It Ends with Us has been a major box office success, grossing more than $285 million worldwide. While there are various reasons for the film's popularity, one of them is the legions of fans of the original novel.
Published in 2016, Colleen Hoover's novel gained traction on social media years later. It started in 2021, firstly via BookTok on TikTok, and was followed by Instagram's Bookstagram community, propelling the book to the top of bestseller lists. The film rights had already been sold in 2019, but renewed interest grew the fan base exponentially and garnered greater interest in the film and its cast.
From romantic comedies to young adult dystopian-themed stories and romantacy books, there are a number of other older novels finding new readers thanks to social media. Here are eight popular novels that are expected to get their own screen adaptions.
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas
The first in the series of five books, A Court of Thorns and Roses follows the story of Feyre Archeron, who is dragged into the dangerous and unpredictable magical world of immortal faeries as retribution when she kills a wolf in the woods.
First published in 2015, the fantasy romance series has sold more than 13 million copies. It has been very popular with readers on TikTok, with the #acotra tag recording more than eight billion views.
In March 2021, Hulu announced it had commissioned screenwriter and television producer Ronald D Moore to adapt the books into a series alongside the author. However, there have been no significant developments since, with Moore confirming in July that he is no longer attached to the project.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Published in May 2023, the story of Violet Sorrengail has been one of the most popular romantasy books to date. Known as the The Empyrean series, the story follows Violet's dreams of becoming a scribe, although she has been ordered by her mother to join hundreds of candidates competing to be elite dragon riders.
Follow-up Iron Flame was released in November, and the third in the series, Onyx Storm is expected in January 2025. Two more books are also in the works.
The rights have been acquired by Amazon, with actor Michael B Jordan’s Outlier Society production company producing the series and Yarrow acting as an executive producer on the show.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The historical fiction novel explores the life of a fictional Old Hollywood star, Evelyn Hugo. The story follows her as she recounts her glamorous yet challenging life in an interview with a young journalist named Monique Grant.
The book was a bestseller when it was released in 2017, but saw a resurgence in popularity in 2021 thanks to BookTok, where it was highly recommended by many readers.
In 2022 Netflix announced that it had plans to adapt the novel for film. While no release date has been shared, director Leslye Headland – the co-creator of Russian Doll – will direct the adaptation and Liz Tigelaar – known for Little Fires Everywhere – will be writing the script, with Jenkins Reid as executive producer.
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Since it was first published in 2005, the young adult dystopian series has been a bestseller, being translated into more than 20 languages.
The sci-fi novel follows Tally Youngblood, a teenager who is excited as she counts down the weeks until she can have the operation which will turn her from an “ugly” into a “pretty”, making her viable to live in a high-tech paradise. However, everything changes when her friend, Shay, who isn’t sure about turning pretty, runs away.
This is when Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world and is given a choice by the authorities – find Shay and turn her in, or never turn pretty. The film adaptation will be released on Netflix on September 12.
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
One of the most popular romcoms of 2021, the book follows Olive Smith, a third-year PhD candidate who is sceptical about the idea of romance.
Everything changes when Olive needs to convince her best friend, Anh, that she is in a relationship and makes a deal with Adam Carlsen, a young, notorious professor at Stanford, to have a fake relationship.
In October 2022, it was announced that a film adaptation is in development by Bisous Picture but no details about casting have been released.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
Nora Stephens is no heroine – her whole life is books. Not only does she read them all but she’s a cut-throat literary agent who is used to taking control of situations. When little sister Libby convinces her to go away for a month on a trip to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina, Nora secretly hopes to meet a handsome country doctor or gentleman so she can star in her own romantic comedy. Instead, she keeps seeing Charlie Lastra, a bookish editor from back in the city who she has met several times before.
In March 2023, Tango announced that it had bought the film rights and that Sarah Hayward, known for her work on Girls and Modern Love, will be adapting the script.
King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St Clair
To end a years-long war, Isolde de Lara must marry the vampire king, Adrian Aleksandr Vasiliev, and then kill him. But everything goes awry when her assassination attempt is thwarted and Adrian threatens that if she tries to kill him again, he will transform her into a vampire.
Following it up, The Queen of Volts was released in 2022. Both novels have been popular but, although there have been rumours that the series will be adapted for screen, there has been no official announcement.
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
The first in The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black, The Cruel Prince is a popular young adult fantasy series that has received critical acclaim and is popular on TikTok.
The story follows Jude, a mortal girl stolen away from the human world to live in the High Court of Faerie. Years later, Jude wants to belong in Faerie, despite many of the fey despising humans. To win a place at the Court, Jude must defy Prince Cardan the wicked son of the High King.
An announcement came in June 2017 that The Cruel Prince had been optioned for a film adaptation produced by Universal Pictures and film producer and screenwriter Michael De Luca. The rights were bought before the book's release in 2018, but there has since been no news.
