Fierce and unforgettable women in fiction
To celebrate Women’s History Month, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite novels that showcase fierce and fiery female protagonists. All of these books have been featured as Best of the Month—if not Best of the Year picks by the Amazon Editors, so rest assured you are in good hands with these transporting and engrossing stories.
If you’re craving a sense of adventure like Amelia Earhart did
At a young age, Marian Graves becomes obsessed with flying, and she’ll do whatever it takes to get into the sky and circumnavigate the globe. Fast forward 100 years, and Hadley Baxter is remaking herself in Hollywood in the role of Marian Graves in a biopic. From Montana to Los Angeles, London to New Zealand, Great Circle follows these two women who yearn for adventure and freedom, and like flying, it’s the thrill of the century (and why we named it one of the Best Books of 2022). —Al Woodworth
If you’re looking for a novel based on the true story of a heroic book lover
This immersive, exhaustively researched novel is an eye-opening treasure. It resurrects a lost story: that of a remarkable Black woman who helped curate a massive collection of books, manuscripts, and related items for J.P. Morgan’s private enjoyment. After Morgan’s death, she persuaded his heir to make a public gift of the private library, and the Morgan Library became one of the jewels in New York City’s crown. To have a career, it was necessary for Greene to “pass” as white to save herself and her family from racial persecution, and the price for that was the erasure of her identity, a loss this powerful novel tries to restore. —Vannessa Cronin, Amazon Editor
If you’re in the mood for a dystopian shock to the system—and a classic
It was 2019 when we selected Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments as our favorite book of the year. While Atwood’s pioneering work of speculative fiction, The Handmaid’s Tale, explored how totalitarian regimes come to power, the sequel, The Testaments, delves into how they begin to fracture. —Erin Kodicek, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for a story of gutsy women on the front lines of WWII
Pulitzer Prize-finalist’s latest is an homage to his mother and the elite women who served during WWII in the Clubmobile Corps—a division of the Red Cross that offered soldiers a taste of home, á la coffee, donuts, and smiles. The women that populate this novel are feisty, funny, filled with gumption, and discover an independence on the frontlines of war that they never found at home. So, come for the donuts, stay for the brave and brazen women who served them. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for a grandmother-turned-detective
With customers not exactly beating down the door of her San Francisco tea room, and a son whose activities she can only keep up with by online stalking him, the discovery of a murdered man on the floor of Vera Wong's shop is a pretty good distraction. Unstoppably meddlesome and perennially right, this elderly lady's turn as a detective is the funny, heart-warming read we need right now. —Vannessa Cronin, Amazon Editor
If you’re in the mood for a YA story of a young woman who bucks authority (at every turn)
Sixteen-year-old spitfire Perry Firekeeper-Birch gets more than she bargained for during a summer internship that starts at the Sugar Island Ojibwe tribal museum and leads her to uncover terrible deeds of greed, theft, and injustice. Stolen ancestors and artifacts, repatriation mired in bureaucracy, and a daring heist are at the heart of this gripping story that subtly educates readers within the pages of a captivating novel. —Seira Wilson, Amazon Editor
If you’re in the mood for a gut-punch of a historical novel set in Alabama in the 1970s
Following a driven, smart, and altruistic nurse, Take My Hand tells the shocking story of how impoverished young Black women and their reproductive rights were taken advantage of and, abused, in the 1970s. Perkins-Valdez’s historical novel is a gut-punch—not just because it’s based on a true story but because of the richly drawn characters and empathy that fiction can conjure. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for a story of a feisty female bootlegger
Sallie has grit and gumption, and is a narrator to root for—not just because she defies convention by wearing pants, carrying a gun, and refusing to marry—but because she genuinely wrestles with her family legacy, however good, bad, and ugly it may be. Set in Virginia during Prohibition, Hang the Moon charts the life of Sallie Kincaid, sent away by her stepmother at a young age, who returns home nine years later as a woman to be reckoned with. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re in the mood for female friendship set against 1930s Korea
Set in the 1930s and 1940s, The Island of the Sea Women presents a sprawling portrait of two Korean women who are best friends but come from radically different backgrounds. As they take their place among the female divers on Jeju Island, their home and their relationship become caught between the warring empires of Korea and Japan. Will their friendship last? –Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for the book of the moment
Fast becoming the juggernaut that The Nightingale was, Kristin Hannah’s The Women sings the praises of the unsung heroes of the Vietnam War—the combat nurses. It’s a story that applies yet another stitch to a still open wound, one that can only help the healing process. —Erin Kodicek, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for a heroine who is a little lost and not afraid of the cold
Migrations is about a woman who goes to the ends of the earth in search of herself and what just might be the last migration of a bird species. It’s also about love, adventure, climate change, and what happens when a person simultaneously runs away from her past and runs straight towards it. The main character, Franny Stone, is at home in the cold—it’s why she boards a boat in Greenland and why she frequently holds her breath to dive into freezing cold waters. We named this the best novel of 2020 and Franny is not a character you will soon forget. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re looking for a novel that conjures the magic of youth
You’ll never forget the great, the brave, the self-described “captain” of her siblings, Cristabel Seagrave. Set in the 1920s through the ‘40s in England and beyond, Joanna Quinn’s story follows three children who come of age on a sprawling estate, left to their own devices they discover the joys of acting, the comfort of one another’s care, and eventually, the dangers of war. The children’s comradery is enviable and magical, perfectly encapsulating the extraordinary power and imagination that can come from youth. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
If you’re in the mood for a rousing and addictive story
Set in post WWII Japan, the novel follows Noriko Kamiza, the love child of her married, aristocratic mother and an African American soldier. Left with her scandalized grandparents and kept out of sight in an attic, “Nori” succumbs to her sorry lot—which involves beatings and excruciating chemical baths to lighten her skin—until the unexpected arrival of her half-brother. Nori’s resilient spirit, and her determination to assert her own identity and live life on her own terms makes for memorable reading. —Erin Kodicek, Amazon Editor
Looking for more to read? Check out:
