• All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    In the Intersection: South Asian LGBT Lit

    16 June, 2021

    After digging around for hours for South Asian lit that wasn’t primarily Indian, we finally have managed to get together 30 books for you, of which only about half are Indian (perhaps unsurprisingly those are the easiest to find, comparatively). Once again, there’s a mixture of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, so we hope you’ll find something to enjoy here.

    As before, we’re using flags to mark a country of origin (where possible) and a separate emoji (🏹) to mark if the author is a diaspora author.

    And once again, briefly, some links to the series so far: Black, African & Caribbean lit, East Asian lit, West Asian lit, Southeast Asian lit, Latine lit, Indigenous lit, religion in lit, and neurodiversity & disability in lit.

    And if you want more links, there are (so many) more lists here, here, here, here, here, and here. There’s also this zine by a Sri Lankan & an Afghan-Pakistani creator.

    Read More
  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    In the Intersection: West Asian LGBT Lit

    15 June, 2021

    I hope everyone’s excited for this post, because me and Anna are! Of the posts we’ve collated so far, this is the one that’s required the most digging (I think Anna is most proud of finding a book by a Yemeni author), especially since we’ve done our best to cover as wide an area as we can with these recs. But we managed it! So here are 30 recs for you by West Asian authors.

    As before, we’re using flags to mark a country of origin (where possible) and a separate emoji (🏹) to mark if the author is a diaspora author.

    Before we start, briefly, some links to the series: Black, African & Caribbean lit, East Asian lit, South Asian lit, Southeast Asian lit, Latine lit, Indigenous lit, religion in lit, and neurodiversity & disability in lit.

    And if you want more links… well we found a couple of untranslated books too! Here’s one from Georgia, one from Azerbaijan and one from Syria (available in Swedish or German).

    Read More
  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    In the Intersection: East Asian LGBT Lit

    13 June, 2021

    It’s like buses: you wait ages for one pride rec list and then two arrive at once! Today we’re covering East Asian LGBT lit, both that which is translated, and that which comes from diaspora authors. Once again, we’ve not read everything on this list (in fact, because we do want to prioritise translated lit in general, there’s a fair bit that’s not read), so it’s more a starter list for everyone.

    As before, we’re using flags to mark a country of origin (where possible) and a separate emoji (🏹) to mark if the author is a diaspora author.

    All of the series: Black, African & Caribbean lit, West Asian lit, South Asian lit, Southeast Asian lit, Latine lit, Indigenous lit, religion in lit, and neurodiversity & disability in lit.

    Once again, some more links if you want to read more: translated literature from Taiwan and China, Japanese literature, Korean literature (also here – in Korean).

    Read More
  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    In the Intersection: Black, African, and Caribbean LGBT Lit

    12 June, 2021

    For Pride Month 2021, our rec posts are taking a bit of a different shape. Over the course of June, we’ll have nine posts for you (of which this is, obviously, the first) in which we rec books where LGBT-ness intersects with another identity, be it race, disability or religion. These posts are only intended as starter packs, mind, and we’re going to try include books that may be less talked about. Ideally, we’ll have read most of the books we’re reccing, but sometimes that might not be the case (in a way, these are as much lists for ourselves as for you!).

    And, also, a brief note on “ownvoices” (or however you wish to refer to it): all of the books we rec are (for the most part—there are a handful of exceptions though) by authors who ID as LGBT, although maybe not the specific identity of their characters. The other part of the intersection will more strictly match up with the character’s identity (within reason, i.e. whether the author talks about it specifically in terms of themself).

    In the case of this list, we’ve used flag emojis to mark a country of origin (where possible) and a separate emoji (🏹) to mark if the author is a diaspora author.

    All of the series: East Asian lit, West Asian lit, South Asian lit, Southeast Asian lit, Latine lit, Indigenous lit, religion in lit, and neurodiversity & disability in lit.

    And, if after reading this you’re looking for more LGBT lit by African authors, let us point you in the direction of this list.

    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: The Way It Breaks

    5 June, 2021

    You won’t find reviews of adult contemporary novels very often on this blog, but both me and Charlotte like to venture out of our comfort zones every once in a while. And whenever we do, we’re lucky enough to come across something we enjoy.

