Best Romantasy Books You Haven’t Read Yet

If you’ve entered a bookstore or been online in the past few years, then you know just how popular romantasy is. It’s not a new genre, but it has taken the world by a storm thanks to beloved titles like A Court of Thorns and Roses. 

And it comes by its popularity honestly — it combines the world’s best-selling genre (romance) with high stakes and magic of fantasy novels. The plot is more focused on the main couple, but it usually has many twists and turns that can keep people interested for multiple installments. 

However, not all romantasy books are worth your time. And you might be getting tired of constantly hearing about Sarah J. Maas or Fourth Wing. Those books may be loved, but I believe there are so many excellent romantasy novels out there that don’t get enough attention but embody the genre much better. 

So, I rounded up my favorite fantasy romance titles — they’re severely underrated, but so unique and swoony. I hope you give them a chance. Happy reading!

1. Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm

I’m honestly not sure how Whispers of The Deep isn’t more popular on social media and in general because it’s honestly one of the best romantasy books I’ve read. You have the strong heroine fighting against impossible odds, a competent, handsome hero, and a romance that truly goes from enemies to lovers. 

So, Mira is an engineer of an underwater city called Beta. Humans have had to move under the sea in order to survive, but their intrusion is angering the native Undines, or mermaids, that lived there. One day, while Mira is working in an abandoned area, she spots an undine called Arges spying on her, and a few days later he attacks her city with his pod. 

The two of them end up saving each other’s lives in the attack, which only makes Arges more interested in Mira — mostly just as a source of information at first. So he kidnaps her and takes her away. 

What he doesn’t realize is that humans can’t survive underwater, and that dangerous members of his pod are following. They can’t communicate, and don’t understand each other, but somehow they start becoming friends, and then something more. 

You can read my full review here, but this is a wonderful book with a very believable romance that has to suffer many obstacles. There’s some spice but mostly towards the end, and the main focus is on romance, while the plot is in the background. You also get perspectives from both Mira and Arges. 

“He had Mira in his arms. Though her blood coated his scales and floated around her like a plume of bright color, she was still alive. He was certain they would save her. Even with the wound in her belly. Brushing his claws over her face, he drew her closer to him and held her tightly against his hearts. “You’re going to live,” he breathed. “You’re going to live, Mira. I will not let you go.”

2. Bride by Ali Hazelwood

This may not be fully a romantasy book, but if you were a Twilight girlie ever in your life, or if you liked Vampire Diaries, Bride is definitely for you. It’s pretty romance focused, but it does have a plot on the side. And, it can be read as a standalone, which is always a bonus. 

This story follows Misery, a vampire who, as a child, has been sent to humans as collateral in a political deal. Now, her father is asking her to become a collateral once again via a political marriage to a werewolf and she refuses to — until she hears her groom’s name. So, she agrees to go into the dangerous world of werewolves, and finds something really unexpected there. 

I really loved how fun and self-aware this book was. It reminded me of my favorite fanfics in the best way possible. It’s a quick read too. You follow mostly Misery’s POV, but there are snippets of Lowe’s thoughts at the beginning of each chapter. And as I said, it can be read as a standalone, though I cannot wait for part two! For more thoughts, check out my review of Bride. 

“You think, but you don’t know. You don’t know anything about what it’s like to find your other half, I would take anything she chose to give me—the tiniest fraction or her entire world. I would take her for a single night knowing that I’ll lose her by morning, and I would hold on to her and never let go. I would take her healthy, or sick, or tired, or angry, or strong, and it would be my fucking privilege. I would take her problems, her gifts, her moods, her passions, her jokes, her body—I would take every last thing, if she chose to give it to me.”

3. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

If you’re looking for a beautifully written book, you won’t go wrong with Laini Taylor. I specifically love Daughter of Smoke and Bone because it’s set in Prague and has some of the most atmospheric writing I’ve ever read. 

Karou, the heroine, doesn’t know a lot about her past. She was raised by demons and she works for them but there are things about her that don’t make sense. When black handprints start appearing in the doorways across the world, and a mysterious Akiva appears in her life, Karou will have an opportunity to learn more about herself. But at what cost?

