Category Archives: Cover Reveal

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: The Disaster Gay Detective Agency by Lev A.C. Rosen

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It’s no secret I’m a huge Lev A.C. Rosen fangirl, so today on the site I’m delighted to be revealing the cover of the first book of his brand-new mystery series, The Disaster Gay Detective Agency, releasing June 2, 2026 from Poisoned Pen Press! Here’s the story:

From award-winning, critically acclaimed crime writer Lev Rosen comes a punchy, hilarious mystery-thriller. Meet the disaster gays: They’re messy. They’re queer. And they’re about to solve a murder… Or die trying.

Brandon is a hopeless romantic. So when a handsome stranger named Jon checks in at the hotel he works at and invites Brandon to his room, Brandon ignores the advice of his crew―a group of loveable and messy queer twenty-somethings―and accepts. What follows is a tale as old as time: they hook up, Jon promises to text, Brandon falls in love, and Jon ghosts. Case closed―or is it?

When Jon checks out early, leaving behind a bag of belongings and his cellphone, Brandon takes the phone and sets out to find him, thinking that this must at last be his Cinderella story.

But he gets more than he bargained for when he witnesses a murder―and sees Jon fleeing the scene.

Determined (and not in over their heads whatsoever), Brandon, Ollie, Nicole, and Ian decide to solve the mystery of the murder and uncover Jon’s true identity…they just have to figure it out before a target falls on their own backs.

And here’s the absolutely delightful cover, illustrated by Eleanor Laleu and designed by Erin Fitzsimmons!

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon

Lev Rosen writes books for people of all ages, including the Evander Mills series, which began with the Macavity Award winning Lavender House (Anthony finalist, Lambda finalist, Best Book of the Year from Buzzfeed, Library Journal, Amazon, Bookpage, and others) and continues with The Bell in the Fog, (Publisher’s Weekly Editor’s Choice, Best Book of the year from Amazon, CrimeReads and Autostraddle), Rough Pages (Lambda, Joseph Hansen and Audie Award Finalist, Autostraddle Best of the Year) and Mirage City. His recent YA novels include You’ve Goth My Heart, Emmett (Best Book of the year from Kirkus and Amazon), Lion’s Legacy (Best Book of the year from Booklist and the New York Public Library) and Camp (A Kirkus Best Book of the Century, Best Book of the year from Forbes, Elle, and The Today Show and others).

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Being Aro ed. by Madeline Dyer and Rosiee Thor

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Today on the site I’m delighted to reveal the cover of Being Aro: A Collection of Aromantic Fiction About Love, Connection, and Empowerment ed. by Madeline Dyer and Rosiee Thor, a YA anthology releasing May 26, 2026 from Page Street YA! Here’s the gist:

Explore expansive aromantic love and connection in stories across genres

These twelve stories showcase aromantic people breaking generational curses, finding acceptance, and protecting the vulnerable while highlighting the infinite ways people find connection and love without romance.

A high school matchmaker learns a lesson about love. A rebellious spaceship pilot defies his culture’s compulsory coupling. A boy magically transforms banned romance novels into living dragons. A teen immune to romance, and the zombie virus, fights to survive the apocalypse. Being Aro is full of stories throughout real and imagined worlds that cross genres and disrupt the status quo.

Contributors include a mixture of established and emerging YA writers, such as Lammy Award-finalist Madeline Dyer, Lammy Award-nominated Rosiee Thor, USA Today bestselling Kemi Ashing-Giwa, and NYT bestselling authors Kalyn Josephson and Laura Pohl.

And here’s the aro-tastic cover, designed by Rosie Stewart and illustrated by Sam Prentice-Jones!

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: We Were Never Here by Sophia Hannan

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Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Sophia Hannan to reveal the cover of her debut, We Were Never Here, a lesbian YA Horror releasing July 28, 2026 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers! Here’s the story:

In July, Georgia Perry and Jules Park—secret girlfriends, covert art thieves, and cohosts of a popular YouTube ghost hunting show—step into a haunted house to steal a priceless painting. A few short hours later, there’s a knife in Jules’s chest and Georgia is waking up in a pool of blood with no memory of how she got there.

