Archives de catégorie : LGBTQ+

WE CAN NEVER LEAVE de H.E. Edgmon

Sweet Tooth meets The Raven Boys in this queer young adult contemporary fantasy about what it means to belong.

WE CAN NEVER LEAVE
by H.E. Edgmon
Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Publishing Group, June 2025

You can never go home…

Every day, all across the world, inhuman creatures are waking up with no memory of who they are or where they came from–and the Caravan exists to help them. The traveling community is made up of these very creatures and their families who’ve acclimated to this new existence by finding refuge in each other. That is, until the morning five teenage travelers wake to find their community has disappeared around them overnight.

Those left: a half-human who only just ran back to the Caravan with their tail between their legs, two brothers–one who can’t seem to stay out of trouble and the other who’s never been brave enough to get in it, a venomous girl with blood on her hands and a heart of gold, and the Caravan’s newest addition, a disquieting shadow in the shape of a boy. They’ll have to work together to figure out what happened the night of the disappearance, but each one of the forsaken five is white-knuckling their own secrets. And with each truth forced to light, it becomes clear this isn’t really about what happened to their people–it’s about what happened to them.

H.E. Edgmon did not sleep for several years and is now the author of copious novels and short works for tweens, teens, and adults. Their line-up includes The Witch King duology, the Ouroboros duology, and The Flicker, and their writing has been described as “monstrously thrilling, deeply emotional” by School Library Journal. Across genres, H.E. hopes to find readers in their darkest moments and help them start a fire. In their laughably limited free time, they’re likely hosting themed parties for no reason or trying to predict the future. They live in the Pacific Northwest, surrounded by chosen family and giant dogs.

NOBODY IN PARTICULAR de Sophie Gonzales

Young Royals meets The Prince and Me when a disgraced princess falls for a new student at their all-girls boarding school, but the two must hide their forbidden love at all costs.

NOBODY IN PARTICULAR
by Sophie Gonzales
Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s, June 2025

Princess Rosemary of Henland can’t afford distractions. She’s working tirelessly to repair her image following a scandal that lost the trust of both her country and her best friend. Unfortunately, when a beautiful and funny new student joins her boarding school, Rose finds herself quite distracted indeed.

Attending Bramppath College on a music scholarship, talented pianist Danni expects to be an outcast amongst the wealthy children of the elite, but she is pleasantly surprised to be taken in by the ex-best friend of the princess. The more Danni gets to know her new classmates, the more intrigued she becomes by Rose.

When somebody sees something they shouldn’t and rumors circulate throughout Henland, Rose and Danni must either find a way to deflect the ever-increasing eyes on their relationship, or end it altogether. Because one thing is clear: if Rose’s fragile reputation takes any more hits, the palace will do whatever they must to separate Rose and Danni. Forever.

Sophie Gonzales is a young adult contemporary author. She graduated from the University of Adelaide and lives in Adelaide, Australia, where she can be found ice skating, painting, and practicing the piano. She is also the author of Perfect on Paper, Only Mostly Devastated, and The Law of Inertia, and If This Gets Out with Cale Dietrich.

DON’T LET ME GO de Kevin Christopher Snipes

They Both Die at the End meets See You Yesterday in this speculative YA romance about two star-crossed boys trapped in a millennium-spanning cycle of reincarnation whose only hope of escape may be a price that neither is willing to pay.

DON’T LET ME GO
by Kevin Christopher Snipes
HarperCollins Children’s Books, May 2025

Out and proud, Riley Iverson knows there’s nothing more cringe than crushing on a straight boy. But from the moment that the handsome, sporty, and painfully heterosexual Jackson Haines walks into his life, Riley can’t help but feel an instant and undeniable connection. Mainly because, as impossible as it seems, Jackson is the spitting image of the boy who’s recently appeared in Riley’s dreams—dreams set in another time and another place where he and Jackson were desperately in love.

At first Riley tries to dismiss the coincidence as a product of his hormone-fueled, overactive imagination, but as his friendship with Jackson deepens into something more, the dreams prove harder to ignore. Especially when Jackson begins having them too. Plunged into increasingly vivid visions of the past, the boys find themselves in various eras scattered throughout history. No matter where or when their dreams take them, though, two things remain constant: Riley and Jackson are always together, and they always die at the end.

