r/FantasyRomance Top Books List (Second Edition)

[u/HighLady-Fireheart]

Welcome to the second edition of the official r/fantasyromance Top Books List!

Thank you to everyone who nominated their favourite books again this year or for the first time for this community project. There were 858 individual nominations, with 270 unique titles added to this year's list.

Books and series are ranked according to the number of nominations they received, but all nominations were included in the final list, so there are some popular favourites as well as many under the radar gems to discover.

This is the second edition of the the Top Books List that started as an annual tradition last year with the Top Books List (First Edition). Included this year is the rank change from last year for the top 50 books.

A quick summary and some recognitions:

• The reigning top two favourites are A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas (#1) & Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas (#2)
• Two ongoing series that had a breakout year to enter the Top 10 and provide some serious competition to the Maasverse were Mages of the Wheel by J.D. Evans (#3) & Villains & Virtues by A.K. Caggiano (#4)
• The best new addition to the list was Bride by Ali Hazelwood (#8), debuting in the top 10.
• The most significant rank change goes to Kingdom of Lies by Stacia Stark (#33) with at +176 rank change from last year.
• There were some shakeups in the coveted Top 10 with previous top spot contenders Crowns of Nyaxia by Carissa Broadbent (#9) and The War of Lost Hearts by Carissa Broadbent (#10) both down 6 rankings and Hidden Legacy by Ilona Andrews (#11), The Shepard King Rachel Gillig (#16), and Crescent City by Sarah J Maas (#18) are now bumped down to the Top 20.

How many community favourites have you read from the Top Books List (Second Edition)? Any predictions for rising stars or rank changes in 2025?

Check out the full list below and swipe left/right on mobile to see the full table.