Now it’s October, and Georgia is underwater. She hasn’t been to class in weeks, she’s avoiding her old crew and only friends like the plague. But when the three remaining thieves get a call from the man who paid a hefty sum to keep them out of jail, demanding that they return to finish the job, Georgia has no choice but to return to her old life.

As the estranged friends scramble to steal the painting with no cover story and no leader, they quickly realize that something is very, very wrong, and it’s not just the suffocating memory of Jules or the prying eyes of their viewers. Between the strange shadows that begin to trail them and the nightmares plaguing Georgia’s sleep, only one thing is certain: Something followed them home from De Lys manor, and it will do anything to keep them from going back.

And here’s the gorgeously chilling cover, designed by Laura Eckes with art by Elizabeth Wakou!

A painting with a golden frame of a girl sitting in front of old teal wallpaper. Half of her face is blank and dead, with black hair and a black dress, and the other half is alive with dyed green hair, a white sweater, and a scared expression. She holds a bouquet of half-dead flowers.

Buy it: Bookshop | B&N | Amazon | Indigo | S&S

Jackie Hall Photography

Sophia Hannan is a Canadian author of YA fiction. When she’s not writing about ghosts and the girls they haunt, she can be found studying English literature and forcing her friends to watch horror movies with her. We Were Never Here is her debut novel.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Buried Feelings by Kit Rosewater

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Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome back Kit Rosewater to reveal the cover of her second YA novel, Buried Feelings, releasing July 7, 2026 from Delacorte Romance! Here’s the story:

Cam was the one who discovered the hunt…

He brought it to Ivy like an offering, took her hand as they combed through San Francisco, searching for treasure and conspiring against the heteronormative agenda. But that was back then. Now juniors, they’re both out and proud—Cam as a trans man and Ivy as gay—but their friendship isn’t as assured. Problem is, Ivy can’t reveal Cam’s past betrayal without airing closely guarded secrets of her own.

…But Ivy will be the one to finish it.

As Ivy comes across the missing link in the treasure hunt from their childhood, she’s certain she can put the clues together and finally come out on top in the cat-and-mouse game Cam’s been playing with her ever since their friendship ended.  Once Cam gets wind of Ivy’s renewed interest in the hunt, the ex-best friends go head-to-head in their search for gold. But as they get digging, they uncover more things buried between them than they bargained for.

And here’s the delightful cover designed by Carol Ly and illustrated by Sarah Maxwell!

Buy it (and take advantage of the preorder campaign!): Bookshop | Amazon | PRH

Kit Rosewater lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico with her partner and two small children who are bent on destroying the universe. She is the author of the YA sapphic romance All’s Fair in Love and Field Hockey, as well as Books 1-3 of The Derby Daredevils, a middle grade series illustrated by Sophie Escabasse. Kit has been a theater and English teacher, a bookseller, a children’s literature academic, and a certified ‘boots-on-the-ground’ treasure hunter. Her sophomore romance, Buried Feelings, is forthcoming from Delacorte Romance in July 2026.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Queerleaders by Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk

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Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk to reveal the cover of their second Sapphic YA rom-com, Queerleaders, releasing May 26, 2026 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers! Here’s the story:

Two cheerleaders find themselves inconveniently tumbling head over heels for each other in this satirical, sapphic teen rom-com that’s Bring It On meets She Drives Me Crazy.

Oak Haven High doesn’t have cheerleaders—it has queerleaders.

It’s a fun coincidence that every new varsity cheerleader since Davie Cathee took the squad by storm three years ago is—or soon comes out as—queer.

But when a rumor sparks that this season, newly minted captain Davie has been specifically recruiting queer members only, Davie is accused of “discrimination” against straight students. She’s given an ultimatum: recruit a straight athlete for the team or the funding for their competitive cheer season will take a major tumble.

Enter Kendall Hayes, the edgy, mysterious new girl. When Davie sees that Kendall has a boyfriend, she quickly convinces her to join the squad. Problem solved.

Until she finds out that Kendall’s actually bisexual…and newly single.

Now Kendall and Davie are faced with having to keep those details under wraps until nationals, which only gets more complicated when they start falling hard and fast for each other. Can Kendall go back in the closet long enough to save the squad? Or will Davie find the courage to love her new crush out loud, even if it might mean the end of the queerleaders?

And here’s the cheer-worthy cover, designed by Krista Vossen with art by Betsy Cola, along with a note from the authors!

