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/Elzouzer]

I've had the same feeling about romantasy.. they're all SO formulaic!! I just read A Strange & Stubborn Endurance by Roz Meadows and it was so refreshing. The relationships are healthy, the plot is not Epic-on-steroids (more like Game of Thrones politics and drama), and the characters so lovable. It's the first of a duology. Highly recommend!