Books like 'Slammerkin'
Readers who enjoyed Slammerkin by Emma Donoghue & Charlotte Strevens also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction literary-fiction lgbtq wlw
-
Plague Pits & River Bones by Karen Charlton
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLondon 1812: Treacherous gangs roam the capital, and not even the Palace of Westminster is safe. When Detective Stephen Lavender is called in to investigate a highway robbery and a cold-blooded murder, both the cases take a dangerous and disturbing personal twist...Categorized as:
british-isles crime england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban -
Georgia by Lesley Pearse
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen nine-year-old orphan Georgia James is unexpectedly fostered by the kindly Celia and her bank manager husband she can hardly believe her luck. But then - on her fifteenth birthday - she suffers the cruellest betrayal of all at the hands of her foster father and is forced to run away, leaving everything she loves behind her... -
Pilfered Promises by M. Louisa Locke
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIt is the winter of 1880, and the future looks promising for Annie and Nate Dawson. Nate’s law practice is taking off. Annie has made the transition from pretend clairvoyant to a successful financial consultant. And they are looking forward to spending their first Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays together... -
The Runaway Children by Lindsey Hutchinson
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn two rundown houses, at the side of a barren Black Country heath, live six children with no family but each other. Abandoned or orphaned, every day is a fight to find food and keep warm. But they are determined to stay free of the clutches of the workhouse and the horrors that would face them if they were ever torn apart.Dora Parsons lives with her mother Mary and her evil grandmother Edith... -
-
Ellie by Lesley Pearse
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsEllie is a sweet-natured brunette, generous of heart with a sparkling smile and an accent which reveals her East End background.Bonny is beautiful and spoilt, with cascades of blonde hair, the brightest pair of blue eyes and a mouth like Cupid's bow... -
The Guardian's Favor by Cecelia Mecca
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFollowing his heart might cause a war. Is a second chance at love worth the risk? THE GUARDIAN Aidan de Sowlis finds purpose in guarding his family and his clan. He tells himself such a life is enough for him, but cannot dismiss the memory of the woman he wished to wed. Lady Clarissa now belongs to another man—or so he thinks...Categorized as:
british-isles europe female-mc industrial-era literary-fiction united-kingdom victorian adult -
Why Kings Confess by C.S. Harris
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe gruesome murder of a young French physician draws aristocratic investigator Sebastian St. Cyr and his pregnant wife, Hero, into a dangerous, decades-old mystery as a wrenching piece of Sebastian’s past puts him to the ultimate test. Regency England, January 1813: When a badly injured Frenchwoman is found beside the mutilated body of Dr...Categorized as:
british-isles crime england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban -
Confusion by Elizabeth Jane Howard
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom Simon & Schuster, Elizabeth Jane Howard's Confusion is the next chapter in the Cazalet Chronicles perfect for any lovers of historical fiction and one that will not disappoint.The long, dark days of struggle provide the poignant background to the third book of the Cazalet Chronicle. As the war enters its fourth year, chaos has become a way of life...Categorized as:
british-isles coming-of-age drama england europe female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction -
The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe BBC Radio 2 Book Club Pick'What if we decided to try and find him?''What on earth are you on about?' she said. 'How are we going to catch the Yorkshire Ripper, when the police haven't even managed to?'I sighed. Her questioning my ideas was a recent and unwelcome element to our friendship. But it was a valid point...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england historical-fiction coming-of-age crime literary-fiction -
The Girl in His Shadow by Audrey Blake, Amelia Blake
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsThe story of one woman who believed in scientific medicine before the world believed in herRaised by the eccentric surgeon Dr. Horace Croft after losing her parents to a deadly pandemic, the orphan Nora Beady knows little about conventional life...Categorized as:
british-isles drama england europe female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction -
Surrender to the Scot by Emma Prince
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA dangerous mission. A deadly conspiracy. A daring love. Jerome Munro has been battling a shameful truth all his life—he is the son of a traitor. So when Robert the Bruce orders him to deliver a bold declaration asserting Scotland’s independence, Jerome knows it’s his best chance to prove his allegiance... -
To Seduce a Highland Scoundrel by Collette Cameron
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThey’ll never marry. Not again, anyway. Or so they thought… Highlander Graeme Kennedy has no intention of finding another wife. He’s perfectly content to focus his energy on becoming the best laird Killeaggain Tower has ever known. But then a beautiful and fiercely independent governess arrives and forces him to question everything…All widow Berget Jonston wants is her freedom... -
The Lord and The Bluestocking by G.L. Robinson
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsEveryone knows the Marquess of Hastings is decidedly odd. Nowadays, he would probably be described as being on the Asperger's Spectrum. He's good looking and rich, but his lack of social skills make it hard for him to find a much-needed wife.He scandalizes the ton by putting an advertisement in the newspaper describing the type of spouse he requires and the marriage of convenience he envisages...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england historical-fiction industrial-era victorian female-mc -
