Gone are the days where someone would be able to describe a story as a ‘romance’ book, and people instantly know what they were going to get. Today there are a number of romance subgenres and tropes, each which brings different elements to a story, and allows readers to decide the type of romance they want to read.
Here is a list showing the different types of romance novels and what each subgenre entails.
Black Romance
In these books, both of the lead characters are of Black descent. This can be any type of Black person, for example Caribbean, African, English Caribbean etc.
That said, if you look on the Kindle store, most popular stories are based around African American characters.
While contemporary black romances are popular, a popular trope in this subgenre is hood romances.
Christian Romance
God and Christianity is usually at the center of these books. One or both of the characters are usually church goers, or work in a church.
Typically, Christian romance books are ‘clean’, so don’t have any love scenes, swearing, or anything else not suitable for teenagers. That said, there are some which show things of a more adult nature. These stories usually have a warning attached to them, as many people interested in Christian romances only want them clean.
Clean Romance
Romance stories suitable for a younger audience (teens) and those who don’t want to read adult natured scenes in their stories. They don’t include any swearing or graphic love scenes.
You’ll want to be careful with some clean romances though, as different authors sometimes have different opinions of what ‘clean’ is. Some won’t have love scenes, but may have themes which aren’t suitable for younger readers, such as violence or drinking.
If you decide to write in this genre, I’d personally stay away from all of these themes to keep the reader happy.
Contemporary Romance
A romance book set around the time it was written. For example, a book being written in the 2010s will be set in the 2010s. Contemporary stories are based on realistic situations too, so no science fiction.
If there’s no other notable subgenre or trope in a story, it’s usually classified as contemporary by default.
Dark Romance
Dark romances can take many forms, but they basically cover things too taboo for traditional romance books. For example, these stories could have excessive violence, have things done to characters against their will, or generally have emotionally unstable characters.
Dark romances normally don’t have a HEA – a Happily Ever After. They’re certainly not for everyone, but due to a lot of hype being made about them on TikTok, their popularity has certainly skyrocketed.
Historical Romance
Historical romances are exactly what they sound like: romances that take part some time in the past. As there’s a lot of past to play with, these kind of romances can take place in various eras.
Think of any big time period. Medieval. Tudor. Victorian. There are historical romances around all of these and more.
Interracial Romance
Interracial romance books involve love interests that are different races to each other. Any combination of different races automatically falls into this subgenre of romance.
One example is BWWM romances, which stands for Black Women White Men. You could also have Asian man White woman, Arab woman Black man, and the like.
Paranormal Romance
Paranormal romances are one of the most ‘out there’ subgenres of romance. They can feature supernatural beings and supernatural worlds; generally things you wouldn’t find in real life.
Expect to find main characters that are vampires, werewolf shifters, ghosts, other types of shifters (dragon, bear, tiger etc), and the like. Mythical creatures may also make an appearance.
Paranormal romances have been around a long time, just think Beauty And The Beast, or the film Ghost. But films like Twilight really made reading these kinds of romance books popular.
Romantasy
The word romantasy is a combination of two different genres:
- Romance.
- Fantasy.
These books are very similar to paranormal romances, as they also feature supernatural elements. Authors who write romantasy however tend to focus more on the fantasy side of the plot than paranormal authors though, often having their main characters going on a quest, or revolve the plot around a magical item or place.
Science Fiction Romance
Science fiction, or sci-fi, is an exciting genre where anything goes. Stories can be as varied as traveling across time, being in different dimensions, encountering beings from other planets, using advanced technology, and anything else your mind can imagine.
Add a romance element to that and you have the science fiction romance subgenre.
A popular trope in sci-fi romance books is a human falling in love with an alien. As you can imagine, things don’t always go as smoothly as they’d like.
Superhero Romance
Superhero romance books involve people with superpowers. It can either be one or both of the main love interests with powers, or it can be that they live in a world where superpowers exist.
The most common variation you’ll come across is the male lead having powers, and the female main character being human.
Typically, main hurdles include thwarting a scheme from a super villain, or stopping a world ending event. That said, many indie authors in this subgenre are being more creative and straying away from the traditional plots.
Thriller Romance
If you want more excitement in your romance stories, you may want to add a thriller element.
As the name suggests, these stories revolve around both a romantic relationship, and some core thrilling event. For example, maybe the female main character is being framed for a crime she didn’t commit, and the couple are on the run while they try to clear her name. Or the female and male main characters need to escape a dangerous situation with their lives intact.
Urban Romance
Urban romances usually take place in a specific area or city, often one that’s lower income. While it doesn’t have to be, many of these stories revolve around a largely Black cast.
You’ll often see a lot of street culture in these stories. For example, dance, gang violence, substance selling and misuse, and the like. As you may have guessed, most urban romances aren’t made for a younger audience.
Young Adult Romance
Romances in the young adult subgenre are not only written with teens in mind, but they also star teens as the main characters of the stories.
Also known as YA romances for short, these stories are made relatable to their teen audience. For example, a young adult romance may focus on a high school crush, having a first kiss, complex relationships with parents and the like.
Unlike most other romance subgenres though, graphic love scenes are usually not present in YA romance books.
Further Breaking Down Subgenres Of Romance
But it doesn’t stop at romance subgenres. Romance stories can further be broken down by adding tropes, and that’s where things get really varied! You can see popular romance tropes here. Or, you can read the difference between genres, subgenres and tropes here.