8 Essential Lesbian Books You Have to Read
Happy lesbian day of visibility! I have compiled 8 of the best books with lesbian characters for you to enjoy. Happy reading!
It’s lesbian visibility week! This runs from 4/21-4/27 every year, so mark your calendars. And specifically, today, 4/26 is Lesbian Day of Visibility, so go lesbians! We are the best!! Holiday aside, of course, we should be actively reading lesbian books, really all the time. Sapphic books in general, but lesbian books specifically, are so overlooked in the media and book world. And if they are mentioned, it’s always the same few romances and fantasies. So we are breaking that mold and getting out of our reading comfort zones. Below, I compiled a list of essential titles and absolute must-reads. My credentials are being a lesbian and reading over 300 sapphic books. So I am qualified to give you a few suggestions. These books are also severely under hyped; a few are popular, but still not as much as they should be. And others I’ve never seen mentioned in my three years doing bookish social media. So let’s get into it!
Fantasy
The Burning Kingdom Trilogy by Tasha Suri
Is this cheating by including a trilogy as one title? Yes, but I don’t care, and it’s my list, so it’s fine. These books are well known within the sapphic book community as one of the best fantasy trilogies ever. What is unique about them is their ability to keep you enticed while delivering the most beautiful prose and complex characters. For the fantasy genre, it has the type of characterization you would see in literary fiction, which allows the reader to become thoroughly invested in their adventures. The books follow a handful of main characters on their journeys to save their kingdoms and overthrow patriarchal dictators. Each book has a villain/challenge to overcome, which builds until the climax in The Lotus Empire. The two main characters never explicitly mention the word “lesbian,” but they are lesbians in every other sense of the word. Their relationship will make you cry and kick your feet, sometimes on the same page. Not to mention, the world-building is fantastic, and you get acclimated fairly quickly. They are each over 500 pages, so once you start, you’re in it for the long haul. But they are worth the emotional anguish and eye strain you’ll experience.
Afterlove by Tanya Byrne
This book is a contemporary/fantasy mix, but since it does have fantastical elements, I am sticking it in fantasy. Read this book with caution if you are dealing with grief because it will make you cry. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about this title. It is young adult, but the themes, plot, and characters don’t feel juvenile. Without spoiling anything, the main character is in the throes of her first real love when she passes away in an accident. From there, she becomes a Grim Reaper to help people cross over, but never stops thinking about the love she left behind. Then one day her girlfriend recognizes her, but that’s impossible because the only people who can see the Grim Reaper are those who are about to die. Is she the exception, or is something more sinister looming? It is tragic, heartwarming, and strangely nostalgic. The first quarter lulls you into false safety because you get caught up watching them fall in love. And even when the tragedy strikes, you know it’s coming, which almost makes it worse because part of you hoped everything would work out. But then the ending is so bittersweet and will stick in your brain forever. This comes at such a high recommendation.
Horror
Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
I had to include at least one horror, and this is a horror/sci-fi mix, so it’s not super gory or scary. This is a palatable horror with a main character you will root for from the beginning. The first scene is one of the more visceral ones in the book, but it sets you up for such an emotional journey that I promise will pay off. It’s about a main character who escapes a cult while pregnant and then has to survive with her children while also making sure the cult doesn’t find her. It is a full-blown body horror with a few ooey gooey moments as the main character goes through their transformation. But the family she makes along the way is so sweet and heartwarming. The secrets she uncovers about the cult are insane as well and go far deeper than you can imagine. Not to mention how it all ties together at the end is mind-blowing. From the brainwashing to emotional trials the main character is forced to endure, it will stick with you for a long time. It is so much more than a horror book, and although the main character, again, never explicitly says “lesbian,” it is very much implied in her actions and emotions. I highly recommend this author, and this book is a great starting point.
Romance
Zoe Brennan, First Crush by Laura Piper Lee
This new release, as of January 2025, is a fresh take on the childhood crush trope. The main character begins the book by having a blindfolded threesome with her ex and only gets wilder from there. Besides the first scene, this is a slow burn and a great workplace/forced proximity romance with a hint of enemies/frenemies to lovers. Oh, and there is masc lesbian representation, which we love! It takes place on a vineyard in rural Georgia with a very queer cast of supporting characters. However, the vineyard is at risk of closing due to the other vineyard in town, run by her ex-best friend, whose life goal is to ruin the MC’s. Just when things couldn’t get messier, though, her childhood crush comes back to town, the older sister of her aforementioned ex-friend and the MC's gay awakening. It is full of awkward moments, sexual tension, and even a runaway goat. Also, the main character is someone you want to root for, and you become so invested in the future of the vineyard. If you’re into spicy romances with emotional depth, then I highly recommend this new read.
