Archives de catégorie : Romantasy

THE DANDELION RIOTS de Kim Smejkal

A darkly compelling fantasy romance in which a young woman is cursed to end the world if she ever falls in love. Perfect for fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout, Brigid Kemmerer and Stephanie Garber.

THE DANDELION RIOTS
by Kim Smejkal
Pushkin Press, March 2025
(via Writers House)

Sixteen-year-old Drinn has been kept isolated her entire life by Aunt Melusine, and she’s determined to find out why. But when Drinn confronts Melusine, things go spectacularly wrong—leaving one person dead, and Drinn on the run. Heartbroken, terrified, and alone, Drinn learns she is one of the damned: girls cursed at birth to cause everything from drought to disease to rat infestations. The damned are the dregs of society, and Drinn is the most infamous of them all—if she ever falls in love, the world ends.

Drinn may not understand much, but she recognizes injustice when she sees it. Shielding her heart against a handsome, charismatic boy (is he a test, put in her path?) Drinn tracks down another cursed girl named Story—a grumpy mechanic who kills anyone she touches—and together they rally others to their cause. By transforming their curses into assets, Drinn and Story fight back: against the Aunts who cursed them, and a world that shuns them.

Unfortunately, the powerful—and now furious—Aunts may be the least of their worries. It turns out the threat to Drinn’s heart was not the handsome, charismatic boy; in fact, it was never a boy at all. By the time Drinn learns deeper truths about herself and all the ways that love can surprise you, will she have already summoned the apocalypse?

Kim Smejkal lives with her family on Vancouver Island in Canada, which means she’s often lost in the woods or wandering a beach. She writes dark fantasy for young adults and not-so-young adults, always with a touch of magic. She is the author of Ink in the Blood (Clarion Books, 2020) and Curse of the Divine (Clarion Books, 2021).

MARKLESS de C.G. Malburi

“With an interesting magic system and a fresh take on soulmates, this enemies-to-lovers romantasy will enthrall readers.” —Booklist

MARKLESS
by C.G. Malburi
Levine Querido, June 2024
(via Context Literary)

Ruti is Markless. In a society where worth is determined by the mark on your palm and the magic it grants you, this also deems her worthless. Except she’s also a hardened survivor, a protector of the Markless…and the most powerful witch in Somanchi. With a single song, she can pray to the many gods for unimaginable powers.

Dekala’s Mark is strong, a Mark fit for the future queen of Somanchi, but it’s also unstable. She knows the only solution is to be bonded, but she also knows that this would mean relinquishing control over her throne and kingdom. So when she is witness to Ruti’s power, Dekala offers the witch a deal: She can be prosecuted for her crimes…or she can help Dekala ascend to the throne, unbonded.

Dekala is cold and brutal and cares only about getting her way. She is also determined, intelligent, and compassionate. Ruti is torn between wanting her to fail or to emerge victorious. But as the gods are defied, new alliances are forged, and unexpected feelings are unearthed, Ruti realizes the fate of the kingdom––and the survival of the Markless––lies in her unmarked hands.

“Fast-paced and thrilling, this magical fantasy brings the enemies-to-lovers trope to new heights while poignantly examining themes of poverty, discrimination, and sexuality.” —Kirkus

“Malburi crafts an ambitious adventure teeming with surprises and romance” —Publishers Weekly

When C.G. Malburi read her first sapphic love story, she felt recognized in a way that she never had before. Now, she’s determined to fill bookshelves with more sapphic books for teens so they can experience the same. She lives on the East Coast and loves fandom, tropes, and stories in which characters flout destiny to choose each other.

SAVAGE BLOOMS de S.T. Gibson

Wuthering Heights meets a grown-up The Cruel Prince by way of Sierra Simone, in the first of a dark new romantasy series by bestselling author S.T. Gibson.

SAVAGE BLOOMS
by S.T. Gibson
Orbit, October 2025
(via KT Literary)

Adam has been in love with his best friend Nicola since college, but the closest he can come to admitting his feelings is inviting her to travel with him to Scotland in search of a legendary cave from his grandfather’s bedtime stories.

