Divine Traitors by Kamilah Cole
The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski
Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker
Never-Tilting World by Rin Chupeco
These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling
Tag Archives: SFF
Inside an Anthology: Common Bonds 2, ed. by Claudie Arseneault
Today on the site, I’m delighted to welcome contributors to the speculative aromantic anthology Common Bonds 2 to take us inside the collection and get a glimpse of their stories! Before we get to that, I’ll take this opportunity to mention that the editors are hard at work on Common Bonds 3 (the cover of which was recently revealed on the site), and you can still support their Kickstarter here!
Now, let’s get to the collection:
Common Bonds returns in this second volume of speculative short stories and poetry featuring aromantic characters.
Housed within this anthology are a scientist who makes a terrifying discovery at the bottom of the ocean, a baker who must fulfill a prophecy, a priest and a witch who must form a family to escape a war, and a woman whose survival might just unravel time itself.
Through nineteen stories and poems, Common Bonds 2 explores the bonds that impact our lives from beginning to end: platonic relationships. From friends with benefits to mentors to life partners, this collection explores platonic relationships strong enough to overcome barriers of species, alien invasions, and the power of the gods themselves.
Continue reading Inside an Anthology: Common Bonds 2, ed. by Claudie Arseneault
Fave Five: New Queer Cozy Fantasy, 2025 Edition
Yes, a 2026 edition will be coming imminently. Just catching up!
The Ink Witch by Steph Cherrywell (MG)
When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa V. Kelley
A Tale of Mirth & Magic by Kristen Vale
The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong
The Hearth Witch’s Guide to Magic & Murder by Kiri Callaghan
Fave Five: Speculative Fiction Starring Trans Men
The In-Between Bookstore by Edward Underhill
Future Feeling by Joss Lake
Rules for Ghosting by Shelly Jay Shore
Notes From a Regicide by Isaac Fellman
The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar
Inside an Anthology: As the Earth Dreams ed. by Terese Mason Pierre
Today on the site I’m delighted to offer a peek inside As the Earth Dreams ed. by Terese Mason Pierre, a speculative anthology out this week with House of Anansi Press! Here’s the gist:
A ground-breaking anthology of haunting speculative stories by contemporary Black Canadian writers that explore growth, futurity, and joy.
This bold and innovative anthology of speculative short fiction reveals and uplifts the spectacular imaginings, reveries, reflections, experiments, and hopes of Black writers in Canada. A woman attends her mother’s latest resurrection, only to encounter family she’s never met. A postdoc instructor navigates an almost-life in an Elsewhere realm of safety and comfort. After social collapse, a former sex worker leaves her precarious station, and her memories, behind. A woman isolating from a new virus starts hallucinating. In lyrical fragments, a young nanny accepts a job with a peculiar employer. A medium is tasked with summoning a spirit that hits too close to home. And two teenagers test a friendship over magic carpet flying practice. These breathtaking stories explore natural and urban landscapes, living and dead relationships, economic catastrophe, love, and desire—all while celebrating the persistent and ever-changing self, and envisioning beautiful Black futures.
And here’s a peek at four of the stories, thanks to its contributors!
Continue reading Inside an Anthology: As the Earth Dreams ed. by Terese Mason Pierre
Exclusive Cover Reveal: The Elysium Heist by Y. M. Resnik
Today on the site I’m delighted to reveal the cover of The Elysium Heist by Y.M. Resnik, a Sapphic Jewish Sci-Fi heist novel releasing from Solaris Nova on July 31, 2025! Here’s the story:
Psalome Shipmen is a Dazzler, a hostess working on the gaming floors of The Elysium, the galaxy’s most decadent space casino. But she is also a prisoner to the debt she inherited from her deadbeat father, with years of service ahead of her until she can earn her way out.
