There’s something about this request that made me so happy, mainly because I was completely stumped and the requester, Susan, has a very good point:
So many books I read and love celebrate monarchies, all powerful rulers, pack masters, dominant werewolves, vampires, etc. Are there romances, especially paranormals that celebrate consensual government not based on the strongest most powerful man/woman/monster being the ruler?
Ellen: I feel like the entire overall arc of the Psy-Changeling series ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) is about moving from wholly power based government to more collaborative/not solely power based government.
The Others series by Anne Bishop ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ) also involves council based ruling of the paranormal beings and theres sort of an interesting tension of the most powerful beings actually being too inhuman to engage in like…government
Sarah: I was just about to type out what Ellen said – the Psy-Changeling series is about moving from power to collaborative government but I haven’t seen any elections or similar.
What are your suggestions? Let us know below!
OMG this post popping up was a little creepy because I was just thinking about fantasy democracies only an hour ago! One of those moments that feel like a glitch in the matrix haha. But yes, what a great request! I’ve been watching a lot of The Crown lately and thinking about monarchies. A fantasy-setting democracy would be quite cool — think about magic being used to make voting more accessible and smoother to facilitate! What kind of terms do you think long-lived species like the elves and dwarves have? Lots of fascinating and fun worldbuilding to be had there.
This probably doesn’t quite qualify but I’m currently binge-reading Ilona Andrews’ “The Edge” series and the Weird in those has different countries (a reflection of our world), with their respective systems. While the government structures aren’t very developed (at least not up to the point that I’ve reached), I still figured I’d drop a rec since I am immensely enjoying the series.
I think Stephanie Burgis’s Harwood Spellbook series (first one is Snowspelled) might fit the bill—it’s an alternative version of Regency England where the men are magicians and the women are the politicians. (I cannot remember if there’s still a monarch, but regardless, they don’t play a big role.) Anyway, I find the whole series delightful—smart characters, lots of witty banter, and Burgis writes great set-ups with the Fey. I just wish the books were longer!
I think Megan Crane’s Viking dystopian Edge series (EDGE OF OBSESSION, EDGE OF TEMPTATION, EDGE OF CONTROL, EDGE OF POWER, and a collection of novellas titled EDGE OF RUIN) might fit the bill: there is a king, but he can be challenged, and there’s a ruling council. It may not work perfectly, but compared to other parts of the post-sea-level-rise world Crane has created (where a Church-leaders-and-local-kings system exploits and represses the population—especially women), it seems to function for the benefit of all.
Very cool question!
I am blanking on anything that starts with democracy but one comes to mind as focusing on moving toward better representative government:
Auryn Hadley’s Rise of the Illyri (nine book series, reverse harem) represents multiple countries with different forms of government. One long term arc is about fighting for representative government that doesn’t exclude entire races from participation. There is one good monarch but part of what makes him good is that he wants shared power and is actively anti-racist. There is also a council-style government that is corrupted by racism.
I agree about Bishop’s The Others as an fascinating outlier. I don’t know if I’d call it democracy as humans become explicitly excluded from virtually all power after a right wing Humans First movement arises.
I was JUST thinking about this the other day in the context of Alyssa Cole’s new book To Catch a Queen. While I was rooting for the king and queen on paper, in real life I’d probably have been rooting for rabble rousers trying to fight for participation, accountability and transparency.
And romancelandia does love democracy in the real world, so how do we
‘make democracy sexy again?’
Seconding Stephanie Burgis’ Harwood Spellbook series. There’s no monarch but I think the ruling council members come from mostly powerful families and elect the new members internally when somebody leaves/dies. Not sure if that counts as democracy per se but it’s definitely no monarchy. Whenever I read one of the books the scenes unfold like a Ghibli movie in front of my inner eye.
Melinda Salisbury’s Sorrow duology (State of Sorrow & Song of Sorrow) centers around a girl running for election to become Chancellor in a fantasy world that’s dominated by grief. I haven’t read it yet but according to Goodreads there’s a bit of romance in there too (it’s YA though so nothing too steamy).
