Showing that truth is stranger than fiction, Sylvain Neuvel weaves a scfi thriller reminiscent of Blake Crouch and Andy Weir, blending a fast moving, darkly satirical look at 1940s rocketry with an exploration of the amorality of progress and the nature of violence in A History of What Comes Next.
Always run, never fight.
Preserve the knowledge.
Survive at all costs.
Take them to the stars.
Over 99 identical generations, Mia’s family has shaped human history to push them to the stars, making brutal, wrenching choices and sacrificing countless lives. Her turn comes at the dawn of the age of rocketry. Her mission: to lure Wernher Von Braun away from the Nazi party and into the American rocket program, and secure the future of the space race.
But Mia’s family is not the only group pushing the levers of history: an even more ruthless enemy lurks behind the scenes.
A darkly satirical first contact thriller, as seen through the eyes of the women who make progress possible and the men who are determined to stop them…
Representation Includes
- WLW main character (Mia)
Content Warnings
racism & racial slurs, antisemitism, homophobia, suicide, miscarriage, blood & gore depiction, body horror, forced institutionalisation, description of conversion therapy, grief & loss depiction, sexual harassment (allusions of rape and coercion), death of a child, death of a parent, genocide, gun violence, torture, car accident, animal deathReviews
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A magical detective dives into the affairs of Chicago’s divine monsters to secure a future with the love of her life. This sapphic period piece will dazzle anyone looking for mystery, intrigue, romance, magic, or all of the above.
An exiled augur who sold her soul to save her brother’s life is offered one last job before serving an eternity in hell. When she turns it down, her client sweetens the pot by offering up the one payment she can’t resist―the chance to have a future where she grows old with the woman she loves.
To succeed, she is given three days to track down the White City Vampire, Chicago’s most notorious serial killer. If she fails, only hell and heartbreak await.
Representation Includes
- Lesbian woman (Helen)
- WLW woman (Edith)
Content Warnings
blood, homophobia, misogyny, gore, violence, murder, human sacrifice, guns, religious trauma, mentions of conversion therapy, mentions of electroshock therapy, general discussions and depictions of period typical asylums, smoking, possession, biblical concepts (angels/demons)Reviews
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An impossible crime. A detective on the edge of madness. The future of time travel at stake.
January Cole’s job just got a whole lot harder.
Not that running security at the Paradox was ever really easy. Nothing’s simple at a hotel where the ultra-wealthy tourists arrive costumed for a dozen different time periods, all eagerly waiting to catch their “flights” to the past.
Or where proximity to the timeport makes the clocks run backward on occasion—and, rumor has it, allows ghosts to stroll the halls.
None of that compares to the corpse in room 526. The one that seems to be both there and not there. The one that somehow only January can see.
On top of that, some very important new guests have just checked in. Because the U.S. government is about to privatize time-travel technology—and the world’s most powerful people are on hand to stake their claims.
January is sure the timing isn’t a coincidence. Neither are those “accidents” that start stalking their bidders.
There’s a reason January can glimpse what others can’t. A reason why she’s the only one who can catch a killer who’s operating invisibly and in plain sight, all at once.
But her ability is also destroying her grip on reality—and as her past, present, and future collide, she finds herself confronting not just the hotel’s dark secrets but her own.
Representation Includes
- Mentally ill lesbian woman (January)
Content Warnings
discussions and depictions of grief, murder, chronic illness, blood, mentions of child abuse, lesbophobia, transphobia, racism, gun violence, gore, prescription drug abuse, violence, language, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempt, animal deathNotes on Contains: Romance tag
Girlfriend of main character is dead, this happens prior to the start of the book. Handling this grief is a main part of the plot and may still be considered romance since they have some interactions due to the time travelling elementsReviews
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In the heart-stopping sequel to The Witch King, Wyatt and Emyr attempt to rebuild Asalin despite unexpected new enemies within their kingdom.
Two weeks after the door to Faery closed once more, Asalin is still in turmoil. Emyr and Wyatt are hunting Derek and Clarke themselves after having abolished the corrupt Guard, and are trying to convince the other kingdoms to follow their lead. But when they uncover the hidden truth about the witches’ real place in fae society, it becomes clear the problems run much deeper than anyone knew. And this may be more than the two of them can fix.
As Wyatt struggles to learn control of his magic and balance his own needs with the needs of a kingdom, he must finally decide on the future he wants—before he loses the future he and Emyr are building…
Sequel to: The Witch King
Representation Includes
- Gay FTM trans protagonist with PTSD (Wyatt)
- Demisexual Black protagonist (Emyr)
- Asexual protagonist (Briar)
- Most other characters are also queer
Content Warnings
Content warnings provided by author at beginning of book: violence, murder, descriptions of blood and gore, body horror, panic attacks, dissociation, discussions of infanticide, cannibalism mention, off page rape, child sexual abuse mention, animal death, gender dysphoria, discussions of homophobia/transphobia, discussions of racismReviews
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IN THE BEGINNING, MAN WAS PREY.
WITHOUT THE GODS, THEY’LL BE PREY AGAIN.
The old gods have fled, and the monsters they had kept at bay for centuries now threaten to drown the city of Valentine, hunting mankind as in ancient times. In the midst of the chaos, a serial killer has begun ritually sacrificing victims, their bodies strewn throughout the city.
Lilac Antonis wants to stop the impending destruction of her city by summoning her mother, a blood god—even if she has to slit a few throats to do it. But evading her lover Arcadia and her friends means sneaking, lying, and even spilling the blood of people she loves.
Alex and Cecil of Ace Investigations have been tasked with hunting down the killer, but as they close in—not knowing they’re hunting their close friend Lilac—the detectives realize the gods may not have left willingly.
