I used to be a really big science fiction fan. When I started reading exclusively wlw books, I leaned hard into romance, and away from sci-fi. But some books still made it through.
There aren’t many (any?) science fiction books that are pure, wlw romances. Makes sense, sci fi is about the world building, the science, the future, plot, and in the middle of all that, you can put some great characters. I’ve included a filtered list from my Sapphic Reads database below with just the science fiction books. Here are some of the standouts, imho.
This is How You Lose the Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
I love this book so much. It’s allegorical, short, science fiction, time travel, and two unforgettable characters in Red and Blue, and a pining, yearning love story. I can’t say enough good things about this book.
Crier’s War and Iron Heart, by Nina Varela
A tough balancing act, Varela has managed to craft an amazing world, part science, part fantasy, and really do the wlw relationship at the heart of it justice. I really loved these books. Bear in mind, these are not hard science, it’s more magical science.
The books of Linden Lewis, Alex White, and K.B. Wagers
These are three series that are science fiction through and through, but contain ample queerness, and wlw relationships, and were also entertaining. Lewis’ The First Sister Trilogy is maybe the least wlw, but the queerest by far. I loved them. White’s The Salvagers series is a delight, and while the world is inherently queer, there’s a great wlw couple that get starring roles. And Wagers’ books are pretty hard science fiction, especially the NeoG series. Again, queerness is assumed, and there’s some wlw representation.
Special mention for The Locked Tomb series, by Tamsyn Muir
These are spectacular books. You will love them or hate them, and sometimes, you will do both (like me!). There’s definitely wlw rep, but it’s not central, except it is, but that’s not the point, but I’m not sure what the point is. These books are deliriously weird, and the characters are enthralling. Just… read the first one, Gideon the Ninth, and then keep going if you want to.
Mobile caveat: To see the table below best, use a desktop or tablet browser, or tell your phone browser to request the desktop version of the site (e.g., via the aA button in Safari on an iPhone). Sorry the mobile version sucks.
Leave a Reply