10 Popular Romantasy Novels to Add to Your Reading List

This list explores some of the most popular fantasy romance novels in the genre.

Are you into mystical kingdoms, fae courts, unstable realms, and hot protagonists with steamy romantic subplots? Or are you a die-hard romance fan who likes a little sprinkle of fantasy? 

Then Romantasy might be the perfect subgenre for you. 

It blends romance and fantasy, with a plot backdrop that centers on a romantic relationship set in a fantastical world. 

Hardcore epic fantasy lovers might detest them, but romance lovers and BookTok live for these books. 

If this sounds like your kinda thing, here are 10 popular romantasy novels to add to your TBR list. 

10. One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig is a Gothic Romantasy novel published on the 27th of September 2022. It’s the author’s debut novel and the first book of the Shepherd King duology. 

The book follows Elseph, who lives in Blevon, a kingdom oppressed by a dark magical blight. She shares her mind with the ancestral being known as Nightmare, who gives her strength but also threatens to take over her mind. 

Amid this, she forms a pact with Ravyn Yarrow, whom she initially thinks is a highwayman. Turns out he’s the King’s nephew, Captain of the Destriers, and guilty of high treason. Together, they hunt for the ancient Relics, said to hold the power to end the blight. 

Along the journey, an unexpected romance blooms between them, and they uncover the kingdom’s long history of betrayal. 

9. Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole

Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole is the first of the Kindred’s Curse Saga Series, a fantasy romance series. If you’re into slow burn, mystical curses, and enemies-to-lovers, you’ll likely enjoy this book. 

The story follows Diem Bellator, a healer in Mortal City, in a world divided between mortals and the Powerful Descended. Her mother’s mysterious disappearance and the discovery of her dark past lead Diem into the halls of royalty. She attempts to unlock the mysterious web her mother left behind. 

With the dying king’s heir constantly monitoring her and a ruthless mortal alliance trying to recruit her into the growing civil war, Diem is caught between two dangerous forces. To save her family and all of mortal kind, she must navigate the unwritten rules of love, power, and politics.

The book is a slow burn, and the romance between Diem and her love interest, Luther Corbois, develops throughout the Kindred’s Curse Saga Series. 

8. Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig

Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig is the second book in the Shepherd King duology and the sequel to One Dark Window. 

In the second part of the gothic romantasy duology, Elspeth and Ravyn have successfully gathered most of the Providence Cards. The Twin Alders, the most important one, remains. However, they must recover it before the solstice if they want any chance of freeing their kingdom from its dark enchantment. 

Only Nightmare can lead them there, but he is slowly taking over Elspeth and is no longer willing to cooperate. 

The journey to saving the kingdom is bumpy as the pair must reevaluate their relationship. Meanwhile, centuries-old secrets are revealed, and familiar bonds are broken. 

7. Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

Divine Rivals is a young adult Romantasy novel by Rebecca Ross. It’s an enemies-to-lovers story filled with hope, heartbeat, and the unparalleled power of love.

The main character is Iris Winnow, an 18-year-old from the city of Oath, where the gods Enva and Dacia are at war. She works at a newspaper and competes with her rival, Roman Kitt, for the columnist position. 

Iris unknowingly begins exchanging letters with Roman through an enchanted typewriter. As a result, they begin to fall for each other, but only Roman knows the other’s true identity. 

When Iris goes to the front lines to find her brother, the war and the letters confront her idea of who she can and can’t trust. 

6. Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas

Kingdom of Ash is a continuation of  Sarah J. Maas’s New York Times bestseller Throne of Glass. It was first published on October 23, 2018, and is the seventh and final book of the Throne of Glass series. 

In the kingdom of Ash, Queen Maeve holds Aelin Galathynius captive, torturing her and trying to break her will. Meanwhile, her allies, including Rowan, Aedion, Dorian, Manon, Chaol, and Lysandra, fight across the continent to rescue her and hold off Erawan’s Armies. 

Aelin must think of a way to escape Maeve’s capture and reclaim her powers while the Wyrdkeys stay at the center of the War. 

All roads lead to a final battle that could decide Erilea’s fate. 

5. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight is the second book of Sarah J. Maas’s Throne of Glass series. It centers on Celaena Sardothien, an assassin turned King’s champion who must now kill the king’s enemies on his orders. 

Unknown to the king, Celaena spares many of her targets and fakes their deaths to weaken the King’s power from within. She maintains a close bond with Chaol and Dorian; meanwhile, her friend Nehemia pursues her own dangerous agenda against the crown. 

Celaena gradually discovers the dark magic behind the King’s power, and as the truth about her past unfolds, the cost of her deception grows significantly. 

4. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass is the first book of Sarah J. Maas’s Throne of Glass series. It’s an epic Romantasy that began with the entry of the same name and was released on the 2nd of August 2012. 

In the book, a vicious king rules from his throne of glass; meanwhile, Celaena Sardothien, an assassin, comes to the castle to win her freedom. She finds herself in a competition where she has to defeat twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors to become the king’s champion and earn her freedom. 

Unbeknownst to her, something evil dwelled in the castle of glass, and it seems to be targeting her competitors. 

When they start dropping like flies, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival. Will she be able to root out evil before it destroys her world? 

You can only find out by reading the series. 

3. Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

Iron Flame is an adult Romantasy novel by Rebecca Yarros. It was published on November 7, 2023, and is the second book in the Empyrean Series, a planned five-book series. 

The book’s premise centers on Violet Sorrengail. She returns for her second year at Basgiath War College, after narrowly surviving her first, and is now bonded to the dragon Tairn. 

Violet might be frailer than before, but her will is as strong as ever. 

The training is more gruesome than ever, and Violet must hide her secrets from the commanders who only want to use her as a weapon. 

As they unravel the secrets hidden at the Basgiath War College, her relationship with Xaden Riorson, her love interest, grows more complicated. 

With the war closing in, Violet uncovers the truth and is shocked to learn that everything she’s been taught about the kingdom has been a lie. 

2. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first book in Sarah J. Maas’s best-selling romantic fantasy series. Published in May 2015, it follows Feyre Archeron, a 19-year-old human huntress, as she is brought into the faerie lands of Prythian. 

Feyre kills a wolf in the woods to feed her starving family, and a beast named Tamlin comes to claim her life as payment. She unknowingly killed a faerie and must now pay the price for killing a magical creature. 

In Prythian, Feyre discovers that the cruel High Fae Queen Amarantha has cursed Tamlin and his court. As she falls in love with Tamlin, Amarantha comes to claim him. To save him and break the curse, Feyre must survive three deadly trials beneath the mountain.

1. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Fourth Wing is the first book in Rebecca Yarros’s Empyrean Series. It follows Violet Sorrengail, the frail daughter of a general who’s forced to join the Basgiath War College to train as a dragon rider. 

Most cadets die in the process, and she faces constant threats from rivals who want her gone, including the ruthless Xaden Riorson. 

Although Violet has spent her entire life training to enter the Scribe Quadrant, she finds herself facing a very different reality. She must endure deadly quests and competitions while trying to avoid getting killed by Xaden, one of the quadrant’s most powerful riders.

As the book progresses, her bond with Xaden grows more complicated as the truth threatens everything she believes.