Lesbians, and Dragons, and Warriors! Oh My!
Comedy, lesbian romance, and, of course, high fantasy; this list contains everything that the modern-day, lady-loving dragon hunter could wish for!
Whether they are LGBT books for teens or older readers, lesbian short stories or the start of an epic book series, all the ebooks on this list contain main (or strong) characters who are lesbians or bisexual women.
And whether the books are set in the future, an alternative past, or a fantasy world completely separate from our own, they all contain dragons. Be it beasty dragons that must be slain, powerful but friendly dragons that can be tamed, or even dragons that are part human! I can guarantee there will be plenty to sate your fire-breathing appetite!
1. Dragon Whisper by Niamh Murphy (That’s me!)
A LOOMING WAR. A DEVASTATING BLIGHT. A GOD HUNGRY FOR SOULS.
To save herself, she will first have to save the world.
In the dying forests of the Weald Wood, Breanna, a young outcast, is simply trying to earn a Hunter’s axe.
When she witnesses the sacred Forest Drake kill her father and destroy her village home, she knows her life is forever altered.
But Breanna holds a secret that could be the key to stopping the Ancient Dragon God’s rampage.
The fate of every being in the land now depends on one young woman who can hear the Dragon’s Whisper.
Will she find her courage, or see her world destroyed?
Available on Amazon.
2. Shatter the Sky by Rebecca Kim Wells
Raised among the ruins of a conquered mountain nation, Maren dreams only of sharing a quiet life with her girlfriend Kaia–until the day Kaia is abducted by the Aurati, prophetic agents of the emperor, and forced to join their ranks.
Desperate to save her, Maren hatches a plan to steal one of the emperor’s coveted dragons and storm the Aurati stronghold.
If Maren is to have any hope of succeeding, she must become an apprentice to the Aromatory–the emperor’s mysterious dragon trainer.
But Maren is unprepared for the dangerous secrets she uncovers: rumors of a lost prince, a brewing rebellion, and a prophecy that threatens to shatter the empire itself. Not to mention the strange dreams she’s been having about a beast deep underground…
With time running out, can Maren survive long enough to rescue Kaia from impending death? Or could it be that Maren is destined for something greater than she could have ever imagined?
Available on Amazon.
3. Beast by Rachel Frank
After Safiya is found guilty of witchcraft, she is brought into the forest as a sacrifice for the local dragon.
But instead of a fierce and terrifying dragon, Safiya meets Iseult, a gentle and intelligent creature, and the knight Diadrane, the first woman knight Safiya has ever met.
Helpful and kind, the dragon and knight invite Safiya back to their home.
But come the morning, nothing is what it seems, and it is Iseult and Diadrane who will pay the ultimate price…
Available on Amazon.
4. Slaying Dragons by Sasha L. Miller
Devi has about had it with mages.
She doesn’t have time or energy to spare for coddling or pandering to the fussy mages she keeps getting stuck with as partners.
All she wants to do is her job, which is slaying the dragons and other beasts that plague the country.
Unfortunately, her last mage was also a noble with clout, and Devi has the feeling her days as a Combatant are numbered.
Instead of reprimand or termination however, she winds up with a new assignment and a new partner: Noeme, who is competent, friendly, distractingly attractive—and far too good to be true.
Available on Amazon.
5. The Ghost Dragon’s Daughter by Beth Bernobich
Mei, Lili, and Jun have just three weeks to complete their senior year project, a portable translation device they call the monstrosity machine, which runs on magic and mathematics.
“We only need to prove the concept,” Mei tells her friends.
Jun wants more than a passing grade, however. She wants that shiny golden insignia on her graduation certificate that says she’s graduated with honors. With that, she’s guaranteed a job in the best magic shops in Shēn Xiù City. And ai-ya, she needs that job if she ever wants to save enough money to study at university in the faraway Phoenix Empire.
But getting their monstrosity to work proves to be more complicated than Jun ever predicted.
Available on Amazon.
6. The Sun Dragon by Annabelle Jay
It’s been many years since the beauty of dragons riding the wind disappeared from the skies, destroyed by the corrupt King Roland and his greedy minions.
Or were they?
Instead of killing the dragons, Roland transformed them into humans so they could mingle with his people and breed him an army.
Teenage Allanah saves her friend Victoria from falling victim to his scheme with newly manifested magical abilities. Another surprise comes when Allanah’s first high school crush, Jason, reveals he’s been sent by a clandestine council of wizards to test Allanah and Victoria’s arcane talents. No one is more amazed than Allanah when, during her trial, she produces the world’s first light dragon.
Allanah might be the only hope not just for her best friend but also for the survival of all the world’s dragons. In addition to her monumental task, she struggles to understand her feelings between her new attraction to Cormac, the wizard general, and her emerging desire for a beautiful, forest-dwelling Igreefee girl named Dena.
Available on Amazon.
7. Inkmistress by Audrey Coulhurst
Asra is a demigod with a dangerous gift: the ability to dictate the future by writing with her blood. To keep her power secret, she leads a quiet life as a healer on a remote mountain, content to help the people in her care and spend time with Ina, the mortal girl she loves.