Lisa Lueddecke’ “A Shiver of Snow and Sky” doesn’t seem to have any kind of government at all or at least it’s never mentioned. It’s set on a Scandinavian inspired island and the people living there have fled from a war and live in small villages that communicate with each other. I think they might be guided by the oldest people in their villages and also the Northern lights change colours when a goddess sends them signals. This is also YA (with a bit of romance) and part of a duology. The sequel “A Storm of Ice and Stars” is kind of a prequel but should be read second to get all the connections.
I agree, most I can think of are just barely on the edges of the request, not flat out democracies. In addition to what’s been mentioned, Ann Aguirre’s Ars Numina still has pack leaders, but they have command structures, and a certain amount of the pack needs to be willing to let them lead, they can change leaders if they have no confidence in the current one. It’s implied that’s a drastic and rare thing though. And there’s a wider political structure as part of a committee handling a negotiated peace agreement between multiple leaders that at least looks like a small step toward a different government
San Andreas shifters – it takes place in that alternate world’s “modern” US, and while there isn’t much mention of democracy as such, there are bureaus and government red tape and other things i associate with post-monarchy styles of governments. Although small groups of 12-50 ish are still ruled by pack leaders within that structure.
I can think of a couple with oligarchies and no central figurehead, but they tend to go against the spirt of the request because they are definitely rule by power, it’s just a powerful committee instead of a powerful single person. (Hidden Legacy series by Ilona Andrews and the Gardner’s Hand series by Felicia Davin)
Kate Elliot’s Crossroads series has a multitude of governments in it, one is somewhat more representative, one is a classic empire, one becomes a military dictatorship. But the main plot isn’t romantic fantasy, it’s epic fantasy that occasionally adds in romantic relationships between people but does not act as A Romance with all that that implies.
Bujold’s Sharing Knife series maybe qualifies. From what I remember, it was a very decentralized state of affairs, and neither of the protagonists come from anything resembling royalty. The problem is that I don’t think it had any formal democracy, but I didn’t finish the series, so…
Molly Harper’s Mystic Bayou paranormal romances (one couple per book) happen in a town full of supernatural where the local government is represented by a sheriff and a mayor, both shifters. Neither guy is super-powerful and the positions aren’t inherited/passed down in families. The sheriff is mainly an all-around laid back happy guy, elected because he cares about the community and gets along with everyone, IIRC.
Shelley Laurentson’s shifter series (most recently the amazing “badgered” trio books) have packs for some types of shifters, but she has so many “I don’t let anyone tell me what to do” characters, both men and women, so it’s totally not the “alpha / king rules” dynamic. All the bear shifter ones are more egalitarian and even the wolf ones aren’t the same type of power=dominance=control as so many paranormal romances are.
More possibilities:
TS Joyce’s paranormal mountain romances about bears/dragons (with a few other types of shifters mixed in), one couple per book
Helen Harper’s Slouch Witch trio (one couple throughout)
Annette Marie’s Guild Codex linked series, especially the one that starts with Three Mages and a Margarita. It’s a druid/mage series, with a voluntary guild structure. Main character is absolutely not powerful magically but through relationships and determination. These are more urban fantasy with romantic relationships built over time than straight paranormal romance, but all her books are on KU, I think, and she’s an autobuy for me.
I think on average paranormal romances with witches are more likely to deliver this, as often governance is around covens rather than packs or vampires, witches can usually switch covens, and coven decisions are more often portrayed as consensual and less hierarchical. (The catch would be they often do seem to coalesce around families.) Not a coincidence that those are less often run by men.
In that vein, you might try Debora Geary’s Modern Witch series, one couple per book.
I would say that Thea Harrison’s “The Elder Races” series fits the request. Each species/race of supernatural being chooses a leader to represent their “demesne” on the Other Council. Some of the novels do focus on the political intrigue and betrayals of the Council members. Highly recommend for paranormal lovers!
I’m re-reading Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn novels right now. I read these so long ago that I don’t remember the details or what happens next at all, but after overthrowing/killing the all powerful ruler in the first book, in the beginning of the second book the new king has set up an Assembly council that sounds like the beginnings of a pretty democratic system of government. Not sure what happens next though.
