Even though Pride Month is over, there are plenty of LGBTQIA books coming out the rest of the year for you to keep the pride going. It is important that we read stories that represent us, give us hope, and keep reminding the world that we’re here, we’re queer, and we’re not going anywhere.
If you have read the books in our LGBTQIA picks for June, we have 7 new titles to add to your TBR list. Kody Keplinger, Richard Mercado, and Kit Rosewater 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 July:
1. Where Lost Girls Go by Kody Keplinger – July 7
Six girls become sisters after they end up living in a cabin deep in the woods of Kentucky. Sol, the cabin’s owner, promises to protect them as long as they remain loyal to him. But when Sol introduces the girls to a new family member, Rose, things begin to change for Iris.
While she gives all her loyalty to Sol, no questions asked, everything begins to change when the new girl arrives, and Iris questions the life they now lead. Her sisters beg her to remain loyal to Sol, but things begin to look different, and Iris doesn’t know who Sol truly is.
Book Description: From New York Times bestselling author Kody Keplinger comes an addicting read that’s The Girls by Emma Cline meets The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson.
There are many reasons why six girls have ended up living with Sol in a cabin deep in the Kentucky woods. But the girls don’t talk about what has brought them each here or who they were before. The have become sisters and are grateful to have a place to call home.
Iris knows she owes everything to Sol. He has promised to keep them safe from their pasts. All he asks in return is for their loyalty, which Iris freely gives. With her sisters and Sol as her family, she feels happier than she has in a long time. Until a new girl arrives and everything changes. Sol dubs her Rose and the sisters are quick to welcome her.
Iris is drawn Rose, but as they grow closer, Rose has Iris questioning things about this life in the woods. When Sol notices, he challenges Iris to prove her commitment to their family. Her sisters tell her that she should be willing to do anything for the man who saved her. But with each new ask, Iris realizes there is more to Sol – and her sisters – than she knows, and some secret should stay buried deep.
New York Times bestselling author Kody Keplinger weaves a stunning story about girlhood, power, and desperation that asks just how far we’ll go to save ourselves – and those we love.
2. Coming Out Perfect by Richard Mercado – July 7
Kevin has tried everything to come out of the closet, but his parents continue to ignore him. After his last attempt, he decides to become like Raymond, the popular gay kid at his high school. He thinks if he can emulate Raymond, everything will be perfect and people will pay attention to him.
However, as he begins to live in Raymond’s shadow, he realizes there are things he can and can’t do, which involves abandoning his not-so-cool friends. Is this new life what Kevin truly wants? Is living his true self behind worth being perfect?
Book Description: From Ignatz-nominated cartoonist Richard Mercado comes a refreshingly honest and moving YA graphic novel perfect for fans of queer coming-of-age stories like Heartstopper.
When Kevin’s parents ignore his attempts to come out of the closet, he devises a plan to become more like Raymond, the popular gay kid at his high school. After all, if Kevin can do everything perfectly, too, then people will have to pay attention to him. But life under Raymond’s wing isn’t a dress code, new things Kevin can and can’t do, and even abandoning his old “uncool” friends. Perfection comes at a cost, and Kevin must decide whether it’s worth the sacrifice.
3. Free Girls by Kristen McCallum – July 7
Jas spent twelve months at Guiding Hearts Home for Troubled Girls and came out to a new life. The moment she returned, her mother asked her to keep her past a secret in order to have a fresh start. That means lying to her stepsister and her new besties, but Jas seems to believe it might be for the best when she starts falling for the cute girl in class.
However, everything is about to backfire on her when an old friend from the detention center reaches out to reconnect. Can Jas keep her past away from the new life she’s built for herself? Or will she have to tell everyone the truth and risk losing everything?
Book Description: A heartfelt coming-of-age debut about a girl starting over while keeping secret she’s spent the last year in juvenile detention. Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and Leah Johnson.
Sixteen-year-old Jasmine Cooper is back after twelve months at Guiding Hearts Home for Troubled Girls, and nothing is the way it was. Her mom has remarried and now there’s a big new house, a shiny new family, and a fancy new school. Jas feels completely out of place, and things only get more complicated when her mom insists that her “fresh start” include hiding the truth of where she’s been and cutting off people from her past.
As Jas settles into her new life bonding with her seemingly perfect stepsister, making a close-knit group of besties, and maybe even falling for the cute girl in class, it starts to feel like her second chance might actually be real.
But when a friend from the detention center reaches out to reconnect, Jas worries that everything she’s built could fall apart. How long can she keep her past a secret? And how many times can she spin the truth before she forgets who she really is?
4. Buried Feelings by Kit Rosewater – July 7
Back in the day, Cam and Ivy used to run through San Francisco hand in hand as part of a treasure hunt. Back when they were friends and the betrayal didn’t weigh on them. Now that they are both living their life freely as their true selves, their friendship doesn’t feel as liberating and as strong. The biggest issue? Ivy can’t talk about Cam’s betrayal without revealing her own secrets.
But then Ivy comes across the missing piece that will lead her to solve the treasure hunt of their childhood. If she can put the pieces together, she can come out on top. When Cam hears Ivy is interested again, they decide to start digging as well. Will this heal their friendship? Or will it ruin it further?
Book Description: When a San Francisco treasure hunt ropes two ex-besties back together, they’ll end up digging into their own complicated, buried feelings in this queer YA rom com!
Cam was the one who discovered the hunt. He brought it to Ivy like an offering, took her hand as they combed through San Francisco, searching for treasure and conspiring against the heteronormative agenda. But that was back then.
