Long before I was an author of romantic fantasies, I was an avid reader of all things romance. Genre romance. Fantasy Romance. Romantic Fantasy. Romantic suspense. An adventure where the characters smile at each other for a heartbeat longer than usual. Give me even a hint of attraction between two characters, and I’m hooked. Give me life-or-death stakes and a first kiss that takes hundreds of pages, and I’m addicted. As a psychologist, helping young adults sort through real-life romance dilemmas is one of my favorite parts of the job. Now that I get to write these stories, I’ve made it my mission to devour all the best high-stakes YA romances I can find—or write.
In this Moulin Rouge-inspired romantic fantasy, magic flows like bootlegged champagne, and fantasies can be bought for the price of a gemstone.
Luxe Revelle, star of her family’s fantastical show, knows the splendor is just an illusion. With Prohibition in full swing, her family struggles to make a living, watering down champagne and patching holes in their sequined costumes. So when the son of Charmant’s wealthiest family makes her an offer—everything the Revelles need to stay in business, in exchange for posing as his girl and helping him become mayor—she can’t refuse. But when she accidentally crosses paths with Jamison Port, an orphan with as few memories as gemstones, the sparks that fly may destroy them all.
I read this high-stakes YA fantasy late into the night, finishing it around 3 AM. In a fantasy world inspired by Italy, it follows the story of Alessa, chosen by the gods to save her people… except she’s really bad at it (relatable). Now her people are wondering if they’d be better off with herdead. To protect herself while she figures out how to save the world, she hires Dante, a gorgeous, surly street fighter as her bodyguard. The banter between these two will have you laughing long into the night, while the slow-burn attraction comes with its own stakes: whenever Alessa touches someone, they die (oops).
"One of the best fantasies of the year." - Buzzfeed
"Riveting, passionate, and full of high stakes danger." ―Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times bestselling author
Emily Thiede's exciting fantasy debut, This Vicious Grace, will keep readers turning the pages until the devastating conclusion and leave them primed for more!
Three weddings. Three funerals. Alessa’s gift from the gods is supposed to magnify a partner’s magic, not kill every suitor she touches.
Now, with only weeks left until a hungry swarm of demons devours everything on her island home, Alessa is running out of time to find a partner and…
Jane Eyre retelling in Ethiopa with magic—need I say more? Rich, quirky Magnus lives in a seriously haunted house, and the only exorcist willing to help him is broke, blunt Andromeda. I could not love these two more. Magnus is a beautiful weirdo who has been haunted and spoiled for far too long, and Andromeda puts him in his place. The banter, the creepiness of the house that is literally trying to kill them—no wonder Reese Witherspoon picked this one for her book club!
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER REESE'S BOOK CLUB FALL 2021 YA PICK
"Lauren Blackwood’s can’t-miss debut is a magical, Ethiopian-inspired remix of Jane Eyre." - Harper's Bazaar
What the heart desires, the house destroys...
Andromeda is a debtera―an exorcist hired to cleanse households of the Evil Eye. She would be hired, that is, if her mentor hadn’t thrown her out before she could earn her license. Now her only hope of steady work is to find a Patron―a rich, well-connected individual who will vouch for her abilities.
When a handsome young heir named Magnus Rochester reaches out to hire her,…
This is one of the most unique Romeo & Juliet retellings I’ve ever read. Set in 1920s Shanghai, the heir and heiress of two rival criminal families were childhood friends, once, before they realized the other’s identity. Now they despise each other—and several times, try to kill each other—while also trying very hard to ignore their growing attraction. Spanning two books and with a found family that tugs at all your heartstrings, the daggers are as shiny as the diamonds in this glittering, high-stakes tale.
A sharpshooter with high walls around her heart, Margaret lives alone in her family’s falling-apart mansion. Alone, that is, until charming alchemist Wes shows up and makes her an offer she can’t refuse: partner up in the dangerous hunt for the last living mythical creature, and bring her mother home. This delightful twist on the grumpy/sunshine trope will transport you to the mythical forest and candlelit manor with its lyrical writing. The vibes alone in this story cannot be beat. Add the promise of a hunt and a well-earned slow-burn romance, and this book will soothe your soul like a warm sweater on an autumn day.
A MAGICAL SECRET. A MYTHICAL HUNT. AND A LOVE THAT COULD RISK EVERYTHING.
In the dark, gothic town of Wickdon, Maggie Welty lives in an old creaking manor. Maggie's mother is an alchemist who has recently left town, leaving Maggie with just her bloodhound for company. But when Maggie spots a legendary ancient fox-creature on her porch, her fate is changed forever. Whoever tracks down and kills the hala in the Halfmoon Hunt will earn fame and riches - and if Maggie wins the hunt, she knows her mother will want to celebrate her. This is her chance to bring…
This YA fantasy romance is the essence of cottage-core: a girl with flower magic and big dreams, a shy and perfectly emo boy with even bigger secrets, and a setting that will make you yearn for a thatched roof in a field of wildflowers. Clara’s magic was never dangerous—until she touched her father’s chest and accidentally made poisonous flowers bloom inside him. She needs her former best friend’s help to save him, but Xavier’s not the nice boy she remembers, and he makes demands of his own. As the secrets unravel, the chemistry ratchets to new heights, and you won’t be able to put this one down,
"Flowerheart is like a garden in full bloom: vibrant and sweet, whimsical and wondrous." -Allison Saft, New York Times bestselling author of A Far Wilder Magic
Perfect for fans of Margaret Rogerson and Tamora Pierce, this standalone YA debut is a stunning cottagecore fantasy romance about a girl with powerful and violent magic which she must learn to control-or lose everything she loves.
Clara's magic has always been wild. But it's never been dangerous. Then a simple touch causes poisonous flowers to bloom in her father's chest.
The only way to heal him is to cast an extremely difficult spell…
I’m an Australian USA Today bestselling romance author who writes contemporary romance and uses the pen name Alyssa James to write medieval romance. I think the makeover trope resonates with me because although I’m no beauty queen now, I was definitely an ugly duckling in my teens. For reasons best known to him, my father insisted on close-cropped hair, and financial circumstances dictated out-of-style hand-me-down clothing. After university, I found my own style, but it wasn’t until I was accepted as an international flight attendant that I believed that I couldn’t be all that ugly if Qantas employed me!
Return to Hope Creek is a second-chance rural romance set in Australia.
Stella Simpson's career and engagement are over. She returns to the rural community of Hope Creek to heal, unaware her high school and college sweetheart, Mitchell Scott, has also moved back to town to do some healing of his own.
Mitchell, a former NFL quarterback, doesn't need the complication of encountering Stella again so long after the messy end to their relationship, but as each tries to build a new life, they are drawn together and find their chemistry is just as strong as ever.
Will their love be stronger the second time around?
When two old flames come back to their home town, sparks are bound to ignite. A rural romance from USA Today bestselling author Alyssa J. Montgomery.
A horrific car accident ended former world number-one Stella Simpson’s tennis career, and a betrayal ended her relationship with her fiancé/coach. When a family friend offers to sell her half of a property in the rural community where she grew up, it seems like the perfect place to escape, heal and begin the next phase of her life. Until she discovers that the man who broke her heart ten years ago has bought the…
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