Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Queering the Timeline

Happy #TransRightsReadathon week! I hope you’re picking up lots of trans books this week and donating to worthy causes. An important update: Sim Kern, who’s running the event, has shifted the focus to trans books in general, to avoid outing authors.

I thought I would do a quick round up of sapphic books by out trans/nonbinary authors at the Lesbrary, which ended up being a much bigger undertaking than I was expecting! I thought I’d have about 15-20 titles and ended up closer to 60. And that’s just specifically books with sapphic content by authors who publicly identify as trans and nonbinary! There are so many great options for the readathon.

For the #TransRightsReadathon, you can donate to local trans organizations, support other participants’ fundraisers, or even donate to Sim Kern’s! They are raising money for Tony’s Place, a shelter for trans and queer youth in Houston, Texas.

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com

Bookish Goods

a shirt with a fairy cat on it and the text "queerness is infinite"

Queerness Is Infinite T-Shirt by ManyManyMoonsAgo

Since this newsletter’s theme is time travel, this Queerness is Infinite shirt was fitting — plus, I couldn’t resist the cat! Sizes S-4X. $30

New Releases

the cover of The Fake

The Fake by Zoe Whittall (Sapphic Fiction)

I just finished reading this one and flew through it! After Shelby’s wife dies, she is mired in grief, unable to do anything other than cuddle her dog in bed. When she drags herself to a grief support group, she meets Cammie, a charismatic woman recovering from cancer and mourning her sister, who helps Shelby through her grief. Meanwhile, Gibson has just divorced his wife and finds himself swept up in a whirlwind romance with a young woman named Cammie. Soon, though, Gibson and Shelby realize that some of Cammie’s stories don’t quite add up…

flux book cover

Flux by Jinwoo Chong (Queer Speculative Fiction)

This is a time travel adventure mashed up with a 1980s noir detective. It alternates between three point of view characters, including a queer Asian American man — but there’s something wrong with these stories. A corporation has invented time travel and using it for selfish means, throwing everyone’s timelines out of whack, and three of them will have to help each other to solve the mystery of what’s going on.

Home by Cailean Steed (Queer Thriller)

Infamous by Lex Croucher (Sapphic Regency Historical Fiction)

the cover of Infamous

Nicky Faces Catastrophe… and Survives?! by Matti McLean (M/M Fantasy Romance)

Sleep Alone by J.A.W. McCarthy (Sapphic Horror)

Pixies of the Sixties: You Really Got Me Now by Gihef, Jul Maroh, Christian Lachenal, Giulio Macaione, and Alberto Zanon (Sapphic Fantasy Graphic Novel)

Hirano and Kagiura, Vol. 2 by Shou Harusono (M/M Manga)

Pulse, Vol. 3 by Ratana Satis (F/F Manga)

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon, Vol. 4 by Shio Usui (F/F Manga)

Black and Queer on Campus by Michael P. Jeffries (Queer Nonfiction)

Ace Notes: Tips and Tricks on Existing in an Allo World by Michele Kirichanskaya (Asexual Nonfiction)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

In honor of Flux, this Riot Recs is about queer time-travel stories! There’s actually a surprising amount of lesbian time travel novels, but here are just a couple examples of queer people bouncing around the timeline.

cover of This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

This is an epistolary sci-fi novel about two time travelers on opposite sides of a war who fall in love through coded letters to each other. Be prepared to sink into the gorgeous language and be carried away by their epic, star-crossed romance — even if you can’t always follow exactly what’s happening.

the cover of Yesterday Is History

Yesterday Is History
by Kosoko Jackson

When Andre received a liver transplant, it came with an unexpected side effect: the ability to time travel. Now he’s bouncing between the present and 1969, falling in love with a boy in each timeline. But which time, and which boy, will be his happily ever after?

All the Links Fit to Click

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Books, Memories, Locks, and Other Things to Devour

This might be the most arbitrary Riot Recs theme I’ve ever done, but I can’t get it out of my head, so enjoy!

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com

Don’t forget to the join the Trans Rights Readathon! And help other readers with their fundraising goals!

Bookish Goods

a print of a rainbow cake

Rainbow Cake Digital Print by PrintMinimalistInc

Partly because of the theme (if you can call it that) of this Riot Recs, and partly because Book Riot’s own Susie Dumond had her book Queerly Beloved shortlisted for a Lambda Literary Award, and it has a rainbow cake on the cover, I had to showcase this rainbow cake digital print. $2

New Releases

the cover of Different for Boys

Different for Boys by Patrick Ness and illustrated by Tea Bendix (Queer YA Contemporary)

Ant is a queer teenager caught between some very confusing relationships, including a friend who kisses him in private and is violently homophobic in public. This is a novella accompanied by illustrations as well as black bars over the swearing, but not the slurs — which seems appropriate in our current book-banning culture.

the cover of I Will Find You Again

I Will Find You Again by Sarah Lyu (Sapphic YA Thriller)

Chase and Lia have been inseparable best friends for years, despite their very different personalities: one is disciplined and ambitious, the other is an impulsive wanderer. Soon, that friendship turns into a romance. When Lia disappears, Chase will stop at nothing to find her. But the secret she stumbles on in the search will change everything.

