The best time of the year is here – Pride Month! And during it, many, many, many queer books are releasing. (We advise you to get them all.) Have a wonderful pride month and happy reading to all!
On June 1st, we're starting with Achillean dystopian short Paris at Nightfall by Merlina Garance, free to download via Merlina's newsletter as well as available in the usual places!
In an early 20th century Paris emptied of its population and surveilled by the army, two men are trying to survive. Would that include falling in love?
Jules has been surviving off of preserves he scavenges out in the city when he leaves his hideout at night.
He never knew why one day, the Army hauled the whole town’s population into vans and evacuated the city.
He only knows he’s the only one left behind.
Or so he thought.
When he runs into a blond aristocrat with nice hands on an outing, his world is turned upside down once again...
Also on June 1st, you can grab a new sapphic cosy fantasy by T. A. Hall, Rum, Whisky, Faeries & Other Spirits, which also includes a nonbinary MC.
Magic and alcohol come together in this spellbinding tale of identity and romance.
A disillusioned bartender, Myra Jennings, is given a once in a life time chance to work alongside the quirky and sultry alchemist, Adelaide Hawthorne. The Bloom Witch, as she is better known, is the top brewer in New Albion.
Now the two must come together to create a new drink fit for the king himself.
Myra must enter a new world of magic and high-class society where they must put their unique skills and love life on the line, all for the sake of their job.
Potions, Cocktails & Lesbians… working a nine to five has never been so rewarding or so dangerous.
On June 1st, you can also get queer, fantastical anthology Of Stardust edited by Avrah C. Baren.
An anthology of queer, speculative fiction with stories from distant galaxies and fantastical new worlds. Of Stardust brings you tales of knights and space travelers, love and resilience, and monsters who just might be heroes. Each story is unapologetically queer and shows us a world where we all belong (even the sea monsters).
Stories:
Avrah C. Baren
Lillian Barry
Gabriella Buba
Talia Greer
P. H. Low
Alistair Reeves
Rose Regeant
Valo Wing
T. B. Wright
An urban fantasy featuring transfem, lesbian, and nonbinary characters named A Little Vice by Erin Elkin is coming out on June 1st.
A trans magical girl story for anyone who's ever felt like there's wonder and beauty in the world, but it's not meant for them.
The Angelic Saints are the only force protecting the hearts of innocents from the evil Abyssal Forest and its monstrous Beasts. Juggling their responsibilities as magical girls with high school and their other friendships, the Saints will never give up their struggle against the forces of sin!
But Charlie isn't one of them. He has no magic, no powers and no hidden wells of inner strength he can use to triumph over the villains. He is not beautiful nor strong nor brave, no matter how much he wishes he could be. Instead, he finds himself held hostage by nearly every other monster of the week, watching as his dearest friends grow into the amazing people they were always meant to be.
Charlie would give anything to stand with the Saints. But when he finally gets a chance to step onto that stage and claim everything he's ever wanted, Charlie discovers that the price may be a little too high.
On June 4th, get excited for Wish You Weren't Here, a sapphic romance by Erin Baldwin.
Juliette doesn’t hate Priya Pendley.
At least, not in the way teen movies say she should hate the hot popular girl. They don’t do cat fights, love triangles, or betrayal. To survive their intertwined small town lives, they agree to a truce: complete group projects without fighting, don’t gossip to mutual friends, and stand on opposite sides of photos so it’s easy to crop each other out.
Priya seems to have everything during the school year—social media stardom, the handsome track captain boyfriend, and millions of adoring fans. And Juliette is at peace with that, because she has Fogridge Sleepaway Camp, the one place she never feels like “too much.”
But Juliette’s dreams of five Priya-free weeks in paradise are shattered when her rival shows up on move-in day... as her cabinmate, no less. Juliette is determined to enjoy her final summer at camp, even if it means (gag) tolerating Priya Pendley, but fate seems has other plans. If Juliette can’t find something to like about her situation—and about Priya—she risks hating the only home she’s ever had, right before she says goodbye to it forever.