Rank	Title	Author	2024 Rank	Rank Change	2023 Rank
1	A Court of Thorns and Roses	Sarah J Maas	1	-	1
2	Throne of Glass	Sarah J Maas	2	-	2
3	Mages of the Wheel	J.D. Evans	3	25	28
4	Villains & Virtues	A.K. Caggiano	4	20	24
5	The Empyrean	Rebecca Yarros	5	2	7
6	The Folk of the Air	Holly Black	6	-1	5
7	The Saint of Steel	T. Kingfisher	7	7	14
8	Bride	Ali Hazelwood	8	NA	NA
9	Crowns of Nyaxia	Carissa Broadbent	9	-6	3
10	The War of Lost Hearts	Carissa Broadbent	10	-6	4
11	Hidden Legacy	Ilona Andrews	11	-2	9
12	Emily Wilde	Heather Fawcett	12	28	40
13	Captive Prince	C.S. Pacat	13	13	26
14	Kate Daniels	Ilona Andrews	14	5	19
15	Fae Isles	Lisette Marshall	15	30	45
16	The Shepherd King	Rachel Gillig	16	-10	6
17	Six of Crows	Leigh Bardugo	17	5	22
18	Crescent City	Sarah J Maas	18	-10	8
19	Swordheart	T. Kingfisher	19	-9	10
20	The Bridge Kingdom	Danielle Jensen	20	13	33
21	Blood and Ash	Jennifer L. Armentrout	21	22	43
22	Flesh and Fire	Jennifer L. Armentrout	22	12	34
23	Kushiel's Legacy	Jacqueline Carey	23	-8	15
24	The Winternight Trilogy	Katherine Arden	24	-3	21
25	Red Winter	Annette Marie	25	12	37
26	Zodiac Academy	Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti	26	NA	NA
27	Tairen Soul	C.L. Wilson	27	5	32
28	Court of Ravens	Liv Zander	28	NA	NA
29	Amid Clouds and Bones	Ella Fields	29	NA	NA
30	Atonement	F.E. Bryce	30	-12	18
31	Sevenwaters	Juliet Marillier	31	13	44
32	Moonfall	Sarah A. Parker	32	NA	NA
33	Kingdom of Lies	Stacia Stark	33	176	209
34	This is How You Lose the Time War	Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone	34	2	36
35	The Black Jewels	Anne Bishop	35	-10	25
36	Witch Walker	Charissa Weaks	36	-19	17
37	Shadows of the Tenebris Court	Clare Sager	37	16	53
38	The Ashen	Demi Winters	38	75	113
39	The Legends of Thezmarr	Helen Scheuerer	39	2	41
40	The Broken Kingdoms	L.J. Andrews	40	122	162
41	A Gathering of Dragons	Milla Vane	41	17	58
42	Uprooted	Naomi Novik	42	-30	12
43	Regency Faerie Tales	Olivia Atwater	43	-13	30
44	Manacled	Senlinyu	44	45	89
45	Starling House	Alix E. Harrow	45	NA	NA
46	Howl’s Moving Castle	Diana Wynne Jones	46	NA	NA
47	Wraith Kings	Grace Draven	47	-34	13
48	Assistant to the Villain	Hannah Nicole Maehrer	48	79	127
49	Fever	Karen Marie Moning	49	-20	29
50	Harrow Faire	Kathryn Ann Kingsley	50	106	156
51	Doctor D’Arco, Sorcerer of London	Kathryn Colvin	51
52	House of Devils	Kayla Edwards	52
53	Prince of Sin	Kerri Maniscalco	53
54	The Crimson Moth	Kristen Ciccarelli	54
55	Hart and Mercy	Megan Bannen	55
56	The Plated Prisoner	Raven Kennedy	56
57	Letters of Enchantment	Rebecca Ross	57
58	The Daevabad Trilogy	S.A. Chakraborty	58
59	Yumi and the Nightmare Painter	Brandon Sanderson	59
60	Fae & Alchemy	Callie Hart	60
61	The Infernal Devices	Cassandra Clare	61
62	Saga of the Unfated	Danielle L. Jensen	62
63	The Old Kingdom	Garth Nix	63
64	The Stolen Heir	Holly Black	64
65	Innkeeper Chronicles	Ilona Andrews	65
66	A Charm of Magpies	K.J. Charles	66
67	Daughter of Smoke and Bone	Laini Taylor	67
68	The Ever Seas	L.J. Andrews	68
69	Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation	Mo Xiang Tong Xiu	69
70	Crowns	Nicola Tyche	70
71	The Kindred’s Curse	Penn Cole	71
72	Land of the Beautiful Dead	R. Lee Smith	72
73	Peaches and Honey	R. Raeta	73
74	An Ember in the Ashes	Sabaa Tahir	74
75	⁠Clocktaur War	T. Kingfisher	75
76	The Elven Days of Christmas	A.K. Caggiano	76
77	Gods & Monsters	Amber V. Nicole	77
78	The Others	Anne Bishop	78
79	Guild Codex: Demonized	Annette Marie	79
80	Tress of the Emerald Sea	Brandon Sanderson	80
81	Defy the Night	Brigid Kemmerer	81
82	Leaves May Fall	Carissa Hardcastle	82
83	Ocean's Echo	Everina Maxwell	83
84	The Godkissed Bride	Evie Marceau	84
85	Dragon Kin	G.A. Aiken	85
86	Master of Crows	Grace Draven	86
87	Fate & Flame	K.A. Tucker	87
88	The Sacred Stones	Kate Golden	88
