I like fantasy. I like romance. But I am not a young adult. I am not interested in one more teenage girl with dead parents going to magic school, faerie court or dragon training. Of the 20 “Romantasy” nominees on the Goodreads Choice Awards, I’ve read “A Dawn of Onyx” and “The Hanging City,” the only grown-up books on that list. I Dnf’d “Fourth Wing,” because FOMO, but not my jam.

What possible distinction is there between “Romantasy” and “YA Fantasy?” Who is writing for us olds?

  • r--evolve@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    I listened to a podcast (either Book Riot or Reading Glasses) a while ago that made this slight distinction:

    • Romantasy - Centered on the fantasy, but involves a romance.
    • Fantasy Romance - Centered on a romance, but in a fantasy setting. So it’s like a “subgenre” of Romance.

    I don’t consider “YA Fantasy” to be interchangeable with either of those terms though. There could be YA Romantasies, YA Fantasy Romances, or YA Fantasy (without romance).

    I think the disconnect is that a lot of the popular YA Fantasies in recent years tend to have romance elements. If you’re looking for Fantasy for adults that don’t include romance elements, r/Fantasy would be a good place to search.