80 books like Rock Bottom Girl

By Lucy Score,

Here are 80 books that Rock Bottom Girl fans have personally recommended if you like Rock Bottom Girl. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Book Lovers

Christina Ford Author Of In Search of Mr Darcy: Lessons Learnt In The Pursuit of Happily Ever After

From my list on believing in the existence of love.

Why am I passionate about this?

I write about life, love and being single in my blog, A Broad In London, and I am a semi-regular guest on a Week In Review on BBC Radio London. 

Christina's book list on believing in the existence of love

Christina Ford Why did Christina love this book?

I love a great, happily-ever-after love story that makes you work for it. And that is what this book does. It is not so much the groundbreaking story of boy meets girl—girl hates boy—and then girl finds she has misunderstood boy all along.

It's a little like Pride and Prejudice meets When Harry Met Sally. I love that this book does for me what a great rom-com does: you know how it is going to end, but you lean in and thoroughly enjoy the journey.

By Emily Henry,

Why should I read it?

9 authors picked Book Lovers as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“One of my favorite authors.”—Colleen Hoover

An insightful, delightful, instant #1 New York Times bestseller from the author of Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation.

Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2022 by Oprah Daily ∙ Today ∙ Parade ∙ Marie Claire ∙ Bustle ∙ PopSugar ∙ Katie Couric Media ∙ Book Bub ∙ SheReads ∙ Medium ∙ The Washington Post ∙ and more!

One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn't see coming...

Nora Stephens' life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream…


Book cover of A Rogue by Any Other Name

Britt Belle Author Of The Earl Was Wrong

From my list on historical romance heroes who were wrong.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love a romance where the hero has his viewpoint changed by the woman he falls in love with. He might become a better family man, or transform his politics, or change his priorities, but it all cases loving her alters him. Additionally, I love a heroine who is exceptional in a distinct way but overlooked or dismissed by others. They can be bluestockings or spinsters, reformers or quiet and shy, but they’re all steadfast and they all derive strength from the hero’s support. In short, the love they find together makes them better people. 

Britt's book list on historical romance heroes who were wrong

Britt Belle Why did Britt love this book?

I loved this book because Penelope is supposed to be a means to an end, but she ends up being Bourne's everything.

Bourne wants revenge. He believes that his happiness lies in recovering the land that he foolishly lost in a card game. Penelope proves to him that regaining his legacy is not enough. She helps him rediscover the man he would have become if he hadn’t lost everything that mattered to him.

When he lets himself love her, he chooses to abandon his quest for revenge so he can be worthy. Bourne is an absolute sweetheart by the end and is completely devoted to his wife.

By Sarah MacLean,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Rogue by Any Other Name as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What a scoundrel wants, a scoundrel gets. . .

A decade ago, the Marquess of Bourne was cast from society with nothing but his title. Now a partner in London's most exclusive gaming hell, the cold, ruthless Bourne will do whatever it takes to regain his inheritance—including marrying perfect, proper Lady Penelope Marbury.

A broken engagement and years of disappointing courtships have left Penelope with little interest in a quiet, comfortable marriage, and a longing for something more. How lucky that her new husband has access to an unexplored world of pleasures.

Bourne may be a prince of London's illicit…


Book cover of In a Jam

Katherine E. Webb Author Of Champagne Kisses: A Curvy Romance

From my list on romance where the plus-sized heroine gets her man.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a plus-sized woman of color, and I feel women like me are woefully underrepresented in romance books. Too many times, I read a book claiming to feature a “curvy heroine”, only to find she’s a size 6, or just wears baggy clothes. Even worse, some novels make plus-sized female leads lose weight before they get their happily ever after! There are great books out there that show love comes at any size and they deserve to be showcased.

Katherine's book list on romance where the plus-sized heroine gets her man

Katherine E. Webb Why did Katherine love this book?

This book is one of the few slow burns I enjoyed, and the spice was worth waiting! Each scene between Noah, the grumpy single dad, and Shay, the plus-sized heroine, was laced with tension and attraction.

The characters were three-dimensional rather than merely archetypes, though I wasn’t too overwhelmed with backstory. This small-town romance was the epitome of sweetness.

By Kate Canterbary,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked In a Jam as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When Shay Zucconi's step-grandmother died, she left Shay a tulip farm-under two conditions.


First, Shay has to move home to the small town of Friendship, Rhode Island. Second-and most problematic since her fiancé just called off the wedding-Shay must be married within one year. 


Marriage is the last thing in the world Shay wants but she'll do anything to save the only real home she's ever known.


Noah Barden loved Shay Zucconi back in high school. Not that he ever told her. He was too shy, too awkward, too painfully uncool to ask out the beautiful, popular girl. 


A lifetime…


Book cover of Meet Me Under the Mistletoe

E.F. Dodd Author Of A Higher Standard

From my list on homecoming (of sorts) romances.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a girl who loves books, bulldogs, and that first hint of summer. I started reading when I was very young – three years old, according to my mother – but even as an alleged child prodigy all I can confirm is that I don’t remember there ever being a time I didn’t love to read. Nancy Drew was my favorite, which probably helps explain why I write books with redheaded heroines in them. 

