Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast Episode 330 - On the Shelf for December 2025

Saturday, December 6, 2025 - 07:00

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Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast - Episode 330 - On the Shelf for December 2025 - Transcript

(Originally aired 2025/12/06)

Welcome to On the Shelf for December 2025.

We made it to the end of another calendar year, which calls for some reflection. This was a significant year for me personally, what with retiring from my day-job, which has meant being able to spend more time and energy on the Lesbian Historic Motif Project. That may not have been as apparent if you only listen to the podcast, but I’ve been able to blog 87 publications this year, compared to 32 last year. And I’ve made significant progress on the book version of the Project, though there’s still a lot of work to do before I can even think about a finish date. I’ve also gotten back to working on my fiction projects, as well as some other research and writing projects.

Looking forward to next year, I’ll be running the Fiction series again, so spread the word that submissions will be open in January. As usual, see the show notes for a link to the Call for Submissions which will tell you all you need to know. Next year will see the podcast’s 10th birthday in August, so I’ll be thinking about something special to do for that. (I have fantasies of maybe getting a special guest or two, but there’s absolutely nothing concrete on that yet.) I hope you have something special you’re looking forward to or that you can look back on with satisfaction.

News of the Field

In news of the field, I’ve been asked to help publicize a new podcast “Our Dyke Histories” produced in collaboration with the respected lesbian literary journal Sinister Wisdom. The podcast will be hosted by historian, geographer, and environmental psychologist Jack Jen Gieseking and will bring together historians, elders, artists, and everyday dykes to remember how bars, parties, bookstores, and basements became our sanctuaries. So, in other words, 20th century lesbian history, to complement the pre-20th century history we cover on the Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast.

Season One traces the history of lesbian bars and various types of queer hangouts, from the 1920s tearooms of Eve Adams to Harlem rent parties, from the Women’s House of Detention to 1970s consciousness-raising collectives and 1980s synthesizer-lit dance floors, each episode explores turning danger into joy, censorship into art, and survival into community. Guests include a number of well-known figures whose names you’re likely to recognize. Future seasons of the podcast will move decade by decade through other defining places, objects, and ideas in lesbian, bi, queer, and trans history—mapping the worlds we’ve made and the futures we’re still imagining.

The first few episodes of the podcast are already live, so follow the link in the show notes to check out the show!

Publications on the Blog

When blogging publications for the Project, I’m currently aiming for two per week, which is what I achieved in November, continuing my practice of putting together thematic clusters.

I finished up a run of Classical-oriented articles with Sarah Levin-Richardons’s “Fututa Sum Hic: Female Subjectivity and Agency in Pompeian Sexual Graffiti” in case you ever wanted to know how to talk dirty in Latin, plus J. Walker’s “Before the Name: Ovid’s Deformulated Lesbianism,” discussing lesbian visibility within its purported invisibility in Iphis and Ianthe.

After that I collected a set of articles on theatrical crossdressing and masquerades in Early Modern England. This included Terry Castle’s “Eros and Liberty at the English Masquerade, 1710-90,” Beth Friedman-Rommell’s “Breaking the Code: Towards a Reception Theory of Theatrical Cross-Dressing in Eighteenth-Century London,” and Jean E. Howard’s “Cross-Dressing, the Theatre and Gender Struggle in Early Modern England.”

I had a couple of articles on 17th century poet Katherine Philips: Harriette Andreadis’s “Re-Configuring Early Modern Friendship: Katherine Philips and Homoerotic Desire” and Rene Kramer’s student paper “That Mysterious, Remisse Knot: Katherine Philips’s Unincorporated Fraternity” which wasn’t quite as interesting as I’d hoped.

Finally, I kicked off a new set of articles focused on Asian cultures with Mark Stevenson and Wu Cuncun’s book Homoeroticism in Imperial China: A sourcebook which, as expected, was rather light on female material, without entirely omitting the subject. But this theme will continue through December with some very interesting articles.

No new book shopping for the blog, alas, but it gives me more time to work through the hundred or so journal articles I have in my files!

Recent Lesbian/Sapphic Historical Fiction

Looking up the new and recent books to list in this podcast, I have a confession to make. I am utterly exhausted by trying to make fair and considered evaluations of which books are more likely than not to be generated using Large Language Models and which ones were written entirely by human beings. I have some personal guidelines I’ve been using to try to identify works that I don’t care to promote, but I’m spending more and more time agonizing over whether those guidelines are fair and doing online research on bylines to get more information for my decisions. This makes me unhappy and grumpy.

