This week’s category of the Sapphic Book Bingo features sapphic disaster books. Of course, not the books themselves are the disaster; their plots reolve around a disaster.
It can be a natural disaster such as an earthquake, a hurricane, a tornado, a volvanic eruption, a flood, an avalanche, a wildfire, a blizzard, etc., or it could be a man-made disaster that results from technological or human error, e.g., a plane crash, a shipwreck (think Titanic), a train accident, or an explosion, etc.
The disaster could be based on a historical event, or it could be a made-up disaster.
How to get started if you are new to Sapphic Book Bingo
If you have only just discovered the Sapphic Book Bingo, read up on the rules, download your book bingo card, and take a look at my suggestions for the “disaster book” square below.
Make the Sapphic Book Bingo more interesting!
If you’d like to get more book suggestions, talk about the books you are reading, and chat with other readers participating in the Sapphic Book Bingo, join either my Facebook group for readers or the Goodreads group for the Sapphic Book Bingo.
15 sapphic disaster books
Here are my recommendations for the “disaster book” category:
Shaken to the Core by Jae (earthquake and fires)
Kate Winthrop, the only child of a wealthy shipping magnate, has the course of her life charted for her by her parents. She’s expected to marry well and produce a successor to the Winthrop empire. But Kate has a very different path in mind. Her true passion lies with photography—and with women.
Alone in the city after losing her brother, Sicilian immigrant Giuliana Russo starts working for the Winthrops as a maid. Despite their different social status, Kate and Giuliana become friends, much to the dismay of Kate’s parents.
As the connection between the two women grows, a devastating earthquake hits San Francisco and ignites fires that sweep through the city for three days and nights.
Will the disaster shatter their tentative feelings for each other, or will they find the courage to save each other’s lives—and their hearts?
Join Kate and Giuliana on a journey of danger and discovery in the action-packed historical romance Shaken to the Core, set against the backdrop of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
Available at:
Amazon (KU)
Without Warning by KG MacGregor (earthquake)
On a day that begins like any other, a violent earthquake strikes Los Angeles, plunging the region into chaos. Two strangers, trapped in a collapsed shopping mall, find each other amid the rubble and join forces to escape. Hampered by injury and darkness, they dig and claw their way through one crumbled store after another, emerging long after most have given up hope for survivors.
The ordeal leaves both women shaken, but their shared triumph sets them on a life-changing course together, igniting a connection like neither has ever known.
Anna Kaklis–whose perfectly planned life never included falling in love with another woman–is thrown for a loop, but she doesn’t doubt her heart.
Lily Stewart–abandoned too many times by people she trusted–won’t let herself believe that Anna’s love will endure.
Without Warning is the story of their courageous journey through adversity, and their promise of steadfast love.
Available at:
You Make Me Tremble by Karis Walsh (earthquake)
Animal rescue worker Iris Mallery thinks she has created a stable and secure home for herself, but when her small town is battered by an earthquake, Iris needs to rebuild not only her own life, but the lives of the displaced dogs and cats now filling her shelter.
The quake’s effects are personal for Iris, but not for seismologist Casey Radnor. Casey is a scientist above all else, logical and disconnected from the natural disasters she studies. When she rescues a stray dog from some rubble, she finds herself caught up in the lives of Iris and the others affected by the quake, despite her best efforts to remain professional.
The beautiful San Juan Islands in Washington State become the epicenter of both the earthquake and the collision of Iris’s and Casey’s hearts. Can love bind the shattered fragments together again?
Available at:
Taken by Storm by Kim Baldwin (avalanche)
Lives depend on two women when a train derails high in the remote Alps, but an unforgiving mountain, avalanches, crevasses, and other perils stand between them and safety.
Associated Press reporter Hudson Mead is an extreme skiing enthusiast who has covered war zones and natural disasters during her long and distinguished career, but nothing could have prepared her for the challenges she’ll face when the snow train she’s riding is decimated by a massive avalanche.
Librarian Steffi Graham, on her first trip abroad, is anxious to hone her rock-climbing skills in a new and unfamiliar terrain of ice and snow. She gets much more than she bargained for when her talents put her on the team that goes for help.
As the two strangers struggle to reach civilization, they must compromise and learn to trust each other, a task that may be nearly as difficult as the journey itself.
Available at:
Diver Blues by Barbara Valletto (hurricane)
After a tragic series of events unfolds, Jaime Forrest (PADI Certified Dive Instructor) decides to sail along the Atlantic coast (from the Florida Keys North) on a soul-searching mission. Jaime’s intent is to distance herself from the past and her profound guilt over a student’s drowning, but she soon learns she can’t escape from nightmares that haunt her sleep.