We Said Brr It’s Cold in Here, There Must Be a RomCom in the Atmosphere

The best part about writing for teens is meeting the teens you write for – even better when they inspire a book all their own. This is how Queerleaders was born.

While giving a book talk at a high school in Louisville, one of the points of discussion was how lucky I feel to be queer, and as I heard from some of the students in the class about their sources of joy, some of them gleefully discussed their cheerleading squad, which was 95% queer and had become a safe haven. “One day we’ll be totally, fully gay,” one of the kids told me. “And we’ll write a cheer about it.”

At this point Ashley and I had already written a queer YA rom-com together – Call Your Boyfriend – and hadn’t decided what our next book together would be about. But something about the idea of an all-queer cheerleading squad had my antennae up, and when I mentioned it to Ashley we laughed about the inevitable fury of The Straights. Ashley said, “You just know there would be someone claiming the squad is discriminatory for being a straight-free environment.”

That was all it took. Queerleaders was plotted within the week. What if there was an all-queer cheerleading squad? What if the president of the Conservative Club tried out and didn’t make it? What if she was so butt-hurt that she filed a formal complaint? What if the cute captain of the squad had to hurriedly recruit an even cuter straight girl to be their Token Straight in order to prevent the squad being disbanded? And <drum roll> what if that Token Straight’s straightness was a big misunderstanding and she’s actually gay as hell? Cue dating in secret. Cue heterosexuality pageantry to keep the word from getting out. Cue accidentally falling in love.

We had a great time writing this book. It’s even more hilarious than Call Your Boyfriend and has all the things we love most about romance and young love. Fans of Bring It On, Imogen Obviously, and But I’m a Cheerleader will love Queerleaders – this book is everything that its amazing cover promises, a cover made possible by artist Betsy Cola and designer Krista Vossen. We’re so excited to be sharing it here on LGBTQ Reads.

Buy it: Bookshop | B&N | Amazon

Olivia A. Cole and Ashley Woodfolk have written over ten critically acclaimed novels each. In 2023 they joined forces, determined to write something “fun,” and CALL YOUR BOYFRIEND, a queer romcom about two unpopular girls who want revenge but find love instead, was the result. QUEERLEADERS is their second co-written novel and it promises more laughs and hi-jinks than the first. They live and write in different cities but they’re always sharing ideas, jokes, and tea, thanks mostly to voice notes.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane

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Today on the site, I’m delighted to reveal the cover for Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane, a queer, trans YA Romance with Sci-Fi elements and aroace rep releasing March 10, 2026 from Page Street YA! Here’s the story:

In this slow-burn queer trans romance, two college students team up to stop the time traveling episodes forcing them to relive their pasts

College freshman Silas Turner is a scientific anomaly. Thrown back in time uncontrollably, he’s forced into his pre-transition body for hours to days at a time, reliving random events in his past. Why? Every cell in his astrophysics major brain is straining to figure it out. But the “time trips” just keep on coming, disrupting Silas’s life, and he’s certain he’s a one-of-a-kind phenomenon—until brash, guitar-playing Jude Forrester barges into his life, exhibiting the same symptoms.

He claims a future version of Silas visited him, and that, according to future-Silas, they’re meant to help each other stop the time trips. If working together can really lead to finding a cure, Silas can handle Jude’s tortured-artist attitude; Jude can humor Silas’s nerdy obsession with the stars.

As they get closer to a solution, they grow closer to each other. But Jude is still grieving an old connection that broke his heart, and he can’t help but wonder if changing the past might save himself and Silas a lot of heartache. Amidst cataclysmic consequences, Silas and Jude must face the cosmic circumstances that brought them together if they hope to protect their timeline—and the future they seem destined to share.

And here’s the trippy cover by Emma Hardy!