    Which is why we are all here today. I already mentioned The Way It Breaks on my post about ownvoices achillean books, and I was actually able to read it a bit early. So read on to find out why you should pre-order this book, and in the meantime, follow Polis on twitter!

    Orestis is a young man who refuses to accept his lot in life. He wants a better job, a toned body, his own place, a brighter future. On a night out, he bumps into an old school friend who lands him an interview at her father’s five-star hotel. Orestis feels he is finally on the path to success. That is, until he becomes acquainted with a high-end gigolo who draws him onto a different path – one that takes him to a wealthy Belarusian trophy wife named Darya. Before long, Orestis’ destiny drifts even further out of his control.

    Set in Cyprus, The Way It Breaks is a modern tale about fate and free will; love and boundaries; and the value of a human being. 

    The Way It Breaks

    Polis Loizou

    Goodreads

    Published: 24th June 2021
    Rep: bi mc, bi character, gay character
    TW: fatphobia, internalised fatphobia, xenophobia

    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: The Passing Playbook

    3 June, 2021

    So you’re looking for an ownvoices trans m/m book by a Black author? Boy, do we have a treat for you! And listen, even more importantly The Passing Playbook is one of the most joyful & loving young adult books we know of – loving in a way that it lets the LGBT teens know they’re loved and valued.

    Read on to see more reasons why you absolutely should order yourself a copy, too! And we even have a music mix to listen to while reading!

    And hey, while you’re at it, follow Isaac on twitter!

    Fifteen-year-old Spencer Harris is a proud nerd, an awesome big brother and a Messi-in-training. He’s also transgender. After transitioning at his old school leads to a year of bullying, Spencer gets a fresh start at Oakley, the most liberal private school in Ohio.

    At Oakley, Spencer seems to have it all: more accepting classmates, a decent shot at a starting position on the boy’s soccer team, great new friends, and maybe even something more than friendship with one of his teammates. The problem is, no one at Oakley knows Spencer is trans – he’s passing.

    So when a discriminatory law forces Spencer’s coach to bench him after he discovers the ‘F’ on Spencer’s birth certificate, Spencer has to make a choice: cheer his team on from the sidelines or publicly fight for his right to play, even if it means coming out to everyone – including the guy he’s falling for.

    The Passing Playbook

    Isaac Fitzsimons

    Goodreads

    Rep: biracial Black mlm trans mc, gay li, bi side character, nonbinary side character
    CWs: mentions of past transphobic violence, religious homophobia
    Release: 3rd June 2021

    Read More
  • Book of the Month,  Literature

    Book of the Month: The Dangerous Kingdom of Love

    2 June, 2021

    We wavered between a few releases for June’s book of the month and eventually settled on this one on account of the number of adds it has on Goodreads. Because we’re fair and scientific like that (in theory). This month’s selection is for all the historical fiction lovers out there, so feast your eyes on it!

    Everyone else? Well, best start reading historical fiction, since you won’t want to miss out on this one!

    Related: Don’t forget all releases can be found in our monthly lists here.
    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

    27 May, 2021

    Please don’t be fooled into thinking I’m biased in my opinion about Jonny’s book, I’m really not. They really just are that talented and created that lovely & soft novel. The music mix accompanying this review is titled “inside your arms i feel so much warmer” (Where We’re Going / Gregory Dillon), and that is exactly the vibe of this book.

    And hey, we actually interviewed Jonny some time ago, check it out!

    Also don’t forget to follow Jonny Garza Villa on twitter!

    A poignant, funny, openhearted novel about coming out, first love, and being your one and only best and true self.

    Julián Luna has a plan for his life: Graduate. Get into UCLA. And have the chance to move away from Corpus Christi, Texas, and the suffocating expectations of others that have forced Jules into an inauthentic life.

    Then in one reckless moment, with one impulsive tweet, his plans for a low-key nine months are thrown—literally—out the closet. The downside: the whole world knows, and Jules has to prepare for rejection. The upside: Jules now has the opportunity to be his real self.

    Then Mat, a cute, empathetic Twitter crush from Los Angeles, slides into Jules’s DMs. Jules can tell him anything. Mat makes the world seem conquerable. But when Jules’s fears about coming out come true, the person he needs most is fifteen hundred miles away. Jules has to face them alone.

