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Let’s talk about the ACOTAR waiting game.
Because after years of waiting, we’re finally getting more A Court of Thorns and Roses.
ACOTAR 6 (A Court of Splintered Harmony) is coming October 27, 2026, followed by ACOTAR 7 (A Court of Forgotten Melody) on January 12, 2027.
Which is very exciting.
But if you’re not doing a re-read, then what are you supposed to read while you wait for your next trip to Prythian?
More romantasy, obviously.
If you love A Court of Thorns and Roses for the fae courts, dangerous MMCs, political intrigue, magical worlds, found family, fated bonds, and romantic chaos, I’ve got you.
These aren’t ACOTAR knockoffs. Instead, each of these fantasy romance books scratches a different ACOTAR itch.
And if your favorite part was the morally grey fae males, I’ve definitely got you covered. You might also want to download my free Morally Grey Book Boyfriend Starter Pack with binge-worthy recs + a printable scorecard to rank your favorites.
What You’ll Find in This List
This list is broken down into specific ACOTAR vibes:
- Fated mates & romantic chaos: For when you need another magical bond to completely complicate everyone’s lives.
- Fae courts & court politics: For when you need more kingdoms, courts, secrets, and scheming.
- Morally grey MMCs & shadowy vibes: For when one morally questionable fictional man simply isn’t enough.
- High-stakes fantasy & dangerous worlds: For the battles, magic, political chaos, and characters constantly making terrible decisions.
👉 What Should You Read First?
The good news babes is that you’ve got options.
- The Courting of Bristol Keats → fae courts, secrets and scheming
- To Bleed a Crystal Bloom → morally grey fae male, dark fairtale vibes
- A Tongue So Sweet and Deadly → high-stakes fantasy and dangerous trials
- The Wolf King → fated mates chaos and wolf shifters
- Our Vicious Oaths → if you want ACOTAR vibes but without the 7 book commitment
🧚Fae Courts, High Stakes & Political Intrigue
If what you loved most about ACOTAR was getting thrown into an entirely new fae world filled with courts, politics, secrets, dangerous creatures, and people who definitely have more going on than they’re letting you know…
Start here.
The Courting of Bristol Keats — Mary E. Pearson
The Courting of Bristol Keats combines fae courts, political intrigue, deadly trials, secrets, mystery, and undead lore in a layered fantasy world that feels fresh rather than familiar. I gave this one five stars and loved how immersive the world was without feeling like an ACOTAR copycat.
Best for readers who want: fae courts + political intrigue + deadly trials + mystery + secrets
👉 Get it here | Read my review
These Hollow Vows — Lexi Ryan
These Hollow Vows is packed with fae courts, royalty, deception, and a love triangle that makes it difficult to know who you can trust. I gave this one five stars, and it’s a great choice if you enjoy romantic fantasy where everyone seems to have an agenda.
Best for readers who want: fae courts + royalty + love triangle + YA fantasy+ morally grey love interests
👉 Get it here | Read my review
Queen of Roses — Briar Boleyn
Queen of Roses brings together fae lore, court intrigue, romance, political drama, and plenty of spice. I gave this one five stars, especially for the way it combines romance and political power in a dangerous fantasy world.
Best for readers who want: fae + court intrigue + romance + political drama + spicy romantasy
👉 Get it here | If political scheming is your favorite part, I’ve got even more fantasy romance books with political intrigue for you.
To Carve a Fae Heart — Tessonja Odette
With Seelie and Unseelie courts, enemies to lovers, forbidden love, slow burn, and detailed fae lore, To Carve a Fae Heart offers a familiar romantasy atmosphere while still feeling like its own story. I gave this one five stars and read it in a single day, so if you want fae fantasy that holds your attention, add it to your list.
