Romanceopoly — 2026 Reading Challenge Master Post

Romanceopoly University is where we major in morally questionable love interests and minor in emotional damage. No grades, no deadlines, just vibes, and tackling an aggressively growing TBR. Class starts now.

Links to posts will be added to the below prompts as they are completed.

Core Curriculum:

Registrar’s Office – Read a book by an author you’ve never read before. – Heated Rivalry (Game Changers #2) by Rachel Reid

Crying Room – Read a romance that made (or will make) you cry or emotionally spiral – Can’t Get Enough (Skyland #3) by Kennedy Ryan

Compass Wing – Read a romance book from a genre you don’t typically read (e.g. if you read only contemporary, try paranormal or historical).

Commons – Read a popular romance (from BookTok, Goodreads Choice, bestseller lists, or one trending in your feed).

Romance Hall – Read a book that features a classic romance trope (reader’s choice: enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, fake dating, etc.) – Avenging Angels: Bad Medicine (Avenging Angel #4) by Kristen Ashley

Major: Fantasy Theory

Romantasy + fantasy romance: fae courts, royalty, portals/multiverse chaos, warlords, slow burn tension.

Crownspire Tower – Read a romantasy book with royalty or arranged marriage.

Runehall – Read a fantasy romance with a unique magic system or slow burn.

Thorn Court – Read a romance featuring fae or magical creatures.

Nexus Hall – Read a portal fantasy, multiverse, or space opera romance

Battle & Bond – Read a romance featuring a warrior, warlord, assassin, or protector – Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi

Minor: Paranormal Studies

Vampires, shifters, ghosts, demons, fated mates (fangs/claws/otherworldly energy encouraged).

Lycanthrope Hall – Read a shifter romance.

Crypt Library – Read a vampire romance

Arcane Theory Hall – Read a fated mates romance – Archangel’s Ascension (Guild Hunter #17) by Nalini Singh

Phantom Wing – Read a ghost romance or cursed love story

Infernal Lab – Read a demon romance or one involving magical contracts

Electives:

Dark Psychology – dark romance + gothic tension: obsession, power games, criminals, toxic devotion (affectionately), morally gray chaos : Control Centre – Read a dark romance with an obsessive, “touch her and die” love interest.

Romantic Arts – banter, meet-cutes, fake dating, workplace tension, small towns, second chances: Pinehill House – Read a second-chance romance or small town setting.

Romantic Arts – banter, meet-cutes, fake dating, workplace tension, small towns, second chances: Burnt Toast Cafe – Read a grumpy/sunshine contemporary romance.

Historical Studies – scandal + yearning: dukes, love letters, Highlanders, time travel, rebellious heroines: Courting Conservatory – Read a historical romance involving a duke, forbidden love, or hidden letters.

Historical Studies – scandal + yearning: dukes, love letters, Highlanders, time travel, rebellious heroines: Bastion Hall – Read a historical romance with a wallflower, bluestocking, or rebellious heroine.

Campus Clubs: 

Hearts & Spoons Club: Cozy contemporary romance think grumpy/sunshine, small town, cinnamon roll heroes, lots of comfort reads.

Small Town, Big Feelings: Read a small town romance (bonus if it has festivals, a diner or meddling neighbors)

Softest of Tropes: Read a comfort trope romance (single parent, cinnamon roll, found family, childhood crush)

Spoonful of Spice: Read a cozy or low-angst romance

Bake, Book, Bed: Read a romance involving books, crafts or food (baker, bookshop, knitting)

Nightshade Society: Gothic + paranormal romance with witches, curses, haunted houses, dark academia vibes, spooky slow burns.

Into the Shadows: Read a romance with a monster love interest (gargoyle, kraken, etc)

Supernatural Boarding Pass: Read a paranormal romance set at a school or training academy

Cursed & Claimed: Read a curse-breaking or soul-bound romance

Full Moon Fever: Read a romance that includes the mating heat trope

Secret Stacks: Kindle Unlimited + “hidden gem” romance, think mafia, dark romance, romantic suspense, high-spice recs.

Undercover Gems: Read a Kindle Unlimited book with under 1,000 reviews

Plot Twist Pages: Read a romance with a wild twist or a secret identity

Quietly Feral: Read an indie or self published romance that’s not on a bestseller list

Book Club Rebellion: Read a backlist book that you think deserves more hype, then recommend it to at least one person

Theta Tau Theta (ΤΤΘ): Dark romance + taboo-leaning tropes including all the red flags, morally gray leads, obsessive dynamics, high spice.

Villain Era Required Reading: Read a romance with a villain redemption arc

Do Not Recommend To Your Therapist: Read a spicy or taboo dark romance

That Was Not A Healthy Relationship: Read a romance with toxic dynamics

They Had No Business Being That Hot: Read a romance with a grumpy hero and/or black cat heroine

Quarterly Events: 

Frostbitten Trials: January through March 2026

Ice Gauntlet: Read a paranormal romance where one character harbors a dangerous secret or a hidden power.

Shimmer Clash: Read a fantasy romance featuring a winter setting or ice magic – The Winter King (Weathermages of Mystral #1) by C.L. Wilson

Crimson Brawl: Read a dark or paranormal romance (possessive alphas, morally gray, blood pacts, dangerous love interests)

Velvet Blitz: Read a dark romance (psych thrillers with romance, villain MCs, or mafia/assassin love stories)

Bloom & Brawl Games: April through June 2026

Mirror Power Play: Read a contemporary romance with hockey or figure skating.

Enchanted Brawl: Read a book that uses magical realism or enchantment as a key plot device, especially if it’s dangerous, secretive, or mind-bending.

Time Loop Triple Play: Read a romance that plays with time (past/present dual timelines, time travel, time loops, or memory loss).

Heartstopper Hustle: Read a romance with flowers or nature

Heatwave Cup: July through September 2026

Rift Run: Read a high-stakes romance where characters are running from or chasing something whether it’s a heist, revenge, or a supernatural force.

Cursebreaker Clash: Read a paranormal romance where a curse, prophecy, or supernatural contract complicates the relationship.

Double Faulted Desires: Read a steamy romance where miscommunication, mistaken identity, or rivals make the tension hit unbearable levels.

Enchanted Rally: Read a whimsical fantasy or romantasy that embraces its core aesthetic (think: royaltycore, forestcore, or glam fantasy).

Final Frenze Cup: October through December 2026

Courtship Crossover: Read a genre mashup romance like historical fantasy, paranormal regency, or a dual timeline with supernatural elements.

Full Moon Free Throw: Read a book that features secret societies, ancient curses, or forbidden knowledge.

Breakdown Blitz: Read a romance where one or both leads are struggling emotionally, psychologically, or morally, but still can’t stay away.

Field of Feels: Read a romance where love is the safe space (trauma recovery, found family, or emotional healing arcs welcome)