Kiyokimora GoldWeaver is a disgraced heiress looking to rescue her family business with an audacious scheme to rob the casino. To pull it off, she needs Psalome on board. When they team up, it looks like a simple job – until Psalome meets Ilaria, the jewel in Kiyo’s master plan, and sparks begin to fly.
With a recovering alcoholic card counter and Psalome’s little sister – who happens to be dating The Elysium’s artificial intelligence – as part of the crew, they might still beat the odds… or learn that the house always wins.
“Sapphic Ocean’s Eleven in space, full of love, revenge, and glittering lights! These bright, complex characters will have you on the edge of your seat, with a plan that can only go wrong and sky-high stakes.” — Eli Snow, author of The Divine Gardener’s Handbook.
And here’s the stunning cover by Amazing15!
Y. M. Resnik (she/her) is a writer living in the tri-state area. While she loves creating new worlds and re-imagining Jewish folklore, her main goal is simply to brighten your day with a story. Her work has appeared in Cast of Wonders, Worlds of Possibility, Diabolical Plots, and khōréō, among other places. When not writing, she can be found collecting tiaras and trying not to kill her houseplants. You can keep up with her work at ymresnik.com.
Inside an Anthology: Amplitudes ed. by Lee Mandelo
Today on the site I’m delighted to help offer a peek inside the upcoming trans SFF anthology Amplitudes: An Anthology of Trans and Queer Futurity, edited by Lee Mandelo and releasing May 27th from Erewhon Books! Here’s a little more about the collection:
Amplitudes: Stories of Queer and Trans Futurity, ed. by Lee Mandelo (May 27th)
From self-styled knights fighting in dystopian city streets to conservationists finding love in the Appalachian forests; from social media posts about domestic “bliss” in a lottery-based, state-housing skyscraper to herding feral cats off of one’s scientific equipment; from street drugs that create doppelgangers to dance-club cruising at the edge of the galaxy—Amplitudes: Stories of Queer and Trans Futurity interrogates the farthest borders of the sci-fi landscape to imagine how queer life will look centuries in the future—or ten years from now.
Filled with brutal honesty, raw emotions, sexual escapades, and delightful whimsy, Amplitudes speaks to the longstanding tradition of queer fiction as protest. This essential collection serves as an evolving map of our celebrations, anxieties, wishes, pitfalls, and—most of all—our rallying cry that we’re here, we’re queer—and the future is ours!
Featuring stories by Esther Alter • Bendi Barrett • Ta-wei Chi, trans. Ariel Chu • Colin Dean • Maya Deane • Dominique Dickey • Katharine Duckett • Meg Elison • Paul Evanby • Aysha U. Farah • Sarah Gailey • Ash Huang • Margaret Killjoy • Wen-yi Lee • Ewen Ma • Jamie McGhee • Sam J. Miller • Aiki Mira, trans. CD Covington • Sunny Moraine • Nat X. Ray • Neon Yang • Ramez Yoakeim
And here’s some insight into the contributions from their authors!
Continue reading Inside an Anthology: Amplitudes ed. by Lee Mandelo
Aro Week Spotlight: Common Bonds 2, ed. by Claudie Arseneault, Emery Lee, and RoAnna Sylver
Happy Aro Week! In celebration, we’re highlighting the followup to a popular aromantic anthology (whose cover reveal we happen to have done here)—yes, Common Bonds returns for another anthology!
Five years ago, Claudie Arseneault, Emery Lee, and RoAnna Sylver put together a collection of nineteen speculative short stories and poems featuring aromantic characters about platonic relationships. The first Common Bonds anthology came at a time when aromantic
identities were often only discussed as parts of projects on sexuality and rarely given the spotlight—a phenomenon that is unfortunately still well alive today—and was well-beloved by its community.
And so the spotlight returns in a brand new installment, Common Bonds 2.
At the heart of this collection are the bonds that impact our lives from beginning to end: platonic relationships. Whether with family, mentors, friends, colleagues, fuck buddies, or found family, these links pepper our lives and their importance is often overlooked. Common Bonds seeks to explore the powerful impact of these relationships on aromantic people through the lens of science fiction and fantasy.
