by ssmith314

Romantic Fantasy is a subgenre of Fantasy that incorporates elements of both fantasy and romance. In this subgenre, the plot is focused on fantasy elements and the romance is secondary. Typically, these types of books will feature an epic fantasy plotline where a hero/heroine sets out on a journey to save their world, and the social, political, and romantic relationships they form along the way help them to achieve their goals.
It is important to note that this is not the same as Fantastic Romance which is a separate subgenre where romance is the central plot and the fantasy elements are secondary. While some publishers still separate these two subgenres, it has become common to see the terms Romantic Fantasy and Fantastic Romance used interchangeably.

Some Examples of Romantic Fantasy:

Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith

Throne of Glass series and A Court of Thorns and Roses Series by Sarah J Maas

Truthwitch Series by Susan Dennard

Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo

The Immortals quartet by Tamora Pierce

The Blue Sword and The Hero and The Crown by Robin McKinley

The combination of fantasy and romance has been around since the early beginnings of literature. One famous example of this combination is Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.
However, the modern subgenre of Romantic Fantasy was started in the 1980s. Mercedes Lackey was one of the first authors to popularize this style of high fantasy with romantic elements. She was followed by the likes of Robin McKinley and Tamora Pierce, who brought even more readers to the subgenre. Today it is one of the most popular fantasy subgenres, and the majority of Young Adult Fantasy books currently being published can be classified under Romantic Fantasy.

Romantic Fantasy usually takes place in a high fantasy setting. These are worlds created by the author that can sometimes be based on real-world places. For example, Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows is set in the fictional Ketterdam which was inspired by Amsterdam, and the Grishaverse world she has created is inspired by Tsarist Russia. The most common type of setting is a medieval world based on the European Middle Ages.

The protagonists in Romantic Fantasy tend to start off alone in their world and as they progress through their journey they form relationships with others they meet along the way. These character relationships help to drive the plot forward. The characters tend to have a large amount of growth and change over the course of the story, and it is common to see teenage protagonists in this subgenre who discover they have special skills that are needed to save their world.
The antagonists in Romantic Fantasy are not only enemies that the protagonist must defeat on a battlefield, but it is common for them to be social enemies as well. This means the protagonist must defeat them through political relationships or court intrigue.

The most common plot is a teenage protagonist who has found themselves alone (run away, kidnapped, or orphaned) discovers they possess a unique set of skills. The story follows this character's journey (the journey can be either metaphorical or literal) as they learn to use their skills and develop new relationships with the characters they meet along the way. Over the course of their journey, the protagonist usually falls in love with a traveling companion. Most Romantic Fantasy will follow some variation of this archetype. My own book, The Lost Queen is one example.

I grew up reading Romantic Fantasy, and it was my first introduction to the genre of Fantasy. Before reading book series such as Lord of the Rings or A Song of Ice and Fire, I would read books by Tamora Pierce, Robin McKinley, and Sherwood Smith. I love that the often heavy or dark themes found in fantasy books are broken up by light-hearted romance. I decided to start writing in the subgenre because I wanted to introduce more people to the world of fantasy and have them fall in love with it as much as I have.

Example of Romantic Fantasy on Wattpad:
The Lost Queen by ssmith314

Synopsis:

A human seer and an Elven Prince have one thing in common: a missing sister.
Seraiah's dreams have a habit of coming true, but when all her dreams turn into nightmares, she fears for her sister's life. Each nightmare is a little bit different, but they always end the same way -- with something else looking out from Sterling's eyes.
When Sterling is kidnapped, Seraiah suspects the worst. After their father refuses to search for Sterling, Seraiah is forced to take matters into her own hands. She accepts the help of Elven Prince, Kaimana, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Sterling and his Commander, Kestrel.
Together, this unlikely trio will have to race against time to find Sterling before it's too late.

Excerpt:

Seraiah moved to follow Kestrel, but Kestrel stopped her. "Why don't you ride with Kai again today?"
It was an innocent enough suggestion, but if he knew anything about his childhood friend, it was that she was up to something. What exactly she was plotting, he didn't know. Perhaps she meant to annoy him to death.
Seraiah looked none too pleased about the suggestion either, but she didn't argue. He helped her onto his horse before mounting in front of her. She slid her hands around his waist as he nudged his horse forward, towards Baromund.
Suddenly, she leaned in close and whispered in his ear, "You smell like burnt hair."
Kai turned his head and found her face only inches away from his. "And you smell like beast and blood," he retorted.
It was true, while she may have cleaned up—the scent still clung to her.
He expected her to snap back or at least glare at him, but he was pleasantly surprised when she laughed.
"Guess that makes us a perfectly matched pair then," she answered.
He turned back around to focus on the path in front of them. He did not like the direction his thoughts were going in.
A perfectly matched pair, indeed.

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Musica

https://youtu.be/WesctGgqlL8