#Teixcalaan

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 2

Book summaries below:

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandant finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading. Thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, grows into something more. Something epic. Something romantic. Something that could change the past and the future.

Except the discovery of their bond would mean death for each of them. There's still a war going on, after all. And someone has to win that war.

Science fiction, time travel, multiverse, epistolary, adult

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine (Teixcalaan series)

Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn't an accident—or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court.

Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan's unceasing expansion—all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret—one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life—or rescue it from annihilation.

Science fiction, politics, mystery, political thriller, series, adult

[boitterfly]

really loving the weird naming conventions in A Memory Called Empire and i can’t stop thinking about how 30 Rock would be a perfectly common name in the teixcalaanli empire

[wildmint]

i love them so much <3

[riseandfallofsecunit]

Everyone should read “A Memory Called Empire”

[wlnedark]

Does anyone else see the vision here. Is anyone out there.

[lakecountylibrary]

HAPPY PRIDE and may I say, I am so happy you're here reading this 💖

Welcome to my yearly 5 Fav LGBTQ+ Reads post, where I tell you about the top 5 books with queer characters that I've read in the past 12 months. These aren't necessarily recently published, they're just what I personally liked and happened to read - and maybe you'll like them too.

It's been such a delight to see the number of books I have to choose from grow and grow since I first started writing these posts in 2017. It's now difficult to pick just 5! But I did it. For you. Here we go:

Legends & Lattes/Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree (lesbian rep)

Cozy fantasy that lives up to the hype. Curl up under a blanket with a comforting beverage and read about the retired orc adventurer who finds her people through the power of coffee and baked goods.

Swordheart by @tkingfisher (nonbinary rep)

One woman (in her 30s!!! Not A Teen!) fights for her inheritance and her life with the help of a possessed sword and a nonbinary lawyer. Takes place in the same world as Kingfisher's Clocktaur War, but you don't have to read that first. Swordheart leans more toward the cozy side of fantasy. (There's, you know, some murders. But the stakes are lower than the fate-of-nations plot of Clocktaur.)

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White (gay, trans rep)

Hard left out of cozy fantasy and straight (lol jk) into horror! Hell Followed With Us pulls no punches. It takes place in the aftermath of a viral apocalypse caused by a fanatical religious group. It follows trans boy Benji, the cult's escaped chosen one who has found shelter with a group of queer teens. Content warnings for body horror, religious trauma, transphobia, gore, and misogyny.

Camp Damascus by @drchucktingle (gay, lesbian rep)

Another horror entry, this one about a conversion camp survivor in Montana. Rose grew up in the shadow of Camp Damascus and knows that their success rate is considered near-miraculous. However, when Rose starts asking questions about a few things in her life that don't add up, she discovers "miraculous" isn't quite the right word. Content warnings for gaslighting, indoctrination, emotional manipulation, child abuse, brainwashing, and body horror.

A Memory Called Empire/A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine (bi, lesbian rep)

Sci-fi with excellent worldbuilding. Mahit Dzmare is an ambassador from a tiny mining station, tasked with keeping her station independent from the massive Teixcalaanli Empire. She must fully immerse herself in Teixcalaanli culture while still keeping her own culture's secrets - the discovery of which could mean immediate annihilation. Read this one if you prefer character-driven narratives over plot-driven.

-

And that's this year's list! Check out my posts from previous years if you're looking for even more: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

Happy Pride, and happy reading!

See more of Robin's recs

[pencildragons]

anyone on here read tlt AND teixcalaan ............. i need to talk about imperialism and cultural assimilation so bad im gonna explode

[airgiodslv]

I skipped the July creation wrap-up because nearly everything I worked on was for challenges revealed in August. There's a lot!

Fics:

Guess That Voice: WIK Edition

KinnPorsche, Kim/Chay, rated T

Kim is grilled within an inch of his life about Wik’s personal life, his projects, and his future plans. Chay takes meticulous notes on his phone the whole time. Kim has trained with professional interrogators who are less intimidating than Chay crafting a bomb to drop on Twitter.

“It’s not for Twitter,” Chay corrects him. Kim has a short-lived moment of relief before Chay clarifies: “I’m writing Wikfic.”

