Characters with a strong initial dislike (Sapphic Book Bingo #16)
This week’s Sapphic Book Bingo category features characters with a strong initial dislike. That animosity might develop into an enemies-to-lovers romance, but the dislike between the characters won’t always go that far. Sometimes, their personalities simply clash or they are rivals competing for the same goal. In any case, the two characters can’t stand each other in the beginning of the book.
15 sapphic books featuring characters with a strong initial dislike
Below, you’ll find 15 sapphic books in which the characters start out not liking each other.
Bachelorette Number Twelve by Jae
At a singles auction where no one was bidding on love, a warmhearted ER nurse finds herself dating a prickly doctor in this enemies-to-lovers lesbian romance.
Ellie Fisher loves most things about being a nurse in the emergency department…just not working with Regina Novak, an icy attending physician who acts as if she’s God’s gift to medicine.
The dislike is completely mutual. Regina thinks Ellie is a starry-eyed romantic with a sentimental attitude that has no place at work.
When Regina gets talked into volunteering at a singles auction, Ellie accidentally bids on her—and ends up winning. Oops!
Since the money raised is for a good cause, they reluctantly decide to go through with the dates.
Thanks to a baking class that turns into a competition and a hot-as-hell road trip snack incident, the ice between them starts to thaw. Is it possible the ER isn’t the most unromantic place on earth after all?
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Cabin Fever by Addison M. Conley
Kate Minton’s life is collapsing. She’s fired, her estranged father dies, and her girlfriend dumps her. Her older half-brothers inherit everything, and all Kate gets is a remote, rundown Idaho cabin that no one knew existed. But if Kate lives there for a year, she’ll inherit half a million dollars. The move leads her to family secrets and an infuriating, and inconveniently sexy, contractor. She goes for the money, but will she stay for something deeper?
Riley Anderson lives in rural Idaho, helping her aunt run the family store and maintaining her construction business, while also avoiding dealing with a past that continues to haunt her. When she takes on Kate’s cabin renovations, she’s not impressed with the city slicker. But as they’re forced to spend time together, they find they have more in common than either of them could have ever imagined.
Will the pull of the big city be too much to resist? Will Riley find the strength to trust Kate, or will cabin fever be too much to bear?
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No Shelter But the Stars by Virginia Black
Kyran Loyal is the last heir to the lost throne of a forgotten planet, the figurehead of a nomadic people fleeing the galactic tyranny of a brutal regime. Davia Sifane is the unrecognized daughter of an imperial despot. When happenstance pits them against each other in battle, neither expects the outcome: they are the only two people to survive. Marooned on a barren moon, their only hope of survival is to rely on each other, but what they learn will either kill them or change the galaxy forever.
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She Sings of Old, Unhappy, Far-off Things by Caren J. Werlinger
Margaret Braithwaite was a rising Regency scholar and an acclaimed author. Thirty years later, she’s a one-book wonder, a fifty-something college professor with the dubious distinction of being an expert on Jane Austen, hidden in the shadow of her famous husband and his Civil War novels. “Too young to retire, and too old to start over,” Margaret feels as dried up and dead as the neglected gardens her husband took such pride in before he became ill.
Wyck Fitzsimmons is the Asheville landscape architect Gavin Braithwaite hires to restore his precious gardens to their former glory. She learned a long time ago that plants and trees are safer and more reliable companions than other people.
Under Wyck’s care, the gardens begin to come back to life, but the flowers aren’t the only thing blossoming. For the first time in decades, Margaret feels the stirrings of love, but those long-buried feelings frighten her more than the prospect of withering away alone in her ivory tower of academia.
Gavin, more observant than most people give him credit for, sees the attraction developing between his wife and his gardener. Using every means at his disposal, he arranges things so that Margaret has no choice but to remain faithful to him, even after death.
Margaret, confused and faced with losing everything that offers her any kind of security, flees to England – to Austen and Wordsworth country – where she tries to forget Wyck and all the feelings she has awakened.
Back in North Carolina, Wyck must come to terms with her own past and somehow find a way to forgive before it’s too late to make amends.
Love, it seems, can take root in even the most barren hearts, if only Margaret and Wyck can find the courage to let it grow.
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A Calculated Risk by Cari Hunter
Detective Jo Shaw has it all worked out. She’s good at her job, she has loads of mates, and she likes being single. She doesn’t need complications, but an emergency call to the stabbing of a young woman brings plenty of those. Jo has to risk her career to save the woman’s life, and a bad night gets worse when the trauma surgeon turns out to be Isla Munro, Jo’s only real love, who walked out on her fifteen years ago and never came back.
