Are you looking for the best lesbian fiction and lesbian books to read? Then you’ve come to the right place. The list below represents a tiny fraction of my favourite sapphic books this month. Check out March’s lesbian book recommendations here. All my love goes out to the amazing authors, who are paving the way when it comes to genre and boundary-pushing, writing dark and toxic love stories, unlikeable women main characters, or writing a cracker of a sapphic novel with the brightest dedication to love and kindness.
I read all my lesbian books on my Kindle Paperwhite, I just love it and take it everywhere with me so I can read all the best sapphic fiction book recommendations. With the Kindle Paperwhite’s built-in front light, I can fall asleep to a good lesbian book without leaving the lamp on and disturbing my wife. It comes with Bluetooth connectivity too, so I simply pair my airpods and doze off to a best-selling lesbian audiobook. The display has increased to 6.8″, so it‘s even easier to read, but it’s still super easy to pop in your bag or jacket pocket. The best bit though is that it is waterproof, so when I was recently on holiday in Vietnam and Cambodia I could lounge by the swimming pool whilst still being immersed in a good sapphic book. With 8 GB of storage and up to 10 weeks of battery life will see any bookworm like me through a holiday.
Don’t have time to read them all? Why not try listening to these great lesbian romance books? Audible is a great platform for listening to audiobooks because it offers a wide selection of lesbian books, including bestsellers and exclusive content. With Audible, you can listen to your favorite Sapphic books on the go, whether you’re commuting, working out, doing household chores, or simply relaxing in bed. Simply connect your headphones or AirPods to your favourite device and you are good to go.
The Audible app also has features like adjustable narration speed, a sleep timer, and the ability to create bookmarks, making it easy to customize your listening experience. Audible offers a membership program that gives members access to a certain number of audiobooks per month, making it a cost-effective option for avid listeners.
Audible is great for people who want to maximize their time and make the most out of their daily activities. Try Audible Plus and get up to 2 free audiobooks, and get instant access to a great choice of lesbian & sapphic audiobooks, along with a credit to purchase any title in their premium selection, regardless of price (including many of the books on this list!)
So, without further ado, I give you my top 10 lesbian & sapphic book recommendations for April 2023.
1. Caught sleeping by Jen Lyon
Despite the fragility of their relationship, Catharine and Alex have found happiness together they never expected to find. Alex’s career is soaring with her hard-fought place on the US Women’s National Team as she prepares for the World Cup over the summer. Catharine is flourishing in her newfound freedom, embracing her love with Alex, while still being forced to keep their romance a secret amidst her soon-to-be ex-husband’s presidential campaign.
But it’s more than either woman hoped for. More than they ever imagined.
Until a secret is revealed that threatens it all. Their relationship. Alex’s career. Catharine’s business. Even their lives. When it all comes crashing down, both women must ask themselves—how can love survive?
2. Destroying Angel by Cara Malone
A detective with secrets and a socially awkward scientist team up to solve the case of a relationship gone toxic in this age-gap romantic suspense.
Emery Ellison is a seasoned scientist at the top of her field, held back only by the shyness that has plagued her all her life. When she’s called to consult on a death involving mushroom toxicity – her specialty – she doesn’t see all the gruesome details. All she notices is how gorgeous the young detective on the case is.
Emery doesn’t need the scientific method to tell her Julia Taylor is into her too. As one of Fox County’s newest crop of homicide detectives, Julia was immediately drawn to the older woman… and scared to get too close because the last time that happened, it got ugly.
But as the case gets serious with more people falling ill, it’s obvious that Julia–like the innocent-looking mushrooms in the forest–is not what she seems.
Return to Fox County with a whole new cast of detectives, plus cameos from old favorites, a brand-new crop of villains you’ll love to hate, and all the heat you can handle.
3. Blurred Lines by Olivia Lucas
What in the actual hell is going on?
So far this week, I’ve been stood up, taunted by a kid, and dunked in coffee. And that was just on my way to my job interview.
I almost couldn’t believe it when the hot stranger who crashed into me in the coffee shop came to my rescue and offered me her clothes. Unfortunately, this stranger has a name – Natalie Dalton – and she might’ve also popped up at my job interview. And then on a night out. In fact, now she won’t leave me alone.
Thank god she’s not my type, or I could be in real trouble.
Two strangers, one collision, and a whole lot of fate, romance, and bed-sharing combine in this feel-good lesbian rom-com.
4. Lucky in Lace by Melissa Brayden
Juliette Jennings lives her life like a tightly laced corset—not that she’d ever wear one. As a business owner of a stationery store, structure is her favorite. But when her best friend and her ex fall head over heels for each other, everything unravels and leaves her exposed. Even worse, a scandalous lingerie shop has moved in next door, and its tantalizing window displays will drive away her conservative customers. If only the owner would turn off the charm, Juliette is sure she could stop imagining her in nothing but the shop’s lacy best sellers.
Peyton Lane loves a clean slate. In fact, she desperately needs one after a series of bad choices. She also likes sexy things, and uptight Juliette next door would be a fun bow to untie. But when Peyton’s feelings enter new territory, she realizes the world might be scarier than she’d planned. Juliette has Peyton longing for forever on one hand and lacing up her running shoes with the other.
What’re a structured stationery store owner and a sexy lingerie peddler to do?
5. Where Love Leads by KC Luck
Sometimes love leads where you least expect it.
When socialite Melanie Sotheby finds herself abandoned on the wrong side of Los Angeles, she has few options. With no phone, credit cards, or identification, the means to get back home to New York seem slim. Not until she is rescued by a tall, dark stranger in the middle of the night does Melanie think of a plan.
