Book Recs: Bi/Pan Adult Fantasy

The other day, I did part two of this adult fantasy series, with books featuring gay mcs. Today, I’m back for part three: bi/pan mcs. I say bi/pan, because often it’s hard to tell, since this is fantasy and mostly labels are not in use. But these are ten recs for you, in which the mc is definitively attracted to more than one gender.

And hey, a lot of those titles are available on Scribd, so if you want to check out that service but don’t have an account yet, use my invite code to get 2 months for free! (This also gives me one free month.)

And if you want to check out the other posts in this series, you can find them below:

Lesbian | Gay | Trans

Water Horse

Melissa Scott
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan mcs, lesbian mcs, gay mc

Why Should I Read It?

Once again, I’m on my read Melissa Scott’s books now agenda. This one is her most recent, and it’s a great fantasy that’s at once epic and very people-focused. Basically no one is straight, either, and no one bats an eyelid at it. Easily, it’s one of my favourite reads of 2021, one of my favourite releases too. It’s a gripping story, with an ending that will have your heart racing.

City of Lies

Sam Hawke
Goodreads
Rep: bi mc with OCD & anxiety, lesbian mc with chronic pain

Why Should I Read It?

Raise your hand if you’re not surprised at this one. Yeah, me neither. I will continue to press this book on everyone I know until you all read it and/or we get confirmation of a third book. But anyway, let me just say what I always say about this one: a wonderfully tightly plotted mystery, characters you will adore, and a novel of twists and turns that you’ll never see coming.

The Velocity of Revolution

Marshall Ryan Maresca
Goodreads
Rep: pan cast, polyamory
CWs: police brutality, violence

Why Should I Read It?

A wild and breathless ride from start to finish, if you want to find yourself sucked into a fantasy world from the first page, this is the book for you. The way I usually describe this book is that reading it feels like how you would imagine being on myco—this world’s drug—would feel. It’s an insanely addictive read and, when you finish, it feels just like coming up for air, a little disorientating but ultimately amazing.

Swordspoint

Ellen Kushner
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan mcs

Why Should I Read It?

Swordspoint is a classic of fantasy literature. If you call yourself a fan of fantasy and yet you haven’t read this book, then I don’t know what to say to you. Do you not like fantasy swordfights? Do you not like regency-ish fantasy worlds? Do you not like fun??

Sing the Four Quarters

Tanya Huff
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan mc, lesbian li, gay side character

Why Should I Read It?

What I love most about Sing the Four Quarters is the fact that its focus is mainly on storytellers. Not kings or queens or anyone really in a position of power (although, by dint of the worldbuilding, the bards do hold a privileged position in society), but about the people who collect knowledge and spread it. Here, the primary conflict revolves around families, both Annice’s and the Duc’s, so it feels understated and quiet, in the best way possible. Yes, there’s a battle to save a kingdom, but that’s secondary to the families.

The Chosen and the Beautiful

Nghi Vo
Goodreads
Rep: Vietnamese bi/pan mc, biracial Chinese bi/pan character

Why Should I Read It?

Gatsby (confessedly one of my least favourite books after I read it 10 times at least for GCSE) is in the public domain now, which means us gays can finally get our grubby little mitts all over it and let the people know the truth: these characters are NOT straight. The Chosen and the Beautiful is an excellent start at all that, mixing the story with fantastical elements. And, get this, Nghi Vo actually made me enjoy Gatsby!

The Councillor

E. J. Beaton
Goodreads
Rep: bi mc, lesbian side character, gay characters

Why Should I Read It?

The way I always sell this one is twisty-turny politics, featuring an mc who likes to dominate her partners in bed, and an almost-but-not-quite-love-interest who is very interested in her dominating him. And, frankly, if that’s not enough to get you intrigued then I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. You’re hard work! But anyways, this is a book for those of you who are fans of series like The Queen’s Thief and the aforementioned City of Lies. Trust me.

The Stone Prince

Fiona Patton
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan mcs, polyamory

Why Should I Read It?

Sometimes all you want to read is gay fantasy published in the 70s-90s, and The Stone Prince fits the bill perfectly. Okay maybe that one’s just me, but trust me when I say it’s worth reading. Creative magic system, starcrossed lovers, and a struggle to save your country on a throne no one believes should be yours. What doesn’t grab you about that?

The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps

Kai Ashante Wilson
Goodreads
Rep: Black bi mc, Black gay li
CWs: casual homophobia, descriptions of gore

Why Should I Read It?

An open ending is actually something that can be so personal, and this book is proof of that point. I don’t quite know how to describe this book: absorbing and intimate, it’s a novella that will stay with you for a long time after reading it. Even now, I’m still, on some level, thinking about this book. If you want a quick read, that you can devour in a few hours, then I’d highly recommend this one.

In the Vanishers’ Palace

Aliette de Bodard
Goodreads
Rep: Vietnamese-coded cast, bi mc, lesbian mc

Why Should I Read It?

If you have never read anything by Aliette de Bodard—a fact which, really, you ought to quickly remedy—then In the Vanishers’ Palace is a good place to start. It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling, but with dragons, which is about the best combination of words you might expect to hear. And so very lushly described, in the way that only Aliette de Bodard can do. Really, by not reading this one, you’re missing out.

What would you rec?

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