As it becomes increasingly difficult to view their dreams as anything but warnings, the boys are forced to consider the possibility that their burgeoning relationship might be propelling them headfirst into their own tragic ending. But is it worth staying apart to save their lives if the price is forsaking a love that has defied not only time and space but even death itself?

Kevin Christopher Snipes is a New York–based writer who was born and raised in Florida. He spent his early career in the theater writing plays, including A Bitter Taste and The Chimes. Later, for Gimlet Media/Spotify, he created the queer fantasy podcast The Two Princes. His children’s poetry and short fiction have been published internationally, and his debut novel, Milo and Marcos at the End of the World, was an official selection of the NEA’s Read Across America program. 

WANDERLUST de Rachel Lynn Solomon

A senior year trip to Europe holds romantic surprises for two best friends in this sweet and swoony YA novel from a beloved New York Times bestselling author.

WANDERLUST
by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Simon & Schuster BYR, Spring 2026
(via Sterling Lord Literistic)

A Young Adult romantic comedy about best friends who vow to lose their virginities on a spring break trip to Europe, ideally to their respective crushes—a plan complicated by their growing feelings for each other.

Rachel Lynn Solomon is the New York Times bestselling author of The Ex Talk, Today Tonight Tomorrow, and other romantic comedies for teens and adults. Originally from Seattle, she is currently navigating expat life with her husband in Amsterdam, where she can often be found exploring the city, collecting stationery, and working up the courage to knit her first sweater.

JUST SHY OF ORDINARY d’A. J. Sass

In this heartfelt novel about family, friendship, and identity perfect for fans of The List of Things That Will Not Change and Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World, a thirteen-year-old nonbinary kid discovers that life doesn’t always go according to plan—especially when they start public school for the first time.

JUST SHY OF ORDINARY
by A. J. Sass
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, January 2024
(via JABberwocky Literary Agency)

Thirteen-year-old Shai is an expert problem-solver. There’s never been something they couldn’t research and figure out on their own. But there’s one thing Shai hasn’t been able to logic their way through: picking at the hair on their arms.

Ever since their mom lost her job, the two had to move in with family friends, and the world went into pandemic lockdown, Shai’s been unable to control their picking. Now, as the difficult times recede and everyone begins to discover their “new normal,” Shai’s hoping the stress that caused their picking will end, too.

After reading that a routine can reduce anxiety, Shai makes a plan to create a brand new normal for themself that includes going to public school. But when their academic evaluation places them into 9th grade instead of 8th, it sets off a chain of events that veer off the path Shai had prepared for, encouraging Shai to learn how to accept life’s twists and turns, especially when you can’t plan for them.

“Via sensitive depictions of Shai’s skin picking, as well as sincere prose that yields richly developed characters, relationships, and interactions, Sass captures the tension and dread of grappling with a hidden illness during a tumultuous transition. » —Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review

“Shai’s struggles with identity, anxiety, first love, and faith will resonate with middle grade and young adult readers. » —School Library Journal

“Sass writes about intersectionality with plainspoken authenticity and normalizes asking for (and accepting) help from loved ones… An empathetic portrayal of multifaceted identities and the challenges of facing change. » —Booklist

“Shai’s tenderhearted first-person voice will keep readers rooting for them until the book’s final pages. Moving and memorable.” —Kirkus Reviews

“While Sass tackles several heavy subjects in this affecting novel, readers remain hopeful as Shai comes out of each trial a stronger person. » —Horn Book Review

“This is a nuanced, empathetic novel packed with the ups and downs of school and home life.” —Jewish Book Council

A. J. Sass (he/they) is the author of the ALA Rainbow Book List Top 10 titles Ellen Outside the Lines, which was also a Sydney Taylor Honor Book, and Ana on the Edge, as well as Camp QUILTBAG (co-written with Nicole Melleby). He grew up in the Midwest and South, spending many of his summers with his family enjoying the beautiful Northwoods lakes and scenery in Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his husband and two cats who act like dogs.