Dear Medusa by Olivia A. Cole (Sapphic YA Contemporary)

The Minus-One Club by Kekla Magoon, narrated by Dion Graham (Queer YA Dystopia) (Audiobook Release)

the cover of The Memory Eater

Ravensong by Cayla Fay (Sapphic YA Fantasy)

The Memory Eater by Rebecca Mahoney (Bisexual YA Horror)

The Sea in You by Jessi Sheron (Sapphic YA Mermaid Graphic Novel)

The Sister Split by Auriane Desombre (Sapphic Middle Grade Contemporary)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Me, holding up these two sapphic 2022 titles beside this week’s sapphic new release The Memory Eater: Is this anything??

cover of The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

In this horror novel, Devon has sacrificed everything for her son. He was born a mind eater, not a book eater like her. Now, she’s on the run from the family who wants to make him into a weapon, looking for a cure. But in the meantime, she must gruesomely feed people to him to keep him alive, and he retains their memories. This is an unsettling dark fantasy with a sapphic main character.

the cover of The Lock-Eater

The Lock-Eater by Zack Loran Clark

Melanie is a foundling in a world of magic, but she has a unique talent: the ability to open any lock. One day, an automaton called the Traveler arrives at the orphanage, recruiting her to be a witch’s assistant. This begins a new adventure for Melanie, and she will found out new things about this world, the Traveler, and herself — including her queer awakening. This is recommended for fans of Howl’s Moving Castle!

All the Links Fit to Click

How books are helping me to navigate my mid-queer crisis

Autostraddle is fundraising: We Need You To Buy Us Some Time Before Time Runs Out. Their queer book coverage is excellent, and they’re also one of the all-around best queer media sites on the internet, so support them if you can! I’m an A+ member myself.

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Join the Trans Rights Readathon!

In the flood of anti-trans legislation, bans of trans books, and other recent news stories, it’s nice to see a positive way to fight back. Sim Kern, author of Depart, Depart! and Seeds for the Swarm, is hosting a Trans Rights Readathon next week! Read on for more details and some trans book recommendations!

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com

This week, I want to spotlight The Okra Project. They offer meals to Black trans people experiencing food insecurity. You can help out at their donate page.

Bookish Goods

an enamel pin shaped like a badge in trans pride colors with the text Protect Trans Kids

Protect Trans Kids Pin by
TheNoelleShack

I’ve featured a Protect Trans Kids shirt here before, but this pin lets you transfer that message to every outfit! $13

New Releases

cover of feed them silence by lee mandelo

Feed Them Silence by Lee Mandelo (Sapphic Science Fiction)

From the author of Summer Sons, this novella is a sci-fi exploration of humanity and what it means to be in community with non-human animals. She uses a neurological link to interface with one of the last wild wolves, seeing — and smelling, and tasting — the world as they do. She quickly becomes so obsessed with this feeling that it threatens to destroy everything: her health, her relationship with her wife, and even the wolf whose mind she is invading.

the cover of Walking Practice

Walking Practice by Dolki Min, translated by Victoria Caudle (Queer Horror)

A shapeshifting alien crash lands on Earth, and they soon find that humans make for delicious prey. They learn to use dating apps to lure people in. When one person escapes, though, the chase turns into an existential crisis about what Earth has changed them into, and how to feed this insatiable hunger. First published in Korean, this looks like a skin-crawling, weird, and thought-provoking horror read. It’s also illustrated!

Blue Hunger by Viola Di Grado, translated by Jamie Richards (Queer Fiction)

Brother and Sister Enter the Forest by Richard Mirabella (Queer Fiction)

Chrysalis by Anuja Varghese (Queer Short Stories)

the cover of Daughters of Nantucket

Eight Strings by Margaret DeRosia (Sapphic Crossdressing Historical Fiction)

Daughters of Nantucket by Julie Gerstenblatt (Sapphic Historical Fiction)

A Manual for How to Love Us: Stories by Erin Slaughter (Queer Short Stories)

Lucky in Lace by Melissa Brayden (F/F Romance)

Made for Her by Carsen Taite (F/F Romantic Suspence)

The Balance of Fates (Fate and Legacy #1) by Raquel Raelynn (F/F Paranormal Romance)

I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love by Minta Suzumaru (BL Romance)

the cover of Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu (Novel) Vol. 1

Thousand Autumns: Qian Qiu, Vol. 1 by Meng Xi Shi and illustrated by Me.Mimo (BL Wuxia Novel)

The Dragon’s Betrothed, Vol. 1 by Meguru Hinohara (M/M Fantasy Manga)

Synthetic Jungle: Poems by Michael Chang (Nonbinary Poetry)

God Themselves by Jae Nichelle (Queer Poetry)

Dismantling Everyday Discrimination: Microaggressions Toward LGBTQ People by Kevin Leo Yabut Nadal (LGBTQ Nonfiction)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Next week is the Trans Rights Readathon, and you should sign up! You just read trans books and fundraise for the trans organization (or individual) of your choice. For instance, you might pledge $10 per book you finish that week, or you might get some friends to promise to donate a certain amount per pages read. You can make it your own!

