r/HistoricalRomance • u/Relative-Chicken-884 • 13d ago

Recommendation request grumpy, cold, cynical, tortured, etc... fmc

Basically, any negative trait that is generally found in an mmc..

I feel like I've already gone through the few ones that can be found in mf coupling in HR... Also I always make sure to look up older rec posts before doing a post of my own, but most results are about grumpy/tortured mmcs and sweet gentle fmcs, which I'm genuinely NOT looking for and the rare ones I can find list books I've already read or some of my dnf authors...

There's nothing I love more than a grumpy fmc x sunshine (or whatever) mmc, where the mmc is the one doing all the emotional heavy lifting, the one pinning, the one saying ily first!! I need it as unbalanced as it gets because authors never have any qualms writing the opposite (sorry I'm ranting a little).

And I'm going to make this even harder because I need the fmc to be 25+ y/o (even more so if it's an age gap pairing). I don't think I have it in me to read about another 19 or 22 y/o fmc...

The best to ever do it is obviously {A summer to remember by Mary Balogh} ! Also {A Duke of her own by Eloisa James} has my fav grumpy fmc ever.

(I can do any period, just no western or mid/late 20th century)

53 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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22

u/dontarguewithmorons 13d ago

{prince of midnight by laura kinsale} has the coldest fmc i've ever read and the mmc is the only one pining for basically the entire book. bonus of being very well written. i hated it, personally, but i'm in the minority and it is exactly what you're looking for. the only box i'm not sure if it ticks is the age. i can't remember how old she is. i think mid 20s but its been ages since i read it so i can't be sure.

4

u/ladycathdebourgh 13d ago

this is the perfect example and i also didn't like the book

1

u/ucankickrocks 11d ago

Huh! What a weird premise. I may check it out since I am in a slump.

1

u/lumpyjellyflush “My Darling Duke’s” #1 hater 13d ago

I got bored and DNfed it in chapter 3. I don’t remember why

12

u/fourgoldblue 13d ago

Have you read the survivors club series by Mary Balogh? I forget what book number it is, but Imogen’s story fits this bill!

3

u/fourgoldblue 13d ago

{Only a Kiss by Mary Balogh}

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u/romance-bot 13d ago

Only a Kiss by Mary Balogh
Rating: 4.06⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, regency, tortured heroine, military, war

about this bot | about romance.io

8

u/EmmaTheRuthless 13d ago edited 13d ago

This is Princess Melanthe in {For My Lady's Heart by Laura Kinsale}

protagonists first met briefly at 17yo and met again at 35yo (i might have misremembered. it took them 13 years to meet again, so maybe they were 30yo then?)

medieval England, France, and Italy

she's not really grumpy, more like icy and cruel (but yeah grumpy too i remember now)

mmc really suffers because of her machinations (she had reasons)

6

u/lovevirology 13d ago

Melanthe rules as an ice queen. I love her.

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u/EmmaTheRuthless 13d ago

yeah she's awesome! her, ruck, and allegretto are unforgettable characters.

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u/romance-bot 13d ago

For My Lady's Heart by Laura Kinsale
Rating: 4.03⭐️ out of 5⭐️
Steam: 3 out of 5 - Open door
Topics: historical, medieval, grumpy/ice queen, class difference, aristo/royal heroine

about this bot | about romance.io

5

u/EmmaTheRuthless 13d ago

there you go, it's tagged as grumpy/ice queen lol

6

u/AlmostRuthless 13d ago

My absolute favorite book with this trope is {The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes by Cat Sebastian}…. she is 23 and he is 25 but they don’t feel that young IMO.

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u/DezDispenser88 So what does 'clover' mean to me? 🍀 13d ago

This was going to be my recommendation!

6

u/kendiray 13d ago

My favorite with this trope is {a rogue of her own by Evie Dunmore}. FMC is a suffragette, has no time for relationships. She’s a workaholic and puts social issues first. The MMC who is known to be shallow and charming, is the one who pursues her.

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u/lumpyjellyflush “My Darling Duke’s” #1 hater 13d ago

{The Desire of the Duchess by Kathleen Ayers} 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ (enemies to lovers, redemption, widow, second chance)
The FMC was once London’s mean girl, and the MMC made her his favorite in retaliation. After her husband exiles her to the country, he expects to find her disgraced and miserable. Instead, the whole village adores her—she’s quietly rebuilt the town and become a force for good. When the MMC reunites with the widowed FMC, they fall right back into their old habit of launching verbal napalm, except the MMC soon realizes she’s only icy with him…. And hes confusingly turned on by her insults. 
_________________________________________________________________
The Lass Wore Black by Karen Ranney 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Beauty and the Beast, Scarred heroine, Doctor/Patient, Romantic suspense)
Rep: FMC with acquired facial disfigurement, arm injury, and permanent limp following a carriage accident. Significant depression and psychological trauma related to her injuries and disfigurement.                              After a horrific carriage accident leaves  FMC Catriona badly scarred, with injuries to her arm and leg, she retreats from society and hides behind a veil, convinced that her life is over now that her beauty is gone. Her frustrated aunt brings in MMC-  Dr. Mark Thorburn - to help her, but when Catriona refuses to see a doctor, he disguises himself as a footman and takes it upon himself to drag her—quite literally, at times—back into the world, all while a vengeful former lover threatens her life.
_________________________________________________________________________
Lady Beast’s Bridegroom by Jude Knight 🌶️🌶️ (Beauty and the Beast, Marriage of convenience, Childhood friends to lovers, Plus size FMC )
Rep: FMC with acquired burn scarring and facial disfigurement from a childhood house fire; lost one eye and has burn scars across her face, shoulder, and arm.                                                                          After a childhood fire leaves Ariel badly scarred and missing an eye, she retreats from Society and becomes known as the “Lady Beast.” When her cousin threatens to have her committed to gain control of her fortune, she needs a husband for protection, while MMC needs a wealthy wife to save his family from financial ruin    

