Even though Summer is coming to an end, these authors are keeping queer characters front and center for the entire year. Whether they are the main character or a sidekick, falling in love or battling for the world’s salvation, these LGBTQIA characters will keep readers on the edge of their seats.
If you have read the books in our LGBTQIA picks for August, we have 7 new titles to add to your TBR list. Aiden Thomas, Dustin Thao, and Suzan Palumbo are among the authors we highlight this month.
In order of release date, here are 7 LGBTQIA books we are looking forward to reading this September:
1. Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas – September 3
Teo once refused to sacrifice a semidiose during the Sunbearer Trials; now, he must face the consequences. Against his own will, he must become a hero and save Reino del Sol from the Obsidian gods in Celestial Monsters (part of The Sunbearer Duology).
Teo’s love interest, Aurelio, and Niya join him on his journey to Los Restos. There, they must face monsters and their own personal guilt and trauma. At the end of their journey, they must rescue the captured semidioses and the Sol Stone to save the world.
Book Description: Teo never thought he could be a Hero. Now, he doesn’t have a choice.
The sun is gone, the Obsidian gods have been released from their prison, and now chaos and destruction are wreaking havoc on Reino del Sol. All because Teo refused to sacrifice a fellow semidiose during the Sunbearer Trials.
With the world plunged into perpetual night, Teo, Aurelio and Niya must journey to the dark wilderness of Los Restos, battling vicious monsters while dealing with guilt, trauma, and a (very distracting) burgeoning romance between Teo and Aurelio. Once more racing against the clock, the trio are determined to rescue the captured semidioses and retrieve the Sol Stone. With it, Sol and their protective light can return and order can be restored.
Now the future of the whole world is in their hands.
2. Fall for Him by Andie Burke – September 3
Derek never liked Dylan, and the last thing he wanted was for the tattooed nerd to sleep on his couch. However, things quickly change when a plumbing problem in his apartment causes Dylan’s apartment to flood. To avoid further issues with the HOA, Derek invites Dylan to stay on his couch while Dylan fixes the problems in his apartment.
Now, the two live in a seven-hundred-fifty-square-foot apartment with an illegal dog, and feelings are growing. Can this situation make their lives hell? Or is it a blessing in disguise?
Book Description: In Fall for Him by Andie Burke, seven-hundred-fifty square feet isn’t enough for the home-renovation-fueled hatred and the building sexual tension.
Dylan Gallagher’s hot neighbor loathed him from the second he moved in, and causing a flood, falling through the floor, and landing directly onto that same neighbor’s bed probably means that’s unlikely to change. The poorly timed “It’s Raining Men” joke didn’t help.
Meanwhile, ER nurse Derek Chang’s life is a literal when-rains-it-pours nightmare. A man he hates dropped into his life along with an astronomically expensive problem originating from Derek’s own apartment’s plumbing. Also, the local HOA tyrant has been sniffing around trying to fine him for his extended, illicit banned breed dog-sitting.
Since Dylan also wants to keep the catastrophe quiet, he offers to fix the damage himself. Dylan’s sure he’s not Derek’s type, so he focuses all his ADHD hyper fixation energy on getting the repair job done as quickly as possible―avoiding doing anything stupid like acting on his very inconvenient crush. Meanwhile Derek tries to ignore that the tattooed nerd sleeping on the couch is surprisingly witty, smart, and kind, despite the long-term grudge Derek’s been holding against him. But will squeezing all their emotional baggage plus a dog into a tiny one-bedroom apartment be a major disaster…or just prove they’re made for each other?
Fall for Him combines banter, hijinks, and heart in a story of finding out what it means to fix things after your life crumbles.
3. When Haru Was Here by Dustin Thao – September 3
Losing someone you love can feel like the end of the world. Eric wasn’t ready to face reality without Haru, so he created fake scenarios in his head. However, one day, he is surprised to see Haru walking into the coffee shop. The only downside is Eric is the only one who can see him.
Even though it is great to have Haru back, Eric’s grip on reality starts to slip away the more time he spends with this image in his head. Then, he realizes he needs to come to terms with reality: Haru is gone forever.
