bibliophiles

devoted to all things books, especially young adult.

[fangirlfreckles]

Most anticipated of 2016 

[bookphile]

Definitely doing #readwomen next month!!!!! I'm sure with all the power men as a gender have in general, they won't mind their sales dipping a teensy bit over the month, and hopefully female writers will feel more empowered. Also, the last time I read a male author was months ago. ANYWAYS I DIDNT COME HERE TO SAY THAT: Can you please post this publicly please and I would love book recommendations for this month veryyyyyy much (I needed some anyway but this is a great excuse!!), any read alongs?

Well, it’s actually @ladybookmad who’s in charge of the ReadWomen thing here on tumblr, so speak to her. But here are my recommendations:

Deathless by Catherynne M Valente  ,

Ms. Marvel

Uprooted by Naomi Novak

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor 

 Akata the Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir 

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

Written in the Stars by Aisha Saeed

Brown Girl Dreaming byJacqueline Woodson

The Parasol Protectorate by Gail Carriger

A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan

Sunshine by Robin McKinley

Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Catalyst by Lydia Kang

Tiny Pretty Things by by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton 

Angelfall by Susan Ee

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Chocolat by Joanne Harris

Thorn by Intisar Khanani

… I think I’ll stop now.

[mermaidyke]

welcome!!!!!! this is long overdue. i’ve been promising myself i’d made this forever. so here it is - the ultimate masterpost of wlw (women loving women) books. not all characters are lesbians, some are bi or pan, though all books feature f/f relationships and/or themes. there are 150+ recommendations, so enjoy!

YOUNG ADULT CONTEMPORARY:

the miseducation of cameron post by emily m. danforth

keeping you a secret by julie anne peters

grl2grl by julie anne peters

lies my girlfriend told me by julie anne peters

far from xanadu by julie anne peters

rubyfruit jungle by rita mae brown

annie on my mind by nancy garden

kissing kate by lauren myracle

everything leads to you by nina lacour

dare truth or promise by paula boock

gravel queen by tea benduhn

her name in the sky by kelly quindlen

tell me again how a crush should feel by sara farizan

no one needs to know by amanda grace

my best friend, maybe by caela carter

dirty london by kelley york

ask the passengers by a.s. king

empress of the world by sara ryan

pages for you by sylvia brownrigg

waiting in the wings by melissa brayden

breathing underwater by lu vickers

hood by emma donoghue

between you & me by marisa calin

starting from here by lisa jenn bigelow

about a girl by sarah mccarry

the flywheel by erin gough

the necessary hunger by nina revoyr

the house you pass on the way by jacqueline woodson

about a girl by joanne horniman

gravity by leanne lieberman

another life altogether by elaine beale

great by sara benincasa

the gravity between us by kristen zimmer

taking flight by siera maley

the road to her by k.e. payne

the summer i wasn’t me by jessica verdi

unspeakabe by abbie rushton

beauty of the broken by tawni waters

read me like a book by liz kessler

starring kitty by keris stainton

holding back by mila kerr

cam girl by leah raeder

not otherwise specified by hannah moskowitz

an unstill life by kate larkindale

look both ways by alison cherry

a story of now by emily o’beirne

my summer of love by helen cross

marionette by t.b. markinson

the difference between you and me by madeleine george

the bermudez triangle by maureen johnson

girl walking backwards by bett williams

FANTASY/PARANORMAL/SCIENCE FICTION:

the dark wife by sarah diemer

twixt by sarah diemer

the witch sea by sarah diemer

sugar moon by sarah diemer

far by sarah diemer

carmilla by joseph sheridan le fanu

ash by malinda lo

huntress by malinda lo

adaption by malinda lo

the traitor baru cormorant by seth dickinson

karen memory by elizabeth bear

bleeding earth by kaitlin ward

lady knight by l.j. baker

the second sister by rae d. magdon

wild by meghan o’brien

santa olivia by jacqueline carey

everafter by nell stark

iron & velvet by alexis hall

silver kiss by naomi clark

with her body by nicola griffith

ammonite by nicole griffith

the windup girl by paolo bacigalupi

a harvest of ripe figs by shira glassman

seven by jennifer diemer

braided by elora bishop

crumbs by elora bishop

labyrinth by pearl north

the drowning girl by caitlin r. kiernan

the red tree by caitlin r. kiernan

the big lie by julie mayhew

the first twenty by jennifer lavoie

the girl in the road by monica byrne

every dark desire by fiona zedde

CRIME/MYSTERY/THRILLER:

black iris by leah raeder

dangerous girls by abigail haas

far from you by tess sharpe

slow river by nicola griffith

the blue place by nicola griffith

stay by nicola griffith

vanished by e.e. cooper

keepers of the cave by gerri hill

hunter’s way by gerri hill

child of doors by j.s. little

scars by cheryl rainfield

trust me, i’m trouble by mary elizabeth summer

out of order by casey lawrence

reconstructing amelia by kimberly mccreight

vicious little darlings by katherine easer

HISTORICAL:

the paying guests by sarah waters

tipping the velvet by sarah waters

affinity by sarah waters

the night watch by sarah waters

fingersmith by sarah waters

the price of salt by patricia highsmith (also known as carol)

wildthorn by jane eagland

silhouette of a sparrow by molly beth griffin

lies we tell ourselves by robin talley

patience & sarah by isabel miller

the hours by michael cunningham

the well of loneliness by radclyffe hall

mrs dalloway by virginia woolf

the world unseen by shamam sarif

map of ireland by stephanie grant

hild by nicole griffith

honey girl by lisa freeman

letters never sent by sandra moran

fall on your knees by ann-marie macdonald

the last nude by ellis avery

the teahouse fire by ellis avery

olivia by dorothy strachey

the friendly young ladies by mary renault

moon at nine by deborah ellis

the marriage recital by katharine grant

the crimson ribbon by katherine clements

the other typist by suzanne rindell

days of grace by catherine hall

desert of the heart by jane rule

ADULT FICTION:

sing you home by jodi picoult

and playing the role of herself by k.e. lane

i can’t think straight by shamim sarif

stone butch blues by leslie feinberg

curious wine by katherine v. forrest

the color purple by alice walker

jericho by ann mcman

oranges are not the only fruit by jeanette winterson

gut symmetries by jeanette winterson

why be happy when you could be normal? by jeanette winterson

written on the body by jeanette winterson

where we belong by catherine ryan hyde

at the water’s edge by harper bliss

behind the green curtain by riley lashea

96 hours by georgia beers

all that matters by susan x. meagher

give me a reason by lyn gardner

ice by lyn gardner

my last season with you by s.v.c. ricketts

taking the long way by lily r. mason

nightwood by djuna barnes

living at night by mariana romo-carmona

choices by nancy toder

cassandra at the wedding by dorothy baker

landing by emma donoghue

stir-fry by emma donoghue

pitifully ugly by robin alexander

COMICS BOOKS/GRAPHIC NOVELS:

blue is the warmest colour by julie maroh

fun home by alison bechdel

dykes to watch out for by alison bechdel

honor girl by maggie trash

skim by mariko tamaki

potential by ariel shrag

strangers in paradise by terry moore

NON-FICTION:

odd girls and twilight lovers by lillian faderman

surpassing the love of men by lillian faderman

chloe plus olivia by lillian faderman

to believe in women by lillian faderman

sapphistries by leila j. rupp

inseparable by emma donoghue

passions between women by emma donoghue

dear john, i love jane by candace walsh

a woman like that by joan larkin

aimee & jaguar by erica fischer

the femme mystique by leslea newman

boots of leather, slippers of gold by elizabeth lapovsky kennedy

different daughters by marcia m. gallo

between women by sharon marcus

charity and sylvia by rachel hope cleves

lesbian culture: an anthology by julia penelope

alice + freda forever by alexis coe

behind the mask by matthew dennison

[anidorikiladrataliannaisilee]

I am no longer afraid of getting old. Indeed I can’t believe I ever said anything so stupid. So childish. So offensive and arrogant. But mainly, so very, very stupid. I desperately want to grow old.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (via kiismehardy)

[anidorikiladrataliannaisilee]

If if takes fighting a war for us to meet, it will have been worth it.

Julie to Maddie, probably. (via kiismehardy)

[lotstradamus]

Thank you for your book recs tag. So many good books that I now need to read. Are there any new books you'd desperately recommend?

I’m gonna choose to interpret “new books” as “new to me” i.e. books I’ve read in the last few months, adored, and haven’t YELLED ABOUT a lot yet, sooo: 

- SIX OF CROWS BY LEIGH BARDUGO – I haven’t read the Grisha trilogy so for the first 100 or so pages of this I was pleasantly “???” about everything, but then it TOOK TF OFF and didn’t slow down again and YO, I AM IN LOVE. the tagline is “six dangerous outcasts, one impossible heist” but honestly I think “my six morally grey kids flirt dreadfully and have shenanigans” is far more fitting. shenanigans and clutch-your-heart painful backstories. (alternately: “five dangerous outcasts, and Wylan”.) CAN’T WAIT FOR ALL THE ADRENALINE-FUELLED, TORTURED SNOGGING WE’RE GONNA GET IN THE NEXT BOOK! BRING IT ON! 

