How Romantasy Seduces Its Readers

On this episode of Critics at Large, Vinson Cunningham, Naomi Fry, and Alexandra Schwartz discuss the perennial appeal of survival stories. They trace the theme of man versus nature from early novels like Daniel Defoe’s “Robinson Crusoe” to new releases like “Heart of the Beast,” ...  Show more

“The Journey,” a five-part audio investigation by Ava Kofman, unravels the mystery of how Guojun Xuan and Silvia Zhang, a wealthy Los Angeles couple, obtained dozens of children through nearly as many surrogates—and exposes a scandal that threatens to undermine the entire surroga ...  Show more

How did love stories about vampires, cowboys, and wealthy dukes become the highest-grossing fiction genre in the world? Zachary Crockett gets swept away.

How did love stories about vampires, cowboys, and wealthy dukes become the highest-grossing fiction genre in the world? Zachary Crockett gets swept away. 

SOURCES:

Elaborate world-building, intricate magical systems, wars and mythologies, and of course, dragons, witches and faeries. In this special edition of “Bookmarked: The Under the Radar Book Club,” we’re diving into one of today’s most popular and best-selling genres taking over boo ...

Sales of romance novels were up in 2022, with a surge of about 52 percent for sales of print copies, according to Publishers Weekly. That's despite an overall dip in book sales last year.Still, there's a longstanding social stigma against romance novels, as they're often written ...  Show more