Tag Archives: JC Lillis

Fave Five: F/F YA to Read if You Loved Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown

Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan

A&B by JC Lillis

Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

The Summer of Jordi Perez (and the Best Burger in LA) by Amy Spalding

Bonus: Seemed a little obvious to include in the five, but: Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

Double Bonus: This is literally just more recommendations; so sue me: Dating Sarah Cooper by Siera Maley, Under the Lights by Dahlia Adler, Style by Chelsea M. Cameron, and Our Own Private Universe by Robin Talley.

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Fave Five: LGBTQ Road Trip YAs

Kiss the Morning Star by Elissa Janine Hoole

Jess, Chunk, and the Road Trip to Infinity by Kristin Elizabeth Clark

Looking For Group by Rory Harrison

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by JC Lillis

A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend by Emily Horner

Bonus: The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour, which features a non-narrating major bisexual character, and the upcoming (2018) And She Was by Jessica Verdi, which features a non-narrating major transgender character (though her POV is present via e-mail throughout)

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Fave Five: Same-Sex Romance with Christian MCs

Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown (f/f YA)

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by JC Lillis (m/m YA)

Her Name in the Sky by Kelly Quindlen (f/f YA)

Blueberry Boys by Vanessa North (m/m)

Covet Thy Neighbor by LA Witt (m/m)

Bonus: Coming up in September, Autoboyography by Christina Lauren is m/m YA romance with a Mormon LI

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Fave Five: Queer Romances for Music Lovers

A&B by JC Lillis (YA, f/f, B)

Grrrls on the Side by Carrie Pack (YA, f/f)

Stygian by Santino Hassell (m/m)

One Kiss with a Rock Star by Amber Lin and Shari Slade (m/f, B)

True Brit by Con Riley (m/m)

Bonus: For shorter reads, check out novellas Full Exposure by Amy Jo Cousins (m/m), Fearless by Shira Glassman (f/f), and Lioness in Blue by Shira Glassman (m/f, B)

Double Bonus: Not a Romance, but Another Word For Happy by Agay Llanera has a gay main character who’s a piano prodigy

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Fave Five: YAs in Which the Bi MC is Already Out

(For the purposes of this list, these are books set in worlds where Coming Out is a Thing.)

Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

How to Make a Wish by Ashley Herring Blake

A&B by J.C. Lillis

Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee

Keeping Her Secret by Sarah Nicolas

Bonus: Coming in fall 2017, Top Ten by Katie Cotugno and They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

Bonus #2: Over You by Amy Reed‘s main character is out, but not in her new setting. Ditto the main character in Christina Lauren’s upcoming Autoboyography.

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Fave Five: Contemporary YAs in Which the Gay MC is Already Out

History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera

You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour

The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by JC Lillis

Fans of the Impossible Life by Kate Scelsa

Bonus: Coming in June, Perfect Ten by L. Philips and

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Ten More F/F YAs Under Five Bucks

You can see the first installment of this post here! (All links are Amazon Affiliate links. Proceeds go back into the LGBTQReads site.)

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Ghost Girl in the Corner by Daniel Jose Older ($.99)

Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan ($1.99)

Just Juliet by Charlotte Reagan ($2.99)

Time it Right by Siera Maley ($2.99)

Our Demented Play Date by Kat Fletcher ($2.99)

She’s My Ride Home by Jackie Bushore ($3.99)

Secret Heart by Danielle Dreger ($3.99)

Taking the Lead by Michele L. Rivera ($3.99)

A&B by JC Lillis ($3.99)

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily L. Danforth ($4.99)

Fave Five: LGBTQ Fandom Books

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by J.C. Lillis

Defying Convention by Cecil Wilde

Gena/Finn by Hannah Moskowitz and Kat Helgeson

Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

(Bonus: All the Feels by Danika Stone is a fandom YA with a bi LI)

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Cover Reveal: A&B by J.C. Lillis!

As you can probably guess, I am super excited to be revealing the cover of A&B, the newest queer YA by J.C. Lillis, author of one of my all-time faves, How to Repair a Mechanical Heart. I have been dying to see what Lillis can do with a queer-girl YA, and ta da! My prayers have been answered! Best part of this cover reveal, besides the absolutely adorable cover itself? THE BOOK COMES OUT IN FIVE DAYS. And you better believe there are buy links below! But first, the blurb and brand-spankin-new cover:

Eighteen-year-old Barrie Krumholtz is a super-tall optimist hell-bent on a single goal: securing a slot on Pop University, a reality show for singer-songwriters helmed by her #1 musical idol. When she humiliates herself on national TV and loses a spot in the finals to smug balladeer Ava Alvarez, the door to Barrie’s well-hidden dark side swings open. Never a quitter, she uses her bitter envy of Ava to shape a bold new artistic direction, and people love it. But when Ava ropes her into a secret collaboration, it sparks feelings neither girl expected—feelings that might threaten their creative identities and distract them from their professional goals. Can love and ambition live side by side? Is happiness an art-killer? They’ll figure it out with the help of a blue guitar named Fernando, a keyboard named Rosalinda, and a few new friends who feel like home.

(Rated R for Rivalry, Romance, and Really Neat Subplot featuring Brandon and Abel from How to Repair a Mechanical Heart.)

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J.C. Lillis is the author of contemporary YA novels HOW TO REPAIR A MECHANICAL HEART, WE WON’T FEEL A THING, and A&B, plus various other stories about fandom, friendship, love, and art. She lives in Baltimore with her patient family, a possibly haunted dollhouse, and a cat who intends to eat her someday.

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart: amzn.to/1rM486A
We Won’t Feel a Thing: http://amzn.to/1mndD6m
A&B: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32296251-a-b?from_search=true

website: jclillis.com
twitter: twitter.com/jclillis
instagram: instagram.com/jclillis
facebook: facebook.com/jclillisbooks
pinterest: pinterest.com/jclillis

How amazing is that?? Are you a fan of Lillis’s previous works, or are you thinking of trying her books for the first time? Do you love this cover as much as we do? Sound off in the comments!

Ten Gay YAs Under Seven Bucks

Obviously one of the toughest things with regard to LGBTQIAP+ YA is accessibility, which manifests in a whole bunch of different ways. It’s tough to afford, it’s tough to find, it’s tough sometimes to know what’s queer, it’s tough to buy or borrow the stuff that is queer when you aren’t in a safe environment… it’s a lot.

To help with the “What is queer?” part, especially books you can safely buy/borrow without anyone being the wiser, make sure you check out the Under the Gaydar feature.

To help find some stuff that’s more affordable than your average $10+ book, check out the below (all links go to Amazon Affiliates link):

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(Please note that half these titles link to paperbacks, not ebooks)

Superior by Jessica Lack ($1.99)

Suicide Notes by Michael Thomas Ford ($1.99)

The Gay Teen’s Guide to Defeating a Siren by Cody Wagner

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by J.C. Lillis ($3.99)

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli ($4.51)

Openly Straight by Bill Konigsburg ($5.99)

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan ($6.45)

Hero by Perry Moore ($6.48)

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera ($6.70)

I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson ($6.70)