With summer winding down and fall almost here, we’re continuing our journey of supporting LGBTQ+ books and the authors within our community. From vampires and werewolves to cozy graphic novels and fake relationships that involve hockey, we’ve got you covered with a list of LGBTQ+ books coming out August 2026.
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 August 2026 are available at your local indie store here.
1. Love Bites, Vol. 1 by Alicia Wallace, Ele
Synopsis: As a teenage vampire, Kieran has always been warned to stay away from werewolves, but everything changes when he falls for Mason—the Alpha’s son. What started off as disdain, lines drawn in the sand between two opposing sides, quickly turns to fascination after the two share one fateful kiss.
Kieran and Mason know they can’t be together, their communities would never approve. And with every hidden kiss and rendezvous, keeping their secret takes on a whole new set of problems. Avoiding the eyes of both society and Kieran’s extremist family grows more and more challenging, and as silver blades sharpen, the two must choose to stand up for a love worth fighting for.
From Wattpad to WEBTOON! Sink your teeth into Bite Me in a brand new way—as a WEBTOON graphic novel as Love Bites!
Release date: August 4th
2. Playing His Game by Morgan James; Ashlyn Kane
Synopsis: When a candid photo of professional problem Mo – son of the Arizona Canyons’ owner – and Adam, the league’s first openly drafted golden gay, hits the internet, it doesn’t spark rumors. It confirms them. According to everyone, they’ve been secretly together for years.
Mo is one scandal away from losing everything, including his family’s support. Captain Adam, Phoenix’s most eligible gay bachelor, has spent his entire career being careful, respectable, unmessy. Publicly denying Mo could have a negative impact on him and his team.
So they make a deal: fake it.
What starts as damage control turns into a full-time performance, public appearances, staged dates, late nights that feel a little too real. The more convincing they are, the safer they’ll be. But the closer they get, the harder it is to tell what’s real and what’s strategy. Because somewhere between the arguments, the chemistry, and the us-against-the-world pressure… they stop pretending. Too bad the rules of the game don’t leave room for catching feelings…
Release date: August 10th
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3. In What World by Bridget Morrissey
Synopsis: Total opposites, Marlowe Jenkins and Priscilla Covington-French hated each other in high school. Now in their thirties, Marlowe is barely scraping by while Priscilla is wildly successful. Their rivalry should be long dead, yet both women remain connected through their mutual mentor, drama teacher Dallas Winthrop. Their unending tension has nothing to do with the fact that they’ve kissed. More than once.
When Dallas goes missing, each woman believes she can figure out where he is. Except this is no ordinary disappearance. Dallas has found a way to explore alternate versions of reality. While trying to follow him, Marlowe and Priscilla find other versions of themselves instead, surprised to learn not all Marlowes and Priscillas are fueled by hate. In fact, some Marlowes and Priscillas have very different strong feelings for one another. . .
The more Marlowe and Priscilla are forced to rely on each other, the harder it becomes to ignore their simmering attraction. But with every alternate reality they search, they only get further from their real life and responsibilities. Do they play it safe and hide behind their rivalry, or take a chance on each other that could permanently change the world as they know it?
Release date: August 11th
4. Hollow Magic by Mars Lauderbaugh
Synopsis: Raised in the world of fey, seventeen-year-old Rosefinch has the ability to lift curses with nothing but a twist of her fingers. But when a witch’s magic is left long enough in the fey realm, it becomes supercharged, painful to use, and potentially even dangerous.
Following a rumor that the village of Harp is home to a witch who might be able to help control her magic, Rosefinch discovers an ancient ruined castle with the inhabitants long gone; the only remaining soul a knight cursed to stand a frozen guard at the entrance. The magic she uses to free them melts more than just the ice, and soon, Rosefinch is falling for this charming stranger. But Thierry has secrets of their own, as do other members of the Harp family still hidden within the castle walls. The Harp witch’s wicked magic ripped this family apart for a reason, and Rosefinch must find a way to stop the curse or she’ll lose Thierry—and the chance to learn the truth about her magic—forever.
With mesmerizing art and a sweeping queer romance, this spellbinding fairy tale shows the power of found family and love where we least expect it.
Release date: August 11th
5. Ship Happens by Mason Deaver
Synopsis: A year ago, Owen Henson had a close-knit group of friends who felt like family and a boyfriend who made his heart race just by walking into the room. But now? Everything’s unraveling. His friends seem to be moving forward without him, and his happily-ever-after shattered when his boyfriend Jacob packed up and left for the United Kingdom to join a research team.
