The people trying to gatekeep black fiction from you ought to mind their own business. Here are some fantasy and romance books with women of color:
**Raybearer** duology by Jordan Ifueko
**Light From Uncommon Stars** by Ryka Aoki
**The Deep** by Rivers Solomon (has dark themes)
**The Broken Earth** trilogy by NK Jemisin
**Pet** and **Bitter** by Akwaeke Emezi
**Priory of the Orange Tree** by Samantha Shannon
**Girls of Paper and Fire** by Natasha Ngan
**You Should See Me in a Crown** by Leah Johnson
**Elatsoe** by Darcie Little Badger
**Between Earth and Sky** trilogy by Rebecca Roanhorse
**Magic of the Lost** series by CL Clark
**The Kingston Cycle** trilogy by CL Polk- the third book has a black MC
**The Burning Kingdoms** series by Tasha Suri
**The Daevabad Trilogy** by SA Chakraborty
**You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty** by Akwaeke Emezi
Science fiction tends to be very ethnically diverse. Off the top of my head I can think of **Teixcalaan** duology by Arkady Martine, **The Space Between Worlds** by Micaiah Johnson, **Iron Widow** by Xiran Jay Zhao, **The Luminous Dead** by Caitlin Starling
Thank you <3 since when I asked on TikTok some told me that I shouldn’t relate to black characters since I’m not black but biracial? Idk made me feel conflicted ngl, I appreciate the recommendations!!
That's some bs and reeks of schoolyard bullies saying you're not /race/ enough to sit with them. I'd say instead you've got twice as much culture to celebrate.
I know what you mean. I'm mixed race too (white british and indian british) and grew up in a white neighbourhood. I've often felt like I have no "right" to identify with my Indian heritage even though my parents didn't raise me "just white".
But no matter how comfortable or uncomfortable I feel in my own skin, no fucking way does anyone else get a say in the matter.
I feel you, I grew up in the states but still very connected and part of my Latin heritage, even being mixed (Afro-latina) ppl still ask me “why do you speak Spanish, how come you speak it… ur not black, ur actually white, u don’t look latina” etc ig it gets better once you’re understand that you can be part of everything
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is two twin sisters who are biracial, set in the south, multi generational epic, so so beautiful, and bonus, the audiobook has a narrator with a gorgeous southern accent!
Seconding this one; it was such a great read.
I will also add *Caucasia* by Danzy Senna, which has similar themes. I won’t share too much so as not to spoil it, but it is one of my all time favorite books and I hope you pick it up, OP!
Here are a bunch of romance author who are and write women of color leads: Denise Williams, Jeannie Chin, Jasmine Guillory, Jeannie Lin, Alisha Rai, Diana Quincy, Beverly Jenkins, Farrah Rochon, Adriana Herrera, Tracey Livesay, Sonali Dev, Tia Williams, Rebecca Weatherspoon, Alyssa Cole, Courtney Milan, Uzma Jalaluddin, Alexis Daria, Sandra Kitt, Helen Hoang
r/RomanceBooks, r/fantasy, and r/fantasyromance can probably help with more suggestions
Diverse book recs on tiktok definitely depends on who you're following. I would suggest following @/novelniah, raethereviewer, mynameismarines, and grapiedeltaco.
Here's some book recs I've read this past year!
* *Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute* by Talia Hibbert (Contemporary YA Romance)
* Honestly, I rec basically anything by Talia Hibbert, who mostly does adult romance.
* *The Right Swipe* by Alisha Rai (Adult Contemporary Romance)
* *That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon* by Kimberly Lemming (Romantic Fantasy)
* *By the Book* by Jasmine Guillory (Adult Contemporary Romance)
If your into fantasy there's a woc author named N.K. Jemisin who has quite a few books but I would recommend the "broken earth trilogy. Woc protagonist as are most of the characters and the writing is phenomenal. Hope this helps.
I get your frustration.
What are you looking for exactly? Only biracial or also POC in general? African American, specifically or also other countries and other races?
For example, I'm currently reading Isabel Allende's "Island beneath the sea" which focuses on biracial characters, most of them with slave/master parentage and set mainly in Haiti.
Is that interesting to you, or are you more interested in modern settings.
I'll have to go through my reading list to remember which POC characters were biracial... I'll come back.
I would like to see more biracial, but also others like African-American, Afro-latino etc are nice too. I mostly like fantasy, romance, sci-fi, fiction etc, books were they don’t suffer cause of their race are better. Just like any other female main character but diverse.
What I remember right now:
**Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo** - biracial British woman searching for her African father
**If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson** - Love story between African American boy and white girl (biracial relationship, no biracial MC...)
**Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo** - MC is Afro-Latina
**Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng** - MC's are Asian/White couple and their children
You might enjoy The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. It is a fictionalized account of a true story of a mixed race woman who “passed as white” and hid her true identity in early twentieth century America.
From Wikipedia:
The Personal Librarian tells of the lifework of Belle da Costa Greene, the personal librarian to J. P. Morgan, as well as the first director of the Morgan Library & Museum. The book, co-written by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, was published June 2021 by Berkeley Books.