Sea of Broken Glass by Jenna Pine is an adult fantasy starring two LGBT+ sisters and is filled with an exploration of family dynamics, deconstruction, and the restoration of things that are broken. It's coming out on June 4th.
Banished from their small, floating village for forbidden magic, can two sisters work together before the harsh crystalline wilderness kills them—or they kill each other?
Elodie—desperate to become the village’s next priestess—hopes to atone for their mother’s magical destruction, still haunting her family after twenty years. Loxy, her younger sister, wants nothing more than to find their mother, banished long ago for the same magic Loxy now hides. Though they are bound by blood, the sisters live in constant contention, always arguing about Loxy’s magic and the danger it poses to their lives in the village.But when a meteor shower full of divine power grants Elodie magic of her own and gives Loxy new power, the two are cast out of their isolated, floating village, just like their mother before them, and into the crystalline wilderness full of dangerous beasts, deadly landscapes, and vicious people. They are destitute and alone when a voice calls to them, one steeped in the very source of their magic… along with a mysterious person who claims they know how to fix everything. With nowhere else to go, Loxy embraces the help and sets out to find the mother she’s certain still lives, and Elodie reluctantly follows.
But with every step, each sister’s hopes for the future deepen the rift between them. When they are finally confronted with the answers to all their questions, the sisters must learn to work together or lose each other—and perhaps their very humanity—forever.
Sapphic historical romance, A Bluestocking's Guide to Decadence by Jess Everlee, which is third in the Lucky Lovers of London series, is coming out on June 4th.
Love can make even the most buttoned-up bluestocking come undone…
London, 1885
A lesbian in a lavender marriage, Jo Smith cuts a dashing figure in pin-striped trousers, working in her bookshop and keeping impolite company. But her hard-earned stability is about to be upended thanks to her husband’s pregnant paramour, who needs medical attention that no reputable doctor will provide.
Enter Dr. Emily Clarke, a tantalizing bluestocking working at a quaint village hospital outside the city. Emily has reservations about getting mixed up in Jo’s scandalous arrangement, but her flustered, heart-racing response to Jo has her agreeing to help despite herself.
There’s a world of difference between Jo’s community of underground clubs and sapphic societies and Emily’s respectable suburbs. Perhaps it’s a gap that even fervent desire can’t bridge. But for those bold enough to take the risk, who knows what delicious adventures might be in store…
Also on June 4th, you can grab YA sapphic romance London On My Mind by Clara Alves.
Sixteen-year-old Dayana has always dreamed of visiting London -- to walk along the Thames, take pictures outside Buckingham Palace, and maybe even get a glimpse of Arthur, Prince of Wales, whose marriage has been all over tabloids. But the trip of her dreams turns into a royal nightmare when her mother passes away. Now, Day must leave Rio de Janeiro to live with her estranged father and his new family in London.
As it turns out, the U.K. isn't exactly Day's cup of tea. She struggles to forgive her father for walking out on her and her mom all those years ago; fights with her stepsister constantly; detests her stepmother; and she can't even see One Direction in concert because they've been broken up for ages. All she wants to do is trade the rainy skies of London for the sun and beaches of Rio.
That's when she runs into the girl of her dreams -- literally: The coincidentally named Diana, a witty, funny, redhead who was in the middle of . . . escaping Buckingham Palace? Something isn't right here, but it makes Diana all the more alluring. As time passes, and the two girls grow closer, Day can't help but wonder if there is more than a little truth to the rumors surrounding Prince Arthur -- and if Diana might be involved somehow. Is it all in her head, or could Day be caught up in a real-life royal scandal?
You can grab sapphic contemporary romance Looking for a Sign by Susie Dumond on June 11th.
A newly single queer woman moves to New Orleans and sets off on a mission to find her most compatible match by going on a date with someone of each astrological sign in this rom-com from the author of Queerly Beloved.
With her twenty-ninth birthday approaching, Gray is determined to meet someone, settle down, and build the loving, accepting family she’s always wanted—and didn’t grow up with. But having just moved to New Orleans for a new job working for a demanding boss, and with her last first date a decade in the past, Gray has no idea how to go about finding her future spouse.
