This week’s Sapphic Reading Challenge features sapphic books with a mistaken identity theme.
A character is mistaken for someone else for at least a part of the book. Usually, it’s misunderstanding (or at least it starts out that way), rather than one character intentionally lying or disguising herself. The misunderstanding can be cleared up quickly or the other character can play along and start pretending to be someone she isn’t, but the situation didn’t start out as an intentional disguise.
Read up on the rules of the Sapphic Reading Challenge
If you are only discovering the Sapphic Reading Challenge now, the good news is you can still join! It’s a year-long challenge, so it runs until December 31, 2021. Read up on the rules of the Sapphic Reading Challenge and download your PDF so you can keep track of the books you read this year.
15 sapphic books with a mistaken identity theme
I put together a list of 15 sapphic books with a mistaken identity theme. I hope you find at least one you’ll enjoy.
Wrong Number, Right Woman by Jae
A single text message can change everything!
Flirting has never been Denny’s strong suit, but so what if she’s too shy to ask women out? She’s content with her simple life, working as a cashier and helping her sister raise her niece.
But then she gets a wrong-number text message from a stranger named Eliza, asking her of all people for dating advice!
Eliza is Denny’s total opposite: witty, outgoing—and straight. Despite their differences, the accidental text sparks an unlikely friendship. Soon, Eliza—self-proclaimed queen of disastrous first dates—would rather banter back and forth with Denny than to keep trying her luck at online dating.
When they meet in person, there’s an instant connection. But what Eliza is feeling can’t be attraction, right? It doesn’t mean a thing that she’s starting to wish the guys she dates would be more like Denny. Or does it?
Can the wrong number lead to the right woman after all?
Available at:
Mistaken Identity by Donna Jay
On a scale of awkward to totally catastrophic, Kelly Bennett has managed to hit every level of “Oh. My. God.” in just one night.
Kelly decides her older, uptight girlfriend Paula needs a bit of loosening up during her birthday party. When she finds her curled up in bed, Kelly leaps her bones, adds a few restraints and kinky sex, and one satisfied lover later, sneaks out… only to run into her girlfriend, Paula, in the hallway.
After the shock wears off, leaving a puddle of guilt, recriminations, and a now ex-girlfriend, Kelly’s left with one burning question: who was that woman in the bedroom? Was it Paula’s best friend? Her deplorable assistant? One of her flatmates?
And why did she go along with it?
There’s nothing left for it: Kelly’s on a mission to find out and apologise.
Available at:
Alias by Cari Hunter
A car lies crashed below a Welsh mountain road. One of the young women inside it is dead, the other badly injured, with no memory of who she is or what just happened. All she has is a bus pass showing her photograph and a name she doesn’t recognise.
As she struggles to recover from her injuries, a startling revelation shatters everything she thought she knew, forcing her into an uneasy alliance with Detective Bronwen Pryce. With danger closing in from all sides, the two women must work together to uncover the truth—even if it kills them.
Available at:
Telling Lies Online by Miranda MacLeod
Jamie Richards is a scientist who embraces reason– except when it comes to romance. Tired of her impulsive streak leaving her heartbroken, she’s determined to do everything right the next time she’s in love. But her resolve crumbles when a technical glitch matches her with perfection in Claire, a woman who lives on the opposite side of the country. Who is straight. And under the impression that Jamie’s a guy. But Jamie can’t help being smitten. Would one tiny lie be so terrible if it gets her closer to the woman of her dreams?
Claire Flores is a dreamer and a believer in signs, but she has a secret that keeps her cautious about love. All she wants is a picture-perfect family of her own, but she’s never met a man who attracts her. Until now. Throwing caution to the wind, she goes from Portland to Boston to meet Jay, her online love. Instead she meets Jamie, his work colleague, who befriends her in Jay’s unexpected absence. Claire’s heart is aflutter. Jamie stirs up feelings Claire never knew possible, but how close can she get without having to admit that she’s been lying to herself about her dreams all along?
