From the author’s newsletter:

“Wishspun is a cozy cottagecore romantasy featuring a shy, soft-hearted village librarian and a battle mage from the rival kingdom who must work together to translate a cantakerous spellbook and save the delicate peace between their realms. (Plus there’s a tiny mischievous dragon and a surly cat!)”

I’ve read all of India Holton’s books and love them. Can’t wait for Wishspun! Releasing in March 2027.

I'm reading {the liveship traders} and I NEED a good pirate MMC because I absolutely love Kennit. A lot just aren't scratching that itch.

I have {the ever king} on my TBR, but reviews seem... mixed. From what I did read, the quality wasn't on par with Robin Hobb (though she does set the bar quite high). All I want is a good story with hot pirates, but a lot don't hit the "good story" part.

My likes and dislikes:

- romance subplots

- slow-burn

- 3 chillies minimum

- actual world-building

- no instalust/love

- no YA

✨Welcome back to another week of genre discussions!✨

This week let’s chat characters. In your opinion, who is the worst fantasy romance character you’ve come across and why?

This can be a character that’s extremely annoying, perhaps a terrible villain that can’t villain properly, or any character you feel doesn’t get criticized enough.

Please remember to use the > ! spoiler tag ! < when discussing details about a book.

I read TKWNKM and then Katabasis shortly after and both were so good that I'm in a reading slump now. Any books with political intrigue themes and fantastical quests, with a huge ensemble cast?

Some other books I had fun with: The death of the necromancer by Martha Wells, Blood Over Bright Haven, Six of crows.

Please I'm desperate I've dnfed like 5 books since 😭

I'm tired of badass female protagonists; I'm looking for one who values ​​study and the mind.

Please suggest books with female protagonists who are academic, intelligent, and passionate about books, in the style of Hermione Granger and Emily Wilde. I would like a good romance with an interesting magic system and that does not contain explicit sex scenes.

The Beatles are singing Help for me right now.

Hi! I am looking for any books where either the FMC or the MMC has a long term crush. I am so tired of instacrush/love I feel like I cannot escape it. I’m looking for some good ole CRUSHING! Like it can take multiple books for the pay off I don’t care I just really want it to BUILD! Even better if the crush is from the MMC and the FMC has no idea. But I will literally will take anything at this point.

I would love to give some examples here but I am having a hard time finding the right one. I mean obviously there is yearning and build up in popular series like SJM books and Shatter Me/This Woven Kingdom but I think that’s more slow burn than secret crushing. I just finished Broken Dove duo and it would be most similar to Kaine’s crush but if it were done better lol. THANK YOU :)

Hello friends. A post on this very subreddit has awakened a hunger in me that I haven’t felt in some time.

Anyone have any good royalty/jester romance recommendations? I have read {Trick by Natalie Jaster} (+ the others in that series) so looking for recommendations other than that one, please.

I had never come across Karoline Prihodko’s art before but after seeing it mentioned in the other post, I’m obsessed. I believe a book is coming featuring her characters but it will be released in Russian with no announcement yet for English translation. (I will beg for an English version until I die).

However her characters and art are exactly the vibe I’m looking for: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXUhKqvjZ14/?igsh=NG04MGQ1ZjU4dThu

Her full profile (so you can get as obsessed as I am): https://www.instagram.com/karolineprihodko?igsh=c2gzcmc3eGhtbDhv

Anyway - (im)patiently awaiting royalty/jester recommendations! Thank you in advance! 🫶

Hey guys! I'm looking for any fantasy/sci-fi series (New Adult) with main plot about massive youth led protest defeating tyrant government.

Loved this storyline in {Iron Flame by Rebecca Yaross}, When every senior officer (and even Dragons) was insistent on lying to the cadets. But when they found out. Most students just got up and left Navarre.

Showing how weak their gov forces were without the young cadets supporting them. Ultimately, they folded and accepted the rebellion.

Similar adjacent youth led rebellion stories were pretty popular in YA.

Examples: {Hunger games} {Divergent} {Shatter Me} {Harry Potter} etc.