With the victim’s children missing and the husband the prime suspect, Jo’s investigation is stonewalled by a community living in fear. As one dead end leads to another, she and Isla are forced to put their differences aside and work together. But the case is far more dangerous than Jo realizes, and her determination to sort the truth from the lies may put her own life on the line.
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Loser of the Year by Carrie Byrd
Mattie Belman’s life has gone from dismal to desperate. After the loss of her acting career, her marriage, and her usual optimism, she’s back home teaching high school theater. Maybe it’ll be a fresh start.
St. Rita’s arrogant soccer coach Jillian Reed sees Mattie’s musical as an outrageous distraction for her champion players. When Jillian declares war, Mattie is far too stubborn to back down.
But as Mattie discovers there might be more to Jillian than spectacle, fire, and ego, she gets dangerously close to her iron-willed colleague. Can she avoid temptation? Or will the growing flame in Jillian’s dark eyes ignite them both?
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Ready to Score by Jodie Slaughter
Jade Dunn has spent years trying to climb her way to the top of the southern high school football food chain. Now, the only thing standing between her and that future head coach spot is years of small-town good ‘ol boy politics. When she scores an invite to a highly coveted monthly poker game perfect for networking, she jumps at the chance for a seat at the table. Only to find the one person with the ability to shake her there. An infuriatingly sexy art teacher who plays her cards like she’s gunning for Jade’s deserved spot.
Francesca Lim never thought she’d be happy in a small town, not after living and breathing hardcore Texas football her whole life. But two years ago, the promise of forever love had her leaving behind a burgeoning coaching career for a new life – only for it to burst into flames. Now, she has a chance to gain back a piece of her life she thought she’d left in Houston. The only one standing in the way? The prickly assistant coach that Francesca can’t keep her mind or hands off of.
Not wanting to risk losing out on a dream job, Jade and Francesca can’t afford to give in to the iron hot attraction that simmers beneath their biting interactions, so they try desperately to ignore it. Too bad their hearts don’t seem to be as on board with the game plan.
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A Heart Full of Hope by Cheyenne Blue
Smalltown handywoman Hazel Lee has learned to live her best life regardless of what the universe throws at her. But her patience is sorely tested when a bossy, big-city executive blows in and starts questioning Hazel’s motives for helping an elderly friend.
High-powered businesswoman Imogen Alexander has her career all set. Then her elderly uncle takes a bad fall in his home. Imogen figures she can surely run his life as tightly as her work, but she doesn’t count on an annoying local woman being all up in his business.
Hazel has one leg, two jobs, and a whole bunch of opinions. Worse, now meddling old Uncle George seems intent on match-making the women together.
But what could an icy standoffish executive in hot skirt suits possibly have in common with a cute butch with charm to burn?
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We Met in a Bar by Claire Forsythe
Wealthy nightclub owner Erica turns undercover bartender on a mission to catch a thief. The ridiculous idea seemed comical when her brother proposed it. After all, Erica has never worked a day in her life. But when her pushy mother plays matchmaker with yet another woman Erica isn’t interested in, she escapes on a train to London, to a club she hasn’t set foot in since inheriting it. There she meets no strings, no commitments Charlie, who couldn’t be further from Erica’s type. Erica has never met anyone who gets under her skin so much, and that’s surely a bad thing, right?
Charlie lives for the thrill of the chase. She loves women a little too much to imagine herself settling down. The very thought of a relationship is a terrifying prospect. It doesn’t matter anyway because she’s never met anyone who has held her interest for anything longer than a quick fling. All that changes when she meets the mysterious new bartender at her local club. Getting to know the obnoxious yet beautiful woman is a challenge she can’t resist. She just hadn’t bargained on her heart getting involved.
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For Love and Liberty by Eden Hopewell
Abigail Caldwell never expected to inherit her family’s textile empire. Now, burdened by a legacy built on exploitation, she’s determined to make things right. But changing a system ingrained in centuries of tradition and prejudice is harder than she imagined. Especially when her heart yearns for something—someone—society forbids.
Sarah Moore knows the mill’s harsh realities all too well. Every day is a struggle for survival, a battle against a system designed to grind down those deemed unworthy. When a workers’ strike erupts, Sarah finds herself leading the charge, her fiery passion igniting hearts and minds. But she never expected to find hope—and forbidden love—in the arms of the mill’s beautiful, enigmatic new owner.
As their paths collide amidst the tumult of social unrest, Abigail and Sarah find themselves drawn to each other, their connection defying the chasm that separates their worlds. But the more they fight for a just future, the more their forbidden love threatens to unravel everything they hold dear.
Will they risk their hearts—and their futures—for a love that could shatter the very foundations of Philadelphia society?