Milla Vane’s Heart of Blood and Ashes is a mix—Yvenne’s kingdom is a monarchy, but while Maddek is considered the heir apparent to receive the crown when his parents die, the process is more like an election (the warriors of Parsathe have to vote and agree on their ruler—it’s more democratic political dynasty than pure monarchy). There’s also discussion at the end of the book of instituting democratic rule in additional countries including Yvenne’s.
The Diablo Lake/Lost Lake series by Lauren Dane immediately leaps to my mind. The town has an elected mayor. The different factions that live in the town have different leadership dynamics, but I think one is a council that’s elected by that group. I think this might qualify. I really enjoyed reading them and keep hoping Dane writes more.
@Lake I love Annette Marie’s Guild Codex books and also recommend them. They are set in modern day Canada/US where magic is hidden but very real. This is definitely urban fantasy with some romantic elements, not romance. While the setting is definitely within a democratic society,the magics are governed by a group called MagiPol and how those leaders are chosen is left nebulous. They do wield a lot of power, and in the wrong hands things can go terribly wrong (which happens in real life,unfortunately).
I do recommend these books for fun, well-written, engrossing urban fantasy with good world building and exciting stories.
When I drafted my first fantasy novel, I automatically set it in a monarchy. I was “pantsing” during NaNoWriMo and had no idea what I was going to write. By the end, the characters had overthrown the king and started a democracy. The way the story turned out (not what I had expected) made me realize that I’m not a big fan of monarchies in the real world and didn’t want to be writing “happy monarchies” in a fantasy world. The book just came out this month (The Forest Bride), so I was especially excited to see this topic. Can’t wait to check out some of the other non-monarchy fantasies mentioned here.
@Annie Kate, I was thinking about Milla Vane too. There’s certainly kings and queens, but the overarching plotline requires them to collaborate across borders in a situation where they’re equals representing their separate nations and negotiating the terms of their alliance, etc. And agreed on Parsathe – they elect Maddek to “speak for them” but the way they talk about it sounds more like he’s their representative than a king or ruler.
I don’t read PNR but on the sci-fi side, Jessie Mihalik’s Rogue Queen series features a queen who is the democratically elected representative of her people.
The Hidden Legacy series by Ilona Andrews has sort of a mix of systems. There are mentions of local, state, and national governments since it’s our world but with magic. They don’t seem to have drastically changed the U.S. government for the world-building and it’s still a democracy. But within that is the system of magic-using Houses, and they have their own Assembly where the head of each House has one vote and they elect a Speaker. There is an Assembly in each state and a national one. The Houses go to war with each other for money and power, and since they can cause a lot of collateral damage to the public, there are rules in place to allow them to do it without government interference as long as they confine their violence to each other. The way the Houses are set up has some echoes of aristocracy I guess, but I think it’s more like the kind of privilege extremely rich people have everywhere, regardless of what system of government they live under. And there are (some) checks on their behavior through the Assemblies since the Houses as a whole don’t want to risk what they have by letting some insane person cross so many lines that the general populace tries to take their power away.
Emily B Martin has a fantasy trilogy featuring a few neighboring countries, one of which was a democracy before being occupied by a monarchy. The second book, Ashes of Fire, directly deals with this occupied country and their attempt to restore democracy.
This series is fantasy with romantic elements and I think it would fit.
I think you need to read book one, Woodwalker, first though.
Lauren Dane’s GODDESS WITH A BLADE series comes to mind. There is a Vampire Council where all the vampires are responsible for territories. And then there is the Hunter Corporation who are empowered to hunt vampires who get out of control. And the two entities have elaborate by-laws and agreements that get voted on.
The second book, A BLADE TO THE KEEP is a hoot (and my personal favorite of the series) because apparently they have a yearly joint tribunal between the two factions (think a week long retreat at the Marriot, only it is in an ancient castle in Europe) where they have meetings and break-out sessions complete with powerpoints and handouts and they follow Roberts rules of order.