So I have a new policy. Going forward, the new book listings are explicitly a curated list based on vibes and my personal opinions about how the book fits into the intent of this podcast. This will have several consequences. The most trivial is that it means the data for tracking settings and topics of sapphic historicals will become less useful, but I haven’t been doing that analysis for a couple years anyway. More importantly, it means that books I might previously have included may be left out if I have questions about their origins, or if the content doesn’t fit in my parameters. (I’ve already been doing some of that, in omitting books that are more solidly on the erotica side and books where the historic elements are marginal.) I know from author responses that my mention of a book has meant a lot to some people in this most niche of niche genres, but I can’t keep on as I have been. I refuse to let good books be swamped by endless listings of titles that are almost certainly AI slop, but I also decline to spend increasing amounts of work to include titles that simply give that unfortunate appearance while being human-written.

If you are releasing a lesbian or sapphic historical that you would like to see mentioned on this show—or you know of a book that should be included—and the book isn’t coming out through an established publisher, then the surest way to be included is to contact me directly and provide publicity information for the title in a way that gives me confidence in the content. If I don’t have that confidence, then I’ll be using the rules of thumb I’ve established. These include things like: Has the author released a large number of books in a short period of time? Does the book have a clearly AI-generated cover? (Many human-written books these days have AI covers, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen the reverse case.) Does the author have an identifiable online presence other than book listings in Amazon? Does a sample of the text stand out as clearly human-written in style? (Again, there’s plenty of pedestrian prose written entirely by human beings, but if the text stands out as particularly well written, then I’m likely to overlook any other symptoms.) If I omit a book, I’m am not making a strong claim that it was written using AI (particularly since I have other criteria for passing on a book), but I may be saying that it’s taking me too much work to tell the difference. And I still can’t guarantee that an AI book won’t slip through on occasion.

I repeat that I hate feeling like I have to do this, but something needed to give. That said, here are some new and recent releases.

There are a few November books that only just came to my attention.

Souvienne by Aldwin Beckett falls in the uncanny valley of “are we calling this historical yet?”

Scotland, 1966. Cassandra's life undergoes a drastic change when she trades her bustling London lifestyle for the solitude of an old cabin in the Scottish Highlands. One winter night, she rescues a mysterious, injured woman who seems to remember nothing of her past.

They fall for each other and their bond blossoms until the circumstances force them to face Souvienne’s hidden past and part ways in a manner that leaves both hearts scarred. Now, it falls to Souvienne to reveal herself fully to Cassandra—or her secrecy will forever obscure their future.

Without Apology (Jane Smith #3) by Charlotte Taft from Empress Publications is the third book in a series whose theme is abortion activism, but whose protagonist is a lesbian. There are two previous books in the series that didn’t catch my eye, but that you might want to check out first if this one sounds interesting.

In this last book of the Jane Smith Trilogy, the year is 1959. Jane is forty-five. She has survived Nazis and gendarmes, been jilted by an admiral’s daughter, nearly lost her favorite student to an illegal abortion, found the love of her life, provided abortion care under men's noses for two decades, and confessed her secrets to the one whose judgment she feared most.

I’m not entirely fond of the use of the word “invert” in the title of Inverts in a Violet Room by Peter Forrester, but it was definitely a historic term at least in an earlier part of the 20th century. It isn’t clear that this book falls within the parameters of the romance genre.

Living discreetly as a couple in Whitstable, Kent, Eliza and Violet are outed by an anonymous letter, forcing them to flee to Wembury, Devon, where they rebuild a quiet life by the sea. Violet is recruited into naval intelligence and becomes a covert operative in occupied France, while Eliza serves as a teacher and ARP warden during the Plymouth Blitz. Their separation is marked by danger, longing, and resilience.

Eliza finds solace with Margaret, a fellow teacher and refugee, on St. Michaels Mount, forming a new life in Cornwall. Violet, working as a double agent within the Nazi regime, survives a violent ambush before D-Day, forever changed. Decades later, after Margaret’s death, there is a chance meeting.

Whispers of the Heart: Lady Eleanor's Secret by Rhia Kampus has a bit of a gothic feel, with family secrets, past tragedies, and a sense of claustrophobia.

When Lady Eleanor Hawthorne discovers a locked ledger in her late mother’s writing desk, she expects sentimental mementos—not secrets intertwined with scandal, philanthropy, and danger. The elegant world of Regency society tells her to be obedient, silent, and dutiful. But Eleanor has never been good at accepting cages.

