To build a space for queer people like myself, every Saturday I’ll be posting interviews, opinion pieces (like this September 2024 LGBTQ+ list one), listicles, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community from a Latina perspective. Welcome to Queerly Not Straight!
Enjoy and leave a comment below if you have a suggestion for what I should cover next. P.S. I, Lyra Hale, do not give any site permission to copy or repost my work in any form. If you are reading this on any site besides Fangirlish, it has been stolen.
With Fall here, we’re continuing our journey of supporting LGBTQ+ books and the authors within our community. From Christmas romances to horror in the woods, we’ve got you covered with a list of LGBTQ+ books coming out September 2024.
A special shoutout goes to Netgalley, the premiere source of getting books in advance if you’re looking to review books. Most of the summaries were sourced from Netgalley, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble and we hope this helps get readers interested in these creative queer writers!
Also, make sure to check out whether any of the books listed below for September 2024 are available at your local indie store here.
1. Old Wounds by Logan-Ashley Kisner
Summary: Erin and Max are two transgender teens trying to get to California. Max is desperate to finally transition, and Erin is longing to understand why she’s on this trip to begin with. The last she spoke to Max was when he suddenly broke up with her two years ago.
But when they find themselves stranded in the middle of the woods in a small Kentucky town, they realize they have much bigger problems. The locals need a female sacrifice for the monster that lives in the woods—according to them, the sun won’t come up again until the monster eats a girl . . . and it only eats what it kills. Fighting back is futile; no one selected as the offering has ever survived the night.
When the two strangers show up, the locals believe they have the perfect candidate. The irony of the situation is almost too much to fathom.
The thing is, the locals don’t know who they just trapped as their sacrifice. They don’t know Erin’s and Max’s secrets, which could be a death sentence on a good day. And the monster that lives in their woods has never faced prey who have already fought so hard to live.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
2. I’ll Get Back to You by Becca Grischow
Summary: Murphy was supposed to be settling into her junior year at the University of Illinois with her best friend, Kat. Instead, she’s stuck in a hellish suburban holding pattern: living with her parents, failing the same class that kept her from graduating the first time around, and making minimum wage at the same coffee shop she’s worked at since she was sixteen. It doesn’t help that the dating pool for a twenty-one-year-old lesbian in the tiny town of Geneva, Illinois, is anemic at best.
When her and Kat’s long-awaited reunion is plagued by stuttering conversation and uninvited guests, Murphy’s resentment threatens to boil over. That is, until a miracle appears in the form of Ellie Meyers, a former classmate who is way cuter and not nearly as straight as Murphy remembers. Their heavy flirting holds the promise of something more… until Murphy learns that Ellie’s mom is the very professor preparing to flunk Murphy for a second semester in a row. Talk about killing the vibe.
Romance might be off the table, but Ellie could be Murphy’s key to getting into Professor Meyers’ good graces and finally getting out of Geneva. And Murphy—well-versed in defying parental expectations—might be Ellie’s chance to get her mother onboard with her own dreams. Together, they hatch a plot: fake a relationship for a holiday weekend at the Meyers’ house. If everything goes according to plan, Ellie will be living her dream halfway across the country, and Murphy will finally be able to graduate community college and start her life in earnest. So, the fact that Murphy can’t stop thinking about Ellie’s lips on hers isn’t relevant. It’s just a part played well. Right?
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
3. A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft
Summary: Lorelei Kaskel, a folklorist with a quick temper and an even quicker wit, is on an expedition with six eccentric nobles in search of a fabled spring. The magical spring promises untold power, which the king wants to harness in order to secure his reign over the embattled country of Brunnestaad. Lorelei is determined to use this opportunity to prove herself and make her wildest, most impossible dream come true: to become a naturalist, able to travel freely to lands she’s only read about.
The expedition gets off to a harrowing start when its leader—Lorelei’s beloved mentor—is murdered in her quarters aboard their ship. The suspects are the five remaining expedition mates, each with their own motive. The only person Lorelei knows must be innocent is her longtime academic rival, the insufferably gallant and maddeningly beautiful Sylvia von Wolff. Now in charge of the expedition, Lorelei must find the spring before the murderer strikes again—and a coup begins in earnest.
But there are other dangers lurking in the dark: forests that rearrange themselves at night, rivers with slumbering dragons hiding beneath the water, and shapeshifting beasts out for blood.
As Lorelei and Sylvia grudgingly work together to uncover the truth—and resist their growing feelings for each other—they discover that their leader had secrets of her own. Secrets that make Lorelei question whether justice is worth pursuing, and if this kingdom is worth saving at all.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
4. Love and Sportsball by Meka James
Summary: Hard work has Khadijah Upton starting her dream job as an athletic trainer for the Atlanta Cannons. Then an evening of celebratory letting loose turns into a one-night stand with a beautiful stranger. It’s a reckless, wildly sexy encounter that Khadijah intends to forget…until her first day on the job lands her face-to-face with basketball star Shae Harris again.
Shae is a major player in every sense of the word, and Khadijah doesn’t plan to be the latest in a long line of “Harris Honeys.” Personal and professional just don’t mix. But Shae, who’s all about living life to the fullest, keeps tempting Khadijah to blur the boundaries. And the more Shae reveals about herself, the harder it is for Khadijah to resist her.