When her best friend Cherry suggests Gray look for answers from Madame Nouvelle Lune, an astrologer, Gray’s skeptical. But she’s also desperate. So when Madame encourages her to look to the stars, she finds herself in Cherry’s kitchen, mapping out a plan: go on a date with someone of each sign before her birthday, when Saturn will make its first return to the same celestial alignment as her birth (a major turning point in every person’s life, she’s learned). As Gray moves through this quintessentially queer dating challenge while juggling her new job, she learns a lot about the Zodiac—and even more about her own needs, desires, and sense of adventure. Even when it begins to threaten everything she thinks she believes, Gray is determined to finish what she started while the planets are still on her side.
Also on June 11th, another sapphic contemporary romance, Director's Cut by Carlyn Greenwald, is coming out.
After taking a guest teaching gig, Oscar-winning Valeria Sullivan finds herself trapped in a battle of wits with her sexy co-professor, but can she keep her cool when things heat up in and out of the classroom?At twenty-nine, Valeria Sullivan is a celebrated, award-winning actress. But when her acting options start to decline and her attempt to transition to directing is complicated by a bad interview on a late night show, Val decides she’s had enough of Hollywood. Intent on pursuing a neglected passion, she pours herself into a guest professorship at USC, hoping to transition to academia fulltime.Standing in her way is her co-professor, Maeve Arko, whose brilliance and beauty is matched only by her contempt for Val. As Val rises to the challenges that teaching throws at her, though, Maeve starts to soften, and soon sparks are flying.Now with a job and a girlfriend she adores, Val should be happy. But Hollywood isn’t done with Val quite yet. Her directorial debut, Oakley in Flames, starts getting attention, and soon Val has to choose between her obligations to her class—and Maeve—and the burgeoning dream Hollywood career she may not be ready to leave behind.
Chloe Keto's sapphic teacher romance, Caretaking Love, releases on June 15th.
Vic Davies is very happy as Sandford Secondary Academy’s Site Manager. She’s well known around Birmingham to be good with her hands – both in her job and at Tulips, her favourite local nightclub. She loves helping others — but something is missing.
Redhead English teacher Georgia Smith-Ashfield doesn’t need anyone. She’s laser focussed on her career and has a life plan with her fictional dream woman – straight haired, suit-wearing, professional Veronica.
What happens when a mistake by a confident butch Site Manager ignites a lust that the career focused English teacher didn’t know she held? Will the fiery literary fan’s pride get the better of her or will she recognise in time that her career and cat need some company to complete her personal literary tale?
Sometimes love works best complemented by tools, paint and plenty of books… See for yourself whether the sparks are due to dodgy building wiring or Georgia and Vic’s chemistry…
On June 15th you can also grab Shadows Dark and Deadly by Andrea Marie Johnson, the first book in the dark and steamy Red Society series featuring a MF and FF why choose romance.
Slowly freezing in the snow and a knife to the gut are two awful ways to die.
And Cerise would very much like to avoid both. A mysterious man steps from the shadows with an offer of food, a bed, and a roof over her head. The catch? She'll have to become his assassin apprentice. Her hands are already stained with the blood of five men. What's a little more?
But training to be an assassin isn’t easy and learning to control her magic even less. To complicate things, Cerise can’t fight her attraction to her mentor, Keir, or his charming best friend, Damara. It wouldn't be a problem if she wasn't a dirty street rat. Well, that and society isn't ready for two women to be together.
Everything heats up as an arsonist stalks the streets. His targets? Brothel owners and Cerise's aunt is at the top of his list. Can Cerise get strong enough to help Keir hunt him down or will her aunt become another tragic death that haunts her nightmares?
YA sapphic contemporary Old Palmetto Drive by S. E. Reed is coming out on June 18th.
Teen socialite Rian Callusa’s privileged NY life is over! Following her parent’s nasty divorce, and the death of her aunt & uncle, Rian’s mom drags her kicking and screaming all the way to Everglades City. Who cares if her new home is a mansion when it’s in the middle of nowhere without a nail salon or shopping mall in sight? And friends? Hell might as well freeze over before Rian would hang out with her hillbilly cousins.
