Romance: Sapphic

By: Kianna Alexander (Author), 2022, Paperback

Two very determined women―in love, at odds, and risking a lot on a second chance.

After years away from home, Summer Graves is back in Austin, Texas, to accept a new teaching position. Of all the changes to the old neighborhood, the most dispiriting one is the slated demolition of the high school her grandmother founded. There’s no way she can let developers destroy her memories and her family legacy. But the challenge stirs memories of another kind.

On the architectural team revitalizing the neighborhood, hometown girl Aiko Holt is all about progress. Then she sees Summer again. Some things never change.

Neither can forget the kiss they shared at their senior-year dance. Neither can back down from her unwavering beliefs about what’s right for the neighborhood.

For now, the only thing Summer and Aiko are willing to give in to is a heat that still burns. But can two women with so much passion―for what once was and what could be―agree to disagree long enough to fall in love?

By: Chencia C. Higgins (Author), 2022, Paperback

A New York Times best romance pick
A Today Show best romance pick from New York Times bestselling author Jasmine Guillory

D’Vaughn and Kris have six weeks to plan their dream wedding.
Their whole relationship is fake.

Instant I Do could be Kris Zavala’s big break. She’s right on the cusp of really making it as an influencer, so a stint on reality TV is the perfect chance to elevate her brand. And $100,000 wouldn’t hurt, either.

D’Vaughn Miller is just trying to break out of her shell. She’s sort of neglected to come out to her mom for years, so a big splashy fake wedding is just the excuse she needs.

All they have to do is convince their friends and family they’re getting married in six weeks. If anyone guesses they’re not for real, they’re out. Selling their chemistry on camera is surprisingly easy, and it’s still there when no one else is watching, which is an unexpected bonus. Winning this competition is going to be a piece of wedding cake.

But each week of the competition brings new challenges, and soon the prize money’s not the only thing at stake. A reality show isn’t the best place to create a solid foundation, and their fake wedding might just derail their relationship before it even starts.

By: Olivia Waite (Author), 2024 ,Paperback

Lydia Wraxhall is on her best behavior every day of the year—except one: the annual Bickerton Christmas Poultry Show. On that day she brushes her birds, sharpens her tongue, and engages in the closest thing the village knows to war.

Harriet Boyne is a soldier’s widow reeling from the worst years of her life. She and her friends have inherited a manor on the village outskirts, and Harriet is looking forward to a quiet holiday far from the anguish of the battlefield.

But a dispute over a flock of loose chickens — a rare local breed, which Lydia thinks could be champions and Harriet thinks could be delicious — draws Harriet into the competition under Lydia’s grudging guidance. Harriet’s frozen heart is thawed by Lydia’s gentleness, and lonely Lydia blossoms under Harriet’s keen regard. But the day of the poultry show is fast approaching, and everyone’s drawing up battle lines. And in the contest between secret love and public glory, there can only be one winner.

By: Elizabeth Broadbent (Author), 2024, Hardcover

Sometimes, you just pick your poison and pray.

Bisexual stripper Emmy has lived her whole life in a small Southern town with a few rules: Listen to your mama; don't kiss girls; and stay the hell out of the swamp. Sick of all three, she sneaks under the dark tree-canopy behind her family trailer, where she meets Zara-mysterious, elusive, tattooed Zara, the first girl she dares to kiss.

But the small-town South hates a woman who dares to dance instead of plucking chickens for minimum wage, and as Emmy's life falls apart, her relationship with Zara grows more tangled and bizarre. Zara's offering something beautiful. But while Emmy's slowly strangling, its price may be more than she's willing to pay.

Shifting between the green-bright cypress cathedral and the dreamland of a dance club, Broadbent's unforgettably-voiced debut confronts the brutal realities of poverty in the South, with a sapphic tale both sultry and sinister, gritty and gothic.

By: Britney Jackson (Author), 2021, Paperback

Book 1 of 3: Lesbians, Pirates, and Dragons

A 2022 Goldie award-winning sapphic fantasy for people who love dangerous women, magical worlds, and lesbian pirates.

Emilia Drakon was once the youngest and kindest of the dragon sorcerers, but she’s now the last of her kind. Betrayed and angry, she trades her meekness for a sword and embarks on a quest for vengeance that will lead her straight into the arms of the legendary Captain Maria Welles.

Captain of the famed pirate ship, the Wicked Fate, Maria is every bit as treacherous and bloodthirsty as they say. She has her own vendetta and practically jumps at the chance to trick Emilia into joining her crew.

But when their animosity toward each other blossoms into a passionate romance, the two women will have to decide what they want most.

Vengeance?

Or love?

By: Britney Jackson (Author), 2024, Paperback

From the award-winning author of Pirates of Aletharia, comes its highly anticipated sequel, Goddess of the Sea.

Emilia Drakon, pirate, fugitive, and dragon sorceress, loves her captain and her dragons, and she’ll do whatever it takes to protect them—including the will of a sea goddess.

