17 Of The Best Marriage Counseling Books

Every marriage includes ups and downs, which is why many couples turn to counselors for help.

Marriage counselors give you strategies for resolving conflict and building a stronger relationship. They also cost a lot and take time from your busy schedule.

Marriage counseling books offer the same tactics taught by professional counselors.

You can find ways to strengthen your marriage without spending a fortune on in-person counseling sessions.

What Is a Good Book to Read About Marriage?

We don't need to tell you how many marriage books there are.

Maybe you've done a search already and felt completely overwhelmed by the sheer volume of choices.

How do you choose the best marriage help books that will make a difference for you and your spouse?

Here are some questions to consider when selecting one:

  • Is it written by a qualified author who has professional experience in marriage counseling?
  • Does it have a large number of positive reviews from readers who specify how it helped their marriage?
  • Does it address the issues you and your spouse are experiencing?
  • Does it offer actions and solutions to make positive change in your marriage?
  • Is it written in a relatable style that works for you and your partner?

As you review our curated list of books below, keep these questions in mind as you make a selection.

Make a thoughtful choice rather than guessing at the books that might help you.

17 Best Marriage Counseling Books

If you’re facing marital issues or just want to improve your connection, look for solutions in the following 17 best marriage books.

1. Easy Marriage Counseling: 52 Self-Guided Exercises to Deepen Your Relationship

If you want a straightforward guide to dealing with relationship issues, this workbook has you covered.

It includes 52 activities designed for people with hectic schedules. The self-guided workbook requires just 20 minutes of your time per week to strengthen your marriage.

The author is an experienced relationship therapist and understands the challenges that couples tend to go through. She expertly addresses these challenges in simple language.


2. The Marriage Counseling Workbook: 8 Steps to a Strong and Lasting Relationship

Dr. Emily Cook presents the same strategies that she has used in her private practice to help couples work through common issues.

The book is divided into easy-to-follow sections. It starts with having you identify strengths and problem areas. You then examine the issues beneath the surface that tend to impact your problems.

The second part of the book includes eight steps for building a stronger bond. The individual steps include tips for effective communication, exploring intimacy, and building trust.


3. The High-Conflict Couple: A Dialectical Behavior Therapy Guide to Finding Peace, Intimacy, and Validation

If you struggle to address marital problems without anger, blame, or frustration, you may want to try the advice in this book. It is built for highly reactive couples.

The author relies on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) to change the ways that couples deal with their challenges.

This approach helps change behavioral patterns that negatively impact your relationship. You learn how to avoid repeating the same actions that tend to lead to arguments.


4. 201 Relationship Questions: The Couple’s Guide to Building Trust and Emotional Intimacy

The outline of this book is simple. It includes 201 questions that are intended to help you and your spouse explore each other’s feelings.

As you work through the questions, you will uncover intimate details about your spouse.

Do you ever feel disrespected? How do you define unconditional love? These are the types of questions that you and your spouse will ask each other.

While the concept is simple, the questions can draw out deeper emotions and address potential problems before they arise.


5. No More Fighting: The Relationship Book for Couples

Are you tired of fighting? This book may help. It includes strategies for tackling the problems that tend to trigger arguments in your relationship.

This marriage counseling book includes 52 relationship challenges that you complete during 20-minute weekly exercises.

The book offers clear instructions for each challenge along with supportive guidance to encourage you to keep working on your relationship. Instead of escalating the tension, this book may help diffuse it.


6. The Power of Two: Secrets to a Strong and Loving Marriage

Full of helpful advice and strategies, this book helps improve your conflict-resolution skills.

The techniques covered in the book are designed to address the differences between you and your spouse. It allows you to dig deeper into the issues that tend to lead to arguments or disagreements.

Instead of constantly arguing, you can learn how to effectively communicate your feelings. You will also explore strategies for comprising when dealing with common marital problems and overcoming the most sensitive issues.


7. The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

Based on years of research, the author of this book has compiled seven principles that define a happy marriage.

You can learn what it takes to succeed in your relationship and address a variety of problems. 

No matter if you are dealing with issues related to money, sex, religion, work, or family, this book has strategies that you can use. The tips and methods are practical and easy to follow.


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8. Mindful Relationship Habits: 25 Practices for Couples

Instead of providing a step-by-step guide for strengthening your relationship, this book focuses on helpful habits that you can implement.