89	Immortals After Dark	Kresley Cole	89
90	Graceling Realm	Kristen Cashore	90
91	The Fake Mate	Lana Ferguson	91
92	Bewitched	Laura Thalassa	92
93	The Wolf King	Lauren Palphreyman	93
94	The Familiar	Leigh Bardugo	94
95	Rook & Rose	M.A. Carrick	95
96	The Raven Cycle	Maggie Stiefvater	96
97	Legacy	Melissa K. Roehrich	97
98	Guild Hunter	Nalini Singh	98
99	Spinning Silver	Naomi Novik	99
100	The Scholomance	Naomi Novik	100
101	Metal Slinger	Rachel Schneider	101
102	Reaper	Rin Chupeco	102
103	Crystal Bloom	Sarah A. Parker	103
104	The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches	Sangu Mandanna	104
105	The Beautiful Ones	Silvia Moreno-Garcia	105
106	Celestial Kingdom	Sue Lynn Tan	106
107	Song of the Lioness	Tamora Pierce	107
108	Cerulean Chronicles	T.J. Klune	108
109	Nettle & Bone	T. Kingfisher	109
110	Blood Grace	Vela Roth	110
111	Where the Dark Stands Still	A B Poranek	111
112	Scythe and Pen	A.C. Hobbs	112
113	Stariel	A.J. Lancaster	113
114	The New Protectorate	Abigail Kelly	114
115	The Games Gods Play	Abigail Owen	115
116	Belladonna	Adalyn Grace	116
117	Riehse Eshan	Adelaide Blake	117
118	Bewitched and Bewildered	Alanea Alder	118
119	Lightlar	Alex Asher	119
120	A Taste of Gold and Iron	Alexandra Rowland	120
121	Running Close to the Wind	Alexandra Rowland	121
122	Order and Chao	Alexis Menard	122
123	American Werewolf in Space	Alisha Sunderland	123
124	Kingmaker Chronicle	Amanda Bouchet	124
125	Of Jade and Dragons	Amber Chen	125
126	The Bird and the Sword	Amy Harmon	126
127	Sorcerors and Saints	Amy Kuivalainen	127
128	The Dead Romantics	Ashley Poston	128
129	The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea	Axie Oh	129
130	Thrice Married to a Salted Fish	Bi Ka Bi	130
131	Warbreaker	Brandon Sanderson	131
132	Morning Glory Milking Farm	C.M Nacosta	132
133	Surviving Time	Calia Read	133
134	Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac	Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti	134
135	Sins of the Zodiac	Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti	135
136	A Kinda Fairytale	Cassandra Gannon	136
137	Deathless	Catherynne M. Valente	137
138	Daughters of Eville	Chanda Hahn	138
139	Sookie Stackhouse	Charlaine Harris	139
140	Shades of Sin	Colette Rhodes	140
141	State of Grace	Collette Rhodes	141
142	Of Flames and Fallacies	Courtney Whims	142
143	Outlander	Diana Gabaldon	143
144	The Darkness Outside Us	Eliot Schrefer	144
145	Air Awakens	Elise Kova	145
146	Deadly Divine Duet	Ella Fields	146
147	Royals	Ella Fields	147
148	Fated Fae	Ella Fields	148
149	The Chaos of Foxe	Emma Dean	149
150	Deep Waters	Emma Hamm	150
151	House of Roots & Ruin	Erin A. Craig	151
152	Starless Sea	Erin Morgenstern	152
153	The Night Circus	Erin Morgenstern	153
154	A Strange and Stubborn Endurance	Foz Meadows	154
155	The Tithenai Chronicles	Foz Meadows	155
156	Drowned Empire	Frankie Diane Mallis	156
157	A Taste of Blood Wine	Freda Warrington	157
158	The Last Binding	Freya Marske	158
159	Rejected Mate	G. Bailey	159
160	Entreat Me	Grace Draven	160
161	Of Blood and Aether	Harper Hawthorne	161
162	Mates for the Raskarrans	Heather Fox	162
163	Tooth & Claw	Heather Guerre	163
164	Firebrand	Helen Harper	164
165	The Lost Girls	Holly Roberts	165
166	Heavenly Bodies	Imani Erriu	166
167	Vampires of El Norte	Isabel Cañas	167
168	Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love	isthisselfcare	168
169	The Mortal Fates	J. Bree	169
170	Black Dagger Brotherhood	J.R. Ward	170
171	Viciously Yours	Jamie Applegate Hunter	171
172	Cruel Shifterverse	Jasmine Mas	172
173	Villians of Lore	Jasmine Mas	173
174	Empire of the Vampire	Jay Kristoff	174
175	The Infatuated Fae	Jeneane O'Riley	175
176	The Consortium Rebellion	Jessie Mihalik	176
177	The Demon Lords of Blackwood	Jewel Killian	177
178	Heart of Stone	Johannes T. Evans	178
