What subgenre does [blank] fit into?

Not ever story has a subgenre, and there's nothing wrong with that. Based on this information, it sounds like yours may be just a normal fantasy. Could be Epic Fantasy if the adventure suits it, but if not, just plain fantasy is fine.

Fantasy doesn't have a set way of categorizing subgenres. Even established ones, like urban, or epic, or high vs low fantasy are subject to debate and overlap. In recent years, all manner of variations and "punk" settings have emerged-- flintlock fantasy, gas light fantasy (in a quasi Victorian setting) etc.--as opposed to traditional "sword and sorcery", based on the tech level they emphasize.

What kind of setting does the story have? Is it an alternative world? What is the technology level of the world? If it's set in an alternative world with a pre-industrial tech level? If so, it may just be plain old fantasy.

If it's set in the modern world but doesn't emphasize an urban setting, it could simply be a contemporary fantasy. Are the monsters in hiding within our own world? Maybe it's a wainscot fantasy.

I'd err on the side of simply calling it fantasy or contemporary fantasy if not sure. I had a novel I worked on for a while, and I could never quite place it. It was a pre-industrial fantasy setting, in a sort of early-modern era, but it wasn't really "flintlock" because the pistols were mostly in the background. It wasn't quite broad and sweeping enough to be epic, too gritty to be "high" fantasy, and not gritty/pessimistic enough to be grimdark, and too much magic to be "low" fantasy, and while there was a romance between the main characters, it wasn't just centered on that, so it wasn't really a fantasy romance either, and while class issues and fitting into a foreign society were factors, I'm not sure it would count as a manners fantasy either (it certainly wasn't a Jane Austin type of story with magic).

The book never got representation, and I eventually set it aside, and I'll never know how much of the issue was the story and characters versus issues with the setting and world building or maybe it just not being the right "kind" of story for the current market.

Seems like books in almost every kind of setting are being published in fantasy these days, so I wouldn't worry too much about exact subgenre.

I could be wrong, but I feel like sub-genre is something for the publisher to determine. It’s more marketing than anything else, after all. So unless the author is self-pubbing, I don’t think it’s something for them to lose sleep over. Actually, for most authors it seems more beneficial to be broad in their genre-categorization, since if they get it wrong, it can needlessly turn off potential agents/publishers. Unless a certain sub genre is particularly hot, why risk pigeonholing your book?

To the OP, I also can’t say what sub genre I’d use for that set up. Could easily be epic fantasy, adventure fantasy, maybe sword and sorcery? It could be none of those! I’d err on the side of caution and just call it fantasy and let the marketing peeps sort out the rest.

PyriteFool said:

I could be wrong, but I feel like sub-genre is something for the publisher to determine.

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Here's Liz's Patented Reminder that the above is true except when it's not, and you really want to know your sub-genre before you get to a publisher, because even though publishers rarely get it wrong, you're going to need to push back hard if they do.

To the OP: I don't think fantasy is as sensitive to subgenre as SF, but you should probably do your due diligence and go digging for similar stuff anyway.

I've seen some agents and publishers ask for examples of books similar to the ones you are offering them (recently published is expected, rather than saying "Tolkein"). Or you may be asked for a tag like Hamish McBeth meets Star Wars (to pick a silly example). But ideally it would be a combo of two books that are very successful - and recently published.
Not all agents and publishers ask for that, but some do.

Genre and sub-genre are marketing categories, and it's easier to market your book if it matches up to certain tropes that fit a sub-genre. Setting may be less important than tropes, though of course the setting itself may be a trope.