Keep in mind that these are simply my opinions, and as a result of that these books tend to skew towards queer women and nonbinary people, given that these are the people I identify with most strongly. That being said, there is something for everyone on this list, and I tried my best to make it as comprehensive as possible! The goal is to update this each year during Pride month with more books and more opinions to start turning this into a true Queer Canon.
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If we’re missing your favorite, recommend it in the comments!
20. Last Night at the Telegraph Club
Author: Malinda Lo
Release Date: January 19th, 2021
Genre: YA Historical Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
Starting the list off strong with a young adult historical fiction novel about a young girl in Chinatown who finds herself at a late-night lesbian club. It’s so beautiful how being around other queer people can help you to find yourself, and that was captured really well in this story.
19. Boyfriend Material
Author: Alexis Hall
Release Date: July 7th, 2020
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
Boyfriend Material is so cute! This is an enemies to lovers story about how, sometimes, opposites can attract. I appreciated the fact that this book wasn’t strictly romance; it developed the entire friend group and gave them all attention. Queer people so often have their own found family, and it was nice to see that given proper weight in this series.
18. Both Can Be True
Author: Jules Machias
Release Date: June 8th, 2021
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph
This is just one of only two middle grade books on the list, but I adored this one. Both Can Be True is a story of two kids who attempt to care for a dog in secret. I love the way they were both so affirming of each other and that despite these protagonist’s young age, it wasn’t just a coming out story.
17. She Who Became the Sun
Author: Shelley Parker-Chan
Release Date: July 20th, 2021
Genre: Historical Fiction / Adventure
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
She Who Became the Sun is the first book in The Radiant Emperor series. While the second book is already out, I haven’t read it yet! This first book was so incredible, and while it wasn’t explicitly queer, Parker-Chan is gender queer and their protagonist gender-swaps in order to survive. Plus (no spoilers) I’m expecting the second book to be even gayer.
16. Mistakes Were Made
Author: Meryl Wilsner
Release Date: October 11th, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
Milf! Book! Milf! Book! I am a sucker for age gap romances, and I was so excited to finally read one where there wasn’t a disgusting and uncomfortable power dynamic baked in. This book was the perfect amount of flirty fun mixed with real, down to earth conversations. I cannot wait to read whatever Wilsner writes next!
15. Rainbow Rainbow
Author: Lydia Conklin
Release Date: May 1st, 2022
Genre: Short Story Anthology
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
I am genuinely obsessed with this queer short story collection. Every single story was painfully relatable and made me either laugh or cry or both. Conklin is such an incredible storyteller and I found myself ceaselessly impressed with the depth and breadth of characters they brought to life in a single collection.
14. Late to the Party
Author: Kelly Quindlen
Release Date: April 21st, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
This was the perfect, light, YA coming of age story. It’s the type of book that straight teens and pre-teens get all the time but doesn’t really seem to exist in the queer world. Reading this book made me delightfully happy the entire time.
13. Delilah Green Doesn’t Care
Author: Ashley Herring Blake
Release Date: February 22nd, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
It’s so nice to read a book about an adult character finding love! As someone who also hates my hometown (albeit for much less traumatic reasons) I appreciated the built in redemption arc for both Delilah and her home of Bright Falls.
12. You Exist Too Much
Author: Zaina Arafat
Release Date: June 9th, 2020
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
The bisexual representation in this book is everything I could want. It’s messy as hell, but so are real people! Arafat told a story that I haven’t seen told a lot, especially from a female LGBTQ+ perspective, and so I enjoyed the narrative that was weaved together.
11. All This Could Be Different
Author: Sarah Thankham Mathews
Release Date: August 2nd, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph
This book about a somewhat problematic early-20s woman trying to figure out her life, her friends, and her job during the recession was incredibly well done. Every single character was fleshed out and felt real, and I absolutely adored every page.
10. Lakelore
Author: Anna-Marie McLemore
Release Date: March 8th, 2022
Genre: MG Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
Lakelore is the perfect choice for lovers of adorable YA coming of age novels. These two teens fall in love with each other at the same time they are learning to love themselves. Lore and Bastian are both confident in their genderqueer-ness, and work on accepting their dyslexia and ADHD respectively over the course of the novel.
9. Husband Material
Author: Alexis Hall
Release Date: August 2nd, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
I wasn’t sure if Hall had left himself with anywhere to go after Boyfriend Material. Our main couple seemed to be in a good place. I was delighted to find out that there was still so much growth in store for Oliver and Luc. That, combined with how dynamic the side characters were, made for a wonderful sequel.
8. Behind the Scenes
Author: Karelia Stetz-Waters
Release Date: January 31st, 2023
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
I love romances featuring two adults who find a second chance at love, work, and life. It’s so refreshing to read a book that doesn’t center high schoolers or younger, especially as I grow up and start to see myself more in 30-year-olds than 16-year-olds. This romance was fun, and I loved all of the side characters as well!
7. She Gets the Girl
Author: Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick
Release Date: April 5th, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
If you want a gay, dual perspective, enemies to friends to lovers story written by a real life couple, this is the book for you! Bonus points for the fact that Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick are hilariously cute on TikTok.
6. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Release Date: June 13th, 2017
Genre: Historical Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
While The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo isn’t written by a queer author (which did hurt its ratings in this list), it is a sapphic classic if only because of how fun it is to apply this scenario to a wide assortment of real life celebrities. I cannot wait for a certain celebrities’ 87-year-old tell-all memoir!
5. We Deserve Monuments
Author: Jas Hammonds
Release Date: November 29th, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
This high school story of inter-generational trauma and coming of age hit me right where it hurt. I was sobbing, laughing, and smiling idiotically at various points while reading this book.
4. You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty
Author: Akwaeke Emezi
Release Date: May 24th, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
Everything is beautiful. This book was a story of struggling with grief and moving on– Feyi repeats the words “I’m alive” often throughout the story– but it was also a black bisexual success story on two fronts.
3. Detransition, Baby
Author: Torrey Peters
Release Date: January 12, 2021
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph | Review
The conflict and emotional tension between each of these characters and with themselves is masterful. I can relate to each of them on such a strong level, and crave knowing what comes next for them.
2. Ophelia After All
Author: Racquel Marie
Release Date: February 8, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Goodreads | StoryGraph
This YA book has an ensemble cast of queer characters that feels entirely realistic for a high school friend group. I loved every minute of it, especially the way it allowed characters to find themselves and share that discovery with each other in their own time without the entire book devolving into a “coming out” novel.
1. Skye Falling
Author: Mia McKenzie
Release Date: June 22, 2021
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Goodreads | StoryGraph
I cannot get over how much I loved this book. Mia Mckenzie did an incredible job of creating a dynamic, real protagonist that I could root for, cheer for, and bemoan when she made mistakes. While this isn’t strictly a love story—the major focus is on the main character loving herself—the romance it did include was an enemies to lovers story that had me screaming into the pages.