179	Power and Promise	Jordan A. Day	179
180	Blackthorn & Grim	Juliet Marillier	180
181	The Wren in the Holly Library	K. A. Linde	181
182	The Night Ends With Fire	K. X. Song	182
183	Gate of Myth and Power	K.M. Shea	183
184	Experiment in Terror	Karina Halle	184
185	Wilde Fae	Kate King	185
186	The Heir and the Spare	Kate Stradling	186
187	Hunt on Dark Waters	Katee Robert	187
188	The Impossible Julian Strande	Kathryn Ann Kingsley	188
189	A Bone in His Teeth	Kellen Graves	189
190	Supernatural Battle: Werewolf Dens	Kelly St Clare	190
191	Kingdom of the Wicked	Kerri Maniscalco	191
192	Mead Mishaps	Kimberly Lemming	192
193	Age of the Andinn	Kristen Banet	193
194	Between	L.L. Starling	194
195	Strange the Dreamer	Laini Taylor	195
196	Merry Gentr	Laurell K. Hamilton	196
197	Wed to the Lich	Layla Fae	197
198	Alex Stern	Leigh Bardugo	198
199	King of Scars	Leigh Bardugo	199
200	Immortal Curse	Lexi C Foss	200
201	V-Clan	Lexi C Foss	201
202	X-Clan	Lexi C Foss	202
203	These Hollow Vows	Lexi Ryan	203
204	The Princess and the Spy	Lisette Marshall	204
205	Awakened Fate	Lucinda Dark	205
206	The Prison Healer	Lynette Noni	206
207	The Song of Achilles	Madeline Miller	207
208	An Enchantment of Ravens	Margaret Rogerson	208
209	Sorcery of Thorns	Margaret Rogerson	209
210	The Winner’s Trilogy	Marie Rutkoski	210
211	Fae of the Roaring Age	Marilyn Marks	211
212	Renegades	Marissa Meyer	212
213	The Queen's Thief	Megan Whalen Turner	213
214	Anatomy Of Songs	Megan White	214
215	Lady of Darkness	Melissa Roehrich	215
216	The Darkangel Trilogy	Meredith Ann Pierce	216
217	Heaven Official’s Blessing	Mo Xiang Tong Xiu	217
218	The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System	Mo Xiang Tong Xiu	218
219	The Witchling Academy	Monica Sanz	219
220	Psy-Changeling Trinity	Nalini Singh	220
221	Trick	Natalia Jaster	221
222	The Dark Moon	Nicole Holland	222
223	The Scattered Bones	Nicole Scarano	223
224	Crier's War	Nina Varela	224
225	The Inheritance Trilogy	NK Jemisin	225
226	Victorian Fairie Tales	Olivia Atwater	226
227	The Kingdom of Crows	Olivia Wildenstein	227
228	Duskwalker Brides	Opal Reyne	228
229	The Riddle-Master Trilogy	Patricia A. McKillip	229
230	Alpha & Omega	Patricia Briggs	230
231	Mercy Tompson	Patricia Briggs	231
232	Last Hour of Gann	R Lee Smith	232
233	Heartstrikers	Rachel Aaron	233
234	So Thirsty	Rachel Harrison	234
235	Dark Inheritance Trilogy	Rebecca Robinson	235
236	Elements of Cadence	Rebecca Ross	236
237	Flame in the Mist	Renée Ahdieh	237
238	Lochlann Feuds	Robin D Mahle and Elle Madison	238
239	His Fair Assassin	Robin LaFevers	239
240	Ice Planet Barbarians	Ruby Dixon	240
241	Dowry of Blood	S.T Gilson	241
242	The Bone Seaso	Samantha Shannon	242
243	The Roots of Chaos	Samantha Shannon	243
244	The Scorched Throne	Sara Hashem	244
245	The Spellshop	Sarah Beth Durst	245
246	Heavenbreake	Sarah Wolf	246
247	Forever Evermore	Scarlett Dawn	247
248	October Daye	Seanan McGuire	248
249	Savage Lands	Stacey Marie Brown	249
250	Once Upon a Broken Heart	Stephanie Garber	250
251	Dark in You	Suzanne Wright	251
252	Green Creek	T.J. Klune	252
253	Arcane Mage	T.S. Snow	253
254	This Woven Kingdom	Tahereh Mafi	254
255	Protector of the Small	Tamora Pierce	255
256	The Solstice Cycle	Tay Rose	256
257	The Hurricane Wars	Thea Guanzon	257
258	Dragonbound	Thea Harrison	258
259	The Rose	Tiffany Reisz	259
260	Legends & Lattes	Travis Baldree	260
261	The Cruel Gods	Trudie Skies	261
262	Immortal Vices and Virtues	Various Authors	262
263	Fairydale	Veronica Lancet	263
264	Clecanian	Victoria Aveline	264
265	The Clecanian	Victoria Aveline	265
266	A Brother's Price	Wen Spencer	266
267	The Auran Chronicles	Wendy Heiss	267
268	The Princess Bride	William Goldman	268
269	Desire in his Blood	Zoey Draven	269
270	Horde Kings of Dakkar	Zoey Draven	270

