If you have wandered into any bookish corner of the internet lately, you have seen the word Romantasy. It is everywhere, and if you are still not entirely sure what it means, here is the short answer: romantasy is a genre that blends full fantasy worldbuilding, magic systems, and mythical creatures with a central love story that carries just as much weight as the adventure around it, and it always ends in a happily ever after. Or Romance Fantasy = Romantasy.
I did not expect to have a favorite word in 2026, but romantasy might be it.
So What Actually Makes a Book Romantasy?
Romantasy is not just fantasy with a little kissing tucked into the margins. The romance has to be load bearing. Pull it out of the plot, and the whole story should collapse. That is a test I use for every book I write, actually. If any element, romance included, can be lifted out without changing the story, it should be reconsidered. I’m not saying it has to go, that’s the writer’s call for the story they want to tell. But, as a writer, I want to consider the elements I put into my books because I want readers to feel emersed when they read.
Beyond that, romantasy books tend to share a few fingerprints. Sweeping, built from scratch worlds with their own rules and magic systems. Morally gray heroes who are more compelling than they are comfortable. Fated bonds, prophecies, and the kind of tension where two people are drawn together whether they like it or not. Stakes that reach past the couple, a kingdom, a curse, a war, something bigger than just will they end up together. Not all romantasy books will have all of these elements. But always, always, a happy ending. It might come at the end of the book, or the end of the series, but in romance the HEA (happily ever after) or HFN (happy for now) is key. Romantasy readers want the adventure and the guarantee.
If you want to see how romantasy stacks up against every other romance subgenre out there, I break it all down in my full romance genre guide.
Why It Feels Like Everyone Is Talking About It Right Now
Romantasy has had a real moment these past few years, and I do not think it is a fluke. Readers want escapism that still has teeth, a world where the stakes are life and death and the romance is just as dangerous. It gives readers permission to feel enormous things, grief, longing, fury, devotion, inside a story that is safely not their real life. Escapism is not shallow. It is survival. If a book gives someone one good breath on a hard day, it has done its job.
I Have Been Writing This Longer Than the Word Existed
Here is my favorite secret about romantasy. A lot of us who write paranormal and fantasy romance have been building these worlds since long before anyone put a trendy label on them. The trend did not invent us. It finally gave us a cool name.
Two of my series live squarely in this space, and both are having a wonderful moment right now. Realm Immortal is my high fantasy romance world of morally gray kings and epic worldbuilding. I love describing it as Labyrinth meets A Court of Thorns and Roses. It starts with King of the Unblessed, and if you have met Merrick, you already know he is the kind of hero who would rather destroy the thing he wants than admit he wants it.
Then there is Tribes of the Vampire, my darker, gothic romantasy series about forbidden attractions and antiheroes you should not root for and absolutely will. I describe the world-building as evoking the gothic tradition of Anne Rice, and honestly, I will take that comparison every single day. It starts with Redeemer of Shadows.
Both series were recently acquired by Pan Macmillan’s Tor Bramble UK for new audio editions and special hardbacks, which still makes me want to shout it from the rooftops. These are stories that have lived in readers’ hearts for years, and I am thrilled to share them with even more of you.
Where to Start If You Want to Try Romantasy
If you are romantasy curious and do not know where to jump in, here is my honest advice.
Want epic, high fantasy stakes with a slow burn enemies to lovers king? Start with King of the Unblessed, Realm Immortal Book 1.
Want something darker and more gothic, forbidden attraction, vampire antiheroes, atmosphere for days? Start with Redeemer of Shadows, Tribes of the Vampire Book 1.
And if you fall in love with fated bonds and magic systems along the way, my Qurilixen World has eight interconnected series and more than forty books of dragon shifters, cat shifter princes, and space pirates waiting for you. Different corner of my catalog, same worldbuilt, fated bond DNA.
A Few Quick Answers
Is romantasy the same as paranormal romance?
They overlap, but they are not identical. Paranormal romance often leans on our own world with supernatural elements layered in. Romantasy is (usually) fully its own world, built from the ground up, with the romance and the fantasy stakes carrying equal weight. A fantasy can have paranormal elements. A paranormal can have fantasy elements. Some of my readers call my Warlocks MacGregor series a romantasy. Some call it paranormal romance. It’s about a family of ancient, prankster Scottish warlocks living in moder-day Wisconsin. So it does sometimes come down to an opinion.
Does romantasy always have spice?
Not always, but most of it is written for adult readers, mine included. My romantasy and paranormal romances tend to be classified as spicy. Heat level varies book to book, so it is always worth checking before you dive in.
Where should a first time romantasy reader start?
Honestly, wherever the blurb grabs you first. That is usually the right answer. If you want mine, start with King of the Unblessed from the Realm Immortal series or Redeemer of Shadows from the Tribes of the Vampire series. Both are being released in hardback from Pan Macmillan Tor Bramble. They’re in audiobook and ebook as well.
I love watching a genre finally get a name for something readers have loved for years. If romantasy is your thing, I would genuinely love to hear which trope hooked you first. Come tell me in the Pillow Fighter fan club.