This is a YA book so don’t expect spice — instead, you can expect many swoony moments and writing that is so lyrical you won’t be able to stop reading. 

“Your soul sings to mine. My soul is yours, and it always will be, in any world. No matter what happens. I need you to remember that I love you.”

4. Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong

I really wanted to love Chloe Gong’s These Violent Delights series, but unfortunately didn’t. But then Immortal Longings came out, and I can finally be a part of the Chloe Gong fandom. 

This story is set in the world where the characters can jump from one person to another. And every year, the kingdom hosts a set of games where people compete to death. Calla, the heroine, is a disgraced princess in hiding, and wants to win the games in order to kill her uncle, King Kasa. 

Anton, the hero, has been spending all of his money keeping his childhood sweetheart alive and wants to win the games in order to get out of debt. 

He and Calla form an alliance, but even as they get closer to having to kill each other, their relationship turns into something entirely different. 

You would think that this book is more generic than others on this list, but it’s really not. It’s full of twists and turns, unique concepts and character arcs. It’s an ongoing series, with part one and two already out, and part three set to come out sometime in 2025. 

“Calla,” she echoes, putting on a tone of reverence. She makes a thoughtful noise. “Would you know me in another body?”
“In any body,” Anton promises, “you would still be the same terrifying princess.
”That draws a laugh from her, and the sound sends an unexplainable thrill shooting along his body. He would give anything to keep her like this next to him, her every gesture of approval like a line of narcotics wired directly into his veins. When she lifts her chin to grin at the look on his face, he can’t help but feel that he is giving away more than he should, yet he can’t stop himself.”

5. One for My Enemy by Olivie Blake

While I personally didn’t love this book, many people did and I feel like it’s a unique, underrated romantasy book. One for My Enemy follows two families of witches in New York as they fight for their position in the world of magic-infused drug dealing. 

It’s based on Romeo and Juliette, so the romances in this one are tragic, sad and forbidden. And yes, there are multiple. It’s a beautifully written book, though I found it a bit too much at times. 

However, it might just work for you because it’s really atmospheric and perfect if you already love Olivie Blake’s writing. 

“Write me a tragedy, Lev Fedorov,” she whispered to him. “Write me a litany of sins. Write me a plague of devastation. Write me lonely, write me wanting, write me shattered and fearful and lost. Then write me finding myself in your arms, if only for a night, and then write it again. Write it over and over, Lev, until we both know the pages by heart. Isn’t that a story, too?” she asked him softly.”

6. Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent

Daughter of No Worlds is a criminally underrated fantasy romance and if you haven’t read it already, you need to read it. You’re probably familiar with its sibling, Serpent and The Wings of Night (by the same author) and let me tell you, that book has nothing on this series. 

The story follows Tisannah, a slave girl who finally collects enough money to buy her freedom and finally make her dream of going to Ara come true. But her owner refuses to set her free and almost kills her when Tisannah’s latent power of mind-bending kills him. She runs off, on the brink of death herself and somehow manages to get herself to Ara. 

There, in order to prove herself and get the people of Ara to help her land and friends, she agrees to apprentice under Max. Now, Max is completely unwilling and seems to have a dark past of his own. But he agrees. And together, the two of them train. 

I don’t want to reveal more in case of spoilers, but Daughter of No Worlds is a unique, tender romance fantasy, with an amazing plot and a relationship that will tug at your heartstrings. Everything develops slowly, and at the beginning this book feels almost cozy. You’ll mostly get Tisannah’s POV, but there is a bit of Max in there as well. 

“Our life settled into a pulse, a heartbeat, a collection of breaths. In the silence between them, I memorized the cadence of Max’s barefoot steps padding down the hallways at night, the way one single muscle in his throat twitched when he was stressed, the whisper of a laugh that always followed one of my quips (however unfunny). I learned that one side of his smile aways started first – the left side, a fraction of a second before the right – and that he loved ginger tea above all else and the list of things he wasn’t made for.
And, in turn, he quietly memorized me, too. I knew he did, because one day I realized he had long ago stopped asking me how I took my tea and we mysteriously always had a never-ending stock of raspberries, even though I knew he didn’t like them.”

