Romantasy book club helping rural readers connect

Getting lost in the world of dragons, faeries and demons is not the only benefit to being part of a new romantasy book club, according to avid readers.

The genre - combining romance with fantasy - has boomed in popularity in recent years, largely thanks to the #BookTok trend on the social media platform TikTok.

While fans connected online over their love of authors like Sarah J Maas and Rebecca Yarros, some Suffolk readers have started to meet in person.

Lauren Emms, 27, from Bacton, set up The Bury Romance and Romantasy Book Club, and attendees said it had helped them meet new friends in rural areas.

She has always been into reading, and said she was "the kid that sat in the corner at parties and read their book".

Last September, she set up a book-themed Instagram account, known as a Bookstagram, which helped her meet people locally.

Inspired by this, she decided to launch her own book club specifically for romance and romantasy books.

"I thought, 'Why not do it?'," she told the BBC.

"So I spent about a month emailing loads of different venues like cafes and things like that."

She got talking to Whiting's Bar in Bury St Edmunds, who were more than willing to host the club once a month and even create bookish cocktails.

"I decided that would be a really good venue, and then created an Instagram page for the book club, and it just blew up," she continued.

"Within two days, it had over 150 people following."

The group meets once a month, and it is completely free.

Members pick a book to read for each session before discussing it. The most recent was Blood Bound, a romantasy involving witches and dragon riders.

The group's creator said in a rural county like Suffolk, the club has helped many attendees meet new people.

"I did notice on the first book club, one of the girls was really shy, very quiet," she said.

"She did text me beforehand and said she was a bit nervous because it's out of her comfort zone, but she still came. By the end of the night, she was really having a laugh with all of us and really talking.

"I thought that was really good, and I think the girls... they've all made friendships with each other already, and we've only been going for three months.

"To see how we were on the first night, being strangers to now being really good friends, I just think it's lovely."

Belinda Hart, 50, from Bury St Edmunds, is part of the club and got into reading as an adult.

She discovered the club on Instagram and attended the first meetup.

"I was quite nervous about going, especially going on my own... but I'm so glad I did it," she said.

"They're such a lovely bunch with such nice varied ages as well."

She added: "I probably am the oldest one, but I don't feel it. There doesn't feel like a huge divide in the ages, it's just a lovely balance and a lovely bunch of people."

She felt it was important for people to get out following the Covid-19 pandemic, which "really affected a lot of people's social anxiety".

"Being able to go somewhere and actually meet people, even if it is only once a month, I think that's something quite major, especially if you've got that common interest," she added.

Holly Spivey, 35, also from Bury St Edmunds, attends the group events.

"One day [Lauren] pitched me the idea of starting a book club specifically for romance/romantasy, and I thought it was a fantastic idea," she explained.

"Combining Lauren's creative flair and social media presence, I knew it would be a hit."

She said the club had become a "fantastic way to meet new people", especially for her as a single mother.

"I'm in a demographic that can find themselves in a monotonous, stressful and sometimes lonely situation, where mental health can really suffer," she continued.

"Clubs like this not only break up the day-to-day with relationships made in the club but connect you to like-minded people and help support our town's local businesses."

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