I don't think there are many, if any. Female on male abuse is not nearly so romanticised in general society as the other way round, and also, the romance genre is mainly read by women. Who apparently are not much interested in identifying with a bad girl.
There seems to be a bad boy genre in m/m romance, though ... perhaps there is bad girl genre in f/f romance?
Ironically, the only book I can think of where the female love interest is a tad bit nasty while the male hero is a good guy is Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde. Which, however, is fantasy, not romance.
edited 16th Oct '16 3:03:01 PM by Gowan
In love with an Uptown Girl
Honestly, be fun to read this, actually. I want to write it!
Please allow me to introduce myself, I am a man of wealth and taste. Nice to meet you, hope you can guess my name.
Women who put up with abuse are frequently seen as noble martyrs, suffering for love. Men putting up with abusive relationships are frequently seen as weak and spineless.
M/M or F/F romance fiction, as mentioned above, may be a different story.
edited 17th Oct '16 11:26:36 AM by Robbery
If men putting up with abuse were portrayed as noble martyrs who will succeed in redeeming their abusive spouse then ... The Silver Chair would be a romance novel.
Perhaps someone wants to write a fanfic about it.
In love with an Uptown Girl
I'll right a story about this.
Please allow me to introduce myself, I am a man of wealth and taste. Nice to meet you, hope you can guess my name.
RJ Savoy
Abusive females are subject to plenty of fetishism. Dominatrices are a thing, as are violent tsunderes. But the demographic for them are not as interested in romances, more in the simple pornographic aspect. And where bad boys are confident and independent, tsunderes are usually insecure and in need of a boy to help them.
I don't know any novels with good bad-girl romances (Stormdancer and its follow-up Kinslayer have this, but the cringeworthy romance is the last thing for which I would recommend them). But I know a few mangas, all can be found online:
- Jun'ai Tokkou Taichou!: Scrappy, short-tempered girl with delinquent boy. Expect hijinks, badly contrived love triangles and the girl becoming a damsel in distress when the plot calls for it.
- Seishun Otome Banchou!: Same author, somewhat better written. Strongest, most brutish girl pursues the prettiest, kindest boy.
- Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko!: The girl is not really bad, just athletic and brusque, but her two friends certainly have their evil side. Very well written and drawn.
- Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun: Seo and Wakamatsu. Definitely a bad girl by any measure, though the narrative seems to think that she repels every boy on sight; she's contrasted with the much more traditional-Japanese-wife Loreley that they all desire. It's a sitcom, so don't expect romantic progress.
Female protagonists in romances tend to be inoffensive so the reader can project onto them. This has implications: one study found that women assume they have to conform to a feminine image to succeed in love, but that men are more attracted to women who are more open and honest.
Stories don't tell us monsters exist; we knew that already. They show us that monsters can be trademarked and milked for years.
I found three I quite like, that have "bad girls" in them, but they're in the mildly erotic historical fiction genre. Interested?
There exist tons of bad boy romance novels, but I don't see any novels that would be considered real bad girl romance. Any novels that would be considered that?