Many newer series like {Silver Elite} {Daggermouth} are going in the same direction, but sadly not enough books are out yet. {Daughter of the drowned empire} I love this series, but we are 5 books into it, and no closer to usurping the government. They hardly have 5-6 kids in their cause. The rest really don't give a fuck lol.

Other examples (without romance): {Red rising} {poppy wars} {Ember in the ashes}

I'd prefer if the series are:

1. New Adult and not YA. I know we have so many recs in YA already.

2. Less about single corrupt king/ queen, or royal control. More about systematic oppression by a group of leaders, or government. It can include Kings or Queens, but also the entire council, high post officers etc. Everyone is unanimously maintaining a dictatorship, through lies and propaganda.

Thank You For reading this!! 💗🙌🏻

I'm up to Chapter 7 - Nesta has just had her first "training" session and library shift and Cassian is about to visit Lucien.

My question is - does the treatment of Nesta get better?

Opinions of her and this book seem polarizing. I'm annoyed by how she's being treated. Spending Night Court money is not cool and I do support Feyre cutting her off financially, but I don't feel they're going about things the right way. It feels like control, instead of trying to help her in a loving gentle way. They're all like "we understand how you feel, we've been where you are" and it feels so condescending! Nobody is bothering to connect with her, they're just making assumptions.

Her one proper connection, Amren, has now gone to rubbish, but we don't actually get to be there in the moment, we're just told about it.

And--I'm not sure why this bothers me considering how I feel--but they haven't actually held firm to their boundary! They said train or we'll dump you in the human lands. She doesn't train! And they don't care! Nobody says anything!

I was really excited for this book, to understand more about Nesta, and I really like her thoughts, but I'm frustrated by how everyone is treating her.

Please try not to spoil things for me :)

I’m looking for fantasy romance where the MMC is terrifying to literally everyone else, but with his wife and children he’s impossibly gentle.

Like… he’s feared as a conqueror, warlord, god, king, monster, etc., but then he comes home and he’s the most patient husband, completely devoted to his wife, and absolutely melts for his kids.

Bonus points if:

he’s obsessed with his wife
everyone is shocked by how soft he is with his family
protective dad energy
“the world gets the monster, they get the man”
The darker the fantasy, the better.

S.A. MacLean just finished an AMA with us and since I enjoyed her book Voidwalker so much I thought it’d be helpful for others to post a review. The creativity in this book is what sets it apart and getting some answers about how S.A. MacLean crafted the world and its characters made me appreciate it even more.

Fionamara (or “Fi”) is a 32 year old smuggler with rainbow colored curls who wields an energy blade and rides a horse with scales and fins. Fi is a Voidwalker, possessing the rare ability to see the curtains between dimensions that are invisible to most other humans. This allows her to travel around and escape from the different planes of reality quickly and effortlessly, making her primed for success at transporting illicit goods.

When a suspicious job goes completely off the rails, Fi ends up working with Antal, an immortal being with antlers and claws known as a Daeyari, to protect her town and loved ones from forced subjugation and sacrifice. I didn’t expect to buy into the romance as much as I did and Antal is such an endearing and kind MMC. He builds Fi up and shows he trusts her strength and judgement but is also protective over her when necessary. Their relationship was surprisingly sweet with a good amount of spice to balance the more tender moments between them.

The world building is phenomenal and I could visualize this vibrant and eccentric universe effortlessly in my mind. There are a multitude of different planes of reality, some of which have the climates of a single season year round, as well as auroras coloring the sky, bridges spanning the endless abyss, and small shards of reality connecting dimensions. Energy magic does everything from powering light fixtures and weapons to healing wounds and can be drawn as needed from a person’s own body or stored for later use. It’s a great blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements, offering a world that feels distinct and exciting.

My only minor gripe is with the prose itself, which I wish had been more elevated. Specific words and descriptors were used too repetitively or felt like odd choices and the writing overall could have benefited from some polishing. This is only a small nitpick and not anything that hindered my enjoyment.

Overall Voidwalker is a fun and spicy good time and I’m super pumped for Sunsplitter, book 2 and the conclusion to the duology, releasing on August 4th. I listened to the audiobook and the narration was really solid.

