NYT staff writer Elizabeth Harris‘s HOW TO SLEEP AT NIGHT, about two gay siblings whose lives are upended when one decides to run for office—as a Republican, to Rachel Kahan at William Morrow, in a pre-empt, for publication in 2025, by Brettne Bloom at The Book Group (world).
Rose Black‘s TIL DEATH DO US BARD, a queer light fantasy pitched for fans of LEGENDS & LATTES and Our Flag Means Death, about a grumpy ex-adventurer who must come out of retirement to save the kingdom and his sunshiny bard husband, with the “help” of a flirty necromancer grandmother and the ghost of his ex-wife, to Natasha Qureshi at Hodderscape, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2023, by Rebecca Podos at Rees Literary Agency (world English).
Kate Cochrane‘s debut WAKE UP, NAT & DARCY, a sapphic romance in which two former hockey teammates turned rivals with unresolved feelings for one another are paired to host a popular morning show’s Olympic coverage and must remain professional amid a nation of fans closely scrutinizing their incredible chemistry, to Errin Toma at Carina Adores, for publication in 2024, by Paige Terlip at Andrea Brown Literary Agency (world English).
Dana Hawkins‘s LOVE AND RAINBOW LATTES, an opposites-attract queer romance, to Emily Gowers at Storm Publishing, in a two-book deal, for publication in January 2024 (world).
Author of ZEUS GRANTS STUPID WISHES Cory O’Brien‘s TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE, a literary science fiction mystery set in a half-drowned future Los Angeles where knowledge is literally currency, following an aging combat veteran who is dragged into investigating a murder that brings his ex-boyfriend back into his life decades after they parted ways, in a humorous, heartfelt blend of noir and cyberpunk, to Anna Kaufman at Anchor, by Jessica Felleman at Jennifer Lyons Literary Agency (NA).
McSweeney’s contributor and one of Electric Literature’s emerging voices of Nigerian fiction Chukwuebuka Ibeh’s BLESSINGS, a coming-of-age story following a young gay man in Nigeria longing for love, acceptance, and queer joy, culminating in the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act of 2014, interrogating how politics can impact ordinary lives, to Cara Reilly at Doubleday, for publication in 2024, by Emma Leong at Janklow & Nesbit (US).
Republic of Consciousness finalist Nate Lippens’s RIPCORD, which follows the narrator of MY DEAD BOOK as he navigates sex, intimacy, class, and queer aging in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Hedi El Kholti at Semiotext(e), in a nice deal, in an exclusive submission, in a two-book deal, for publication in 2024, by Chris Fischbach at Fischbach Creative (NA).
Children’s and Middle Grade Books
Author of JUDE SAVES THE WORLD Ronnie Riley‘s ASKING FOR A FRIEND, in which a socially anxious, nonbinary 12-year-old lies to their mother about having friends at their new school—and has to make them fast when Mom wants to throw them a 13th birthday party, to Erin Haggett and Amanda Sun at Scholastic, with Emily Seife editing, in an exclusive submission, for publication in 2024, by Jennifer Azantian at Azantian Literary Agency (world).
Emmy-winning journalist and poet Dr. Seema Yasmin, MD’s picture book THE ABCS OF QUEER HISTORY, a journey through key individuals, movements, and moments across a range of identities and experiences, illustrated by Lucy Kirk, to Pamela Bobowicz at Workman Kids, in an exclusive submission, for publication in spring 2024, by Lilly Ghahremani at Full Circle Literary for the author (world).
Author-illustrator Jayme Brodie’s debut graphic novel STICK TOGETHER, which follows a 12-year-old who is excited to become fast friends with her new neighbor and join her school’s field hockey team, but her burgeoning friendship with (and crush on) one of the prettiest and coolest girls that she’s ever seen threatens to come between them, and she must reconcile their differences, and her feelings for the pretty one, before they tear the team and each other apart, to Rachel Diebel at Feiwel and Friends, in a very nice deal, at auction, for publication in spring 2026, by Jennifer Azantian at Azantian Literary Agency (world).