The Strange Adventures of H: the enchanting rags-to-riches story set during the Great Plague of London by Sarah Burton
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsOrphaned young, H is sent to live with her doting aunt in London. H's life is a happy one until her lecherous cousin robs her of her innocence, and the plague takes away the city and the people she loves. H is cast out—friendless, pregnant and destitute—into the rapidly emptying streets of London under quarantine.Forced to fend for herself, she is determined to gain back the life she lost...Categorized as:
coming-of-age dark female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction victorian audiobook -
-
The Highlander's Outlaw Bride by Cathy MacRae
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThrust into the role of laird upon his father's unexpected death, Connor MacLaurey returns home to learn his cousin has usurped his lands and title. Furthermore, his betrothed--a lass he barely knows and certainly did not agree to marry--is hunted by the sheriff, accused of stealing cattle...Categorized as:
british-isles dark europe female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction united-kingdom adult -
To Marry a Highland Marauder by Collette Cameron
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFate forced them to wed—but love united their hearts. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time… All Bethea Glanville wanted was to enjoy Edinburgh’s High Society in peace. Instead, she accidentally uncovers a plot to overthrow the king and gets abducted by the conspirators. And the man who comes to her rescue? Her guardian’s rakehell cousin, Camden Kennedy... -
Lady of Fortune by Ellie St. Clair
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWith all that stands against them, are they willing to risk everything for their forbidden love? Lady Julia Stone has everything a woman could ask for — parents who love one another as much as they do her, the ability to live her dreams by managing her own racehorse, and now, a duke who is interested in capturing her affections...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction victorian action-adventure adult book -
My Lady Marzipan by Sydney Jane Baily
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsStep into Rare Confectionery on New Bond Street, where three talented sisters create treats as delectable to the tongue as they are appealing to the eye. One taste is all it takes to be captivated...Charlotte hasn't had anything go wrong in her blissful existence as a confectioner. Always smiling, she loves working with her sisters, and she adores her customers... -
Highlander’s Phantom Lass: A Steamy Scottish Medieval Historical Romance by Ann Marie Scott
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratings... -
My Enemy, My Earl by Tammy Andresen
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFleeing London, and scandal, Lady Clarissa Burton runs directly into the wife-hunting Earl of Dumfries while traveling on a rutted Scottish road. She wanted peace in Scotland, not a tall and brooding laird who makes her forget that handsome lords are nothing but trouble...Categorized as:
british-isles europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom victorian adult book -
To Defy a Highland Duke by Collette Cameron
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTheir clans are enemies… there can never be anything between them. He’s the laird who insulted her… Highlander, Keane Buchannan, is on a mission. His duchy’s reputation is in tatters thanks to the long line of selfish dukes who came before him—and if he wants to repair the damage, he’ll need to mend the rift between the feuding branches of his family...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom drama industrial-era historical-fiction victorian female-mc -
The Scoundrel's Score by Mara Shaw
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA ruthless moneylender…Cedric Sharpe, illegitimate son of a duke, is among the most feared men in London. Through sheer force of will, Cedric rose from poverty to build a lucrative empire based on a single principle: that one must always pay their debts. And so, when presented with the opportunity to settle his score with the father who scorned him, he is determined to seize it at any cost...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction industrial-era victorian -
The Duchess of Chocolate by Sydney Jane Baily
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsStep into Rare Confectionery on New Bond Street, where three talented sisters create treats as delectable to the tongue as they are appealing to the eye. One taste is all it takes to be captivated… The Duke of Pelham desires a brand-new confection to win the Season’s loveliest lady. Naturally, he turns to London’s premiere chocolatier for assistance... -
What the Hart Wants by Emily Royal
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFive lessons in pleasure. One lesson in love.Fraser MacGregor, thirteenth Duke Molineux, seizes the opportunity to use the title he unexpectedly inherited, to further his whisky business. He leaves his Highland home and heads for London where he’s accosted by a feisty lass, who smashes a vase over his head.Delilah Hart should be relishing her first London season...Categorized as:
british-isles europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom victorian adult book -
-
The Last Waltz: Hearts are at stake in the game of love... (Dorothy Mack Regency Romances) by Dorothy Mack
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA gripping Regency adventure with a plucky heroine! Perfect for fans of Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Jane Aiken Hodge and Jane Austen. Can Adrienne reverse her family’s misfortune? Belgium When her gambling father dies, young Adrienne Castle must find a way to support her family...Categorized as:
coming-of-age female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction adult book fiction -
Cast in Ice by Laura Landon
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLady Winnifred Waverley, daughter of the Duke of Townsend, walked the fringes of Society harboring a horrible secret. A secret so damning that it would shatter her entire family and destroy any chance for her younger sister Anne to find a love match...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban victorian -
Signed, A Paddy by Lisa Boyle
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe gruesome truth hung in the air, and none of us wanted to go near it. Not yet.Ireland, 1848. Fourteen-year-old Rosaleen watches her mother die. Her country is reeling from the great potato famine, which will ultimately kill more than one million people. Driven by a promise and her will to survive, Rosaleen flees her small coastal town...Categorized as:
historical-fiction drama literary-fiction coming-of-age female-mc fiction historical friendship -
A Private Miscellany by K.J. Charles
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsA short (7.5K words) free coda to the Society of Gentlemen series, catching up on the main characters a year and a half later...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction lgbtq industrial-era -
Blood Is Blood: A Barker & Llewelyn Novel by Will Thomas
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA bombing injures private enquiry agent Cyrus Barker, leaving it up to his soon-to-be-married junior partner—Thomas Llewelyn—to find the person trying to murder them both before it's too late.In 19th century London, Cyrus Barker and his associate Thomas Llewelyn are renowned private enquiry agents, successfully employed by the highest levels of Her Majesty's government as well as private citizens...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction crime industrial-era -
The Workhouse Children by Lindsey Hutchinson
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTears and tribulations, laughs and heartbreak, from an exciting new talent. Perfect for the fans of Jo Cox and Lyn Andrews. When Cara Flowers' beloved grandmother dies she leaves her not only an enormous fortune but also a huge responsibility – to find their estranged family...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom adult book -
Lords by Stacy Von Haegert
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLondon 1830... Anastasia Lintel never wanted for more than a simple existence, arranging flowers in her father's shop, catering to the soft-palmed elite. However, when tragedy strikes, taking with it the only family she has ever known, Anastasia must adapt to an unexpected new life...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction industrial-era female-mc -
A Prior Attachment by Dorothy Mack
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA delightful Regency romance! Perfect for fans of Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Jane Aiken Hodge and Jane Austen. Who is the right man for Gemma? Regency England For two years, Lady Gemma Monteith has awaited the return of her old friend Captain George Godwin, who has been away fighting in the Peninsular war. Having been in love with him since childhood, she is determined to become his wife...Categorized as:
coming-of-age female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction adult book fiction -
Courting Intrigue: A Sweet, Regency Romance by Wendy May Andrews
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSecurity or loyalty? Attraction or duty? How does one choose? Miss Lillian Shaw, wellborn but impoverished, has been living with her aunt, the widowed Viscountess Shepley, since the death of her parents a few years ago. Lily wants to find a paid position to add to her savings so she can open a bakery when she receives the Byram Bequest...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom victorian adult -
A Scandalous Match Against All Odds by Emily Honeyfield
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSusanna always thought that her life would be a straight pathway to happiness, but her plans went askew when her husband spread rumours of a scandalous affair with another man. Ηumiliated and ostracised by society, Susanna has to pick up her pieces and move on...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction victorian adult book fiction -
-
The Ironmaster by Jean Stubbs
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe page-turning Howarth saga continues! For fans of Nadine Dorries, Maeve Binchy, Freda Lightfoot and Dilly Court. Can each of the Howarth children find their place in the world? Lancashire, 1785 Although they were all raised together at Kit’s Hill, Ned and Dorcas Howarth’s three children prove to have very different callings...Categorized as:
coming-of-age female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era literary-fiction victorian adult book -
Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Volume One by Ashley Gardner
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA collection of the first three novels in the Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries series plus two Captain Lacey short stories originally published in mystery magazines...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban adult -
Line by Line (Love along the Wires) by Jennifer Delamere
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsYears of hard work enabled Douglas Shaw to escape a life of desperate poverty--and now he's determined to marry into high society to prevent reliving his old circumstances. But when Alice McNeil, an unconventional telegrapher at his firm, raises the ire of a vindictive co-worker, he must choose between rescuing her reputation and the future he's always planned...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban victorian -
Callum's Vow by Ellie St. Clair