E.F.'s book list on homecoming (of sorts) romances

E.F. Dodd Why did E.F. love this book?

Any and all of Jenny Bayliss’s books can be read at Christmas and leave you feeling just as good as a hot toddy with the perfectly sized slice of spice cake.

Each of her books is a delectable treat and an immersion in the holiday spirit, but Meet Me Under the Mistletoe is my absolute favorite. Probably because I adore the heroine – Elinor Noel, or Nory for short. She owns her own vintage bookshop in London, but grew up in the English countryside.

Her parents’ home was near a posh private school, which Nory received a scholarship to attend. Throughout the years, she’s remained close with her old school chums and now two of them are set to be married just before Christmas in the old castle on the school grounds. 

Isaac has taken over as head gardener for the castle estate. He tormented Nory when they were children,…

By Jenny Bayliss,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Meet Me Under the Mistletoe as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A city bookshop owner heads to the English countryside for a holiday reunion—only to face her childhood enemy.

Elinor Noel—Nory for short—is quite content running her secondhand bookshop in London. Forever torn between her working-class upbringing and her classmates’ extravagant lifestyles at the posh private school she attended on scholarship, Nory has finally figured out how to keep both at equal distance. So when two of her oldest friends invite their whole gang to spend the time leading up to their wedding together at the castle near their old school, Nory must prepare herself for an emotionally complicated few days.…


Book cover of The Oxford Handbook of the Economics of Prostitution

Trevon D. Logan Author Of Economics, Sexuality, and Male Sex Work

From my list on understandING the world’s oldest profession.

Why am I passionate about this?

We know that there are markets for “illegal” goods and services, but how do these illegal markets operate? It’s not about who is participating in the market, but about how markets for things that are illegal function. How do you start your illegal business? How do you attract customers? How do you establish a reputation? All of these things are questions that attracted me to the study of male sex work. It is an occupation is thousands of participants. I was excited about the way that male sex work is illegal but also in plain view on the internet.  

Trevon's book list on understandING the world’s oldest profession

Trevon D. Logan Why did Trevon love this book?

If you want to know how economists think about sex work (which is, after all, a market transaction) this is the book to go to. 

This is a collected volume, but if you were interested in how economists do work on sex work and what the major findings have been in the process, you would want to read this book.

There are technical issues covered here in terms of data, how research on sex work is different in developed versus developing countries, and the online market for sex work. 

It also contains a great discussion of the public health issues involved and what we know about sex work and its relationship to STIs.  

By Scott Cunningham (editor), Manisha Shah (editor),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Oxford Handbook of the Economics of Prostitution as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Prostitution bears the unique title of being both the "world's oldest profession" and one of the least understood occupations. Unlike most of the crime and family literature, prostitution appears to be have all the features of traditional markets: prices, supply and demand considerations, variety in the organizational structure, and policy relevance. Despite this, economists have largely ignored prostitution in their research and writings. This has been changing,
however, over the last twenty years as greater access to data has enabled economists to build better theories and gain a better understanding of the organization of sex market.

The Oxford Hanbook of…


Book cover of The Underworld Sewer: A Prostitute Reflects on Life in the Trade, 1871-1909

Jody Hadlock Author Of The Lives of Diamond Bessie

From my list on 19th century prostitutes.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a young teenager, I lived in a small Texas town and loved touring the Victorian “gingerbread” homes full of antiques. I had an overwhelming desire to time travel back to the mid-1800s. When I learned of Diamond Bessie’s story, I was immediately intrigued because of the period, and also by the circumstances of her life. Why does a woman enter the world’s oldest profession? I discovered that I absolutely love research and “time traveled” back to that era by devouring everything I could get my hands on about life in the 19th century, especially for a marginalized woman like Bessie. 

Jody's book list on 19th century prostitutes

Jody Hadlock Why did Jody love this book?

After not being able to find a publisher in the early 1900s, Josie Washburn self-published her memoir. In The Underworld Sewer, Josie not only describes her life as a prostitute and madam, but she also debunks the notion at the time that women became prostitutes to “satisfy their own unnatural lusts.” Josie wanted to educate the public about the true horrors and plight of the unfortunate women who had to resort to prostitution to survive and, ultimately, to motivate the public to effect change. Her memoir is as much a scathing commentary on society’s double standards as it is an account of her life as a demi-mondaine.

By Josie Washburn,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Underworld Sewer as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

For twenty years Josie Washburn lived and worked in houses of prostitution. She spent the last twelve as the madam of a moderately fancy brothel in Lincoln, Nebraska. After retiring in 1907 and moving to Omaha, she turned to "throwing a searchlight on the underworld," including the "cribs" of Nebraska's largest city. The Underworld Sewer, based on her own experience in the profession, blazes with a kind of honesty unavailable to more conventional moral reformers. Originally published in 1909, The Underworld Sewer asks why "the social evil" is universally considered necessary or inevitable. Washburn minces no words in exposing the…


Book cover of The Covent Garden Ladies

A.J. West Author Of The Betrayal of Thomas True

From my list on books for the curious London time traveler.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been a passionate time traveler since my school days, gobbling down as many books as I could find on castles, galleons, pyramids, and anything else besides. Writing about the past has released me from the present day, and taught me about my own origins. When a reader picks up one of my books, I hope that they’ll follow me back in time for an adventure that brings the past to life and tells us something about ourselves. These books are, in fact, much more than mere books; they are a portal to history, and I thoroughly recommend them.