Young Adult Fiction
Author of BIANCA TORRE IS AFRAID OF EVERYTHING Justine Pucella Winans‘s ONE KILLER PROBLEM, a humorous mystery following a bisexual teen with IBS and an attitude, who convinces her murder-mystery obsessed, bookish best friends to investigate the suspicious death of their favorite teacher, to Lily Kessinger at Harper Teen, with Alice Jerman editing, for publication in summer 2024, by Jordan Hamessley at New Leaf Literary & Media (world English).
Jessica Lewis‘s NAV’S FOOLPROOF GUIDE TO FALLING IN LOVE, a queer rom-com in which an expert at flirting who is allergic to love agrees to give the painfully shy new girl lessons in romance to win over her best friend, only to fall for the new girl herself, to Olivia Valcarce at Inkyard Press, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2024, by Holly Root at Root Literary (world English).
Author of ZOMBABE and BABYLOVE I. S. Belle’s GIRLS NIGHT, a sapphic YA in which four unlikely friends at an all-girls school start an underground fight club, but what starts out as a way to let off steam quickly snowballs into something larger until the girls are forced to choose between the friendships they’ve made or the club that brought them together, to Joshua Dean Perry at Tiny Ghost Press, in a nice deal, for publication in summer 2024 (world English).
Non-Fiction
Fashion Fair commentator and founder of The Ground Crew Audrey Smaltz‘s EVERY INCH A LADY: A MEMOIR, highlighting the author’s life from a model, Wall Street mutual funds broker, department store dynamo, Ebony fashion coordinator and commentator, Vogue editor, and successful businesswoman; taking readers behind-the-scenes with her work with fashion royalty including Michael Kors, Donna Karan, and Ralph Lauren, and candidly discussing her “coming out” after marrying her wife, former WNBA and Olympic silver medalist Gail Marquis in 2011, to Patrik Henry Bass at Amistad, in a good deal, in a pre-empt, for publication in fall 2025, by Alina Mitchell at MacGregor & Luedeke (world).
Long-term survivor of AIDS, prominent advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and former Metropolitan Community Church pastor Rev. Dr. Steve Pieters‘s DANCING WITH JOY: COMING OUT, SURVIVING AIDS, AND EMBRACING GOD’S GRACE, the story of the man whose 1985 interview with Tammy Faye Baker changed how religious America perceived AIDS and the gay community, to Richard Brown at Rowman & Littlefield, in a nice deal, in an exclusive submission, for publication in March 2024, by George Greenfield at CreativeWell (NA).
Author of IN THE MARGINS Shannon T. L. Kearns‘s NO ONE TAUGHT ME HOW TO BE A MAN: A TRANSGENDER PERSPECTIVE ON NON-TOXIC MASCULINITY, in the author, a transgender man, examines how we got to this moment of a crisis of masculinity in modern culture and illustrates how transgender men provide unique insights on how readers can become better men, better feminists, and work more in solidarity with people of all genders, to Lil Copan at Broadleaf, for publication in spring 2025, by Trinity McFadden at The Bindery (world).
Justice, equity, and transformation post-doctoral fellow at the University of Calgary Lucas Wilson ed.’s SHAME-SEX ATTRACTION: SURVIVORS’ STORIES OF CONVERSION THERAPY, an anthology that collects the stories of those who have been harmed by anti-gay conversion therapy, offering hope in community and overcoming their shame, to Alex DiFrancesco at Jessica Kingsley, for publication in January 2025 (world).
Birdie finds comfort in nature and books, but more than anything she longs for connection, to be understood. At school, Birdie feels like an outsider. Quiet and shy, she prefers to read by herself, rather than jump rope or swing with the other kids. That all changes when Sunny, the new girl, comes along. Like Birdie, Sunny has a nature name. She also likes to read, and loves to rescue bugs. And when Sunny smiles at her, Birdie’s heart balloons like a parachute.
Today on the site, we’re revealing the cover forIt’s Pride, Baby!by Allen R. Wells and Illustrated by Dia Valle (Vah-yay), a love letter to the Black gay community that instills hope, assurance, and love within young readers releases May 7, 2024! Here’s the story:
Lift your soul to the sky. Like summer sunbeams― Don’t live behind clouds. You shine!