- FANS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE LIFE BY KATE SCELSA – this was a very lovely, very cute, very well written little sort-of-polyamory book. it’s basically about three kids (two boys who ID as gay and one straight girl) who’re obsessed with each other, and it ACTUALLY GOES THERE. like, they take it TO THE BONE ZONE. sort of. more like the Unambiguous Oral Zone, which is preceded by the boys being like “I thought you didn’t like to kiss girls?” “I thought YOU didn’t like to kiss girls!” and then finger-gunsing each other. AAAAANYWAY, I liked it a lot. and the author replied to my tweet with a winking smiley, so she’s golden. 

- HORRORSTÖR BY GRADY HENDRIX – two words: HAUNTED IKEA. (technically it’s haunted ‘Orsk’. and Ikea actually exists in their universe, which took me out of it slightly – I think Grady should have played it like Orsk Is Ikea, not “oh, Orsk is just a rip-off Ikea!” kind of like that ONE Harry Potter mention in Fangirl that gives you whiplash. BUT, OTHER THAN THAT: BRILLOPADS, AND GENUINELY VERY SCARY.)

- WHEN EVERYTHING FEELS LIKE THE MOVIES BY RAZIEL REID – okay, this book is an ACQUIRED TASTE. three pages in I was like “wow, this is absolutely not for me”, but I just… didn’t put it down. I devoured the whole thing in one sitting because I needed to know what was going to happen. it was very nihilistic, super fucked up, sexually explicit, but DAMN, JUDE. A CHARACTER FOR OUR TIME. queer af, genderfluid (? possibly?), he belongs in an early ‘90s New Queer Cinema flick starring Andreja Pejic and directed by Gregg Araki. 

- SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA BY BECKY ALBERTELLI – hoooo boy, this was a cute book. A CUTE BOOK. I read it immediately after finishing When Everything Feels Like The Movies, because I knew I needed something sweet and nice and Uplifting Teen Movieish before going to bed, AND THIS BOOK WAS IT. such a great premise, really great protagonist, big ol’ heart eyes in my face all the way through. 

- THE REST OF US JUST LIVE HERE BY PATRICK NESS – I’ve yelled about this book once before, but it bears repeating: it’s incredible and I am highkey in love with it. buncha teenagers trying to live their lives while residing in the same town as myriad YA SF/F Chosen Ones, who keep trying to Save the World at inopportune times and ruining graduation, etc. etc. 

- BOO BY NEIL SMITH – I have definitely yelled about this one MULTIPLE TIMES, but it’s probably The Favourite out of everything I’ve read in the last year. click here for in-depth, heartfelt plug.

[novelreveries-deactivated201909]

I’m Pumped!

POPSUGAR Reading Challenge 2016

[cupsandthoughts]

Book rainbow? Yes, please!

[anidorikiladrataliannaisilee]

hey emily, do you have any book recs?

YOU BET YOUR CUTE LITTLE BUTT I DO. sorry this is late. ok here we gooooo

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein!! Source of my url!! Will make you ugly cry every time you think about it!!! Kiss me, QUICK!

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black! Possibly I am biased because I too am the Coldest Girl. Possibly it’s just really good. Vampires, but not cliche. Love triangle, but not really. Open ending!!

Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff! Deals with Issues without being About Issues. Murder mystery? Ghost story? Platonic love story? Yes, all of the above.

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell! Mostly I just want someone who has no experience with Harry Potter to read this and tell me what they think. Other than that, cute gay angsty wizard boys and fun linguistics stuff.

Tides by Betsy Cornwell! Vintage girls who like girls, modern women who like women, selkies, and deals with Issues without being About Issues!

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson! CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT EVERYWHERE. First love =/= only love! Badass women! Fantasy within a sci-fi! Also, the author names characters Storm, Waterfall, and Red Sparkle Stone and still makes it work. Nice.

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater! If you haven’t read it, you probably think it’s about angsty rich boys and their angsty rich boy problems. You’re right, except you’re totally wrong.

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama! Mermaids, and hot historical guys, and pilgrims, and ancient curses, and ghosts. Also I don’t remember how it ends, but I think it’s open and bittersweet? The best kind of ending, IMO. I’m going to reread it now.

I tried to recommend things that aren’t usually recommended, but I just had to include Carry On and the Raven Cycle.

