The Rec League: Lesbian Romances

The Rec League - heart shaped chocolate resting on the edge of a very old bookWe get this request pretty often, as good lesbian romances can be harder to find than good gay romances.

So we’ve compiled some romance recommendations that feature heroines falling in love with each other!

Redheadedgirl: First Position by Melissa Brayden ( A | BN | K )

Sarah: Have you read her books?

Redheadedgirl: I’ve read that one. I liked it!

Sarah: Please stand by.

I reviewed The Butch and the Beautiful by Kris Ripper ( A | BN | K | AB ), which is part of zir Queers of La Vista series. That one is a f/f romance and I didn’t like that the book I read was so different from the book described on the cover. What I really liked about the characters and the larger community of queers in that series is that they’re all pretty happy. They have problems but they’re not miserable. And the narration of that book is really funny at times.

A lot of the lesbian romance I’ve tried has been contemporary romance. First, I read Pitifully Ugly by Robin Alexander ( A ), and thought it was very light and sweet, though there are some required suspensions of belief that are rather massive to uphold to make the story work.

Rescued Heart
A | BN
I also tried two of Georgia Beers’ books, including one wherein the heroine runs a brewery with her family, and her more recent book, Rescued Heart which takes place in an animal shelter. Her books are mild comedy, very light in tone and are more slice of life than high drama.

Also in comedy is Melissa Brayden, who writes contemporary lesbian romance, most often with a group of friends who get their own happy-ever-afters in successive books. She has a bunch of books out, and many are interconnected.

A reader recommended Tracey Richardson’s By Mutual Consent ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), which is a lesbian romance with a modern take on the marriage of convenience trope. It was published in 2016. Said she, “I liked it a lot, though I had some issues with it that I’d love to discuss in a review, mostly around diversity and sex workers rights.”

Also, for romantic suspense and medical mysteries, Radclyffe has many books. Harper Voyager has a new title that’s lesbian space sci-fi: Dissension by Stacy Berg ( A | BN | K | G | AB ).

Historicals:

Bound with Love
A | BN | K | AB
Bound with Love by Megan Mulry is a recent lesbian historical, though it didn’t 100% work for me – there’s a good amount of angst.

Can’t miss: Sarah Waters’ Victorian-set lesbian romances – Fingersmith ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) was just remade into The Handmaiden and I am still waiting for a theatre near me to list showtimes for it.

In terms of SF/F – Ash by Malinda Lo ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) is a lesbian Cinderella retelling, and is beloved by many readers. The Dark Wife is a lesbian retelling of Persephone and Hades ( A | BN | K | AB ), and I liked that one, too.

New: Gail Carriger’s Romancing the Inventor ( A | BN | K | AB ) – Steampunk lesbians!

What about you? Which lesbian romances have you read and enjoyed? All genres welcome!

Comments are Closed

  1. Gillian B says:

    Ohhh yes I can recommend an author! Bramble Thorn (yes, it’s a pseudonym – disclaimer – author is a close friend) writes wonderfully delicious Lesbian romance.

    A Stringed Instrument” is sweet. “Sleeping with your boss’s daughter at the office Christmas party – what could possibly go wrong? When Yvonne meets Phoebe physical attraction comes easily, but she’s unprepared for the trials of a closeted relationship with a “straight” woman from a conservative family. The consequences are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, often steamy, and always touching.”

    An interesting crossover is “Riddle of the Copper Coin” – “Penny sinks into depression after breaking her ankle and losing her girlfriend. Her housemate Rafi comforts her by telling a story inspired by the 1001 Nights. Rafi narrates the adventures of Adiba, an Arabian heroine who sets out to rescue a kidnapped princess from the City of Jinn armed only with her wits and a pen. As the rescue becomes a courtship, so does Rafi’s story-telling.”

    There’s a few others – not all romance. There’s a bit of horror too. It’s well-written, the characters are not stereotypes (not even the tech support lass), and the stories draw you in. I adore them, but as I said, I’m a little biased.