It’s Black Gay Pride Day in Washington, DC, and two gay parents are getting their child ready for a day at the National Mall. From cheerful neighbors to colorful outfits to fireworks, the vast LGBTQIA+ community is represented here in body, spirit, and pride flags galore! Allen R. Wells’s poetic text perfectly captures the expansiveness of a parent’s love, while Dia Valle’s joyful art bursts off the page. Here are words that children in every family—no matter its color, size, or shape—need to hear.
We are so proud of you!
And here’s the gorgeous, joyful cover, illustrated by Dia Valle and designed by Mariam Quraishi!
Allen R. Wells (he/him) is an author and engineer. He writes picture books to young adult novels, writing a diverse range of stories that reflect the multifaceted black and queer experiences that exist in the world. Born in the late-late 80s in Jackson, MS, and reared in the 90s and early 00s, Allen is definitely a product of Nickelodeon, 90s R&B, and hopeful endings. He’s not on social media that often…LOL, but you can follow him on Twiiter+IG @allenwriteswell allenwriteswell.com
(c) Dia Valle
Dia Valle (he/they) is an illustrator and teacher born in Virginia and currently based in Brooklyn, NY. He loves to draw cute outfits, tender moments, and colorful settings. They spend all their free time meticulously decorating their tiny apartment. Diavalle.com
Today is Pan Visibility Day, and as usual, we’re celebrating with a bunch of books that have pansexual leads! Please note that this post only includes books that weren’t featured in full in previous posts; you can find more pansexual books in posts from past years!
Santi has only had his heart broken one time, and it was all his fault. When he accidentally leaked his internet best friend Memo’s song, and it became an overnight hit, Memo disappeared—leaving their song’s cult fame, and Santi, behind.
Three years later, Santi arrives in Los Angeles with a mission: get over the ghost of Memo. Thankfully, his new school and its wildly-talented Sunshower marching band welcome him with open arms. All except for his section leader, the prickly, proud, musical prodigy Suwa. But when Santi realizes Suwa is trans, then Suwa realizes Santi takes his identity in stride, both boys begin to let their guards down. Santi learns Suwa’s surliness masks a painful, still raw history of his own, and as they open up to each other, their friendship quickly takes on the red-hot blush of a mutual crush.
Just as Santi is feeling settled in this new life, with a growing found family and a head-over-heels relationship with Suwa, he begins to put together the pieces of an impossible truth—that he knows both more and less of Suwa’s story than he’s been told. Their fragile fresh start threatens to rip apart at the seams again when Suwa is offered the chance to step into the spotlight he’s owed but has always denied himself. Now, Santi and Suwa must finally reckon with their dreams, their pasts—and their futures, together or apart.
Ever since Daniel moved to L.A. from Brazil to join the band Mischief & Mayhem, he’s become the tabloids’ bad boy. Paparazzi follow him and girls swoon over him . . . except for Sasha, who hates bad boys. When a chance encounter brings them together, Sasha sees an opportunity to get close to Daniel and write a story that will make a name for herself at the celebrity gossip magazine where she interns. But Daniel is surprisingly sweet and extremely cute—could she be falling for him?
The truth is: Daniel is hiding something. When Sasha discovers his secret, will she follow her heart or deliver the hottest story of the summer?
At nearly thirty-one years old, Pittsburgh Griffins captain Elias Karlsson’s hockey years are numbered. Everything is changing around him, including his eleven-year friendship with Nikolai Sidorov. Elias would give anything for Nisha to be a permanent part of his life, but their once bedrock-strong bond has broken into a million pieces, and Elias doesn’t know why. More than anything, Elias wants his friend back, but if that isn’t an option, maybe it’s time for him to look outside of hockey for someone to be there with him when hockey isn’t an option anymore.
Nisha’s world is splintering apart. He’s been in love with his two best friends for years, but now one of them has someone. The other, Elias, is searching for everything Nisha wishes he could give him… but he’s looking for it in anyone but Nisha. The farther his friends slip away, the deeper the loneliness sinks in and the bleaker his empty future looks. What can he do but numb the pain in the only ways he knows how?