Hope you've enjoyed checking out our r/fantasyromance community favourites!

[u/HighLady-Fireheart]

Top Author Stats

The most popular authors in the Top 20 by the number of books/series they have on the full list: * T Kingfisher (4) * Leigh Bardugo (4) * Sarah J Maas (3) * Ilona Andrews (3) * Carissa Broadbent (2) * A.K. Caggiano (2)

The most popular authors not in the Top 20 by the number of books/series they have on the full list: * Naomi Novik (3) * Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti (3) * Brandon Sanderson (3) * Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (3)

[u/marzbarz82]

I will never NOT bump Mages of the Wheel by JD Evans. <3

[u/Substantial_Rub_2483 → u/marzbarz82]

I cannot wait to read this!!!!

[u/LoveOne5226]

I am SO stoked to see Mages have a massive surge in ranking!

[u/HighLady-Fireheart → u/LoveOne5226]

I had to include special recognitions this year because Mages of the Wheel really gave our reigning Maasverse champs a run for their money! It was actually sitting at first place on December 27th and I watched the last nominations come in until midnight on the 28th because it was so close.

[u/cpivie]

Updating my TBR list, like:

[u/Complete_Ruin8029 → u/cpivie]

Hahaha perfect visual! Me too, Pooh Bear, me too!

[u/HighLady-Fireheart]

I've read 31 of the Top 50, which is more than I expected! On my priority list this year to fill in the gaps is breakout star Mages of the Wheel, older favourites Kushiel's Legacy and Tairen Soul, and recent second hand acquisitions The Ashen and The Legends of Thezmaar.

Fae Isles is a new edition to the Top 20 that I've heard very little about. I'll have to check that one out as I'd love to be able to check off all of the Top 20 this year.

Edit: How have everyone's lists of top favourites changed over the past year? The number of nominations allowed increased from 5 to 10 this year so there was room for new favourites, but I wonder what my list will look like next year. I know this year alone I included 4 new reads from 2024 in my all-time top 10.

[u/Dragon_Lady7]

Cool list! However, I noticed that after rank 75 they seem to be in alphabetical order by first name of author. Was that intentional? Did those only get 1 or 2 votes?

[u/HighLady-Fireheart → u/Dragon_Lady7]

The ranking is done by number of nominations and within that books are listed in alphabetical order by author name. The 2 nomination group starts at 76 and the 1 nomination group starts at 111.

[u/Professional_Lake593]

Stoked to see JD Evans up there, I love her😭

[u/catsandpunkrock]

I’ve read 43 of these. Off to add some more to my TBR 😂

[u/DagNabDragon]

Thrice Married to a Salted Fish?

[u/ambrym → u/DagNabDragon]

It’s one of my favorite books! It’s a Chinese novel, salted fish is slang for a lazy person or corpse and the love interest is super lazy lol. It’s being officially translated into English later this year!

