fantasy books with romance
in this post i share even more fantasy books with romance in them! the last post I did with fantasy romance recommendations focused solely on young adult books. In this post, I continue with the tips, but also add some new and grown-ups into the mix. I hope you get some new recommendations from this post.
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You are reading: New adult fantasy books
1. blood and ashes of jennifer l. trout
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A maiden…chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. the life of the maiden is lonely. never to be touched. never to be looked at. never speak to him. never experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting the evil she brought to her family, than prepare for the gods to find her worthy. But her choice has never been hers.A Duty… The future of the entire kingdom rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even sure she wants for herself. because a maiden has a heart. and a soul and longing and when hawke, a golden-eyed guard destined to ensure her ascension, walks into her life, destiny and duty become entangled with desire and need. he incites her wrath, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.A Kingdom…Forsaken by gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom rises once more. , determined to take back what they think is theirs through violence and revenge. and as the shadow of the damned draws near, the line between forbidden and right blurs. Poppy is about to lose not only her heart and be deemed unworthy by the gods, but her life as well when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
2. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. mass
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feyre’s survival is based on her ability to hunt and kill: the forest where she lives is a cold and desolate place during the long winter months. So when she sees a deer in the woods being chased by a wolf, she can’t resist fighting for his meat. But to do so, she must kill the predator, and killing something so precious comes at a price… Dragged into a magical realm by the murder of a faery, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jeweled mask, is hiding much more. than her piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre’s presence at court is heavily guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion, and the faery lands become an even more dangerous place. Ella Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse or she will lose him forever.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
3. Zodiac Academy by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
buy the book online: bam/waterstones
note: one of my favorite series of 2021!
I am Gemini. impulsive. curious. willful. a twin heir to a throne I know nothing about. And I happen to be fae.But, of course, there’s a catch: All I have to do to claim my birthright is prove that I’m the most powerful supernatural in all of Solaria. And of course, technically that’s true since I’m the daughter of the wild king. but what they didn’t put in the brochure was that every goblin in this kingdom would claim my throne if they could. the school they sent me to is dangerous as fuck and an amazing party. the vampires bite the weaker students in the halls, the werewolf pack has orgies in the wailing forest every full moon and they don’t even get me started on the dark and twisted ways the sirens use their powers on the people’s emotions, or how my sinfully tempting cardinal the master of magic organizes detentions that leave people in need of therapy. the classes are totally interesting if you manage to live them. And that Gemini star sign I mentioned? it now determines my elemental magic and affects my destiny, so learning astrology is essential if I’m going to beat my classmates, which is actively encouraged along the way. throne. he and his three psychopathic friends are determined to make my time here hell. all I have to do is survive. but fate might have other ideas. Damn, why couldn’t I have gotten a letter to Hogwarts?
***This is a dark and thuggish romance – don’t expect a sweet magic school with friends around every corner. Fae fights for everything she owns and Zodiac Academy is a ruthless school for students over the age of 18 where only the strongest prevail. there is no dumbledore here to save anyone’s ass and lionel acrux will give voldemort a run for his money in the evil dictator category. so grab on to your stardust (no broomsticks required) and get ready for a bumpy ride***
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
4. illuminae by jay kristoff and amie kaufman
(Is it fantasy, sci-fi, or something else? I’m not sure, but I added it.)
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this morning, kady thought breaking up with ezra was the hardest thing she’d ever have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded. The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that is little more than a speck on the edge of the universe. Now, with enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra, barely speaking to each other, are forced to evacuate with a hostile warship in pursuit. but his troubles are just beginning. a plague has broken out and is mutating with terrifying results; the fleet ai may actually be your enemy; and no one in charge will say what is really going on. As Kady hacks into a data network to find the truth, it’s clear the only person who can help her is the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again. , archives, instant messages, medical reports, interviews and more: illuminae is the first book in a moving trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth and the courage of everyday heroes.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
5. tear me apart for tahereh mafi
(again, is this fantasy or dystopia? either way, I added it. dystopian book rec post coming soon!)
