10 Great Romantasy Books that You May Not Know About
I know, kind of an incendiary blog title. But when the concept of this “new genre romantasy” came along, a group of us jaded old Gen X types were left looking in great confusion at each other and wondering why no one was talking about books exactly like this from 20 years (or so) ago.
So here you go!
My 10 Favorite Early Romantasy Books!
I define romantasy as a 50/50 combination of romance and fantasy. Pretty simple, actually. Some of these lean a little more one way than the other. The genre seems to be earning its weight and references from Maas and Yarros, but my recommendations aren’t going to be exactly like those. I prefer a bit more range to my fantastical elements when I read this genre. You’ve been warned.
1 Warprize
Vaughn
This is a culture conflict comfort read for me. I just love the juxtaposition of Keir’s pastoral-nomadic allied tribes and Xylara’s settled quasi-medieval world. The romance is sweet and poignant but equally balanced against wonderful alt-history meets fantasy world building. The side characters are excellent too, and there’s solid LBGTQ representation (especially as the series progresses).
I love that there are flaws in culture and knowledge on both sides of this relationship, as well as strengths. As the fish out of water main character, Xylara must learn both balance and understanding. I also really enjoy a healer main character. This book never serves me wrong.
2 Radiance
Draven
I have no idea why this book is so neglected and forgotten about. Because for my money it is one of the best early romantasys ever written. Perhaps it was too far ahead of its time? Perhaps it’s the cover art that is doing it no favors?
Regardless, this is a stellar read.
Built on the arranged marriage trope, this one posits a kind of dark elf male lead, a nightbourn creature of razor teeth, claws and luminous yellow eyes. It is his background and the underhill court family dynamic that our heroine is thrust into as a result of an arranged marriage. There is an alien quality to Brishen, which I very much appreciate. These two, from completely different worlds, learning to trust, rely and eventually adore and want each other is magical. There’s a truly romantic nature to the alliance they forge, when ultimate victory is getting to have and hold onto your one person, make that person your rock to cling to, and become that for them in return. It’s a wonderful love story.
3 Kushiel’s Dart
Carey
Okay, depending on your age you might already know about this one. But out and about chatting with “the young readers” I have come to realize that many of our youth have never heard of this fantastic series.
It’s amazing. An absolute sensation back in the day, with ground-breaking cover art and ground-breaking concepts and themes. The main character is trained as a courtesan and then adopted into a noble household to become a spy. The plot is deliciously convoluted, and her many loves and losses over the course of this trilogy are both sexy and epic.
In fact, that is something not enough fans give Carey credit for - she not only writes characters, intimacy, kink, and relationships well, but her battle sequences are extraordinary. If you want truly epic romantasy, this is the one, especially the later books.
Perhaps it’s the main romance arc that’s the weakest link? I prefer to think of this as a kind of poly romance (Nicola is my bias) but I think Josselin will still satisfy romance readers. Well, all but the biggest sticklers. Which, if you are reading my blog, I suspect you are NOT.
4 The Lightning Struck Heart
Klune
Before The House in the Cerulean Sea Klune wrote this absolutely hilarious comedic high fantasy piece, that is also a romance. This one has pretty much everything you could want, including absolute belly laughs.
I stayed up late to finish this and actually cried with laughter.
It’s a brilliant book, that suffers from persistently bad covers. Please forgive it it’s a visual sins for the gem of prose that is within its pages?
If what you always wanted from Terry Pratchett was more romance and more gay, here you go. I know I was beyond delighted.
5 Lord of Two Lands
Tarr
How about historical romantasy set under the conquering army of Alexander the Great? Perhaps the romance isn’t exactly front and center, but it’s definitely there, and it is truly romantic and wonderfully endearing. A high priestess from Ancient Egypt joins Alexander the Great’s army for… reasons. Falls in love with one of his soldiers.
The other awesome thing about this book is Tarr’s writing style, which is utterly unique. I’ve never encountered anything like it before or after. I love this book and I’m constantly recommending it, but so few people have actually read it.
Another one that is in a similar vein, but for a young adult audience is Mara Daughter of the Nile.