The authors teach you how to be a more mindful spouse by responding to your partner’s needs instead of reacting negatively to his or her actions.

The 25 positive relationship habits are clearly outlined. Everything discussed in the book is backed by research, ensuring that these habits really work.


9. Couples Therapy Workbook: 30 Guided Conversations to Re-Connect Relationships

If you feel that your relationship is over, read this book first. It includes 30 guided conversations designed to help you deal with the most challenging marriage problems.

The goal of this guide is to bring you and your spouse back together emotionally. The format helps you dig deep into your relationship, covering everything from family values to empathy and emotional intimacy.


10. Married Roommates: How to Go from a Relationship That Just Survives to a Marriage That Thrives

Do you ever feel as if your spouse is more of a roommate than a romantic partner? This book is written for those who feel unfilled or lonely in their marriages. It includes tips for bringing up your feelings with your spouse.

The simple-to-implement strategies are built to strengthen communication and increase appreciation for each other. It also covers conflict resolution techniques, making it a good read for couples who tend to fight frequently.


11. Communication in Marriage: How to Communicate with Your Spouse Without Fighting

Couples who fight frequently may benefit from the strategies in this guide. The authors are a husband-and-wife team. They have created a simple guide with real examples of common situations and actions that often lead to arguments and fights.

You can see the good and bad habits that improve or hurt communication between couples. Exploring the chapters in this book may help you uncover the causes that tend to trigger your fights, allowing you and your spouse to communicate feelings without arguing.


12. Healing Your Marriage When Trust is Broken: Finding Forgiveness and Restoration

It is often difficult for a marriage to recover from a major betrayal. In this book, the author details her own journey to forgiveness after discovering that her husband had multiple affairs, was addicted to pornography and fathered a child with another woman.

If you feel that your spouse has betrayed your trust, this book may offer the insight needed to repair your marriage.


13. I Do! A Marriage Workbook for Engaged Couples 

Couples who communicate their feelings and desires are more likely to stay together, which is the purpose of this book. It includes detailed exercises for engaged couples before they tie the knot.

The book includes seven chapters with exercises that focus on specific relationship topics, including intimacy and beliefs. The exercises help you and your partner learn more about each other’s true emotions and goals.


14. Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples: Third Edition

Written by leading marriage therapists, this guide explores intimacy concerns to help couples grow closer. Through a series of practical steps, you will learn how to revive the romance in your marriage.

The exercises included in this book are intended to eliminate negative reactions so that you and your partner can focus on each other’s needs.


15. The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts

The advice presented in this best-selling marriage workbook may help you and your spouse develop more intimacy. The author recognizes that staying in love is a challenge for many married couples and provides a step-by-step guide for rekindling the love in your relationship.

Reading this book may help you reflect on what your partner means to you. This understanding should lead to a deeper, lifelong commitment.


16. Eight Dates: Essential Conversations for a Lifetime of Love

The goal of this book is to strengthen your marriage with multiple date nights. The book includes step-by-step instructions for communicating the things that matter most to you in your relationship. You and your partner will go on eight dates to discuss specific topics.

The eight date nights help you and your spouse discuss intimate matters including trust, money, conflict, sex, adventure, family, spirituality, and dreams. It is a simple guide that tries to add a little more excitement to the typical marriage counseling process.


17. The Normal Bar: The Surprising Secrets of Happy Couples

If you tend to feel that your relationship problems are unusual, you may find solace in this book. It presents findings from polls and surveys from over 100,000 real couples. Reading other people’s answers to questions about marriage may help you feel more normal.

The book is mostly comprised of statistics and responses from couples. It does not include strategies but may give you more insight into the normalcy of your relationship, helping you see that you are not the only one going through these issues.


Final Thoughts

The 17 recommended marriage counseling workbooks provide effective tips and solutions for dealing with common marital problems.

From a lack of communication to fighting about money, the issues these books cover address the most common and challenging areas of discontent and disconnection.

When looking for the right counseling book, examine the descriptions and chapter titles. Read the author bios and learn what they want to achieve with the book. Try to find a book that addresses the specific issues that you face.

Ignoring a problem is not a solution. If you can't go to marriage counseling right now, these books are excellent resources to help you start repairing your marriage.