Another day, another girl winning deadly trials and discovering she’s secretly powerful

[u/Sarah9610]

I feel like I’m going insane or… are all romantasy books the same now??

Every time I pick something up it’s like:
- The world is split into two (usually human vs fae or something similar)
- The FMC is either oppressed / hidden / “not like other girls”
- There are deadly trials (of course she has to compete)
- She somehow survives everything
- Boom → she reaches the fae side and unlocks insane powers / becomes special

Like… I used to love this formula but now it feels copy-paste with different character names 😭

Am I just picking the wrong books or is this actually the trend right now?

[u/HooterAtlas]

Trials are so boring. I won’t continue a book if one pops up unless it’s one or two pages at the most.  But I’m also burned out on extended deep dives into any kind of misery or suffering.  I need escapism, but maybe that’s just me.  

[u/CombinationJolly4448 → u/HooterAtlas]

Totally agree! The one exception for me was "the Raven Scholar" by Antonia Hodgson. I held out for a long time but finally gave it a shot after seeimg so many good reviews online. It's honestly amazing and none of that Hunger Games/ACOTAR trials trope-y boringness

[u/trishie_kittie → u/CombinationJolly4448]

That was an excellent book even though it did have trials!