What starts as a simple fib soon snowballs as Jamie fabricates increasingly ridiculous tales to keep her identity as Jay under wraps, until a comedy of errors threatens to topple the whole charade to the ground. Can true love prevail when it’s founded on a lie?
Available at:
The Wrong Date by Sienna Waters
Annie Harland is rich, successful, and very single. So when an invitation to her tenth high school reunion drops on her mat, she’s determined to skip it. Until a drunk evening with her best friend results in an appointment with an escort named Robin.
Robin is supposed to be bookish, well-muscled, and the owner of a golden retriever. Robin is actually tall, curvaceous, and very, very female.
Things should have ended at their very first meeting. But for some strange reason, Annie can’t stop seeing Ms. Wrong. And Robin is Ms. Wrong, if only because she’s a Ms. and not a Mr.
What should have been a story of high school revenge has turned into a romance, and Annie’s life is about to be turned upside down. But love knows no labels, or does it?
Available at:
Mrs. Mix Up by Candace Harper
A secret crush. A mix-up in paperwork. And suddenly, a fake marriage that lands two women in one hotel room–and face to face with their denial.
After six months of simmering attraction, librarians Sofiya Anderson and Molly Andersen are ready to burst. There’s a magnetism between them that threatens their commitment to professionalism, and not even a librarian’s stern shushing can quiet it down. But they’ve managed to hold themselves in check…for now.
Until a mistake at a regional conference, a tiny oversight in spelling, makes the coordinators believe they’re a married couple.
Two women. One bed. And a Mrs. Mix-Up that doesn’t quite go by the books. Can they make it through four days of professional development with both their hearts and their jobs intact?
Available at:
Scent by Kris Bryant
Nico Marshall’s living her best life. Her packaging company’s turning a profit and she’s just been labeled Chicago’s most promising up-and-coming artist. The only thing missing is love. When she meets a beautiful woman on the train with an indescribable sweet and sugary scent, Nico’s ready to make her move.
Sophia Sweet doesn’t have time for distractions. Never mind how fit and tan Nico is, or how she has the most beautiful eyes ever. Sophia only has one goal: keep the family business alive. Her third-generation chocolatier shop, Sweet Stuff, is tanking. In a last-ditch effort, Sophia creates an upscale version of their product and needs the perfect package to ensure success.
When Sophia recognizes Nico from the train but mistakes her for the packaging company’s warehouse employee, Nico doesn’t bother to correct her. She’s been burned by women in the past wanting her for her money. This time, she’s determined to win Sophia over with her charm.
Available at:
The Lily and the Crown by Roslyn Sinclair
Ariana “Ari” Geiker lives an isolated life on an imperial space station commanded by her father. The skilled, young botanist rarely leaves her living quarters, where she maintains an elaborate garden.
When an imperious older woman is captured from a pirate ship and given to her as a slave, Ariana’s perfectly ordered life is thrown into chaos. Her nameless slave is watchful, intelligent, dangerous, and sexy, and seems to know an awful lot about tactics, star charts, and the dread, marauding pirate queen, Mir. What happens when the slave also reveals an expertise in seduction to her innocent mistress?
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Requiem for Immortals by Lee Winter
What would make the most dangerous ice queen of them all, ruthless underworld assassin Requiem, hesitate?
Professional cellist Natalya Tsvetnenko moves seamlessly among the elite where she fills the souls of symphony patrons with beauty even as she takes the lives of the corrupt of Australia’s ruthless underworld. The cold, exacting assassin is hired to kill a woman who seems so innocent that Natalya can’t understand why anyone would want her dead.
As she gets to know her target, she can’t work out why she even cares.
Available at:
Anyone But You by KG MacGregor
An underground pipeline has ruptured, spilling oily sludge into Minnesota’s pristine Lake Bunyan. Taking the media’s heat for Nations Oil is Corporate Communications Director Cathryn Mack, an old pro when it comes to spinning the facts in her company’s favor.
