Crashing into Christmas by Mara Lovelle
Mangos and Mistletoe by Adriana Herrera
Christmas Inn Maine by Chelsea M. Cameron
Set the Record Straight by Hannah Bonam-Young
A Very Vampire Christmas by Moira Darling
Bonus: For a whole series by a variety of f/f Romance authors, check out Hers for the Holidays
Happy Native American Heritage and Indigenous History Month! We’re celebrating, as we do, with books by Indigenous authors, starring Indigenous characters. (Note: Despite the title of the post, these books include indigenous characters from all over.) While the usual affiliate links are included, you’re strongly encouraged to order from the Native-owned Birchbark Books where available! For many more recommendations, check out last year’s post.
This picture book autobiography tells the triumphant story of Sharice Davids, one of the first Native American women elected to Congress, and the first LGBTQ congressperson to represent Kansas.
When Sharice Davids was young, she never thought she’d be in Congress. And she never thought she’d be one of the first Native American women in Congress. During her campaign, she heard from a lot of doubters. They said she couldn’t win because of how she looked, who she loved, and where she came from. But here’s the thing: Everyone’s path looks different and everyone’s path has obstacles. And this is the remarkable story of Sharice Davids’ path to Congress.
Beautifully illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, an Ojibwe Woodland artist, this powerful autobiographical picture book teaches readers to use their big voice and that everyone deserves to be seen—and heard!
The back matter includes information about the Ho-Chunk written by former Ho-Chunk President Jon Greendeer, an artist note, and an inspiring letter to children from Sharice Davids.
Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | Birchbark Books
Author of WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME? ‘s QUENCH, a contemporary adventure pitched as weaving Yoruba mythology, generational trauma, and queer romance, following an Afro-Latina treasure hunter whose encounter with a sunken Middle Passage ship binds her to the vengeful spirits of her ancestors and she surfaces forever changed—possessed and empowered by a shared thirst for reckoning, to Abby West at Amistad, in a pre-empt, by Johanna Castillo at Writers House (world English).
His Hideous Heart: 13 of Edgar Allan Poe’s Most Unsettling Tales Reimagined ed. by Dahlia Adler, read by amanda lovelace, Caitlin Davies, Caleb Roehrig, Dahlia Adler, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Fran Wilde, Hillary Monahan, James Fouhey, Jeanette Illidge, JorJa Brown, Kendare Blake, Natalie Naudus, Robin Miles & Tessa Gratton (YA anthology)
Don’t Let the Forest Come In by CG Drews, read by Michael Crouch (YA Horror)
The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch, read by Ellis Evans (M/M Paranormal Romance)
You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White, read by Max Meyers (Horror)
I’ll Make a Spectacle of You by Beatrice Iker, read by Ozzie Jacobs (Gothic Horror)
Running With Lions by Julian Winters (Soccer)
Icebreaker by A.L. Graziadei (Hockey)
Most Valuable Player by A.M. Woody (Football)
The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons (Soccer)
Playing Aces by E.L. Massey (Hockey)
Today is Intersex Awareness Day, and we’re celebrating as we do with books that have intersex rep! All of these titles either have intersex MCs, or have intersex secondary characters but are also by intersex authors.
In the town of Howler’s Hollow, conjuring magic is strictly off-limits. Only nothing makes Delpha McGill’s skin crawl more than rules. So when she finds her family’s secret book of hexes, she’s itching to use it to banish her mama’s money troubles. She just has to keep it quieter than a church mouse — not exactly Delpha’s specialty.
Trouble is, Katybird Hearn is hankering to get her hands on the spell book, too. The daughter of a rival witching family, Katy has reasons of her own for wanting to learn forbidden magic, and she’s not going to let an age-old feud or Delpha’s contrary ways stop her. But their quarrel accidentally unleashes a hex so heinous it resurrects a graveyard full of angry Hearn and McGill ancestors bent on total destruction. If Delpha and Katy want to reverse the spell in time to save everyone in the Hollow from rampaging zombies, they’ll need to mend fences and work together.
Chateau Reverie by Natasha Siegel (France)
Murder at the Hotel Orient by Alessandra Ranelli (Austria)
Intrusive Intentions by Sebastian J. Plata (Poland)
Venus Vanishing by Rebecca Birrell (Germany)
Villa Coco by Andrew Sean Greer (Italy)
Today on the site I’m thrilled to welcome Emery Lee to reveal the cover of eir upcoming speculative trans YA, Maybe This is Moving On, releasing February 9, 2027 from Tiny Ghost Press! Here’s the story:
For seventeen-year-old Ness, walking with the dead is a sacred family gift.
After someone dies, Ness is able to travel twenty-four hours into the past, to help them meet their end without regrets.
But there are rules:
Never tell the dead that they’re dead.
Never reveal himself to himself.
And never ever alter history.
If Ness breaks the rules, he loses his ability. Simple.
Until his ex-boyfriend, Jaime, dies in a tragic car accident.
Sent back five months before the crash destined to take Jaime’s life, Ness’s only mission is to ensure Jaime doesn’t die carrying a heavy heart. After all, changing fate would break cosmic law.
But five months is a long time to spend with the boy who once held his heart, especially when it means reliving the bittersweet heights of first love and the sharp agony of their messy breakup. As secrets unfold and old feelings resurface, Ness finds that healing Jaime’s regrets before the clock runs out means diving headfirst into the worst of his own.
With his heart, his powers, and his obligations to the universe on the line, can he do what needs to be done to help Jaime move on?
And here’s the mesmerizing cover by Laya Rose!
Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N | Tiny Ghost Press
Emery Lee is an award-winning author and the founder of #Transbooks365, a community hashtag made to celebrate books by and about trans people. Coming from a university background of creative writing, e’s gone on to write entertainment news, edit literary magazines, and work as a trade book reviewer. Outside of novels, e’s written interactive fiction, short stories, and webcomics. Eir books have received starred reviews, been featured in ALA’s rainbow booklist, and been translated into multiple languages. In 2025, MEET CUTE DIARY was exhibited in the Museum of Transology, the UK’s most significant collection of objects representing trans, nonbinary, and intersex people’s lives. When away from writing, e can be found reading webcomics, listening to music, or snuggling cute dogs.
Derrick Chan is shooting for a once-in-a-lifetime high-school basketball scholarship with his childhood best friend, JJ, by his side. But Derrick’s life is about more than just free throws since embracing his queer identity and love for drag (even if he’s not ready to share either with the whole world quite yet)!
Right now, he’s just trying to take his dad’s advice: don’t sweat the small stuff. This weekend, however, Derrick’s two worlds are colliding in a big way. At a career-defining basketball tournament, where scouts from elite schools are watching his every move, Derrick secretly plans to meet his drag idol, the magnificent Juana Fanta, at the Comic Con held in the very same hotel.
As the stakes skyrocket, team tensions bubble to the surface, including Derrick’s own growing feelings for JJ. But when Juana Fanta disappears from the con, Derrick and JJ must team up to find her before she misses her show-stopping live performance.
Can Derrick find a community that celebrates slam dunks on the court and dazzling drag in the spotlight? Can he really save Juana Fanta’s future—and his own—in one weekend?
With All My Haunted Heart by Isabel Sterling
Balsam Inn series by Katia Rose
Dead & Breakfast Mysteries by Rosiee Thor and Kat Hillis
A Christmas Inn, Maine by Aaron Kyte
The Burnt Toast B&B by Heidi Belleau and Rachel Haimowitz
