Bad Girl Books, the UK's first permanent romantasy bookshop, opened its doors in Oxford on a Saturday morning, drawing a queue of more than 100 people down Walton Street. Fans traveled from as far as Warrington, arriving before dawn, to celebrate a genre that blends fantasy and romance, often featuring 'enemies-to-lovers' plots, 'fated mates,' and morally ambiguous 'shadow daddies.' The shop's bright pink doors have become a destination for readers who previously found community only online.
From TikTok to a brick-and-mortar store
Founder Starlin Marot, 30, launched the shop after a friend recommended a romantasy book she discovered on TikTok. 'It became my whole personality,' Marot said. She found that mainstream bookshops stocked only popular titles and lacked a space for fans to meet. Last year, she posted a TikTok about a pop-up idea, which garnered 40,000 views and over 1,000 sign-ups in two days. She hosted pop-ups across the UK, maxing out her credit card to buy stock. 'People flew from Ireland, Norway and Italy, bringing empty suitcases to fill with books,' she said. Within six months, she raised £30,000 to open the permanent shop.
Inside the shop: Categories and community
The shop's shelves are organized into categories like 'Monster Smut,' 'Unhinged,' and 'LGBTQ+.' Tote bags and T-shirts bear slogans such as 'I Like My Books Like I Like My Margaritas – Spicy' and 'My Favourite Colour Is Morally Grey.' Customers fill pink shopping baskets with lavishly illustrated editions of Sarah J Maas's A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series, which has sold more than 75 million copies worldwide. Alongside bestsellers, Marot stocks independently published novels and special editions sourced directly from authors. 'I wanted people to discover books they'd never heard of,' she said.
Romantasy's commercial success and stigma
Romantasy has become a publishing powerhouse. Rebecca Yarros's Onyx Storm recorded the biggest opening week for a hardback fiction title in the UK since Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman a decade ago. Despite this, the genre faces stigma. Petra, 26, first in the queue, said people dismiss it as 'just fairy smut.' 'There are good stories, life lessons – it's relatable,' she said. Another customer, Peach, cited sexism: 'Because it's predominantly women who enjoy it, it's not taken seriously.' Marot added, 'People reduce it to spice, but most books have a few explicit chapters in 500 pages. It's a safe space to explore relationships and female pleasure.'
BookTok and the rise of romantasy
TikTok's #BookTok tag has amassed hundreds of billions of views, turning unknown authors into bestsellers. In April, the UK launched its first official #BookTok bestseller list, combining sales with social media data. Calah Singleton, commissioning editor at HarperVoyager and HarperMagpie, said, 'The findability of these books has never been easier.' However, readers insist the appeal goes beyond trends. Cat, a customer in the queue, said, 'There's yearning, longing, love, pure whimsy and magic – and yeah, a bit of smut.'
The genre's audience is predominantly young women, but men are also joining. Jono, 31, who came with his girlfriend, said, 'I've started reading a couple and I'm enjoying them.' Emma, who traveled from Warrington, noted, 'My husband thinks it's just pornography, but it's about much more.' Rebeka Finch, a literary agent at Darley Anderson, said the genre has been diminished because it sits at the intersection of romance and commercial fantasy, which historically struggled for respect. 'Readers now have a forum to celebrate these books without reductive messaging,' she said.
