Book picks similar to
Against the Grain by Bryce Oakley


romance
lgbtq
sapphic
sapphic-reading-challenge

Just Juliet


Charlotte Reagan - 2016
     Juliet represents the road less traveled. Will Lena take it? Lena Newman is 17, her best friend’s a cheerleader, her boyfriend’s a football player, and as far as everyone is concerned, her life is sorted. But that’s before she befriends the new girl. Juliet is confident, slightly damaged, drop-dead gorgeous and a lesbian. Lena realizes that her interest goes beyond just friendship. She sets off on a path of self-discovery where the loyalty of those closest to her will be tested. "It feels real without being tedious, and heart-warming without being sappy. It's not all roses, and it's not all doom and gloom. It's great.” - Jon "Just Juliet is the story I wish I could have given to my parents to read when I was 16 so that they knew what I was going through." - Caro M.

Naughty List: A Short Story


K.C. Luck - 2018
    When the only romance in her life consists of Hallmark movie marathons, she’s pretty sure things could not get more discouraging. When a knock sounds at the door, Holly suddenly finds herself face-to-face with a stranger. A hot, handsome butch named Nic. When the chemistry sparks between them, Holly is faced with a tantalizing new dilemma – will she be naughty or nice? Need a little something to warm you up for a spell on a cold winter’s night? This steamy short story is exactly what you need. *** Includes a preview of KC Luck’s full-length novel “Welcome to Ruby’s” ***

Sword of the Guardian


Merry Shannon - 2006
    But in the midst of a birthday celebration, her world shatters when a mysterious assassin takes her brother's life. Shasta, the only remaining heir to the throne, narrowly escapes the assassin's blade thanks to the intervention of a traveling acrobat named Talon.With the threat of another attempt on Shasta's life imminent, her father declares that the young hero will be come the Princess's bodyguard. But what Shasta doesn't know is that her new guardian has a very well-kept secret: he is actually a she.Talon and Shasta soon grow closer than anyone, especially her father, could have predicted. Will the truth of her guardian's secret change their relationship forever?Book 1 of The Legends of Ithyria Series

Courting the Countess


Jenny Frame - 2016
    The child of a loveless marriage, witness to her father’s infidelities and her mother’s pain, Harry has no intention of ever falling in love.Annie Brannigan is a survivor, remaining positive through hardships. As an agency housekeeper, she moves from post to post with her daughter Riley, taking care of people who have everything she will never have. Annie’s greatest wish is to find her happy ever after.Can love restore the countess’s heart and the crumbling Axedale Hall, or will the first foundations of love turn to dust?

Dirty London


Kelley York - 2014
    The complete opposite of Jasmine, her emotionally unstable baby sister, London has worked hard to stay out of the spotlight.Then she discovers that Wade, one of the most popular guys in school, is gay like her and their new-found closeness based around their shared secret has half the student body convinced they're hooking up...and a lot of girls aren't happy about it. Now she's been dubbed "Dirty London." Rumors are flying about her inability to keep her clothes on, and London is pretty sure she's developing a crush on the one girl who sees through it all. If she could admit why stealing boyfriends is the last thing on her mind—not to mention find out what's going on with Jasmine and her rapidly disappearing psych medications—her life would be a much brighter place. But if her and Wade's truth gets out, and if she doesn't find a way to help her sister, London faces losing a lot more than her obscurity.

One Walk in Winter


Georgia Beers - 2019
    After seven years as the assistant manager of the Evergreen Resort and Spa, she has ideas to improve the bottom line and increase reservations. When her manager resigns, Olivia puts in her résumé and waits for the interview. The job is practically hers—all she needs is the paperwork.Hayley Boyd Markham is the youngest Markham, the only girl, and the most spoiled. An artistic soul in a family of business-minded type As, she’s always felt like a bit of a screwup. After an embarrassing party situation, her father puts a hold on her allowance and gives her an ultimatum: Spend the winter as manager of the Evergreen Resort and Spa and show him it can turn a profit. Only then will he reconsider her future (and her inheritance).A chance encounter in the woods is filled with chemistry and promise, and though neither Olivia nor Hayley is looking for love, they both feel the possibility. Until they get to work…

Pages for You


Sylvia Brownrigg - 2001
    The seventeen-year-old, new to everything around her—college, the East Coast, bodies of literature, and the sexual flurries of student life—is shocked by her desire to follow this wherever it will take her. When Flannery finds herself enrolled in a class with the remote, brilliant older woman, she is intimidated at first, but gradually becomes Anne Arden's student—Baudelaire, lipstick colors, or how to travel with a lover—Flannery proves an eager pupil, until one day learns more about Anne than she ever wanted to know.

The Woman in 3B


Eliza Lentzski - 2020
    Spill a drink on an airline passenger and be one square closer to winning the company’s secret bingo card game. Twenty-five different challenges, at various levels of difficulty, had to be accomplished within a month’s time. After nearly eight years of being a flight attendant, Alice Kaminski had spilled drinks on plenty of passengers, mostly on accident and during rough air. She didn’t particularly like the idea of the bingo card, but she had massive student debt; the financial incentives were enough to make her momentarily forget the questionable ethics of it all. The challenge was supposed to be simple—that is, until Alice saw her intended target—the beautiful woman seated in 3B. And after that, nothing was simple ever again.

