I love Valentine’s Day, but it’s undeniable that it’s a hard holiday to escape. Stuffed animals and heart-shaped chocolates hit the stores just days after Christmas. Pictures of gifts and date nights are plastered on your social media feed. The prices of flowers soar; a bouquet was over $30 at a local Target! Even my French class this week was focused on customs surrounding the holiday.
The constant expectations and reminders surrounding Valentine’s Day can be overwhelming, especially if you don’t have a partner. Sometimes you just need an escape from it all, and books make for some of the best escapism around.
The books on this list are mostly YA and fantasy since those books are strongly associated with romance subplots and love triangles. Books without romance can be a hard find, so here are a few prime picks to add to your shelf.
- THIS SAVAGE SONG – VICTORIA schwab
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Victoria Schwab is best known for her novel The Secret Life of Addie LaRue, which became a sensation on TikTok in 2020. But four years prior, Schwab released this hidden gem of a novel.
In this urban fantasy, monsters are as real as man. Kate Harker’s father, mayor of the city, allows monsters to roam free. He orders humans to pay a protection fee in order to remain safe from these beasts. Good-natured August Flynn is one of these monsters. Kate wants to follow in her father’s tyrannical footsteps, while August is sent to keep an eye on Kate. When Kate learns the secret about August, learns about the monster inside, the pair must run away to save their lives. Best of all, there’s absolutely no romance.
- David Mogo, godhunter – SUYI DAVIES OKUNGBOWA
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As a huge fan of fantasy, it’s a shame that I haven’t read this earlier.
This story centers around the titular David Mogo, who is tasked with rescuing gods and half-gods in a futuristic Lagos. He is thrust into a plan to destroy the city when he captures a high god and wizard duo, both of which are hellbent on taking Lagos for themselves. Mogo teams up with another wizard, the god’s sister, and a teenage girl in order to take back Lagos and restore order.
Filled with action, gods, magic, and chaos, not much room is left for romance. There is a small romantic subplot surrounding two side characters, but that pales in comparison to all the urban fantasy action.
- A thousand nights – ek johnston
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As the title suggests, this amazing fantasy is a retelling of the One Thousand and One Arabian Nights. Our protagonist offers herself up to marry Lo-Melkhiin, a king known to kill his wives shortly after the wedding. Each night she tells the king a new story, save for the ending. Lo-Melkhiin spares her in order to hear the ending of the story in the nights that follow, all while she plans for his demise.
A Thousand Nights focuses on community and familial ties, magic, and the ties to the original source material. It’s an excellent pick to see forms of non-romantic love explored.
- The thief of always – clive barker
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The Thief of Always is an interesting story; it was written for children but intended to be read by adults. And this coming-of-age young adult tale is exactly that.
Our protagonist is ten-year-old Harvey Swick, who’s become bored with the typical childhood lifestyle. He suffers from anhedonia (the inability to feel pleasure), the drabness of his school, and the dreary weather is not helping anything. One night, a man named Rictus takes Harvey to the Holiday House, where the four seasons pass in a matter of hours and every evening is a holiday. Harvey’s new life is perfect, but it’s not long before he realizes that this perfection comes with a price.
The main focus of this book is Harvey’s adventures in the Holiday House, leaving little room for romance. It’s a great choice for parents and children alike.
- labyrinth lost – zoraida cordova
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Last but not least on our list is Labyrinth Lost. The fantasy novel surrounds a Bruja (the Spanish term for witch) named Alex, who despises her powerful magic. This distaste culminates in her casting a spell to try to rid herself of the magic, which backfires and causes her family to disappear. Left without anything but her magic and a fellow Bruja named Nova, Alex must venture to the land of the dead to save her family. Her magic may be exactly what she needed after all.
Although there are minor romantic subplots, the book’s main focus is familial ties, discovering your true self, and the cost of magic. Any romance is simply overshadowed.
Romantic love is important otherwise, we wouldn’t have a whole day dedicated to it. But platonic love, communal love, and familial love are just as important. It’s so important for a book to explore other forms of love, and yet these books are still hard to come across. If you’re looking for powerful symbolism, plots, and fantasy, I hope you give these books a read, and I hope you love them as much as I did.