• All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Sapphic Fantasy (I)

    17 September, 2019

    I am here today, entirely reluctantly it should be noted, to rec you all some f/f fantasy books. (Not reluctantly because I don’t like the genre, I hasten to add, but because sometimes it’s all I seem to be asked to rec when it comes to f/f. But anyway.)

    But you asked, so here I am.

    As ever, I haven’t read every single book on this list. This is just a starter pack for you. And today, because f/f fantasy is a comparatively big genre, I’m going to try rec books that I know are less popular (so if you don’t see some big names on here, that’s why! And also I feel like I end up reccing the same books over and over for this genre so…trying to branch out a little).

    Again, all the previous posts are here.

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  • All Recommended,  Film & TV Recs,  Film & TV Shows

    Film & TV Recs: LGBT Period Dramas

    5 September, 2019

    The other day I reread one of my favourite classic novels (Evelina by Frances Burney, which I recommend wholeheartedly, even though it’s sadly not gay) (well, if you ask me there’s a butch lesbian there but) & ever since then, I was very much in the mood for period dramas.

    Naturally, I started by rewatching some favourites, as well: Pride & Prejudice (2005) and Persuasion (2007). But then I realised what I’m actually craving are gay period dramas.

    So that’s why I’m here today with 10 LGBT stories taking place in the past.

    Sadly, only two titles with trans characters made it to my list. And that’s because while there is a number of arguably good period dramas with trans characters, I’m not about to rec you movies in which those roles are played by cis actors (like The Danish Girl or Albert Nobbs or Breakfast on Pluto).

    Also, I feel like it’s important I make something clear: I did not rec any stories with Bury Your Gays trope.

    Related: LGBT period dramas, part II
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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Sapphic Mystery/Thrillers (I)

    19 August, 2019

    I’m back with the second part of this series (the previous parts can all be found here)! This time, I’m reccing mystery/thriller books (because they are my favourite genre when done well). Good mysteries keep you on your toes the entire time, with plot twists you don’t see coming until they’ve happened (you know when you get a good one, and then you think back to what’s come before and you’re like oh this was coming. That’s just *chef’s kiss*). So with these recs I hope you will find some of that.

    P. S. Some of the books I recced in the previous post may also apply here as mysteries, but I haven’t included them here so as not to duplicate too much.

    P. P. S. Once again, I haven’t read all of these, so as such, I think some don’t have an f/f romance but do have a wlw mc, but I don’t necessarily know which those are.

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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: UKYA (and Ireland)

    15 August, 2019

    We all know how US-centric the book blogging community can sometimes (often, if we’re being less nice) get. Myself and Anna have probably fallen into that trap on this blog a few times as well. So, in the interests of expanding this blog, here are 20 UK (and Irish) YA books.

    First, a disclaimer: I haven’t read every single one of these books. And some of them aren’t even published yet (boo). But in the interests of raising awareness of LGBT lit out there that isn’t set in the USA*, I’m putting them all on here.

    * Loosely speaking. Two books on this list still are.

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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: LGBT Retellings (Myths)

    6 August, 2019

    Part two of my retellings rec lists, as promised! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the series: LGBT fairy tales retellings & LGBT retellings of classic books.

    Now, when it comes to mythologies… I actually had a bit of a problem. I wasn’t sure if I should include retellings of The Odyssey, for example. Sure, we have mythology there, but also part three of this series is going to be Classic Texts & wouldn’t it be more of a fit there? I even ran a poll on twitter and y’all were who decided in the end. :>>

    Also obviously my first thought for this theme was The Song of Achilles, because I am gay and love to suffer, but I figured there’s no point in reccing a book we have all read multiple times.

    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.)

    See also: LGBT retellings of folklore, fairy tales, classic books & books about historical figures
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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Sapphic Historical Fiction (I)

    30 July, 2019

    Approximately once a month, twitter throws up a certain argument along the lines of there is no f/f, or where is all the f/f, or where is all the hyped f/f. And while I think there is a genuine case to be made for f/f books getting less attention, that doesn’t mean there is none (and also to say there is barely any/none blatantly ignores the authors who are producing f/f and the publishers who are backing it (did you know there are several publishing houses who only publish f/f), which is not cool). Basically, it’s there if you look.