    Jules accidentally propelled himself into the life he’s always dreamed of. And now that he’s in control of it, what he does next is up to him.

    Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

    Jonny Garza Villa

    Goodreads

    Rep: Mexican American gay mc, Vietnamese American gay li, gay, lesbian, bi & pan side characters
    TWs: past & present parental abuse, physical abuse (chapter 14 & 28), homophobia, outing, mc gets kicked out
    Release: 8th June 2021

    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: Jay’s Gay Agenda

    22 May, 2021

    To say we have mixed feelings about this book is probably a very fair statement. So, we discussed and we figured the best thing to do in reviewing this book would be like so: split the review into factors that we liked, and factors that we didn’t get along with. The caveat of course being that these are our personal opinions, so please don’t let us put you off this book unnecessarily!

    44081573._sy475_

    There’s one thing Jay Collier knows for sure—he’s a statistical anomaly as the only out gay kid in his small rural Washington town. While all this friends can’t stop talking about their heterosexual hookups and relationships, Jay can only dream of his own firsts, compiling a romance to-do list of all the things he hopes to one day experience—his Gay Agenda.

    Then, against all odds, Jay’s family moves to Seattle and he starts his senior year at a new high school with a thriving LGBTQIA+ community. For the first time ever, Jay feels like he’s found where he truly belongs, where he can flirt with Very Sexy Boys and search for love. But as Jay begins crossing items off his list, he’ll soon be torn between his heart and his hormones, his old friends and his new ones…because after all, life and love don’t always go according to plan.

    From debut novelist Jason June comes a moving and hilarious sex-positive story about the complexities of first loves, first hookups, and first heartbreaks—and how to stay true to yourself while embracing what you never saw coming.

    Jay’s Gay Agenda

    Jason June

    Goodreads

    Rep: gay mc, Chinese-American gay li, gay genderqueer side character, gay side character
    CWs: vomiting
    Release: 1st June 2021

    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: One Last Stop

    20 May, 2021

    Kicking off the Pride releases’ season the right way, with our reviews of an absolute gem, a sapphic time-travel rom-com of your dreams. One Last Stop hits all the spots for a perfect book.

    And as an extra treat, apart from the mix you can listen to while reading the book, we want to offer you one more thing: Charlotte actually set up a bot that will start tweeting in mid June, to avoid spoilers.

    Cynical twenty-three-year old August doesn’t believe in much. She doesn’t believe in psychics, or easily forged friendships, or finding the kind of love they make movies about. And she certainly doesn’t believe her ragtag band of new roommates, her night shifts at a 24-hour pancake diner, or her daily subway commute full of electrical outages are going to change that.

    But then, there’s Jane. Beautiful, impossible Jane.

    All hard edges with a soft smile and swoopy hair and saving August’s day when she needed it most. The person August looks forward to seeing on the train every day. The one who makes her forget about the cities she lived in that never seemed to fit, and her fear of what happens when she finally graduates, and even her cold-case obsessed mother who won’t quite let her go. And when August realizes her subway crush is impossible in more ways than one—namely, displaced in time from the 1970s—she thinks maybe it’s time to start believing.

    Casey McQuiston’s One Last Stop is a sexy, big-hearted romance where the impossible becomes possible as August does everything in her power to save the girl lost in time.

    One Last Stop

    Casey McQuiston

    Goodreads

    Rep: bi mc with anxiety, Chinese American lesbian li, gay side character, Black sapphic side character, Black gay side character, Puerto Rican American trans side character, Black pan side character
    CWs: past homophobic violence, off page death
    Release: 1st June 2021

    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: The Kingdoms

    18 May, 2021

    We needed abut half a second to decide we want to request an early copy of this book, once they became available. We’ve read everything else that Natasha Pulley has written, so we thought we know what to expect. And yet, The Kingdoms just stunned us. It’s a masterpiece.

    There’s a mix at the end of this post, and I highly recommend you listen to it while reading the book. It somehow makes it more painful. And after, make sure to follow Natasha on twitter.

    (Also for those of you who are already fans of Pulley’s work, can I point you in the direction of a bot I made that tweets quotes from her books every two hours?)

