Romance
Best Romantasy Books
Romance and fantasy with equal weight. Heat level and series length noted on every pick.
Updated September 2026 · By Sawyer V.
The short version
Start with Fourth Wing for the book that made romantasy a phenomenon, or A Court of Thorns and Roses for the series that built its audience. For a younger reader or lower heat, The Cruel Prince or Uprooted. Almost everything here opens a long series, so check before gifting.
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How we picked
We chose books where the romance and the fantasy carry equal weight, noted the heat level where it matters, and flagged series length, because almost every romantasy book is book one. We have not read all eight.
What we do on every list: read the publisher’s own description rather than a summary of it, check print length and first publication year against library catalog data (last refreshed September 11, 2026), confirm the book is still sold in the format we suggest, and write the match line before the blurb. What we do not do is claim to have read every book here cover to cover. The full method is published, and it is written so anyone can check it.
The short answer
Who each book is for, at a glance. Select a row for the full write-up.
| # | Book | Give this if | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Fourth WingRebecca Yarros · 530 pagesThe phenomenon | they want the book everyone is talking about | |
| 2 |  A Court of Thorns and RosesSarah J. Maas · 451 pagesThe one that built the audience | they like fairy-tale retellings | |
| 3 |  From Blood and AshJennifer L. Armentrout · 493 pagesThe steamy one | they want high heat and high drama | |
| 4 |  The Cruel PrinceHolly Black · 370 pagesThe young adult one | they are a teenager, or want scheming more than steam | |
| 5 |  PowerlessLauren Roberts · 600 pagesThe competition story | they loved The Hunger Games and want romance in it | |
| 6 |  Throne of GlassSarah J. Maas · 432 pagesThe long saga | they want a series to live inside for months | |
| 7 |  UprootedNaomi Novik · 438 pagesThe standalone | they want one complete book, not a series | |
| 8 |  The Knight and the MothRachel Gillig · 400 pagesThe newest | they have read the big names and want something recent |
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Eight romantasy books, heat and series noted
1. The phenomenon
Fourth Wing
Rebecca Yarros
Give this ifthey want the book everyone is talking about
A young woman forced into a brutal war college for dragon riders survives on her wits, and falls for the student most likely to kill her. Fast and addictive, and the book that turned romantasy into a publishing phenomenon.
One caveat: Explicit scenes, and the first of a long series still in progress.
- Print length
- 530 pages
- First published
- 2023
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
2. The one that built the audience
A Court of Thorns and Roses
Sarah J. Maas
Give this ifthey like fairy-tale retellings
A huntress kills a wolf in the woods and is taken to a faerie land as payment, in a loose retelling of Beauty and the Beast. The series is famous for getting much better, and much steamier, from book two.
One caveat: Explicit in later books.
- Print length
- 451 pages
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
3. The steamy one
From Blood and Ash
Jennifer L. Armentrout
Give this ifthey want high heat and high drama
A young woman chosen by the gods and kept veiled and untouched falls for the guard assigned to protect her. Big twists, a great deal of banter and plenty of heat.
One caveat: Explicit, and the first of a long series.
- Print length
- 493 pages
- First published
- 2020
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
4. The young adult one
The Cruel Prince
Holly Black
Give this ifthey are a teenager, or want scheming more than steam
A mortal girl raised in the High Court of Faerie schemes for power, and clashes with its cruelest prince. Sharp, political and low on heat — the best romantasy here for younger readers.
One caveat: First of a trilogy.
- Print length
- 370 pages
- First published
- 2018
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
5. The competition story
Powerless
Lauren Roberts
Give this ifthey loved The Hunger Games and want romance in it
In a kingdom that exiles anyone born without powers, a powerless thief ends up competing in a deadly trial while hiding what she is, and falls for the prince. Young adult, low heat and very bingeable.
One caveat: First of a trilogy.
- Print length
- 600 pages
- First published
- 2023
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
6. The long saga
Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
Give this ifthey want a series to live inside for months
An eighteen-year-old assassin is pulled out of a salt mine to compete for the post of royal champion. It starts as a young adult adventure and grows into a long epic, with the romance deepening as it goes.
- Print length
- 432 pages
- First published
- 2012
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
7. The standalone
Uprooted
Naomi Novik
Give this ifthey want one complete book, not a series
A village girl is taken to serve the wizard who guards her valley against a malevolent forest. A romantic fantasy rooted in Polish folklore, and the rare pick here with no series to buy.