Now juniors, they’re both out and proud—Cam as a trans man and Ivy as gay—but their friendship isn’t as assured. Problem is, Ivy can’t reveal Cam’s past betrayal without airing closely guarded secrets of her own.
As Ivy comes across the missing link in the treasure hunt from their childhood, she’s certain she can put the clues together and finally come out on top in the cat-and-mouse game Cam’s been playing with her ever since their friendship ended.
Once Cam gets wind of Ivy’s renewed interest in the hunt, the ex-best friends will go head-to-head in their search for gold. But as they get digging, they’ll uncover more things buried between them than they bargained for.
5. Fabulous Bodies by Chuck Tingle – July 7
By day, Poppy Stringer is a famous fashion influencer. By night, she is a grave-robber. When Eddie Michaels, a queer icon, piano-slamming rockstar, dies, Poppy is in charge of retrieving the body from the medical examiner’s office.
However, as Poppy begins what she believes to be a routine shift, everything changes when Eddie wakes up. Now, she finds herself in the fight of a lifetime, running around Palm Springs. Will she make it out alive?
Book Description: From Chuck Tingle, USA Today bestselling author of Bury Your Gays, comes Fabulous Bodies, a supernatural joyride where Drive meets Beetlejuice.
Fashion influencer by day and grave-robber by night, Poppy Stringer is on call when Eddie Michaels—a flamboyant, piano-slamming rockstar and queer icon—unexpectedly dies. All Poppy has to do is retrieve Eddie’s body from the medical examiner’s office, but what starts as a routine delivery quickly goes off course when Eddie wakes up.
Poppy must fight for her life in a blood-soaked night of carnage and fabulous entertainment all across Palm Springs.
6. Hallie’s Rules for a Recovering Romantic by Jessica Lewis – July 7
Hallie has had her heart broken six times, and even though she loves romance, she’s beginning to feel that romance doesn’t love her. That’s why she jumps at the opportunity to attend a prestigious academic Summer camp. She believes this is the perfect opportunity to reinvent herself, stay away from romance, and become a better version of herself.
But when Hallie is paired with Julia as her roommate, her chances of staying away from romance become very slim. Even though Julia has an icy shell around her, the two become very close. But as their bond grows, Hallie begins to wonder if Julia is looking for the reinvented version of her or the unfiltered Hallie that first arrived at the camp.
Book Description: Perfect for fans of Erin Baldwin and Elise Bryant, this sapphic rom-com—a companion novel to Nav’s Foolproof Guide to Falling in Love—stars a girl determined to reinvent herself, in life and in love.
Hallie loves romance, but it doesn’t seem to love her back. Her six-time broken heart can attest to that.
So when Hallie has the chance to attend a prestigious academic summer camp, she sees an opportunity not just to better herself, but to reinvent herself. Into a new Hallie who will succeed where the old one failed—in school, friends, and especially love.
First, a fresh start—which means no romance, all summer. If Hallie’s fortitude is immediately tested by Julia, her gorgeous camp roommate with an uncrackable icy shell, then all the better! Reinvention is never easy!
Yet as Hallie and Julia get closer, Hallie’s heart is in more danger than ever. With the prospect of real love on the line, can Hallie trust that New Hallie won’t make the mistakes that she did? Or is Julia looking for someone else—the unfiltered, unaltered, real Hallie?
Wish You Weren’t Here meets I Think I Love You in this sweet, summer rom-com, where plans go wonderfully astray, the best rules are broken ones, and love might actually be just around the corner.
7. The Case of Elmwood Ranch by Deanna Grey – July 15
Octavia Daniel invests her savings into Elmwood Ranch, hoping to build the safe place she’s always dreamt of. But weird things begin to happen: shadows move, accidents happen, and ranch helpers don’t want to work there anymore. Even though she doesn’t believe in ghosts, she reaches out to Rae Jones, a woman from a family who deals with paranormal investigations.
Rae has been setting herself apart from her family’s legacy but now feels burnt out. That’s why she decides to take on Octavia’s case, even when she knows Olivia doesn’t believe in ghosts. As they begin to work together, something else is born between the two women, and they don’t know whether it will benefit them or not.
Book Description: Elmwood Ranch is Octavia Daniel’s dream. A safe place to land after years on the road. But once she signs the paperwork and receives the keys, the nightmare begins.
Shadows move on their own, strange accidents become the norm, and injured ranch hands refuse to work a second longer. Octavia doesn’t believe in ghosts, but she can’t deny something’s wrong with the land she’s sunk her entire savings into.
Rae Jones is in the business of ending nightmares. She comes from a family of successful paranormal investigators. But she’s set herself apart from the Jones sisters by making their legacy into a commercial success.
After years of enjoying said success, she’s hit a wall. Whether it’s burnout or a full-blown existential crisis, she doesn’t know. One way to try to avoid a downward spiral? Take every interesting job she can get. And that includes one from a very stand-offish, nonbelieving horse rancher who thinks she’s a scam artist and the things she hunts don’t exist.
Octavia and Rae must figure out how to work together if they have any hope of solving what’s truly going on at Elmwood. As they build trust, they begin to build something more. Something that could either help or harm in making it out of this haunting alive.
The Case of Elmwood Ranch is a sapphic paranormal romance featuring bisexual leads. This book is intended for 18+ readers.
—
What will you be reading in July? Share your picks in the comments below!
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 known as a Media Relations Expert. By night, she is a TV enjoyer who used to host a podcast (Cats, Milfs & Lesbian Things). In addition to Eulalie Magazine, you can find her work published on Tell-Tale TV, Geek Girl Authority, W Spotlight, Collider, USA Wire, Mentors Collective, Instelite, Noodle, Dear Movies, Nicki Swift, and Flip Screened.