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Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. the last time she did it was an accident, but the reset locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, nobody cares. the world is too busy falling apart to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds no longer fly, and the clouds are the wrong color. The reset said her way was the only way to fix things, so they threw juliette in a cell. now there are so many people dead that the survivors whisper war, and the reset has changed its mind. maybe juliette is more than a tortured soul encased in a poisonous body. maybe she is exactly what they need right now. Juliette has a decision to make: to be a weapon. or be a warrior.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
6. A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. mass
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See Also: 24 Christmas Books for Preschoolers • The Simple Parent
Nesta Archeron has always been touchy and proud, quick to anger and slow to forgive. And ever since she was forced into the cauldron and turned into a great fairy against her will, she has struggled to find a place for herself within the strange and deadly world she inhabits. Worse yet, she just can’t seem to get over the horrors of the war with Hybern and everything she lost in it. she court keeps him constantly in nesta’s orbit. But her temper isn’t the only thing that turns Cassian on. the fire between them is undeniable, and it only burns hotter when they are forced to get closer to each other. Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has been established. settled over the kingdoms. And the key to stopping them may well lie in Cassian and Nesta confronting their disturbing pasts. Against the expansive backdrop of a world scorched by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they seek acceptance—and healing—in each other’s arms.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
7. rhapsodic by laura thalassa
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callypso lillis is a mermaid with a very big problem, one that extends up her arm and into her past. For the past seven years she has been collecting a black beaded bracelet on her wrist, magical ios for the favors she has received. only death or payment will fulfill the obligations. only then will the beads disappear. everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the haggler to make it happen. he is a man who can get you whatever you want… at a price. and everyone knows that sooner or later he always gets paid. but one of his clients has never asked for a refund. not until now. When Callie finds the Night Fairy King in her room, a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye, she knows things are about to change. at first it’s just a chaste kiss, the value of a single account, and a promise of more. For the negotiator, it is more than just a matter of rekindling an old romance. something is happening in the other world. the fae warriors are disappearing one by one. only the women return, each in a glass coffin, with a child pressed against her chest. and then there are the whispers among the slaves, whispers of an evil that has been awakened. If the trader has any hope of saving the town from him, he will need the help of the mermaid he rejected long ago. only her enemy likes exotic creatures, and it turns out that callie is one of them.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
8. house of earth and blood by sarah j. mass
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Bound by blood. tempted by desire. unleashed by fate. bryce quinlan had the perfect life, working hard all day and partying all night, until a demon murdered her closest friends, leaving her destitute. wounded and alone. When the defendant is behind bars but the crimes start all over again, Bryce finds himself at the center of the investigation. she will do whatever it takes to avenge her deaths. Hunt Athalar is a notorious fallen angel, now enslaved by the archangels he once tried to overthrow. His brutal skills and incredible strength have been set on one purpose: to assassinate his boss’s enemies, no questions asked. But with a demon wreaking havoc in town, she’s offered an irresistible deal: help Bryce find the killer, and her freedom will be at hand. As Bryce and Hunt dig deep into the underworld of Crescent City, they discover a dark power that threatens everything and everyone they hold dear, and find, in each other, a burning passion, one that could set them both free, if only allow it.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
9. The Kingdom of the Bridge by Danielle L. jensen
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A warrior princess trained in isolation, Lara is driven by two certainties. the first is that king are of the bridge kingdom is her enemy. and the second is that she will be the one to bring him to his knees. The only route through a storm-torn world, the Bridge Kingdom grows rich and deprives its rivals, including Lara’s homeland. So when she’s sent away as a bride under the guise of peace, Lara is prepared to do whatever it takes to break through her impenetrable defenses. and the defenses of the king of it. However, as she infiltrates her new home and gains a deeper understanding of the war to possess the bridge, Lara begins to question whether she is the hero or the villain. And as her feelings transform from icy hostility to fierce passion, Lara must choose which kingdom she will save…and which kingdom she will destroy.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
10. llama in the mist by renée ahdieh
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Mariko, the only daughter of a prominent samurai, always knew she had been raised for one purpose: to marry. no matter her cunning, which rivals that of her twin brother kenshin, or her skills as an accomplished alchemist. Since Mariko was not born a male, her fate was sealed the moment she took her first breath. So, at just seventeen, Ella Mariko is sent to the Imperial Palace to meet her fiancé, a man she didn’t choose, for the very first time. But the journey is cut short when Mariko’s convoy is brutally attacked by the Black Clan, a dangerous group of bandits who have been hired to kill Mariko before she reaches the palace. Mariko, her sole survivor, narrowly escapes into the forest, where she plans revenge on her dressed as a peasant boy, she sets out to infiltrate the black clan and hunt down those responsible for the target on her back. however, once she is in her ranks, her mariko discovers for the first time that she is appreciated for her intellect and abilities. she even finds herself falling in love with her, a love that will force her to question everything she’s known about her family, her purpose, and her deepest desires.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
11. miss the dreamer by laini taylor
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the dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around—and lazlo stranger, war orphan and junior librarian, has always feared his dream has chosen poorly. Since he was five years old he has been obsessed with the mythical lost city of tears, but it would take someone more daring than him to cross half the world in search of him. Then an amazing opportunity presents itself, in the person of a hero called the godslayer and a band of legendary warriors, and he has to seize his chance or lose his dream forever. rest of the world? what exactly did the godslayer who called himself god kill? And what is the mysterious problem that he now seeks help to solve? Answers tearfully await, but so do more mysteries, including the blue-skinned goddess who appears in Lazlo’s dreams. How did he dream her before he knew she existed? And if all the gods are dead, why does she look so real? welcome to cry.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
