We have a bone to pick with the romantasy genre. The misuse of tropes, the imbalance of romance & fantasy plot lines, the questionable quality… The list goes on. In this episode, we breakdown what makes a romantasy book/series successful within its genre. Specifically, we’ll list out books we’ve read that do romantasy a disservice & books that redeem why we should all still give romantasy a chance. (P.S. this episode is spoiler-free!)

🤍 All CTB Links: ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/checkthisbookout

💌 May Book Club: Metal Slinger - Rachel Schneider

📖 Books Mentioned:

• Metal Slinger - Rachel Schneider
• A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Maas
• Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas
• Shield of Sparrows - Devney Perry
• A Court of Silver Flames - Sarah J. Maas
• Fourth Wing - Rebecca Yarros
• From Blood and Ash - Jennifer L. Armentrout
• Heartless Hunter - Kristen Ciccarelli
• Anathema - Keri Lake
• Obsidian - Jennifer L. Armentrout
• Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi
• Zodiac Academy - Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
• Never Keep - Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
• The Knight and The Moth - Rachel Gillig
• One Dark Window - Rachel Gillig
• The Ascended - Bree Grenwich and Parker Lennox
• On Wings of Blood - Briar Boleyn
• Blood and Steel - Helen Scheuerer
• This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me - Ilona Andrews
• Magic Bites - Ilona Andrews

Timestamps:00:00 Cold Open & Intro00:26 The Romantasy Epidemic04:20 Defining Romantasy (And Why It's Kind of a Marketing Gimmick)07:25 Tangent: Does "Romance" Require a HEA?10:09 The Cons: What's Going Wrong With Romantasy Right Now13:29 The Slow Burn Rule16:03 More Cons: Imbalanced Fantasy vs. Romance Plots22:34 The Pros: Why We Still Love This Genre27:10 Tangent: Stop Adapting These Books for TV28:25 Good Examples: Heartless Hunter & Anathema31:56 Throwback Good Examples: Obsidian & Shatter Me35:21 POV Count & Why It Matters for Romantasy38:51 Bad Examples: The Night and the Moth43:14 Bad Examples: The Ascended (Madeline Loses It)46:01 Bad Examples: On Wings of Blood50:00 Bad Examples: The Legends of Thezmar53:56 Romantasy's Last Chance: Metal Slinger & Final Thoughts56:49 Is Romance Better When Written By Men?57:50 Outro & Book Club Reminder