With my degree in journalism, you’d think I would be firmly rooted in real-world dramas, but all my time in news did was push me deeper toward my love of fantasy and romance stories. A natural optimist and a bit of a dreamer, I have always been a voracious reader of the fantasy romance genre. I love a story that can take you away from the real world for a time with amazing heroes, end-of-world stakes, and of course, thick romantic tension. I have a special fondness for series’ where I can watch the characters grow in depth or where each story covers a different character's perspective or experience.
This is the first book in the Tales of the Four Horsemen series. A fantasy romance retelling of sorts that centers around the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. A prophesied orphan girl, Lucia, is born with an element of Elohim’s pure love and created to bond with the White Horseman of Conquest and save him from being leashed by hell, thereby preventing the destruction of the world.
Set in a dystopian world where Lucia is forced to live with a sect of monks until her life takes a drastic turn. It’s a story of adventure, overcoming, forced proximity, resistant romance, found family, discovered power, redemption, and trust. Each book in the series is about a separate Horseman and girl.
I loved the uniqueness of this storyline and the combination of magic being an accepted everyday thing in a historical world. Think old-world 1940s newspaper era meets World War 2 and manipulative Gods, with threads of magic woven throughout.
I absolutely adored the idea of rare typewriters linked by magic that can send missives to each other and the beautiful and rich enemies-to-lovers trope that develops around the typewriters. Its cute You’ve Got Mail vibe was beautifully executed in a story and world that I loved to step into.
When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever.
After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.
To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish―into the hands of Roman…
I loved the mystical, magical, and taboo nature of the world of Caraval. I was on a constant path of discovery in this book, and its world is filled with such intrigue and questions to solve that it kept me completely immersed in the story.
A rare once-a-year performance or game that you must get invited to participate in seems like harmless fun until Scarlett discovers her twin is part of it, and the danger and treachery occurring is very real. It was hard to put down! I loved the resistant romantic tale woven in this one, and especially how each book in the series was about a separate love story.
WELCOME TO CARAVAL, WHERE NOTHING IS QUITE WHAT IT SEEMS . . .
Scarlett has never left the tiny isle of Trisda, pining from afar for the wonder of Caraval, a once-a-year week-long performance where the audience participates in the show.
Caraval is Magic. Mystery. Adventure. And for Scarlett and her beloved sister Tella it represents freedom and an escape from their ruthless, abusive father.
When the sisters' long-awaited invitations to Caraval finally arrive, it seems their dreams have come true. But no sooner have they arrived than Tella vanishes, kidnapped by the show's mastermind organiser,…
Probably one of my favorite reads of all time; I have read it more than once, if that tells you anything about my love for it.
The fantasy elements in this story are subtle and have a mythical legend vibe more than outright powers. But the world and story is so richly built it’s perfect. Told from various POVs with layers of secrets, deception, and assassination attempts, I love how you don’t quite figure out who is who until the end.
All this combined with the thick romantic tension happening in this story and it was over far too soon for me.
In a society steeped in tradition, Princess Lia's life follows a preordained course. As First Daughter, she is expected to have the revered gift of sight - but she doesn't - and she knows her parents are perpetrating a sham when they arrange her marriage to secure an alliance with a neighbouring kingdom - to a prince she has never met. On the morning of her wedding, Lia flees to a distant village. She settles into a new life, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive - and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an…
I loved the high-seas, pirate vibe of this incredible book. The heroine's story starts in a harsh and tragic setting that I couldn’t help but get sucked into. And it was impossible for me not to admire Fable’s backbone, perseverance, and determination. She was so impressive!
I was immediately sucked into this story and rooting so hard for Fable. And the romantic tension that builds between her and one of the ship captains puts a perfect cherry on top of this lovely tale.
Seventeen-year-old Fable is a dredger-a freediver who excavates rare gemstones from the coral reefs that fill The Narrows. For the last four years, she's been trying to get off the island of Jeval, find the father who abandoned her there, and claim her mother's place on his trading crew. But when she finally makes it off the island, she discovers it may have been the safest place for her.
I absolutely love the high-intensity emotion and forbidden love in this story. Tanya Bird did an incredible job of pulling me into the tension between two characters, and I love how each book is about a different love story between characters within the same world!
A bit different from my usual fantasy picks, this series has a more dystopian and historical fantasy vibe, but it’s such a well-crafted dark world and the romantic tension is so good that I almost forget there are no real magical type elements.
Blake Suttone has a stomach full of grief and no food. A decade of famine has taken its toll on the splintered kingdom, but it is the merchants who suffer most. A wall stands between the hungry and the food, and the kingdom’s defenders stand guard atop it. Desperate times lead to desperate acts, and Blake will do whatever is necessary to ensure her family survives. But a growing attachment to a certain commander was never part of the plan. Now the man protecting the walls seems determined to guard her too.
Born Nameless. Raised in ice and snow. Destined to rule.
Arya Nameless has sidestepped her destiny in favour of joining House Ravenstrike and helping Thiara Ravenstrike become High Warlord of Dunidaen. First, Arya must ensure that Thiara’s only son, Rorin, succeeds in running the Dreadwater Gate into Khadini, a deadly rite of passage that none have survived for decades. If they triumph, Arya will be named general of Ravenstrike’s army and land a political blow against their powerful adversary, Warlord Mathas Crowtalon.
Yet Khadini holds challenges far beyond what they expected. And while Arya contends with wild jungles, fierce enemy warriors, and potential new allies, the Nightstalker continues to seek her with relentless intensity. The monsters hunting her wield a dark magic she has no way of countering. Survival relies on staying hidden, secret.
Yet, when Arya’s wyvern calls, the time for hiding is over.
Born Nameless. Raised in ice and snow. Destined to rule.
Arya Nameless has sidestepped her destiny in favour of joining House Ravenstrike and helping Thiara Ravenstrike become High Warlord of Dunidaen. First, Arya must ensure that Thiara's only son, Rorin, succeeds in running the Dreadwater Gate into Khadini, a deadly rite of passage that none have survived for decades. If they triumph, Arya will be named general of Ravenstrike's army and land a political blow against their powerful adversary, Warlord Mathas Crowtalon.
Yet Khadini holds challenges far beyond what they expected. And while Arya contends with wild jungles, fierce enemy…
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