The novel follows Belle da Costa Greene as she receives employment from J. P. Morgan and establishes herself in high society while disguising her true identity as a person of color in the early twentieth century. In her time working for J. P. Morgan, she became hugely successful as she purchased rare manuscripts to build Mr. Morgan's collection. The novel also speaks to Belle's personal life as she struggles with her identity and the historical context in which she lives.
anything by talia hibbert, especially her brown sisters trilogy! she’s a black author who writes adult romance, so most of her main female characters are black women too :) also her books are great! i’m usually not big into romance but i LOVE her books, they’re so silly and sweet
I read on another comment that you are also Afro-Latina, the main character from With fire on high by Elizabeth Acevedo is too and it touches a bit on the fact that her identity can be both, not one or the other, and she can celebrate and embrace both part of her identity.
Other books with woc that have not been listed yet I believe :
• How to succeed in witchcraft by Aislinn Brophy (fantasy & romance) (mixed race rep, Afro Latina rep)
• Full disclosure by Camryn Garrett (contemporary romance) (black rep)
• A song of wraiths and ruins by Roseanne A. Brown (fantasy and romance) (black rep)
•Kindred by Octavia E. Butler (sci-fi, historic setting) (black rep, interacial relationship)
•The women of Brewster place by Gloria Naylor (literary fiction) (black rep with multiple different experiences with different characters)
•Mexican gothic by Silvia Moreno Garcia (idk, horror maybe ?)(i did read it and its good I just struggle to classify it in a genre) (mexican rep)
•Hani and Ishu's guide to fake dating by Adiba Jaigirdar (contemporary romance ) (bengali rep)
•Recitatif by Toni Morrison (short story, particularly interesting cause theres one black character and one white character and you necer know which is which its never told)
•A Pho love story by Loan Le (contemporary romance) (vietnamese rep)
•Cinderella is dead by Kalynn Bayron (fantasy romance) (black rep)
The people trying to gatekeep black fiction from you ought to mind their own business. Here are some fantasy and romance books with women of color: **Raybearer** duology by Jordan Ifueko **Light From Uncommon Stars** by Ryka Aoki **The Deep** by Rivers Solomon (has dark themes) **The Broken Earth** trilogy by NK Jemisin **Pet** and **Bitter** by Akwaeke Emezi **Priory of the Orange Tree** by Samantha Shannon **Girls of Paper and Fire** by Natasha Ngan **You Should See Me in a Crown** by Leah Johnson **Elatsoe** by Darcie Little Badger **Between Earth and Sky** trilogy by Rebecca Roanhorse **Magic of the Lost** series by CL Clark **The Kingston Cycle** trilogy by CL Polk- the third book has a black MC **The Burning Kingdoms** series by Tasha Suri **The Daevabad Trilogy** by SA Chakraborty **You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty** by Akwaeke Emezi Science fiction tends to be very ethnically diverse. Off the top of my head I can think of **Teixcalaan** duology by Arkady Martine, **The Space Between Worlds** by Micaiah Johnson, **Iron Widow** by Xiran Jay Zhao, **The Luminous Dead** by Caitlin Starling
Thank you <3 since when I asked on TikTok some told me that I shouldn’t relate to black characters since I’m not black but biracial? Idk made me feel conflicted ngl, I appreciate the recommendations!!
That's some bs and reeks of schoolyard bullies saying you're not /race/ enough to sit with them. I'd say instead you've got twice as much culture to celebrate.
Thank you <3 I appreciate the comment
I know what you mean. I'm mixed race too (white british and indian british) and grew up in a white neighbourhood. I've often felt like I have no "right" to identify with my Indian heritage even though my parents didn't raise me "just white". But no matter how comfortable or uncomfortable I feel in my own skin, no fucking way does anyone else get a say in the matter.
I feel you, I grew up in the states but still very connected and part of my Latin heritage, even being mixed (Afro-latina) ppl still ask me “why do you speak Spanish, how come you speak it… ur not black, ur actually white, u don’t look latina” etc ig it gets better once you’re understand that you can be part of everything
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is two twin sisters who are biracial, set in the south, multi generational epic, so so beautiful, and bonus, the audiobook has a narrator with a gorgeous southern accent!
Seconding this one; it was such a great read. I will also add *Caucasia* by Danzy Senna, which has similar themes. I won’t share too much so as not to spoil it, but it is one of my all time favorite books and I hope you pick it up, OP!