12. city of bones by cassandra clare
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When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads to New York City’s pandemonium club, she hardly expects to witness a murder, let alone a murder committed by three teenagers covered in strange tattoos and brandishing strange weapons. then the body disappears into thin air. it’s hard to call the police when the killers are invisible to everyone else and when there’s nothing, not even a bloodstain, to show that a child has died. or was it a child? This is Clary’s first encounter with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the land of demons. It’s also his first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a bit like an angel and acts like an idiot. Within twenty-four hours, Clary is drawn into Jace’s world with a vengeance when her mother goes missing and Clary is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get her sight? Shadowhunters would like to know…
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
13. kingdoms falling by morgan rhodes
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See Also: Top 10 Largest Religious Books | Longest Religious Text Books
In the three realms of Mytica, magic has been long forgotten. and while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly malaise now simmers beneath the surface. As the rulers of each kingdom vie for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed…and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia and Magnus are trapped in a fast-paced world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances and even unforeseen love affairs. the only certain outcome is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when everything they know has come crashing down? It’s the eve of war… choose your side.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
14. the air awakens by elise kova
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a library apprentice, a sorcerer prince, and an unbreakable magical bond… the solaris empire is one conquest away from uniting the continent, and the rare elemental magic that sleeps in seventeen-year-old library apprentice vhalla yarl could change the course of a war.vhalla has always been taught to fear the tower of wizards, a mysterious magical society, and has been happy in its quiet world of books. But after she unwittingly saves the life of one of the most powerful wizards of all, Crown Prince Aldrik, she finds herself drawn into his world. she must now decide her future: embrace his sorcery and leave the life she has known, or eradicate the magic from him and remain as she has always been. And with powerful forces lurking in the shadows, Vhalla’s indecision could cost her more than she ever imagined.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
15. the shadows between us by tricia levenseller
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lessandra is tired of being overlooked, but she has a plan to gain power: 1) woo the shadow king. 2) marry him. 3) kill him and take her kingdom for herself. crowned the power of the king of shadows. some say that she can command the shadows that swirl around her to do her bidding. others say they speak to her, whispering the thoughts of her enemies. Regardless, Alessandra knows what she deserves, and she’ll do everything in her power to get it. but she alessandra is not the only one trying to kill the king. as they try to end her life, she finds herself trying to keep him alive long enough for him to make her queen, all while she struggles not to lose her heart. After all, who better for a shadow king than a cunning, evil queen?
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
16. foreigner by diana gabaldón
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The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, has just returned from the war and is reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly, she’s a Sassenach, an “outsider,” in a Scotland torn by war and pillaging border clans in the Year of Our Lord… 1743. Propelled back in time by forces she can’t understand, Claire is catapulted into the intrigues of lairds and spies. that can threaten her life and break her heart. Because here James Fraser, a brave young Scottish warrior, shows her a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire, and between two very different men in two irreconcilable lives.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
17. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
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About three things I was absolutely certain. First, Edward was a vampire. second, there was a part of him, and I didn’t know how dominant that part could be, that thirsted for my blood. and third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him. Deeply seductive and extraordinarily suspenseful, Twilight is a searing love story.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
18. wilt by lauren destefano
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At sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years to live. she can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. a failed effort to create a perfect breed has left all males with a life expectancy of 25 years and females with a life expectancy of 20 years. Geneticists are searching for a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans swarm the population, crime and poverty are skyrocketing, and young girls are kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to have more children. When Rin is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do whatever she can to escape. her husband, linden, is madly in love with her, and rhine can’t bring herself to hate him as much as she’d like. he opens her up to a magical world of richness and illusion she never knew existed, and almost allows her to ignore the clock ticking down on her short life. but rhine quickly learns that not everything in the strange world of her new husband is what it seems. her mother-in-law, an eccentric doctor determined to find the antidote, accumulates corpses in the basement. one day he can trust her sisters’ wives and the next she fears them, and rhine is desperate to let her twin brother know that she is alive and well. Will she be able to escape before she runs out of time? Along with one of Linden’s servants, Gabriel, Rhine attempts to escape just before her seventeenth birthday. But in a world that continues to spiral into anarchy, is there any hope of freedom?
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
19. victoria aveyard red queen
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This is a world divided by blood, red or silver. the reds are commoners, ruled by a silver elite in possession of divine superpowers. And for Mare Barrow, a seventeen-year-old red girl from the impoverished stilts, it seems that nothing will ever change. That is until she finds herself working at the Silver Palace. Here, surrounded by the people she hates the most, Ella Mare discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. one that threatens to destroy the balance of power. Fearful of the mare’s potential, the Silvers hide her in plain sight, declaring her a long-lost Silver Princess, now betrothed to a Silver Prince. Despite knowing that one misstep would mean her death, Ella Mare quietly works to help the Red Guard, a militant resistance group, bring down the Silver Regime. But this is a world of betrayal and lies, and the mare has entered into a dangerous dance: reds against silvers, prince against prince, and mare against her own heart.
source / add it to your shelf at: goodreads
These were all the fantasy books with romance recommendations I have for you today!
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much love britt
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