    But this will become too much of a rant unless I shut up now.

    What I’m aiming to do with this series is provide you with a bunch of rec lists so that, next time someone says there’s no f/f, you can point them in this direction. Because yes. There is f/f.

    Quickly, and finally, before I start I want to point you towards Mahana @ Sapphic Library who not only posts a lot of sapphic rec lists, but also has a twitter dedicated to it all.

    So, on with the historical f/f recs! (There is some overlap in some cases with fantasy and mystery, just fyi.)

    P. S. in the interests of full disclosure: I haven’t read all of these. This is less a rec list in the sense that these are ones I’ve read and enjoyed, more these are 20 f/f historical books as proof they do exist.

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    Book Recs: Neurodiverse Characters

    20 July, 2019

    This rec list comes from a request I got on twitter for LGBT books with neurodiverse characters. Obviously, neurodiversity covers an enormous spectrum, so I’m in no way attempting to cover all that (and if you look at the list, you can probably see where there are gaps, i.e. rep that isn’t anxiety, depression, PTSD, because sure those are the most common disorders but there’s a lot more out there).

    What I’m attempting to give you here is a handful of recs (ownvoices where possible, elsewise covered respectfully) to start you off. And, as ever, I would happily take recs from you in return. (Also I have extended the rec list to feature 12 books instead of the usual 10 just so I can broaden the variety here.)

    P.S. I’m only giving the rep for the neurodiverse LGBT character(s) in the book, even if there are more LGBT or neurodiverse characters in all. If that makes sense.

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    Book Recs: LGBT Retellings (Fairy Tales)

    11 July, 2019

    I mentioned on twitter the other day that I was thinking of making a post like this and everyone was very into the idea. I mean, what’s better than taking a classic story we all know & putting a gay spin on it, right?

    I put a parenthesis in the title of this rec list and there’s a very simple reason for it: there are going to be two more in the “series”! One for classic books (think Peter Pan or Sherlock Holmes) and one for mythologies (in a very broad meaning of the word). So look out for those!

    Before we start, let me make an honorary mention of Ash by Malinda Lo, the lesbian retelling of Cinderella. It’s not on the list itself because I can’t rec you a book you all already know, can I? But just in case you forgot for a second…

    And now, let’s go boldly into the world of LGBT fairy tales!

    See also: LGBT retellings of folklore, fairy tales, classic books & books about historical figures
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    Book Recs: Poetry Collections (I)

    9 July, 2019

    The title says it’s part one & that makes it seem like what should follow is “of many”, but please don’t expect this to be like a regular series. It’s more that I couldn’t decide on just ten collections and then Charlotte made me realise: I don’t have to!

    So there will be more parts to this, because poetry is most of what I’m reading these days. Just, it’s gonna take time.

    Some of the collections I’m gonna rec are definitely obvious choices. If you know me at all, I’m sure you can guess at least one of them. But hey, we call books classics for a reason, right?

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  • All Recommended,  Music,  Music Recs

    Music Recs: Pride Month Special

    27 June, 2019

    We don’t talk about music a lot on our blog, but I guess when we do, it’s with a bang! Which is to say, I’m here today with a list of 60 LGBT artists. And yes, I say artists, not just songs – each and every one of them is an out member of our community. (Well, there are a few bands and some of them only have a lead singer who matches that description, but you know!)

    I had to make some decisions regarding the way of presenting all this beauty to you. First of all, I divided those sixty artists into three groups of wlw, mlm & those who are not cis. (I was gonna go with “trans/nonbinary”, but there are also genderfluid, gender nonconforming artists, even a Two-Spirit one, so I figured I need a pretty broad umbrella term here). Obviously, there are some intersections within those groups, but I wanted even numbers… And lastly, I linked them all to my favourite album/single of theirs on Spotify, so I could put covers & make it all look pretty.

    So! Take a quiz and figure out who should you listen to!* Or just scroll through them all.

    Take the quiz!

    *Charlotte made me specify that when I say “dancing alone in your room” in the quiz, what I mean is dancing slowly with your eyes closed, the sound of rain coming through the window & maybe by the end of it you won’t be as tired anymore.