[inbookswelust]

I would 10/10 recommend this book!

[citizen-zero]

YA literature? You mean books about Super Special White Girl and Her Mysterious Brooding Boyfriend?

[readyalit-blog]

Here’s a list of black YA leads! And ten Native American protagonists! And a list of ladies who love ladies in YA! And genderqueer / transgender YA leads! And more queer titles! And 2015 / 2016 YA books with Asian / East Asian leads! And bisexual YA leads! And Muslim YA leads! And asexual YA leads! And YA Interrobang’s entire section on diverse YA fiction! *confetti*

[hikatebishop]

PLEASE REBLOG THIS

[fixyourwritinghabits]

PLEASE DO NOT THROW THE YA GENRE UNDER THE BUS it is filled with diversity that goes far beyond whatever makes it to the movies! Please give it a chance!

[beholdingslut]

Maddie, I really want to read one of Margaret Atwood's books and you seem to know her work quite well - could you recommend something of her to read first? As a Atwood beginner, so to say. Thank you!

Oh my gosh, okay, I’ll try and do my best.

The Penelopiad: a good book to start with especially if you’re a mythology buff, it tells the tale of Odysseus’ wife, Penelope, in this beautiful lyrical prose, the series of events happening in a sort of play-like fashion. It’s relatively short and very Atwoodian, I’d say, starts with the line “Now that I’m dead I know everything.”

The Handmaid’s Tale: the first book of Atwood’s I read, I was forced to for an English class in school and naturally, I hate everything I’m forced to read. I declared a truly childish vendetta against Atwood and this book especially. However, I’ve since come to revise this opinion, this book is a masterpiece, a true classic of the dystopian genre*

The Blind Assassin: a novel within a novel, incredibly captivating plot and characters, it’s definitely a book which makes you think. The writing can drag a bit at times but it certainly does build atmosphere but the way that the plot is carefully and slowly revealed makes up for that. 

The Robber Bride: I haven’t been lucky enough to read this yet, but the description makes me very hopeful for it; it’s essentially Atwood’s version of the Grimm Brother’s “The Robber Bridegroom” and if her retelling of Penelope’s story is anything to go by, this one will be equally as brilliant. 

Morning in the Burned House: My favourite of her poetry books (I’m lucky enough to own “Eating Fire” which features most poems from 1965–1995, including these ones). Most of the poems are addressed to an unspecified “you,” a personal favourite style of mine. The first half of the book features themes of torture, especially women being tortured and includes the poem “Helen of Troy Does Countertop Dancing”; the second half focuses on age and mortality. 

[fizzlereads]

I really like that you guys have a tag for diverse books. I love ur recs so please mention some lgbtq specifically m/m books? Thank you!

Hi there, friend!

We appreciate that you mentioned the diverse books tag, because diverse books are very important to us and we love to promote them. So glad you’re looking to read one! Here are some lgbtqia+ books:

Male/male:

Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

Proxy by Alex London

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera

Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan 

I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

Fan Art by Sarah Tregay

The Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd

Disclaimer: I Like Boys by Kate Evangelista

Off Campus by Amy Jo Cousins *

Him by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy *

There You Stand by Christina Lee *

In Focus Series by Megan Erickson *

The Understatement of The Year by Sarina Bowen *

Female/female:

Far From You by Tess Sharpe

Under the Lights by Dahlia Adler

If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan

Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan

Ask the Passengers by A.S. King

Freshman Year by Annameekee Hesik

Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour

Even in Paradise by Chelsey Philpot

The Summer I Wasn’t Me by Jessica Verdi

Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

Fans of the Impossible Life by Kate Scelsa

Dirty London by Kelley York

Dating Sarah Cooper by Siera Maley 

Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley

Empress of the World by Sara Ryan 

Great by Sara Benincasa 

This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

Black Iris by Leah Raeder *

Cam Girl by Leah Raeder *

Huntress by Malinda Lo

Ash by Malinda Lo

Adaptation by Malinda Lo

Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld

The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer

Our Broken Sky by Sarah Harian 

Bisexual:

Fire by Kristin Cashore

Grasshopper by Andrew Smith

Half Bad by Sally Green

Others:

None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio (An intersex MC)

Fuel the Fire by Krista and Becca Ritchie (dual POV where one of the main characters doesn’t believe in labels (one of the main issues of this book is how society needs to label him), but his sexuality would be the closest to pansexuality. He has had m/m relationships prior the relationship with the other main character (a woman). Note that this is the third book in the Calloway Sisters series (eight in the Addicted series). Fuel the Fire is the second book where this person’s POV is featured, Kiss the Sky is the first one. If you want to read Fuel the Fire, it is highly, highly recommended that you read at least Kiss the Sky and Hothouse Flower first, because they’re continuous novels and should be read in order.) *

The Heart of Aces by Sarah Sinnaeve (Eleven short stories about asexuals and the different types of relationships they have.)

