YA Fantasy Romance Series

When Elantian colonizers invaded Lan’s kingdom, murdered her mother, and outlawed their magic, the only thing they gave her was her new name. Her mother left her with endless questions, starting with the mark burned into her arm that only she can see. That is, until Zen saves her life and introduces her to magic long thought dead—magic tied to her mark. Lan and Zen could free their land or destroy it; either way, their fates are tied as they fight colonial forces together in a romantic, epic duology.

This YA fantasy romance trilogy (and The Scarlet Veil duology spin-off) is filled to the brim with honor, love, and difficult choices. In the city of Cesarine, Louise lives in hiding from the coven she left behind and the Chasseur witch hunters patrolling the streets. Reid is the exact kind of honor-bound Chasseur she should avoid, but when a series of unlikely circumstances lead to their marriage, Lou finds herself stuck with him. Now the clock is ticking. Reid will only be reluctantly charmed by chaos for so long once he discovers she is a witch, so Lou will have to do everything she can to hide her true nature.

Every decade, the gods’ half-human teenagers must compete in the deadly Sunbearer Trials to stop the evil gods from walking the earth. Teo, the trans son of the goddess of birds, was never eligible for the trials, but he still worries about his friends who are… Even his friend turned rival Aurelio, who is too handsome for his own good. But for the first time in a hundred years, the god Sol chooses him and another off-limits, untrained teen for the trial. Now, Teo will have to do his best if he doesn’t want to finish last and sacrifice his life at the end of the trials.

Although reading the Cursebreakers series first is necessary, Forging Silver into Stars is such an excellent queer spinoff I simply had to recommend it. Jax has labored under his drunken father’s cruelty at the forge for years, but when he spends their tax money on liquor, he can’t even ask his best friend at the bakery, Callyn, for help. After all, she is struggling to. Instead, when Jax is offered money in exchange for passing off treasonous notes, he says yes to save them both. Neither expected the King’s Courier, Tycho, to come to their remote town. Even if he’s distracted by Jax’s beauty, they can only get away with the plot for so long before he notices. In her captivating series, Kemmerer offers premium yearning, magic, and political turmoil.

In one of the most captivating YA fantasy romance series of the decade, The Legendborn Cycle unpacks the generational harm of oppression and enslavement as it follows Bree Matthews in the wake of her mother’s death. As one of the high-performing high schoolers attending UNC–Chapel Hill, Bree is on campus when she sees a magical fight she shouldn’t have. She learns that only the descendants of King Arthur’s Round Table can see and fight demons, and their secret society might have had something to do with her mother’s death. Bree gets one of their own to vouch for her so she can infiltrate the order, but it will be an uphill battle if they both want to uncover long-hidden generational secrets.

Wyatt would love to forget his life before his transition as a betrothed witch under the rule of fae in Asalin and live in the human world instead. But when his best friend, fae prince Emyr North, shows up, claiming their engagement still stands and he needs Wyatt’s hand to secure the throne, he returns to Asalin. Since Wyatt will leave after the throne is stable, he will put up with Asalin for now, but his plans may be upended by his inconvenient feelings for his betrothed. A truly excellent queer YA fantasy romance duology for anyone who’s ever created a new, better home for themselves.

Brie would rather starve than associate with the Fae, but she is willing to do so if it means retrieving her sister from the king of the Unseelie court. She can get her sister back too if she can steal three magical relics from the Seelie court. Unfortunately, her best way in is as Prince Ronan’s potential bride. As they get closer, she cannot deny their attraction, even as she accepts the help of Unseelie misfits—and their handsome leader—with their own agenda. With ties to too many courts, Brie finds herself tangled in a web even she may not escape.

Inspired by Persian mythology, the series follows Alizeh on her journey escaping her life as a servant in hiding and claiming her role as heir to the Jinn kingdom. Ever since the crown prince, Kamran, encountered Alizeh, he hasn’t been able to forget her beauty. He could never imagine his obsession with her was the first domino to fall in the prophecy that foretold the death of his grandfather, the king, and the destabilization of his kingdom. The two may be bound by romance, magic, and dire stakes, but only time will tell whose life and kingdom will survive their relationship.

In this Vietnam-inspired fantasy duology, medical magic users, bloodcarvers, can change the body with a touch. As a bloodcarver in Theumas, Nhika tries to use her powers to heal, contrary to the popular belief that she can only bring pain. So, when she is captured and sold to aristocrats during a medical appointment, so she can save the witness for their father’s murder, she is shocked. Embroiled in the mystery with alluring physician’s aide, Ven Kochin, Nhika must confront her past darkness, her present danger, and her future challenges if she wants to survive long enough to heal the evil at the heart of her city.

Nigel prepared for the Culling spell-casting competition, but nothing could prepare him for a witty, striking rival like Ori. The competition decides which teenage magicians will lose their powers to preserve magical balance, so neither can afford a mistake, but as the Culling becomes more dangerous, they realize the threat they face might just affect the world. They will have to rely on each other—without getting distracted by their attraction—if they want to save humanity in this queer western-inspired urban-fantasy duology.

In this sapphic Jamaican-inspired fantasy duology, Faron, the hero who channeled godly powers to free her island from a colonial empire five years ago, now finds herself lost without war. Attending an international peace summit should be a basic, boring task, but when her sister Elara forms a bond with an enemy dragon, her life changes forever. The gods claim killing her sister is the only way to save the world, but the sisters are determined to chart their own path. One thing is for sure: they will need every ally they have if they want to survive.

Indentured to the Night Zoo, Koffi knows better than anyone that magic is gone for good. She is willing to care for the magical creatures to slowly pay off her family debts, but when the Zoo’s master threatens her family, Koffi’s magic responds before she can consider the consequences. She didn’t know she had magic at all, but now she has new problems on her hands, including the troublesome warrior, Ekon. Koffi interrupted his rite of passage when she warded off Shetani, the mythical beast he was supposed to defeat. Koffi and Ekon both want Shetani dead, but they only have a chance at surviving their deadly hunt with an unsteady allegiance. Who knows, if they survive, they might just fall for each other too.