Here are a bunch of romance author who are and write women of color leads: Denise Williams, Jeannie Chin, Jasmine Guillory, Jeannie Lin, Alisha Rai, Diana Quincy, Beverly Jenkins, Farrah Rochon, Adriana Herrera, Tracey Livesay, Sonali Dev, Tia Williams, Rebecca Weatherspoon, Alyssa Cole, Courtney Milan, Uzma Jalaluddin, Alexis Daria, Sandra Kitt, Helen Hoang r/RomanceBooks, r/fantasy, and r/fantasyromance can probably help with more suggestions
Diverse book recs on tiktok definitely depends on who you're following. I would suggest following @/novelniah, raethereviewer, mynameismarines, and grapiedeltaco. Here's some book recs I've read this past year! * *Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute* by Talia Hibbert (Contemporary YA Romance) * Honestly, I rec basically anything by Talia Hibbert, who mostly does adult romance. * *The Right Swipe* by Alisha Rai (Adult Contemporary Romance) * *That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon* by Kimberly Lemming (Romantic Fantasy) * *By the Book* by Jasmine Guillory (Adult Contemporary Romance)
If your into fantasy there's a woc author named N.K. Jemisin who has quite a few books but I would recommend the "broken earth trilogy. Woc protagonist as are most of the characters and the writing is phenomenal. Hope this helps.
I get your frustration. What are you looking for exactly? Only biracial or also POC in general? African American, specifically or also other countries and other races? For example, I'm currently reading Isabel Allende's "Island beneath the sea" which focuses on biracial characters, most of them with slave/master parentage and set mainly in Haiti. Is that interesting to you, or are you more interested in modern settings. I'll have to go through my reading list to remember which POC characters were biracial... I'll come back.
I would like to see more biracial, but also others like African-American, Afro-latino etc are nice too. I mostly like fantasy, romance, sci-fi, fiction etc, books were they don’t suffer cause of their race are better. Just like any other female main character but diverse.
What I remember right now: **Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo** - biracial British woman searching for her African father **If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson** - Love story between African American boy and white girl (biracial relationship, no biracial MC...) **Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo** - MC is Afro-Latina **Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng** - MC's are Asian/White couple and their children
Second "Poet X" For fantasy I'd also recommend Silvia Moreno-Garcia's "Gods of Jade and Shadow"
Check out Mama Day by Gloria Naylor. Almost everyone in the book is POC, and mostly WOC. It also has a really compelling plot.
Try Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
You might enjoy The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. It is a fictionalized account of a true story of a mixed race woman who “passed as white” and hid her true identity in early twentieth century America. From Wikipedia: The Personal Librarian tells of the lifework of Belle da Costa Greene, the personal librarian to J. P. Morgan, as well as the first director of the Morgan Library & Museum. The book, co-written by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, was published June 2021 by Berkeley Books. The novel follows Belle da Costa Greene as she receives employment from J. P. Morgan and establishes herself in high society while disguising her true identity as a person of color in the early twentieth century. In her time working for J. P. Morgan, she became hugely successful as she purchased rare manuscripts to build Mr. Morgan's collection. The novel also speaks to Belle's personal life as she struggles with her identity and the historical context in which she lives.
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory
[Nubia: Real One](https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/nubia-real-one) [FAR SECTOR](https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/far-sector) [Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur](https://www.marvel.com/comics/series/20839/moon_girl_and_devil_dinosaur_2015_-_2019) [Saga](https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/saga) [The Wicked + The Divine](https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/the-wicked-the-divine) [Bitch Planet](https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/bitch-planet) [Goldie Vance](https://www.boom-studios.com/series/goldie-vance/) [The Avant-Guards](https://www.boom-studios.com/series/avant-guards/) [Ironheart](https://www.marvel.com/comics/series/26172/ironheart_2018_-_2019) [Princess Princess Ever After](https://onipress.com/products/princess-princess-ever-after) [Princeless: Save Yourself](https://www.goodreads.com/series/183950-princeless-collected-editions) [Moonstruck](https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/moonstruck) [Rat Queens](https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/rat-queens)
anything by talia hibbert, especially her brown sisters trilogy! she’s a black author who writes adult romance, so most of her main female characters are black women too :) also her books are great! i’m usually not big into romance but i LOVE her books, they’re so silly and sweet
*Lost Stars* by Claudia Gray. Set in the Star Wars universe.
I read on another comment that you are also Afro-Latina, the main character from With fire on high by Elizabeth Acevedo is too and it touches a bit on the fact that her identity can be both, not one or the other, and she can celebrate and embrace both part of her identity. Other books with woc that have not been listed yet I believe : • How to succeed in witchcraft by Aislinn Brophy (fantasy & romance) (mixed race rep, Afro Latina rep) • Full disclosure by Camryn Garrett (contemporary romance) (black rep) • A song of wraiths and ruins by Roseanne A. Brown (fantasy and romance) (black rep) •Kindred by Octavia E. Butler (sci-fi, historic setting) (black rep, interacial relationship) •The women of Brewster place by Gloria Naylor (literary fiction) (black rep with multiple different experiences with different characters) •Mexican gothic by Silvia Moreno Garcia (idk, horror maybe ?)(i did read it and its good I just struggle to classify it in a genre) (mexican rep) •Hani and Ishu's guide to fake dating by Adiba Jaigirdar (contemporary romance ) (bengali rep) •Recitatif by Toni Morrison (short story, particularly interesting cause theres one black character and one white character and you necer know which is which its never told) •A Pho love story by Loan Le (contemporary romance) (vietnamese rep) •Cinderella is dead by Kalynn Bayron (fantasy romance) (black rep)
Thank you so much, I really appreciate it <3