Whether you’re getting back into the school year or just love the autumn academia vibe, these five academic fantasy romances capture all the best — and worst — parts of being a student. From witches to angels to hidden manuscripts, these academic fantasies have all the excitement of the fantastical worlds they reside in, and all of the tension and steam of a fiery romance. Read on for this writer’s top five favorite academic romances!
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Diana Bishop wants nothing to do with magic, despite her lineage from a line of witches. But when her research draws her deep into the stacks at Oxford’s Bodleian Library where she unknowingly discovers a bewitched manuscript thought to be long-lost, she sets the fantastical underworld ablaze. After a glance and some hasty note-taking, she returns the book to the stacks. But it’s far too late for that. Along with vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, she must grapple with the hordes of daemons, witches, and vampires that swarm the library. Diana has gotten in way over her head. And worse, she’s the only one capable of breaking the spell.
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Baz is roommates with the worst Chosen One in the history of magic, according to himself. And he might be a devious vampire and downright jerk, but he might be right about that one thing. Simon can barely wield a wand, and asking him to do that without setting something on fire? Good luck. His mentor avoids him, his girlfriend dumps him, and there’s a magical imposter pretending to be Simon eating people’s magic. This would all be music to Baz’s ears if he were there. But it’s the beginning of their final year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Baz didn’t show up. What is Simon to do without his infuriating nemesis?
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
Emily Wilde, Cambridge professor and leading expert on faerie studies is a renowned scholar and current author of the world’s first encyclopedia of faeries. But she cannot do people. She’d prefer the company of just about anything inanimate, strange, or non-conversational than anyone she can think of, including the Fair Folk.
So when she arrives in Hrafnsvik to study the Hidden Folk, the most evasive of the faeries, who reside in the forest outside the town, she has no intention of making it a social trip. She’s barely begun to settle in when to her dismay, her charming and ridiculously handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby has already managed to charm the gruff townsfolk, interfere with her research, and throw her plans off their axis — not to mention confuse her beyond belief.
As she gets closer to unlocking the mysteries of the Hidden Ones who lurk in the dark forest, she also picks up the trail of another series of questions. Who is Wendell Bambleby? What does he want? To find out, she must go down a path she’d rather leave untrodden — the path to her own heart.
Seraphim Academy by Elizabeth Briggs
The main character will stop at nothing to find her missing brother. She enrolls in an academy of students who want her dead. She grew up in the human world, and her magic is different from the others. Yes, she’s half demon in a world of half-angels. And no, she’s not going to let that stop her. Her brother vanished without a trance from the academy, and his friends, who happen to be angel royalty, are silent about his disappearance. But she knows they know something. And they’re going to have to try harder if they want to intimidate her out of the academy.
Not to mention the problem of the gorgeous professor who knows her secret, but she knows he’s hiding something as well. The FMC must be sneaky and remember to keep her secrets because if they discover who she is, she wont just get expelled; she’ll be dead.
Zodiac Academy by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
The FMC is a stubborn and impulsive Gemini. But she just found out that she’s also Fae. Not to mention heir to the throne of the Savage King and destined to be the most powerful supernatural in the kingdom of Solaria. And everyone wants her throne. Sent to an academy full of promiscuous Werewolf packs, Vampires who prey on the weaker students, and Sirens who manipulate their way into people’s minds and hearts, she’s got her work cut out for her if she wants to survive.
If she’s going to take out her classmates and keep her throne, she needs to master astrology and her elemental magic. But her biggest challenge comes in the form of the cunning and devastatingly handsome Dragon shifter who wants her throne — and has the best chance of getting it. Not to mention, he has allies. She doesn’t.
Whether you’re looking for a lighthearted YA ghost story romance or a tale of angels and demons with their lives on the line, one of these suggestions is sure to fulfill all your fantastical academic romance dreams.
Looking for more intriguing academic reads? Click here for a list of our favorite dark academia books!
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