Not a fast reader? Not a problem! Here are a couple of trans graphic memoirs that will make great additions to your readathon TBR, since graphic memoirs/novels are usually quicker to get through.

the cover of Welcome to St. Hell

Welcome to St. Hell: My Trans Teen Misadventure by Lewis Hancox

In this YA graphic memoir, Lewis revisits his teenage self as he grew up a closeted trans guy in 2000s UK. While he tries to tell his past self why she (the pronouns used for his past self) is having such a hard time and what comes next, his teen self isn’t yet ready to hear the truth. Content warnings for transphobia and homophobia.

the cover of Death Threat, showing an illustration of a Brown woman bloodily bisected by a piece of paper

Death Threat by Vivek Shraya and illustrated by Ness Lee

Vivek Shraya, author of I’m Afraid of Men, The Subtweet, and more, discusses in this graphic memoir the disturbing transphobic hate mail she began receiving in 2017. This is only 60 pages, but this surreal and satirical slim book packs a punch. Content warning for violent transphobia.

All the Links Fit to Click

The Trans Rights Readathon is happening March 20-17th! Read trans books, raise money for trans organizations!

40 Debut Books by Transgender and Non-Binary Authors to Add to Your 2023 TBR

Banned Author George M. Johnson on Censorship and Silence

Olivia: An Oft-Overlooked Lesbian Novel

Homebodies by Tembe Denton-Hurst got a starred review from Publishers Weekly.

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

It’s a Good Day to Say Gay

I’m back! I had a very luxurious few days off doing nothing, which included making some truly terrible cinnamon buns that I rescued by making them into cinnamon roll bread pudding. Also, I watched The Great Pottery Throw Down. It was a very cozy long weekend. Now, let’s get into the books!

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com (I’m one of the writers!)

Today I wanted to highlight Black Trans Advocacy, which advocates for health, housing, and employment equality for Black trans people. You can find out more about them on their website, and you can support them at their donation page.

Bookish Goods

a bookmark with the word gay repeated over and over in rainbow colors

Say Gay Bookmark by ShopGigiAndBo

Sometimes simple is best, like this bookmark that just says “gay”. $3+

New Releases

This week’s YA and kids’ LGBTQ new releases are disproportionately by white authors, which is disappointing.

My Dear Henry cover

My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix by Kalynn Bayron (Gay YA Retelling)

From the author of Cinderella is Dead and This Poison Heart comes a retelling of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Gabriel is a Black medical student falling for his friend Henry Jekyll, but Jekyll comes back from summer break consumed by fear of their relationship being found out — and soon, he exhibits other changes, too… You can hear my full thoughts on this one on the All the Books podcast!

the cover of The Ojja-Wojja

The Ojja-Wojja by Magdalene Visaggio and Jenn St-Onge (Queer Middle Grade Fantasy Graphic Novel)

From the author of Kim & Kim and Eternity Girl, this is a middle grade “horror, mystery, or whatever” graphic novel, according to the cover. It’s the first in a series about Val and Lanie, two eighth grade friends in a small, boring town who accidentally summon a demon. Lanie is queer and Val is autistic.

So You Wanna Be A Pop Star?: A Choices Novel by Zachary Sergi (Queer YA Contemporary)

Lies We Sing to the Sea by Sarah Underwood (Bisexual YA Fantasy)

No Horses in the House!: The Audacious Life of Artist Rosa Bonheur by Mireille Messier and Anna Bron (Queer Nonfiction Picture Book)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

I’m returning to the Read Harder Challenge, this time with task #9: Read an independently published book by a BIPOC author. Romance is definitely the genre that’s found the most success with self-publishing, so I’ve highlighted a couple queer indie romances for you to check out.

Cover of Fall Into You

Fall Into You by Georgina Kiersten

Imari left her would-be husband at the alter, and now it’s all anyone can talk about. She decides to move to the small town Appeley for a fresh start. Instead, she finds a familiar face at the fall apple festival: Cassidy, her childhood best friend. And she’s grown up to be a beautiful woman. This book promises positive fat representation, an autumnal atmosphere, coffeeshops, butch and stud representation, and more.

the cover of Work for It

Work for It by Talia Hibbert

Many of your favorite romance authors, even if they’re typically published by the Big Five publishers, have some self-published books, too! Talia Hibbet is known for her Brown Sisters series, including Take a Hint, Dani Brown, which has a bisexual main character. Work for It is an angsty M/M romance with an ice king love interest. I don’t think I can improve on the description: “When the prettiest man I’ve ever hated shows up at my job…I’m not sure if I want to strangle him or drag him into bed.”

Another well-known romance author with an indie queer book is Alyssa Cole’s historical F/F romance That Could Be Enough.