Everything changes the morning she meets Miss Charlotte Harwood, her sister’s new governess—a quietly self-possessed young woman armed with keen intelligence, disarming wit, and a sadness she refuses to explain. Eleanor is drawn to her immediately in a way that feels far from proper…and far too dangerous.

Gossip grows in the servants’ hall. Shadows circle the Hawthorne estate. And when Eleanor uncovers a letter warning of betrayal from someone within her own household, she realizes her mother’s death was no simple tragedy.

Soon Eleanor and Charlotte are swept into a clandestine society of women risking their lives to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Blackmail, treachery, and scandal lurk behind every glittering ballroom door. As their connection deepens into something tender and undeniable, Eleanor must choose between the life society demands—and the truth her heart can no longer ignore.

December books start off in the Italian Renaissance with Hiding the Flame by Angela M. Sims from Romaunce Books.

Florence, 1497. A city ablaze with religious fear. A woman forced to hide her art. And a love so dangerous it could cost her everything.

Francesca Rosini, a gifted but silenced painter, lives under the strict rule of her husband - a man whose devotion to Savonarola’s puritanical revolution leaves no room for beauty, tenderness, or truth. While Bonfires of the Vanities burn paintings, books, and anything deemed sinful, Francesca keeps her talent locked away like a forbidden flame.

Then she meets Vittoria, a merchant’s wife with a bold gaze and a quiet courage that unsettles Francesca’s careful obedience. What begins as admiration becomes a connection too powerful to ignore - a forbidden love that awakens Francesca’s spirit, her artistry, and her longing for a life she has never dared imagine.

But Florence is a city where secrets are dangerous… and desire is deadly. As the firestorm of religious extremism grows, Francesca must choose between the life she knows and the truth that’s calling her.

It looks like we have a second-chance romance in On the Edge of Uncertainty by E.V. Bancroft from Butterworth Books.

Florence Cooper has spent most of her life caring for her niece, Cam Langley. Now she shares a house with her niece and Cam's beautiful girlfriend, Gloria Edwards, but at fifty-five, arthritis is slowing Florrie's body and solitude is settling on her soul.

On Gloria's graduation day, a chance meeting with the woman who broke Florrie's heart over thirty years ago throws chaos and confusion into her life, forcing her to take a trip down memory lane into 1920s literary London.

Old wounds reopen and long-buried feelings reignite, pulling Florrie into a life she thought long-drowned. Standing once more on the edge of uncertainty, Florrie must decide: dive into the ocean of possibilities or swim for the safety of the shore.

Brought to Heel by Ella Witts & Serah Messenger from Brightwood Tales mixes Victorian gothic vibes with supernatural menace and secret societies.

Alix Hawthorne has grown up in the shadows, waiting for the day she is allowed to take her place in the secretive and mysterious organisation that her family serve, The Order of Athena, an organisation dedicated to protecting London from the shadows themselves. When her closest friend is murdered, Alix's pursuit of the killer not only puts her at odds with The Order, but threatens her very future in it.

Thea Loftus is the daughter of an Earl, struggling to find herself under the weight of both her family's and society's expectations. Everything changes when a near brush with death and London's newest demon catapults her into Alix's dark world.

As the two girls chase answers through the bloody streets, macabre carnivals and gilded ballrooms, they must not only confront the chilling truth behind the attacks, but the growing intensity of their bond.

A different type of dark menace is hinted at in Pearl Bound by Natalie Bergman from Rose and Pearl Productions.

Eve Kelly, a young Irish immigrant, arrives with her mother to work at Greythorne, the sprawling estate of the powerful Rennard family. Born into servitude but restless with a force she cannot name, Eve is drawn into the orbit of Saskia Rennard, the family's magnetic and dangerous daughter. What begins as attraction quickly becomes entanglement, pulling Eve into a world where wealth masks cruelty, gender dictates roles, and love outside the rules is a dangerous rebellion.

What Am I Reading?

And what have I been reading in the last month? Unusually, it hasn’t all been audiobooks, thanks to a couple of advance reading copies I was sent. But first, we have a whole string of SFF audio works.