Midway through her voyage, Jaime finds herself face to face with another crisis. A baby seal, ensnared in fishing net, becomes severely injured when the netting tangles in Jaime’s boat propeller. Help arrives in the form of a young, attractive marine biologist who manages a nearby mammal stranding center in a small beach town. Joining forces, they manage to transport the seal to safety.
A.J. operates on the seal, but its chances for survival are slim. With the seal too weak for transport to a larger rehab facility on the mainland, and with Jaime’s boat now damaged from the incident, A.J. and Jaime agree to work side by side in caring for the seal they’ve fondly named Clementine. From the moment both A.J. and Jaime meet, an immediate attraction flared. As the days pass, their feelings for each other become more pronounced and more difficult to hide. When they can no longer deny their need for each other, they become lovers. But Jaime’s guilt over the recent drowning death prevents her from opening up to A.J. on an emotional level, which leaves A.J. frustrated.
But it seems the worst is yet to come. A hurricane, of intense magnitude, is fast approaching the coastline. The townsfolk are ordered to evacuate before roads are closed. With a stranded boat, and a severely injured seal to care for, Jaime and A.J. realize they can’t leave. Together, they hunker down to weather the storm. Will they survive, or will Jaime’s soul-searching expedition end in yet another senseless tragedy?
Available at:
Galveston 1900: Swept Away by Linda Crist (hurricane)
On September 7-8, 1900, the island of Galveston, Texas, was destroyed by a hurricane, or ‘tropical cyclone’, as it was called in those days. This story is a fictional account of Mattie and Rachel, two women who lived there, and their lives during the time of the ‘great storm’. Forced to flee from her family at a young age, Rachel Travis finds a home and livelihood on the island of Galveston. Independent, friendly, and yet often lonely, only one other person knows the dark secret that haunts her. Madeline “Mattie” Crockett is trapped in a loveless marriage, convinced that her fate is sealed. She never dares to dream of true happiness, until Rachel Travis comes walking into her life. As emotions come to light, the storm of Mattie’s marriage converges with the very real hurricane. Can they survive, and build the life they both dream of? This second edition of one of Linda Crist’s best-loved novels maintains the original story, while incorporating some reader-pleasing passages that were cut from the first edition.
Available at:
Second Season by Ali Vali (hurricane)
As Hurricane Katrina ravages New Orleans, attorney Tully Badeaux’s life follows suit when betrayal leads to heartbreak…
Tully Gaston Badeaux might be successful in the courtroom but at home her relationships with her partner, Dr. Jessica Badeaux, and their children are falling apart.
In one life-changing moment precipitated by a spilled cup of coffee, the world Tully had so carefully constructed comes to an end. As Tully struggles to pick up the pieces, two women add to the complications—Dr. Kara Nicolas, the woman who stole her wife, and Libby Dexter, the young woman who moves in to assist Tully with the kids. Kara becomes her focus in the courtroom, and Libby offers more than a helping hand around the house.
Available at:
Tropical Storm by Melissa Good (tropical storm)
Dar Roberts, corporate raider for a multi-national tech company, is cold, practical, and merciless. She does her job with razor-sharp accuracy. Friends are a luxury she cannot allow herself, and love is something she knows she’ll never attain.
Kerry Stuart left Michigan for Florida in an attempt to get away from her domineering politician father and the constraints of the overly conservative life her family forced upon her. After college she worked her way into supervision at a small tech company, only to have it taken over by Dar Roberts’ organization. Her association with Dar begins in disbelief, hatred, and disappointment, but when Dar unexpectedly hires Kerry as her work assistant, the dynamics of their relationship change. Over time, a bond begins to form. But can Dar overcome years of habit and conditioning to open herself up to the uncertainty of love? And will Kerry escape from the clutches of her powerful father in order to live a better life? The answer to both questions is no – unless these two women can strengthen and cement the tenuous bond that forms between them. First they must face storms that neither expects . . . and live to tell the tale.
Available at:
The Island Between Them by Wendy Hudson (storm)
Lesbian romance and adventure collide in this gripping story of survival and second chances.
Georgia Hamilton is an adventurer. After a life spent exploring the most remote places on earth, she’s found her way back home to Scotland, where she teaches her expert survival skills.
Kelsey Campbell has spent her whole life acting, both personally and professionally, and has had it with the pressure of keeping everyone else happy. Craving somewhere far from the glaring spotlight, she signs up for a two-week team survival course.
