Okay, so I’m coming close to completing the Sapphic Reading Challenge for 2021. One of the hardest things is slotting the books into the 50 different categories. Quite a few of the books fit multiple tropes and I kept finding myself re-jigging my list to fill in a gap here, reshuffling to fill the new gap or bumping earlier books with more recent ones that better fit. Even with a spreadsheet, I was losing track and double counting at points … and if left on my own, I would be futzing around with the lists up to the last day (December 31, 2021).

So I’m locking my books in for the Book Dragon Level 1. No take backs, no substitutions, no second guessing, no revisions. Unless … NO. No changes.

I didn’t have a chance to write a full review for all of them, but where I have, I’ve linked it in this post.

So without further ado – here’s the books I’ve read for the Book Dragon Level 1 Badge of Jae’s Sapphic Reading Challenge for 2021.

Sapphic Reading Challenge Categories

1. Enemies-to-lovers romance – Longing For You, Jenny Frame

2. Character with an everyday job – Sing for My Baby, Jenn Matthews

3. Return to hometown – You Again, Aurora Rey

4. Character is a journalist or reporter – The Delicate Things We Make, Milena McKay DEFINITELY RECOMMEND

5. From TLR’s “Best of the Best” list – Gillette Park, Gerri Hill RECOMMEND

6. Only one bed – Mutual Benefits, HP Munro RECOMMEND

7. Character with a disability or mental illness – Off Balance, LE Royal

8. Character is a book lover – The Other Side of Forestlands Lake, Carolyn Elizabeth

9. One-night stand to forever – Give in to Me, Elle Spencer RECOMMEND

10. Speculative fiction – Z Town, Eden Darry

11. Ice queen character – Ice Queen, Gun Brooke

12. Neurodiverse character – Leaving’s Not the Only Way to Go, Kay Acker RECOMMEND

13. Longer book – Under my Skin, EA Dooland

14. Character is a medical professional – Unrivalled, Radclyffe

15. Genre you don’t usually read – Forbidden FUTA Encounters, Madeline Dusk AVOID (unless that’s your thing)

16. Grumpy & sunshine – Liberty Bay, Karis Walsh RECOMMEND

17. Character is a teacher or professor – Coyote Blues, Karen F Williams DEFINITELY RECOMMEND

18. Coming out later in life – White Horse Point, Andrews and Austin

19. Historical fiction / historical romance – Dr Todson’s Home for Incorrigible Women, Riley LaShea

20. Nerdy/geeky character – Technically Faking, Robin Hale RECOMMEND

21. Age gap romance – Presidential, Lola Keeley

22. Character of a different ethnicity, culture, or race than you – House of Agnes, Fiona Zedde

23. Recommended by a friend – Sylver and Gold, Michelle Larkin

24. Character is a musician – Love’s Falling Star, BD Grayson RECOMMEND

25. Your favorite author’s favorite book – The Lily and the Crown, Rosalyn Sinclair RECOMMEND

26. Character was adopted/in foster care – Double Crossed, Ali Vali RECOMMEND

27. Shy or socially awkward character – Gretel On Her Own, Elna Holst RECOMMEND

28. Character rocks a power suit. – Temptation, Kris Bryant RECOMEND

29. Book starts with the first day of a new job – Heatwave, Maggie McIntyre

30. Mystery – Lawless, Jenna Rae

31. Friends-to-lovers romance – Swipe Right, Teagan Shepherd RECOMMEND

32. Body-positive book – Mind Games, Cara Malone

33. Disguised or living as a man – Measure of Devotion , C F Frizzel

34. Character works in the food industry – The Secret Ingredient, KD FIsher

35. Re-read a favorite – The Summer of Our Discontent, Robin Alexander DEFINITELY RECOMMEND

36. Road trip – One Weekend in Aspen, Jaimie Clevenger RECOMMEND

37. Bisexual or pansexual character – Terrible Praise, Lara Hayes DEFINITELY RECOMMEND

38. Animal on the cover – Two Hearts Forever, Harper Bliss

39. Girl-next-door character – Reach the Stars, Lily Seabrooke

40. Adventure in nature – From the Woods, Charlotte Greene RECOMMEND

41. Mistaken identity – Mistaken Identity, Donna Jay

42. Set in a country you don’t live in – You, Me and the Sunken Treasure, Georgette Kaplan

43. Part of a series – The Devil Incarnate, Ali Vali RECOMMEND

44. Character is a business owner – Don’t Cry for Me, Rachel Lacey

45. New-to-you author – The Fight in the Dog, Geonn Cannon

46. Set in the 20th century – Silver Wings, HP Munro RECOMMEND

47. Character who isn’t “Hollywood beautiful” – Coming Home, KJ

48. Character works in STEM – Cure for Insomnia, Laina Villeneuve

49. Forced proximity – In the Palm, Elna Holst RECOMMEND

50. Anthology, short story collection, novella – Godspeed, AE Dooland