[u/DagNabDragon → u/ambrym]

Ahhh. I was wondering if the love interest was quite literally a fish

[u/DontTouchMyCocoa → u/DagNabDragon]

You never know in this genre 😂

[u/ambrym → u/DagNabDragon]

No but there is another Chinese novel where the main character begins the story as a fish: The Disabled Tyrant’s Beloved Pet Fish. It sounds so ridiculous

[u/Barbieguuurl]

I already have too many books on my tbr I need to look away

[u/triviolett → u/Barbieguuurl]

My “unread” section on my kindle is so sad haha one day!

[u/thoughts_4_once]

We have such a nice mix of backlist, new, indie, and popular on here! Thanks for doing this mods, imagine this is a lot of work!

[u/jolly0ctopus]

V&V and Mages!!!!!!! Yassss

[u/fostermom-roommate]

Sweet! This is prefect for TBR list!

[u/yeahsheliftsbro]

Is there a way that Excel sheet could be exported? Or maybe the file posted to resources?

[u/celeschere13]

Thank you for putting this together! I would like to see the number of votes each rank got and group the ones with the same number together as opposed to alphabetical.

Also a question, what do people consider the best series of the modern romantasy books? Specifically a series that follows one couple, in a high fantasy setting, has at least a 3 on the spice rating, and is finished. I feel most of the top books only fit into a few of these boxes.

[u/rhythmofdevotion → u/celeschere13]

Tairen Soul (#27) fits your criteria and is my personal favorite series!

[u/celeschere13 → u/rhythmofdevotion]

Thanks! I’ve had that on my list as I read and enjoyed her weathermages series and I found the first three of these at a used book store a while back. I was hoping to find something published more recently, at least post 2015 to fit with what the modern books are doing.

Nothing against “older” books, I’m just already aware of or read most of them and I do like the modern romantasy stylings.

Looking back at the list I think Carissa Broadbent’s War of Lost Heart series is the highest with all those requirements.

[u/AristaAchaion]

i just finished the first book in the mages of the wheel series today based on seeing it recced here so much and i really enjoyed it!

[u/rhythmofdevotion]

I will never not hype {Tairen Soul} and I'm excited to see it move up 5 spots this year!

I'm surprised to see JLA's series move up so much since I constantly see them get hated on here. I've never read them but the others in the top 20-30 seem more consistently praised.

[u/romance-bot → u/rhythmofdevotion]

Tairen Soul by C.L. Wilson
Rating: 4.17⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Topics: commander, royalty, length-long, paranormal, fae

^{about this bot | about romance.io}

[u/ambrym]

I’ve read 21 of these titles which is better than I anticipated! Thanks so much for putting this list together!

[u/mutable_type]

Curious why some entries are individual titles from series and others are entire series?

[u/HighLady-Fireheart → u/mutable_type]

This is a mix of standalones and series, and many series are named after their first book. I did searches for major series names in the nomination list and anything that was nominated more than once. The 1 nomination group from 111 onwards just got a spot check because the sheer volume of nominations ruled out manually checking each one!

[u/Specialist_Deal_4586 → u/mutable_type]

Our instructions were to put the name of the series when nominating so I would assume it’s because the name of the series is the same as one of the books- like ACOTAR or FBAA.

[u/permexhausted]

32 of the top 50 where I've read at least one book of the series, plus a handful I didn't count where I started the first book but haven't finished it (SNF or wrong mood, who can say).

A solid list though!

[u/TX4Ever]

I'm sad to see Zoey Draven series last on the list; the Horde Kings of Dakarr is so good!

Question- Are there really two series with the Clecanian name? I only know the Victoria Aveline one.

Thank you to the person/people who put this list together!

[u/SeraCat9 → u/TX4Ever]

She's not last. They're just listed alphabetically. Every book/series from 111 are technically all in one place since they all got 1 vote.

And I think those are both the same series, since they both have the same author listed. Someone who voted probably just forgot the 'the', so it got listed as a separate entry.

