Tag Archives: Contemporary

Housekeeping, News

Quick LGBTQ Reads News Roundup!

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There’s a lot happening today in the world of LGBTQ Reads, so a quick catchup for anyone getting overwhelmed by it all!

First, there’s some new stuff on the site: in addition to a brand-new Fave Five post, the SFF section has been updated to include YA as well, so that SFF for all ages can be found in one spot. There’s also a new page that is very much in progress, so that you can now find LGBTQIAP+ Manga, comics, and graphic novels as well. Thanks to everyone who’s been helping provide recommendations!

Second, two new gay Contemporary YA releases today, both dealing with mental health:

Jerkbait by Mia Siegert

Keywords: gay, hockey, twins, tw: suicide, online predators, GAY ATHLETE in case you didn’t catch that

Rec to: I mean, there’s almost no gay sports anything in YA, so.

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Amazon

Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley

Keywords: gay, agoraphobia, friendship, literal LOLs

Rec to: Fans of mental health YA and Everything, Everything and also just funny, feelsy YA in general

Aaaaand finally, a cover reveal for an upcoming YA that is an f/f Robin Hood. Yes, you read that correctly:

 Marian by Ella Lyons releases on November 3rd, and you can add it on Goodreads here!

Quick reminder that LGBTQ Reads is also on Tumblr, and if you need a rec or twelve, you can always Ask!

Fave Five

Fave Five: Mental Health LGBTQ YAs

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In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, check out these excellent LGBTQ YAs featuring main characters dealing with mental health issues:

Not Otherwise Specified by Hannah Moskowitz (B, Eating Disorder)

Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley (G, Agoraphobia)

History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera (G, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder)

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin (GF, Anxiety)

Scars by Cheryl Rainfield (L, Depression w/suicidal ideation and self-harm)

Uncategorized

Under the Gaydar: Heartbreaker Edition

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“Under the Gaydar” features books you might not realize have queer content but do! And definitely belong on your radar.

This week we’re looking at some f/f YA heartbreakers – books that will totally kill your soul, but are so good, you need to read each and every one anyway.

Far From You by Tess Sharpe – Part murder mystery, part tragic love story, and a whole lotta excellence in Sharpe’s debut. Not only does main character Sophie possess one of the only (very well-done) examples of invisible disability in YA, but she was also the first character many current readers had ever seen self-ID as bisexual in a YA novel. (Also one of very few examples of an on-page sex scene in YA between girls. Basically, this book broke a lot of molds, and we’re very grateful for it!)

This is Where it Ends by Marieke Nijkamp – Plenty of people are aware of This is Where it Ends; after all, it is a New York Times bestseller, and it’s kiiiinda hard to ignore that cover. That tagline. That premise. That…everything. But not everyone knows that two of the four POVs present in the book belong to two halves of a lesbian couple, Sylv and Autumn, and they’re at the center of the hunt.

Paperweight by Meg Haston – When people argue about sexuality being a spoiler, this is the kind of story I imagine they mean, but at this point, if you haven’t picked this one up, then allow me to use this to steer you in its direction, because I also know it to be one of the best representations of an Eating Disorder in YA.

Beautiful by Amy Reed – Cassie is in a major downward spiral, shifting into a life of popularity and beauty in her new town that’s as alien to her as her new skin, her new friends, her new capacity for adventure. And in that journey, Cassie only truly gets close to one person, but Sarah is every bit as full of pain and not quite as thoroughly numbed.

Fave Five

Fave Five: LGBTQ YAs by Latinx Authors with Latinx MCs

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Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera (Contemp)

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera (Light Sci-Fi)

When the Moon was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore (Magical Realism)

Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Doyle (Contemp)

 Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (and presumably its future companion, There Will Be Other Summers) by Benjamin Alire Saenz  (Contemp)

Cover Reveal

Cover Reveal: Cinnamon and Cigarettes by Samantha Kate!

