Manhattan, 1870. Rua has no memories of who she is or where she came from. When she’s mistaken as the missing daughter of a powerful family, she is thrust into a world of high society intrigue. She is drawn to Finn, the Lord of Donore, a newcomer to Manhattan society, and a strictly off-limits man. As ancient secrets and dark magic unfurl in Rua’s memory, Rua and Finn must work together despite their differences to uncover the mystery of their past and try to save their future in this gritty and glittering historical romantasy where nothing and no one is as they seem.
If you love to read and you follow book news, you know that the use of the word “romantasy” quadrupled times a zillion in 2023 with the release of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. Romantasy is a mash-up word for a combination of romance and fantasy fiction — meaning there’s going to be kissing and also magic, or dragons, or faeries, etc. This subgenre has always been around, and with great romantasy books come more great romantasy covers!
Most romantasy book covers have a similar vibe, especially lately. There’s almost always something floral or foliage-like, usually as a border, and little details from the book might be included. Skulls, crowns, and weapons are a common addition. They might sparkle like jewels, or even have bejeweled items, or they have a dreamlike, flowing quality. They definitely say, “This book is not taking place in the boring, old real world.” And in the past couple of years, many of them even have sprayed edges in jewel tones, with designs on the end pages. Romantasy books have become as elaborate on the outside as they are on the inside!
Below you’ll find 8 of the best romantasy covers, along with the artist who created them. Which is still a hard thing to learn—I had to go searching to find out who is responsible for all this loveliness. Will cover artists ever get the credit they deserve???
The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst; cover art by Lulu Chen
This fantasy cover screams “cottagecore,” starting with the fact that it literally has a cottage on it. You can tell the book is going to be warm and comforting by the soft pastels and all the lush greenery, plus there’s that adorable cat creature with wings on the steps. A cover with an adorable winged animal who does not have wings in the real world makes a book an auto-buy for me.
All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace; cover art by Gemma O’Brien, cover design by Natalie C. Sousa
If Ursula from The Little Mermaid designed a book cover it would look like this. This design conveys the fact that the novel is going to take place in the ocean. There’s a boat, a mermaid tale, and tentacles. Plus, a skull and what looks like eel skeletons bordering the title, which gives the idea that there might be at least a tiny bit of danger in the story. And it’s all in cool watercolors. (One thing this also has that you see on many romantasy covers is a bejeweled weapon. That can’t be practical for fighting. You definitely can’t put them in the dishwasher.)
The Hurricane Wars by Thea Guanzon; cover art by Kelly Chong
I was already in love with the hardcover of this novel, which was in dark purples and gold. Then the paperback version came out, and I loved it even more, especially because it’s the same design, just in different colors. It’s like they turned the hardcover version inside out. The banana yellow is eye-catching—you could spot this book from the moon. (And the fact that all these colors are also the colors of gum flavors I loved as a kid pleases something in the back of my lizard brain.)
The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang; cover art by Yixin Zeng
One of the great things about romantasy covers is that less is rarely more. There’s so much to look at in this design! A butterfly, a feline creature, a dragon, clouds, leaves. And did you realize the right side is actually the sleeve of a robe reaching out over everything??? It gives the old-fashioned feel of Chinese folklore but in a more rainbow-ish fantasy way.
The Phoenix Keeper by S. A. MacLean; cover design by Rachel Lancaster / Orion Books, cover illustration by Niall Grant
What I love about this one is that it’s a romantasy that has phoenixes, which are birds that rise from the ashes of fire. But it doesn’t actually have flames on it. Instead, it uses the orange phoenixes, which gives the impression of flames, while the blue foliage seems like cool sky or water. Way to pull double duty, phoenixes!
A River of Golden Bones by A.K. Mulford; cover art by Andrew Davis
This illustration conveys so much in this design! The splashy, liquid lines convey water, but there’s also an animal head and paws in the liquid, to let you know there are wolves in the story. Plus, there’s a few little flowers and leaves to denote nature, and to top it off, jewel-toned rainbow colors to let you know its magical. This would make an awesome tattoo.
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana; cover art and design by Jordan Ashby
This is the only one I chose that straight-up has humans (or faeries) on it. The forest border tells us it’s going to take place in the woods, and the center of the image shows that there will be magical books. And the three characters on the cover are hella-attractive and let you know that there’s going to be a love triangle, so there will be kissing parts, but one of them has antlers, so it’s also a fantasy novel. (Did I mention how beautiful they all are??)
The Night Ends with Fire by K.X. Song; cover art by Victo Ngai, cover design by Adam Auerbach
This post ends with The Night Ends with Fire. This is a romantasy retelling of the legend of Mulan. The cover lets readers know that there’s going to be a warrior, by showing a person at the bottom with a sword on their back. And this has a phoenix rising from flames, as they are wont to do, but looming really large over the person. It gives the impression of greatness and wonder and fate, all without saying a word.
For more awesome book cover designs, check out 24 More of The Best 2024 Book Covers So Far and for more romantasy, there’s 10 Steamy Romantasy Books That Will Make You Blush!