In order to make this anthology a reality again (and pay the writers and artists involved), the team is raising funds through Kickstarter. Back it before the end of Aromantic Awareness Week (Feb 16-Feb 22) to get an early bird discount!
Inside an Anthology: Dudes Rock ed. by Jay Kang Romanus
Today on the site I’m delighted to share in giving readers a peek into Dudes Rock, a recently released adult anthology edited by Jay Kang Romanus “celebrating queer masculinity in speculative fiction.” Here’s the story:
What does masculinity mean to you?
Whether the answer is “toxic” or something more aspirational, speculative fiction can help you find the language to talk about it. The stories in this anthology visualize all the different ways masculinity might look in a world different than our own, for better or worse.
Imagine living in a universe where you’d feel safe telling your best friend you’ve always loved him, or where smoking hot demons exist to indulge all your worst impulses. From buff aliens to gender-affirming werewolf bites, Dudes Rock is about celebrating everything that queer masculinity can become beyond the confines of a single world, and we want you to rock with us.
Featuring stories by Chase Anderson, Johannes T. Evans, Oliver Fosten, Jonathan Freeman, Rick Hollon, Sam Inverts, S. C. Mills, Franklyn S. Newton, Jay Kang Romanus, Aubrey Shaw, Simo Srinivas, Candy Tan, and Scott Vaughn.
“Pick up this anthology for a satisfying and imaginative journey through universes of magic and super-science, with queer masculinity—in all its glorious complexity—as your guiding star.” — Trip Galey, author of A Market of Dreams and Destiny
And here’s a look at some of the individual contributions, thanks to their authors!
Continue reading Inside an Anthology: Dudes Rock ed. by Jay Kang Romanus
Exclusive Cover Reveal: Trailer Park Prince by Andre L. Bradley
Today on the site, I’m delighted to reveal the cover of Trailer Park Prince by Andre L. Bradley, a YA fantasy adventure releasing June 11, 2024 from Tiny Ghost Press! Here’s the story:
A decade ago, a rift tore open the Kaydan sky, pulling twin princes, Noan and Jormon, plus thousands of their people, from their home world and dumping them in the American South. In the years since, they’ve grown used to the drones policing their every move and to hiding the magic-like abilities that set them apart. But they’ll never get used to the crosses burning outside their trailer—an occasional reminder that Kaydans don’t belong.
Forced to attend a human high school in the name of integration, a band-aid on an increasingly fraught diplomatic situation, the brothers are hesitant but hopeful. Jormon is excited about pursuing the feelings he has for Dirk, a human-raised Kaydan, away from his traditional father’s watchful eye. And Noan, blamed for the Kaydans’ displacement, is looking for somewhere—anywhere—to fit in.
But the halls of Toombs County High are as inhospitable as the rest of the country, and Jormon and Noan quickly find they’re as unwanted in class as they are on this planet. When tragedy strikes and violence breaks out, Jormon and Noan find themselves at the forefront of a battle for the existence of their people. Their bonds tested, the twins face gut-wrenching choices, forcing them to confront who they really are, what they truly want, and what it takes to survive.
When asked to lead in the face of oppression, will they walk away or fight fire with fire?
And here’s the magical cover, illustrated by Scott Dewey!
Andre Bradley is the author of adult and young adult fantasy fiction. He began his writing journey in 2006 as a young soldier serving in Iraq, and he has been creating people, places, and things ever since. Andre is from Vidalia, Georgia—home of the sweet onion—and though he has lived all over the world, he currently resides in Rockville, Maryland with his husband, son, and two dire wolves (ahem, regular dogs), where he works as a U.S. Diplomat.
Learn more at andrelbradley.com or by following @drebrad Twitter (or whatever it’s called now), or @billysgoatgruff on Instagram.