Read Next ยท Updated June 2026

Books Like ACOTAR

Feyre and Rhysand set a bar most books never reach, which is exactly why the post-ACOTAR hangover is so brutal. These are the lush, court-driven romantasy reads that come closest: slow burns that turn scorching, bargains with a price, and worlds you will not want to leave. Every pick is rated on the 1-5 chilli scale.

Heat scale Sweet Steamy Inferno

From Blood and Ash

Scorching

by Jennifer L. Armentrout ยท Blood and Ash #1

  • Forbidden
  • Guardian romance
  • Chosen one

The single most-recommended ACOTAR read-alike. A chosen maiden forbidden to be touched, the golden guard sworn to protect her, and a love interest who rivals Rhysand for swagger. It only gets spicier from book one on.

House of Earth and Blood

Scorching

by Sarah J. Maas ยท Crescent City #1

  • Urban fantasy
  • Slow burn
  • Found family

More Maas, a fresh flavour: a modern-fantasy city, a half-fae party girl, a brooding fallen angel, and a mystery that wrecks you. The slowest of slow burns with the payoff ACOTAR fans live for.

The Serpent and the Wings of Night

Scorching

by Carissa Broadbent ยท Crowns of Nyaxia #1

  • Vampire court
  • Deadly tournament
  • Slow burn

Vampire courts instead of fae, but the DNA is pure ACOTAR: a sumptuous dark world, a deadly trial, and a slow-burn enemies romance between a human and the rival she cannot stop circling.

Kingdom of the Wicked

Steamy

by Kerri Maniscalco ยท Kingdom of the Wicked #1

  • Witches
  • Devil's bargain
  • Slow burn

A witch hunting her twin's killer strikes a bargain with a wickedly handsome prince of Hell. Sicilian-gothic atmosphere and a deal-with-the-devil romance built on exactly the bargain trope ACOTAR readers adore.

Rhapsodic

Steamy

by Laura Thalassa ยท The Bargainer #1

  • Fae
  • Second chance
  • Bargain

A fae bargainer who appears each time the heroine calls his name, collecting favours across years and stealing her heart along the way. Dark, dreamy, and bargain-driven, it has long been whispered to share ACOTAR's bones.

A Fate Inked in Blood

Steamy

by Danielle L. Jensen ยท Saga of the Unfated #1

  • Norse
  • Fated
  • Court intrigue

Norse mythology, a fated bond, and a heroine whose power makes her a weapon every faction wants. The court politics and slow-burn devotion scratch the ACOTAR itch from a colder, sharper angle.

Throne of Glass

Steamy

by Sarah J. Maas ยท Throne of Glass #1

  • Assassin heroine
  • Slow burn
  • Court intrigue

To live in Maas's wider world a while longer: an assassin-heroine epic that starts lighter on spice and builds into sweeping romance and devastating stakes across eight books.

Finished the TBR? Now you're the protagonist.

Stop reading about other people's slow burns and step into your own. Play a choose-your-own-adventure romantasy where every choice shapes the plot and the romance, or write your own spicy book boyfriend from scratch and bring him to life.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best book to cure an ACOTAR hangover?

From Blood and Ash is the most-recommended next read, followed by The Serpent and the Wings of Night. Both deliver the lush world, slow-burn romance, and spice ACOTAR fans are chasing.

Should I read the rest of Sarah J. Maas first?

Many readers do. House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City) and Throne of Glass are set in connected worlds and scratch the same itch, so finishing Maas's catalogue is a natural step before branching out.

Which of these is the spiciest?

From Blood and Ash, House of Earth and Blood, and The Serpent and the Wings of Night all land around a 4. Kingdom of the Wicked, Rhapsodic, and Throne of Glass sit closer to a 3.

What does the chilli rating mean?

It is the standard romance-reader heat scale, from 1 (sweet, closed-door) to 5 (very explicit, open-door). It rates only how steamy the on-page romance gets, so you can match a book to your taste before you start.

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