    44081573._sy475_

    For fans of The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and David Mitchell, a genre bending, time twisting alternative history that asks whether it’s worth changing the past to save the future, even if it costs you everyone you’ve ever loved.

    Joe Tournier has a bad case of amnesia. His first memory is of stepping off a train in the nineteenth-century French colony of England. The only clue Joe has about his identity is a century-old postcard of a Scottish lighthouse that arrives in London the same month he does. Written in illegal English-instead of French-the postcard is signed only with the letter “M,” but Joe is certain whoever wrote it knows him far better than he currently knows himself, and he’s determined to find the writer. The search for M, though, will drive Joe from French-ruled London to rebel-owned Scotland and finally onto the battle ships of a lost empire’s Royal Navy. In the process, Joe will remake history, and himself.

    From bestselling author Natasha Pulley, The Kingdoms is an epic, wildly original novel that bends genre as easily as it twists time.

    The Kingdoms

    Natasha Pulley

    Goodreads

    Rep: gay mc with epilepsy, gay li
    CWs: implied conversion therapy & rape, violence, gore
    Release: 25th May 2021

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

    Film & TV Recs: Foreign LGBT movies

    15 May, 2021

    My small offering to you in these horrible times is a list of ten LGBT movies made outside of the US (or even UK, for that matter). It’s good to remember that the world doesn’t start and end with North America, and LGBT people actually live everywhere around the globe. You might also be interested in one of my previous posts, about movies with two QPOC leads.

    And a quick reminder that on this blog we do not recommend movies with trans characters played by cis actors, ever.

    Read More
  • All Recommended,  Book Recs,  Literature

    Book Recs: Standalone Fantasy

    13 May, 2021

    After a few days of unintentional downtime (can you tell neither me nor Anna has the slightest clue about self-hosting), we’re back with a rec list of standalone fantasy books. For those times when you don’t want to invest in reading an entire series, but you do want something fantastical.

    I’m sure we can all relate.

    But anyway. Enough waffling on, because it’s been days since we’ve been able to post. I’m sure you all just want to get straight into it (so to speak).

    Read More
  • All Releases,  Book Releases,  Literature

    Book Releases: Ownvoices M/M books of January-June 2021

    15 April, 2021

    Well, actually… the term ownvoices here is used very liberally. By that I mean you will find below books with gay main characters written by gay authors but sometimes it will be for example books with gay characters written by bi authors.

    Generally, though, novels with mlm characters by mlm authors. Achillean books by achillean authors, if you will. So while the label might not always 100% match between the author and the character, those are still books written by people who understand the experience.

    This is also why I opted out of using the rainbow emoji – everyone would get one anyways.

    See also: ownvoices m/m books of July-December 2021, of January-June 2020 & of July-December 2020.
    Read More
  • All Reviews,  Literature

    ARC Review: In Deeper Waters

    14 April, 2021

    It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say we were both very excited about this next book. And it’s no little help that the cover for it is absolutely gorgeous. And you can get your hands on it in just under a week! So, without further ado, have a read of why we think you want this book!

    A young prince must rely on a mysterious stranger to save him when he is kidnapped during his coming-of-age tour in this swoony adventure that is The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue meets Pirates of the Caribbean.

    Prince Tal has long awaited his coming-of-age tour. After spending most of his life cloistered behind palace walls as he learns to keep his forbidden magic secret, he can finally see his family’s kingdom for the first time. His first taste of adventure comes just two days into the journey, when their crew discovers a mysterious prisoner on a burning derelict vessel.

    Tasked with watching over the prisoner, Tal is surprised to feel an intense connection with the roguish Athlen. So when Athlen leaps overboard and disappears, Tal feels responsible and heartbroken, knowing Athlen could not have survived in the open ocean.

    That is, until Tal runs into Athlen days later on dry land, very much alive, and as charming—and secretive—as ever. But before they can pursue anything further, Tal is kidnapped by pirates and held ransom in a plot to reveal his rumored powers and instigate a war. Tal must escape if he hopes to save his family and the kingdom. And Athlen might just be his only hope…

    In Deeper Waters

    F. T. Lukens

    Goodreads

    Rep: bi/pan mc, mlm li
    Release: 20th April 2021

    Read More