Fans pick 100 books like Embracing the Dawn

Set in post 9-11 days, Honor Reclaimed is best read as part of Radcyffe’s Honor series, a recommendation in itself.

The novel is packed with emotions and some angst, which always ups the ante. I rarely find romantic intrigue books swoon-worthy because so much of the book is dedicated to action and intrigue versus romance, yet Radclyffe works multiple romances into this book.

The pairings are unique, memorable, and will make your heart ache in a good way. I suffered alongside the couples as they overcame unimaginable hurdles. The sweet whispered yearnings and admissions between lovers make the book exceptional. Radclyffe writes intimacy like no other.

It might tempt someone to choose a book in Noyes’ Ask, Tell series, but Alone is my recommendation.

A romance with such a lonesome title might not appear swoon-worthy on the surface, but dig a little deeper, and witness the burgeoning romance between Celeste and Olivia develop in such beautiful fashion in their isolated cocoon–until all goes wrong.

Still, the loving way they interact, learn about each other, and then yearn for each other had my heart skipping beats until the end. Noyes has a way of writing characters with whom it’s easy to fall in love.

Whether writing fiction or romance, McMan’s ability to paint a love story between two women is unparalleled. Their love materializes on the page as if watching an artist apply strokes to a painting. By the time the figures emerge from the canvas, my heart is invested. 

In Beowulf for Cretins, what appears to be an anonymous one-night stand for Grace simply isn’t when Abbie turns out to be her new boss. (Side note: look how nicely McMan is stacking up much-loved tropes here.)

This story contains elements that make my sapphic heart swoon every time, like when one character just can’t stay away from the other or when characters share the same interests. Throw in McMan’s signature humor and an entertaining pet, and swoon-worthy gets extra credit bonus points.

It’s cruel to recommend a book with Whisper in the title because this romance hits like a hurricane. Lovers of angst will appreciate the depth of this book.

In one swoop, McKay crushes all that’s cherished until only wreckage and devastation remain. At times, I marvel at the main character’s redemption arc because it hardly seems likely. For a while, I wondered if McKay would be one of those authors who didn’t give her readers a happily ever after, but she seems to have as much love for Neve and Audrey as they do for each other. 

Talk about a book hangover. This book will wreck you, but in a good way. I walked around dazed for days. I recommend taking two Kallmakers and washing them down with a Beers. Call me in the morning.

Purposefully Accidental is also by one of my favourite authors.

Sometimes that strand of history between a couple can be a relatively petty grudge, and this is what I love about Purposefully Accidental. G Benson, isn’t afraid to have her characters be very human and flawed and a bit bloody minded at times. You get a lovely sense of these two not being able to leave each other alone, even when they’re annoying. 

This epic romance brilliantly juggles a whole load of tropes – celebrity, doctors, fake romance. I think this one of her strengths – coming out with something unique by considering many aspects in a very convincing way. (Dead Lez Walking is an example – gore, comedy, and romance combined in a way I thought impossible before reading that book).

She mixes giggle-inducing scenes then breaks your heart the next moment in a wonderfully immersive story. Sigh.

A fun enemies-to-lovers story with some well-defined characters and an interesting world. Neither Emilia nor Maria trust each other a lick, and have good cause for it, but Maria wants Emilia, as crew member, lover, and possession.

I enjoyed seeing the two warring with their feelings for each other and their mutual distrust as they struggled to be willing to so much as tolerate the other. 

I love books with quiet and complex characters. This one follows an audiobook narrator who loves silence and an ice queen author who needs a successful book launch for her comeback.

Both characters think they have their lives all figured out. Meeting each other opens their eyes to a brighter, less lonely world. This book has a light enemies-to-lovers vibe for those of us (me) who enjoy just a little back-and-forth before the characters figure out they’re obsessed with each other.

I recommend Out of Character because the book is very swoon-worthy but still being real. This was on my TBR for so long, especially because it talks about role-playing, something that I find really intriguing.

One aspect I really enjoy about this book is the characters have so many layers. The one love interest, Rowan was my favorite character but all the characters were great. I really enjoyed role-playing scenes interspersed between the chapters. I couldn’t wait to figure out what was going to happen. I honestly can’t wait to re-read this book and also read whatever the author writes next! 

I couldn’t write about sapphic second chance romances without including a Monica McCallan and I found it difficult to decide between two favourites, Then and Now and Back in Your Arms. She takes a different approach in each – and that’s something admire in writers too – authors who’ll play around with structure and characters.

Monica is so good at so many aspects – dialogue, characterisation, chemistry, appealing settings. It means she writes the most compulsively readable books. If you ever hear me say, “I’m just going to have a peek at this Monica McCallan book,” the next thing you’ll hear from me is, “I’ve finished it.”

And if you pick up one, many more will follow. Be warned. 

This book had everything a book lover loves…a story about a bookstore seller, a romance author, and enough secrets to keep you on your toes. I rarely read sapphic romance novels about secret identities, and I kept wondering when the truth was going to come out about one of the characters.

This book was also a light and easy read, and even though it dabbled in a few tough subjects, it felt warm, sparkly, and cozy the entire time.