Cozy fantasy
Cozy fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy fiction characterized by its focus on comforting, low-stakes narratives set in fantasy worlds. It emphasizes themes of community, friendship, healing, and everyday life, often eschewing violence, war, and other serious conflict typical of high fantasy.
Characteristics
[edit]Cozy fantasy emphasizes hope, kindness, empathy, and community. Relationships, including family, found family, friendship, and healthy romance, are central,[1] and many cozy fantasies have queer protagonists.[2][3] Works in the genre often feature comforting food and drink such as tea and baked goods, and focus on everyday slice-of-life scenes.[1][4] They often take place in a single location, such as a small town, inn, or shop.[1][5] Cozy fantasies typically avoid large-scale conflict, although there is debate over how much conflict disqualifies a story from the category.[4]
Cozy fantasy is a subgenre of the broader cozy fiction genre, which includes related (and sometimes overlapping) genres like cozy mystery.[5]
History
[edit]The label cozy fantasy gained prominence in early 2020, though works with similar qualities predate the term.[1] J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit (1937) and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle (1986) are sometimes described as cozy fantasies, though they were published before the term became popular.[6] Some attribute the genre's rise in popularity to readers and writers seeking escapism during the COVID-19 pandemic.[1][6] The online community BookTok helped establish and popularize the category.[4][6]
Examples
[edit]- A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (2021)[6]
- The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune (2020)[1]
- Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree (2022)[1]
- The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst (2024)[6]
- The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna (2022)[1]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Durst, Sarah Beth (July 19, 2024). "Why So Much Cozy? Thoughts on Jam, Cheese, and the Rise of Cozy Fantasy". Paste Magazine. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
- ^ Lescouët, Emmanuelle (October 9, 2023). De la cozy fantasy au hope punk : vers un ralentissement des littératures de l’imaginaire. Centre de recherche interuniversitaire en sociocritique des textes (in French). Retrieved September 26, 2025.
- ^ "Sur TikTok, les romans "cozy" deviennent un genre littéraire à part entière". La Dépêche (in French). September 6, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
- ^ a b c Nassor, R. (May 2, 2023). "What Counts as Cozy Fantasy?". Book Riot. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
- ^ a b Hatch, Tayan (September 12, 2024). "Ultimate Cozy Fantasy Guide: 5 Books to Start With". Dragonsteel Books. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Mulroy, Clare (August 25, 2024). "Need a happily ever after? Why you should be reading cozy fantasy books". USA Today. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
