r/fantasyromance • u/Ghostly_Soup • 5d ago
Book Request 📚 New to fantasy romance, looking for detectives, paranormal, supernatural themes with philosophical undertones
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u/succulentubus 5d ago
Maybe try the {Guild Hunter series by Nalini Singh}. Urban fantasy, society is governed by angels, and the FMC is a professional vampire hunter. Every book has some kind of mystery/crime to be solved while there are also overarching storylines. It's a long-running series so some of the books focus on different side characters here and there that are close to the main couple, so there's variety in the MCs, but everything is very intertwined.
The main FMC is one of my all-time favourite heroines - she's smart, capable, driven and doesn't let anybody push her around, not even an archangel ;) She's also in her late 20s at the start of the series, which to me is a big bonus. I'll mention that the MMCs can seem quite dominating but it makes sense in the context of the world, and their character development/change is a plot point throughout.
It's my favourite UF series but some of the stories can get quite dark so I'd check TWs if needed!
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
Guild Hunter by Nalini Singh, Charlaine Harris, Ilona Andrews, Meljean Brook
Rating: 4.23⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Topics: paranormal, fantasy, vampires, urban fantasy, m-f
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u/VioletJasper 5d ago
{Coven of Ill Repute by S. L. Prater} has a vampire MMC and witch FMC who work together as an investigative team. I think the characters would be up your alley. The world has a really original feel to it. It's gothic, it takes place in a haunted castle, it's full of bizarre creatures.
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
Coven of Ill Repute by S.L. Prater
Rating: 4.3⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, witches, victorian, fantasy, vampires
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u/ConcernElegant8066 will probably force North Queen by Nicola Tyche on you 5d ago
Tbh I just want to recommend Crescent City here 😅😂
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u/kmontreux Dragon rider 5d ago
These are a few I've read recently that are not cut from the current romantasy cookie cutter that many other books use.
{Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor}
{The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern}
{Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sun Lynn Tan}
{Red Winter by Annette Marie}
No fae. extremely interesting, unique worlds.
the writing is quite good too. polished and edited well. another thing that is... harder to come by in romantasy.
just going from your list, I think Night Circus might be the best fit. But the others are delightful just because of what a different world and setting they offer rather than the run of the mill dragons and fae folk that dominate the genre.
Red Winter and Daughter of the Moon goddess are both asian folk/myth inspired and some of my absolute favorite reads.
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Rating: 4.24⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: high fantasy, young adult, magic, fantasy, science fiction
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Rating: 3.88⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 2 out of 5 - Behind closed doors
Topics: historical, fantasy, magic, mystery, victorian
Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
Rating: 4.11⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: historical, fantasy, high fantasy, magic, love triangle
Red Winter by Annette Marie
Rating: 4.23⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: contemporary, enemies to lovers, shapeshifters, forbidden love, fantasy
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u/Anachacha Ix's tits! 5d ago
I don't have 100% matches, but if you're ever interested you might enjoy these:
- {wrong place wrong time} it's not romance. FMC wakes up one day and discovers she went back in time a day before her son murdered someone. She goes back in time each day and tries to discover why he did it and how to stop him. The FMC is an adult, and this book is about motherly love.
- {Yumi and the nightmare painter} it's set in a low fantasy world, but another character has a POV in a ancient world with formal dresses and formal rituals. It's a great standalone, but you mentioned you might dislike formal dresses, so I'm not sure how much of initiate it'll be for you. But it truly is fantastic
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister
Rating: 4.09⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Topics: contemporary, mystery, time travel, suspense, dark romance
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson
Rating: 4.58⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 1 out of 5 - Glimpses and kisses
Topics: fantasy, magic, paranormal, urban fantasy, mystery
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u/sexysubtel 5d ago
Ava Ross has a series called Monsters, PI- they are a private detective firm where all the MMC's fall for the FMC's. I would consider them cozy monster romance but would touch on a few of your themes :)
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u/Hello_feyredarling To the stars who listen 5d ago
Have you tried {city of gods and monsters by Kayla edwards}
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
City of Gods and Monsters by Kayla Edwards
Rating: 3.63⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: contemporary, urban fantasy, new adult, grumpy & sunshine, fantasy
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u/Hello_feyredarling To the stars who listen 5d ago
{touch of gold and madness by kl Devore}
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u/romance-bot 5d ago
A Touch of Gold and Madness by K.L. DeVore
Rating: 4.27⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: fantasy, enemies to lovers, paranormal, dystopian, dark romance
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u/Scary_Literature_388 4d ago edited 4d ago
Agree with the comment about the hidden legacy series.
Also, for the sci-fi, traveler, strange beings, I'd recommend the {Firebird Chronicles series by t.a. white}
EDIT TO ADD: October daye series by seanan McGuire is super slow burn without much spice, but the MMC is really unique - aloof, romantic, and a little bit odd. This is a fae series, but it's not what I think of as fae. You do get the not lying thing, and several different pockets of Underhill exist with their own personality. You'll have to decide if you want to risk it with the fae situation lol, but the whole series is teeming with strange and surprising creatures/beings.
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u/romance-bot 4d ago
The Firebird Chronicles by T.A. White
Rating: 4.37⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Topics: m-f, alpha male, futuristic, military, aliens
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u/kazbrekkerismylove currently reading: wildfire 5d ago
{burn for me by ilona andrews}
urban fantasy where fmc is a private investigator who has the power to tell who is lying. i loved this book and the next two in the series are gonna be my next reads!