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So excited to have our very first cover reveal on LGBTQ Reads! Cinnamon and Cigarettes is Samantha Kate’s first novel, and it releases June 1st from Torquere Press. Here’s the story:

Sara Clarke, recent college grad, is sweet, demure, and cautious in all things, but especially romance—until she meets Moira Estrada, a bold amateur pilot and patron at the library where Sara works. Their intimacy blooms rapidly as they share everything from a sudden medical emergency to Christmas with the Estrada family. With her dashing new girlfriend by her side, Sara learns to overcome some of her greatest fears, whether they be acknowledging her own bisexuality, flying across the sky in a Cessna, or falling in love for the first time.

But Sara’s fear of confrontation is harder to conquer. When asked about her relationship, she finds herself lying to her family, pretending to date a man so she can avoid conflict with her straight-laced and image-conscious parents. But her attempts to please everyone cannot last forever and could result in far worse than her parents’ disapproval: she might lose the respect of her new friends at the library, or become estranged from her sister—or, worst of all, Sara might lose the only person she’s ever truly loved.

Aaaand here’s the lovely cover!

Preorder it! Or just add it to your Goodreads TBR here.

Samantha Kate works as a paralibrarian (that’s library support staff) for her day job. In her free time, she tries to pursue more creative projects than is humanly possible. Her short story “Bottom of the River” was published in Torquere’s Twisted Fables anthology in February 2016. Cinnamon and Cigarettes is her first novel.

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Under the Gaydar: Bad Girls Edition

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“Under the Gaydar” features books you might not realize have queer content but should definitely have on your radar. This edition is all about some great “bad girls” in YA who, in addition to loving lying, petty crime, bullying, and more, also quite love the ladies. (Or at least one lady!)

Winning by Lara Zeises Deloza – Mean Girls meets Election, with multiple POVs, including Sam, best friend to the Regina George-esque lead, who’s easily manipulated into helping her BFF get on top… or is she?  (my convoluted little review here)

Trust Me, I’m Trouble by Mary Elizabeth Summer – The second in a series about a teen girl con artist sees her going from a male love interest in book 1 to a female love interest in book 2, and it does so with zero sexuality angst while also not ignoring that sexual angst about your first time having feelings for someone of another gender can be a Thing. This series is so voice-y and fabulous and these girls are hands-down one of my favorite YA pairings ever. I ship it so hard, and so will you.

Underneath Everything by Marcy Beller Paul – Uggghhhh homoerotic toxic friendship novels are my crack, and Mattie and Jolene in this one are basically, like, “Match, meet gasoline. I think you guys are gonna hit it off super well.” Don’t go in thinking this is a Romance – it isn’t – but when I say “Homoerotic toxic friendship novel” I mean every single one of those words to the max.

Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten – My thoughts on this one are similar to Underneath Everything, but whereas UE is sort of dreamily lyrical and introspective, SNFBG is rife with plot twistiness, and I still think about that ending and wish I were in a book club just so I could discuss it with other people.

Vanished by E.E. Cooper – Kalah isn’t really a bad girl, per se, but she’s gone ahead and fallen for one, who also happens to be one of her best friends…who also happens to be missing. There’s a whole web of lies and twists, and all that’s cool, but the best part of this book is Kalah herself, how she comes into her own sexuality, and finally seeing some intersectional diversity in “cool girl” YA.

Fave Five

Fave Five: Winter YA 2016

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Fave Five will generally be a little less…well, general, but since this is the first edition of it for the site, I’m gonna use it to quickly catch up on what are in my opinion the most noteworthy LGBTQIAP+ YA titles of the year so far!

Seven Ways We Lie by Riley Redgate (P, Contemp)

The Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie (L, Sci-Fi)

This Song is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin (A, Contemp)

The Great American Whatever by Tim Federle (G, Contemp)

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin (GF, Contemp)

We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson (G, Spec Fic)

(Yeah, I slipped in a sixth. You gonna fight me? I didn’t think so.)