But Asra’s peaceful life is upended when bandits threaten Ina’s village and the king does nothing to help. Desperate to protect her people, Ina begs Asra for assistance in finding her manifest—the animal she’ll be able to change into as her rite of passage to adulthood. Asra uses her blood magic to help Ina, but her spell goes horribly wrong and the bandits destroy the village, killing Ina’s family.
Unaware that Asra is at fault, Ina swears revenge on the king and takes a savage dragon as her manifest. To stop her, Asra must embark on a journey across the kingdom, becoming a player in lethal games of power among assassins, gods, and even the king himself.
Most frightening of all, she discovers the dark secrets of her own mysterious history—and the terrible, powerful legacy she carries in her blood.
Available on Amazon.
8. Modern Serpents Talk Things Through by Jamie Brindle
Tina is a modern dragon, or at least she struggles to be.
She’s (mostly) sticking to her diet, she goes to the gym, doesn’t lounge on her hoard for (too) long, and she’s steadily working through some issues with her therapist.
Like the humans and dwarves that recently invaded her home and shot her with an arrow.
She didn’t like killing them—mostly humans seemed like sad little creatures—but they did attack her and so she destroyed them.
Except for the one she locked in the cupboard.
That bit she’s still working up to telling her therapist about…
Available on Amazon.
9. The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee
(A Sequel to The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue)
A year after an accidentally whirlwind grand tour with her brother Monty, Felicity Montague has returned to England with two goals in mind—avoid the marriage proposal of a lovestruck suitor from Edinburgh and enroll in medical school. However, her intellect and passion will never be enough in the eyes of the administrators, who see men as the sole guardians of science.
But then a window of opportunity opens—a doctor she idolizes is marrying an old friend of hers in Germany. Felicity believes if she could meet this man he could change her future, but she has no money of her own to make the trip. Luckily, a mysterious young woman is willing to pay Felicity’s way, so long as she’s allowed to travel with Felicity disguised as her maid.
In spite of her suspicions, Felicity agrees, but once the girl’s true motives are revealed, Felicity becomes part of a perilous quest that leads them from the German countryside to the promenades of Zurich to secrets lurking beneath the Atlantic.
Available on Amazon.
10. The Story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E. K. Johnston
Listen! For I sing of Owen Thorskard: valiant of heart, hopeless at algebra, last in a long line of legendary dragon slayers. Though he had few years and was not built for football, he stood between the town of Trondheim and creatures that threatened its survival.
There have always been dragons. As far back as history is told, men and women have fought them, loyally defending their villages. Dragon slaying was a proud tradition.
But dragons and humans have one thing in common: an insatiable appetite for fossil fuels. From the moment Henry Ford hired his first dragon slayer, no small town was safe. Dragon slayers flocked to cities, leaving more remote areas unprotected.
Such was Trondheim’s fate until Owen Thorskard arrived. At sixteen, with dragons advancing and his grades plummeting, Owen faced impossible odds—armed only with a sword, his legacy, and the classmate who agreed to be his bard.
Listen! I am Siobhan McQuaid. I alone know the story of Owen, the story that changes everything. Listen!
Available on Amazon.
11. Dragon Horse War: The Calling by D. Jackson Leigh
When is war justified to preserve peace?
Society has evolved into one collective belief that celebrates diversity. Luxury credits are earned and spent only after the world population is fed and educated.
But when catastrophic weather kills thousands and destroys crops, people begin to look for answers among ancient legends of guilt, retribution, and a vengeful deity.
Jael, seasoned commander of a latent cell of dragon horse warriors, understands what Alyssa, an alluring young priestess, doesn’t—words won’t be enough to quell the violent sect preying on the population’s fear and hunger.
As their conflicting ideologies threaten to jeopardize their mission, Alyssa and Jael realize their growing attraction and entwined destiny might be more formidable than the enemy they have been called upon to defeat.
Available on Amazon.
12. The Queen of Ieflaria by Effie Calvin
Princess Esofi of Rhodia and Crown Prince Albion of Ieflaria have been betrothed since they were children but have never met.
At age seventeen, Esofi’s journey to Ieflaria is not for the wedding she always expected but instead to offer condolences on the death of her would-be husband.
But Ieflaria is desperately in need of help from Rhodia for their dragon problem, so Esofi is offered a new betrothal to Prince Albion’s younger sister, the new Crown Princess Adale.
But Adale has no plans of taking the throne, leaving Esofi with more to battle than fire-breathing beasts.
Available on Amazon.
13. Rising From the Ashes by Caren Werlinger
Ancient Ireland – an era of clan wars, petty kings and invasions by raiders from the north.
As Christianity tightens its hold, magic and the old ways fight to keep their place in the hearts of the people.
Born into this world is Ash, orphaned and maimed, left to die. She is rescued by a clan of badgers and raised to be one of them. As she grows, so does her magic, until at last she comes to the attention of other humans. Some of them want to protect her; some want to use her.
When she bonds with an orphaned dragon cub, the two of them become pawns in a bid for power. Forced to flee, dragon and dragonmage embark on a quest to seek the answers as to why they were bonded and what their future holds.