All the Links Fit to Click

114 Queer and Feminist Books Coming Your Way Spring 2023

Fat Off, Fat On Author Clarkisha Kent on Why Her Younger Self Would Be Scandalized

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Curl Up with a Mug of Tea and These Queer Cozy Fantasy Books

Hi book friends! I’m Erica, another Associate Editor here at BR, and I’ll be filling in for Danika while they’re out.

I have to say that, while I’m excited for Spring, March has already started off raggedy. My home state of Tennessee continues to embarrass me, and everything is just a dumpster fire. With these new laws and bans being enacted, we’re seeing the continuation of what started with book bans (which, of course, are also still raging on).

It’s times like these when we need queer cozy fantasy books the most, so read on for some hug-in-a-book recommendations. Also, if you’re able to, the school library for the Green Hill juvenile detention facility is looking for some help buying books and supplies the students have requested. I already bought a few volumes of manga, paint brushes, and color pencils. For the wishlist, click here.

And, if you’re looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading, subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com

Bookish Goods

a dragon enamel pin with bisexual flag colors

Bi Pride Dragon Enamel Pin by ChaobunnyArts

Since today’s newsletter theme is cozy fantasy, I had to include this cute bi pride dragon pin. There are lots of different listings for pride dragons, from the progress flag to ace, intersex, demigirl, lesbian, queer, and more designs! $11

New Releases

Unfortunately, this week’s new releases are disproportionately by white authors. Do better, publishers.

Fat Off, Fat On: A Big Bitch Manifesto by Clarkisha Kent  cover

Fat Off, Fat On: A Big Bitch Manifesto by Clarkisha Kent (Bisexual Memoir)

Kent gets into the toll on self and body that comes with living in a culture that values heteronormativity, whiteness, and thinness so much. As a first-generation American, she’s also had to deal with generational trauma and realizing that true family isn’t always connected by blood. But if I’m making it seem like this is all doom and gloom, it’s not! Kent keeps her readers cackling, even as she wades through tragedy.

The Faithless cover

The Faithless (Magic of the Lost #2) by C.L. Clark (Sapphic Fantasy)

This is the second book in Clark’s Magic of the Lost trilogy, and in it, Luca the princess and Touraine the soldier return to Balladaire after a rebellion. Though the rebels have won, Luca must still reclaim the throne from her uncle and the two women must struggle through heartbreak to ensure they don’t lose all they’ve fought for.

Tell the Rest by Lucy Jane Bledsoe (Queer Fiction)

Confidence by Rafael Frumkin (Gay Fiction)

In Memoriam by Alice Winn (M/M Historical Fiction)

The Fifth Wound by Aurora Mattia (Trans Fiction)

A Tale of Two Florists (Juniper Creek Golden Years #1) by Brenna Bailey (F/F Romance)

Something Wild & Wonderful by Anita Kelly (M/M Romance)

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles (Historical Romance)

The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older (Sapphic Sci-Fi Mystery)

Fevered Star (Between Earth and Sky #2) by Rebecca Roanhorse (Queer Fantasy) (Paperback Rerelease) [AOC]

Mimosa by Archie Bongiovanni (Queer Graphic Novel)

Reaching Ninety by Martin Duberman (Gay Memoir)

Tweakerworld: A Memoir by Jason Yamas (Queer Memoir)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

It’s cold here, which seems like as good an excuse as any to curl up with some cozy queer fantasy books. You probably already know about Legends & Lattes, Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea, and The Tea Dragon Society, but here are a few more. Side note: I hope that we see more queer cozy fantasy books by about queer people of color soon!

the cover of Cursed Cocktails

Cursed Cocktails by S.L. Rowland

I somehow missed this one coming out last month! It looks like the perfect match for Legends & Lattes fans. Rhoren is a bloodmage who has finally retired. Now, using a book of drink recipes he inherited from his father, he’s starting his own tavern for a change of pace. There’s also a sweet M/M slowburn romance.

Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker

This one has some action in the plot, but it still is a very cozy YA fantasy graphic novel. Nova is a witch whose childhood crush, Tam, has just reappeared in her life. They are a werewolf on the run from a dark force trying to steal their magic. Together, they have to uncover the mystery behind the forces chasing Tam before it’s too late. Did I mention that Nova works for a bookstore owned by her grandmothers? Adorable.

That’s all I got for today! If you’d like to say hi, you can hit me up on Twitter @erica_eze_, listen to me and Tirzah Price on the Hey YA podcast, or hear more of my ramblings in the author of color-focused newsletter I write (In Reading Color).

It’s been real, until next time!

-Erica

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Queerly Departed: LGBTQ Haunted House Stories

It’s March! We made it! Winter might still be clinging on for those of us in the northern hemisphere, but at least the end is in sight. If you want some chilling reads for these last days of winter, though, why not pick up some queer haunted house stories?

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s newest newsletter, The Deep Dive, to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox. Subscribe and choose your membership level today at bookriot.substack.com (I’ll be writing for this, too!)