(Fic Text + Podfic)

The Shadow Lyctors

Jeff Satur Cinematic Universe & The Locked Tomb Series - Tamsyn Muir, rated M

Moonshine was the cavalier primary to Sunshine, Third Saint to serve the King Undying. It is unclear whether this was his given name, or how Sunshine has memorialized him after death. Sunshine calls him ‘an Alexandrite’, referring to the branch of Sixth House cavaliers whose attractiveness and skill earned them an education in erotic poetry and a Cohort assignment, for the express purpose of finding a mate to diversify the ailing Sixth House gene pool.

Given Sunshine’s sense of humor, it is possible this was a joke.

(A fandom Wiki for a fictional book trilogy)

Podfic Triptych + Ficlet: Sunshine and Rain, written by TheCookieOfDoom, shubaka, and AirgiodSLV

Jeff Satur Cinematic Universe, Sunshine/Rain, rated T

untitled ficlet, written by TheCookieOfDoom The being coalesces from smoke and shadow.

from where the light shines, written by shubaka The Rain God discovers a man on a rooftop, lying in a pool of his own blood.

ghost light, written by AirgiodSLV On the night of Wan Ok Phansa, Sunshine dances on the Mekong River.

by the light of the sun, a remix of to have and to hold by shubaka

Jeff Satur Cinematic Universe & Wuju Bakery, Sunshine/Ghost, Sunshine/Passion, rated G

Most people forget that Sunshine is the scion of a dynasty himself, too used to thinking of him only as Prince Raon’s companion.

Passion, however, forgets very little that could prove useful to him.

hiraeth and hwyl, written & performed by The Sentient Hive (AirgiodSLV, CompassRose, ellejabell, epaulettes, kitkat50311, mahons-ondine, minnabird, sisi_rambles)

Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones & Piranesi - Susanna Clarke, rated G

You find yourself looking at a door.

It looks like an ordinary door, but you’re somehow certain that it isn’t.

In theory, you could open the door…but something warns you off.

You might not survive, if you pass through that door. You might no longer be you.

Podfics & Audio:

you could cut ties with all the lies (that you've been living in), written by Nemainofthewater

Nirvana in Fire, Lin Chen/Xiao Jingyan & Mei Changsu, rated M

“Sir Sū,” Jĭngyán said, “Forgive me, but I can’t help but feel strange referring to you in such a manner after such intimacies.”

“Ah,” said Lìn Chén, abruptly thrown out of his warm, post-coital state, “No, Your Highness is going to have to trust me on this, calling me Chángsū is really going to spoil the mood.”

Listen to the radio, audio collage of music & interviews by Jeff Satur, with art by TheCookieOfDoom

On a desolate planet under distant stars, these heroes fight against the corporations that control society. Late at night, you can hear them broadcast to each other on pirate radio frequencies, sending secret messages across the airwaves...

"Fuck it, I'm adopting her," said John Gaius, not knowing the paperwork wasn't necessary, written by Naamah_Beherit

The Locked Tomb Series - Tamsyn Muir, rated T

Gideon, a highly distinguished Cohort lieutenant, saves the day—and the girl—and then gets stuck in the lift of The Erebos with a man feeding her peanuts as if they have all the time in the world. They don't, but if he doesn't mind, then why should she?

baby I, baby I, I'm caught in the middle, written by IsleofSolitude

KinnPorsche, Kim/Chay, Chay/OMC, rated E

Seth has had threesomes before. He knows he’s great at sex—that sex with him is something Chay enjoys immensely. He and Chay have a strong relationship, he knows Chay intimately. He’s never had a third with him and an omega during a heat before, but Kim’s sort of attractive. Besides, they are in his home. There’s no reason to not be okay with it. If things go badly, he can just kick Kim out.

(the steal the show inspired threesome omegaverse inspired by a dream)

love, let my love inside go free, written by daltoneering

KinnPorsche, Kinn/Porsche, rated E

They burst to the surface gasping for breath, water clogging Porsche’s ears, distorting the brightness of Kinn’s laughter across the pool into muffled echoes along the tall glass walls of the building. He grabs for the side, lungs screaming.

“Fuck! You want to drown me?”

Kinn shows Porsche just how grateful he is for the perfect first date.

History Talking to Itself, written by Sour_Idealist

Teixcalaan Series - Arkady Martine, Mahit Dzmare/Three Seagrass, Yskandr Aghavn/Nineteen Adze/Six Direction, Past Mahit Dzmare/OFC, rated T

Twelve excerpts from Teixcalaan and from Lsel Station.