A.J.'s book list on books for the curious London time traveler

A.J. West Why did A.J. love this book?

I think if we went back in time to 1700s London, we would see very little of the wealthy, privileged world so often depicted on stage and screen, and find ourselves far more excited by the filth and clatter of real London–the London of street sellers, stray dogs, pillorying, bawdy houses, and taverns. I know I would.

Without a doubt, all echelons of society took an interest in bawdy houses back then, particularly those in and around Covent Garden, where sex workers milled around the hummums and various shops, pamphleteers, and stalls, selling their wares.

In Hallie Rubenhold’s brilliant book, we get a glimpse into a surprising world, where (mainly) women found misery but also–in some cases–agency and wealth by selling themselves to well-to-do ‘gents’. This book is thrilling and heartbreaking in equal measure, and it proved to be an essential companion as I wandered through the backstreets of old…

By Hallie Rubenhold,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Covent Garden Ladies as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

***By the No. 1 Sunday Times bestselling author of THE FIVE***
'A fascinating expose of the seamy side of eighteenth century life' MAIL ON SUNDAY
'Rubenhold's pages practically reek with smelly, pox-ridden Georgian Soho' GUARDIAN
-------------------------------------------------------

In 1757, a down-and-out Irish poet, the head waiter at the Shakespear's Head Tavern in Covent Garden, and a celebrated London courtesan became bound together by the publication of a little book: Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies. This salacious work - detailing the names and 'specialities' of the capital's sex-workers- became one of the eighteenth century's most scandalous bestsellers.

Yet beyond its titillating…


Book cover of The Sexual Question: A History of Prostitution in Peru, 1850s-1950s

Natalia Milanesio Author Of Destape: Sex, Democracy, and Freedom in Postdictatorial Argentina

From my list on the history of sexuality in modern Latin America.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a historian of twentieth-century Argentina and a professor of modern Latin American history currently teaching at the University of Houston. Born and raised in Argentina, I completed my undergraduate studies at the National University of Rosario and moved to the United States in 2000 to continue my education. I received my M.A. in history from New York University and my Ph.D. in history from Indiana University, Bloomington. I have written extensively about gender, working-class history, consumer culture, and sexuality in Argentina. I am the author of Workers Go Shopping in Argentina: The Rise of Popular Consumer Culture and Destape! Sex, Democracy, and Freedom in Postdictatorial Argentina.

Natalia's book list on the history of sexuality in modern Latin America

Natalia Milanesio Why did Natalia love this book?

In this first book in English about the history of sexual commerce in Peru during the state regulation of brothels, Drinot tells a multilayered story of the complex interactions among sex workers, clients, the police, the government, feminists, and physicians. With a remarkable diversity of archival sources, Drinot explores topics that are frequently disregarded in the history of prostitution like the meanings of masculinity and the interaction between race and venereal diseases that, in the case of Lima, resulted in the stigmatization of Chinese migrants and indigenous men as infectious agents.

By Paulo Drinot,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Sexual Question as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The creation of Lima's red light district in 1928 marked the culminating achievement of the promoters of regulation who sought to control the spread of venereal disease by medically policing female prostitutes. Its closure in 1956 was arguably the high point of abolitionism, a transnational movement originating in the 1860s that advocated that regulation was not only ineffective from a public health perspective, but also morally wrong. The Sexual Question charts this cyclic process of regulation and abolition in Peru, uncovering the ideas, policies, and actors shaping the debates on prostitution in Lima and beyond. The history of prostitution, Paulo…


Book cover of The Lost Sisterhood: Prostitution in America, 1900-1918

Jan Mackell Collins Author Of Behind Brothel Doors: The Business of Prostitution in Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (1860–1940)

From my list on historical prostitution.

Why am I passionate about this?

Having grown up with an older generation—my great-grandparents, great-great aunts and uncles, and a godmother, all who were born between 1877 and 1900—I learned to appreciate how they lived and what they went through. As a child, I found a hand-written poem about a brothel queen who caused a gunfight between her paramour and a stranger. Then, in college, I met a wonderful old man who told me stories about the former red-light district right in my own neighborhood. Once I learned the often tragic, but also successful stories of these ladies, I decided to be their voice and remind America how important they were to our history.

Jan's book list on historical prostitution

Jan Mackell Collins Why did Jan love this book?

Like Anne Butler, Ms. Rosen used credible sources to explain the “whys and hows” of frontier prostitution, prostitutes’ roles in society, and the culture that kept them in their place. Her book includes government studies conducted with the women themselves regarding their careers. Statistics on the ladies’ health and social diseases are included here too.

By Ruth Rosen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Lost Sisterhood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Rosen has broken entirely new ground in what will surely remain the definitive study of urban prostitution in America for many years to come."--'TLS'


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