4.25⭐️

{Voidwalker by SA MacLean}
{Sunsplitter by SA MacLean}

Help me make the impossible choice! 😬 I'm running head-to-head matchups of every book I've read to get some fun stats and recs, and I knew this one was coming; 139 matchups deep and here we are.

{Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey} has been my first love for years, no notes. A frequent reread. {The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow} blew me awaythis year and I haven't stopped thinking about it since I closed it. Both explore the legend of women that get shaped by the politics around them, but 25 years apart and diff in how that story gets told. Both incredible. ⚔️👑 vs 🔁⏳

Anyone else read both? Who would you pick?? 

Also, bonus! What book matchup would wreck you 😅

Welcome to the second discussion for {Weavingshaw by Heba Al-Wasityt}! This month’s theme is paranormal fantasy.

We’ll be discussing part two, up to chapter 31, this week.

Please share your thoughts so far, but remember to hide any spoilers beyond chapter 31 like this: >!spoiler!<

Here are some questions you could answer to get the discussion started:

• Do you find the romance development believable, what do you think about the chemistry between Leena and St Silas so far?
  
• Is there anything that has surprised you?
  
• The author used some of her own experiences to draw from - do you feel this has added depth to the story and characters? Do you notice a different in reading own-voices stories versus stories written by outsiders to those experiences?
  

Missed the previous discussion? You can find the first discussion, up to chapter 19, here.

Here are our upcoming Book Club dates:

• July 31 - Final discussion for Weavingshaw (full book)
  
• August 1 - September nominations (theme: set in or inspired by East Asia)
  
• August 8 - September voting
  
• August 10 - First discussion for the Raven Scholar
  
• August 15 - September announcement
  
• August 20 - Second discussion for The Raven Scholar
  
• August 31 - Final discussion for The Raven Scholar
  

For more information about the Book Club and previous discussions, please check out the Book Club Hub!

Edited to add:
I now know it’s ai I’m sorry but I can’t delete the second pic and we all want the recs so forgive me 🥹

Okay I’m looking for book recs regarding Princess X Jester or whoever it issss but she’s also a shapeshifter (no one knows not even her parents) and is trying to find the love of her life before she’s married off to someone at her parents request ? Love the cat and key thing, bonus points if it’s actually similar to pic 1.

I prefer dark romance but open to any themes because I found these pictures within minutes of each other and it just seemed perfect.

Thank you in advance !!!

I literally have a couple of silly "villains" in my head who are always together, everyone knows they don't let anyone close, there are always only them and they don't need anyone else. MMC is spoiling FMC all the time, treating her like a princess, queen, and she's openly affectionate with him too. They are like two doves, partners in crime, always at each other's side.

I'd love it if FMC actually has a sweet and soft personality to the point where outsiders think she couldn't do anything wrong in her life, but at the same time she does a lot of crazy things with MMC. Nothing too unmoral, though. It may be the way they travel, experiment, and people get scared of them for some reason, or maybe they were just kissing passionately behind the trees somewhere. I don't want them to actually hurt innocent people (that's why they're "villains" in quotation marks because I mean more disney villains, if you know what I mean—) They're too focused on themselves to even do that lol.

Will I find something like this outside of a dark romance? 😭🙏

I have this problem because I am looking for quite intense, but sweet romance, I think..? But at the same time I do not like heavy gore, any serious kidnappings, etc. And absolutely I do not want SA.

So I just finished this duology by Brigitte Knightley and I am literally sobbing that was so good and don’t know what to do with my life now 🙃 Where do I go from here? How do I recover from this feeling? Do I need a full moon to heal me of this heartbreak now that it’s over? Someone please send help 😭😅 I enjoyed the first one but the second one was just PERFECTION, 10/10 no notes. The YEARNING, the action, the magic, the humor!! Definitely one of my favorite reads ever. Anyway I’ll be here suffering… if you haven’t read them please do!!

I'm sure there are people in this group who have been waiting for book 3. Apparently this will be due in 2029 now. The author wants to update edits and content of book 2 first...

