This Valentine’s Day, your perfect date is obviously a book—the more achingly romantic, the better. We’ve got eight prospective dates for you, depending on if you want to be thrilled by an enemies-to-lovers tale, take sides in a love triangle, or wonder what could possibly happen when there’s only. one. bed. But these love (or something like it) stories aren’t just heady escapism—alongside the in-denial crushes and highly charged adjusting of collars is thoughtful commentary on consent, on meant-to-be and happily-ever-afters, even on the mere heartbeats separating love and death.
Find your ideal match, or choose them all! We’re open-minded.
Stormsong by C.L. Polk
“Are you dazzled?” “Quite.” This exchange sums up the immediate romantic tension between flashbulb-wielding reporter Avia Jessup and Dame Grace Hensley, a Storm-Singer who despite her influence as Voice of the Invisibles and Chancellor is buckling under the pressure to restore Aeland to its former prosperity. The socialite-turned-journalist is the only person who can help Grace endear herself to the common man as she repents for the terrible fallout (weatherwise and otherwise) of a necessary sacrifice. Between secretive meetings and spotlight-grabbing at royal balls, these women bargain information and access in the hopes of revealing the truth—not just regarding Aeland’s fate, but about their growing feelings for one another.
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Stormsong
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Le Cirque des Rêves has it all: ethereal magical attractions, a limited timespan (open only from sunset to sunrise, the circus wandering from city to city), and a pair of star-crossed lovers among its ranks. Celia Bowen and Marco Alisdair, rather than be allowed to develop their respective powers of illusion, are instead locked into a deadly competition as high-stakes and neverending as the circus itself: a battle of magic that will not end until one of its participants can no longer go on. Despite their destined rivalry, Marco and Celia cannot deny the stronger connection that their love has created—but their refusal of the contest threatens the existence of the entire circus.
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The Night Circus
Wicked Fox by Kat Cho
If what gets your heart hammering is the energy and twists of a K-drama, you’ll love how Cho’s debut contextualizes all of those tropes within a supernatural setting rooted in folklore. Miyoung is an anti-social teen trying to get through an uneventful last two years at school… only for her secret identity as a gumiho (nine-tailed fox) to be revealed when she saves a boy named Jihoon from a dokkaebi (goblin). But in doing so, she loses her yeowi guseul (fox bead, or soul), rendering her as helpless as any other human girl. In this newly vulnerable state, Miyoung enters into the slowest of slow-burns with Jihoon: Initially not attracted to each other, they reluctantly become friends, and eventually must confront their growing, and forbidden, feelings—even as they grapple with the aforementioned dokkaebi and other enemies. The drama!
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Wicked Fox
Skullsworn by Brian Staveley
Set in the world of The Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, this standalone is How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days with an epic fantasy skin and slightly higher stakes… as in death. As in, death cult acolyte Pyrre has fourteen days to complete her Trial: kill a half-dozen people according to the lyrics of an ancient song, including the one she loves. The trouble is—you guessed it—Pyrre wouldn’t know love if it stabbed her with one of her own thigh-holstered knives. Under the guidance of two Witnesses, Pyrre must rekindle an old flame (a bareknuckle boxer straight of out of a bodice-ripper, no less) while proving her dedication to her god Ananshael. Like Pyrre’s mentors, imparting their own idiosyncratic lessons about love and death, Staveley infuses the story with enough sexual tension and true soul-searching that acknowledges the morbid tone while gilding it with hope.
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Skullsworn
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
The romance between huntress Feyre Archeron and immortal faerie Tamlin initially seems like the stuff of epics: he spirits her away to his world as punishment for killing a faerie wolf; imprisoned, her feelings for this beastly man morph from fury to fervor; what begins as a bond decided by a treaty becomes a passionate relationship. But as Maas’ quartet continues, as Feyre adjusts to the faerie world of Prythian and even begins to make a place for herself within it, so too do her romantic entanglements shift. Enter arrogant Rhysand, the High Lord of the Night Court in contrast to Tamlin’s place as High Lord of the Spring Court—and suddenly Feyre gets a good old-fashioned love triangle to complicate her magical life further.
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A Court of Thorns and Roses
Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh
All due respect to Rent, here’s how you really measure a year in the life in Greenhollow: in rainy autumn meet-cutes; in the small one nursing the big one back to health; in reading fairy stories at one’s bedside… oh, and in saving your beloved from the clutches of the very woods that bind you, along with the help of his terrifying folklorist mother. Henry Silver and Tobias Finch’s love grows like a new sapling: slow and steady, until you blink and it’s like it’s been there all along. We can’t wait to see what the next year holds in store for these two in Drowned Country!
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Silver in the Wood
Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey
If you’ll permit me to quote one more love song: Come what may, I will rave about this series until my dying day. Romance—desire, sex, love, manipulation—is baked into nearly every key interaction, from small-scale (negotiating a night with an anguissette) to world-changing (the game of thrones and wartime treaties). And while Phèdre/Joscelin is a series OTP for a reason, there are countless other relationship dynamics for whatever your preferred romance subgenre is: enemies-to-lovers-to-enemies, friends-with-benefits, arranged marriages, your beloved has lost her memory and you must remind her of your love, and so forth.