Andrea K Host’s Touchstone series- it’s young/new adult epistolary fantasy with romantic elements. It’s one of my absolute favorite series, I reread almost every year and the 5th book that recently came out follows Cass’s middle aged Mom and her romance.
Cass just graduated high school and accidently walks through a portal on her way home. After a period of trying to survive alone on a strange planet, she’s rescued by super powered “space ninjas” who fight monsters trying to consume reality.
This technologically advanced society is a Meritocracy, where government positions are awarded after Competency exams.
Recovery (Reawakening #3) by Amy Rae Durreson is an m/m fantasy with dragons, selkies and democracy. It’s set in a late medieval / early Renaissance Venice like city and the plot revolves around the election of the duke. It’s quite good but is unfortunately out of print (was pub by Dreamspinner) with projected re-release date of spring 2021.
Elf Defense by Lisa Henry is a completely ridiculous m/m/m satirical fantasy set in an Alpine town that’s nominally run by a duke but turns out to be pretty much a socialist utopia. With sexy, anarchist elves and a couple kind of mean spirited jabs at The Sound of Music. I’d recommend this for anyone who loves the humor in Shrek but thinks it’d be improved with a lot of gay sex.
Robin D Owen’s Celta novels? Premise: generations ago, humans with magic abilities called “flair” sent colonization ships to a new planet. 400 years later, their struggling civilization is led by a series of councils, the Great Council made up of the heads of the 25 founding families (where being a family head is power-based), but then there are councils for lesser nobels and for the commoner classes… each book is about a character finding their fated mate, with some overarching plot points across the series of books about valuing things other than powers (book 2’s hero is a Null who cancels magic) or accepting other religious beliefs.
Ilona Andrew’s Innkeeper Chrinicles- urban fantasy with romantic elements across the series. Dina runs a magic Inn in a small town in Texas that serves as a neutral weigh station for aliens. Within the Inn, Dina is authority with the power to enforce the Inn’s rules. She’s left mostly to her own devices, but answers to a secretive council of innkeepers if she fails at their governing principles (they bump the star rating of her inn up or down). Visitors to her Inn include a werewolf (genetically spliced alien warrior) and a vampire (a predatory strain of human whose planet spanning empire is ruled by ruled a religious and military hegemony)…
I just added a stack of books to my reading list. Thank you all!
I would add the Warprize books by Elizabeth Vaughan. There is a council and a whole system of governing by the Plains people. There is also a monarchy but that’s a side-note. Actually, there is a lot of politikin’ in those books.
Let me start with the first book ISN’T the theme of this thread and that I have still to read the other three in the series but from the synopsis of the last book it seems as if the series WILL turn into the theme of this refs league. And that’s enough for me to put this here since The first book in Elemental Logic series by Laurie J Marks is phenomenal. It centers female relationships fair and square in the center and is a deeply thoughtful fantasy IMO. I have high hopes of it becoming a more democratic like structure by the last book!
Definitely not a democracy because of its setting and purpose, but Kelley Armstrong’s Rockton series comes to mind. Residents agree (consent) to very specific and strict rules, without which their existence would not be possible. Of course, someone always tests the limits and there are repercussions, but it’s a fascinating society. Come for the governing, stay for the romance.
Oops, didn’t read the brief carefully. This isn’t fantasy, sorry.
@Juhi That series is one of my favourites. I was so happy to find the third one. The tension between the occupying force and the local people, the very very different cultures and way of governing that separate the two and even if the occupying army are very hierarchical they are not a monarchy and neither is the system of governing that they have tried to destroy. So even if it isn’t strictly democracy, it is not a feudal system, an oligarchy, or a monarchy. It is more of a military invasion force that cannot go home meets a spiritual, merit based system of gorvernment whose military is comprised of warrior philosophers and a completely different understanding of how the world works.
@LineJM: very very well put. Warrior philosophers indeed!
A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin is set in a British system parallel to the “normal” government, I quite enjoyed that series but she seems to have stopped writing them. Same for the River of London series by Aaronovich. It’s quite common to have something imbedded in “our” world, but both of those involve working in the government in a parallel organization. Sort of similar are the Quarkbeast series by Jasper Fforde.