The Stigma of Romantasy Novels.

In all my years, I have never explored the “smut” or “spice” book communities. It was never something that caught my eye. This was until very recently when someone recommended I read a popular romantasy novel called Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. Anyone within the High Fantasy, Dark Academia, or Romance community would know this book thanks to its virality on BookTok.

I have to be honest, I really enjoyed reading it. It was one of the few books where each time I finished one chapter, the beginning of the next chapter would pull me back to continue.

Not only did I love the storyline, the magic system, and the slow burn progression, I also found enjoyment in the spicy moments.

While I can talk all day about how much I hate Dain Aetos, how I admire qualities that make Violet Sorrengail such a headstrong and integrous character, or how I get why many in the community swoon over Xaden Riorson, reading this book got me wondering why I didn’t explore this genre sooner. I have come to realize I might have never gotten to open my eyes to this kind of fiction if it wasn’t for a simple recommendation.

But looking back, my hesitation wasn’t just a personal preference; it was the result of a much larger cultural side-eye. In the thesis, Fantasy, fiction, and feminism: a study of feminists reading romance, Marie Green discusses how many Romantasy readers explicitly reported feelings of shame and felt that romance novels “didn’t count as much” as other books they read. This sentiment causes many readers to actively engage in what Green calls “closeted reading”. This includes relying heavily on e-readers or intentionally distancing themselves from mass-market romance by claiming they read “historical fiction” or “fantasy with a subplot”. Furthermore, the cultural stigma often labels these categories of books as trashy, cheaper, and lacking substance, therefore building an overall negative view compared to other book genres.

Given the 20 years that have passed since the publication of Green’s thesis and her plea for change in the image of the contemporary romance reader, I can say with absolute certainty that good change is happening. Thanks to the popularity of communities such as BookTok, this thriving and growing space has done more to dismantle the historical shame of reading romance in the last couple years.

BookTok turned reading into a highly visual, community-driven hobby. While I know I won’t become the biggest and hypest BookTok connoisseur, I’m really happy to have discovered this thrilling corner of the internet, and I look forward to visiting it regularly.

References

Green, M. (2006) Fantasy, fiction, and feminism: a study of feminists reading romance. University of Saskatchewan.