I’ve brought my tour through Martha Wells’ Murderbot series to a finish by re-listening to Network Effect and then finishing up with System Collapse. Back when Network Effect was my first introduction to the series, I felt overwhelmed by the proportion of blow-by-blow action scenes—not really my thing—which is why it took watching the tv series to decide to give the books another try. This time around, I appreciated all the interpersonal stuff in Network Effect since I was more invested in the characters (and was better able to keep track of them all), but System Collapse went back to feeling like it was wall-to-wall action without the emotional and psychological aspects that I’m looking for.

Kate Elliott’s The Witch Roads starts off with a slow build but really grabbed me once the worldbuilding was established. While the setting isn’t fully “queer-normative” in the sense of “nobody cares” there’s a lot of gender and sexuality diversity in the cast that plays a plot role without being the main focus. The story both comes to a natural pause before the sequel while also feeling a bit like a cliffhanger. Fortunately, the sequel The Nameless Land just came out, so I’ll put it on my Libby want list.

Nghi Vo’s Singing Hills Cycle, featuring a non-binary monk in an alternate China, traveling to collect stories, has a new installment A Mouthful of Dust which focuses on famine and how hunger destroys social norms. While some books in this series have queer elements, I don’t recall any in this one. It’s very much on the horror side, similarly to the previous book in the series.

I was provided with an advance review copy of Aimée’s historical novel Raised for the Sword and you can find my review at Goodreads and Amazon. It’s set during the 16th century wars of religion in France, packed with history and following at least two different sapphic couples.

I also was provided with an advance copy of Jeannelle M. Ferreira’s newest work, titled Ochre, Quartz, or Ivy. I’ve sent her a blurb, but won’t say anything further here as the book isn’t released yet.

Author Guest

And now we have an interview with Maya Dworsky-Rocha to talk about her story “Ma’am, This is a Fruit Stand” which aired last week.

[Transcript will be added when available.]

Show Notes

Your monthly roundup of history, news, and the field of sapphic historical fiction.

In this episode we talk about:

Accomplishments and upcoming milestones
A podcast that listeners may be interested in: Our Dyke Histories
Recent publications covered on the blog
- Levin-Richardson, Sarah. 2013. “Fututa Sum Hic: Female Subjectivity and Agency in Pompeian Sexual Graffiti” in The Classical Journal, 1083. pp.319-45.
- Walker, J. 2006. “Before the Name: Ovid’s Deformulated Lesbianism” in Comparative Literature 58.3, pp.205-222.
- Castle, T. 1983-4. “Eros and Liberty at the English Masquerade, 1710-90” in Eighteenth-Century Studies, XVII, 2: 156-76.
- Friedman-Rommell, Beth. 1995. “Breaking the Code: Towards a Reception Theory of Theatrical Cross-Dressing in Eighteenth-Century London” in Theatre Journal 47, no.4: 459-79.
- Howard, Jean E. 1988. “Cross-Dressing, the Theatre and Gender Struggle in Early Modern England” in Shakespeare Quarterly 39: 418-40. (Also appears in: Howard, Jean E. 1993. “Cross-Dressing, the Theater, and Gender Struggle in Early Modern England” in Crossing the Stage: Controversies in Cross-Dressing, ed. Ferris, Leslie. Routledge, London.)
- Andreadis, Harriette. 2006. “Re-Configuring Early Modern Friendship: Katherine Philips and Homoerotic Desire.” Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 523–42.
- Kramer, Rene. 2015. That Mysterious, Remisse Knot: Katherine Philips’s Unincorporated Fraternity. Honors Thesis.
- Stevenson, Mark & Wu Cuncun (eds. and trans.). 2013. Homoeroticism in Imperial China: A sourcebook. Routledge, New York. ISBN 978-0-415-55144-1
Recent Lesbian/Sapphic Historical Fiction
What I’ve been consuming
- Network Effect by Martha Wells
- System Collapse by Martha Wells
- The Witch Roads by Kate Elliott
- A Mouthful of Dust by Nghi Vo
- Raised for the Sword by Aimée
Call for submissions for the 2026 LHMP audio short story series. See here for details.
This month we interview Maya Dworsky-Rocha and talk about:
- The historic context and terminology of anti-Semitism and hatred of Jews
- Cultural clashes and conflicts around ideas of gender
- The historic work of Daniel Boyarin and Jewish gender stereotypes
- Maya’s use of non-binary characters to reflect these ideas
- The symbolic uses of eating, temptation, and impurity in the story
- ”Authorizing” queer desire via projection
- Maya’s writing partnership as Sylvia Barry
- The Devil and the Jews by Joshua Trachtenberg