For anyone who, like me, was raised on the anthem of Girl Power, the best romances star women who are strong, secure in their self-worth, and ready to take on the world. Especially when it comes to historical romance, where women didn’t have equal footing in the world.
Here are five of my favorite historical romance novels with strong female leads (plus a bonus recommendation from my own books!)
My Fake Rake by Eva Leigh
Era: Regency England
My Fake Rake is the first in a series inspired by 1980s teen movies, so you can bet there is a strong female heroine plus more than a few fun hijinx. Grace is a refined young lady, only she’s not so young and she’s not very interested in being refined. Her passion in life is studying lizards. But when her father has a heart attack, he begs her to find a husband who will care for her before he dies, so she decides it is time to attract her longtime crush, a fellow scientist who has never really noticed she is a woman.
Grace enlists her friend, Sebastian, to help, which means turning Sebastian into a rake so that he can make her crush notice her. Only while they’re teaching Sebastian to be a rake, Grace accidentally falls in love with him instead.
This is a great book if you’re looking for a strong, smart heroine who is competent at everything except falling in love.
The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite
Era: Regency England
You get two strong heroines for the price of one in this female-female romance! Lucy Muchelney is an astronomist who just lost her father (and sponsor) and now has to watch her lover marry a man in the name of security.
Wisely, she runs off to London the first chance she gets, in hopes of earning a commission to translate a major astronomical work from her father’s science society. She approaches the Countess of Moth for assistance, who is dismayed to find herself among scientists again. But when the society insinuates that women can’t be scientists, Lucy and Catherine unite to show them what women can do.
This book both has strong female leads and a lot of discussion about what it means to be a scientist, the value of art and science, and how to support other women in your own quest for success.
Unveiled by Courtney Milan
Era: Victorian England
Ash Turner is set on avenging his family the best way he knows how: by seizing a dukedom from the distant relatives who did him wrong. When he moves into the ducal estate, he knows he is living with his enemy, the ailing duke. What he doesn’t know is that the beautiful, feisty nurse tending the duke is none other than the duke’s daughter. Meanwhile, Margaret is determined to find Ash’s weaknesses in order to restore her family’s fortunes - only to discover too late she doesn’t care to unseat him at all.
This book is great if you’re looking for a strong female lead who has recently become aware of the cage she was captured in - and is angry and ready to do something about it. Also if you want a super handsome, charming hero who is eager to help her smash the patriarchy.
Take a Quiz, get a book rec!
I know how hard it can be to choose a book out of a list. That’s why I created book recommendation quizzes! Tell me about what kind of book you love, how much time you have to read, and a few other secret questions, and I’ll recommend a book that I loved for you to read!
The Highlander by Kerrigan Byrne
Era: Victorian England
If you’re looking for the story of a strong female lead who has an equally strong, alpha male lead, you’ve found it here.
This book starts with two very dark chapters, setting up the internal angst of both hero and heroine. From there, the plot lightens up, but the crux of the story is about our heroine, Philomena, finding inner strength to stand on her own two feet. The victim of a highly abusive marriage, Mena is rescued by friends from an insane asylum and takes a position as governess in Scotland in order to evade her husband. The only problem is her new employer is known as the Demon Highlander - and is handsome as the devil, to boot. For his part, Liam doesn’t have any hope of making up for past wrongs and is only trying to do right by his children, which gets harder the more he is distracted trying to figure out his new governess.
There’s a lot of angst in this book, but also a lot of steam to make up for it!
Proper English by KJ Charles
Era: Edwardian England
Can there be a stronger female lead than one who beats all the men at shooting - so soundly that they cheerfully admit it?
That’s Pat, our heroine in Proper English. She’s dismayed to discover the shooting weekend is a little more social than shooting, especially once a major rainstorm confines everyone indoors. Helping the beautiful Miss Fenella Carruth find a sense of self-worth makes up for it...especially when Pat and Fenella discover their sexual attraction is mutual.
If only there weren’t a murder to solve!
This is the type of book that is perfect on a rainy afternoon with a cup of tea. You won’t be overwhelmed by emotions, but you won’t be disappointed either!
Get a Free Historical Romance with a Strong Female Lead
If this trope is up your alley, don’t miss my free short story! Millie is perfectly happy as an unmarried spinster who makes her money by spinning wool into yarn. Even if the man renting her father’s old loom is super hot and mysterious. And, it turns out, very helpful when the law arrives accusing Millie of malfeasance…
Bonus: The Countess Chronicles Series by me!
I’m not sure I’m capable of not writing a strong female lead, but as I set out to write my first Regency England series, I was more interested in how women became strong and fierce in an era when they were valued primarily for bearing children. I wanted to explore three different levels of “wokeness”:
In The Ideal Countess, Alice is perfectly happy with life until she breaks Society’s rules, and then she discovers her choices as a woman are limited - so she makes a lot more bad choice
In The Duchess Wager, Margot is aware that things are unfair, but she has trouble recognizing the power available to her - until she breaks through and figures out how to smash the patriarchy
In The Husband Plot, Lisbeth is basically a modern progressive liberal who has to reckon with what it means to live up to one’s values.