Book Description: We Are Okay meets Wandavision in this novel about loss, and learning to let go.
After the death of his best friend, Eric Ly creates imaginary scenarios in his head to deal with his grief. Until one of them becomes real when a boy he met last summer in Japan finds his way back into his life. When he least expects it, Haru Tanaka walks into the coffee shop and sits down next to him. The only thing is, nobody else can see him.
In a magical turn of events, Eric suddenly has someone to connect with, making him feel less alone in the world. But as they spend more and more time together, he begins to question what is real. When he starts losing control of the very thing that is holding him together, Eric must finally confront his reality. Even if it means losing Haru forever.
4. Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune – September 10
Arthur Parnassus currently resides on an island as the head of an orphanage, hoping to adopt six magical children soon. Alongside his partner Linus, Zoe Chapelwhite, and Mayor Helen Webb, Arthus has promised to do everything in his power to protect the children.
His family’s safety is jeopardized when Arthur sees himself forced to talk about his dark and secretive past. Meanwhile, a new child asks to join the orphanage and Arthur’s family. This kid calls himself a monster, bringing back a nickname Arthur fought so hard to leave behind. Can he continue to protect his family? Or are they all in danger now?
Book Description: Somewhere Beyond the Sea is the hugely anticipated sequel to TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea, one of the best-loved and best-selling fantasy novels of the past decade. Featuring gorgeous orange sprayed edges!
A magical house. A secret past. A summons that could change everything.
Arthur Parnassus lives a good life built on the ashes of a bad one.
He’s the master of a strange orphanage on a distant and peculiar island, and he hopes to soon be the adoptive father to the six dangerous and magical children who live there.
Arthur works hard and loves with his whole heart so none of the children ever feel the neglect and pain that he once felt as an orphan on that very same island so long ago. He is not alone: joining him is the love of his life, Linus Baker, a former caseworker in the Department In Charge of Magical Youth. And there’s the island’s sprite, Zoe Chapelwhite, and her girlfriend, Mayor Helen Webb. Together, they will do anything to protect the children.
But when Arthur is summoned to make a public statement about his dark past, he finds himself at the helm of a fight for the future that his family, and all magical people, deserve.
And when a new magical child hopes to join them on their island home—one who finds power in calling himself monster, a name that Arthur worked so hard to protect his children from—Arthur knows they’re at a breaking point: their family will either grow stronger than ever or fall apart.
Welcome back to Marsyas Island. This is Arthur’s story.
Somewhere Beyond the Sea is a story of resistance, lovingly told, about the daunting experience of fighting for the life you want to live and doing the work to keep it.
5. Countess by Suzan Palumbo – September 10
Virika Sameroo’s family grew up in the British West Indies. Now, she lives in a colonized space. Nevertheless, she has found a way to thrive and become a lieutenant for the empire’s merchant marine.
Even though things seem to be going fine for her, after her captain is murdered, Virika is arrested and charged with treason. After her arrest, she decides to go on a revenge journey and take down the empire that wronged her and imprisoned so many others. The fate of her people hangs in her hands.
Book Description: A queer, Caribbean, anti-colonial sci-fi novella, inspired by the Count of Monte Cristo, in which a betrayed captain seeks revenge on the interplanetary empire that subjugated her people for generations.
Virika Sameroo lives in colonized space under the Æerbot Empire, much like her ancestors before her in the British West Indies. After years of working hard to rise through the ranks of the empire’s merchant marine, she’s finally become first lieutenant on an interstellar cargo vessel.
When her captain dies under suspicious circumstances, Virika is arrested for murder and charged with treason despite her lifelong loyalty to the empire. Her conviction and subsequent imprisonment set her on a path to justice, determined to take down the evil empire that wronged her, all while the fate of her people hangs in the balance.
6. A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft – September 17
Lorelei, a folklorist, is searching for the magical spring the king wants. Her mentor and five other nobles accompany her on this journey. While she is using this quest to prove her worth, someone else uses it as a cover for murder. Another one of the nobles murders Lorelei’s mentor.