6 Bitterwood
Speedwell
This one is definitely on the romance end of the spectrum. What sets it apart in the genre is the setting. You can feel the bone aching cold seeping through the pages of this book. It’s deeply chilling to its core, but you can also feel the warmth of the connection between the main character (who is gay) and his love interest (who is bi). Because they notice and resonate with each other in a way that is very adult, grown up. Both clearly feel that they no longer deserve or get to give romantic love, not because of self worth, but because they feel they have moved on to a new phase of life. They are both bound hard and willingly by their respective duties, the one to his country and soldiers (he is a captain of the guard) and the other to his home and civic responsibilities (he is a landed nobleman). Their love builds slowly despite this, out of a profound mutual respect. It’s a thoughtful and mature little story, that reminded me a little of Robinson’s Cheysuli series.
7 The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
McKillip
I have talked about my love for this book many times (so often I ended up writing a forward to a new edition) but this time I’ll mention the romance.
This romance is about sacrifice. It’s about what is required to love a truly powerful sorceress, one who has little care or attention for the world of men, because she is greater than the petty squabbles of kings. But it is also about what one gives up in order to keep the smallness of love, the tiny comforting parts of it, the warm stew and quiet hearth.
It’s about finding and accepting the magic of the self, and the joy of affection, as opposed to the great and the grandiose. And it is about the fact that it might be worth sacrificing power to be, not happy, but content.
There is a reason this is one of my all time favorite books.
8 Crown Duel
Smith
This is a YA of the old school style (low heat) but it is also still a KILLER romance.
Told in essentially two parts this about a wild child country bumpkin duchess who leads a revolt against the crown. The heir to that crown sets out to catch her but ends up falling in love with her and wanting to catch her for whole new reasons.
The second half is what happens when our main character goes to court and must learn to fight on a different playing field. At which juncture the prose includes a secrete identity component while our prince is trying to court and educate our troublemaker without her realizing he’s her enemy from the first half.
Mel is a plucky and incredibly likable heroine, with none of the angst and all of the good, giving, game we enjoyed in our 90s YA.
9 Grave Mercy
LaFevers
Another romantasy series the weaves alt-history together with spies, assassins, court intrigue, and the occasional battle sequence. If you like Carey, then LaFevers is her scion.
Actually it’s the second book in this series that is, I think, the most romantic. But they kind of have to be read in order. All three are about troubled young women with horrible pasts (triggers all around) who are taken into a convent and dedicated to be Death’s Handmaidens.
The can see the mark of doom on their intended targets and they are bound to execute that doom under certain circumstances. Of course it all goes wrong when they fall in love.
10 Poison Study
Snyder
Similar to Uprooted in the tone of the romance, so if you read that and were put-off by that style of power differential romance (I know some were), you probably should avoid this book. But I happen to like both this kind of romance and this kind of book.
Yelena killed her abuser and is sentenced to death because of it. It’s just she’d going to serve out that sentence as a food taster to the commander of the realm. But Yelena’s past has more secrets in it than even she knows, and her survival depends on her ability not just to master her own abilities but to make friends who will help her along the way.
The romance in this book is certainly on the back burner and the fantasy tropes are somewhat predictable since they make up the backbone. I happen to enjoy predictable tropes, in romance or fantasy, there is reassurance in that. But because of the style of this series it means the ending of this first book is HFN not HEA, so you’ll need to be aware of that. This is strong SF/F style, which means the romance will be a somewhat slow burn behind the whole series, not just the first book.
BONUS!
Beauty by Robin McKinley
Hands down the best retelling of Beauty and the Beast. And sure, fairytale retellings don’t necessarily Count as romantasy, but this one is such a good retelling and it is quite romantic, but I had to include it on the list. Just because also so few younger readers know about it six distance. It’s also beautifully written and really fun to read with great and extremely lovable characters. So I think people who read my books and are also looking for romanticism would particularly like her work.
* Seriously though, if you want your dragons having sex causes humans to have sex trope from the original, then you really should read the person books. My favorite is actually the bar to call trilogy, but those are pretty way, so what you’re probably looking for is something like Dragonflight.
** You might also try Melanie Rawn. Just Saying.
Want more book rec lists from me?
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Yours (destined to be killed by a tumbling TBR pile),
Miss Gail
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