On the eve of the season opener, Nisha’s unexplained absence threatens the cohesion of the team and puts him and Elias on a collision course of strong wills, broken hearts, and shattered trust. In the end, they may lose the very thing that matters most to them both: each other.
When Luna O’Shea is unceremoniously fired from her frustrating office job, she tries to count her blessings: she’s a proud trans woman who has plenty of friends, a wonderful roommate, and a good life in New York City. But blessings don’t pay the bills.
Enter Jean-Pierre, a laissez-faire trans man and the heir to a huge culinary empire—which he’ll only inherit if he can jump through all the hoops his celebrity chef grandfather has placed in his path. First hoop: he needs a girlfriend, a role that Luna is happy to play…for the right price. She’s got rent to pay, after all! Second hoop: they both need to learn how to cook a series of elaborate, world-renowned family recipes to prove that Jean-Pierre is a worthy heir. Admittedly, Luna doesn’t even know how to crack an egg, but she’s not going to let that—or any pesky feelings for Jean-Pierre—stop her.
When a surprise inheritance and whirlwind romance offer Mae a chance to escape her repressive aunt, she’s all too eager to elope and start life anew in her childhood home. But when she and her new husband arrive, the towering Victorian sits in disrepair, and Mae learns that her father’s decade-old, unsolved murder is still a source of rumor and speculation in town.
Leading the charge to unravel the mystery surrounding her father’s death is Ollie, a vibrant genderqueer and an outsider in their hometown. Sure that solving the cold case will land them a coveted job in the police department, Ollie gains access to the Victorian by agreeing to do maintenance work on the property.
Inside, Mae is taunted by a feminine specter, soft voices from empty rooms, and distinct melodies of Lady Paola: the priceless, Stradivarius violin stolen the night of her father’s murder.
Forte, mezzo-forte, the measured, andante cadence.
Her hiss, her pull, her scream.
Mae fears the house is haunted by her father’s spirit, her husband believes she’s going the way of her mother–slipping into madness, but Ollie suspects something more sinister is at play. If Ollie and Mae can’t work together to uncover the Victorian’s secrets, Mae will join her mother in an institution or her father in the grave.
A year ago, beloved cheerleader Stella Blackthorn vanished without a trace. Devastated, her younger sister, Iris, launched her own investigation, but all she managed to do was scare off the police’s only lead and earn a stern warning: Once she turns eighteen, more meddling means prison-level consequences.
Then, a year later, the unthinkable happens. Iris’s ex-girlfriend, Heather, goes missing, too—just after dropping the polarizing last episode of her true crime podcast all about Iris’s sister. This time, nothing will stop Iris and her amateur sleuthing agency from solving these disappearances.
But with a suspicious detective watching her every move, an enemy-turned-friend-turned-maybe-more to contend with, and only thirty days until she turns eighteen, it’s a race against the clock for Iris to solve the most dangerous case of her life.
Hannah Rosenstein should be happy: after a lonely childhood of traipsing all over the world, she finally has a home as the co-owner of destination inn Carrigan’s All Year. But her thoughts keep coming back to Levi “Blue” Matthews: her first love, worst heartbreak, and now, thanks to her great-aunt’s meddling will, absentee business partner.
When Levi left Carrigan’s, he had good intentions. As the queer son of the inn’s cook and groundskeeper, he never quite fit in their small town and desperately wanted to prove himself. Now that he’s a celebrity chef, he’s ready to come home and make amends. Only his return goes nothing like he planned: his family’s angry with him, his best friend is dating his nemesis, and Hannah just wants him to leave. Again.
Levi sees his chance when a VIP bride agrees to book Carrigan’s—if he’s the chef. He’ll happily cook for the wedding, and in exchange, Hannah will give him five dates to win her back. Only Hannah doesn’t trust this new Levi, and Levi’s coming to realize Hannah’s grown too. But if they find the courage to learn from the past . . . they just might discover the love of your life is worth waiting for.
