The Goode Governor


J.J. Arias - 2019
    An ambitious exotic dancer. An unexpected love story about shattering icy barriers and pushing every boundary. Governor Georgia “George” Fernandez has just announced her re-election campaign when a scandal implicating Mila, a younger woman working as an exotic dancer, threatens to derail her run. Her quick-thinking chief-of-staff spins the disaster by having Mila, a recent graduate of George’s alma mater Goode College, join the staff. From the moment they meet, Mila and George’s interactions are fraught with tension. Mila’s direct manner and disregard for rules are anathema to George’s conservative nature and need for control. As they work together, the women find themselves drawn to each other and unable to resist the lure of a physical and emotional entanglement. Mila might be exactly what George needs to access the vulnerability she forgot existed. But George has never been one for risks, neither with her heart nor her career. Enemies turn to lovers as a fearless younger woman melts her boss’ icy exterior in this irresistible, and steamy, slow burn, lesbian romance. The Goode Governor is an entry in the Goode Girl lesbian romance series, telling the stories of women loving women in and around a small, all-women’s college in Northern Florida. Books can be read in any order.

Thin Girls


Diana Clarke - 2020
    Like most young women, they’ve struggled with their bodies and food since childhood, and high school finds them turning to food—or not—to battle the waves of insecurity and the yearning for popularity. But their connection can be as destructive as it is supportive, a yin to yang. when Rose stops eating, Lily starts—consuming everything Rose won’t or can’t.Within a few years, Rose is about to mark her one-year anniversary in a rehabilitation facility for anorexics. Lily, her sole visitor, is the only thing tethering her to a normal life.But Lily is struggling, too. A kindergarten teacher, she dates abusive men, including a student’s married father, in search of the close yet complicated companionship she lost when she became separated from Rose. When Lily joins a cult diet group led by a social media faux feminist, whose eating plan consists of consuming questionable non-caloric foods, Rose senses that Lily needs her help. With her sister’s life in jeopardy, Rose must find a way to rescue her—and perhaps, save herself.Illuminating some of the most fraught and common issues confronting women, Thin Girls is a powerful, emotionally resonant story, beautifully told, that will keep you turning the pages to the gratifying, hopeful end.

Queens of Geek


Jen Wilde - 2017
    She’s a vlogger and actress promoting her first movie at SupaCon, and this is her chance to show fans she’s over her public breakup with co-star Reese Ryan. When internet-famous cool-girl actress Alyssa Huntington arrives as a surprise guest, it seems Charlie’s long-time crush on her isn’t as one-sided as she thought.Taylor likes to blend in. Her brain is wired differently, making her fear change. And there’s one thing in her life she knows will never change: her friendship with her best guy friend Jamie—no matter how much she may secretly want it to. But when she hears about a fan contest for her favorite fandom, she starts to rethink her rules on playing it safe.Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads, is an empowering novel for anyone who has ever felt that fandom is family.

The Things We Don't See


Savannah Brown - 2021
    . ." To its residents, Sandown is home - a tiny village holiday resort in the western United States.To everyone else, it's a minuscule island, that brings tourists in summer and not a lot else the rest of the time.To Mona Perry, it's a mystery.Thirty-four years ago, promising singer and Sandown resident Roxy Raines went missing, and was never found. The people of the island are still reluctant to talk about it, claiming Roxy was simply a runaway, but the evidence doesn't quite add up.Mona is convinced something else is going on. Armed only with a suitcase and a microphone - to record her findings for the general public - this runaway teenager is determined to get to the bottom of the disappearance.But as Mona gets drawn deeper and deeper into the strange goings on of this isolated community, it is clear that nothing is as it seems - not even Mona's own past. Some things are meant to disappear . . .

The Second Sister


Rae D. Magdon - 2014
    Ripped away from the only home she has ever known, Ellie is forced to live at Baxstresse Manor with her two new stepsisters, Luciana and Belladonna. Luciana is sadistic, but Belladonna is the woman who truly haunts her. When her father dies and her new stepmother goes suddenly mad, Ellie is cheated out of her inheritance and forced to become a servant. With the help of a shy maid, a friendly cook, a talking cat, and her mysterious second stepsister, Ellie must stop Luciana from using an ancient sorcerer’s chain to bewitch the handsome Prince Brendan and take over the entire kingdom of Seria.

Rescue Her Heart


K.C. Luck - 2018
    Two women. One galaxy. As a decorated Space Ranger in the 8th Galaxy, Captain Natalie (Nat) Reynolds has an exciting, albeit lonely, life. Yet, when Nat answers a distress call from a craft in trouble on a nearby planet, it has the possibility of changing the trajectory of her life forever. Catherine Porter is down on her luck in the worst way. Evicted, almost penniless, she worries all hope is lost until a charismatic stranger flies into her life. Inexplicably drawn to the one woman who can possibly save her, Catherine must face feelings she never considered. Will their stars align and lead them to a happily ever after? Or will their differences tear their hearts apart? If you like a story with romance and adventure, mixed with conflict and heroism, then you will love KC Luck’s page-turning new book. Note: This is a full-length, stand-alone novel with a science fiction theme, but is significantly more focused on strong female characters in a loving lesbian relationship.

When She Thaws


Lily Craig - 2019
    After her beloved mother has a health scare, Sadie decides it’s finally time to see the world. So, Sadie crosses the Atlantic to work as an au pair for a year. Austria’s supposed to be nice: chocolate, beer, and scenic mountain ranges beckon. She’ll figure out teaching and living with an Austrian family along the way. Inga Weber trusts only herself. Ever since her husband of twenty years left her for an Instagram model, Inga’s opted to homeschool her three children. Better keep them close so they can’t get hurt. Except it turns out it’s hard to keep an au pair on staff when Inga’s expectations tower higher than the Alps. Exercises, punctuality, and rigor grind down even the best candidates. When Sadie arrives at Inga’s doorstep, her fate seems clear. She’ll be sacked like the rest of them, inadequate in the face of precise demands. Except something about Sadie’s warm smile and caring green eyes makes Inga falter. Though the two diverge in their approaches to life, maybe this time, it’s different. Maybe this time, Inga’s met someone who can melt her frozen heart.

Pizza Girl


Jean Kyoung Frazier - 2020
    She's grieving the death of her father (who she has more in common with than she'd like to admit), avoiding her supportive mom and loving boyfriend, and flagrantly ignoring her future.Her world is further upended when she becomes obsessed with Jenny, a stay-at-home mother new to the neighborhood, who comes to depend on weekly deliveries of pickled covered pizzas for her son's happiness. As one woman looks toward motherhood and the other towards middle age, the relationship between the two begins to blur in strange, complicated, and ultimately heartbreaking ways.Bold, tender, propulsive, and unexpected in countless ways, Jean Kyoung Frazier's Pizza Girl is a moving and funny portrait of a flawed, unforgettable young woman as she tries to find her place in the world.