Book Recs: College-aged LGBT Protags

As requested by Lena on Twitter, here are ten books with “characters in college/university or that general age range”. A few are straight up taking place at uni, a few are just with protags roughly that age.

I really wanted to include two more books, but I just featured them on my last rec list (Warm Hug LGBT Books), so I figured y’all need some more variety. Please know, though, Abroad by Liz Jacobs & Weak Heart by Ban Gilmartin also fit this theme perfectly.

By Any Means Necessary

Candice Montgomery
Goodreads
Rep: Black gay mc, Afro-Latino bi li

Why Should I Read It?

Torrey is just starting uni, and has to balance that with trying to save his uncle’s bee farm and a new relationship. It’s a very warm, tender novel that shows time & time how important other people are in your life, how important it is to take care of them (or their legacy). It feels almost adult, with all the struggles Torrey is facing, but at the same time his voice is so fresh and so young, it’s obvious he’s still a teenager.

Destiny, NY, Volume One: Who I Used to Be

Pat Shand (writer), Manuel Preitano & Jim Campbell (artists)
Goodreads
Rep: lesbian mc, lesbian li, side lesbian characters (Latina & Black), side gay Black characters

Why Should I Read It?

My first selling point: there’s like, one straight boy in the whole thing. So listen, it’s about a world with so many Chosen Ones with Prophecies, there’s a school specifically for them. But our main character already fulfilled hers, which means that more than anything this is a story about her trying to figure out adulthood, trying to find new purpose in life. It’s also extremely lesbian.

Reason Number One

Briston Brooks
Goodreads
Rep: gay Native American mc with a heart condition, bi li
TW: sexual assault, physical assault, blood, talk of past rape, abuse, internalized homophobia

Why Should I Read It?

Before we start, this definitely is not a book for everyone. I mean, look at the trigger warnings list. But those who can handle it, oh boy! Despite being a story about a freshman with very clear trauma, just trying to somehow survive, this is still a terribly soft novel, with great romance. It may seem overdramatic at times, but when taking into account Taylor’s past, all his reactions are actually very reasonable. There’s also a beautiful found family here.

Upright Women Wanted

Sarah Gailey
Goodreads
Rep: pan mc, nonbinary li, polyam couple (f/f/f), side f/f couple
TW: homophobia, internalised homophobia

Why Should I Read It?

So. LGBT librarians. In a world where books are basically banned. Who are actually kind of spies, kind of antifa fighters. Riding horses. In the dystopian West. I truly believe I don’t even need to go on. Despite everything I just said, though, I think my favourite part about this book is actually how it handles internalised homophobia. And how it’s still somehow just a story of growing up, growing into yourself.

A Tiny Piece of Something Greater

Jude Sierra
Goodreads
Rep: gay mc with cyclothymia, Brazilian gay mc

Why Should I Read It?

What I love most about this book is the romance. I usually go for the slowburns where the couple barely kisses by the end of the book. This one is totally different. The guys get together fairly soon, and the book is actually about them navigating their relationship, trying their hardest to make it work. To be the kind of person their partner can depend on. It’s really lovely to see. And the summer-y vibes make everything even better.

Know Not Why

Hannah Johnson
Goodreads
Rep: gay mc & li, bi side character

Why Should I Read It?

Yes, the main character is an ugly sexist pig at the start of the novel. But he’s like that thanks to being on the verge of Figuring Out The Gay Stuff, but still not quite grasping what’s going on inside his own head & heart. He grows up so well, though! And every instance of his shitty behaviour is called out, and later repaid tenfold. It’s actually great. And super funny.

A Hero at the End of the World

Erin Claiborne
Goodreads
Rep: gay Chinese British mc

Why Should I Read It?

I wouldn’t call this a “thinly veiled HP fic”, when it’s not subtle at all with where it drew it’s inspiration and the opening plot. But really, the set up in the prologue is where the similarities end. This, unlike HP, is a diverse m/m novel about young adults figuring stuff out & getting happy endings that weren’t planned years prior, without taking into the account their growth. It’s hilarious, it’s super fun, it’s basically the coffee shop au you’ve been graving.

The Avant-Guards, Vol. 1

Carly Usdin (writer) & Noah Hayes (artist)
Goodreads
Rep: sapphic mc with anxiety, Black sapphic li, Black nonbinary mc, Asian trans sapphic character

Why Should I Read It?

You know when you start a new school, and you’re promising to yourself it’s going to be a completely fresh start and you will leave everything about your old life behind? But then life throws people at you, and suddenly you’re just a little useless gay who’s looking for friends. Yeah, that’s basically the plot of The Avant-Guards, only way better.

One Last Stop

Casey McQuiston
Goodreads
Rep: bi mc with anxiety, Chinese-American lesbian li, Black sapphic sc, Puerto Rican-American trans sc, gay Jewish sc, Black gay sc, Black pan sc
TW: past homophobic violence, off page death

Why Should I Read It?

It kind of feels ludicrous to attempt a new adult rec list and not include a book by Casey McQuiston. New adult romance royalty? Perhaps. Truly, though, if there’s a single book out there that perfectly captures gay twenties, it’s One Last Stop. It has it all: the beautiful found family who’s there for each other at all times, the heart-stopping romance, the mundane life struggles of a twenty-something girl. If you enjoyed Red, White & Royal Blue, just know… Impossibly… This is even better.

Juniper Lane

Dylan Morrison
Goodreads
Rep: bi mc, Black lesbian li

Why Should I Read It?

It’s one of those quiet books where not all that much happens, but you’re still engrossed anyway. It’s about the characters, every little interaction between them, their growth. And most importantly, the love they have for each other. Both of them are really only just starting their lives, both of them have their own struggles, and the great thing about Juniper Lane is that it never pushes the “love will cure you” narrative, even for a second.

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