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The ultimate badass romance heroines list (for now, at least)

2/15/2019

19 Comments

 
The ultimate badass romance heroines list (for now, at least)
Well, we’ve done our ultimate bikers reading list, and our ultimate rock stars list, and we figure it’s about time to do our ultimate badass heroines list because the last time we listed our top 12 badass romance heroines, many of you added recommendations that we totally loved. So without further ado, here are our picks for the ultimate badass heroines in romance today. Enjoy!

(Note: some of these reads could be considered urban fantasy, but if they also feature a strong romantic component, we’ve included them. Why? Because it’s our list and no one is the boss of us. We’ve also included only one read per author. So, even though we realize that Jeaniene Frost and Ilona Andrews have several badass women in their stories, we’re only including 1 per author to keep things fair to the other authors. Why? Again...our list, our rules. And yes, we know that JD Robb and Nora Roberts are technically the same author. But the books are diverse enough that we've allowed that one exception. And again...our list, our rules. It’s just for fun, y’all. Let’s not get ugly about it. These are listed in no particular order. Happy reading!) ​
Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost
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Summoned to the Thirteenth Grave by Darynda Jones
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Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews
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Air of Darkness by Rose O'Brien
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Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs
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The Witness by Nora Roberts
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Honor by Jay Crownover
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Killing Sarai by JA Redmerski
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Precarious by Bella Jewel
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Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent
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Sugar Daddy by Sawyer Bennett
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Naked in Death by JD Robb
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Sealed with a Curse by Cecy Robson
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Spider's Bite by Jennifer Estep
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Skinwalker by Faith Hunter
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Archangel's Prophecy by Nalini Singh
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Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K Hamilton
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Ride the Storm by Karen Chance
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To Woo a Warrior by Jane Cousins
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Fashionably Dead by Robyn Peterman
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Full Moon Rising by Keri Arthur
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Night Unbound by Dianne Duvall
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Semi-Charmed by Isabel Jordan
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Priceless by Shannon Mayer
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Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
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Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill
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Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow
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Three Hours by Dannika Dark
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OK—hit us with it. Who’d we forget? Let’s discuss...
​

And just because we love ya...more recs!!

Bad-ass heroines
The original bad-ass heroines list​
Romance heroines with inspiring inner strength
Romance heroines with inspiring inner strength​
The best female athletes in romance today
The best female athletes in romance today​
19 Comments
Sivi
2/15/2019 04:18:33 pm

Really nice list- I'll check some of the ones I've not heard about out as you've got some of my favs in here, do I'm guessing others well be of a similar quality - Thank you.

One question though- i thought. Nora Roberts wrote under the pen name of JD Hobb too...unless it's another pen name I'm getting mixed up with. If I'm not getting mixed up, you might have broken your own 'one authour one book 'rule...but they do say rules are made to be broken ;)

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Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/15/2019 07:27:25 pm

JD Robb is a pen name for Nora Roberts, but the JD Robb paranormals and the Nora Roberts contemporaries are so wildly different in subject matter and style that they might as well be different authors. That's why I felt justified in including them both on the list. Plus, it's my list and no one is the boss of me, so there's that... :)

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Madison F
2/16/2019 10:07:48 am

Great list. I’ve read most and agree and look forward to discovering the new ones.
Dianna Love writes the Belador series that’s very good.

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Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/16/2019 11:27:06 am

Thanks, Madison! I'll check that one out!

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Mimi DiFrancesca link
2/16/2019 10:42:51 am

Someone needs to explain to me how Dante Valentine by Lilith Saintcrow, is being left off lists like this? Working for The Devil came out in 2007. Before everyone and their poodle jumped on the bandwagon of trying to write badass female heroines. The books that followed; Dead Man Rising, The Devil's Right Hand, Saint City Sinners and To Hell and Back, were EPIC storytelling with characters that will burn their way into your brain for a lifetime. The entire series is sold now in an anthology so you can red them, back to back. Dante & Japhrimel- what a ride....

Reply
Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/16/2019 11:26:33 am

Yep, great series, great character. But per the rules at the top of the post, only 1 character per author. (Except in the case of Nora Roberts and JD Robb--those are different enough to be mentioned even though it's technically one author) And my personal preference was Dru from Strange Angels. What can I say? It's my list and no one is the boss of me! :) Thanks so much for commenting! (And you are right--Dante does kick ass!)

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Anna G
2/16/2019 12:07:10 pm

What about, The Accidental Demon Slayer Series by Angie Fox? The main character Lizzy Brown goes from a kindergarten teacher to demon slayer, when she unexpectedly comes into her powers. She receives help from her grandmother the leader of the biker witches called the Red Skulls and a hot griffin named Dimitri. Lizzie is trying to come to terms with everything while demons are chasing her and dealing with the fact that she can now understand what her dog is saying to her. It is a fun ride!

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Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/16/2019 12:17:24 pm

You know, I read book 1 in that series and had trouble getting into it. It almost felt like the comedy was trying too hard, if that makes sense. But maybe I didn't give the series a fair shot? I dunno. Thanks for commenting, though!

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Wenonah Lyon link
2/18/2019 06:21:04 am

I love Accidental Demonslayer series as well. And Pirate, the dog, says what you'd think a Jack Russell would say if you could understand it. The biker slogans on the t-shirts: Ride Like the Law's After You are funny. The series improves after the first one.

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Barbara Erwin
2/16/2019 05:31:31 pm

I was glad to see some favorites on here. And found some new to me authors as well! I was especially glad to see Lili
Saintcrow on here as I think she is wonderful and vastly underrated.

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Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/17/2019 12:40:44 pm

Totally agree, Barbara! Hope you enjoy the new authors you found on the list as much as I did!

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Ashley
2/16/2019 09:22:41 pm

Have you read The Hollows series by Kim Harrison? The protagonist, Rachel Morgan, is pretty badass.

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Jennifer, Romance Rehab
2/17/2019 12:39:58 pm

Hi, Ashley! I did read the beginning of the series. She definitely got more badass as it progressed. I didn't keep reading, though, for some reason. I might have to pick that one back up at some point. Thanks for the suggestion!

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Karol Smith
2/19/2019 07:51:01 am

I have read Dianne Duvall’s Night Unbound that is part of the series Immortal Guardians. The whole series is absolutely amazing. And I totally agree that Lissette d'Alençon is one kick ass female and her man? OMG. DROOLING for him .

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Traci
2/19/2019 02:36:42 pm

I'd add Sarah J Maas' series Throne of Glass. Celaena (Aelin) is an amazing female lead, and the female side characters are also very kick ass. The series is full of kick ass women. I loved it! :)

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Amanda
2/23/2019 11:58:01 am

Natalya from Christine Feehan, Dark Demon

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Christine Martin
2/23/2019 07:19:14 pm

Hi, great list, and have read most of those authors and agree they are Abbas’s but one of my all time favourites is the character “Merit” from Chicagoland Vampires, author Chloe Neill, oh and the character “Cynthia Leighton “ by D B Reynolds.

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Kyles
2/24/2019 04:53:29 am

Great list! I definitely think Sal from the Rise Of The Iliri series by Auryn Hadley should be included in a list of kickass female characters! She is absolutely one of my all time faves!

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Lisa
3/13/2019 02:53:16 pm

Lisa Shearin’s Raine Benares and SPI Files series
Eileen Wilk’s World of the Lupi series
Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty series
Meghan Ciana Doidge’s Dowser series

Reply



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