7. Your Blood, My Bones by Kelly Andrew

Your Blood, My Bones combines horror, romance, and mystery in such a brilliant way that I’m surprised more people aren’t singing its praises. It can be read as a standalone, though I also recommend The Whispering Dark by the same author, and her follow up novel since the characters do converge at some point in each book. 

This one follows Wyatt, whose father just died. She goes to her family home in order to burn it, but then finds her childhood best friend Peter chained up in the basement. The property is falling apart and getting swallowed by the nature around it without someone there to protect it. The only way to do that is for Wyatt to kill Peter. But the only way for Peter to be truly free is to kill Wyatt. 

Trapped in that house, the two of them have to come to terms with their feelings for each other, their childhood, and the secrets that lurk there. 

Your Blood, My Bones is full of nostalgia, tender feelings and creepy eldritch monsters. It doesn’t have any spice since it’s YA, but that doesn’t make the romance any less charming and swoony. 

“He could have told her she was dead wrong — that he’d studied her for so long, for so many years, that he knew her like a sailor knew the sea. That he felt the shifts in her moods the way a lightkeeper’s knees ached before a storm.”

8. The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

The Everlasting is the best romantic fantasy book on this list. You just won’t know what hit you when you start reading, and it’s definitely one of my favorite books ever, so much so that I’m still unable to competently talk about it without feeling like just forcing someone to read it wouldn’t do a much better job.

You can see my full review here, but: The Everlasting is a story about Owen Mallory, a historian who has always been obsessed with the legend of Una Everlasting, his nation’s greatest myth, and one often used to spur on more wars. One day, he gets a book that appears to be a diary of Una’s companion, and he’s so excited to have it — until it’s taken from him, and all of the clues lead him to a powerful politician, who throws him into time and space, and straight into Una’s arms.

Again, just read it. You won’t regret it. It’s so powerful and so tender, and so unique.

“Let us lie here forever. Let us be buried as wild things are, by tooth and claw and worm. Let the grasses grow up through the sockets of our eyes. Let them find us in seven years or seventy, and let their brows furrow, because they cannot tell my bones from yours.”

9. The Road of Bones by Demi Winters

The Road of Bones gave me that same feeling that ACOTAR did when I first read it, but this one is (in my opinion) much better written, and has a more compelling plot. The story begins when Silla and her father have to run from yet another home, though she’s unsure why. Then her father gets killed while they’re running and she’s forced to find her way to safety on her own. And she does this by sneaking into the caravan of a group of mercenaries, hoping they won’t find her. But then they do, and instead of killing her (which they initially want), they allow her to stay and cook for them.

Silla just wants to get to safety, but she’s also intrigued by one of the travelling companions, Jonas, and equally afraid-slash-curious about the group’s leader, Reynir. I won’t say anything more because it would spoil things but I guarantee it’s one of the best true romantasy reads you’ll get. Find my full review of this book here.

“She was light and warmth and all things good. All things a man like him did not deserve.

But he was taking them all the same.”

10. A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandana

A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is a cozy fantasy book with a side dish of romance so delicious, you’ll sort of wish it’s the main course, but also be glad it isn’t because everything else is also fantastic. It tells the story of Sera Swan who used to be the most powerful witch in Britain. But when she resurrects her great-aunt Jasmine, she loses almost all of her powers and she’s practically kicked out of the magic community.

Years later, she finds out about a book of spells that can help her regain her powers, and she decides to try to get her magic back. And at the same time, her inn draws in Luke and his little sister who have their own reasons for hiding from the world.

The story that unfolds is soft, cozy, full of found family and tender moments that will make you tear up, and the romance itself has the most wonderful tension. If you’re craving something cozy, this is your best bet! Read my full thoughts on this book here.

“Like his lonely and her lonely fit perfectly into the empty spaces at the other’s side, saying nothing, asking nothing, just keeping each other company.”