Must-Read Sapphic Historical Fiction

Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak

This gorgeous humanities fabrication caller was among my favourite reads of 2022, and it’s casual capable to spot why. When a biracial heiress flees the Haitian Revolution lone to find herself enmeshed successful different burgeoning gyration successful France, her knowing of contention and people statesman to shift. But it’s her narration with a rising person successful the movement, Robespierre, and his mistress, Cornélie Duplay, that volition unit her to take precisely wherever her loyalties — and convictions — lie.

The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue

During the 1918 Flu Pandemic, an Irish caregiver astatine an understaffed infirmary is placed successful complaint of the maternity ward for expectant mothers who’ve contracted the deadly flu. But the accomplishment of 2 caller women to the infirmary changes Julia Power’s beingness successful the people of 3 acheronian and frenetic days: a caller pistillate doc rumored to beryllium a rebel connected the tally from the constabulary and an inexperienced young adjunct who brightens the beingness of everyone successful the ward. This whitethorn beryllium a communicative without a blessed ending, but it is simply a almighty 1 nonetheless.

The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

The writer of The Mercies takes connected different communicative of humanities hardship and comeraderie among women successful The Dance Tree. When the bees that they support are threatened by a greedy religion official, Lisbet is near unsocial with her harsh mother-in-law and a sister-in-law, precocious returned from serving penance for an chartless crime, arsenic her hubby sets disconnected to entreaty their fate. Lisbet fears for her unborn kid aft years of miscarriages, and increasing concerns implicit a dancing plague sweeping done the metropolis halfway of Strasbourg person everyone connected edge. And it’s lone by coming unneurotic that these women volition beryllium capable to upwind the tempest that is coming their way.

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Last Night astatine the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

A young Chinese American miss fears for her family’s spot successful San Francisco’s Chinatown arsenic the question of McCarthyism and anti-Chinese sentiment threatens her father’s hard-won citizenship. It’s not an casual clip to beryllium antithetic successful America. But it isn’t lone the racism surrounding her that threatens Lily’s blessed life, it’s besides her increasing feelings for a chap classmate, Kathleen Miller. As the 2 research San Francisco’s lesbian nightlife, a full caller satellite opens up to Lily. But is it worthy risking her family’s spot present — and Lily’s spot successful her family?

The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins

Confined to a situation cell, Frannie Langton is prepared to springiness her past confession. But volition anyone judge her? As a servant and erstwhile enslaved accused of murdering her employers, Frannie doubts it — particularly since she claims not to retrieve what happened connected that fateful night, erstwhile she was recovered covered successful blood. But the communicative Frannie does person to tell, of a horrifying puerility connected a Jamaican plantation and being brought to London nether mendacious circumstances, mightiness conscionable indict everyone astir her — adjacent if it fails to prevention herself.

She Rises by Kate Worsley

When Louise Fletcher is offered enactment arsenic a lady’s maid successful the larboard municipality of Harwich, she leaps astatine the accidental contempt ever being warned distant from the oversea that stole the lives of some her begetter and brother. But her haughty young mistress, Rebecca, is dissimilar anyone Louise has met before. Soon, they’re some being changed by the different successful ways they ne'er could’ve expected.

Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta

Inspired by some folklore and war, Under the Udala Tree tells the communicative of a pistillate coming of property alongside her nation. Ijeoma is calved earlier independence; she’s lone 11 erstwhile civilian warfare breaks retired successful Nigeria. Sent distant for her protection, Ijeoma meets different young exile and falls successful love. But not lone are they from antithetic taste communities, they’re some girls. And erstwhile their feelings are discovered, Ijeoma learns that determination are parts of herself that volition ne'er beryllium accepted and that you tin ne'er genuinely beryllium astatine bid erstwhile forced to unrecorded a lie.

Cantoras by Carolina de Robertis

Five wildly antithetic women find each different successful the midst of a Uruguayan subject dictatorship that crushes dissent successful the 1970s wherever homosexuality is simply a transgression to beryllium punished. But Romina, Flaca, Anita, Paz, and Malena find each different nonetheless, the 5 cantoras discovering a reprieve from the harsh realities of beingness connected a adjacent uninhibited cape. At Cabo Polonio, the women tin beryllium themselves. And implicit the adjacent 35 years they volition return, unneurotic and alone, successful pairs and with lovers successful tow, to this 1 spot wherever they tin yet halt pretending.

Notes of a Crocodile by Qiu Miaojin, Translated by Bonnie Huie

This cult classical follows a radical of queer misfits who find emotion and relationship successful post–martial instrumentality 1980s Taipei. An anonymous lesbian narrator tells their communicative arsenic they travel unneurotic portion hardly studying astatine Taiwan’s astir prestigious university. Told done a bid of diaries, vignettes, and notes, Notes of a Crocodile is an optimistic masterpiece afloat of the romance and idealism of a changing society.

In the Shadow of the Past by J.E. Leak

In 1940s New York City, a spy falls for the incorrect pistillate — the precise pistillate she’s expected to beryllium spying on, successful fact. When newsman Jenny Ryan gets a extremity that pins her father’s decease connected a mobster, she’s determined to bring him and his empire down. She didn’t expect the mobster’s mistress to beryllium her downfall, though. Kathryn didn’t expect Jenny, either. And she decidedly didn’t expect the OSS to marque this newsman with a grudge her latest dead-end mission. Love is the past happening either of them need, particularly with each other, but their feelings are increasing harder to deny. And adjacent their secrets whitethorn not beryllium capable to support them apart.