My friend and I really enjoyed book 1. The messy launch of book 2 was annoying but what really bothered us was how subpar book 2 was as a whole when it did get released. We brainstormed SO MANY ideas and discussed things we would love to see expanded on during book 2 and saw literally nothing. The plot just wasn't it for a continuation of book 1... Soren mastering the magic so effortlessly? Soren and Brooke suddenly being good despite the months of abuse she put up with? I could go on. The ending was weird and we got some poor plot and character development throughout vs book 1. There was so much potential but the ball was definitely dropped a lot at times in book 2.

We've been operating under the assumption that due to the mess of book 2, book 3 maybe wasn't going to ever come... I even unfollowed most of J Bree's socials as I got sick of the radiosilence. Not to mention the way fans were being/ being treated by her PR/ social media team 😬 at the time of book 2's launch... when book 3 is out I will reread the series for completion and that'll be it for my following of this author.

Tl;Dr book 2 is being updated and book 3 now has a sort of release date. Would love some fresh opinions on everything. Struggling to want to support them long term with the way the fans have been treated during/ since book 2s release.

I've realized that majority of the books I love are moreso forbidden romance trope, and not enemies to lovers. Below are some I've loved, but I need more.

Preferably stakes are also HIGH. Tension- HIGH. With a spice payoff eventually (ideally open door at minimum)

- Plated Prisoner series by Raven Kennedy (I think this was forbidden romance with a touch of forced proximity)
- In the Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy
- A Dance of Lies by Brittney Arena
- Rose in Chains by Julie Soto

Hello r/fantasyromance!

I'm S.A. MacLean, and I write books with fantastical creatures (both cuddly and ferocious) and plenty of kisses. You may know me from The Phoenix Keeper, my standalone cozy fantasy about a magical zoo. Or maybe my spicy monster romantasy duology, Beasts of the Void: Voidwalker is out now, and book 2, Sunsplitter, releases August 4!

I'm originally from Southern California, and am now in Seattle. In addition to writing, I have a PhD in environmental science and spent over 15 years in biology research, field work, and teaching at community college. I'm also a digital artist - pretty much all my character art (except for the covers) is done by me!

I'll be here Tuesday July 21st at 1PM eastern (10AM pacific) to chat about books, writing, random bird/antler facts, or whatever other burning questions you have. AMA!

You can find me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsamaclean/

And join my public Discord community: https://discord.gg/fsE9FAUR8F

Thank you everyone for your amazing questions! It was a delight to chat about writing and worldbuilding with you!

Sunsplitter releases in just two weeks! You can get some awesome free swag by preordering from one of my indie bookstore partners: https://authorsamaclean.com/sunsplitter/buy/

And if you preordered from any store, I'm running an awesome giveaway for a plushie and a pack of goodies, all you have to do is submit your receipt at this link: https://forms.gle/b7otSobtkbZXS6mY6

See you all next time, and happy reading!

My people - I tried. I tried so hard. I don’t get the hype. The writing is forced and the story is okay but I don’t get it. It’s so predicable and drags and could have been half as long. What do you all love about it???

hello, I just started {Web of Vows and Vengeance by Aria Ashbrook} First 2 books dropped this year & I believe it’s going to be a 4 book series. This is the author’s debut series & it seems to be gaining popularity, but I haven’t seen anyone here talk about it. The audiobooks have narrators I (& I think everyone else) loves. anyone here have opinions? (but please don’t spoil 🫶🏻)

I feel like nobody knows these books exist, which is surprising because I’m halfway through Manor of Decay and I’m really liking it. These books lean way more toward fantasy than romance. The romance is very slow burn and definitely secondary. There is a little bit of spice, but it’s minimal and almost barely there. It’s not the focus at all.

The atmosphere is gothic leaning and honestly reminds me of the kind of mystery you get in Rebecca. There’s romance in the background, but the focus is the creepy, unsettling vibe and the slow reveal of what’s actually going on. The worldbuilding vibe feels really strong.

