New adult (NA) fiction follows protagonists on the cusp of maturity. Aged 18 to 29, these heroes are older and wiser than their young adult counterparts. They struggle with problems like leaving home for the first time to go to college, entering the job market, and finding their own self-identity. They've stopped looking for a date to prom and started window-shopping for engagement rings. Maybe they even bought one.
Some of the most popular working authors today have helped to expand the popularity of new adult fiction, from Colleen Hoover to Anna Todd. Add in a fantasy twist, and you'll see stories like Jennifer L. Armentrout's From Blood and Ash and A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas.
Here are some of our favorites for anyone looking to devour the next NA romantasy hit.
Dire Bound (The Wolves of Ruin Book 1)
Only the worthy survive the Bonding Trials, and Meryn Cooper doesn't even want to be here. While some train their entire lives to become Bonded, or elite warriors paired with massive direwolves, Meryn is only here because her little sister, Saela, has been kidnapped.
Her fellow recruits are eager for her blood… and so, it seems, is her cold and beautiful teacher, Stark Therion.
Perfect for fans of Fourth Wing and The Hunger Games, Dire Bound kicks off an exciting (and spicy) series full of epic fights and unbreakable bonds.
The Emperor's Arrow
Of all the women eligible to marry legendary emperor Galen, only Evony of Aureline is an Amazzi warrior. Unfortunately, she has no intention of becoming a senile old man's bride. She doesn't realize that Galen is young and the perfect match for her. When she learns the truth, she must decide between love and duty, honor and glory.
A Taste of Honey
Bestselling author N. K. Jemisin calls this Hugo, Nebula, and Locus finalist “a love story as painful as it is complex.” When Aqib, the son of the royal Master of Beasts, falls in love with a handsome soldier of an enemy army, he finds himself swept up in a forbidden gay romance.
At just 166 pages, you can finish this moving story in a single sitting.
Zodiac Academy: The Awakening
Darcy and Tory grew up as ordinary twins in the mortal world. But when they discover that they're actually Fae, they must enter the Kingdom of Solaria to earn their birthright.
The only problem? Their father is the Savage King, and his enemies have it out for them... especially the Dragon shifter who wants their throne. As they enter a magical school for other Fae, where vampires bite regularly bite students and the Werewolf pack has orgies every full moon, they must find their own path.
Quicksilver (Fae & Alchemy Book 1)
When 24-year-old Saeris Fane finds herself face to face with Death himself, she finds herself transported to the land of the Fae. To survive in this land of nightmares, she must make allies—no easy task, as war ravages the world around her. Unknowingly, she binds herself to a handsome Fae warrior with secrets aplenty. He's the only chance Saeris has to go home again, but does he have her best interests at heart?