The only person she believes to be innocent is Sylvia, her lifetime rival. As Sylvia becomes the journey leader, Lorelei must work with her to find the murderer and the spring for the king. Can they put their longtime rivalry aside?
Book Description: A sharp-tongued folklorist must pair up with her academic rival to solve their mentor’s murder in this lush and enthralling sapphic fantasy romance from the New York Times bestselling author of A Far Wilder Magic.
Lorelei Kaskel, a folklorist with a quick temper and an even quicker wit, is on an expedition with six eccentric nobles in search of a fabled spring. The magical spring promises untold power, which the king wants to harness to secure his reign of the embattled country of Brunnestaad. Lorelei is determined to use this opportunity to prove herself and make her wildest, most impossible dream come to become a naturalist, able to travel freely to lands she’s only ever read about.
The expedition gets off to a harrowing start when its leader—Lorelei’s beloved mentor—is murdered in her quarters aboard their ship. The suspects are her five remaining expedition mates, each with their own motive. The only person Lorelei knows must be innocent is her longtime academic rival, the insufferably gallant and maddeningly beautiful Sylvia von Wolff. Now in charge of the expedition, Lorelei must find the spring before the murderer strikes again—and a coup begins in earnest.
But there are other dangers lurking in the forests that rearrange themselves at night, rivers with slumbering dragons waiting beneath the water, and shapeshifting beasts out for blood.
As Lorelei and Sylvia grudgingly work together to uncover the truth—and resist their growing feelings for one another—they discover that their professor had secrets of her own. Secrets that make Lorelei question whether justice is worth pursuing, or if this kingdom is worth saving at all.
7. When the World Tips Over by Jandy Nelson – September 24
The Fall siblings’ world was turned upside down the day their father mysteriously disappeared. Since then, they have grown to create their own paths. Dizzy spends her days baking cakes, seeing spirits, and wishing she was the heroine in a romance novel. Miles is an athlete and dog-whisperer who wishes to meet the guy of his dreams. Wynton is a violinist willing to do whatever it takes to become famous.
One day, a rainbow-haired girl crosses their paths and tips their world over. They don’t know if she’s an angel or an ordinary girl, but she becomes vital to them. Sadly, another life-changing event happens, leaving the Fall siblings more broken than before.
Book Description: An explosive new novel brimming with love, secrets, and enchantment.
The Fall siblings live in hot Northern California wine country, where the sun pours out of the sky, and the devil winds blow so hard they whip the sense right out of your head.
Years ago, the Fall kids’ father mysteriously disappeared, cracking the family into pieces. Now Dizzy Fall, age twelve, bakes cakes, sees spirits, and wishes she were a heroine of a romance novel. Miles Fall, seventeen, brainiac, athlete, and dog-whisperer, is a raving beauty, but also lost, and desperate to meet the kind of guy he dreams of. And Wynton Fall, nineteen, who raises the temperature of a room just by entering it, is a virtuoso violinist set on a crash course for fame . . . or self-destruction.
Then an enigmatic rainbow-haired girl shows up, tipping the Falls’ world over. She might be an angel. Or a saint. Or an ordinary girl. Somehow, she is vital to each of them. But before anyone can figure out who she is, catastrophe strikes, leaving the Falls more broken than ever. And more desperate to be whole.
With road trips, rivalries, family curses, love stories within love stories within love stories, and sorrows and joys passed from generation to generation, this is the intricate, luminous tale of a family’s complicated past and present. And only in telling their stories can they hope to rewrite their futures.
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What will you be reading in September? Share your picks in the comments below!
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Lara Rosales
By day, Lara Rosales (she/her) is a solo mom by choice and a bilingual writer with a BA in Latin-American Literature who works in PR. By night, she is a TV enjoyer who used to host a podcast (Cats, Milfs & Lesbian Things). You can find her work published on Tell-Tale TV, Geek Girl Authority, Collider, USA Wire, Mentors Collective, Instelite, Noodle, Dear Movies, Nicki Swift, and Flip Screened.
