEwan
A love story shattered by misunderstanding, guilt, and time? Atonement is Cardigan in novel form. The book follows two young lovers whose relationship is torn apart by a single mistake, one that leads to lifelong consequences neither of them can escape. The novel explores themes of regret, longing, and the way love can slip through our fingers despite our best intentions.
Atonement is a deeply emotional reflection on what could have been. It plays with time, perspective, and memory, leaving the reader with a heavy heart and a sense of longing.
5. Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
Sally Rooney is the queen of writing about love that is messy, complicated, and drenched in nostalgia. Beautiful World, Where Are You follows two friends navigating relationships, ambition, and the passage of time. It’s full of the kind of introspective, yearning-filled conversations that make you want to overanalyze your entire existence.
If Cardigan speaks to you because of its quiet melancholy and longing, Rooney’s novel will too. This novel reminds you of love that doesn’t always fit neatly into expectations, about missed opportunities and the ache of wanting more.
6. This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
What if you could go back in time and relive your past? This Time Tomorrow plays with that idea, following a woman who wakes up one day to find herself back in her teenage years. The novel explores the way time shapes our relationships, especially with the people we love.
This book is tinged with nostalgia and the question of “what if?” It captures that aching feeling of wishing you could go back and do things differently while knowing that some things, are beyond our control.
7. One True Love by Taylor Jenkins Reid
One True Love will shatter you in the best way possible. This novel follows Emma, a woman who is happily engaged, until she gets a call from her husband, who was presumed dead for years. Now, she must decide between the love she lost and the love she built in his absence.
This book, like Cardigan, is all about longing, memory, and the heart-wrenching realization that love doesn’t always follow a neat, predictable path. It forces the reader to ask: Can you love two people at once? And if one thing had been different, would everything be different?
8. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
If Cardigan evokes a sense of loneliness and longing, Where the Crawdads Sing takes it to another level. This novel tells the story of Kya, an outcast who grows up isolated in the marshlands of North Carolina. She falls in love, only to find herself abandoned and misunderstood. The novel is hauntingly beautiful, filled with poetic descriptions of nature and deep reflections on love and loss.
This book is about being left behind, about yearning for someone who’s already gone. It’s melancholic, deeply atmospheric, and perfect for readers who love slow-burning, emotional storytelling.
9. The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
This book is the definition of Cardigan—a romance that spans years, marked by missed chances and bittersweet longing. It follows Lucy and Gabe, who meet in college and fall deeply in love, only to be pulled in different directions by life. Their love never truly fades, but circumstances keep them apart, leaving them wondering what could have been.
The Light We Lost explores the pain of first love and the question of whether some loves are meant to last or just leave an imprint on our hearts. If you love stories that make you feel like you’ve been hit by a wave of nostalgia, this one is a must-read.
10. Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
This book tells the story of Macy and Elliot, childhood best friends who fell in love, until one night changed everything. Years later, they reconnect, and all the emotions they buried come rushing back.
This book perfectly captures the longing and regret in Cardigan. It’s about the one person who felt like home and the heartbreak of losing them. The writing is tender and emotional, and if you’re a fan of second-chance romances, this one will stay with you.
11. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
This classic novel is the embodiment of Cardigan. It’s about love, longing, and the impossible desire to recapture something that’s already gone. Jay Gatsby spends his life chasing a dream, Daisy Buchanan, but by the time he reaches for her, she’s already part of a past he can’t reclaim.
Like Cardigan, The Great Gatsby is drenched in nostalgia. It’s about love that lingers long after it’s lost, about beautiful illusions, and the heartbreaking realization that some things are meant to stay in the past.
Did any of these books grab your attention?
If Cardigan is the song that makes you stare wistfully out the window, thinking about lost love and what could have been, then these books are your literary soulmates. Each one captures that same nostalgic, hauntingly romantic vibe, whether it’s first love slipping through your fingers, a bittersweet second chance, or the ache of knowing some people are just passing through your life.
So whether you’re in the mood to cry over past mistakes, romanticize heartbreak, or simply get lost in beautifully written longing, these books have you covered. Just don’t blame me when you end up texting your ex at 2 AM or staring at the ceiling wondering what if?
