My favorite kind of reading experience is a book that catches my attention and refuses to let it go, one that keeps me up late at night because I just have to know what’s going to happen next. These are 9 of the most captivating LGBTQ+ books I’ve read that I couldn’t put down!
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
Every time I read this book, I find myself staying up late to read just one more page! It’s the perfect coming-of-age story, centering around two teenage boys who are figuring out who they are individually and together. Thoughtful, sweet, and dramatic, this is one of the first books I recommend to friends.
(YA contemporary fiction)
Read my full review here.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
An absolutely engrossing story about an opinionated, passionate, aged Hollywood superstar telling her story while slowly revealing multiple mysteries – some of them queer! Give me more stories of feminist bisexual older women!
(historical/contemporary fiction)
Read my full review here.
Naamah by Sarah Blake
This one is a little niche, but this queer retelling of the story of Noah’s ark focused on his wife (here named Naamah) hit my exact intersection of interests. If you’ve got a religious past (or present, I suppose) and want to interrogate some God feelings with a queer-positive protagonist, I highly recommend!
(biblical historical fantasy)
Read my full review here.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
There is perhaps no better medium for gay stories than Greek myths, and this retelling of Achilles and Patroclus is perfection. I swooned, I cried, I left convinced that this was the correct version of the tale.
(mythology)
Read my full review here.
Like Crazy: Life With My Mother and Her Invisible Friends by Dan Mathews
Surprisingly uplifting for such a heavy subject, this memoir of a gay man bringing his aging mother to his home to be diagnosed with schizophrenia and then die peacefully is lovely, true, and often pretty hilarious. A perfect book is one that makes me both laugh out loud and cry, and I closed this book with such emotional catharsis.
(memoir)
Read my full review here.
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
The cutest of books, I didn’t want this one to end even though I couldn’t slow myself down while reading it! When a magical social worker investigates an orphanage for adorably dangerous magical children, he falls in love with the man who runs the place, and my heart exploded at least twenty times.
(fantasy)
Read my full review here.
Tomorrow Will Be Different: Love, Loss, and the Fight for Trans Equality by Sarah McBride
I would never have guessed that a memoir about US state politics would have had me desperately turning the pages to see what would happen next, but McBride tells her story of coming out, falling in love, fighting for trans rights, and losing her love with perfection.
(memoir)
Read my full review here.
The Deep & Dark Blue by Niki Smith
A complex story told beautifully, this graphic novel tells the story of royal twins who escape a coup to hide in a magical nunnery. One wants to leave and be a hero, and the other feels surprisingly at home as a girl. It makes world building and trans-positive stories look easy!
(middle grade fantasy graphic novel)
Read my full review here.
Roadqueen: Eternal Roadtrip to Love by Mira Ong Chua
I called this “the best thing I’ve ever read” when I reviewed it, and I stand by this hyperbole. It’s a ridiculous story about fake dating and manipulating someone into being a “decent lesbian,” and I tore through every page while shrieking with laughter.
(graphic novel)
Read my full review here.
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