Welcome to my post! Today I wanted to share books that aren’t obviously LGBTQ+ for those who feel unsafe reading books advertised as LGBTQ+ or are just looking for some different recommendations!
Fantasy
The Jasmine Throne: Sapphic Indian-inspired fantasy. Do I need to say more? Although I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book because of the slow pace, I’m definitely in the minority and would still recommend. The romance is only one element of the story, with intricate politics and multiple POVs.
Sorrowland: Sorrowland is a weird fantasy horror that doesn’t really feel like it fits in any genre, but it’s basically about a mother escaping a religious compound and learning to survive on her own. But also, the main character is intersex and there are sapphic romances, which you wouldn’t know just by looking at the synopsis.
Black Sun: This is a fantasy based on Pre-Columbian Americas, full of prophecies, politics and POVs. One of the main characters is bisexual (Xiala), and there are non-binary characters who use neopronouns too. I would highly recommend the audiobook!
The Fifth Season: If you like fantasy, you’ve probably heard of N K Jemisin and The Fifth Season, but I don’t think it can be praised enough. It will mess with your mind and by the second book it’s still hard to understand what’s going on, but it’s worth being confused. The mystery and social commentary is great, along with the casual queer rep of transgender, gay and bisexual characters and a polyamorous relationship!
The Bone Shard Daughter: This has a unique magic system, great world building and lots of mystery and plot twists! In terms of LGBTQ+ rep, it has an established sapphic romance in one of the POVs which was cool to see.
Contemporary
Clap When You Land: The main plot is two sisters finding out about each other after the father dies and dealing with the aftermath. It’s also written in verse and there is a sapphic relationship!
Fence: This graphic novel is a sort of enemies-to-lovers slow burn with fencing! The romance is subtle and slow but there are lots of other queer ships in the story too.
I Hear the Sunspot: Although I haven’t continued the rest of the series yet, this manga has a fun gay romance and deaf representation which I haven’t seen much before!
Other
The Vanishing Half: This historical fiction explores the impacts of ‘passing’ as white with two twin sisters who live very different lives. It spans over their life and includes the POVs of their children. Jude was my favourite character, and I didn’t realise it before reading but there is trans representation with her boyfriend Reese which was a great surprise.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: I’m sure everyone’s heard of this one, and it’s probably the least subtle LGBTQ+ book here, but without hearing about the book from other people you might not realise that it has a sapphic romance.
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet: A wholesome sci-fi with a focus on the characters and their found family, as well as lots of casual queer rep and diverse relationships!
Into the Drowning Deep: A horror about killer mermaids! If that’s not enough, it also has environmental discussions, nerdy scientists, a budding sapphic romance and diverse representation, including autism, deafness and chronic pain.
Thanks for reading! Have you read any of these and do you have any other recs?
—ella♥
ella isn’t writing 
With you continuously raving about it, I really should pick up The Fifth Season soon! 😂 And since I adore Evelyn Hugo, I’m thrilled you snuck it in here even though the rep isn’t all that subtle 😁
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