To be totally addicted to romantasy books?

[yourethemoon]

I know I know, they’re not exactly literary greats.

But I can’t get enough of them. I’m on my fifth romantasy series back to back, I’ve read 19 books in the last 6 weeks! I just eat them up. My partner thinks I should broaden my horizons a bit because, in his words, it’s “fairy porn” without much value.

AIBU?

I've never even heard of them. Is it all goblins and fairies which I don't think I'd likr. But I''m tempted to give them ago. What should I start with.

I'm not the PP, but I have an English degree. I can tear through most books in a handful of hours. Also, are couples not allowed separate hobbies anymore? I read while DP games, or runs, or goes to the gym, or sleeps, or wrangles the children in exchange for me wrangling them while he does his own hobbies.

Having said I don't read much romantasy, I've recently read The Diary of Derek Drummond by Katelyn Emilia Novak. It's a gothic/fantasy/romance, so not quite a "romantasy". There were no fairies. No porn. I don't remember any sex scenes at all.

But it was brilliant. A rare 5 star read for me.

Any that work well for a beginner and I also like audio books

*they’re.

I have a lot of free time - mainly on my commute to work (about three hours a day), but admittedly I tore through most of the books the first time while on holiday, while he was napping and swimming. I couldn’t swim due to an injury! I do read incredibly quickly. I can get through a book a day.

I believe many of us were hooked by A Court Of Thorns And Roses (ACOTAR) so that’s a good place to start. Even if it’s not the best book in the series, it makes you want to read more. I started there then, A Throne Of Glass, then Crescent City which are all by Sarah J Maas.

I'm currently working my way through a lot of Golden Age crime from the 1930s, mixed in with a lot of fantasy. Have read most of Seanan McGuire's October Daye series as well as the Incryptid novels. Also Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels and Innkeeper series.

Absolutely cracking stuff. I think people should read whatever they like.

The plated prisoner series is also brilliant

Wonderful thank you just downloaded it. I usually read police / killer / thriller / horror and am getting a bit bored so going to try this new genre!

20-30 years ago it was vampire hunters shagging vampires. Anne Rice, Anita Blake, Sookie Stackhouse, all that.

Then it was dystopias - Hunger Games, Divergent, Maze Runner etc etc.
Plus ça change.

I liked Holly Black's Cruel Prince series, pretty much anything by Naomi Novik (more fantasy than romantasy) and have just started Fourth Wing.

I am afraid I read ACOTAR and thought it was absolutely awful. I found the number of times she blathered on about how she would paint him (or rather wouldn't be able to) was Dan Brown levels of stupid. But if that doesn't grate I'm sure it's fine.

Who cares what you read if you like it? My mum used to dismiss my Georgette Heyer addiction as trash, but she's stood the test of time!

My DH calls them book porn and he is almost right , im on book 56

You’d like Rose in Chains

life is hard enough. If you enjoy doing something then how can it be “without much value”? Keep on enjoying them and don’t mind anyone else.

I have an English Lit degree and am a firm fan of romantasy and other light, escapist fiction if you enjoy it. I do! I have also read most of the heavy 19th century classic novels. I love the latter, as they make me think and analyse, but they aren't at all what i want to read when I just need some relaxing downtime and a mental rest. Light fantasy/romantasy fills that space for me, along with classic crime fiction. Different types of books can serve different purposes in your reading/emotional life. I think humans are wired to need and appreciate storytelling, and romantasy is one enjoyable outlet amongst many for that. From a literary perspective romantasy owes something to much earlier sources such as traditional fairy tales, gothic novels etc, but you don't need to be aware of that background to thoroughly enjoy romantasy on its own terms. Reading is reading, whatever the book.

I read fact (just started Make Me Well, by Xand van Tulleken), fiction, older fiction, and love dystopian fantasy to disappear into. My absolute favourite is Anne Bishop, all of her series, but especially The Black Jewels books. I've recently finished the Sarah Maas House of... trilogy, and I'd add to your lists of authors with CL Wilson, Grace Darven, Holly Black, Naomi Novik, and Juliet Marillier.

The only issue I have is how samey they are. In the bookshop its a wall of 'The something of something and something'. Words like fae, fire, forge, heat, crown, court, throne, thorn, wolf, blade, sword, spell, spark, magic, in various orders. I like them, they're fun, but the level of 'spice' somewhat detracts from the story sometimes, I tend to skip over it and I wander off to more historical fiction for a while.

Just to add, these are all names of different series of books. So best to read the next book in the series before moving on to the others. Throne of Glass is the only completed series though.

YANBU. I read all sorts, fiction and NF, but have no shame in admitting to loving romantasy. I just finished The Bridge Kingdom series and will miss it a lot!

I read my first Romantasy novel at the end of 2024 (The Wolf King by Lauren Palphreyman) and was hooked from there.

I totally agree with a PP that if many of these books were written by men they'd just be called fantasy as "fairy smut" seems to only be directed at books written by female authors. When The Moon Hatched for example really is a high fantasy novel and some of these books have way less sex in them than Game of Thrones does!

Some of my Romantasy reads have been absolutely excellent. I read Liv Zander's Feathers so Vicious duology in a weekend.....but that one is very dark so I'd check the trigger warnings.

I've also read Alchemised recently and loved it. It annoys me no end that it is often looked down upon as being smut when it's actually a hugely complex political book about prisoners of war and trauma. But if a fantasy book is written by a woman and has a couple of sex scenes in it, it is derided.

Anyway, some books I've loved purely as an easy read and for the romance and sex elements. Who doesn't like a bit of escapism?!

I need to have a break from Romantasy every couple of books so I do mix things up but I'm currently heading off to bed to read the next chapter of Brimstone after loving Quicksilver last year.

You should definitely read what you like OP. I tried a bit of romantasy and it wasn't my cup of tea, but I binge on fluffy regency romances when I need to de-stress.

I use on my kindle though so you can't really tell what I'm reading unless you are up close!

There's a lot of books here. I want one to try. Which one? Thanks.Not too fantastical.

OMG I’ve found my people - can somebody please just talk about throne of glass with me?!? None of my real life friends read this sort of stuff . I’m only halfway thru the TOG series and I am just so emotionally over involved and obsessed 😭 so much better than ACOTAR once it gets going.

ToG is my Roman Empire.

I love it. So so much

Have you read The Night Prince yet? I liked both but prefer the second book. Looking forward to the 3rd!