- Print length
- 438 pages
- First published
- 2015
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
8. The newest
The Knight and the Moth
Rachel Gillig
Give this ifthey have read the big names and want something recent
A diviner raised in a cathedral leaves it for the first time, traveling with a knight she does not like. Atmospheric and gothic-tinged, and new enough that many readers have not found it yet.
- Print length
- 400 pages
- First published
- 2025
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
What romantasy means
Romantasy is fantasy in which the romance matters as much as the quest, and often more. It borrows its world-building from fantasy and its structure from romance: the couple is the center, and the ending is usually hopeful for them even if the world is on fire.
The category exploded in the 2020s, driven by Fourth Wing and the A Court of Thorns and Roses series and by readers sharing them online. Much of it is written for adults, some for teens, and the heat varies enormously.
Heat and series, at a glance
| Book | Heat | Series |
|---|---|---|
| The Cruel Prince | Low (young adult) | Trilogy |
| Powerless | Low (young adult) | Trilogy |
| Throne of Glass | Low at first, rising | Long series |
| Uprooted | Moderate | Standalone |
| A Court of Thorns and Roses | Rising sharply from book two | Ongoing |
| Fourth Wing | Explicit | Ongoing |
| From Blood and Ash | Explicit | Long series |
If you are buying for a teenager, the young adult picks are the safe ones. For an adult, ask before assuming high heat is welcome.
Related lists
Books like Fourth Wing and books like ACOTAR go deeper on each phenomenon, enemies-to-lovers romance covers the trope romantasy leans on most, and fantasy on Kindle Unlimited is where much of the genre's self-published side lives. Romantasy readers often read fast and a lot, which is exactly who the subscription panel on this page is for.
Two ways to read this list for less
If several books here appeal, a subscription usually beats buying them one at a time — but only for the right kind of reader. Here is who each one actually suits.
Audible Premium Plus
For anyone whose hands are busy
Driving, walking, cooking, cleaning. It converts hours that were never available for reading, which is a bigger effect than any discount. Books bought with a credit stay yours after you cancel — titles from the included catalog do not, and confusing the two is the most common complaint about the service.
See Audible plans and current pricingHow Audible actually works — credits, gifting and what happens when you cancel.
Kindle Unlimited
For fast readers who browse
It pays off from about three ebooks a month, in the genres the catalog covers well — romance, romantasy, cozy mystery, thriller, progression fantasy. It does not pay off if you are waiting on a specific new hardcover, because those are usually not included. Everything is borrowed, not owned.
See Kindle Unlimited terms and pricingIs Kindle Unlimited worth it? — the arithmetic, done on your own reading.
#ad — how we are funded. We print no subscription prices anywhere on this site, because they change and a stale figure sends you to a checkout expecting something that is not there. And if you read in silence in a chair, neither of these is for you — buy the book, or borrow it from your library.
What we would skip
Book three of a series, as a gift
Romantasy is almost entirely series, and a later volume is useless to someone who has not read the first. If you know they are mid-series, ask which book they are on; if you do not, give a first book or the standalone, Uprooted.
Questions people ask
What is the best romantasy book to start with?
Fourth Wing for the phenomenon, A Court of Thorns and Roses for the series that built the audience, or Uprooted for a complete standalone.
Is romantasy appropriate for teenagers?
Some is. The Cruel Prince, Powerless and early Throne of Glass are young adult; Fourth Wing, A Court of Thorns and Roses and From Blood and Ash contain explicit scenes.
What is the difference between romantasy and fantasy romance?
The terms overlap. Romantasy usually means the romance and the fantasy plot carry equal weight; fantasy romance puts the romance first.
Are there standalone romantasy books?
Uprooted is the best-known standalone here. Most romantasy opens a series.
Sources
- Open Library Search API — First publication year, median print length and cover art for every book on this page. Queried 8 September 2026.
- Kindle Unlimited signup page — The only authoritative source for current Kindle Unlimited pricing and catalog terms.
- Audible Premium Plus membership page — The only authoritative source for current Audible plans, prices and terms.
Read next
- Best Romance Books
Ten romances labeled by trope and heat level, the two things covers never tell you.
- Best Fantasy Books
Ten fantasy books sorted by the four things readers actually want from the genre.
- Books Like Fourth Wing
Eight read-alikes, each naming whether it matches the dragons, the academy, the romance or the pace.
- Books Like ACOTAR
Eight read-alikes sorted by whether the reader loved the world, the romance, the darkness or the scale.
- Best Enemies to Lovers Books
Eight enemies-to-lovers books where the hostility has a real cause, heat level stated on each.
- Books Like Twilight
Eight paranormal romances for a Twilight reader, from YA favorites to grown-up romantasy.