Queer books, BIPOC books, and sex education books continue to be targeted by book banners. We know these can be life-changing — even life-saving — for kids to have access to. That’s why today I’m highlighting EveryLibrary, which helps fight back against book bans. You can donate to help out, sign up as a volunteer, or join the mailing list on their homepage to stay up to date.

You can also check out Book Riot’s book How to Fight Book Bans and Censorship for tips on joining the fight!

Bookish Goods

a photo of a ghost enamel pin with they/them on it

Glow in the Dark Ghost Pronouns Pin by QueerlyDeparted

Since today’s newsletter theme is queer haunted houses, I thought I’d look for queer ghost merch, and there were so many to choose from! I like this ghost pronouns pin: it glows in the dark! Available in six different pronoun options, include he/they and she/they. $13

New Releases

Unfortunately, this week’s new releases are disproportionately by white authors — do better, publishers.

cover of She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran; illustration of an Asian woman with flowers growing out of the corners of her mouth and a tear running down her cheek

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran (Sapphic YA Horror)

This book has been getting a lot of attention ever since that striking cover came out, and now you can finally read it! Jade has arrived in Vietnam to stay with her estranged father, Ba. He’s promised her college money if she stays the summer and helps restore the French colonial house they’re staying in. But Jade becomes convinced the house is haunted, and she teams up with a troublemaking local girl to prove it — before the house devours them all.

the cover of The House That Whispers

The House That Whispers by Lin Thompson (Trans Boy Middle Grade Horror)

Simon is staying with Nanaleen for a week with his siblings, but he begins to hear scratching in the walls and see shadows moving in ways they shouldn’t. It’s time for a ghost hunt. Meanwhile, he’s becoming more sure about he/him pronouns and the name Simon, but he’s not ready to tell anyone yet.

If I Can Give You That by Michael Gray Bulla (Trans Guy, M/M YA Contemporary)

the wicked bargain book cover

I’ll Take Everything You Have by James Klise (Queer YA Historical Fiction)

Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong (Queer YA Fantasy)

The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa (Transmasculine YA Pirate Fantasy)

My Momma Zo by Kelly Allen, Zoey Allen, and Tara O’Brien (Trans Two Mom Picture Book)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Since the two releases I highlighted today both have something in common, I thought I’d talk about some more queer haunted house stories!

the cover of What Moves the Dead

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

This is a retelling of “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe with a nonbinary main character. Alex’s childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, so they visit the remote House of Usher to visit her. There, Alex finds the house overtaken by fungi and surrounded by strange wildlife. Madeline and her brother both exhibit unsettling symptoms. Along with a doctor and a mycologist, Alex searches for answers.

the cover of Gnarled Hollow

Gnarled Hollow by Charlotte Greene

Of course, you can’t talk about queer haunted house stories without mentioning The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, and I’m always looking for a book to scratch that same itch. While it’s unfair to compare any writing to Shirley Jackson’s, Gnarled Hollow is the first book I’ve read that I think captures the same vibes as The Haunting of Hill House — but with an explicitly queer main character instead of a subtextual one.

white is for witching cover

White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi

If you like your horror on the weird side, you have to pick up White is for Witching, about three generations of women and the house the binds them together and holds its own secrets. This is a surreal, unsettling read that includes chapters from the point of view of the house itself! And, of course, one of the main characters is sapphic.

All the Links Fit to Click

Your Driver Is Waiting Review: I’m Obsessed With the Swole Bisexual Narrator of This Rip-Roaring Novel

Anita Cornwell Wrote About Black Queer Women with Heart, Rage, and Brilliant Honesty

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

These Queer Mecha Books are Drift Compatible

We’re almost through February, friends! I can’t wait for spring, which I hope will reset this year that’s been off to a rocky start. I’m especially looking forward to being able to read outside! Today I have for you some new releases I’m very excited about, plus some queer mecha books, apropos of nothing.

I just finished reading The Women’s House of Detention: A Queer History of a Forgotten Prison by High Ryan, which is a phenomenal book that reveals a crucial and forgotten piece of queer history while also outlining the necessity for prison abolition. That’s why today I wanted to highlight the National Bail Fund Network. You can donate to them directly, or it includes a list of bail funds for each state. The bail system is inherently unjust, punishing poor people for being poor — which means BIPOC and LGBTQ people are also targeted. While it’s not a permanent solution, bail funds can help in the meantime.

Bookish Goods

an enamel pin of a robot holding a trans pride flag with the text "binaries are for robots"

Binaries Are For Robots Enamel Pin by JonTurner

Since this newsletter’s theme is queer mechas, I couldn’t resist this trans robot pin. $11

New Releases

cover of Your Driver Is Waiting by Priya Guns; illustration of South Asian person looking in car rear view mirror with a pine tree air freshener hanging from the mirror on fire

Your Driver Is Waiting by Priya Guns (Sapphic Satire)

This is a darky comedic satire inspired by Taxi Driver. Damani is a rideshare driver in a city that is constantly erupting in protests supposedly in solidarity with people like her, but she can’t afford to pay attention. Then she gives a ride to Jolene, and sparks fly. Jolene might be the perfect girlfriend; she always says the right things and seems to be doing the work…though Damani is still a bit hesitant to date a rich white woman. But then Jolene does something unforgivable, and everything goes off the rails.