    You can read the first 25% of A Stringed Instrument for free, and the first 55% of Riddle. I would strongly recommend that you do.

  2. TAM says:

    I enjoyed Dahlia Adler’s Out on Good Behavior- the characters are college undergraduates, so contemporary NA? Not my favorite genre but this book was good (as are the other 2 in the series, featuring straight couples.)

  3. Patricia says:

    I loved Romancing the Inventor!!!!

  4. mel burns says:

    Years ago I read a lesbian sci-fi about a woman who was a bard. I wish I could remember the name of it!

  5. Affreca says:

    For fantasy with lesbian romance, I really enjoyed Heather Rose Jones’s Daughter of Mystery and The Mystic Marriage. The first includes a woman who unexpectedly inherits a fortune and a bodyguard, who becomes her friend and more. The second involves the consequences of the first book for side characters.

  6. RamenGrrl says:

    romantic suspense: Carsen Taite’s Luca Bennett series. SF/F Fletcher Delancey’s Chronicles of Alsea. Historical romance: Jae’s Backwards to Oregon. PNR: Rebekah Weatherspoon’s Vampire trilogy. Contemporary: I second Melissa Brayden! Also, Fiona Zedde, Lynn Galli, & Meghan O’Brien.

  7. Avrelia says:

    I’ve recently read The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna van Praag. It’s not exactly a romance by itself, more like magical realism/urban fantasy story about several women, but it has a lovely lesbian romance among the plot thread.

  8. I liked Karelia Stetz-Waters’s Something True. It’s a contemporary lesbian romance in her Out In Portland series. There’s at least one more in the series (also f/f) but I haven’t read it yet.

  9. Oh! And if secondary romances are ok, Courtney Milan’s The Suffragette Scandal is a historical with a lesbian secondary romance. It is, of course, excellent. 🙂

  10. Cathy says:

    Looking forward to Gail Carriger’s Romancing the Inventor. Very much enjoyed The Dark Wife and Daughter of Mystery. Fingersmith has to be my all-time favorite though, and can’t wait to see The Handmaiden.

    Michelle Osgood’s Better to Kiss You With is a fun paranormal/urban fantasy type about an online game moderator.

    Thanks for the great list of recs!!!

  11. KateB says:

    Something to smile about today, thank you! My recs:

    – All things Melissa Brayden! – My favorites are, “Just Three Words” – friends-to-lovers story, and “How Sweet It Is” – bakery owner moves back to and reconnects with a friend of her sister’s.

    – “Romancing the Inventor” by Gail Carriger – SO GOOD, SO GOOD, SO GOOD

    – “The Spanish Pearl” / “The Crown of Valencia” by Catherine Friend – lesbian “Outlander” in 11th Century Spain

    – “Daughter of Mystery” by Heather Rose Jones – well-written, romance does take awhile. I’m looking forward to reading “The Mystic Marriage”

    – “Santa Olivia” / “Saints Astray” – Jacqueline Carey – urban fantasy where the main character is queer and her romance is with a woman

    – “My Real Children” by Jo Walton – speculative scifi – where you trace one character’s life in two realities. In one, she has a 40 year romance and relationship with a woman. Not a romance, but I loved that it follows their whole relationship

  12. KateB says:

    *where the main character is a queer WOMAN and you trace her relationship with a woman.

    Freakin’ typos

  13. Linda says:

    Affreca got in before me, but DAUGHTER OF MYSTERY AHHHH.

  14. Dreamingintrees says:

    For paranormal with a film noir esque atmosphere, Alexis Hall’s Iron and Shadows series (only two books so far) is a fantastic lesbian vampire romance.

  15. Ren says:

    For something more YA, I really liked Dating Sarah Cooper by Siera Maley.

  16. Tara Scott says:

    I don’t know if it’s okay to share a link to another site on here, but we review lesbian fiction all the time, with a heavy emphasis on romance, at The Lesbian Review. We also regularly do top 10 lists so people can see recommendations by theme.

