Romantic Novelists' Association

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The Romantic Novel of the Year Awards

The RNA’s Romantic Novel of the Year Awards are presented annually, recognising and celebrating the very best in romantic fiction.

  • The Fantasy Romantic Novel Award

    For romantic novels with elements where the reader needs to suspend disbelief, including magical realism, fantasy and science fiction.

  • The Romantic Thriller Award

    For stories featuring a substantial thriller, suspense, mystery or crime story, alongside or fully entwined with a romantic story.

  • The Debut Romantic Novel Award

    For the best romantic novel by a first-time author. Entries may represent any aspect of the romantic genre.

    The Winners Archive

    Find out more about the authors who have taken home one of our prestigious trophies in previous years.

    What is romance?

    The Romantic Novelists Association exists to connect, support and champion writers to create their best romantic fiction, as well as championing the genre.

    Our definition of romantic fiction is:

    A love story with a healthy relationship dynamic between the main characters that results in an uplifting, positive resolution. 

    Further clarification is provided below:

    Essential ElementsRelationship elements that mean the work is NOT a romance
    1. Romantic love story (“falling in love”, i.e. not friendships, family, self-love, or any other forms of love)
    2. Integral to the plot i.e. not an add-on or shoehorned in. The romance thread may be the central plot element, or it may be secondary to another main theme or involve secondary characters, but it must be integral. The romance develops as the other plot elements develop.
    3. Uplifting, positive ending (the couple are together and with a realistic chance of staying together) – a HEA (Happy Ever After) or HFN (Happy For Now) ending
    4. Healthy dynamic between the romance characters
    5. Wide range of spice levels
    6. The romance arc usually spans a single book, although this may also span multiple books – e.g. in fantasy/romantasy, or in cosy crime, where recurrent characters gradually develop a romance
    • Toxic obsession
    • Incest
    • Rape
    • Abuse (all forms including physical, psychological, financial)
    • Stalking
    • Non-consensual sex
    • Paedophilia
    • Power imbalance misused
    • Grooming
    • Coercion
    • Glorification of problematic characters (e.g. a hero/heroine who was a Nazi, took part in the massacre at Wounded Knee, was a groomer, is openly racist)