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWill he honor his promises and hold his family together? Callum McDougall’s fate has never been in question. He will follow in his father’s footsteps and become chieftain of his clan. A clan that is struggling in a Scotland where their very way of life is threatened by the industrial revolutions that are leaving them behind. All of that, however, will have to wait... -
Broken Promise by Laura Landon
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsVictorian Romance Captain Austin Landwell lives with nightmares that torture him every day. So, when he’s given the chance to redeem himself and make the family he destroyed whole again, nothing will stand in his way except...his love for a woman who has the power to breathe life back into a heart he thought was dead...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban adult -
The Rat-Catcher's Daughter by K.J. Charles
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMusic-hall singer Miss Christiana is in serious debt, and serious trouble. She owes more than she can pay to a notorious criminal, and now he plans to make an example of her. There's no way out. But Christiana has an admirer. Stan Kamarzyn has watched her sing for a year and he doesn't want to see her get hurt...Categorized as:
british-isles crime england europe historical-fiction industrial-era lgbtq united-kingdom -
Harriet by Elizabeth Jenkins, Catherine Pope
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHarriet Ogilvy is a young woman with a small fortune and a mental disability, making her the ideal target for the handsome and scheming Lewis Oman. After winning Harriet's love, Lewis, with the help of his brother and mistress, sets in motion a plan of unspeakable cruelty and evil to get his hands on her money... -
Darling Blue by Tracy Rees
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBlue lives a charmed life. From her family's townhouse in Richmond, she lives the life of luxury and couldn't want for anything - well, on the surface at least. Then on the night of her twenty-first birthday her father makes a startling toast: he will give his daughter's hand to whichever man can capture her heart best in the form of a love letter...Categorized as:
british-isles drama england europe female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom -
A Question of Love by Angeline Fortin, Celine Cody
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe earl of Shaftesbury's countess must be refined. Cultured. Perfect. It was a lesson that proper Evelyn Ashley-Cooper had learned flawlessly over six oppressive years of marriage...Categorized as:
british-isles europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom victorian wlw adult -
The Rookery by Emily Organ
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThere’s a killer in the slums. London 1884. When a thief robs Fleet Street reporter Penny Green, she finds herself caught up in a horrifying murder. Someone is terrorizing the residents of St Giles Rookery and Scotland Yard sends Inspector James Blakely to investigate. When the serial killer claims a victim outside the slums, Victorian London is sent into panic... -
-
Great Novels of Charles Dickens by Charles Dickens
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsCharles Dickens (1812 - 1870) is acknowledged as one of the giants of world literature. Collected here in one glorious volume are two of his best know and most highly thought of novels.A Tale of Two Cities is a violent romance which pitches a brilliant but drunken lawyer and the descendant of a sadistic French aristocrat into the turmoil of the French Revolution... -
Southampton Row by Anne Perry
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn Victorian England, a divisive election is fast approaching. Passions are so enflamed that Thomas Pitt, shrewd mainstay of the London police, has been ordered not to solve a crime but to prevent a national disaster. The aristocratic Tory candidate—and Pitt’s archenemy—is Charles Voisey. The Liberal candidate is Aubrey Serracold, whose wife’s dalliance with spiritualism threatens his chances...Categorized as:
british-isles crime england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban -
A Soupçon of Poison by Jennifer Ashley, Ashley Gardner
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsNote: This work also appears in the anthology, Murder Most Historical and Past Crimes: A Compendium of Historical Mysteries. London, 1880. Kat Holloway, highly sought-after young cook to the wealthy of London, finds herself embroiled in murder when she’s accused of poisoning her employer, the loathsome Sir Lionel Leigh-Bradbury...Categorized as:
british-isles crime england europe female-mc historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom -
Lost and Found by Stephanie Laurens
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA novella, previously published in the print anthology Hero, Come Back.Reggie Carmathen needs to marry. His mother insists, and even his friends are hinting, so before he has some young chit thrust upon him, Reggie decides to choose his own bride...Categorized as:
british-isles england europe historical-fiction industrial-era united-kingdom urban victorian -
A Curse of the Heart by Adele Clee
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTerrified by strange noises in the night, Rebecca Linwood, the headstrong owner of an Egyptian museum, believes she is suffering from an ancient curse. Out of desperation, she seeks the help of the only man with the knowledge to reverse the evil incantation, a man whose cold heart and sinful gaze pose such an enticing contradiction... -
The Two Roberts by Damian Barr
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK A BEST FICTION BOOK OF 2025 FOR THE GUARDIAN, THE OBSERVER, THE HERALD AND THE BBCHe will stay like this forever, Robert’s arm draped round him. They will be forever twenty. Scotland, 1933. Bobby MacBryde is on his way. After years grafting at Lees Boot Factory, he’s off to the Glasgow School of Art, to his future...Categorized as:
europe british-isles united-kingdom england urban historical-fiction lgbtq literary-fiction
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.