Best for readers who want: Seelie and Unseelie courts + enemies to lovers + forbidden love + slow burn + fae lore
Bonded by Thorns — Elizabeth Helen
Bonded by Thorns combines four fae princes, a cursed kingdom, a Beauty and the Beast retelling, fated mates, found family, mysteries, and multiple love interests. It’s a fun choice if you want a fairytale-inspired romantasy filled with romantic chaos and plenty of familiar genre tropes.
Best for readers who want: fae princes + Beauty and the Beast retelling + fated mates + why choose + spicy romantasy
👉 Get it here | Read my review
🩶 Morally Grey “Shadow Daddy” Energy
Okay, some of you aren’t looking for another ACOTAR. You’re looking for another Rhysand.
The shadows. The morally questionable decisions. The devastatingly competent MMC who could ruin your life but would also burn the kingdom down for you.
I get it.
Rain of Shadows and Endings — Melissa K. Roehrich
If you want your fantasy romance dark, spicy, obsessive, and emotionally dangerous, Rain of Shadows and Endings is a strong choice. I gave this one five stars, and it’s perfect for readers who enjoy complicated relationships and morally grey characters they probably shouldn’t trust but can’t stop thinking about.
Best for readers who want: dark romantasy + obsessive romance + morally grey characters + high stakes + spice
👉 Get it here | If you’re not done collecting morally grey men, check out my shadow daddy fantasy romance books list.
To Bleed a Crystal Bloom — Sarah A. Parker
To Bleed a Crystal Bloom has a dark atmosphere, magical creatures, secrets, a Rapunzel-inspired setup, and a mysterious romance that leaves you constantly wondering what the MMC is hiding. I gave this one five stars, and it’s a great pick if you loved the darker, more mysterious side of ACOTAR.
Best for readers who want: dark fantasy + secrets + magical creatures + slow-burn tension + mysterious MMC
👉 Get it here | Read my review
House of Beating Wings — Olivia Wildenstein
House of Beating Wings combines fae, shifters, political intrigue, hidden identities, found family, and a very slow-burn romance. The story had a slow start for me, but the final stretch was compelling enough that I continued the series, making it a good option if you enjoy taking your time with a larger romantasy world.
Best for readers who want: fae + shifters + political intrigue + hidden identities + slow-burn romance
Avalon Tower — C.N. Crawford and Alex Rivers
Avalon Tower offers magical politics, secret agendas, dangerous romantic tension, and a fantasy world with plenty to uncover. It’s also low spice, making it a good choice if you want the intrigue and romance of romantasy without as much heat.
Best for readers who want: magical intrigue + fantasy romance + secrets + low spice + a different take on romantasy
Throne of The Fallen — Kerri Maniscalco
Throne of the Fallen throws fae, demons, vampires, witches, deadly games, and the seven princes of Hell into a Regency-era world, with plenty of banter, flirting, and romantic chaos along the way. Envy is a possessive, jealous, morally grey MMC with serious Rhysand vibes, while Camilla is determined to make this prince work for her affection.
Best for readers who want: fae + demons + standalone fantasy + deadly games + Regency-era fantasy + morally grey MMC
👉 Get it here | If you’re specifically looking for more one-and-done romantasy, check out my standalone fantasy romance books list too.
⚔️ High-Stakes Fantasy & Dangerous Worlds
Maybe you didn’t come to ACOTAR exclusively for the romance.
Maybe you wanted the fantasy. The magic. The battles. The deadly trials. The kingdoms at war. The feeling that someone could get stabbed at literally any moment. This is your section.
Shield of Sparrows — Devney Perry
Shield of Sparrows delivers a dangerous fantasy world, political complications, and a romance that develops while everything around the characters is falling apart. I gave this one four stars, and it’s a strong choice if you want the fantasy stakes to feel just as important as the relationship.
Best for readers who want: high-stakes fantasy + political intrigue + dangerous world + romantasy + spicy romance
👉 Get it here | Read my review
A Tongue So Sweet and Deadly — Sophia St. Germain
A Tongue So Sweet and Deadly features fae, political intrigue, found family, compulsion magic, secret identities, and a brooding love interest. It’s a great pick if you want magical and political chaos with plenty of secrets waiting to unravel.