Eleven-year-old Matteo has never felt like one of the other boys. He’s sure that will change when he joins the Blue Whales, the baseball team his dad once played for. This is his chance to grow into a son his father can be proud of.
And grow Matteo does, but not the way he expected. Instead, he starts sprouting leaves and finding bark all over his skin. Alarmed, Matteo starts digging for the truth about what’s happening to him—and finds that all clues lead back to the oak tree at the center of town, which Creeksiders have always believed is a little bit magic. As his parents start noticing something is wrong, the truth gets harder to hide—and Matteo makes some surprising discoveries about himself, his hometown, and his entire family tree.
That’s how Sadie feels, on a perfect summer day, wrapped in her girlfriend’s arms. School is out, and even though she’s been struggling to manage her chronic anxiety, Sadie is hopeful better times are ahead. Or at least, she thought she was safe. When her girlfriend reveals some unexpected news and the two witness a violent incident of police brutality unfold before them, Sadie’s whole world is upended in an instant.
I’m not safe anywhere.
That’s how Sadie feels every day after—vulnerable, uprooted. She retreats inside as the weeks slip by and relies on her phone to stay connected to the outside world. When Sadie’s therapist gives her a diagnosis for her debilitating panic—agoraphobia—she starts on a path of acceptance and healing. Meanwhile, Sadie’s best friend, Evan, updates her on the protests taking place in their city. Sadie wants to be a part of it, to use her voice and affect change. But how do you show up for your community when you can’t even leave your house?
I can build a safe place inside myself.
That’s what Sadie learns over the course of one life-changing summer, with some help from her family, her best friend, an online platform for activists, and a magnetic crush she develops for the new boy next door.
On the worst day of her life, Madison is dumped by her girlfriend, then fired as said (ex)girlfriend’s campaign manager… plus she accidentally rear-ends the student government advisor—the one person whose good word might help her win a spot at a prestigious youth politics summer camp.
But Madison is nothing if not a girl with a plan, and she isn’t going to let a little thing like heartbreak (or a slightly dented bumper) get in her way. Soon, she has a new junior class president candidate to back—although the two of them might be getting a little too close on the campaign trail. Between navigating her growing crush and corralling a less than enthusiastic election team, Madison has had it with unexpected changes to her carefully laid plans. But when she and a group of queer classmates discover a pattern of harassment within the student government, Madison’s forced to shift gears once again.
In this queer graphic novel that’s equal parts romance, softball, and magical girl drama, Mickey Monsoon and Astra Maxima are best friends . . . and maybe more. That is, until Astra unceremoniously dumps Mickey to become a softball wunderkind at a private girl’s school in Switzerland. Years later, Mickey is the hotshot pitcher for the Belle City Broads, and their team is poised to sweep the league this season. But Micky is thrown off their game when Astra shows up to catch for the Gaiety Gals, the Broads’ fiercest rival. Astra is flirty, arrogant, and reckless on the field—everything the rule-abiding Mickey hates.
Astra thinks Mickey’s cute and wants to fool around, even despite their rocky history and the trail of jilted softballers that Astra leaves in her wake. Too bad the only thing Mickey wants is vengeance for their broken heart and wounded pride! But even they have to admit—Astra is a certified babe. And that’s not all: Astra isn’t just a softball superstar, she’s a full-fledged magical girl.
The only way for Mickey to defeat Astra is to betray the Broads and join the Danger Dames, a secret elite team, and start dating Astra’s ex! OK, that last bit wasn’t part of the plan . . . Mickey’s rapidly getting in too deep, but is she just in trouble or is she actually in love?
Femme, gay teen podcaster Riley Weaver has made it to junior year, which means he can finally apply for membership into the Gaybutante Society, the LGBTQ+ organization that has launched dozens of queer teens’ careers in pop culture, arts, and activism. The process to get into the Society is a marathon of charity events, parties, and general gay chaos, culminating in the annual Gaybutante Ball. The one requirement for the ball? A date.