Carmilla The First Vampire cover

Carmilla: The First Vampire by Amy Chu and Soo Lee (Sapphic Paranormal Graphic Novel)

Carmilla is the original lesbian vampire story, and this graphic novel places the iconic character in 1990s Chinatown in New York City. The main character is a social worker looking into a string of murders of queer women — a case the police seem to have no interest in solving. Her main suspect is Carmilla, who runs a nightclub in Chinatown. This retelling also weaves in Chinese folklore, and it’s one of my most anticipated releases of the year!

The Unfortunates by J K Chukwu (Queer Literary Fiction)

Who Does That Bitch Think She Is?: Doris Fish and the Rise of Drag by Craig Seligman (Drag Memoir)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Today’s theme is queer mecha books! Why? Why not!

Mechas are giant robots controlled by people, often in a humanoid shape. If you watched Pacific Rim, then you know mechas. (Can you believe this year will be 10 years since that movie came out?) Here are some book examples with queer main characters!

Also watch for the upcoming Luminescent Machinations: Queer Tales of Monumental Invention edited by Rhiannon Rasmussen and Dave Ring.

Cover of Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

In case you somehow missed this book taking over the bestseller list, it’s a YA novel that’s pitched as Pacific Rim meets The Handmaid’s Tale. Zetian has signed up to be a concubine-pilot of a mecha, but she has no plans of being drained and discarded like most of the women co-pilots. Instead, she’s out for revenge for the male pilot responsible for her sister’s death — and after that, she’s ready to tear this whole misogynistic system down. This has a queer and polyamorous main character!

Cover of August Kitko and the Mechas from Space

August Kitko and the Mechas from Space by Alex White

Giant robots have invaded Earth, and Gus Kitko plans to go out playing piano. Instead, he’s saved by a traitor Vanguard and becomes one of the pilots in a last stand. This has gay and nonbinary main characters. Author Annalee Newitz describes it as a “beautifully-orchestrated disco space battle.”

Cover of Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta

Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta

Yes, I snuck a third example in here. Eris is a Gearbreaker: she dismantles the Windups that enforce the Godolia’s tyrannical reign over the Badlands. When she’s captured, she meets Sona, a cybernetically enhanced Windup pilot. They should be enemies, but Sona reveals she’s infiltrated the Windup program to take down the system from the inside. Can Eris trust her? And what happens when their relationship turns from dangerous allies to something more?

Oh, and one more bonus queer mecha book: Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee!

All the Links Fit to Click

The Documentary Examining the History of LGBTQ+ Comics

Contemporary YA featuring bi, pan, and questioning Black teens

Bi, pan, and queer fiction featuring disabled and neurodivergent characters

Everything you need to know about Bi+ Health Month 2023

Book Releases: 2023 Books With Non-Cis Protagonists

Short Fiction Playlist: Five Queer Short Stories Featuring Pop Culture

Where to start with: Colette

Anita Cornwell Wrote About Black Queer Women with Heart, Rage, and Brilliant Honesty

Queer Naija Lit: 2005’s “Walking With Shadows” Is a Meditation on Shame, Rupture, and Repair

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!

Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Deadly Sunflowers, AroSpace Engineers, and a House Full of Bees

Today, I have some queer middle grade and YA new releases out this week, as well as a couple SFF aromantic reads and a punny pride pin.

I woke up this morning to even more censorship news: while mainstream news coverage is still spotty at best, censorship of LGBTQ, BIPOC, and sex education books has only been increasing since 2021. That’s why today I want to highlight EveryLibrary, an organization fighting for libraries and against book bans. You can find out more and donate at their website.

Oh, and did I mention Book Riot has a book called How to Fight Book Bans and Censorship? I wrote some of the articles included and helped to put the book together!

Bookish Goods

a pin of a space helmet in aromantic pride colors and the text AroSpace Engineer

Arospace Engineer Aromantic Pride Pin by gloriousweirdo

I waffled so much trying to pick an aromantic pride bookish good last time, so I’m glad I have the opportunity to highlight this AroSpace Engineer pin, too! I love a good queer pun. $10

New Releases

This week there unfortunately aren’t very many queer YA and kids’ book new releases by authors of color. Hopefully this is a blip, because generally I’ve seen queer YA have a larger diversity of authors and characters than adult releases.

where darkness blooms book cover

Where Darkness Blooms by Andrea Hannah (Sapphic YA Supernatural Thriller)

Whitney’s mother and girlfriend have both gone missing, but in the town of Bishop — known for its windstorms and endless fields of sunflowers — women going missing is hardly news. She and the other girls whose mothers disappeared are determined to find answers, but along the way, they unbury a bloody and dangerous secret that Bishop is built upon.

the cover of Ring of Solomon

Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros (Queer Middle Grade Fantasy)

It’s such a delight to see a middle grade fantasy adventure come out with a queer main character, especially one that’s inspired by Jewish folklore. When Zach finds a ring that gives him magic powers, he thinks he might be able to use to defend against homophobic bullies. Instead, he soon finds himself pulled into a battle against monsters who are trying to end the world.