Best for readers who want: fae + political intrigue + secret identities + found family + slow-burn romance
👉 Get it here | Read my review
Web of Vows and Vengeance — Aria Ashbrook
Web of Vows and Vengeance combines a deadly tournament, a brooding royal MMC, gods and goddesses, enemies to lovers, magic, monsters, and political intrigue. It’s perfect for readers who want the fantasy stakes turned all the way up while the romance develops alongside the danger.
Best for readers who want: deadly trials + enemies to lovers + brooding royal MMC + gods + political intrigue
👉 Get it here | If deadly competitions are your thing, I’ve got a whole list of fantasy romance books with deadly games and trials you’re gonna wanna check out.
Smoke and Scar — Gretchen Powell Fox
Smoke and Scar is a dark, dangerous, and atmospheric romantasy filled with secrets, high stakes, and a world where trusting the wrong person could have serious consequences. It’s a good choice if you enjoy fantasy romance with an ominous atmosphere and plenty of romantic tension.
Best for readers who want: epic fantasy + deadly trials + high stakes + romantic tension + atmospheric worldbuilding
The Ascended — Bree Grenwich and Parker Lennox
The Ascended combines powerful magical bonds, a larger fantasy conflict, and a romance that is deeply connected to the story’s central stakes. It’s a good option if you want the relationship to feel like an essential part of the fantasy plot rather than something happening separately from it.
Best for readers who want: magical bonds + powerful characters + high-stakes fantasy + spicy romance + romantic tension
👉 Get it here | Read my review
💞 Fated Mates, Fae & Romantic Chaos
And now we get to the good stuff.
The bonds. The chemistry. The “you are literally my destiny and that is deeply inconvenient” nonsense. If the mating bond was your favorite part of ACOTAR, welcome.
You’re among friends.
The Wolf King — Lauren Palphreyman
Wolf King combines a fake betrothal, wolf shifters, mate bonds, a slow-burn romance, and a sexy villain. I gave this one three stars, but I still recommend it because the romantic tension and book boyfriend were memorable enough to transcend the rating.
Best for readers who want: fake betrothal + mate bonds + wolf shifters + slow burn + sexy villain
👉 Get it here | Read my review
Eternal Reign — Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
Eternal Reign features vampires, supernatural politics, romance, and a dangerous fantasy world with much higher stakes than your average bad date. It’s a good choice if you want to swap the fae of ACOTAR for vampires while keeping the supernatural romance and political intrigue.
Best for readers who want: vampires + supernatural romance + dangerous world + fantasy politics + spice
👉 Get it here | If you’re ready to commit to a 4+ book series, check out my completed fantasy romance series list.
Our Vicious Oaths — N.E. Davenport
Our Vicious Oaths follows a warrior princess and a vengeful fae king as rival courts, political intrigue, and enemies-to-lovers tension force them into an uneasy alliance. It’s a standalone dark fantasy romance, making it a great choice if you want a fae fix without committing to a sprawling series.
Best for readers who want: fae courts + enemies to lovers + political intrigue + powerful FMC + standalone romantasy
Want More Fantasy Romance Recommendations?
Still counting down the days until you’re back in Prythian? I have plenty more fantasy romance recommendations waiting for you.
- Fantasy Romance Books With Devoted Heroes
- Fantasy Romance Books With Morally Grey Fae Males
- Fantasy Romance Books With Fated Mates
- Fantasy Romance Books With Slow-Burn Romance
- Fantasy Romance Books With Enemies to Lovers
Because apparently there is no shortage of fictional kingdoms, morally grey men, magical bonds, and terrible romantic decisions to keep us occupied until the next ACOTAR book arrives.
October can’t come fast enough.
📌Pin this post so you have a list of books to get you through the ACOTAR wait.
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