    If you just want romances: http://www.thelesbianreview.com/romance/

    And these are my favourites (mostly romance and erotic romance): http://www.thelesbianreview.com/taras-favourites/

  17. Lisa says:

    Ran across one unexpectedly in a Regency novella collection: Holly and Hopeful Hearts. Scandalous bi-sexual actress is pregnant and dumped by her lover. A nobleman proposes to her stating that he cannot father children and needs an heir. He’ll take her- scandal, pregnancy, and all. Heroine slowly begins to suspect that there’s more to her betrothed than she thought. (Hero was 1/2 of a pair of fraternal twins. 1 twin died in teens and the other took the twin’s place. … The hero is transgendered. HEA ending).

  18. chacha1 says:

    The Regency novella sounds really different! One-clicked that collection. Also worth noting, apparently the author is donating a % to the Malala Foundation.

  19. cleo says:

    Autostraddle (my fave queer woman blog) sometimes posts about lesbian romance. (I find some of the copy a little defensive about reading romance but ice gotten some good recommendations.

    http://www.autostraddle.com/read-a-fcking-ebook-lesbian-romance-under-5-dollars-190809/

    http://www.autostraddle.com/top-10-lesbian-romance-novels-94685/

  20. cleo says:

    Patience and Sarah by Isobel Miller – historical friends to lovers set in 19th C upstate NY and Connecticut. It came out in the 70s, it was the very first cheerful lesbian book I read when I started coming out in the 90s and it holds pretty well. Plus, for chick in pants fans, this has one of my favorite twists in this trope.

    The belle and the BDOC by Amy Jo Cousins – NA novella set in the 90s.Rivals to lovers where a belle woos a DBOC by beating her at pub quizzes and Assasin.

    I liked The Butch and the Beautiful more than Sarah, so I highly recommend it.

    Coming Home by Lorelie Brown (1/2 of Katie Porter) – new novella about mid 20 somethings. I loved the premise – the protag answers a Craislist ad “looking for an inappropriate date for Thanksgivjng? All I want in return is the meal” in order to cope with her judgemental aunt. I wanted more character development though.

    Treasure by Rebekah Weatherspoon – NA between two college students who meet at straight strip club (one is a stripper and the other is with her sister’s bachelorette party) and then have a computer sci class together.

    Carrie S had reviewed a few f/f over the years, including an SFR series by Cathy Pegeau.

    @Mel Burns – that description tickles my memory. Was it one of the Darkover books by Marion Zimmerman Bradley?

  21. Lisa says:

    I’ve only read a few of the novellas in the anthology but the three I’ve read one had a servant as hero, another had a biracial hero and the other had the transgendered hero I mentioned above. Interesting choice (my only problem is I wish the stories were steamier)

  22. cleo says:

    @Lisa – I can’t tell from your description – is the MC a transgender man or transgender woman?

  23. @mel burns (#4) – I’m guessing you may be remembering Gossamer Axe by Gael Baudino. See if this Goodreads listing rings a bell.

    I’d love to see a regular column here on lesbian romance. (Though I must confess I have a personal stake in the matter.)

  24. Lora says:

    Fingersmith by Sarah Watters! Tipping the Velvet and Paying Guests were also good but Fingersmith is phenomenal. It’s not a contemporary, though, so be aware of that. The BBC adaptation was also excellent, starred Sally Hawkins from Persuasion.

  25. KateB says:

    Oh, @cleo, I loved “Treasure”! And I actually found out about it through the podcast!

  26. mel burns says:

    I’m on a bus with 46 teenagers since 7am.
    @HeatherRoseJones: nope the book I read is sci-fi, the bard travels a planet and her guard becomes her lover. IIRC. But thanks.
    @Cleo:it’s possible, I’ll have to further investigate.Thanks.

  27. John says:

    Rebekah Weatherspoon (mentioned above) also has a contemporary lesbian romance called AT HER FEET.

    It was so good it gave me chills.

