Harlequin Romantic Suspense is an imprint of Harlequin Romance, which is an imprint of Harper Collins. We have also reviewed a number of their other imprints previously, including Afterglow Books, Carina Press, Mills & Boon, Love Inspired & Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin Historical, Harlequin Heartwarming, Harlequin Medical Romance, and Harlequin Intrigue. All of the different imprints have clear focuses, and separate submission guidelines, and clear word count guidelines.
Some of the imprints do have some overlap. Before submitting to Harlequin Romantic Suspense I would also review their Love Inspired Suspense and their Harlequin Intrigue imprint, as there is some overlap within these genres. One of these other imprints might be a better fit for your manuscript.
Harlequin Romantic Suspense books are romance-focused stories with a suspense element. Romance is at the core of the story. They particularly want “Relatable main characters falling in love under extraordinary circumstances. Harlequin Romantic Suspense concentrates on the developing love story more than the suspense. Each character should be a force to contend with—complex, strong and smart.”
Because it’s a longer word count for Harlequin, they also want “a wider breadth of story and potential for subplots that speak to the conflicts”
In this imprint they are open to LGBTQIA+ submissions, including all gender and identity pairings.
They say “Classic themes include revenge, characters in jeopardy, family, Westerns, military and law enforcement, morally gray heroes, bodyguards, but we’re excited to receive twists on these as well as entirely new themes. Vivid conflicts are essential.”
They also add that they are open to “A range of sensuality from high to low, as well as romantic and sexual tension.”
They are asking authors to submit the full manuscript alongside “a 3-5 page synopsis describing your story, including plot outline, character development and conflict resolution/ending”.
The publish four books for this imprint every month. You can see what they are currently published in this imprint here.
I also think it’s important to note that in In early 2026 Harlequin France started using AI translators for at least some of the work. You can learn a little more about this here. As far as it is known this has only impacted Harlequin France, but it is still a cause for concern and something to be aware of.
To learn more, and potentially submit, please go here, and scroll down to the Harlequin Romantic Suspense section.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2025 Guide to Manuscript Publishers. She regularly teaches three acclaimed courses on writing and publishing at The Writer’s Workshop at Authors Publish. You can follow her on Facebook here.