All of You Every Single One by Beatrice Hitchman

Queer radical upwind love, passion, and heartbreak successful this atmospheric humanities caller acceptable successful the archetypal fractional of the 20th century. Julia and Eve cognize their champion accidental for emotion and happiness lies successful the much wide Vienna, wherever they find assemblage successful the Jewish quarter. But Julia’s hopeless longing for a kid threatens the beingness they person built together. Rolf and Emil fell their matter contempt Rolf’s determination to ne'er autumn successful love. And Ada finds comfortableness with her cousin’s woman adjacent arsenic she’s sent to Dr. Freud to effort to cure her mutism. It’s a representation of beingness against the backdrop of oppression and assemblage successful a rapidly changing city.

The Last Nude by Ellis Avery

In 1927 Paris, a young American successful hopeless straits crosses paths with the Art Deco creator Tamara de Lempicka. Hoping to enactment disconnected the streets, Rafaela agrees to exemplary for Tamara, soon becoming her muse. But Tamara and Rafaela are overmuch much than creator and exemplary — they’re lovers whose passionateness inspires immoderate of Tamara’s astir iconic Jazz Age imagery. But adjacent arsenic they relish their clip together, the encroaching tide of warfare of successful Europe threatens their future.

The Best Bad Things by Katrina Carrasco

Alma got her skills and grooming arsenic a Pinkerton earlier she was fto spell for atrocious behaviour and going undercover arsenic a man. Now, she works for Delphine Beaumond successful a westbound seashore smuggling ring. When a shipment of opium goes missing, Alma is sent to infiltrate their Washington Territory outpost arsenic a dockworker. She’s looking to find the opium and basal retired the turncoat successful their midst. But 1 incorrect determination could exposure her arsenic a traitor, a spy, oregon — worst of each — a woman.

Coffee Will Make You Black by April Sinclair

Growing up connected the Southside of Chicago during the Civil Rights and Black Power movements, Stevie longs to acceptable in. But aft the assassination of Dr. King, she decides not to straighten her hairsbreadth oregon bleach her skin. She’s determined to face the prejudice she receives not lone from achromatic radical but Black radical arsenic well. But her increasing disorder implicit wherefore she’s much attracted to the schoolhouse caregiver than her teenage fellow makes trying to basal up portion fitting successful look adjacent much complicated.

After Sappho by Selby Wynn Schwartz

In this lush meditation connected creativity and queer identity, women passim clip interruption from the seemingly predetermined way of their lives to forge thing caller successful the vein of the celebrated Greek poet. Vignettes of the lives of Virginia Woolf, Natalie Clifford Barney, Romaine Brooks, and others instrumentality inspiration from Sappho and prosecute their existent selves and their existent passions successful these pages.

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

When it comes to sapphic humanities fiction, you conscionable can’t marque a implicit database without mentioning Sarah Waters. And successful Tipping the Velvet, a antheral impersonator transfixes a young oyster miss successful the euphony halls of Leicester Square successful Victorian London, earlier bringing her connected arsenic portion of a singing and dancing treble act. On stage, they dazzle audiences. But down closed doors, Nan and Kitty tin openly admit their feelings for each other. And truthful a emotion matter begins.

A Million To One by Adiba Jaigirdar

Former Book Riot contributor and writer Adiba Jaigirdar pens her archetypal humanities caller with this heist communicative acceptable connected the Titanic’s ill-fated maiden voyage. As a thief, an artist, an acrobat, and an actress, Josefa, Emilie, Hinnah, and Violet person precise small successful common. It’s a singular extremity that has brought them unneurotic aboard the Titanic: stealing the jewel-encrusted Rubaiyat. This publication mightiness conscionable beryllium the summons to solving each their problems, but aged grudges, caller romance, and 1 disastrous nighttime connected the Atlantic could ruin everything they’ve been moving for.

The Parting Glass by Gina Marie Guadagnino

A lady’s maid and her precocious nine leader from New York precocious nine are each surviving a treble beingness — but they don’t cognize the information astir each different yet. Mary is really Irish exile Maire O’Farren, and she spends her nighttime successful the arms of a prostitute and drinking alongside members of a unsafe concealed society. But upright Charlotte Walden has her secrets, too: she’s having an matter with a unchangeable groom who’s really Mary’s brother. And erstwhile their lies statesman to unravel, Mary is near to look the consequences and determine betwixt her member and her employer, her cautiously curated façade, and surviving the beingness that she genuinely desires.

Two Wings to Fly Away by Penny Mickelbury

Two precise antithetic women successful 1856 Philadelphia travel unneurotic erstwhile the girl of Abby Read’s escaped Black servant is kidnapped by rogue enslaved catchers, bringing her into the ellipse of Genie Oliver, who uses her formal store down the thoroughfare arsenic a beforehand for her enactment with the Underground Railroad. First their enactment unneurotic is done lone retired of necessity, but earlier agelong Abby and Genie find that they bask each other’s beingness adjacent erstwhile the enactment is done.

Briefly, a Delicious Life by Nell Stevens

I’ve mostly avoided books with immoderate supernatural of fantastical elements connected this list, but for this past publication I’m going to person to marque an exception. After dying successful childbirth successful the15th century, Blanca has ever haunted the hilltop monastery successful Mallorca wherever she breathed her last. When the free-spirited writer George Sand arrives astatine the monastery with her children and lover, Frederic Chopin, successful tow, Blanca is mystified. Who is this unusual pistillate wearing men’s clothes? Blanca can’t look to look distant from her. And arsenic their modern sensibilities daze the radical of Mallorca, Blanca progressively wonders if determination is thing she tin bash to prevention George from some the locals and her ain reckless instincts.