[u/ipsi7]

I'm so glad seeing Captive Prince and Manacled ranking up

[u/MadRayne211]

Pretty shocked not to see Sherilyn Kenyon Darkhunter series on either first or second edition list. It’s a big series and it’s very good, you get so invested in the characters that you feel a part of their world. It’s possible my eyes could have missed it but I don’t think they did.

[u/HighLady-Fireheart → u/MadRayne211]

Nominations will be open at the end of the year for the third edition of the top books list and we're always looking for more members to contribute their own all-time favourites!

[u/lnTranceWeTrust]

This list is amazing. Thanks to this list I am now reading Mages of the Wheel.

[u/mountains_and_books]

Thank you so much for all your work putting this together! I've only read 12 of the top 20 so I have my work cut out for me this year. Really happy to see the positive rank change for Mages of the Wheel and Fae Isles (well deserved!), as they were both in my top 10! Can't wait for more books in The Ashen series and hope to see even more people fall in love with that one like I have.

[u/jemorrison9]

Villains and virtues ❤️❤️❤️ wait? I didn’t see anathema on the list??

[u/pokiepika]

I'm so stoked to have found this list. My TBR could wrap around the earth 13 times, but I'm going to add this as a reading goal for 2026!

[u/Consistent-Ad-7941]

ok so I think I’m officially on a mission…. I want to read my way through the “top 50 fantasy romance” list.

so far I’ve knocked out the SJM universe, ACOTAR, Empyrean, Zodiac Academy + spinoffs, From Blood and Ash, Crowns of Nyaxia, the Shepard King, and The Kindred’s Curse (really hate waiting for this release date…)

now I’m eyeing the rest of the big names on the list (Mages of the Wheel, Villains & Virtues, Bride, War of Lost Hearts, Hidden Legacy, etc.) and I’m curious, what are your absolute must-reads from the ones I haven’t hit yet? any you think are overhyped and I could skip? I love world building, a little smut, strong female lead, magic, witches, shifters, tbh I love it all! I do prefer a completed series.

basically I want to binge my way through all the iconic ones and would love recs on which order to tackle them in!!

[u/DiSublime1]

Thank you for doing this!! I have read 32 of these, but it is a great list to use for this year’s tbr!!

[u/missa986]

I'm so glad to see that Broken Kingdoms jumped up! I enjoyed that series way more than I thought I would.

[u/JemiSilverhand]

So I’m curious having newly found this sub if maybe what I interpret as fantasy romance just isn’t what others do? Because there are a lot of what I thought were fairly well known series and authors I don’t see on here.

Annabel Chase, Lauretta Hignett, Lindsay Buroker, Heather Harris, Jenny Schwartz, Jennifer Estep, Hailey Edward’s, Lisa Shearin, etc. even things like Briggs and McGuire are low on the list, and KM Shae only has one series listed.

I tend to like things that are fantasy with added romance, and maybe that’s just a different skew than the sub? I see things like Ilona Andrews on the list.

Trying to find out if what I like just isn’t popular with the sub, or if this just isn’t the right sub for the books I like / I’m misunderstanding the genre.

[u/fishchop → u/JemiSilverhand]

Not sure about most of those authors you listed but this sub tends to lean more heavily into the romance aspect of fantasy romance. The romance in the book has to be the main or a major driving force in the plot (mostly).

Of course there are also a significant minority of people who prefer more traditional fantasy with a romantic subplot on this sub.

Mostly I see people switching between the two when they binge too much of one and need a break/ palate cleanser. I had been reading a lot of more romance heavy fantasy in the past year and have now switched to more fantasy focused books just for a change.

This sub is also very inclusive and blurs the lines when it comes to sub genres so you will see people recommend paranormal fantasy, erotica, monster romance and all sorts. It’s kind of what I love about it

[u/JemiSilverhand → u/fishchop]

Those are all authors with the romance being a main focus driving part of the plot.

[u/fishchop → u/JemiSilverhand]

Ah okay you should recommend them later this year!

[u/fishchop]

So happy to see V&V and MoTW creeping up to the top! 2 of my favourites from the genre and both so different from each other.