Edira is a really interesting FMC. She’s a devoted and loyal sister herself, and that’s what drives her through the whole story. Sometimes she feels almost blind to what’s happening right in front of her, but that feels realistic. Most of us miss obvious stuff when we’re stressed or trying to protect someone we care about. Her character motivations feel very human.

The pacing is slow. Sometimes a little wordy. I think the writing is very good, but my one qualm is that the author circles one idea over and over while the actual resolution takes a long time to show up. It can feel monotonous at times. Not bad, just slow.

The mystery and atmosphere are still the strongest parts. It has that gothic fantasy vibe that pulls you in. The romance is there, but it stays in the background and adds a little emotional weight while the story focuses on the mysterious parts.

I follow the author online, and she mentioned feeling down because sales for the second book are low. I really think it’s just because people don’t know about these books. They’re true fantasy, not just a fantasy romance, and they’re well written. Slow burn romance, good mystery, gothic atmosphere. They deserve more attention.

I thought as a fan of the books and an avid reader - I’d pass along my thoughts here!

If anyone's ever seen grimtonik's (posted above) art, I'm talking about that level of monster fuckery. Multiple arms, multiple eyes (if any), just fucked up and disfigured.

I don't really enjoy smut (mostly because it's horribly written), I just like attractive monstrosities. I actually prefer stuff on the tamer side. Good monster MMCs are hard to find, so I'm keeping my mind very open here. I am still open to spice, however.

Books I absolutely hated and will not read anything adjacent to are {ice planet barbarians} and {voidwalker by S.A. MacLean}. Otherwise I'll read just about anything as long as it's actually well-written with a good plot and likeable characters, of which those are not. The MMCs were also way too human for my liking.

Aliens, biblically accurate angels, vaguely humanoid amorphous shapes, I'll take it all.

Picked this up a few days ago at my local library and finished it recently. Thoughts (and spoilers) below on this awesome book!

This might be one of my favorite reads in the last couple years and it's a book that came out at the right time for me right now. I need more future stories of Cho and Locke plus the Stymphs! One of my favorite couples I've read in awhile. One thing I appreciated the author did and haven’t seen done in a multi POV before was she would constantly add inner thought within what they say which added some humor and you knew early on they both liked each other as where this was going. Plus most of their “beef” they had with each other over the years were misunderstandings and those were actually talked about and taken care of.

I appreciated the lightheartedness overall in this after reading some more brutal fantasy/romantasy series the last couple months and most of the side characters made learning about the NCL Stymphs even better.

I knew that Edward guy the physician was creepy/weird from the beginning and was annoyed he was sticking around towards the end but got his due and glad James was not the one who was responsible for the curses.

I really wondered how the argument when they found the note in James room was going to be resolved because that tenseness went on for a couple days and I just wanted them to reconcile which they thankfully did.

But the scene where they finally got together before the Wild Hunt was well done and had the couples humor in it too just like it’s been there all the time. I just love how much Cho helped Locke understand what it means to love and care about somebody who's never had that (plus actually pushing him to get actual mental health help/therapy was wonderful) and Locke gives everything he can to her. I hurt for him when he legitimately thought Cho was going to get tired of him or simply leave him since that's all he ever knew. And that epilogue and proposal was everything and a welcome surprise to me. Good thing they won the World Cup (he obviously would've proposed regardless but that helps haha).

The author also did a great job tackling the hard topics as well that both Locke and Cho have been dealing with over the years with their trauma and especially Locke’s PTSD and self-loathing/ low self worth. That was handled very well and they talked things out like adults to help each other grow.

I just can't say enough about this book and how much joy it brought me. It touches on some important and hard topics as well that I really appreciated. I was interested in this book quite simply because it combined sports, fantasy and romance in one and I was looking forward to how that mixed. Overall, I'm glad I read this book and it far surpassed my expectations plus wrapped everything up perfectly IMO!

Overall it was a 5 ⭐️ read for me and I’ll be buying it to have physically to support the author which is the first book I’ve read of her. I’d read more about this couple
and team if the author did anything else in the future but it seems to be a standalone for now. For me
It was a breath of fresh air and a light read. Can’t speak highly enough of this book!

{The Winged Game by Sophie Kim}