Project Nought by Chelsey Furedi (Queer M/M YA Time Travel Graphic Novel)

Sasaki and Miyano, Vol. 7 by Shou Harusono (BL YA Manga)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Of course, after sending Tuesday’s newsletter with aromantic recs, I stumbled on an aromantic SFF anthology I had to share. It’s still Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week, so here’s round two of aro recs!

the cover of Common Bonds

Common Bonds: A Speculative Aromantic Anthology edited by Claudie Arseneault, C. T. Callahan, and RoAnna Sylver

This anthology of speculative short stories and poetry celebrates platonic relationships, from a queerplatonic relationship between shopkeepers in a fantasy world to the community formed by a group of demon hunters and lots more, this collection reminds us that platonic relationships are some of the most meaningful and important connections in our lives.

Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel cover

Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel

In this retelling of the Hindu epic the Ramayana, Kaikeyi is an ignored, inconsequential princess who leverages found magic to become an unforgettable leader. But defying her destiny pits her against the gods, and she will have to decide if the life she’s worked so hard to build is worth what might come next. Kaikeyi is aromantic and asexual.

All the Links Fit to Click

Alice Oseman on the catharsis of creating Heartstopper after her experience with her homophobic school

We Should Engage With LGBTQ History All Damn Year

Nobuko Yoshiya: the queer Japanese icon who adopted her girlfriend to get around same-sex marriage ban

Book cover of Big Swiss

Scorched Grace Is a Propulsive Mystery Starring a Chain-Smoking Tattooed Lesbian Nun

Big Swiss Review: On the Queer Age Gap Novel Set in a House Full of Bees

The Girl That Can’t Get a Girlfriend by Mieri Hiranishi was reviewed at Okazu

Unsafe Words: Queering Consent in the #Metoo Era edited by Shantel Gabrieal Buggs and Trevor Hoppe was reviewed at Autostraddle

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

Happy Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week!

Aromanticism isn’t discussed much even in queer spaces. Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week is a great time to seek out aromantic books, and I have a couple of recs and resources for you.

You can find out more about Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week, aromanticism resources and educational material, how to be an ally to aro people, and more at the Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week website.

Bookish Goods

a photo of a shirt with a Cupid in the aromantic pride colors swinging a bat at hearts

Aromantic Cupid Shirt by dragonwage

For Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week, I couldn’t resist this aro cupid batting away hearts, especially in the wake of Valentine’s Day. $27+

New Releases

scorched grace book cover

Scorched Grace: A Sister Holiday Mystery by Margot Douaihy (Queer Mystery)

This is the highly anticipated first book to be published by Gillian Flynn Books, and it is a mystery starring a queer nun. I know you’ve already clicked away to order it, but just in case anyone’s still reading: When Saint Sebastian’s School is targeted with multiple arson attacks, Sister Holiday decides to investigate for herself, but the case soon turns her against colleagues and forces her to face her own dark past.

the cover of Why I Adopted My Husband

Why I Adopted My Husband by Yuta Yagi (Gay Manga Memoir)

This nonfiction manga title follows Yuta and Kyota as they meet, fall in love, and eventually find a loophole in gay marriage being illegal in Japan: one adopts the other. Interestingly, this is the same strategy bestselling author Nobuko Yoshiya used to adopt her wife in the 1950s, enabling them to receive legal benefits they otherwise couldn’t. This looks like an adorable love story that also explores what it has been like to be gay in Japan over the last 20 years.

On a Woman’s Madness by Astrid Roemer, translated by Lucy Scott (Queer Fiction)

The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes (Sapphic Historical Fiction)

Book cover of The Librarian of Burned Books

Idol Minds by KT Salvo (Gay K-Pop Romance)

For Her Consideration by Amy Spalding (F/F Romance)

The Best Man’s Problem by Sera Taíno (M/M Romance)

Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A. Snyder (Queer Horror)

The Orc and Her Bride by Lila Gwynn (Sapphic Fantasy)

A Pirate’s Life for Tea by Rebecca Thorne (Lesbian Cozy Fantasy)

Sister, Maiden, Monster Book Cover

Never Satisfied, Vol. 1 by Taylor Robin (Nonbinary Fantasy Graphic Novel)

Run Away With Me, Girl Vol. 2 by Battan (Yuri Manga)

SCRAMBLUES by mame march (M/M Manga)

Futari Escape, Vol. 2 by Shouichi Taguchi (Yuri Manga)

Last Gender, Vol. 2 by Rei Taki (LGBTQ Manga)

Crossplay Love: Otaku x Punk, Vol. 3 by Toru (LGBTQ Manga)

the cover of Never Satisfied, Vol. 1 by Taylor Robin

The Flower That Seems to Truly Dance by Saki Tsukahara (M/M Historical Manga)

Hirano and Kagiura by Shou Harusono and Kotoko Hachijo (BL Light Novel)