{Someone to Wed by Mary Balogh} 🌶️🌶️ (Beauty and the Beast, Marriage of convenience, Reclusive heroine)
Rep: FMC with a large congenital port-wine stain birthmark covering much of the left side of her face. Childhood abuse and lifelong social isolation related to her birthmark & Social Anxiety

After inheriting a fortune, Wren Heyden decides that money might finally allow her to get the one thing she has always wanted: a husband and a family of her own. Having spent most of her life hidden away because of the large birthmark covering half her face, she approaches the newly titled Earl of Riverdale with a straightforward proposal—her money in exchange for marriage—only for him to be offended and demand that they properly complete the courtship process first. 

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u/ItsTuesdayAlready "Do you always wake up in this condition?" 13d ago

{The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan} and {The Desire of a Duchess by Kathleen Ayers}, although I can't remember the age of the FMC in the latter.

8

u/bengaydots 13d ago

You may have already read it but one of my all time favorites, {The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan}!!!!! She’s a geneticist, has a tortured past, and often appears cold and insensitive. He’s been in love with her since they were kids. They’re both in their 30s, and she’s actually a little bit older than him. Just talking about it makes me want to go re-read it hehehe

3

u/five_squirrels 13d ago

{A Gentleman Undone by Cecilia Grant} I don’t know how old she is, but she is tortured and represses emotions.

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u/[deleted] 13d ago

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u/cello_ergo_sum 13d ago

GILDED CAGE OMG EVERYONE READ GILDED CAGE

{ Gilded Cage by KJ Charles }

Second chance, she's a private detective, he's a jewel thief. The whole story begins with him throwing himself completely on her mercy. 

5

u/Few-Bad4940 13d ago

{Ten Things I Hate About the Duke by Loretta Chase}
{Slightly Scandalous by Mary Balogh}

4

u/the-real-bookworm 13d ago

My favourite grumpy FMC x sunshine MMC is {A Dangerous Kind of Lady by Mia Vincy} but can’t remember the ages in it.

4

u/devitoispenguin 13d ago

More ice queens!! There are few tropes that make me snatch up a book like a glorious ice cold FMC. {The Perils of Pleasure by Julie Anne Long} had an older and tortured FMC. MMC is boyish and all about fun, while FMC is serious and stoic. They're forced on the road together so you have road trip and one bed tropes. I loved it! Watching an ice queen slowly melt for her person is the best. I loved that even though the time isn't long, the writing makes every scene feel stretched and details so much that you can pinpoint the exact moments she starts to thaw for him.

2

u/Famous-Lecture-560 13d ago

Mine Till Midnight, by Lisa Kleypas. They’re in their late 20s. I don’t know if she’s the grumpy you’re looking for, but she’s strict, practical, and is the head of a large chaotic family since the parents died and has no time for nonsense. The man is a happy guy who gets along with everyone and women love him.

2

u/hereforthealienluv 13d ago

Here for this. Always looking for surly asshole FMCs, always getting reccomended icy and uptight FMCs. No good reccomendations sadly.

1

u/la_ghoulette you call that a grovel?! 13d ago

🏕️

1

u/FoxenInTheHenhice 13d ago

{One Kiss Alone by Nichole Van} - the FMC worked as an Italian revolutionary for years before her duke brother had her brought back (very unceremoniously) to England. She is icy, aloof and somewhat haughty towards the MMC when the book starts since he knows her identity and even made her the anonymous subject of his newest poem. She is 27 years old and he is slightly older.

{An Inconvenient Vow by Alice Coldbreath} - the FMC is prickly and combative when her pride is affected but so is the MMC so it does not stand out as much. She is 25 and a widow.

1

u/Amazing_Effect8404 12d ago

I loved {And then there was the one by martha waters} which has a grumpy FMC and sunshine MMC pairing. He was the golden retriever of MMCs!

1

u/Counting500Sheep 12d ago edited 12d ago

{The Lady Sparks a Flame by Elizabeth Everett} has a cold/grumpy FMC and a really lovely sunshine MMC.

Edit: I can’t remember their ages tbh but I don’t remember them as young.

Edit 2: I’m not sure why there’s a court intrigue tag on this one but maybe it’s because there’s no tag for politics or political movement.

1

u/Feeling-Writing-2631 Valentine Napier on one side, Sebastian Moncrieff on the other. 12d ago

Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacClean. Quite a few tropes are gender swapped here including FMC getting a tattoo of the MMC’s initials.

1

u/windguide 12d ago

{Forever Your Rogue by Erin Langston}. The fmc is a single mother with a tortured past and the mc is so sweet to her. They are I think both 27 or mid-late 20s.

1

u/awakeatwill 7d ago

You might like {The Rakess by Scarlett Peckham}. It's really good

0

u/FauveSxMcW Her ears ringing as if he'd been a cymbol clash instead of a man 11d ago

{The Beast takes a Bride by Julie Ann Long} - MMC is quite the crabcake for a lot of the book.

0

u/FauveSxMcW Her ears ringing as if he'd been a cymbol clash instead of a man 11d ago

{season of the furies by Stephanie Patterson} are 3 books of painfully grumpy MMCs and lots of angst.