    It’s a D/s lesbian romance with Mommy/daughter kink (like Daddy/son in M/M.) It’s a very particular kink but I think anyone into the complex psychological and relational parts of BDSM-based erotic romance should pick this book up. It opens your mind and it’s extreeeeemly amazing and sexy.

  28. Lora says:

    Also, I bought into the hype over Carol and read The Price of Salt and thought it was boring AF. Just my opinion.

  29. Lisa says:

    The hero is a woman who took her brother’s place as the earl. She had always felt she should be a man and has always been attracted to women (though there is sexual naïveté involved) as a teen when her twin brother died she took his place as the Earl and has lived in his identity for 10 years prior to the novella.

    The heroine is an experienced bi-sexual with a preference for women. She’s thrilled with her betrothed when she discovers the truth.

  30. Claire says:

    WOOHOO! Super excited to see all of these recs (and your fantastic comments)!! Thank you for this!

  31. cleo says:

    @lisa – that sounds intriguing! Thanks for mentioning it.

    Based on what you’ve said, (and at the risk of being pedantic) I’d call it an m/f romance with a trans hero rather than an f/f or lesbian romance.

  32. LisaJo885 says:

    HUGE recommendation for “Romancing the Inventor”! I’ve been waiting for Madame LeFoux’s story, and it is so very satisfying. Steampunk Victorian with class differences, a vampire hive (neither of the heroines are vampires) and fabulous clothes. Also, if you are into The Parasol Protectorate series, there are cameos by Lord and Lady Maccon.

  33. qqemokitty says:

    As a woman who loves a woman and a romance addict, I am always on the hunt for lesbian romance. Sadly I dislike almost every one I read. Partly it’s because they’re contemporary, my least fave genre. Partly because most of them are in the first person, which I generally dislike. So when I find one I do like, it’s a magical unicorn.

    Radclyffe’s Fated Love. This is a really classic perfect romance novel it’s one of my favorite contemporaries ever
    Megan O’Brien Battle Scars This was good, super angsty.

    Tipping the velvet is great, haven’t read finger smith yet
    How sweet it is was alright
    I loved the subtle lesbian side romance someone mentioned in the Milan

    Others I tried and either found boring or absolutely hated:
    above all, honor, (no words to describe my hate) radclyffe
    Ash, Melinda lo
    And playing the role of herself
    Dozens of others I can’t bother remembering

    My big problem (and it is a me problem), isthat I love regencies best of all, and gilded age.. And it’s just not easy or believable I guess to write lesbian romance with HEA for those eras.

    God I would happily stab someone for a Dare, Kleypas, Quinn, or Milan level of writing, lesbian romance in regency period.

    In fact writing such a book is my great and secret dream. But I’ve not the skill or the imagination. 🙁

  34. Gillian B says:

    Qqemokitty … working on it…

  35. […] at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, The Rec League: Lesbian Romances […]

  36. Heather S says:

    I love Alex Westmore. I devoured the first book (“The Pirate’s Booty”) in her Plundered Chronicles in a day. Historical pirate lady goodness with a love triangle between our pirate heroine, who has to choose a good-hearted serving wench and a noblewoman. The covers are great, too, which is refreshing. I need to read the other two books post haste.

  37. Heather S says:

    “The Gravity Between Us” by Kristen Zimmer is $0.99 on Amazon. 🙂

  38. Sally says:

    No book recommendations from me but for those waiting for The Handmaiden, I’ll note I was pleasantly surprised to find it more romantic, and the romance more emphasized, than either the book or BBC version of Fingersmith.

  39. GSJ says:

    “Burning Tracks” by Lilah Suzanne. this f/f is the middle book of a trilogy, sandwiched between two m/m focused stories. Lila’s usually known for her humor, but this book is different. It’s about an established couple and the challenges they face. It’s got a tough quality to it and realism that I just loved. Super talented writer, and I’m a big fan of this one.

  40. Pmctigue says:

    Pembroke Park by Michelle Martin

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