Fantasy romance is not a new genre of book by any means, but it is one of the most popular ones across the board. Women and men alike love reading these stories of lust, love, and danger, all in fantastical worlds of magic. That said, there are of course many books to choose from, and today we want to help you narrow down the selection. Let’s take a look at 9 of the best fantasy romance books out there at this time.
Best Fantasy Romance Books
Let’s take a closer look at some of the very best fantasy romance books that make for amazing reads. With elements of fantasy, magic, intrigue, love, and romance, you really can’t go wrong with any of the following books.
1. Radiance
If you are looking for a fantastical romance book that involves dark magic and light magic, the court life of kingdoms, and plenty of assassination attempts, the Radiance by Grace Daven is absolutely worth checking out. Sure, the enemies to lovers trope is just fine, but here we have an example of a friends to lovers romance novel.
Here, we see Ildiko and Brishen, a royal couple set for marriage, and the only reason they are getting married is purely out of convenience. They both think each other ugly and unattractive, and the reason for the marriage is to keep their individual kingdoms safe. However, as events unfold, their friendship grows stronger and stronger, and eventually blossoms into a full romance.
2. From Blood and Ash
From Blood and Ash, written by Jennifer Armentrout, is a fantasy romance novel that comes complete with tantalizing characters that absorb the mind, a slow burning romance that becomes stronger with every page, and some truly great writing too.
Here we see a heroine at the forefront of the story, a maiden on who’s shoulders the future of her kingdom rests. As dictated she is to be untouched until the Ascension day. However, a good looking and kind hearted member of the royal guard,
Hawke, starts to peak her interests. It puts here in a position where she must choose between romance and her duty. Poppy also has to deal with so called Desenters who plan on taking the kingdom down. Now, Poppy must choose between losing her heart or her life.
Poppy is one of the strongest heroines we’ve seen, and once you’ve read the first installment in this series, you’ll definitely want to read the next one right after. From Blood to Ash is a part of a larger series of fantasy romance books, with each one being better than the last.
3. King of Battle and Blood
King of Battle and Blood was written by Scarlett St. Clair, a USA Today Bestselling author and also the author of another very popular book, Touch of Darkness. Here we have a fantastic romance novel that centers around Isolde, a human princess.
In order to keep her kingdom safe from harm, Isolde must marry the king of the vampires, Adrian. If they don’t marry, both kingdoms will be at risk of destruction. Adrian is feared and deadly vampire, yet Isolde manages to bring his guard down, and allows him to feel real emotions again.
This novel sees Isolde navigation the intricaies and politics that are a part of the vampire royal court, and every step she takes sees here in great danger. However, Isolde herself is no slouch, and she knows how to use her knives. In King of Battle and Blood, we see a great mixture of steaminess, danger, anger, high-stakes, and plenty of gentle, loving romance.
4. A Promise of Fire
A Promise of Fire, written by Amanda Bouchet, is a fantastical enemies to lovers romance novel that centers around Cat Fisa, our heroine. Cat Fisa is a very powerful mage with some serious firepower. To hide herself, she has been travelling with a circus under the guise of being a soothsayer.
However, a warlord with great ambitions, Griffin, who hails from an area that has no magic, sees her for what she is and takes her for his own. Griffin knows that Cat Fisa can make kinds and can separate truth from lies. Griffin plans on using her magic to conquer the land for himself, that is until he realizes that he wants much more from her than just her magic.
If you are a fan of witty banter, particularly between the hero and heroine, then this is a great book to consider. Out of all of the fantasy romance books on the list today, the banter in Promise of Fire is simply awesome. There is also an aspect of the Greek Gods involved here, something that really brings it to a whole different level.
5. Gild – The Plated Prisoner Series
Gild, written by Raven Kennedy, is the first book in the Plated Prisoner Series, with Gild almost being like a prologue to the rest of the series. In Gild, we meet Auren, the heroine of our series, and it introduces us to her world, one where she is imprisoned in a golden prison by none other than King Midas himself.
At one point in time, King Midas saved the life of Auren, so he feels safe inside of her golden prison. However, once Auren finally manages to get out from behind those golden bars, she quickly realizes that everything she has been told has been a total lie. Now it’s time for Auren to become the woman she was meant to be and to take the world by storm.
For those who are squeamish, be warned, this novel is not for the faint of heart. It contains many sensitive topics, which in part make it so steamy and tantalizing. It’s full of murder, grooming, violence, and even sexual assault and sex trafficking. This is certainly one of the more adult themed books on the list today and may not be suitable for younger audiences.
6. The Bird and the Sword
Amy Harmon, a New York Times bestselling author, has penned this true romantic masterpiece, the Bird and the Sword. Here we see our heroine who has never spoken a word since her mother died, a mother who put a terrible curse on her to never speak again.
Our heroine is one of the so called gifted people, and these gifted people are hunted far and wide. Even though she is cursed to remain silent, she quickly finds one who she wants to speak to and open up to. This novel sees our heroine torn between duty and love.
If you like fantasy heavy books with magical worlds and characters like seers, healers, mages, and more, then this is worth checking out for sure. This medieval world features plenty of intrigue, death, romance, murder, and much more.
Lark and Tiras may be captor and captive for now, but their relationship quickly blooms into a budding romance. Even better is that this is a singular book, not a part of a series, so you aren’t left hanging at the end of it.
7. For the Wolf
For the Wolf, the first fantasy romance novel written by Hannah Whitten, is all about fantasy, legends, and myth. Here, we see Red, the second daughter of the royal family. Now, the first daughter will get to sit on the throne, but the second daughter is to be sacrificed to the wolf, a mystical beast that lives in the woods.
She is said to be the sacrifice that will keep the kingdom safe. However, red has different plans, and they quickly turn into a full blown romance, perhaps even with the wolf itself.
Beware that here we have another fantasy romance novel written for adults, as it does contain blood, gore, self-harm, and emotional abuse. However, it is a ripping tale of love that you don’t want to miss out on.
8. Dragon Bound
Dragon Bound was written by Thea Harrison, and it focuses on Pia Giovanni, a half wyr half human. The dragons are among the most powerful of the elder races in this book, and Pia is blackmailed into stealing from the dragons.
Her true identity is kept a secret, but when the dragon Dragos spares her in spite of her crimes, her true identity comes to light, and her life changes forever. The dragon who saved her life also happens to be the one who claims her heart, and everything develops from there.
What is nice about Dragon Bound is that it makes for a good standalone fantasy romance book, yet is also a part of a bigger series. People especially seem to love the brutal yet adaptive and compromising alpha of this novel. The connection between the two is totally unreal.
9. Mistlefoe
If you are looking for a fantasy romance novel designed to make you laugh, the Mistlefor, written by Kimberly Lemming, is another great option to consider. Here we see a romance comedy book that will have you laughing as much as it has you in tears due to the raw emotions that we see in it.
Here, our heroine, Ruby, is an innocent girl whose dad once upon a time greatly angered a fox demon. This fox demon is witty, wise, and loves to make sarcastic jokes. However, he’s also very dangerous.
Ruby decides the best course of action is to make amends with the fox demon, but he’s got different ideas. The fox demon decides to use here as a fake mate for a week-long demon festival. What the fox demon doesn’t plan on however is falling in love with Ruby, and the rest writes itself.
Conclusion
The above 9 fantasy romance books are at this time some of the most popular out there, and they’re all worth a closer look if you’ve got the time.