What is romantasy? And why is it the latest bestselling book trend?
The genre is wedded to the structure of the romance novel, often including the romantic happy ending, but it included fantastical elements and/or settings.
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In 2015, Sarah J Maas published A Court of Thorns and Roses, in which teen heroine Feyre is swept away from her human life into a world of magical fairy court intrigue and romance. The novel, which was marketed as a young adult, was very popular. It hit, among others, the New York Times bestseller list.
However, the short-term success of the book pales in comparison to the longer-term success of the (five-book) series it belongs to. Maas has now sold 40 million copies of her books worldwide (as of February 2024).
A Court of Thorns and Roses (referred to by fans as ACOTAR) was already popular on bookish social media, but it hit truly extraordinary heights with the emergence of BookTok – the reader-generated, bookish arm of the social media platform TikTok. Almost as soon as BookTok became a phenomenon – in around 2020 – so too did A Court of Thorns and Roses.
As with the works of fellow BookTok sensation Colleen Hoover, A Court of Thorns and Roses’ popularity drove not just book sales, but conversations. Around this book and others like it, a new term crystallised: romantasy.
Romantasy is currently experiencing extraordinary visibility both on digital platforms and in local bookstores.
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