Dark romance in lesfic is a super rare genre, at least for longer form works with a modicum of editing.
Here’s a short list of F/F novels (>50k words, some over 100k) with dark romance elements (that is, with abusive romantic relationships but with a happy ever after or happy for now ending). All of these are standalones or can be read as standalones.
Dark romance books
Starfire
by Elizabeth King
Starfire is a sci-fi duel pov dark romance.
- The Mistress: a high femme poc starship pirate captain with a thing for big skirts and big hair.
- The slave: a tomboyish alien ingénue (humanoid with elfin ears and a reptilian tail).
Get Starfire
Rest and Relaxation
by Evil Dolly/Erika Moak
Contemporary romantic horror. An unpleasant woman gets kidnapped as revenge for her homophobic and abusive actions. Please note the author’s content warnings. Sex scenes are fade to black/off the page, but other abuse is detailed and is sometimes graphic.
Read Rest and Relaxation
Eudeamon
by Evil Dolly/Erika Moak
This is a sci-fi story with the romance being between a human woman and the female-identified sentient full body latex suit she’s been unwillingly incarcerated in. The sex scenes are fade to black.
Read Eudeamon
Captive in the Underworld
by Lianyu Tan
This is my book, an F/F dark romance retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth. Hades starts off cold and controlling, but as the book goes on she reveals a softer side. Persephone is innocent and determined, whilst Demeter is an unmedicated narcissist who requires trigger warnings of her own for being an emotional and physical abuser.
I wrote this because I was tired of waiting for someone else to write this kind of story for me. It’s been called both ‘classic’ and ‘entry-level’ dark romance, which I think is apt. It includes scenes with non-con and dub-con elements and is not suitable for all readers. Here are the trigger warnings and more information about the book. You can read the associated steamy short story, Breathless, for free by signing up to my mailing list.
Thrillers/horror books
The following books are not romances, meaning that they do not guarantee a happy ending. However, similar to dark romances, they have abusive/complicated relationships between two or three women.
Women in Gray
by K.D. Rye
The blurb spoils the premise of the book. I am so allergic to spoilers I actually think it’s a much more rewarding experience to just read the first chapter instead—it’s available using the ‘look inside’ feature on Amazon, or the whole book is free on KU. By the end of the first chapter, you’ll know everything you need to know to figure out if this book is for you.
This was a dark domestic/psychological thriller; I would comp it as Black Mirror crossed with In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado. This book was dark, thrilling, horrible. 5 stars. If you love my work, you might love this, too.
Get Women in Gray
Exquisite
by Sarah Stovell
A dark domestic/psychological thriller with a disturbing relationship between a young aspiring author and her jaded mentor. I would’ve preferred the unnamed narrator chapters to have been cut from this book, but it was a rewarding read nonetheless. Especially recommended if you like meta about writing.
Get Exquisite
The Fear
by Spencer Hamilton
Viral pandemic lockdown horror; relationship is between a Chinese American lesbian (if I recall correctly) and her white American bi wife. This story was intensely compelling and I’m glad I read it. If you don’t mind reading a pandemic horror right now, you should give it a try.
Get The Fear
The Wicked and the Willing
by Lianyu Tan
My second book isn’t exactly a romance–it’s a gothic horror vampire historical standalone set in 1920s Singapore. There’s a love triangle resolved by having two separate endings (interactive/choose your own ending style). The main character is a human Chinese femme and the love interests are a white English femme vampire and a human Chinese butch.
It’s the book of my heart but it’s also filled with a bunch of triggers including torture. I’d say it’s darker than Captive in the Underworld. I really leaned into the horror aspect (and loved doing so).
Get The Wicked and the Willing
More dark romance
As you can probably tell, I haven’t kept up with the genre in recent years, but there are heaps more sapphic books being published that are dark or dark adjacent. Here’s more ways to discover these books:
- Join Holly Thorne’s Dark Sapphic Romance Reads facebook group
- Check out Jay and Kylie’s Dark Sapphic Reads list
Holly Thorne is also developing a dark sapphic book database, and I’ll link that when it’s available.
Thank you