I want to say a big thank you to everyone who read or shared my post over the weekend. I didn’t expect more than a dozen people to see it, let alone react to it, and I was blown away when I saw the post being shared by major Facebook groups and some of my historical romance heroes. This meant so much to me because I braced for negative reactions; instead, I saw hundreds of people rising up in support of Bella’s article. It is clear to me that the majority of the historical romance/Jane Austen community is just as hungry for change as I am, and that the community is here to support each other.
I noticed that several Facebook conversations turned into recommendations of authors who are already writing non-white and/or non-heteronormative characters in historical romance and Jane Austen Fan Fiction (JAFF). After all, this issue is not new and neither are writers who want to see the diverse world reflected in fiction.
I thought others might be interested in these recommendations, so I’ve rounded them up here. I haven’t read a lot of these, and they are definitely filling up my to-be-read pile!
Note: I pulled these from Facebook comments on Drunk Austen and Austen Readers. I’m sure I missed a few, so chime in if you have more books/authors to recommend!
Inclusive JAFF and Historical Romances
Jane Austen Fan Fiction (JAFF)
The Darcys of New Orleans by Maggie Mooha
Darcy and Fitzwilliam: A Tale of a Gentleman and an Officer by Karen V. Wasylowski
A Matter of Honor by Abigail Reynolds
106 books on this Goodreads list
Historical Romances
The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee
After the Wedding by Courtney Milan
Sins of the Cities trilogy by KJ Charles
The Loyal League series by Alyssa Cole
Anything by Vanessa Riley (plus, check out her site for research on Black people in Georgian and Regency England)
The Mechanical Universe series by EE Ottoman
Romance and Jane Austen are escapes because we know there will be a happy ending and because we connect with the characters. Everyone deserves a happy ending (except for Mr. Wickham, am I right?), so I hope these lists continue to grow so large that we no longer need to make them.