Stuck in Duluth to handle the press during eight weeks of cleanup, she finds a silver lining when Stacie Pilardi pops up on SappHere, a mobile app that seeks out nearby lesbians. Stacie is smart, funny, sexy as hell, and wants a longterm relationship as much as Cathryn—which is to say, not at all.
A perfect arrangement, until they realize they’re rivals—Stacie is head of the Clean Energy Action Network, in town to protest the greed and recklessness of oil companies and the havoc they wreak on the environment.
It’s best for everyone involved if they end this, and that’s exactly what they intend to do. Eventually…
Available at:
Lucifer’s Emblem by Sarah Biglow
Zuri knows she’s next in line to rule Hell, until the theft of a priceless family relic throws her future into chaos. Now, to reclaim what’s hers, she must infiltrate the prestigious Celestial Academy. Even if it means lying her way in.
Miryam’s famous Archangel father treats her like she doesn’t exist, fueling her insecurity and self-doubt. She pretends she’s got it all together until confident, badass Zuri ends up as her roommate.
The longer they spend together, the harder it is to keep up the façade. When they uncover plans to unleash Armageddon, they have no choice but to come clean. With Zuri’s life on the line, her only hope of survival is to trust Miryam. But is their growing bond strong enough to overcome eons of bad blood between Fallen and Archangels?
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Love’s Autograph by Michele Reynolds
What do you do when you show up at an apartment to pick up your blind date and she mistakes you for her kid’s sitter?
Lesbian rock star EJ Way decides to be the sitter for the night. Fascinated by both Ria and her eleven-year-old daughter, she finds herself sitting night after night, without revealing who she really is. Getting a glimpse into their family life seems like a nice change of pace from her world of music and fame. She doesn’t count on falling in love—or on having to watch Ria go on date after date.
Available at:
Green-Eyed Monster by Gill McKnight
There is a lot more to kidnapping than financial analyst Mickey Rapowski ever imagined. Mickey has a chip on her shoulder—she’s been cheated out of a small fortune by corporate giant Victoria Gresham. In an irrational attempt at revenge, Mickey kidnaps Gresham’s girlfriend, Ginette Felstrom. A straightforward and effective plan—except Ginette is the worst captive ever and no one wants to pay her ransom. Out of her depth as every one of her well-laid plans spins totally out of control, Mickey becomes the victim of reverse Stockholm Syndrome and falls head over heels for her captive. How could something so simple go so wrong? Or is that…right?
Available at:
Under a Falling Star by Jae
Falling stars are supposed to be a lucky sign, but not for Austen. Her new job as a secretary in an international games company isn’t off to a good start. Her first assignment—decorating the Christmas tree in the lobby—results in a trip to the ER after Dee, the company’s second-in-command, gets hit by the star-shaped tree topper.
Dee blames her instant attraction to Austen on her head wound, not the magic of the falling star. She’s determined not to act on it, especially since Austen has no idea that Dee is practically her boss.
Available at:
The Real Story by Sienna Waters
Elle Baker is one step away from being fired from the journalism job she’s wanted since forever. She needs a story, and she needs one badly.
Alya Goldstein is known for not only being super-successful, but also for being incredibly private. An interview that’s impossible to get.
Until a misunderstanding leads to Elle being hired as Alya’s new assistant. It’s the perfect way to get the story. Or it should be. But as Alya starts to finally open up, Elle finds that she’s getting far more involved in this story than she really should be.
As the lies spiral out of control, Elle’s forced to face her past. Sometimes it’s the lies you tell yourself that are the most damaging. Someone has to make Alya believe in happy endings, but is Elle in too deep to live happily ever after?
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Leave a comment
Leave a comment and let us know which book you’ll be reading for the “mistaken identity” category!
Under this category I put The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson (recommended if you want a dystopian sci-fi parallel worlds book) and
Telling Lies Online by Miranda MacLoed. Out of the five from this list I’ve read, my favorite is Wrong Number, Right Woman, which I want to read again at some point. :)
Thanks so much, Nelle! These are great recommendations. The Space Between Worlds went right onto my to-be-read list.