Available on Amazon.
14. The Second Mango by Shira Glassman
Queen Shulamit never expected to inherit the throne of the tropical land of Perach so young.
At twenty, grief-stricken and fatherless, she’s also coping with being the only lesbian she knows after her sweetheart ran off for an unknown reason. Not to mention, she’s the victim of severe digestive problems that everybody thinks she’s faking.
When she meets Rivka, an athletic and assertive warrior from the north who wears a mask and pretends to be a man, she finds the source of strength she needs so desperately. Unfortunately for her, Rivka is straight, but that’s okay — Shulamit needs a surrogate big sister just as much as she needs a girlfriend.
Especially if the warrior’s willing to take her around the kingdom on the back of her dragon in search of other women who might be open to same-sex romance.
The real world outside the palace is full of adventure, however, and the search for a royal girlfriend quickly turns into a rescue mission when they discover a temple full of women turned to stone by an evil sorcerer.
Available on Amazon.
15. Black Blade Blues by J. A. Pitts
Sarah Beauhall has more on her plate than most twenty-somethings: day job as a blacksmith, night job as a props manager for low-budget movies, and her free time is spent fighting in a medieval re-enactment group.
The lead actor breaks Sarah’s favorite one-of-a-kind sword, and to avoid reshooting scenes, Sarah agrees to repair the blade. One of the extras, who claims to be a dwarf, offers to help.
And that’s when things start to get weird.
Could the sword really be magic, as the “dwarf” claims?
Are dragons really living among us as shapeshifters?
Available on Amazon.
16. Of Dragon Warrens and Other Traps By Shannon McGee
(The sequel to Of Gryphons and Other Monsters)
Set adrift by circumstances beyond her control Taryn, once a shepherd from the Carpathe Mountains, now finds herself in the new and strange company of mercenaries—men and women who fight for a living. With the help of Aella, the commander’s daughter, Taryn will do her best to find her footing and earn the respect and trust of those around her.
Securing her status as a true member of Twelfth Company will assure her place in their travels to Dabsqin, a bustling metropolis in the heart of the Southern Desert. Like a paradise, the city has food aplenty, the streets are lined with treasures from all across the continent, and the decadent bathhouses are places of great renown. However, something less savory lurks beneath the glitzy surface. In a city that never sleeps, real monsters take advantage of the noise to work their mischief.
As Taryn’s past attempts to catch up with her she will find friendship, love, and plenty of fighting. Home is to the north; adventure lies ahead. There’s no turning back now.
Follow Taryn as she rides south in this next installment of the “Taryn’s Journey” quartet.
Available on Amazon.
17. In the Vanishers’ Palace By Aliette de Bodard
In a ruined, devastated world, where the earth is poisoned and beings of nightmares roam the land…
A woman, betrayed, terrified, sold into indenture to pay her village’s debts and struggling to survive in a spirit world.
A dragon, among the last of her kind, cold and aloof but desperately trying to make a difference.
When failed scholar Yên is sold to Vu Côn, one of the last dragons walking the earth, she expects to be tortured or killed for Vu Côn’s amusement.
But Vu Côn, it turns out, has a use for Yên: she needs a scholar to tutor her two unruly children. She takes Yên back to her home, a vast, vertiginous palace-prison where every door can lead to death. Vu Côn seems stern and unbending, but as the days pass Yên comes to see her kinder and caring side. She finds herself dangerously attracted to the dragon who is her master and jailer. In the end, Yên will have to decide where her own happiness lies—and whether it will survive the revelation of Vu Côn’s dark, unspeakable secrets…
Available on Amazon.
18. Tale of a Dragon Princess By Lizzie Colt
The day Princess Mellie turns sixteen, her parents reveal she was cursed as a baby and will spend the rest of her nights as a dragon.
Two years later, she discovers a chance to break the curse, but it will take a quest with only her chosen bodyguard, a brave female warrior who has lost her lust for fighting but has developed an attraction for the princess.
Available on Amazon.
19. The Priory of the Orange Tree By Samantha Shannon
A world divided. A queendom without an heir. An ancient enemy awakens.
The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years. Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to protect her realm from destruction – but assassins are getting closer to her door.
Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she is loyal to a hidden society of mages. Ead keeps a watchful eye on Sabran, secretly protecting her with forbidden magic.
Across the dark sea, Tané has trained to be a dragonrider since she was a child, but is forced to make a choice that could see her life unravel.
Meanwhile, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and forces of chaos are rising from their sleep.
Available on Amazon.
If you enjoyed this list, here are a few others I think you’ll love!
- 10 Fantasy Romances With Mermaids
- 16 Great Reads for Lesbians and Queer Girls who Love Pirates!
- 11 Gorgeous Adaptations for Lesbians and Queer Girls who Love Fairy Tales!
- 10 Beautiful Audiobook Fairytale Retellings For Women Who Love Women
My Books
If you like the trope of sapphic dragons, you should check “Treasured”, by Poppy Woods. Taryn and Niressa are a great couple, and Poppy a great writer.