Then Riley overhears a cis gay classmate, Skylar, say that gay guys just aren’t interested in femme guys or else they wouldn’t be gay. Riley confronts Skylar and makes a bet to prove him wrong: Riley must find a masc date by the time of the ball, or he’ll drop out of the Society entirely. Riley decides to document the trials and tribulations of dating when you’re gay and femme in a brand new podcast. Can Riley find a fella to fall for in time? Or will this be one massive—and publicly broadcast—femme failure?
For the most hated crew on Requiem, the only way out is up.
It’s been four months since runaway heiress Asa crash-landed on matriarchal outlaw colony Requiem, bringing a nasty AI and host of deadly secrets with her. Now, she runs with almost-girlfriend Riven’s smuggler crew, stealing kisses between gunfights and heists. But when a mysterious hacker sabotages their latest job, other gangs turn against them, blaming them for the destruction the rogue AI caused. Nowhere in the city is safe.
The only way to protect their crew is a series of trials for control of an underworld faction–and vying for a matriarch’s throne is a dream Riven can’t let go. But as the trials intensify, the saboteur hounds Asa and Riven’s every step, determined to kill Asa and right her father’s wrongs. When the saboteur reveals a horrific conspiracy threatening all of Requiem–one involving the crew member they thought they’d lost–the girls must decide whether to risk their own skins for a city that loathes them.
Ariana Ruiz wants to be noticed. But as an autistic girl who never talks, she goes largely ignored by her peers despite her bold fashion choices. So when cute, popular Luis starts to pay attention to her, Ari finally feels seen.
Luis’s attention soon turns to something more and they have sex at a party—while Ari didn’t say no, she definitely didn’t say yes. Before she has a chance to process what happened and decide if she even has the right to be mad at Luis, the rumor mill begins churning—thanks, she’s sure, to Luis’s ex-girlfriend, Shawni. Boys at school now see Ari as an easy target, someone who won’t say no.
Then Ari finds a mysterious note in her locker which eventually leads her to an unlikely group of students determined to expose Luis for the predator he is. To her surprise, she finds genuine friendship among the group, including her growing feelings for the very last girl she expected to fall for. But in order to take Luis down, she’ll have to come to terms with the truth of what he did to her that night—and risk everything to see justice done.
This summer, Elsie is finally going to confess her feelings to her longtime—and long-distance—crush. Ada’s fanfics are to die for, and she just gets Elsie like no one else. That is, until Joan, Elsie’s childhood best friend, literally walks back into her life and slots in like she had never moved away to Hong Kong and never ignored Elsie’s dozens of emails and letters.
Then Ada mentions her grandmother’s own long-lost pen pal (and maybe love?), a woman who once lived only a train ride away from Elsie’s Oxford home, and Elsie gets the idea for the perfect grand gesture. But as her plan to reunite the two older women ignites a summer of repairing broken bonds, Elsie starts to wonder if she, too, can recover the things she’s lost…
Anoor is the first blue-blooded ruler of the Wardens’ Empire. But when she is accused of a murder she didn’t commit, her reign is thrown into turmoil. She must solve the mystery and clear her name without the support of her beloved, Sylah.
Sylah braves new lands to find a solution for the hurricane that threatens to destroy her home. But in finding answers, she must make a decision, does she sacrifice her old life in order to raise up her sword once more?
Hassa’s web of secrets grows ever thicker as she finds herself on a trail of crimes in the city. Her searching uncovers the extent of the atrocities of the empire’s past and present. Now, she must guard both her heart and her land.
The three women find their answers, but they’re not the answers they wanted. The drumbeat of change thrums throughout the world.
And it sings a song of war.
Ready we will be, when the Ending Fire comes, When the Child of fire brings the Battle Drum, The Battle Drum, The Battle Drum. Ready we will be, for war will come.
The gym is Lizzie’s life—it’s her passion, her job, and the only place that’s ever felt like home. Unfortunately, her bosses consider her a glorified check-in girl at best, and the gym punching bag at worst.
When their son, Lizzie’s best friend James, begs her to be his plus one at his perfect sister Cara’s wedding, things go wrong immediately, culminating in Lizzie giving a drunken pep talk to a hot stranger in the women’s bathroom—except that stranger is actually the bride-to-be, and Lizzie has accidentally convinced her to ditch her groom.