As flooding drags this city of cars and neon screaming into the jaws of sea demons and Arcadia struggles to save the people as captain of the evacuation team, Lilac’s ritual killings at last bear fruit, only to reveal her as a small piece in a larger plan. The gods’ protection costs far more than anyone has ever known, and Alex and Cecil are running out of time to discover the true culprit behind the gods’ disappearance before an ancient divine murder plot destroys them all.
Set in an alternate reality which updates mythology to near-modern day, NO GODS FOR DROWNING is part hunt for a serial killer, part noir detective story, and unlike anything you’ve ever read before.
Representation Includes
- Trans lesbian woman protagonist (Arcadia)
- Bisexual woman (Lilac)
Content Warnings
Gore, murder, human sacrifice, child death, pregnancyReviews
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Dexter meets Victoria Schwab in this dark and compelling fantasy about a girl who is determined to take down the black market once and for all in the conclusion to the trilogy that started with the critically acclaimed Not Even Bones.
Nita finally has Fabricio, the boy who betrayed her to the black market, within her grasp. But when proof that Kovit’s a zannie—a monster who eats pain in order to survive—is leaked to the world, Nita must reevalute her plans.
With enemies closing in on all sides, the only way out is for Nita and Kovit to take on the most dangerous man in the world: Fabricio’s father. He protects the secrets of the monsters who run the black market. Stealing those secrets could be the one thing that stands between Nita and Kovit and certain death in the thrilling conclusion to the trilogy that began with the critically acclaimed Not Even Bones.
Representation Includes
- Latina asexual and aromantic main character (Nita)
- Thai asexual and aromantic main character (Kovit)
Content Warnings
graphic violence, emotional abusive parent, torture and mutilation, gore, kidnapping, dissection, murder, cannibalism, druggingReviews
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By night, the Ankou is a legendary, permanently young mercenary. By day, a witch’s curse leaves him no more than bones. Caught in an unending cycle of death and resurrection, the Ankou wants only to find the death that has been prophesied for him, especially once he begins to rot while he’s still alive….
After the kingdom of Kaer-Ise is sacked, Flora, loyal handmaiden to the princess, is assaulted and left for dead. As the sole survivor of the massacre, Flora wants desperately to find the princess she served. When the Ankou agrees to help her find the princess, and to train her in exchange for her help in breaking his curse, she accepts. But how can she kill an immortal? Especially one whom she is slowly growing to understand—and maybe even to love?
Together, they will solve mysteries, battle monsters, break curses, and race not only against time, but against fate itself.
Representation Includes
- Bisexual main character with PTSD (Flora)
Content Warnings
sexual assault (off-page), attempted sexual assault (on-page) gore, blood, graphic violence, PTSD, genocide, body horrorReviews
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The dreamers walk among us . . . and so do the dreamed. Those who dream cannot stop dreaming – they can only try to control it. Those who are dreamed cannot have their own lives – they will sleep forever if their dreamers die.
And then there are those who are drawn to the dreamers. To use them. To trap them. To kill them before their dreams destroy us all.
Ronan Lynch is a dreamer. He can pull both curiosities and catastrophes out of his dreams and into his compromised reality.
Jordan Hennessy is a thief. The closer she comes to the dream object she is after, the more inextricably she becomes tied to it.
Carmen Farooq-Lane is a hunter. Her brother was a dreamer . . . and a killer. She has seen what dreaming can do to a person. And she has seen the damage that dreamers can do. But that is nothing compared to the destruction that is about to be unleashed. . . .
Representation Includes
- Gay protagonist (Ronan)
- WLW main character (Carmen)
Content Warnings
vomit; body horror; car crash; descriptions of suicide by gun; violenceReviews
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Live fast, die young.
Tam Hashford is tired of working at her local pub, slinging drinks for world-famous mercenaries and listening to the bards sing of adventure and glory in the world beyond her sleepy hometown.
When the biggest mercenary band of all rolls into town, led by the infamous Bloody Rose, Tam jumps at the chance to sign on as their bard. It’s adventure she wants – and adventure she gets as the crew embark on a quest that will end in one of two ways: glory or death.
It’s time to take a walk on the wyld side.
Representation Includes
- Lesbian protagonist (Tam)
Content Warnings
Violence, murder, death of a family member, drug addiction, self-harm (discussions and depiction), discussion of previous sexual abuse, emotionally abusive parentsAwards
-
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Fantasy (2018)
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Reddit r/fantasy Stabby Award for Best Novel (2018)
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BookNest Award for Best Traditionally Published Novel (2018)
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The last thing in the world Thom Creed wants is to add to his father’s pain, so he keeps secrets. Like that he has special powers. And that he’s been asked to join the League – the very organization of superheroes that spurned his dad. But the most painful secret of all is one Thom can barely face himself: he’s gay.
But becoming a member of the League opens up a new world to Thom. There, he connects with a misfit group of aspiring heroes, including Scarlett, who can control fire but not her anger; Typhoid Larry, who can make anyone sick with his touch; and Ruth, a wise old broad who can see the future. Like Thom, these heroes have things to hide; but they will have to learn to trust one another when they uncover a deadly conspiracy within the League.
To survive, Thom will face challenges he never imagined. To find happiness, he’ll have to come to terms with his father’s past and discover the kind of hero he really wants to be.
Representation Includes
- Gay protagonist (Thom)
Content Warnings
homophobia, misogynyAwards
- Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Children’s/Young Adult (2007)
- Gaylactic Spectrum Award Nominee for Best Novel (2008)
- The Inky Awards Nominee for Silver Inky (2008)