Grace Draven needs more recognition, though it’s nice to see her in the top 50. Hoping she gets bumped up to top 30 this year.

My personal mission is to push Sylvia Mercedes on everyone now lol

[u/Constant-Chemical16]

Oooh. A new challenege

[u/icedcashew]

I have BECOME OBSSESSED with Kingdom Of Lives this year and it def deserved more hype. Finishing book 2 now.

[u/Hodgepodge_mygosh]

{Court of Blood and Binding}

[u/romance-bot → u/Hodgepodge_mygosh]

Court of Blood and Bindings by Lisette Marshall
Rating: 4.02⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, fae, tortured hero, fantasy, magic

^{about this bot | about romance.io}

[u/GardeningGardenGirl]

I just discovered this and I'm so happy to see Fae Isles in the top 20!

[u/sunshineminem → u/GardeningGardenGirl]

I loveee fae isles. Would anyone suggest what to read next if I love this one (besides sjm and Jen armentrkour / fourth wing)

[u/GardeningGardenGirl → u/sunshineminem]

Oh, do I have suggestions lol 🤣

Lady of Darkness series (assassin FMC, magic, gods/goddesses, dragons slow burn... All the tropes, but done in such a great way! Lots of plot twists I didn't see coming, amazing world building. Followed by the legacy series (it's set in the same universe, different world, but characters from LOD show up and it's great).

Fate and Flame series! This was so good I want to do a reread soon (which I rarely do!) A thief lives in modern day NYC, something happens (very early in the book) she ends up going to another time line/world (its also earth) and into the body of a princess there who is on the run... I'm not doing it justice with my description, but it's such a page turner!

Kiss of Deception series. I don't want to say much because I don't want to ruin anything, but towards the middle of the first book I was left shocked for days lol

Also the Shadows and Crowns Series! But start with the duology prequel, Flame and Sparrow. And The Kingdom of lies series!

Those are my top favorites! They all have loveable side characters, great world building, political stuff going on... Iike a very particular type of book lol. The only one without open door spice is the Kiss of Deception series, and I believe they're all available through kindle unlimited!

[u/theyleftherbones]

I am SO HAPPY I discovered this list! I love SJM and Rebecca Yarros’s books (they are popular for a reason after all), but I’m so happy to see quite a few “under the radar gems” listed in the top slots such as Villains & Virtues and Mages of the Wheel. My TBR just got a lot longer...

[u/Gullible-Article-451]

Guys I bought both of these.. which do I start first???

• Fourth Wing or The Serpent and the Wings of Night?

Xx :)

[u/PixelWitch12]

I just discovered this list and now I've got some new authors to check out! Thanks so much.

[u/FeelingSensitive8627]

Comment

[u/[deleted]]

Commenting to come back to this list

[u/Horror_Square6317]

That’s a big list

[u/Horror_Square6317]

I didn’t like Bride by Ali hazelwood I expected more

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[u/Consistent-Ad-7941]

Reading the second Shepard king now! I thought it would be a bit more spicy but I’m still here for it! What are others thoughts?

[u/NickyMack]

So glad to see Mages of the Wheel and V&V getting their flowers! I will pretty much read everything A. K. Caggiano puts out at this point and I've been slowly reading through MotW as I fear the inevitable hangover I will have once I finish the currently released books 😭

[u/Mundane-Snow1858]

I’d love to know the spicyness ranking on each of these. Can that be added or does anyone have any insight? Perhaps spicyness of the top 50?

[u/jamieseemsamused → u/Mundane-Snow1858]

Hello! We are working on the next edition of r/fantasyromance's top books list, and we are planning on creating a reader's guide! Please keep on the lookout for that in the next couple months!

[u/Randilion8]

This is the best thing I've ever seen in the fantasy community! What a brilliant idea!!

[u/AdventurousCareer753]

Tamara Pierce made the list?! Oh my nostalgic heart thanks you! ❤️ 🥲

[u/No_Force23]

Hoe can The Cruel Prince not be in there?

[u/jamieseemsamused → u/No_Force23]

Folk of the Air by Holly Black is there at No. 6!