Now, newly directionless Cara is on a quest to find herself, and Lizzie—desperate to make sure her bosses never find out her role in this disaster—gets strong-armed by James into “entertaining” her. Cara doesn’t have to know it’s a setup; it’ll just be a quick fling before she sobers up and goes back to her real life. After all, how could someone like Cara fall for someone like Lizzie, with no career and no future?
But the more Lizzie gets to know Cara, the more she likes her, and the more is on the line if any of her rapidly multiplying secrets get out. Because now it’s not just Lizzie’s job and entire future on the line, but also the girl of her dreams.
Eighteen-year-old Natalie has just arrived at her first year of university in Toronto, leaving her remote, forested hometown for the big, impersonal city. Everyone she encounters seems to know exactly who they are. She reads advice listicles and watches videos online and thinks about how to fit in, how to really become someone, whoever that might be.
And then she meets Nora, an older woman who takes an unexpected interest in her, and is drawn unstoppably into Nora’s orbit. She begins spending more and more of her time at Nora’s perfect, tidy home in her beautiful, quiet world. Natalie lies to her floormates about her absence, inventing a fake off-campus boyfriend, and carefully protects this sacred, adult relationship. This only deepens her obsession, even as she comes to suspect Nora is hiding something. As the secrets multiply and the intensity of the romance threatens to overwhelm her, Natalie realizes that the new, adult identity she had imagined for herself is far from the one she’s actually coming to know.
As it turns out, you can go home again. But sometimes, you really, really don’t want to . . .
Home, for Noah York, is Oakland, New Hampshire, the sleepy little town where Noah’s mother, Virginia, had a psychotic
breakdown and Noah got beaten to a pulp as a teenager. Then there were the good times—and Noah’s not sure which ones are
more painful to recall.
Now thirty-seven and eking out a living as an artist in Providence, Rhode Island, Noah looks much the same—and swears just as
colorfully—as he did in high school. Virginia has become a wildly successful poet who made him the subject of her most famous
poem, “The Lost Soul,” a label Noah will never live down. And J.D., the one who got away—because Noah stupidly drove him
away—is in a loving marriage with a successful, attractive man whom Noah despises wholeheartedly.
Is it any surprise that Noah wishes he could ignore his mother’s summons to come visit?
But Virginia has shattering news to deliver, and a request he can’t refuse. Soon, Noah will track down the sister and extended
family he never knew existed, try to keep his kleptomaniac cousin out of jail, feud with a belligerent neighbor, confront J.D.’s
jealous husband—and face J.D. himself, the ache from Noah’s past that never fades. . . . All the while, contending with his
brilliant, unpredictable mother.
At an otherwise forgettable party in Los Angeles, a young Korean American painter spots a woman who instantly controls the room: gorgeous and distant and utterly white, the center of everyone’s attention. Haunted into adulthood by her Korean father’s abandonment of his family, as well as the specter of her beguiling, abusive white mother, the painter finds herself caught in a perfect trap. She wants Hanne, or wants to be her, or to sully her, or destroy her, or consume her, or some confusion of all the above. Since she’s an artist, she will use art to get closer to Hanne, beginning a series of paintings with her new muse as model. As for Hanne, what does she want? Her whiteness seems sometimes as cruel as a new sheet of paper: is there any there there?
When the paintings of Hanne become a hit, resulting in the artist’s first sold-out show, she resolves to bring her new muse with her to Berlin, to continue their work, and her seduction. But, just when the painter is on the verge of her long sought-after breakthrough, a petition started by a Black performance artist begins making the rounds in the art community, calling for the boycott of major museums and art galleries for their imperialist and racist practices.
Torn between her desire to support the petition, to be a success, and to “have” Hanne in her life, the painter begins acting more and more unstable and erratic, unwilling to cut loose any one of her warring ambitions, yet unable to accommodate all. Is it any wonder so many artists self-destruct so spectacularly? Is it perhaps just a bit exciting to think she could too?