*New Adult (or Adult) books which may not be suitable for younger readers.Bolded titles are yet to be released.

We hope you find some great books to read from these! Happy reading!

Love,Fizzle Reads family

[yabookers]

Any YA books you know of featuring time travel/alternate universes? Thanks in advance :0)

I’m glad you’ve asked as I’m certainly in the mood for some time travel after finishing continuum!

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray 

Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer 

Dissonance by Erica O’Rourke 

Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini

The Edge of Forever by Melissa E Hurst

The Unquiet by Mikaela Everett

Miss Peregrine Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

A Darker Shade of Magic by Victoria Schwab

Pivot Point by Kasie West

You can have a look at these lists here and here

Does anyone else have any recommendations?

[tyblacktorn]

I’d definitely add the Ruby Red trilogy (it features time travel)

[presidentcellphone]

High Fantasy Book Haul~

[ohsomanybooks]

January Book Photo Challenge Day 20: bookstack

book spines with yellow lettering

[nitatyndall-deactivated20200510]

YA LGBTQ Novels Where the Focus Isn't Coming Out

When I was a young babygay, many of the LGBT YA novels I found were all about the angst and trials of coming out. Which is all well and good, but those can’t be the only narratives queer people see themselves in. So, I compiled this list.

I had three criteria:

Coming Out could be a part of the plot but could not be the whole focus (which is why Ask the Passengers, even though it’s good, isn’t on here, before you ask)

The protagonist/MC had to identify as queer/LGBT. No sidekick stories here.

The story could not be known to be biphobic or transphobic (which is why The Bermudez Triangle isn’t on here, also before you ask. Also bisexual-books has a great response to that book in particular, but this is not the place for that discussion.)

If you believe a novel on this list falls into the categories of bi- or transphobic or otherwise, please message me and I’ll look into it/remove it.

This is by no means a comprehensive list–feel free to message me with suggestions so I can keep updating!

The List is also on Goodreads!!

-Nita

Realistic Fiction: Lesbian MC

The Summer I Wasn’t Me by Jess Verdi

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by emily m. danforth

Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour

Scars by Cheryl Rainfield (huge trigger warning for self harm and sexual abuse for this book, FYI. It is a wonderful book, though.)

If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan

Starting from Here by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend by Emily Horner

Gravel Queen by Tea Bendhun

Fat Angie by E.E. Charlton-Trujillo

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters

What We Left Behind by Robin Talley (also contains genderqueer MC)

This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

Realistic Fiction: Gay MC

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Gone Gone Gone by Hannah Moskowitz

Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg

Sprout by Dale Peck

One Man Guy by Michael Barakiva

Here’s to You, Zeb Pike by Johanna Parkhurst

Realistic Fiction: Transgender MC

Parrotfish by Ellen Wittlinger

Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kristin Cronn-Mills

Just Girls by Rachael Gold

Realistic Fiction: Bisexual MC

Far from You by Tess Sharpe

Empress of the World by Sara Ryan

Not Otherwise Specified by Hannah Moskowitz

Speculative Fiction: Lesbian MC

Huntress by Malinda Lo

Bleeding Earth by Kaitlin Ward

The Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie

Speculative Fiction: Bisexual MC

Love In the Time of Global Warming by Francesca Lia Block

The Island of Excess Love by Francesca Lia Block

Ash by Malinda Lo

Adaptation by Malinda Lo

Inheritance by Malinda Lo

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith

Coda by Emma Trevayne

Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis

Pantomime by Laura Lam

Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

Speculative Fiction: Gay MC

Proxy by Alex London

More Than This by Patrick Ness

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan

Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner

More Happy than Not by Adam Silvera

Chicken by Chase Night

Historical Fiction: Lesbian MC

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland

Silhouette of a Sparrow by Molly Beth Griffin

Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley

Queer/Not Otherwise Specified MC:

The Mermaid in Chelsea Creek by Michelle Tea - Speculative Fiction

Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Cary -

Brooklyn Burning - Steve Brezenoff

[nitatyndall-deactivated20200510]

Reblogging because I’ve updated this list to include some more recent releases!! :) Please let me know if there’s a title you think should be on here and I’ll look into adding it!