A book cover for Time-Tripping Over You by Brennon Lane depicting the title on a white gridded background, surrounded by pen illustrations of outstretched hands, a time warp hole, formulas, hearts, stars, two characters lips about to touch, and a trans flag.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N

Brennon Lane is a Black, queer, trans author who can’t seem to stop creating characters whose stories beg to be told. Writing exclusively in the LGBTQ+ genre, he hopes to offer the younger queer community the diverse representation in media that he always sought. Time-Tripping Over You is his debut novel.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Undeniable by Jes Honard and Marie Parks

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Today on the site I’m delighted to welcome back Jes Honard and Marie Parks to reveal the cover of Undeniable, a paranormal thriller with an asexual MC and the second book in the Grigori Cycle, as well as the new cover of Unrelenting, which was originally revealed here! First, here’s the story behind Undeniable, which releases October 28th from Not a Pipe Press:

A lifeless body awaiting immortality.
Magic that erodes a sister’s identity.
Enemies bent on retribution.

Bridget has saved her sister, Dahlia, from imprisonment. But their reunion has come with enormous costs. Their friend was murdered in the rescue efforts, and Dahlia herself is no longer fully human.

Together, they seek to grant their friend a second chance at life. But the magic that will save him also paints a target on their backs.

As the sisters race to uncover the key to resurrection, Dahlia’s former captors pursue them—coveting the ancient powers and seeking justice for their own fallen companions.

At the same time, they must also contend with Dahlia’s immortal life, new abilities, and fracturing personality.

Undeniable is the second book in The Grigori Cycle. Multi-Hugo Award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal called Unrelenting “a tapestry of emotion that effortlessly weaves together the threads of grief and obsession.”

Here’s the ethereal cover, illustrated by Lauren Raye Snow, with a background symbol designed by Gigi Little!

A young woman looks directly at the viewer with her head tilted slightly down, with light eyes, straight blond hair, and pale skin. As her hair flows down, it becomes enmeshed with a green-gold smoky mist that rises from the bottom of the cover and surrounds her. In the center of the mist is a white glowing silhouette of a woman. The background is a blue background overlaid with an intricate, symmetrical, geometric symbol. The following text is on the cover: "Jes Honard & Marie Parks. Unrelenting, Book One of The Grigori Cycle."

Buy Undeniable: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N 

Continue reading Exclusive Cover Reveal: Undeniable by Jes Honard and Marie Parks →

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Thirty Love by Tom Vellner

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Today on the site, I’m delighted to help reveal the cover of Thirty Love by Tom Vellner, a gay tennis romance releasing March 10, 2026 from Alcove Press! Here’s the story:

Things heat up on and off the court for two tennis rivals in this steamy debut gay sports romcom perfect for fans of TJ Alexander and Casey McQuiston.

American tennis star Leo Chambers is determined to win the US Open by 30, the age when many players feel retirement looming. He’s just a year away from that dreaded birthday, but he can’t find his focus—considering he hasn’t told anyone he’s gay, he’s clashing with his strict coach (who also happens to be his dad), and he still can’t figure out how to beat his longtime nemesis on tour, Gabe Montoya, who, well, hits different. Gabe is playing better than ever, and Leo can’t seem to escape him—and maybe he doesn’t want to escape him.

Leo’s other obstacle is Sascha Volkov, a Russian legend who has such a powerful influence on the tennis world, he would destroy Leo’s career if he found out that he’s gay.

No distractions, Leo reminds himself. But when Gabe makes a shocking announcement, Leo is thrown off his game—in more ways than one. Ready? Play.

And here’s the steamy cover by Débora Islas!

Two tennis players leaning against a net on a court

A note from author Tom Vellner:

Débora brought my boys to life in the most beautiful, tender, vibrant way for the cover of Thirty Love. They’re exactly how I’ve been picturing them since I first started dreaming them up almost three years ago, especially how gone Leo (left) is over Gabe. That yearning gaze says it all. I’m over the moon to have a cover that so proudly shows two men in love — as we face an alarming surge of book bans and efforts seeking to erase LGBTQ stories. I can’t wait for this cover to sit on shelves in all its queerness. I hope it brings some joy and comfort when it’s needed most.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | PRH

(c) Gabriela Barrantes

Tom Vellner is a writer, editor, and mediocre tennis player. A former staff writer at BuzzFeed, he has also contributed to VICE, Thrillist, ACLU Magazine, and more. This is his debut novel. He lives in the Hudson Valley with his husband and two dogs.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Love Galaxy by Sierra Branham

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Today on the site, I’m delighted to reveal the cover of Love Galaxy by Sierra Branham, a Sapphic Sci-Fi Thriller releasing from DAW on May 5, 2026! Here’s the story:

A romantic science fiction thriller in which a young woman from a dead-end planet gets cast on a reality TV show to compete for the hand of the prince—or princess. But not everyone is there for the right reasons…

Smart, sexy, compulsively readable and fun, this is for fans of Everina Maxwell’s Winter’s Orbit and Arkady Martine’s A Memory Called Empire.