El is in a rut. She’s been hiding in the photocopier room at the same dead-end job for longer than she cares to remember, she’s sharing a flat with a girl who leaves passive-aggressive smiley face notes on the fridge about milk consumption and, worst of all, she’s been in unrequited love with her best friend, effortlessly cool lesbian Ray, for years. So when a plan is hatched for El, Ray, and their two other closest friends–newly heartbroken Will and karaoke-and-Twilight-superfan Jamie–to ditch the big city and move out to a ramshackle house on the edge of an English country village, it feels like just the escape she needs.
Despite being the DIY challenge of a lifetime, the newly named Lavender House has all the makings of becoming the queer commune of the friends’ dreams. (Will has been given a pass as the gang’s Token Straight.) But as they start plotting their bright new future and making preparations for a grand housewarming party to thank the surprisingly but wonderfully welcoming community, El is forced to confront her feelings for Ray–the feelings that she’s been desperately trying to keep buried. Is it worth ruining a perfectly good friendship for a chance at love?
This is the third book in the Erin McCabe Legal Thriller series
Erin McCabe’s years as a criminal defense attorney have prepared her for almost anything, except being on the opposite side of the interrogation table. A new client—a successful financial adviser—was found stabbed to death on the beach near his palatial Jersey Shore home. The time of death is estimated to be during Erin’s one and only consultation with him, during which he revealed that he was secretly transgender. As the last person to see him alive, Erin’s now the prime suspect.
If the evidence were simply circumstantial, Erin is sure she and her law partner, Duane Swisher, could prevail. But there are entanglements that can’t be easily explained, and connections to powerful unscrupulous politicians who hold a lot of grudges. While the investigation unfolds, Erin and Duane are called on to represent a mother charged with abducting her child—a hot-button case that has both private and public implications for Erin.
As she battles one prosecutor who wants to see her charged with murder, and another determined to send her to jail for refusing to divulge her client’s location, Erin also faces a devastating family tragedy. With her career and her relationship on the line, and her life being targeted by a desperate nemesis, there has never been more at stake—or fewer places to turn . . .
From flamboyant relatives on Bewitched to closely-guarded secrets on All in the Family, from network-censor fights over Soap to behind-the-scenes activism on the set of The Golden Girls, from Ellen’s culture clash to Modern Family’s primetime power-couple, Hi Honey, I’m Homo! is the story not only of how subversive queer comedy transformed the American sitcom from its inception through today, but how our favorite sitcoms transformed, and continue to transform, America.
As a boy, William Lee Adams spent his days taking care of his quadriplegic brother, worrying about his undiagnosed bipolar Vietnamese mother, and steering clear of his openly racist and homophobic father. Too shy and anxious to even speak until he was six years old, it seemed unlikely William would ever leave small-town Georgia. He passed the time alone in his room, studying maps and reading encyclopedias, dreaming of distant places where he might one day feel free.
In time, William discovered that learning was both a refuge and a ticket out. So even as he struggled to understand and to get others to accept both his sexuality and his biracial identity, William focused on his schoolwork, his extracurriculars, and building community with the students and teachers who embraced him for who he truly was. Though his scholarship to Harvard parachuted him into a whole new world, he still carried a lifetime of secrets and unanswered questions that would haunt him no matter how far he traveled.
Years later, as a journalist in London, William discovered the Eurovision Song Contest—an annual competition known for its extravagant performers and cutthroat politics. Initially just a fan, he started blogging about the contest, ultimately becoming the most sought-after expert on the subject. From Albania, Finland, and Ukraine, to Israel, Sweden, and Russia, William was soon jetting across the Continent to meet divas, drag queens, and aspiring singers, who welcomed him to their beautiful, if dysfunctional, family of choice.
In this western-style twist on Cinderella and follow up to Mighty Red Riding Hood, Cinda finds a partner in nonbinary Ella at a high-stakes rodeo-style contest!
Cinda sure loves a good adventure…but her life’s been nothing but miserable since awful Aunt Hildy and her boys tromped in and took over. So when a mysterious Rider calls a roping-and-riding contest at the Rancho Del Reina, she sure as heck’s gotta enter. That cash prize’ll buy back her freedom! Can she giddyap and grab the gold—and Ella Del Reina’s attention—before sundown?
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