With a felony on her record, Milo’s life seems hopeless. She works a dead-end job, lives in a rundown apartment, and has no clear prospects on how to make things better. When she hears a woman screaming for help in the night, a series of events unfold that might give Milo an opportunity to start over. All she has to do is drive Melanie across the country.
What sounds like an easy prospect turns out to have more twists and turns than either Melanie or Milo could have imagined. Only one thing is certain, by the end of the journey, both women will be changed forever.
“Where Love Leads” is a sweet sapphic love story that follows the physical and emotional journey of two women as they drive from Los Angeles to New York City.
6. A Woman In Hiding by T. B. Markinson
Lizzie Petrie doesn’t know how people manage parenting, friendship, or life.
Watching four children is hard work. This is something Lizzie’s wife, Sarah, knows about. She’s been doing it for six years.
As the kids grow older, Sarah is reaching her breaking point and pleads with Lizzie to do more to pitch in. Lizzie is certain she can do it on her own.
Lizzie is wrong.
When Sarah goes back to work full-time, Lizzie reaches the end of her rope. Her solution? Installing a secret bunker in the basement. The only problem is preventing Sarah from finding out when the construction project turns out to be just as hard as everything else in Lizzie’s life.
Can Lizzie hold it together or will everything crumble down around her, including her marriage?
A Woman in Hiding is the hilarious and heartfelt tenth installment of A Woman Lost, a series of contemporary sapphic romances. If you like quirky characters, complicated family dynamics, and well-crafted prose, then you’ll love following Lizzie’s continuing saga.
7. Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
“You like tea. I like books. Care to open a shop and forget the world exists?”
All Reyna and Kianthe want is to open a bookshop that serves tea. Worn wooden floors, plants on every table, firelight drifting between the rafters… all complemented by love and good company. Thing is, Reyna works as one of the Queen’s private guards, and Kianthe is the most powerful mage in existence. Leaving their lives isn’t so easy.
But after an assassin takes Reyna hostage, she decides she’s thoroughly done risking her life for a self-centered queen. Meanwhile, Kianthe has been waiting for a chance to flee responsibility–all the better that her girlfriend is on board. Together, they settle in Tawney, a town nestled in the icy tundra of dragon country, and open the shop of their dreams.
What follows is a cozy tale of mishaps, mysteries, and a murderous queen throwing the realm’s biggest temper tantrum. In a story brimming with hurt/comfort and quiet fireside conversations, these two women will discover just what they mean to each other… and the world.
8. Cabin Fever by Addison M Conley
Kate Minton’s life is collapsing. She’s fired, her estranged father dies, and her girlfriend dumps her. Her older half-brothers inherit everything, and all Kate gets is a remote, rundown Idaho cabin that no one knew existed. But if Kate lives there for a year, she’ll inherit half a million dollars. The move leads her to family secrets and an infuriating, and inconveniently sexy, contractor. She goes for the money, but will she stay for something deeper?
Riley Anderson lives in rural Idaho, helping her aunt run the family store and maintaining her construction business, while also avoiding dealing with a past that continues to haunt her. When she takes on Kate’s cabin renovations, she’s not impressed with the city slicker. But as they’re forced to spend time together, they find they have more in common than either of them could have ever imagined.
Will the pull of the big city be too much to resist? Will Riley find the strength to trust Kate, or will cabin fever be too much to bear?
9. Rescuing Hearts by Ruby Scott
A lesbian age-gap romance about finding the softest hearts behind the highest walls.
When blocking out pain means never allowing yourself to be loved, can you really believe you are living?
For Kristi Ivers, a forty-four-year-old flight attendant, life has proved itself to be unfair. By her twenties, she’d already had more than her share of pain. Alone and unable to process the ache of loss she finds in stillness, Kristi’s life has become a busy throng of perpetual movement. Between work, travel and volunteering at Corazon De Las Colina, a dog shelter in central Costa Rica, she believes she has a full and happy life…until one fateful flight to San José.
Fenna Vargas is a pediatric surgeon who has just completed her neonatal fellowship and has the world at her feet. With the support of a large family headed up by her Nicaraguan grandmother, Yaya, Fenna believes in love. All you have to do is be bold and passionate… But is life really that easy?
Can Fenna’s belief in all that is good break down the lifetime of barriers upon which Kristi has built her life? Will the optimism of youth be enough to overpower the sage lessons of reality?
This is an age gap sapphic novel of lesbian romance, which embodies the love of animals and the wisdom of Nicaraguan grandmothers.
Prepare to be enchanted.
10. The Senator’s Wife by Jen Lyon
Two Women. Two Worlds. One Love Worth Risking it All.
When professional soccer player, Alex Grey, goes on a vacation to the local South Carolina islands, she isn’t anticipating any life-changing events. Just a relaxing weekend to prepare for the upcoming season. But that quickly changes when she finds herself the lone witness to a sailing accident and makes the decision to risk her own life to save a drowning woman—unwittingly coming to the rescue of a U.S. senator’s wife, Catharine Cleveland.
Despite the vast disparity between their worlds, the two women find themselves inexplicably drawn to one another after the near-catastrophic afternoon. Following a series of interactions from the soccer fields of Portland, to the Marina District of San Francisco Bay, and the cutthroat political circle of Washington, D.C., they find their friendship growing, transforming into an attraction neither woman can deny.
Nor an attraction either woman can comfortably embrace.
As the magnetism of their connection grows, both women are forced to decide if the pursuit of love is worth the cost while living under the scrutiny of the public eye.
I hope you enjoy my Lesbian & Sapphic book recommendations for April, watch out for May’s top 10 women-loving women book recommendations.
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