Outdrawn by Deanna Grey
Another newer release in the romance world, this book is rivals-to-lovers at its finest. Featuring a dual pov, where both the MCs are animators/cartoonists working at the same company. However, one is a jaded, unfriendly veteran, and the other is a fresh-faced ingenue with nowhere to go but up. The issue, though? They have hated each other since they met in college. Not to mention, they're stuck being co-creators on a huge project they both thought was going to be their solo moment. What a thrill! There is so much going for this book: the sex is spicy, the tension is high, and the rivals are rivaling. Not to mention, it digs deep regarding sexism, racism, and homophobia in the comic world. Their falling for each other is sweet, and they are such different characters despite having a large part of their lives in common, which keeps things interesting. If you are going to listen to the audiobook, though, be warned, one of the voices for the MCs is wonky and definitely will take you out of it. So, for this book only, I recommend the print/digital version over the audio.
Literary/Contemporary
Nevada by Imogen Binnie
This is a book for the weirdos! The main character is a trans woman living in New York who has fallen out of love with life. She doesn’t care about her girlfriend, job, and even keeps missing doses of estrogen. So she up and leaves. Going on a cross-country road trip to Nevada with her ex’s stolen car. This is such a wild book, but not in the way you would think at all. The book doesn’t focus on external influences or factors but, instead, on the main character’s internal experiences and emotions. And the last quarter is from the perspective of someone questioning if they are trans, who the other main character meets in Nevada, which does a great job of breaking up the book. But this never goes where you expect it to, and is such an introspective journey. It’s like an anti-coming-of-age book for anyone going through an early life crisis. And I mean that in the best of ways. If you need to get away from life for a bit, I recommend this book.
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them by Junauda Petrus
This book will wreck you emotionally, but you are obligated to read it. The story follows two main characters, one, who is forced to move in with her dad in America after her mom finds her with another girl. And the other, who is having mysterious medical symptoms she can’t explain away. As the two become friends and more, the book takes a shift for the sad but also magical. This is classified as contemporary and magical realism, which makes sense given the ending. There are themes of racism, homophobia, friendship, young love, grief, and the unjust prison system. This is another book I genuinely think about every day because it burrowed into my soul. It also has great vegan representation, which I seldom see in literature, so that was a great bonus. And yes, the characters are in high school, but what they are dealing with resonates at any age, so don’t let the young adult classification deter you from this life-changing novel. I recommend it to every single person alive.
The Skin and Its Girl by Sarah Cypher
This is a beautiful and lyrical novel that nobody ever talks about. This is the book I have read most recently, and knew immediately after finishing that it would make this list. It is non-linear and through the main character’s point of view, even before they’re born. It is also told in second person, where the main character talks to their, now passed great aunt about a problem. Although it is through one viewpoint, multiple scenes are told with the memories and emotions of the character the scene is focused on, so it does feel multi-POV. The majority of the book is about the main character growing up in a blended, multi-generational American-Palestinian family. But it also shows the experiences of her mother’s childhood in America and her, grandma, and great aunt while they were living in Palestine. The main point of contention, though, is that the baby is born blue. And although a lot of the book focuses on the relationship between the child and the grand aunt, it discusses many other topics while touching on a multitude of themes, such as racism, family obligations, generational trauma, mental illness, motherhood, poverty, sexism, homophobia, lavender marriages, zionism, genocide, and ethnic cleansing. This is a coming-of-age novel, but also an adult novel, and contains poetic-like prose. This book is for anyone who has ever felt different or faced a difficult decision in their life…so everyone!
I hope you enjoyed and added a few titles to your TBR. I can’t recommend any of these enough, and I so badly want to pick a favorite to promote, but I can’t because they all have such different strengths. I tried to include something for any reader, so whatever you like, you can find it here. Make sure to drop your essential lesbian reads down below so we can spread the good word. And happy visibility day to all my lesbians!! I see you and you are doing amazing, keep it up! And to all my non lesbians, go give a lesbian $20, I promise we deserve it. Thank you so much for reading and investing in yourself by diversifying your TBR!
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