It’s not just the remote island location that appeals to Kelsey. There’s the fact she met the course leader years ago and always regretted how they left things.
However, just as Georgia and Kelsey are renewing their long-lost connection over bushcraft, a storm hits, leaving them stranded. With the group’s lives now in Georgia’s hands, the race is on to find a way home.
As the reality of survival kicks in, their battle becomes about more than just facing the elements.
Available at:
Whirlwind Romance by Kris Bryant (storms)
For the past six seasons, Tristan Stark has been chasing storms throughout the Midwest for the University of Oklahoma. Teaching during the winters and hitting the road during the spring, Tristan has little time for herself, let alone time to have a solid relationship. Rival storm chaser Kate Brighten is just starting out and winds up riding along with Tristan for two weeks. It doesn’t take long for the two to begin a tumultuous love affair on the road. But the road can’t last forever and Kate isn’t everything she seems. Once trust is broken, it’s difficult to rebuild. Can Tristan accept Kate’s secrets? Or will their love be washed away in the spring storms?
Available at:
Darkness Falls by KC Luck (solar storm)
If the lights go out forever, can love survive?
When four women from different walks of life are brought together by fate to witness the end of the world as they know it, each must find a way to survive against the odds as well as learn to rely on each other.
Available at:
Free Fall at Angel Creek by Julie Tizard (plane crash)
Hundreds of people on Flight 402 vanish in an instant.
When the airplane carrying her sister is reported missing, then later found a smoking wreck, Detective Dee Rawlings never had the chance to finally reconcile after years of estrangement. She’s desperate to find out why the plane crashed, but Dr. River Dawson, the exacting and relentless aircraft accident investigator, believes Dee’s good intentions are interfering with her case and wants her gone. All that changes when Dee discovers critical evidence that doesn’t add up.
Dee and River must find a way to work together to solve the mystery of what happened to Flight 402, all while keeping their inconvenient and unprofessional attraction in check. Their search for answers at Angel Creek will risk their lives and maybe even their hearts.
Available at:
Moon Shadow by Suzie Clarke (plane crash)
Justice might be satisfying, but revenge is far sweeter.
Computer programmer Rachel Portola has a target on her back. She’s developed a top-secret program and her boss, Justin McKinney, wants it and the millions it will bring on the open market. Even if it means murder.
When Rachel’s plane crashes and she and her friends are forced to hike through the Alaskan wilderness to survive, she thinks the worst is over. Rachel can finally focus on her attraction to her best friend, Claire, and the unexpected love they share.
But Justin’s not giving up. Armed with only her instincts and a sharp knife, Rachel’s in for the fight of her life to protect what’s hers. The odds are impossible, the future looks bleak, and with everything that matters on the line, Rachel’s not letting anything get in her way.
Available at:
Falling by Kris Bryant (plane crash)
Shaylie Beck just wanted to go home.
She managed to snag the last seat on a late flight from New York to Denver. No one thought anything would go wrong. Nobody expected the unimaginable to happen. When the plane crashes, Shaylie fights for her life and is one of only eleven survivors.
Piper Cole wants answers.
Why did her fiancée’s plane crash? She lost everything that night, and the investigation is taking too long. To help cope with losing the woman she loved, Piper attends a support group for survivors.
The friendship Piper and Shaylie develop helps each to heal, but as their feelings turn to love, Shaylie’s torn. She can follow her heart to the woman she loves, or she can come clean about what really happened right before the plane crashed and risk losing Piper forever.
Available at:
1049 Club by Kim Pritekel (plane crash)
Almost two hundred souls, one plane, six survivors, endless heartbreak.
When flight 1049, headed from Buffalo, NY to Italy falls from the sky, a firestorm of drama, pain, angst and sorrow ensues. Can an author, a business owner, a teenager, good ol’ boy, veterinarian and ruthless lawyer survive? Better yet, can those left behind?
1049 Club is a story of survival, love, deep regret and miracles. Can the living make peace with the presumed dead? Can the presumed dead make peace with the lives and loves they thought they had before?
Available at:
Leave a comment
Leave a comment and let us know what book you’ll be reading for the “disaster book” category!
Subscribe to this blog to get future Sapphic Book Bingo posts
If you’d like to get all future Sapphic Book Bingo posts sent to your in-box, subscribe to my blog.
Without Warning is on my TBR list so going with that.
“You don’t live here” by
Robyn Schneider, starts with an earthquake and is mostly about how the main character copes with the aftermath. Does that count?
Yes, it does! Even if only a couple of scenes deal with the natural disaster, it still counts for the Sapphic Book Bingo.