Never Just Friends


Lily Craig - 2019
     Georgiana—Georgie to everyone outside her family—figured out long ago that being in love with your straight best friend sucks. Turns out it’s even worse when that friend, Madelyn, tells you she’s not so straight after all. After it becomes clear to Georgie that she needs to get over Madelyn, Georgie moves cities and starts a new job. To grad student Madelyn, though, the sudden rift between the friends prompts painful introspection. A year later, she realizes her feelings for Georgie are romantic after all. Madelyn plans to use their annual winter cabin getaway to confess her love. But Canadian winters are unpredictable. When Madelyn and Georgie are snowed into their cabin in the woods, the two are forced into difficult conversations that confront deeply felt emotions about the past, present, and future. Can the friends find common ground after all they’ve been through? An intimate, snowed-in friends-to-lovers romance, Never Just Friends is a standalone story.

Landing


Emma Donoghue - 2007
    Síle is a stylish citizen of the new Dublin, a veteran flight attendant who's traveled the world. Jude is a twenty-five-year-old archivist, stubbornly attached to the tiny town of Ireland, Ontario, in which she was born and raised. On her first plane trip, Jude's and Síle's worlds touch and snag at Heathrow Airport. In the course of the next year, their lives, and those of their friends and families, will be drawn into a new, shaky orbit. This sparkling, lively story explores age-old questions: Does where you live matter more than who you live with? What would you give up for love, and would you be a fool to do so?

You and Me


Jade Winters - 2021
    Frustrated, heartbroken and caught in the headlights, the last thing Alice needs is another relationship, but there’s something about Kerry which draws her in. As time passes, professional ethics are tested and lines blur as Alice and Kerry grow closer.However, when Alice discovers Kerry’s secret, she decides that fate may have brought them together… but fate, it appears, has a mind of its own…

Keeping Her Secret


Sarah Nicolas - 2016
    She definitely didn’t expect to be sharing a bunk bed with her for four long weeks.Courtney has what every girl wants—she’s beautiful, rich, and the object of every boy’s desire at Camp Pine Ridge. Too bad none of them make her feel an iota of what Riya’s kiss did all those years ago. But Courtney needs to uphold appearances at all costs—even if it means instigating an all-out prank war with Riya as her main target. Neither girl can stop thinking about the other…but that doesn’t mean they can give up past hurts and take a chance on a future together.

Sweetest Thing


Natasha West - 2019
    It’s the only thing in her life that feels good, feels like control. Until almost by accident, she ends up as a contestant on one of the biggest cookery shows in the world, ‘Bake It!’ Now she’s wildly out of her comfort zone, baking under the watchful eye of mean judges as well as a national audience. If that wasn't bad enough, there’s also her main competitor, Jodie Jacobs. She’s seriously skilled, cold as ice, and worst of all, sex on a stick.However, when the competition heats up, so do things between Robyn and Jodie. And not just on the set… But are they a recipe for disaster? Or is the attraction between them the icing on the cake?Another witty and warm romantic comedy from the author of 'Just Married?' and 'The Matchmaker.'

Off Screen


J.A. Armstrong - 2015
    But, Emma spends most of her nights alone wondering how her life became so secluded. Surrounded by people constantly, she remains lonely. Skeptical of people’s true motives, and guarded in her personal attachments; it seems the one thing Emma craves most in life is destined to allude her; love. Addison Blake is a charming and witty aspiring writer. She sees life as an endless adventure full of possibility and prides herself on taking chances. When Addison accidentally collides with Emma; sparks immediately ignite. Friendship and companionship are rivaled by an attraction that neither woman has ever experienced. But, Addison seems reluctant to pursue a romantic relationship with the popular television star, challenging Emma to finally demolish all of her self-imposed walls. Off Screen is the story of two women’s discovery of love and passion and the courage to embrace both.

The X Ingredient


Roslyn Sinclair - 2019
     Laurie Holcombe is out of a job, out of luck, and out of time. When a prestigious law firm hires her as an assistant to one of its senior partners, it feels like she might finally get back on her feet. All she has to do is put up with the whims of her infuriatingly icy boss, Diana. How hard could that be? Diana Parker is Atlanta’s top lawyer and isn’t afraid to let everyone know it. She’s driven, ruthless, demanding, and stuck in a failing marriage. Too bad she can’t run her personal life as well as she runs her ordered office. When a young assistant shows up with bright blue eyes, a cute Southern accent, and a streak of pink hair, Diana’s sure she’s all wrong for the job. And yet something seems to be pulling her and Laurie Holcombe together, drawing them into a secret, thrilling dance that’s far too dangerous for a boss and employee. Can they make rules for this powerful attraction, a way to keep each other at arm’s length? But how do you resist the irresistible?