Marry Me a Little: A Graphic Memoir by Robert Kirby (Gay Graphic Memoir)

Transitional by Munroe Bergdorf (Trans Nonfiction)

I Am Ace: Advice on Living Your Best Asexual Life by Cody Daigle-Orians (Asexual Nonfiction)

Am I Trans Enough? by Alo Johnston (Trans Nonfiction)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

It’s Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week! This is one of the identities under the LGBTQ umbrella that gets the least representation. So let’s talk about some books that put aromantic people in the spotlight!

the cover of Sounds Fake But Okay

Sounds Fake but Okay: An Asexual and Aromantic Perspective on Love, Relationships, Sex, and Pretty Much Anything Else by Sarah Costello and Kayla Kaszyca

Sarah Costello, who is asexual and aromantic, and Kayla Kaszyca, who is demisexual and biromantic, are the hosts of the aromantic and asexual podcast Sounds Fake But Okay, and in this book, they ask readers to put on aspec spectacles and “rethink everything you thought you knew about society, friendship, sex, romance and more.”

Elatsoe Book Cover

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Elatsoe is an asexual, aromantic Lipan Apache teenage girl who sees ghosts. So when her deceased cousin comes to visit, it’s not his ghost that surprises her; it’s his message. He didn’t die from a car crash. He was murdered. Now she, her friends, and her family have to track down the killer, or no one else will. This is part fantasy, part horror, part murder mystery.

For more, check out these aromantic book lists at LGBTQ Reads and author Claudie Arseneault’s blog.

All the Links Fit to Click

Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Romance of 2023

Book Releases: Bi & Pan Books of January-June 2023

Over 180 Writers Sign an Open Letter to The New York Times Over Anti-Trans Bias

Eight Books Across Genres on Queer Autistic Experiences

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika

Categories
Our Queerest Shelves

You Need to Start Reading Queer Manga

I hope you enjoyed Half-Off Candy Day yesterday, and any other holidays you recognize this week.

I’m currently reading Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture by Sherronda J. Brown, which although it hasn’t been a quick read, it is full of facts and perspectives often missing from conversations about the queer community. I highly recommend checking it out!

Today, I wanted to highlight the Masha P. Johnson Institute, which fights for the rights of Black trans people. You can find out more on their website, and you can help at their donation page.

Bookish Goods

a photo of three boba glasses with Heartstopper images

Heartstopper Glass Cup Set by PattikosCreations

Since I’m talking about queer comics in this newsletter, it seemed like a good time to highlight some Heartstopper goodies. There are so many adorable options on Etsy to choose from, though! I couldn’t resist these glass cups with matching boba straws. $32+

New Releases

and other mistakes book cover

And Other Mistakes by Erika Turner (Sapphic YA Contemporary)

Aaliyah is a track star who hasn’t managed to successfully run from her problems. She was outed to her religious mother, and kissing her best friend turned out to be a mistake. Now, she’s trying to rebuild after everything fell apart — but the cute new girl on the team adds another complication.

the cover of Always the Almost

Always the Almost by Edward Underhill (Queer Trans YA Contemporary)

Miles is a trans teen pianist who has two goals: win regionals and win back his ex-boyfriend, Shane. But Shane broke up with him weeks after Miles came out as trans, and now he’s ignoring him. Even his music isn’t an escape: his piano teacher keeps telling him he’s playing like he doesn’t know who he is. But then Eric shows up, and their fake dating scheme is quickly dropping the “fake” part. Maybe Eric is right, and the person Miles really needs to prove himself to is…himself.

Planning Perfect by Haley Neil (F/F Asexual YA Contemporary)

The Pledge by Cale Dietrich (Queer YA Thriller)

Juniper Harvey and the Vanishing Kingdom by Nina Varela (Sapphic Middle Grade Fantasy)

For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

I’ve returned to the 2023 Read Harder Challenge for inspiration, and today I’m giving recs for task #8: Read a graphic novel/comic/manga if you haven’t before; or read one that is a different genre than you normally read.

How Do We Relationship Vol 1 cover

How Do We Relationship? Vol. 1 by Tamifull

If you haven’t read manga before, a) I highly recommend giving it a try, and b) I think this is a great series to start with. It follows Miwa and Saeko, two queer college students who, after bemoaning the difficulty of finding other queer women, decide to start dating each other in a relationship of convenience. There are some fascinating conversations about romance and sex in this series, and in subsequent volumes, it goes in a direction I wasn’t expecting. It’s a little messy, but always interesting.

the cover of Fine: A Comic About Gender

Fine: A Comic About Gender by Rhea Ewing

There’s a good chance you haven’t read a comic like this before, because it’s basically a documentary in comic form. Rhea Ewing interviews a ton of different people about their relationship to gender, and along the way, they discuss their own journey to coming out as nonbinary.

All the Links Fit to Click

Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Romance of 2023

10 LGBTQ+ Comics That Will Make You Feel The Love

Sorry, Bro Is an Ideal Bisexual Romance Novel To Read This Month

That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog, the Lesbrary. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.

Happy reading!
Danika