Temmi, a young trash collector stuck in a dead-end job on a garbage planet, finds herself with a golden ticket she never expected: an opportunity to compete in an intergalactic dating show starring the brother and sister heirs to the galactic empire. Twenty-four women will compete on a televised program to marry the prince and princess—and future emperors—and to win the dynasty’s favor for their home planet.

Temmi may have been hand-picked to date the quiet, bookish prince, who is immediately taken by her brash personality and their shared passion for the sciences. But she can’t seem to keep away from the princess—and even though it couldn’t be a worse idea, their chemistry is undeniable.

But when contestants start turning up dead, and conspiracies begin to swirl around anti-imperial motivations of several contestants, Temmi among them, so much more than feelings are at stake.

In fact, very few of the participants of Love Galaxy have come on the show to find love. Sexy, snarky, and revolutionary, this fast-paced thrill ride will hook lovers of reality TV, fans of thoughtful sci-fi, and anyone who lives for drama.

And here’s the out-of-this-world cover, illustrated by Artem Chebokha and designed by Jenna Stempel-Lobel!

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon

Sierra Branham is the author of the forthcoming science fiction novel LOVE GALAXY, a romantic and political thriller releasing with DAW Books in spring of 2026. Her short fiction can be found in venues like Small Wonders Magazine and Apex Magazine. When not spinning words into stories, she can be found hiking with her goats, juggling knives, or battling existential crises. Find her on Instagram at @authorsierrabranham or sign up for her newsletter on her website at http://www.sierrabranham.com.

Cover Reveal

Exclusive Cover Reveal: Just Ask Elsie by Ari Koontz

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Today on the site, I’m delighted to reveal the cover of the upcoming Just Ask Elsie by Ari Koontz, a contemporary Middle Grade novel releasing June 16, 2026, from Feiwel & Friends! Here’s the story:

Elsie Parker is having a totally normal fifth grade year.

Fractions and conjunctions―check.
Stressing about middle school―check.
Body-positive puberty class at church that also covers feelings and identities―check.

Okay, maybe that last one isn’t so normal. It’s a little weird (and awkward) to spend her Sundays talking periods, B.O., and pimples. But Elsie’s also learning a lot more than she’s heard in her public-school health class ― like the difference between sex and gender, and what consent is, and what it might mean that she can’t stop blushing around a certain cute girl at her school.

When her puberty lessons become the school’s latest gossip, Elsie’s totally humiliated… until she finds an anonymous note in her locker from a classmate who wants to know more, and realizes that other kids might have embarrassing questions of their own.

Starting an underground advice board wasn’t exactly in her plans, but Elsie won’t pass up a chance to turn her reputation around ― or to share words and labels that have not-so-accidentally been left off their curriculum. But when the principal tries to shut down the unauthorized puberty talk, Elsie has to decide what she’s willing to risk to tell the truth to kids who really need to hear it.

And here’s the adorable cover, designed by Julia Bianchi with art by Isabelle Duffy!

The illustrated cover of Just Ask Elsie by Ari Koontz features a young white girl with blonde hair, standing in the middle of a school hallway and holding a stack of purple magazines that read "Elsie's Puberty Zine." Around her are cut-out doodles of birds and bees, hearts and emojis, and the progress pride flag. In the background, other students stand in front of blue lockers, watching and whispering. The title words are in mismatched fonts, with "Elsie" handwritten in gold sharpie over a piece of purple duct tape. The overall art style is soft-textured but bright, with pastel colors and rounded lines.

Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | B&N

Ari Koontz is a queer nonbinary writer and educator with an MFA in creative writing from Northern Michigan University. They’re dedicated to telling full-hearted stories of bravery and whimsy in every possible genre, centering the beautiful complexities of queer identity and community, and supporting their local public library. A born-and-raised Midwestern UU, Ari lives close to where the water meets the woods and loves to take long walks when they should be writing. Just Ask Elsie is their debut novel.