Romantasy and new adult: which book to start with

What is romantasy, what is new adult?

Romantasy is a blend of romance and fantasy. The love story matters as much as the magical world: dragons, faeries, courts and wars, with two people finding each other in the middle. You find these books under fantasy and science fiction.

New adult is about main characters of roughly 18 to 25: the first years at university, the first job, the first home of their own. The stories usually take place in the everyday world. These books are under novels and literature.

Both kinds are written for adult readers, and many titles contain explicit scenes. The back cover and the publisher's website often give an age recommendation. For younger readers, look under young adult.

Romantasy: start with these books

• Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros is set at a war college for dragon riders. Z&K publishes the Dutch translation under the English titles: Fourth Wing 1: Fourth Wing, then Fourth Wing 2: Iron Flame and Fourth Wing 3: Onyx Storm. The English edition of Iron Flame is published by Little, Brown.
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas is published in Dutch by Van Goor as Hof van doorns en rozen. Start with book 1; book 2 is Hof van mist en woede (A Court of Mist and Fury).
• Throne of Glass, also by Sarah J. Maas, is published in Dutch by Boekerij as Glazen troon. Book 1 is De glazen troon. The collection The Assassin's Blade (Het mes van de sluipmoordenaar) holds stories set before book 1.
• The Folk of the Air by Holly Black, called Elfhame in Dutch, starts with De wrede prins (The Cruel Prince), also from Boekerij.
• Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout starts at Z&K with Uit bloed en as (From Blood and Ash).
• Fae & Alchemy by Callie Hart starts with Quicksilver, from Boekerij.

New adult: start with these books

• Off Campus by Elle Kennedy follows ice hockey players and students at an American university. Each book centres on a different couple, but the characters come back. In English the series is published by Piatkus, starting with Off Campus 1: The Deal, then The Mistake. In Dutch, Volt publishes Elle Kennedy's books, such as Avalon Bay 1: Anders dan je dacht.
• Colleen Hoover wrote It Ends with Us, which Z&K publishes in Dutch under its English title. The sequel is It Starts with Us.
• Ali Hazelwood writes love stories set at universities and in labs. Her first novel is The Love Hypothesis, published in English by Berkley.

In which order do you read a series?

Read a series in the order of its numbers. The Dutch editions put the number in the title, such as "Hof van doorns en rozen 2" or "Glazen troon 3". In romantasy the story carries on, so reading book 2 without book 1 doesn't work well. In new adult series such as Off Campus, each book stands more on its own, but characters from earlier books come back there too.

If you are unsure about the next book, check the book page: it shows the series and the number.

Dutch or English

Many of these books appear in English first and in Dutch later. Some Dutch editions keep the English title, such as Fourth Wing and It Ends with Us; others get a Dutch title, such as Hof van doorns en rozen for A Court of Thorns and Roses. If you want the original, the English edition is often listed too, such as A Court of Thorns and Roses from Bloomsbury.

Many books are also available as an e-book or an audiobook, such as Quicksilver as an audiobook. The book page shows which editions exist.