When a storm washes out the road, Adam and Nicola find themselves at the mercy of Eileen, an eccentric aristocrat, and Finley, her brooding groundskeeper. The Americans quickly get more than they bargained for as they become entangled in Eileen and Finley’s world of mind games, kink, and ancient enchantment.

S.T. Gibson is the British Fantasy Award-nominated and Goodreads Choice -nominated author of the USA Today bestseller Evocation and Sunday Times bestseller A Dowry Of Blood and She holds a Bachelor’s in Creative Writing from UNC and Masters of Theological Studies from Princeton Seminary.

GAME OF VEILS d’Eva Chase

The Selection meets Catherine the Great in this why choose? romantasy about an ambitious princess, betrothed to a ruthless emperor, who plots to overthrow him with help from sexy courtiers.

GAME OF VEILS
(The Royal Spares Series, Book 1)
by Eva Chase
Ink Spark Press, September 2024
(via JABberwocky)

As the secondborn princess in a kingdom under the thumb of a brutal empire, Aurelia never had high hopes for her marriage prospects. But she is delighted when she is bethrothed to the son of the emperor himself.

Determined to earn better treatment for her country, she sets out to play her part as a loving wife. To her horror, she arrives at the emperor’s decadent palace only to discover the proposal was conditional. The emperor and his heir expect her to compete with several local noblewomen in a series of humiliating trials to prove their devotion. The winner will receive the heir’s hand in marriage; those who fail will be executed.

If facing marriage with a man she reviles and fending off sabotage from her scheming competitors wasn’t enough, her presence has caught the attention of the emperor’s princely wards who are forced to live in the palace as punishment. As far as they’re concerned, Aurelia is a traitor for trying to win the prince’s devotion. And she’s the perfect target for their bottled rage. They’ll do whatever they can to distract her, unsettle her, ruin her…and if they get to cuckold her future husband at the same time, even better.

For all their sharp words and heated glowers, they might be just the allies Aurelia needs. She isn’t merely going to land an emperor-to-be and wheedle minor concessions out of him once he ascends the throne—she’s going to win the entire empire. Over his dead body, if need be.

Eva Chase is an Amazon top 100 bestselling author of urban fantasy and paranormal romance. She grew up on a steady diet of magic, mayhem, and romantic angst, and brings plenty of all three to her stories. But no need to fear the dreaded love triangle—Eva’s heroines never have to choose. You can visit her online at www.evachase.com.

LIAR’S KINGDOM de Christine Calella

Can “happily-ever-after” start with a lie?

LIAR’S KINGDOM
by Christine Calella
Page Street YA, January 2025
(via KT Literary)

Ell DeBrun is the girl of the cinders. The girl who’s spent years slaving away for her cruel stepmother and ungrateful stepsisters, dreaming of rescue. So when Prince Bayard — who seems to have difficulty recognizing faces — shows up at her door with a glass slipper in hand, Ell allows him to believe she is the girl he danced with at the grand ball. There’s just one problem: Ell didn’t attend the ball and she’s never met the prince before in her life. But if it’s a choice between being whisked away to the royal palace and staying trapped with her miserable step-family, Ell is willing to concoct any fairy tale that will grant her an escape.

However, Ell finds that fitting into royal life isn’t as easy as sliding into a glass slipper. Bayard’s sister, the crown princess, has gone missing. The king is preparing for war with the sinister army of fae. And Maxim, Bayard’s treacherous (and unfortunately, terribly handsome) best friend, appears to know Ell’s secrets — and is just waiting for the most advantageous moment to call her bluff. As her lies pile up like unwashed plates, she knows they’re only seconds away from crashing down on her head.

Luckily, Ell is used to a little dirty work. If she wants to keep this life she’s stolen for herself, one with creature comforts and companionship she’s only dreamed of, she’s going to have to roll up her sleeves and rescue herself.

Christine Calella is a graduate of Columbia University’s MFA program for Creative Writing. Her debut YA novel The Final Curse of Ophelia Cray published in April 2024. She lives in New York City.