I’m in need of some inspiration and recently it’s like all the female leads in a book I’ve read are so wimpy I want to yell at them. Recently went through a tough time and I need a strong female lead. I prefer mysteries, but honestly open to anything.
by Key-Article-4155
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The millennium trilogy
The Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen
Quiche of Death by MC Beaton
Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
The Obsidian Tower by Melissa Caruso
Slewfoot by Brom
Pride and Prejudice is a good one if you haven’t read it.
The [Pentecost and Parker](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/eb8c7ae9-41b0-442b-b3f1-8e01870fe219) series by Stephen Spotswood is a great mystery series with a strong female character (with a strong female mentor)
I liked The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal. Alternate history involving a WASP pilot and the space race.
[**And I Darken** by Kiersten White](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27190613)
this book is the epitome of strong female protagonist. lada (ladislav) does not fuck around. it is clear from pretty much page one that she is a force to be reckoned with.
without spoiling anything, here is a lada quote from the book to give you an idea of her personality:
***”On our wedding night,” she said, “I will cut out your tongue and swallow it. Then both tongues that spoke our marriage vows will belong to me, and I will be wed only to myself. You will most likely choke to death on your own blood, which will be unfortunate, but I will be both husband and wife and therefore not a widow to be pitied.”***
{{ The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman }} has a pretty strong female lead.
The Jane Whitefield series by Thomas Perry.
Charles Portis – True Grit
best mystery is the reappearance of ravhel price (!!!)
Monica Manifests A House
Mary Manifests $100,000
Five survive
Since you like mysteries, maybe take a look at the Merrily Watkins series by Phil Rickman? The main character is an exorcist for the Church of England who typically ends up investigating murders with a supernatural edge to them, and her daughter Jane is also an important character. The first book in the (quite extensive) series is *The Wine of Angels*.
JD Robb In Death series
If you want a light horror filled with female rage (not just emotional but literal) Slewfoot by Brom is the way to go. I read it recently and was filled with adrenaline like I could take on anything after lol
What hasn’t worked for you recently, and what does “strong female protagonist” mean to you? How important is likability?
{Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear} series. Female sleuth and historical fiction genre. She’s bright, intelligent, witty, independent, pretty, hard-working, and has a few personal demons she must periodically deal with.
The Mists of Avalon
The Shades of Magic series by VE Schwab