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Reel to Real Love by Elle E. Ire
Finding the right romantic partner is always a challenge—especially when your first spouse turns out to be a greedy, business-obsessed hardass who winds up on her CEO office floor with a bullet through her brain.
After the murder of her first wife, Elaine is ready for a vacation and a solid relationship with a woman who only has time for her. Thanks to some found alien technology, Elaine can get what she wants… sort of. Okay, so a computer-generated tangible holographic image of a twentieth-century film star is about as far from “solid” as it gets. But as her themed pleasure cruise on a passenger starliner progresses and an additional plot to murder Elaine reveals itself, she finds herself inexplicably drawn to her fantasy companion.
Ricky might be the result of exceptional programming, but she proves to be more than the sum of her particles. She shows Elaine more affection, and eventually more protection, than any so-called “real” woman in her life ever has, leaving Elaine to wonder—are Ricky’s feelings for her truly artificial? Or is this REEL TO REAL LOVE?
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Where the Waves Kiss the Shore by Iona Kane
Kasia Wojcik has poured her heart and soul into running the charming hotel she now calls home on the breathtaking Irish island of Inishderry. If only the indifferent Walsh family who own the place shared her dedication.
Enter Tierney Walsh, a free spirit who believes life is too short for commitments. She sees her family’s island home as a place for laughter and leisure, not responsibility and hard work.
As winter’s chill sets in, Kasia and Tierney find themselves thrown together on the island. Can they bridge their differences to save their cherished hotel? And amid their struggle, will they also discover a love that can weather any storm?
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Score to Love by Johana Gavez
Antonia Carvalho left her native Brazil in search of a dream: a professional soccer career and better opportunities for her and her brother. The plan is simple; score as many goals as possible with the Houston Starlight and become one of their top players. She won’t let anything get in the way. Not even Camila Sánchez, her attractive but annoying teammate.
Camila Sánchez spent all her life in the shadow of her father, a former soccer star and coach. There’s no time for distractions as she fights to show everyone she deserves her spot on the team. Playing for the Houston Starlight is her opportunity to shine. She won’t let Antonia steal her spot on the team, no matter how much chemistry they have in bed.
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An Unlikely Partnership by Katie Trapp
Rue Lovelace was not accustomed to change. She enjoyed her mundane life. So, when her mentor abruptly skips town leaving her in his place as Head Custos witch and new owner of a mystery ring, she doesn’t handle it the best, especially when she finds out part of her new role is to assist the police with Other-world issues. If it got out that she was working with the cops, her family business would be ruined.
An uptick in Other-world crime has workaholic Detective Niko Moscato running on empty, or at least that’s what she’s telling herself. When a man is murdered, her whole world flips upside down upon meeting the sassy witch currently in the Head Custos position. She’s met with a wall of ice that doesn’t help the case. And neither do the new feelings fluttering in her chest.
Both women struggle to navigate the new partnership while keeping a few secrets hidden away. But when the murders start getting a little too close to home, they have to begin doing something neither is good at relying on each other. The pressure is on to solve the case quickly before anyone else is killed. Or their partnership implodes. Either way, it’s going to get messy before it’s all over.
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Tapping into Love by Monica McCallan
Lucy Parsons wants absolutely nothing to do with the Westmoore family or the maple syrup they produce. When Sierra Westmoore blows back into town after her father’s death and tries to rent a room at Lucy’s family’s bed-and-breakfast, The Maple Inn, Lucy kicks her out on the spot. It doesn’t matter that Sierra hasn’t set foot in Maple Run in fifteen years—the Westmoores are not allowed.
But small towns don’t leave a lot of room to hide, and Sierra and her brother, Drake, have set their sights on improving the town’s opinion of them now that their father is gone.
Lucy doesn’t believe any Westmoore could have good intentions, and although she may have to play nice with Sierra, it doesn’t mean she’s going to like it.
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Hate to Love You by Shannon O’Connor
Two unlikely roommates, hot summer nights & a forbidden sapphic romance.
Ryleigh:
When Alana suggested I move into the second house on the Lovers Estate, I took her up on it. Even though that meant sharing the space with Alana’s little sister, who happened to hate my guts.
Wrenn:
Of course my older sister just had to open her big mouth and invite her friend to stay with me. It was bad enough having to see her in my sister’s wedding, but to see her at my kitchen table? I thought after we hooked up that it might be the start of something, until the next morning when I woke up alone. Now all she wants to do is talk about what happened and I just want to avoid her.
Ryleigh and Wrenn are sure they still hate each other but as the summer nights heat up, so do their feelings.
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What book will you be reading for the “characters with a strong initial dislike” category? Let us know in the comments!
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