[alex-van-gore]

I’ve been doing the draw-everything-June challenge (where you use a pose reference every day, and, no I’m not on time at all). Two of those turned into Mahit Dzmare and Three Seagrass! Slapped some colour on them for the vibes. Mahit is in her angular white intimidation outfit, and Three Seagrass is encountering a kauraanian Kitten.

[spiritintheinkwell]

Happy Pride! Featuring my nine favorite wlw books.

Mahit/Three Seagrass from the Teixcalaan series by Arkady Martine

Catherine/Lucy from The Lady's Guide To Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite

Kath/Lily from Last Night At The Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Zanja/Karis from the Elemental Logic series by Laurie J. Marks

Jude/Síle from Landing by Emma Donoghue

Ead/Sabran from The Priory Of The Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Emi/Ava from Everything Leads To You by Nina LaCour

Thenike/Marghe from Ammonite by Nicola Griffith

Red/Blue from This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Ordered by theme, not by preference.

[lilareviewsbooks]

Queer Normal-World in SFF Books

Here are five books where being queer is the norm, aka there is no homophobia or transphobia at all! Not all these books are fluffy though -- most of them have heavy conflicts and a bunch of shit going down, but at least no one has a problem with anyone being gay!

These are my favorite kind of books and I have so, so many recommendations, so let me know if you ever want more of these :) And I can also absolutely do only fluffy queer books, too!

The Genesis of Misery, by Neon Yang

Mx. Yang's books are perfect for this type of prompt. The Genesis of Misery is their most recent, and the premise is absolutely killer. It follows Misery Nomaki (she/they), who is haunted by an apparition of an angel. While she is convinced she is mentally ill like her mother, and that her visions are a symptom, people around her seem more and more certain that she is actually some sort of messiah. 

I have my issues with The Genesis of Misery, but it’s a very creative sci-fi that’s worth the read. It includes mecha, interesting depictions of religion, which permeates the entire story, and, of course, excellent queer rep. We have characters who use neo-pronouns, a polyamory situationship and most characters are queer. Not to mention, it’s written by a queer and non-binary author, which is always a plus. It’s part of an on-going series, though, so be prepared to wait a little while for the sequel! 

Plus, The Locked Tomb fans might be interested to know that there’s a very cavalier-necromancer dynamic in this, and that Rebecca Roanhorse (who wrote Black Sun) described it as Joan of Arc meets Gideon The Ninth. 

Yep. You wanna read it, don’t you?

(Also, if for some reason you’re like: “gee, I really wish there was a black-and-white silent movie with a killer score that touched on these same themes”, then you should probably watch The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928). It’s not explicitly gay, but it is queer in my heart. And it rocks.)

The Locked Tomb Series, starting with Gideon The Ninth, by Tasmyn Muir

Since I mentioned it, I guess I might as well include The Locked Tomb in here! This is a Tumblr favorite, and with good reason, because The Locked Tomb fucking rocks. It’s hard to pitch it to someone without ruining the whole point of the series, but the first book follows a necromancer, Harrowhark and her sworn swords-woman, her cavalier, the butch-as-hell Gideon, as they’re summoned to the First House to compete to become Lyctors, the companions of God. 

Yeah, I know that’s a lot, and, to be honest, it’s probably not gonna make much sense to you at many points throughout the story, but that’s the point of The Locked Tomb - everything is confusing, and it’s about sapphics in space! 

The thing about this series is they’re the most unique books you’ll ever read. Every volume has a different approach to telling its story. There’s so many mysteries and it’s almost impossible to understand all the intricacies without sitting down and doing some work. The magic system is also the wonkiest, coolest thing - it involves eating people, sometimes, y’know. And, I promise, you’ll love every single second of it. Especially because there’s absolutely no homophobia or transphobia in any of it, and almost every character is queer as fuck - especially after the second book, when gender starts getting a little funky!

Winter’s Orbit, by Everina Maxwell

I love this book so much, and so know that it comes highly, highly recommended! I have a whole five star review on it you can check out here. (Do check trigger warnings, though! You should always, but especially for this one. I didn’t and they really got me!). 

Winter’s Orbit features my absolutely favorite trope - queer arranged marriage. (Nothing better - those three words and you know it’s gonna be a queer normal world, have some politics and probably be really fucking sweet.) This one is probably one of only ones out of this list where the romance is very predominant and serves as an important B plot. It’s also a standalone, but has a companion book in the same universe, called Ocean’s Echo, which rocks, too!

This one follows Jainan, a recent widower who is rushed into an arranged marriage with Prince Kiem in order to keep the alliance between their homelands intact. Together, they must navigate court intrigue I’m trying my best not to spoil and investigate Jainan’s ex-husband’s death, which might not have been an accident, after all...