Captain Maria Welles, on the other hand, wants nothing more than to see her enemies bleed. If she wants safety for her crew, that’s only because she’s their captain, and if she longs for the love of her sword-and-magic-wielding surgeon, Em…well, okay, that’s where things get complicated.

Regardless, Maria can honestly say she has no interest in playing this deadly game between gods and goddesses, but when she finds herself in the middle of it anyway, the infamous pirate captain, who likes to think she knows everything, will have to delve into a world unknown to her.

Luckily, she has her dragon-riding surgeon to serve as guide.

By: Emily Hamilton (Author), 2024, Paperback

In her breathtaking debut—part space odyssey, part sapphic rom-com—Emily Hamilton weaves a suspenseful, charming, and irresistibly joyous tale of fierce friendship, improbable love, and wonder as vast as the universe itself.

So, here’s the thing: Cleo and her friends really, truly didn’t mean to steal this spaceship.

They just wanted to know why, twenty years ago, the entire Providence crew vanished without a trace. But then the stupid dark matter engine started all on its own, and now these four twenty-somethings are en route to Proxima Centauri, unable to turn around, and being harangued by a snarky hologram that has the face and attitude of the ship’s missing captain, Billie.

Cleo has dreamt of being an astronaut all her life, and Earth is kind of a lost cause at this point, so this should be one of those blessings in disguise that people talk about. But as the ship gets deeper into space, the laws of physics start twisting, old mysteries come crawling back to life, and Cleo’s initially combative relationship with Billie turns into something deeper and more desperate than either woman was prepared for.

Lying somewhere in the subspace between science fantasy and sapphic rom-com, The Stars Too Fondly is a soaring near-future adventure about dark matter and alternate dimensions, leaving home and finding family, and the galaxy-saving power of letting yourself love and be loved.

By: Harper Bliss (Author), 2016, Paperback

A successful solicitor, her business partner's daughter, and their unexpected chance at love.

Alice McAllister is successful, quiet and disciplined. When her law partner Miranda forces her to take a vacation at her holiday home in Portugal, the unexpected presence of Miranda's daughter Joy turns Alice's world up-side down.

Despite their differences--the age gap between them only being one of many--Alice and Joy embark on a passionate holiday romance... until they have to return home.

Can their steamy summer fling turn into a love that lasts? Or will the real world impose too many obstacles to Alice and Joy's young and fragile love?

Find out in this sultry lesbian age-gap novel by chart-topping lesbian romance author Harper Bliss!

★★★★★ "Harper Bliss is the queen of age gap romances. Be sure to pick this one up right away." - The Lesbian Review

By: Keah Brown (Author), 2023, Hardcover

THE BSE (Best Summer Ever) LIST!
 
1.        Blueberries
2.        Art show in ShoeHorn
3.        Lizzo concert
4.        Thrift shop pop-up
5.        Skinny Dipping at the lake house
6.        Amusement Park Day!
7.        Drew Barrymarathon
8.        Paintball day
 
Oh, and ….
 
9.        Fall out of love with Hailee.
 
Andrea Williams has got this. The Best Summer Ever. Last summer, she spent all her time in bed, recovering from the latest surgery for her cerebral palsy. She’s waited too long for adventure and thrills to enter her life. Together with her crew of ride-or-die friends, and the best parents anyone could ask for (just don’t tell them that), she’s going to live it up.
 
There’s just one thing that could ruin it: Her best friend, Hailee, finding out Andrea’s true feelings. So Andrea WILL fall out of love with Hailee – even if it means dating the cute boy George who keeps showing up everywhere with a smile.
 
Do we want Andrea to succeed? No! Does she? We’re not telling!
 
Keah Brown is a journalist, screenwriter, and author who has written for Teen Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, and The New York Times. She is also the creator of #DisabledAndCute. Now, in her YA debut of nerdy queer love, Keah gives us the perfect summer read and cast of characters to fall in love with.

P R A I S E

 “For fans of messy queer romance, some realistically complicated representation.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Lighthearted romance that’s sure to gratify and meaningful conversations surrounding friendship and first love drive this earnest treat from Brown, which boasts leisurely pacing that mimics the syrupy unraveling of a slow, hot summer.”
—Publishers Weekly

By: Karmen Lee (Author), 2024, Paperback

For fans of Ashley Herring Blake’s Delilah Green Doesn’t Care and Chencia C. Higgins' D'Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding comes an utterly charming and queerly irresistible romantic comedy…where all’s fair in love and bowling.
This is how love rolls…

For teacher Ava Williams, some subjects are not up for debate. Like history—specifically, the one she has with Grace Jones, bowling pro and local celeb. Who is now, for no identifiable reason, teaching at the same small-town Georgia high school as Ava. Once upon a time, they were thick as thieves, best friends, rivals who pushed each other, and total bowling nerds. Then they shared a kiss, sweet and confusing…and after that, they split and nothing was ever the same.

Ava is pretty sure she has every reason to hate Grace. Especially when the school’s soggy potato of a principal announces—finally—that the students can have the bowling team Ava has been pushing for, for years…only to hand it to Grace.

