i won’t post the whole graphic set because that’s too much but this is my personal curated butch knight list. unfortunately only one of these books actually directly refers to the knight as butch in the marketing (that i could find) but that won’t stop me.
disclaimer: this is just books that i’ve read/am familiar with and that i like. this is not a comprehensive list. i’ve reviewed all the books i’ve read here & am always open to sharing my thoughts !
Spear by Nicola Griffith - Peretur is the classic romantic chivalrous knight. she charms women while serving the poor & protecting the innocent; she dresses as a man and sets out to prove herself worthy of a seat at the round table.
The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri - this is actually on my TBR. Vina gets called both butch & masc by readers. i’m planning to get to this next month.
Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame by Neon Yang - i begrudgingly recommend Yang, simply because at least they aren’t afraid to use the word lesbian. i consider Yeva a butch, one that struggles with their identity as a knight, as an outsider, and as a servant to the empire.
Valerin the Fair by Rien Gray - the only confirmed butch on this entire list. i recommend Gray’s entire Out of True novella series as well as The Scales of Seduction by them.
The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling - Ser Voyne is not a chivalrous knight. she obeys her king to a fault. (also not 100% confirmed butch but we’ve claimed her)
Holy Wrath by Victoria Mier - on my TBR. this is a dark sapphic romantasy and the knight is referred to as masc.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez - not a knight, but Nimrah is a golem that fits the butch knight/martyr archetype.
The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson - Tain Hu.
Fate’s Bane by C.L. Clark - i can’t make a butch list without including Clark. just trust me. and read their Magic of the Lost series, too.
plus Clark’s article on the butch martyr in SFF (major spoilers for the traitor baru cormorant and gideon the ninth):
We’re in the middle of a golden age of sapphic science-fiction and fantasy and with this wave of books comes an interesting trend—the depict
“I think America should be taken by Canada instead” No, I think America should be returned to its Indigenous tribes, while Canada should return to the First Nations, the Inuit and the Métis.
“I think America should be taken by Denmark instead” No, I think America should be returned to its Indigenous tribes while Denmark returns Greenland to the Kalaallit, the Tunumiit and the Inughuit.
“I think Texas should be taken by Mexico” No, I think Texas should be returned to the Apache.
“I think Florida should be taken by Cuba” No, I think Florida should be returned to the Seminole.
“I think the Blue states should form their own country” No, I think the Blue states should return to the Chinook, the Yakama, the Nimíipuu, the Pomo, the Chumash, the Diné, the Wôbanaki, the Massachuset, the Haudenosaunee, the Pequot, the Lenape tribes, and the Inuit, the Unangax̂ and the Tlingit tribes of Alaska.
Stop roleplaying colonialism with a leftist coat of paint and give land back to its fucking Natives.
it fucking sucks being a disabled person who can't work and having to see these fuckass posts where someone's like "ahaha jobless people have no life and that's why everyone shitty online has No Job" and everyone and their mother reblogs it joyfully onto my dash for me to see. yes unemployed and unemployable people are truly without exception dogshit people with no hobbies and no redeeming qualities. you're so right. anyway if you'll excuse me i have to start my shift at the I'll Never Be Employed Because Of Permanent Disability And I Love Knowing How You Really See Me store
btw this isn't solely a disability rights issue or an issue about people who are entirely unable to work. you should also be thinking about the people who are regarded as unhireable. transfems are hugely discriminated against in this way, people of color are passed over for less qualified white people, anyone who has any difficulty playing the interview game is less hireable... frankly anyone who made the mistake of pursuing the things they love and now has a degree for a niche field. if you still joke about Jobless People it's because you've fundamentally connected the worth of people to their labor, and specific labor, work that you see as valuable. and while i'm at it stop making fun of people who still live with their parents. asshole.
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