Take a moment to think of two genres that are complete opposites. Are you thinking of urban fiction and fantasy? What about science fiction and cozy mysteries? Or, maybe, you’re thinking of horror and romance? What could be more different than books written to scare your pants off and books written to make your heart feel warm and fuzzy?Would you be surprised if I told you they weren’t that different after all?
I’ve been on a bit of a romance kick recently. They make for effective palette cleansers between atmospheric gothic horrors and science-intensive cosmic monster stories. There’s nothing like a gooey romance to get me ready for the next horrorfest. Reading all this romance and horror, though, has brought me to one conclusion: the two genres are basically the same. They have obvious differences, of course, but they’re far more similar than first glance would imply.
The Similarities
Tropes, subgenres, and fusions
Tropes are common patterns and scenarios found within a genre; they’re often what readers look for first to determine if a book will be entertaining.
- Romance tropes: enemies to lovers; second chances; fake relationships; holiday romances; forced proximity; office romances; arranged marriages
- Horror tropes: summer camps; haunted houses; cryptids; demonic possessions; nature getting revenge
Subgenres are niche stories that fall under the genre umbrella.
- Romance subgenres: paranormal romance; historical romance; romcom stories; dark romance
- Horror subgenres: gothic horror; folk horror; supernatural horror; Lovecraftian horror; slasher horror
Fusions are when authors blend two genres into one story.
- Romance fusions: romantasy (romantic fantasy)
- Horror fusions: space horror (science fiction and horror)
Every reader of romance and horror has their favorite tropes, subgenres, and fusions.
Personally, I enjoy arranged marriage tropes in historical romances and summer camp slashers.
Familiar plot flow
A common criticism of both the horror and romance genres is that they’re predictable.
That’s fair; these genres can be predictable, but that’s also what attracts readers to them.
Romance tends to go a little like this: 
- Introduce the main character and establish their normal life pattern
- Introduce a love interest
- Create a situation that requires the characters to work or spend time together
- Feelings grow
- Create a third-act conflict or breakup
- The characters get back together stronger than before
- Happy ending
Horror can be a bit gorier, but has similar beats:
- Introduce the main character and establish their normal life pattern
- Introduce the horror scenario/monster (character may or may not believe at first) and allies who know about the horror/monster
- Character discovers the first victim or witnesses the first kill
- More death and body discoveries (character definitely believes by now)
- Character learns about what created the killer/monster/ghost/demon
- Final confrontation
- Happy ending....for now?
While some books will subvert these conventions, plenty of readers are happy to indulge in the same beats book after book after book.
Personally, I find it reassuring and relaxing to have an idea of how the story will flow. Knowing the conventions also makes noticing an author's individual quirks easier.
Readers living vicariously through the story
If you’ve ever felt lonely or simply consider yourself a hopeless romantic, you’ve probably read a romance or watched a rom-com to live vicariously through the main character.
Romance in books is easy. Happy endings are guaranteed, the characters always overcome problems, and readers can find their own ideal partner within the pages.
Even if you’re not into the particularly ooey-gooey type romances, the growing subgenre of Dark Romance probably has you covered. Here there be toxic relationships galore, male leads you’d never want to encounter in real life, and more guilty pleasure material than you know what to do with.
On the flip side, horror is ripe with potential for those who like to imagine how they’d survive a zombie apocalypse or stop a bank robbery. We’ve all shouted at characters in horror movies for being stupid, and reading offers the same experience.
Romance might satisfy the itch for a sweet love story, but horror satisfies the itch for a shot of adrenaline without the bungee cords. We read horror to imagine surviving slashers and escaping haunted houses. Each reader can find a book with the perfect bogeyman for them.
On a sidenote, the phenomenon of using horror as a safe way of experiencing traumatic situations is well-known. If you’re interested in understanding the science behind people watching horror movies, I suggest Nightmare Fuel by Nina Nesseth. It's a fascinating, well-written exploration of what happens to our brains when we watch horror movies.
Often misunderstood
It’s easy to dismiss romance books as mindless fluff and horror books as mindless gore. The books face the same criticisms as their movie counterparts in that regard.
Someone who doesn’t read these genres might not understand that romance can explore interesting dynamics between the characters, both romantic and platonic. It’s easy to miss how horror can explore the societal tensions that influence the monster or killer that terrorizes the main characters.
This is true for any genre, though: mystery is full of Sherlock Holmes and Madam Marple wannabes, fantasy is just dragons and Game of Thrones-esque politics, and science fiction is all spaceships and bug-shaped aliens.
While these are all undeniably popular tropes within each genre, they aren't the end-all, be-all of the genres.
A fan of any of these genres would gladly sit down and talk about all their nuances, especially fans of romance and horror. Hours could be spent discussing how romance books can offer an understanding of the modern dating culture and what different authors/readers wished that culture would be. Plenty of articles and books have been written about the connection between monsters in media and the queer experience of being seen as monstrous and othered.
In fact, these lesser-known, nuanced interpretations of the genres are the entire reason I decided to write this blog.
The Differences
Content
This one is pretty obvious.
When starting a horror or romance book, you know what you’re getting yourself into. Romance will have flirting and kissing and dates no matter the time period or tropes. Horror will have growing tension and a death that kicks off the plot.
Some books will borrow elements from other genres if they’re fusions, such as magic in romantasy books and spacesuits in horror set on other worlds, but the main draw of the content remains the same.
Marketing
Marketing might be the biggest difference between the two, if only because it helps fuel the stereotypes of each genre.
Romance is often marketed towards women. The covers are usually vibrant and, while the art styles have changed in recent years (we've gone from intricate oil painting covers to something you might find on Canva Premium), often showcase the male love interest to entice women interested in that type of man. Summaries on the back tend to make the main character sound like an average woman, someone any reader could project themselves upon and live vicariously through.
Horror, on the other hand, swings in the complete opposite direction. If cozy scenes and vibrant colors are for women, then the spooky, atmospheric covers with fangs and glowing eyes and menacing forest clearings must be meant to target men. Gruesome plot descriptions and the promise of horrific gore in the summary tie a neat, blood-soaked bow on top.
When genres collide
It’s not uncommon to find elements of romance within a horror book, or to find elements of horror within romance (dark romance and edgy romantasy immediately come to mind), but a true blend of the genres isn’t common.
The main example that comes to mind is Someone You Can Build a Nest In, a horror-romance set in a fantasy world. The main character is a blob-monster, sort of, and she falls in love with the daughter of a noble family that’s trying to kill her to break a curse, sort of.
The best way to describe this book is cozy romance horror. Yes, there are deaths and some fantastically described body horror, but it also contains quiet scenes where our main characters simply exist together. It does an excellent job of blending the grotesque with the fluffy and sweet.
Someone You Can Build A Nest in
Which genre is your favorite? Have you sworn off one or the other because it just wasn’t your cup of tea?
If you’re interested in giving a book from either genre a try, here’s a few of my favorites to choose from:
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