In this sci-fi fantasy world, being queer is completely normal, and their system when it comes to gender is absolutely fascinating. People will wear little gender signifiers, like a wodden token for female, for instance, so that others know how to refer to them. It’s super cool to see these kind of things incorporated into the world-building, and it’s something you really only get when queer authors are behind the helm.

(Also, this was originally written online, and it was actually picked up and traditionally published! Which is so cool! Queer fics becoming traditionally published books is so rare, it’s so nice to see it actually happen!)

The Teixcalaan Series, starting with A Memory Called Empire, by Arkady Martine

This is another one of my favorites! I read it last year and it blew me away - so much so that I’ve been itching to re-read it ever since I finished the second book.

The Teixcalaan Series is a political sci-fi duology focusing on the themes of language, empire and cultural domination through imperialism. It’s amazing, and I wrote about it in a full-length review, here, if you wanna take a look! 

It follows Mahit Dzamare, from the tiny Lsel Station, who becomes the ambassador to the huge Teixcalaan Empire, whose culture she’s been in love with for ages. The problem? Something happened to the Lsel ambassador, and the Empire’s control over the Station has been growing ever bigger. To make matters worse, Mahit’s imago machine - the cerebral implant full of her predecessors memories and experiences - doesn’t seem to be working properly, leaving her with a ghost of her predecessor inside of her head...

With all the problems the Teixcalaan Empire has, it’s not homophobic or transphobic, which is a plus for us gays who want to read in peace. Mahit has a charged relationship with her cultural liason, Three Seagrass (yes, that’s her name; yes, there’s an in-world explanation; no, I won’t tell you what it is, you’ll have to read it and find out), not to mention all the hijinks she finds out her predecessor was up to. And none of it needs to be justified or explained at all - people are just gay, and that’s fine!

On A Sunbeam, by Tillie Walden

This graphic novel has a stunning art style, and, listen closely sapphics, absolutely no men at all. Yep. Literally there’s only women and non-binary people in this comic! 

And guess what? It’s available to read for free, here. Thank you, Ms. Walden!

Here, romance is also an important plot point. On A Sunbeam follows Mia, who starts working for a crew of repair-people who rebuild broken down structures. In another timeline, we flashback to her experiences at her boarding school, and to her relationship with a new student.

What’s most unique about On A Sunbeam - apart from the fact that there are no men at all - is it’s unique version of outer space. It’s almost historical, with huge sprawling marble structures decaying, surronded by trees. The ships are shaped like huge fish. You can feel the whimsy in your bones from the colors and the art style that Ms. Walden uses, here.

This standalone is definitely worth a read. And if you like it, you should definitely check out the rest of Ms. Walden’s work - it’s all as beautiful as this is, if not more. Her The End of Summer was one of my favorite reads, last year.

That’s all I’ve got, guys, but lemme know if you want more of these - I have so many, I can definitely recommend you more! Drop me an ask if you have specifications, too - I’m always happy to do some digging :)

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 1

Book summaries below:

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine (Teixcalaan series)

Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn't an accident—or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court.

Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan's unceasing expansion—all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret—one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life—or rescue it from annihilation.

Science fiction, politics, mystery, political thriller, series, adult

Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh (The Greenhollow duology)

There is a Wild Man who lives in the deep quiet of Greenhollow, and he listens to the wood. Tobias, tethered to the forest, does not dwell on his past life, but he lives a perfectly unremarkable existence with his cottage, his cat, and his dryads.

When Greenhollow Hall acquires a handsome, intensely curious new owner in Henry Silver, everything changes. Old secrets better left buried are dug up, and Tobias is forced to reckon with his troubled past—both the green magic of the woods, and the dark things that rest in its heart.

Fantasy, romance, folklore, novella, series, adult

[a-side-character]

Just gave a list of recommendations for books and podcasts to my mom who was looking for something other than TV shows to listen to, and I realized that every one of them had female main characters. And most of them were queer!

It may not seem like much, but younger me would be so happy that we have so many female role models in our media now, and that we have more positive w/w relationships to look up to

It's the little things, ya know?

[andmaybegayer]

Three Seagrass you horny xenophilic dipshit

[riseandfallofsecunit]

A Memory Called Empire

[thelastofthebookworms]

Feel free to make suggestions. I may make another poll if there are enough candidates.

More polls.