The 20 Best New Queer Books Out in September 2024

Aaron’s karaoke bar needs a miracle to stay in business — and in walks internet-famous drag queen Regina Moon Dee. Her performances are just what Aaron needs, but what he doesn’t know is that behind the makeup is his childhood sweetheart, Rex. Rex is going to great lengths to keep his identity secret, but it’s time for him to stop dividing himself into his legal assistant day life and drag queen nightlife — and only then will he have a shot at pursuing the one who got away.

Speaking of the one who got away, Remi has always regretted letting the relationship between her and Maxine end on bad terms when they were teenagers. But now Maxine is divorced and back in town, and Remi is determined to pick up where they left off. Maxine is a mom now, though, and hesitant to commit, so they decide to go on ten friend dates together first. The only problem? They keep resetting the count because they can’t keep their hands off each other.

Amanda Dean is a bisexual disaster who is getting ready for her wedding — but is this really “the one”? She looks back on all her previous relationships to decide if it’s worth opening herself up to her heart being broken again, or if she should run now.

Okay, enough romance! Here is the epic conclusion to the sapphic fantasy trilogy that started with The Final Strife. There will be war, rebellions, new gods, and a fire to end it all. This is inspired by African and Arab mythology.

And once you finish that trilogy, why not start this one? In the kingdom where Lorel lives, the trees are dying off, and there are rumors that witches are doing it. Despite that, Lorel wants nothing more than to become a witch — but only women can, and she is afraid she’ll be rejected for being trans. When she goes in disguise in place of her best friend, she learns magic and fights back against the threats closing in on the kingdom — but she also worries that she’ll lose everything if her secret comes out. This looks like a great pick for fans of Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson!

In this sapphic fantasy romance, Lorelei is a folklorist on an expedition with six other nobles sent by the king to find a fabled spring that will grant him power. When their leader is murdered in her quarters, though, each member of the expedition becomes a suspect. Lorelei will have to team up with her academic rival Sylvia to find the culprit before they strike again. As Lorelai and Sylvia work together, their feelings for each other grow, and they uncover secrets that have them questioning whether this kingdom is worth saving.

Honestly, this sapphic take on Lucy Westenra from Dracula rocketed up my TBR when I saw this Instagram post from the author: “Every time I get a one-star review for LUCY UNDYING because it’s a sapphic love story at its undead heart, I only become more powerful. Growing up secretly queer while Mormon didn’t destroy me, nothing can.”

I’m a simple reader: I hear “toxic queer polycule horror novella in space,” and that book immediately goes on my TBR. Amera escaped her abusive (and murderous) family, and now she’s joining the New Belaforme colonization project alongside her fiancée Vinh and childhood friend Jesse. But this new world comes with complications: it produces a “self-cleaning” mechanism called the Gray. The scientists assure them it only attacks invasive organisms, but when a rival colony arrives, the three find themselves battling them, the Gray — and each other, as jealousy overtakes them.

Another queer horror novel out today is We Came to Welcome You, the adult debut from the author of Burn Down, Rise Up. Sol and her wife Alice just bought a house in the gated community of Maneless Grove, but Sol is suspicious: on top of the constant microaggressions, there’s also the weirdly pushy HOA and their complicated contract. Then, she starts seeing doors and stairs shift around the house. Alice thinks she’s drinking too much and acting erratically, but when Sol discovers a journal from the previous owner, she realizes how they got this house so cheap.

I loved The Spirit Bares Its Teeth, so I had to pick up Andrew Joseph White’s newest. This is a YA thriller about Miles Abernathy, a trans autistic teenager caught in a generational feud between his family — who fought for the miners’ union — and the sheriff’s family. Trying to get justice left Miles beaten nearly to death by the sheriff’s son, and when he wakes up in the hospital, he sees the ghost of his dead ancestor, Saint Abernathy. This is a brutal, bloody, political thriller that will stick with me. Miles is also on the aromantic spectrum.

You might remember Aislinn Brophy’s name from their first sapphic YA fantasy book, How To Succeed in Witchcraft, and now they’re back with another! In this bisexual/lesbian F/F YA fantasy, Luna is a witch, so when she and her non-magical girlfriend Aoife break up, she’s obligated by law to cast a spell so that Aoife won’t remember their time together. But the spell goes wrong, and they both forget…and start dating again, caught in a loop. Are they doomed to keep breaking up, or do they belong together?

It’s finally time for book two of this gay trans YA fantasy duology from the author of Cemetery Boys! This highly anticipated sequel will have these semidioses fighting monsters, defying gods, and — hopefully — saving the world from eternal night.

Erin and Max are two trans teens on a road trip to California — until they are stranded in a small Kentucky town. The locals think they’re in luck: they’ve been looking for a girl to sacrifice to the monster in the woods. But Erin and Max are not going down without a fight.

This queer YA graphic novel retelling Emma looks absolutely adorable. Evan is an Instagram influencer who loves playing matchmaker, but when he ignores his friend Davi’s advice about setting up the new transfer student, the ensuing drama soon spirals out of control.

Finally, we have new queer YA nonfiction from the author of All Boys Aren’t Blue and We Are Not Broken. This essay collection discusses the queer and Black icons of the Harlem Renaissance, accompanied by illustrations by Charly Palmer.