Romantasy Books, where romance and fantasy meet, have become one of the fastest growing sub genres in publishing. Are they just a fad that TikTok made up, or is romantasy here to stay? In this post, we’ll dive into the history of the term and genre, what made it popular and where it’s going to go, as well as some recommendations of the best books in the genre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you’d asked me five years ago what my favourite romantasy book was, I’d have been unable to answer. Romantasy? Do you mean fantasy? Romance? What even is this? However, now it is one of the biggest genres that I read, although it did get me thinking on how we got here. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 2023, Goodreads added a Romantasy category<\/a> to their Choice Awards. This was a big step, especially as this was the year where both Fourth Wing<\/em><\/a> and Iron Flame <\/em>were released. The book community was torn. Is this new category devaluing romantasy books? Is it suggesting that they aren’t quite as good as fantasy? Or is Goodreads acknowledging that this is a genre that can stand on its own now. It is equal to fantasy. In my opinion, I think it was a good move. Since 2020, Sarah J Maas has won the fantasy category every year. We know that she is an absolute powerhouse of an author, now potentially rivalled by Rebecca Yarros. So splitting the categories allowed more fantasy books a chance to be nominated, and to win. In 2024 Somewhere Beyond the Sea<\/a> by TJ KLune won the best fantasy with just shy of 70,000 votes. House of Flame and Shadow<\/a> by Sarah J Maas won the best romantasy with 122,000 votes. We can clearly see who the winner would have been if they were in one category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n