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Kushiel's Dart
Witchmark by C.L. Polk
While reflecting on the best SFF of the decade, swoony fantasy romance certainly had its place: Polk’s Witchmark especially stood out for how it interprets one of the most enduring romance tropes—the “we can never be together” obstacles—within its own rich world. Before Grace and Avia are expressing their attraction via ink and scoops, Grace’s brother Miles Hensley and the enigmatic Tristan Hunter confront their own unique bond. Like his fellow otherworldly Amaranthines, creatures of exceptional beauty and undeniable pull, Tristan could stun Miles with the kind of glamour that enslaves humans to lifetimes of sweet torment… but he wants a dynamic on more equal standing, or none at all. This tension matches perfectly to the life that Miles turned his back on, as a magical battery to his Storm-Singer sister, making Miles and Tristan’s will-they/won’t-they even more achingly sweet.
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Witchmark
What are your favorite fantasy romances?
Natalie Zutter recommends reading a bunch of romance in a row; it’s like devouring a giant box of truffles, but without the stomachache. Talk fantasy romance with her on Twitter!
“As you wish.”
What about Frodo and Sam?
A list of fantasy romances that doesn’t include The Princess Bride? INCONCEIVABLE!
Fitz and Molly in Hobbs’ Assassin’s Apprentice and Fool’s Fate series.
Aral and Cordelia in Bujold’s Shards of Honor and subsequent books (even though not fantasy)
@2: Frodo and Sam aren’t romantic partners in JRR Tolkien, nor in the movie adaptation. Only in some people’s headcanon.
N.K. Jemisin’s The Shadowed Sun is one of the best fantasy romances I’ve ever read. Starts with a classic they-hate-each-other-at-first-sight setup and builds from there.
What, no Tanith Lee? The Silver Metal Lover is the swooniest fantasy/sf/romance ever…Romeo and Juliet with a robot and a human.
Any opportunity to mention S.D. Tower’s excellent The Assassins of Tamurin is one to be taken advantage of, so yeah, that’s a great fantasy romance that’s well worth tracking down. I love its Asian-inspired setting, and I just wish I knew the author’s real name so I can track more of his or her stuff.
What, no ‘Outlander’ love?
“Local Custom” by Lee and Miller – Regency Romance with space elves!
Didn’t we just have a whole post on K. J. Charles? Those “Magpie” books are pretty swoony; as one character remarks, Lucien and Stephen are having “an affair of positively operatic intensity.”
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To me Fitz’s most important relationship is with the Fool, even though it’s romantic on only one side (kind of).
Checking this on Valentine’s Day and seeing very few of my favorites. These all have swooney parts, even if a couple aren’t swooney all the way through. So for posterity:
Ilona Andrews- all their books
Joanne Bertin- The Last Dragonlord
Anne Bishop- Black Jewels series
Patricia Briggs- Hob’s Bargain
Lois Bujold- All of her fantasy. All of it.
Emma Bull- War for the Oaks
Stephanie Burgis- Harwood Spellbook series
Zen Cho- Sorcerer to the Crown
Cecilia Dart-Thorton- The Ill-Made Mute
Pamela Dean- Tam Lin
Kate Elliot- Jaran
Lynn Flewelling- the Luck in the Shadows series
Allison Goodman- The Dark Days Club novels
Barbara Hambly- Stranger at the Wedding
Ellen Kushner- Swordspoint
Mercedes Lackey- Most of her Fairy Tale retellings
RA MacAvoy- Tea with the Black Dragon
Vonda McIntyre- The Moon and the Sun
Patricia McKillip- The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
Robin McKinley- Beauty, The Blue Sword
Naomi Novik- Spinning Silver
Tamora Pierce- Song of the Lioness series
Judith Merkle Riley- Master of All Desires and The Oracle Glass
Jennifer Roberson- Tiger and Del series
Melissa Scott- Point of Hopes series
Sharon Shinn- Archangel series, Heart of Gold, Jenna Starborn
Deborah Smith- Alice at Heart
Wen Spencer- Tinker series
Sherry Thomas- Elemental Trilogy
Megan Whalen Turner- Queen’s Thief series
Pat Wrede and Caroline Steverner- Sorcery and Cecelia series
@13 Kate, what a great list! Heartily agree with ALL of Lois McMaster Bujold’s fantasy. Sharon Shinn’s Elemental Blessings series is good too, and Swordheart by T.Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon).
Hop on over to https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/, you’ll like it there. Stephanie Burgis is a regular commenter, for one.
Anything by Sharon Shinn, I was surprised to see she didn’t get mentioned until the comment before me :) My personal favorite is Summers at Castle Auburn – for a long time it was my ‘sick book’; the book I cuddled up with whenever I just needed to lay in bed snuggled under some blankets :) I enjoyed the Houses books as well (although personally I do not care for Kirra). I’ve read most of her work, but Elemental Blessings is next on my reading list though :)
@12 – can’t disagree with that.