Now they’re expected to be partners and lead their new bowling team to victory in six months. And with that, their rivalry is back. Fierce, ultracompetitive…and with an undeniable attraction that pushes, pulls and crashes together. It’s history. It’s chemistry. And it’s just a matter of time before it explodes…one way or the other.

By: Raquel Raelynn (Author), 2024, Paperback

Book 1 of 2: Fate and Legacy

FAMILY OR LOVE?

When her grandmother falls ill, Lucia Dol'Auclair has to leave her sheltered life and travel to Eirini Academy of Mystics to compete in the Triune.

In three events, she will compete against vampires and werewolves to take her grandmother's place as the guardian vessel of a destructive celestial of magic and prove her worth as heir to her royal coven.

But, her heart is pulled in two directions when she falls for her rival, Adelaide, a troublesome vampire who doesn't play by the rules.

Lucia is forced to choose between the traditions that hold her coven together and the passion that could tear apart her world.

Dangerous competition.

Deadly secrets.

A feud between mystics.

Lucia never believed in love. She never had a good example of it, nor did she think it was meant for her.

Until Adelaide.

Lucia must question everything she was taught, or she might lose the one she loves.

Will she mend the centuries-old rivalry or turn her back on love for family?

This book picks up speed and doesn't let go.

It's a new-adult sapphic fantasy novel with a swoon-worthy slow-burn romance. Full of banter and a heart-warming show of first love, "The Balance of Fates" has fun fantasy creatures, vast world-building, and a rivals-to-lovers dynamic that will leave you wanting more.

One-bed, helping with nightmares, forbidden love, and a vampire/witch romance...

By: Raquel Raelynn (Author), 2024, Paperback

*This is the second edition of A Legacy of Stars containing an alternate cover, a glossary, and new chapter headings*

You can't escape family ties.

Amid her lover facing trial for an assault on her fiancé and with an impending arranged marriage to the son of an influential coven leader, Lucia prepares to merge with the destructive celestial power of the Orbis Libra.

She navigates a delicate balance—saving Adelaide and restoring harmony among Mystics.

However, when hunters launch an unexpected attack and betrayals unravel, Lucia's plans crumble. Forced into hiding, she embarks on a journey of survival, compelled to shield her loved ones and shoulder the weight of a world in turmoil.

In her quest, Lucia must secure the support of vampires, battle against mounting challenges, and grow her magic to tip the scales in her favor.

In a race against the clock, Lucia must become stronger.

Find a cure for the vampires.

And protect everyone she loves.

Can she do it, or will she lose it all?

Friends. Family. The woman she loves... It's all riding on one witch.

And Lucia will burn the world for the people she loves.

Book 2 in the Fate and Legacy series. This new-adult sapphic fantasy novel "A Legacy of Stars" is grittier, more sensual, and even more heart-wrenching. It will have you on the edge of your seat.

Talking dragons, betrayals, loss, and fighting to the very end...

By: Dahlia Adler (Author), 2023, Hardcover

A SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD MEDALIST

"This is what it looks like when a brilliant high concept is executed to perfection. It’s got all the Dahlia Adler trademarks―romance, wry humor, specificity, and genuine emotional depth." - Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Kate in Waiting and Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda

A queer Sliding Doors YA rom-com in which a girl must choose between summer in NYC with her dad (and the girl she's always wanted) or LA with her estranged mom (and the guy she never saw coming).

In Dahlia Adler’s Going Bicoastal, there’s more than one path to happily ever after.

Natalya Fox has twenty-four hours to make the biggest choice of her life: stay home in NYC for the summer with her dad (and finally screw up the courage to talk to the girl she's been crushing on), or spend it with her basically estranged mom in LA (knowing this is the best chance she has to fix their relationship, if she even wants to.) (Does she want to?)

How's a girl supposed to choose?

She can't, and so both summers play out in alternating timelines - one in which Natalya explores the city, tries to repair things with her mom, works on figuring out her future, and goes for the girl she's always wanted. And one in which Natalya explores the city, tries to repair things with her mom, works on figuring out her future, and goes for the guy she never saw coming.

By: Leah Johnson, 2021, Paperback

A TIME Magazine Best YA Book of All Time

A Stonewall Honor Book

A Reese's Book Club YA Pick

 Liz Lighty has always believed she's too black, too poor, too awkward to shine in her small, rich, prom-obsessed midwestern town. But it's okay -- Liz has a plan that will get her out of Campbell, Indiana, forever: attend the uber-elite Pennington College, play in their world-famous orchestra, and become a doctor.But when the financial aid she was counting on unexpectedly falls through, Liz's plans come crashing down . . . until she's reminded of her school's scholarship for prom king and queen. There's nothing Liz wants to do less than endure a gauntlet of social media trolls, catty competitors, and humiliating public events, but despite her devastating fear of the spotlight she's willing to do whatever it takes to get to Pennington.The only thing that makes it halfway bearable is the new girl in school, Mack. She's smart, funny, and just as much of an outsider as Liz. But Mack is also in the running for queen. Will falling for the competition keep Liz from her dreams . . . or make them come true?