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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Pride Month Special

    17 June, 2019

    I’m sure all of you at least once experienced this: you go to school, you study history, and then years later, in totally random circumstances, you learn that some historical figure was actually gay. And then you probably cry a little (a lot, if you’re me) and you’re angry & disappointed, because yet again your own history was taken away from you.

    That’s where we come in with this rec list! We put together fifty titles – so not a comprehensive list by any account, but it’s a place to start. To kick-off your historical journey and actually make you realise you do love history, just the one that is actually ours.

    Siken would say that “there are a lot of names in history. / none of them are ours”, but he was only halfway right. We have always existed, we just weren’t always allowed to talk about it.

    This list is divided into 5 historical eras, with a few books that are studies across eras, and then further into what types of books there are. You will find here memoirs, letters, essays, history textbooks… Anything you can think of, it’s probably here!

    Take a quiz to figure out where you should start your LGBT education:

    Take the quiz!

    Or just scroll through the whole list.

    Key:

    memoir or letters 🍃
    biography 🌻
    historical account 🐚
    essays or theory 🌼

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  • All Recommended,  Film & TV Recs,  Film & TV Shows

    Film and TV Recs: Pride Month Special

    12 June, 2019

    Like we said at the start of the month, we’re making our Pride Month rec lists a little special. We’re adding quizzes to them! If you click the link below, the quiz will help you find a film or TV show that suits your needs. Alternatively, you can scroll through all our recs here.

    Take the quiz!

    Of course, you can be sure that these are all films and shows with happy endings for their LGBT characters (though, if we’re talking ones that haven’t finished yet, we obviously can’t confirm that). But trust us, even when it looks bad in some of them. Trust us. Also, because we haven’t watched all of them, we can’t be sure what content warnings there for them. If there is a * against one, that means we have watched it and there are some CWs, so just comment if you want to know more.

    Finally, the key:

    lesbians & wlw relationships: ☀️
    gays & mlm relationships: 🌿
    bi or pan characters: 💎
    trans, genderqueer, non-binary, gnc characters: 🌷

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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Superheroes

    26 May, 2019

    Look me in the eyes and answer one single question: is there anything better than gay superheroes?

    No! The correct answer is no & I’m glad we all agree on that. It also means that I compiled a list of ten books with LGBT superheroes just for you guys. And a quick note – only two of those are comics! This is not to say that comics are anything less than, which is an absurd notion & one I absolutely do not want associated with me or this blog. But I wanted to showcase that superheroes are more than beautiful comics and can have their stories told through novels as well!

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    Book Recs: Adult Lit (II)

    12 May, 2019

    This is part two of that really long adult lit rec list I promised you. Part one can be found here, and all the parts will be in this tag (eventually).

    You might notice as this list goes on, some genres will have fewer recs. That’s just because there’s not a lot in those genres that I’ve been able to find (as of yet!).

    Key:

    lesbians & wlw relationships: ☀️
    gays & mlm relationships: 🌿
    bisexual characters: 💎
    trans, genderqueer, non-binary, gnc characters: 🌷
    LGBT authors: 🌈

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  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Adult Lit (I)

    4 May, 2019

    The other day I was scrolling through twitter and I saw someone make a comment that they didn’t see any rec lists of adult LGBT books. Which. Once you say it, becomes obvious, really. There are a lot of lists of YA LGBT books. In fact, those are the ones me and Anna find easiest to confirm the rep in for you. Adult books? That’s hard. Often, those are the ones where we find ourselves spending 10 minutes just trying to find a confirmation that it is LGBT, let alone how.

    So this is (probably only part one of) a list of all the adult LGBT lit we can find (read, unread, and pre-release). Where possible, we’ve added in rep as usual, but for that we’re mostly reliant on Goodreads reviewers (and you know how vague they can be). But. These are 50 confirmed LGBT novels. Sorted by genre (10 of each).

    Enjoy!

    Key:

    lesbians & wlw relationships: ☀️
    gays & mlm relationships: 🌿
    bisexual characters: 💎
    trans, genderqueer, non-binary, gnc characters: 🌷
    LGBT authors: 🌈

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