Books Like A Court of Thorns and Roses

Why Each Pick

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

The closest match for faerie courts. Jude, a mortal girl raised among the fae of the High Court after her parents' murder, schemes for a place in a world that despises her, while Prince Cardan torments her. Holly Black's fae are as beautiful and dangerous as Maas's, and the court politics are sharper. It is YA and much tamer in heat, and the first book of a completed trilogy.

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

The other romantasy giant. Violet is ordered into a war college for dragon riders where failing means dying, and falls for a rival whose family hates hers. Like ACOTAR, it is adult and explicit, with a heroine nobody believes in, but it moves much faster, with a military-school setting in place of faerie courts. It opens Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series, which continues in Iron Flame.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Sarah J. Maas's first series, for readers who want more of her. Assassin Celaena Sardothien fights in a deadly competition to become the king's champion while something dark stirs in the castle. Like ACOTAR, the first book is a smaller story that grows into a much bigger saga, and the fae matter more as it goes. The early books are YA and tamer; the eight-book series turns more adult later.

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

For the adult romance at ACOTAR's heart, with history in place of faerie. Claire, a nurse who served in World War II, steps through standing stones into 1743 Scotland and is caught between clans, redcoats and Jamie Fraser. It shares the heroine crossing into another world and the slow burn, and it is explicit too, but it runs 850 pages and is grounded in real history. Content note: violence, including sexual violence.

Circe by Madeline Miller

For the myth-retelling side of ACOTAR. The daughter of the sun god is banished to an island, where she discovers witchcraft and meets figures from Greek legend. Like Feyre, she is an outsider who finds her own power among immortals who underestimate her. It is literary rather than a romance at its core, with lush prose, little heat and a story spread across centuries. Content note: sexual violence.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

For the enchanted atmosphere of the Spring Court. Two young magicians, bound to a duel since childhood, create wonders inside a black-and-white circus that appears without warning, and fall in love along the way. It shares ACOTAR's sense of beauty with danger underneath, but it is quieter and more dreamlike, with no battles or explicit scenes, and it is a standalone.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The supernatural romance that came before the romantasy wave. Bella moves to rainy Forks, Washington, and falls for Edward Cullen, a classmate who turns out to be a vampire. Like Feyre, she is a human drawn to a dangerous immortal. It is YA, set in the real world, with no sex scenes, and the plot stays close to the romance. It is the first of four novels.

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

For danger inside a hostile household. Laia spies on a brutal military academy as a slave in the house of its cruel Commandant, while Elias, one of its soldiers, plans to desert. Like ACOTAR, it builds romance amid trials and an empire's cruelty, told in two voices. It is YA without explicit scenes, but the violence is harsh and includes threats of sexual violence. A completed four-book series.