The news that her Dad won’t be returning to New York after his job abroad crushes any hope Rian had of moving back to the Big Apple. So without a plan B, Rian explores the swamp and learns her cousins aren’t as backward as they first appeared. She even falls head over heels for a cute vintage-loving local girl. Now that she thinks about it, this might turn out to be the best summer of Rian’s life! Until her cousin Travis gets drunk at a party and confesses the dark truth about what really happened on Old Palmetto Drive, sending Rian into a tailspin of fear and self-doubt.
On June 26th, Maya Darjani takes you on a queer adventure into space with Ancient as the Stars.
One kickass immortal sailship captain.
Captain Karenna Yilmaz of the Earth Union Fleet has it all. Adoring husband? Check. The enduring loyalty of her crew? Check. Transformation into a beautiful ageless immortal? Check. Check. Check. But when a dimensional rift brings her low-down, dust-sniffing, no-good younger self hurtling into the present, Karenna's carefully-constructed life wavers.
One snarky dust-addicted loser.
Flight Officer Ren Yilmaz is pretty sick of the hand she's been dealt. Her supervisor is an idiot. Her ex-husband is vindictive and has ruined her career. And now, here's her perfect future self, who everyone fawns over, while Ren is still ignored and alone.
They're the same person, 60 years apart
Both their ships are one in space, one in time. Karenna needs to get her crew home safe and sound. And Ren has to get back to her reality and out of Karenna's shadow. Working together would mean literally facing their past–including old traumas and transgressions best kept hidden. But if they don't, they'll be stuck with each other until the end of time.
Queer romance Cleats, Corsets, and the Cutie by Ashish Rastogi releases on June 26th.
One football star, one drag queen, and a pansexual. Eliot’s closet is crowded. Living one life is tough. Living three!? Eliot craves acceptance. He wants to show the world his flamboyance. Most of all, he yearns for a love that accepts the different parts of his life.
The floodlights and the spotlights make him wary till he crosses paths with the Indian chef, Raghuvendra, with his ‘tutti-frutti’ English, who speaks in the third person. Six months is long enough to make goo-goo eyes from across the stage. Eliot needs to make a move on the cuddle-worthy bear.
But? What if he shows Raghu who he really is and all that he has worked for burns down? While his cleats and corsets are stored in the safety of different compartments of his life, Eliot must find a way to keep the cutie.
On June 27th, get excited for lesbian romance Hot Summer by Elle Everhart.
This summer, things are about to heat up. Cas Morgan has spent years of her life watching Hot Summer, the hit dating show that pairs together a bunch of sexy singles in an exotic island location. But she never quite thought she’d be a part of it, until her company secures a partnership with the show and Cas is handpicked as a contestant. If she does well and makes it to the finals, her long-awaited promotion will be secure. Cas is ready to spend the summer trying to win over the voting public. But just as she steps into the villa, her entire plan goes off course. She’s instantly smitten with fellow contestant, Ada. Ada is gorgeous and charming. As Cas’s feelings for Ada become undeniable, she’s torn between listening to her heart or sticking to her strategy.
Also on our radar...
Where Willows Weep by Luna Fiore out on 4th | bi and trans rep
Hell For Hire by Rachel Aaron out on 4th | gender fluid rep
The Pull of the Tide out on 4th | A Sapphic Fantasy Romance Anthology
We Could Be Heroes by PJ Ellis out on 6th | MLM high-concept split-timeline love story
Promise Me, Lord Heartwood by Mary VanAlstine out on 14th | Urban fantasy queer romance
Dandelion by Merlina Garance out on 15th | Autistic and Bisexual MC
Reboot by Melara Dark out on 16th | sci-fi post-apocalypse dystopian time loop
Under the Dragon Moon by Mawce Hanlin out on 20th | Trans and Queer MC
The Mended Hearts Bookshop by Sienna Waters out on 27th | Lesbian, Bi, plus sized rep
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