The last thing Owen needs is for Jacob to waltz back into the city like nothing happened, showing up at their friends’ annual Christmas party looking just as annoyingly handsome as the day he left. Or for their friends to spring a surprise six-day, seven-night cruise up the West Coast to Alaska as a bonding trip for the group. How is Owen supposed to keep it together around the man who broke his heart, all while pretending he’s fine? Totally fine. But then Jacob tells Owen that he’d like to be something even more complicated than exes. He wants to be friends. Skeptical, Owen agrees to the plan but as they spend time together among the gorgeous Alaskan backdrop and cruise-mandated activities, Owen feels his walls coming down and he might just discover that he can’t help but fall in love again.
Release date: August 18th
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6. The Burn Line by Jonathan Sims
Synopsis: It’s the hottest summer on record and the city is suffering. Prices are high, pay is low. And on one fateful morning five travelers find themselves trapped in a tube car deep in the London Underground. It will change their lives forever.
By the time they leave the train they will be bound together as witnesses to a single horrific event. Something terrible, irreversible, and monstrous. Something hungry. But they can’t remember what it is.
On their own, they each begin to experience strange dissociative events. Time gets lost. Friends disappear. Something stalks them in the shadows. They make an unlikely team, but to remember what they encountered that day on the train, they will have to work together. Because now it’s up to them to understand what horror they saw – and stop it in its tracks before it drags everyone else down below.
Release date: August 25th
7. But I Hate Him by Page Powars
Synopsis: Rory is academic royalty. As the heir to the most successful tutoring company in the world, he can be nothing less than perfect if he wants to gain his parents’ approval. So it’s simple. Rory studies harder than anyone else. He does not make mistakes. And he never loses. Except to Luca Melendez. The infuriatingly good-looking hockey player who wins every academic competition without even trying.
When Rory has a very public meltdown, throwing a smoothie at Luca and shattering his own public image in the process – it feels like one more thing Luca ruined. To salvage his reputation, Rory has his sights set on winning the most cutthroat academic camp in the country, BRAIN. There is nothing standing between Rory and the final medal.
Until, Luca Melendez shows up. This means war and Rory has the perfect plan: Make Luca fall in love with him. And then break Luca’s heart right before the final competition.
Release date: August 25th
8. The Marriage Rebound by Meka James
Synopsis: Atlanta Cannons player Courtney Johnson should be riding high coming off a winning season with her WNBA team. However, a turbulent home life, and the responsibilities she shoulders remain a shadow she can’t shake. She loves her wife and works hard to provide a comfortable lifestyle for her, but near constant fights over little things, and being told repeatedly that what she’s doing isn’t enough has taken a toll. When bad days start to outnumber the good, Courtney starts to wonder if her fiery relationship is beginning to fizzle out.
Sasha Adams-Johnson believed being married would provide her with companionship and security. She didn’t expect her wife to be gone more months out of the year than she’s home, leaving Sasha lonely and with feelings of abandonment. Her habit of retail therapy adds fuel to the fire.
When an injury forces Courtney to sit out the Euro League, the two are forced to spend more time together than they ever have in their three-year relationship. The change up could be the rebound they need.
Release date: August 25th
9. Books, Iced Coffee & A Side of Dragons by Amanda Lovelace, Raquel Trave
Synopsis: Welcome to Sea Witch Cove! Lucinda (call her Luci!) is the owner of Little Lighthouse Books, an adorable bookstore in a defunct lighthouse in her small Jersey Shore town. Everything in her life would be perfect if only Aster, the trans woman who runs the coffee shop next door, would notice her. But with a little bit of luck–and the help of Dandelion, the tiny, curious wind dragon that Aster helps her rescue–this might be the summer that Aster and Luci finally find love.
Release date: August 25th
10. Natural Selection by Clare Edge
Synopsis: The girls of Riverside are raised to grin and bear it. Until three of them can’t anymore.
Megan Lawless (aka Outlaw): Riverside born and raised. Lettered in volleyball, basketball, and track. HATES Kevin Johnson, but tolerates him for her best friend, Megan.
Megan Deloria: Outlaw’s ride or die. Riverside royalty and soon to be valedictorian. Shoo-in for the homecoming crown alongside her boyfriend, Kevin.
Meghan Bach (aka Bee): Moved to Riverside last year. Still the “new girl.” Pulls tarot cards daily. Just wants to forget what happened last summer at that party with Kevin.
And then there’s Kevin Johnson: Riverside’s Golden Boy. Only scared of two things—the dark and bears. Soon, he’ll be scared of three more. Because Megan, Megan, and Meghan are done with Kevin, and they’re about to teach everyone in their tiny rural town the new natural order: Predator, meet prey.
Release date: August 25th
What LGBTQ+ books are you excited about this August? Let us know in the comments below!
Queerly Not Straight posts Saturdays on Fangirlish with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community. Posts are ONLY published on Fangirlish.