In the bedroom, their tension sizzles. On the court, it’s a liability. But unless Khadijah’s willing to really let Shae in, it won’t be just the team championship on the line, but a body-and-soul connection that rewrites all the rules.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
5. Everything Glittered by Robin Talley
Summary: It’s 1927 and the strict laws of prohibition have done little to temper the roaring 20s nightlife, even in the nation’s capitol. Everyone knows the booze has never stopped flowing, especially amongst the rich and powerful, and seventeen-year-old Gertrude and her best friends Clara and Milly are determined to get a taste of freedom and liquor, propriety be damned.
But after sneaking out of the Washington Female Seminary to visit a speakeasy, they return to discover that their controversial young headmistress, Mrs. Rose, has been murdered.
Reeling from the death of her beloved mentor, Gertrude enlists her friends in her quest to clear Mrs. Rose’s reputation, while trying to keep her own intact. But in Prohibition Washington, it’s difficult to sidestep grifters, bootleggers, and shady federal agents when investigating a murder. And with all the secrets being uncovered, Gertrude is finding it harder and harder to keep her attraction to her best friends hidden.
A proper, upscale life is all Gertrude has ever known, but murder sure makes a gal wonder: is all that glitters really gold?
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
6. The Seemingly Impossible Love Life of Amanda Dean by Ann Rose
Summary: Amanda Dean would say she’s an okay artist and a loyal friend, but what she’s best at is falling in love. A self-proclaimed bi disaster who has had her heart broken more times than she cares to count, Amanda can’t help opening herself up. As she gets ready on the day she’s waited a lifetime for, memories of her past loves run through her mind, with one glaring red sign blinking above them—is this “the one”?
Will it be:
the fit water polo player,
the fashionista,
the dependable hedge fund manager,
or the one where the timing was never quite right.
Now, on the day of her wedding—a day where everything already seems to be going wrong—Mandy must decide if she’s willing to risk it all one last time or if she’ll escape while her whole heart is still intact.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
7. This Fatal Kiss by Alicia Jasinska
Summary: Cursed to haunt the river running through the magical spa town where she drowned, Gisela is a water nymph who dreams of returning to the living world and the family she left behind. All it takes to regain her humanity is a kiss from a mortal…but everyone sees her as a monster.
And then there’s Kazik, the brooding, interfering, spirit-hunting grandson of a local witch. He’s determined to rid the world of unholy creatures like Gisela. After Kazik botches Gisela’s exorcism, she strikes up a deal. She won’t tell the other spirits that he’s losing his magic, if he agrees to play matchmaker and helps her get a kiss. But Gisela’s plan goes awry when Kazik also falls for the devilishly handsome young man that she sets her heart on—someone who could be linked to Gisela’s troubled past.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
8. Look Up, Handsome by Jack Strange
Summary: Hay-on-Wye’s only queer bookshop is always a hive of activity. So when it’s threatened with closure, its owner Quinn Oxford is determined to do whatever it takes to save his beloved shop.
That is until romantic novelist Noah Sage arrives in town. Gorgeous, brooding and clearly unhappy to be there, Noah is the distraction Quinn doesn’t need. Noah has a history with Hay and it’s one he’d rather not face. But when the snow leaves him stranded, he’s left with no choice.
Hay is a small town, meaning Quinn can’t help but bump into Noah wherever he goes. And as the two grow closer together, is it possible that Noah’s feelings towards Hay will thaw? Can Quinn have a real-life romance and save his beloved bookshop? Or will he need a Christmas miracle…
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
9. The Duke’s Sister and I by Emma-Claire Sunday
Summary: She’s supposed to wed a duke… but it’s his sister she can’t keep her eyes off!
As the ton’s most in-demand debutante, it should be easy for Miss Loretta Linfield to find the perfect husband. So the reason why she is embarking on her third season unwed is a puzzle that nobody can solve. Not least Loretta! Until she meets Charlotte Sterlington… The sister of her new suitor, the Duke of Colchester, is everything that prim and proper Loretta isn’t—bold, daring and rakish! But Charlotte is also everything that Loretta finds herself desiring…
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
10. The Lovers by Rebekah Faubion
Summary: If Kit Larson believes one thing, it’s that the cards never lie. She’s seen it proven time and time again as a tarot reader and mystic influencer. But unfortunately the cards didn’t warn her about her most recent breakup or her parents’ divorce, so when Kit is offered a gig at another influencer’s boho-chic Joshua Tree wedding she accepts for the distraction. And distract it does when she finds out her high school crush, Julia, is the wedding planner.
Julia Kelley is her agency’s most sought-after wedding planner, and for a good reason—she’s a perfectionist. Control means never showing others the vulnerable, blobby mess she really is deep down inside. Having an ex-girlfriend in the bridal party is a problem, sure, but reconnecting with the beautiful tarot reader who broke her heart as a teenager is so much worse.
Kit’s cards once told her that she and Julia were Twin Flames, two halves of the same soul. With wedding events pushing them together, their spark reignites . . . and so does a chance at being lovers.
Get it HERE. Add it to your Goodreads HERE.
Is there an LGBTQ+ book you’re excited about this September 2024? Let us know in the comments below!
Queerly Not Straight posts Saturdays with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community (and occasionally about the Latine community since I am Latine.)
