AudioBook information:
Author: Lauren Okie
Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky, Roger Wayne
Release date: June 16, 2026
Audiobook Duration: 10 h 47 min
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Summary: Experience Tropesick the way it was meant to be felt: through the electric duet narration of Jesse Vilinsky and Roger Wayne, and featuring Nan McNamara as the voice of the book our main characters are writing together — a listening experience as layered as the love story itself.
“Lauren Okie is one of my favorite new voices in romance.”
– B.K. Borison, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Good Spirits
In this lush, slow-burning romance, two childhood neighbors, connected by a shared tragedy, unexpectedly reunite to ghostwrite a love story for a reclusive author. Spending the summer at her secluded Hamptons estate, they soon discover that dozens of classic romance tropes, including the ones they’re crafting on page, are mysteriously playing out in real life.
Katie Caruso is a completely normal twenty-five-year-old girl. At least, for the past eight years, she’s tried to be. She likes glitter and sequins and flirting with cute boys at New York City bars. She’s also a ghostwriter for Meredith Bradford, the bestselling romance novelist of all time. But then Tyler McNally walks back into Katie’s life, and that bedazzled facade crumbles at her platform-sneakered feet.
Katie and Tyler haven’t seen or spoken to each other since the overdose death of Katie’s older brother, a standout MLB pitching prospect. Tyler was her brother’s best friend, and Katie—naturally—was the girl next door. But now, Tyler is a sleeve-tattooed, Ivy League–educated aspiring literary fiction novelist, nine years sober . . . and Katie’s writing partner for the summer.
As genre conventions require, Katie and Tyler soon find themselves removed from Manhattan and instead writing their love story in “forced proximity” at Meredith’s isolated Southampton home. As the summer unfolds, the tropes Katie and Tyler have written into their novel begin to play out in their own lives. Call it destiny, fate, or magic itself: it’s clear their love story isn’t finished. This time, though, they’ll work through the pain that tore them apart—and fight for their happy ending.
Heart-wrenching and tender, Tropesick is a love letter to the romance genre. With a wink and a nod, Okie has packed the novel with readers’ favorite tropes:
Only one bed
Grumpy/Sunshine
Brother’s best friend
Girl next door
Forced proximity
Forbidden love
Kissing in the rain
Groveling hero
Second-chance romance
Slow burn
Reviews:
“Dizzyingly ambitious with perfect payoff, Tropesick is both an homage and an unspooling of the romance genre, and a love story so layered it demands a second, third, fourth reading. Lauren Okie’s prose, sharp and expansive, is a gift to those of us who want our romance subversive, unflinchingly honest, and achingly romantic. This twisty-turny novel, like Katie and Tyler’s against-all-odds love story, left me breathless. Tropesick is an absolute achievement.” – Katie Naymon, author of You Between the Lines
“Lauren Okie is one of my favorite new voices in romance. She writes sweeping, tender, emotional love stories topped with a dollop of scrumptious yearning. I can’t wait to read whatever Okie writes next. Prepare to be swept off your feet.” – B.K. Borison, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Good Spirits
“Lauren Okie is writing the hard-won, deeply emotional, and life-affirming romances of my dreams.” – Tarah DeWitt, USA Today bestselling author of Left of Forever
“This book will break your heart. It will also take an incredible amount of care to put it back together. Lauren Okie has a singular voice, and her point of view is as fresh as the earth after rain. Tropesick is unflinching in its exploration of grief and the complexities of love while being deeply and indomitably hopeful. This one is special, and I’m going to think about it forever, probably.” – Lyla Sage, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
“Lauren Okie’s Tropesick manages to be both a devastating second-chance romance and a twisty, thought-provoking meta commentary on genre. By writing love stories about the real, hard, sticky stuff, Okie reminds readers that sometimes, the best happy endings aren’t easy.” – Iman Hariri-Kia, author of Female Fantasy
“Smart, heartbreaking, and sexy, with more than a few surprises, Tropesick will make you laugh hard and cry harder. Katie and Tyler’s story is a gorgeously written love letter to romance readers as well as to the fractured, messy ghosts of the people we once were.” – Emily Krempholtz, USA Today bestselling author of Violet Thistlewaite is not a Villain Anymore
“Lauren Okie blends banter and chemistry with grief and heartache to create an instant classic. This book made me swoon, sob and gasp. Tropesick lures you in with sharp humor and then gut punches you with heart wrenching emotion. Okie is a master of heartfelt, funny romance.” – Annabelle Slator, author of The Launch Date
“Stunningly romantic and melodically poetic, this was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and somehow managed to over deliver. Tropesick is a love letter to romance novels and a heart-wrenching meditation on grief that will rip you in two and then stitch you back together. Lauren Okie has proven once again that she’s in a class all her own.” – Natalie Messier, author of Every Version of You
“Rich with vulnerability and emotional depth, Tropesick offers an unflinching, heart-aching portrayal of love after loss. Profoundly human and beautifully written, Lauren Okie’s sophomore novel is one that will stay with its readers long after the final page.” – Hannah Bonam-Young, New York Times Bestselling Author
“Tropesick is gorgeous, painful, forgiving, propulsive, sexy, and impossible to put down. This unflinchingly, devotedly honest letter to the romance genre proves that Lauren Okie is one of the most brilliant authors in it. I’ll beg to read anything she writes.” – Jessica Joyce, USA Today bestselling author of The Ex Vows
“As Okie demonstrated in The Best Worst Thing (2025), sometimes finding the happily ever after is rewarding but not always easy. As the summer progresses, a panoply of tropes are rolled out as Katie’s and Tyler’s own stories of grief and loss, mistakes, and healing entwine with an amazing number of romance themes and a touch of magic.” – Booklist
About the Author:
Lauren Okie studied English and American Literature at New York University. When she’s not mining old traumas or blocking sex scenes on the backs of grocery lists, Lauren works as a copywriter. Originally from Miami, she lives with her husband and daughter in the Los Angeles area.