Romance is fiction’s top-selling genre. And ‘romantasy’, where romance meets fantasy, has become a literary phenomenon. That’s thanks to the novel we’re discussing today, A Court of Thorns and Roses, and its writer,* *Sarah J Maas. Also known as ACOTAR, this is the first novel in Maas’ five-book series. It tells the story of a human girl who is taken captive in a faerie kingdom, and falls in love with one of its aristocratic lords. Maas’s books have sold more than 38mn copies worldwide — spawning memes, tattoos and immersive fan clubs. What is its appeal, and why has ‘romantasy’ exploded in recent years?
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Madison Darbyshire’s piece, ‘Hot stuff: why readers fall in love with romance novels’ is here: https://on.ft.com/3YiLEQ1)
– A profile of Sara J Maas, by Anna Nicolaou: https://on.ft.com/4deUD9h)
– For more summer reads, check out Laura Battle’s selection of the best summer fiction books here).
– Laura is on X @battlelaura). Madison is @MADarbyshire).
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Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com)
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