Book Review: Bromantasy by Máire Roche
Official Synopsis: Fellas, is it gay to kiss your bff while on a quest through the forest you’re unqualified for? Move over, romantasy. It’s time for bromantasy to have its moment.
Juniper Reilly is good at only two things: demolishing a pint of mead and finding the perfect skincare routine. Oh, and getting in brawls at the local tavern, backed by his roommate, the absurdly capable, endlessly patient Morn Elmthorn (Mo, for short).
But when Juniper accidentally volunteers them both for a quest to kill a fearsome monster, he knows he’s finally gotten in over his head. Juniper hates camping, he hates the dark, and there’s no way all these foraged mushrooms are going to sit well in his stomach. One thing he doesn’t hate? How good Mo’s thighs look in his questing pants—though that’s worrying for an entirely different reason.
But monsters come in all shapes and sizes. When the brave, totally 100% platonic bros realize the “fearsome monster” is actually just a scared little girl, they’ll begin to wonder who the real villain is… and if Juniper and Mo can find their own happy ending along the way.
This book follows two idiots who might be in love but definitely haven't talked about it who are now on a quest that they definitely aren't qualified for. A quest they are forced to go on because one of them decided to fight someone in a tavern, simply because he hates the person's face. Now, Juniper and Mo are sent out to the wilderness to find a dragon who has been terrorizing other towns in the kingdom. But they are on their own, with other groups of much more qualified people working on the same goal, one group including one of the prices. When they end up stumbling in the way of the prince, who is determined to get the dragon out of his kingdom, they find themselves fighting on two different quests, trying to save Juniper's name, while also keeping the young dragon-shifter girl they found safe from the royalty who wants to abuse her.
One of my favorite parts about this book is that Juniper and Mo are just 'roommates' who definitely have a whole house and farm they've built together and definitely aren't in love with each other...nope...never. They have separate bedrooms! So there are obviously no feelings right? But during the quest, when it feels like Juniper can't make the right choice to save the life, he starts to realize that he has very real, very strong feelings for his best friend, and when it comes down to helping Mo and completing the quest, Juniper is torn. That is until the prince tries to use Juniper for his own success and now Mo is even more determined to keep the little dragon girl safe.
This book is a funny, silly ride through and through, with just enough stakes to get invested but overall just about two dudes who are trying to save a little girl that oddly has their hair and eye color... I liked the references to other parts of fantasy while it not being too overwhelming. (Also the slights towards tyrannically governments). I think this book is a fun, sweet read where you do kind of know how it is going to end but you are okay with that. Like many of their books, everyone in this story is a little bit queer and we love that.
Overall, Márie is a great writer, but I do think I like their darker stories a little bit more. I am excited to see how the explore other genres and stories with more releases in the next few months!
I rated this book 3.5 out of 5 stars!
Bromantasy comes out May 26, 2026!
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