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Trans Books By Authors Of Color
Here are some trans books by authors of color you should read:
Book titles:
Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution by Kacen Callender
The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon
The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa
Just Happy To Be Here by Naomi Kanakia
The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
The Subtweet by Vivek Shraya
Lakelore by Anna-Marie McLemore
Drag Me Up by R.M. Virtues
Unwieldy Creatures by Addie Tsai
Three Kings by Freydís Moon
Pet by Akwaeke Emezi
The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons
#trans book of the day#trans books#queer books#bookblr#booklr#author of color#authors of color#trans authors of color#lark and kasim start a revolution#the witch king#the genesis of misery#the wicked bargain#just happy to be here#the bruising of qilwa#light from uncommon stars#meet cute diary#cemetery boys#the subtweet#lakelore#drag me up#unwieldy creatures#three kings#pet#the passing playbook
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Some books by Asian authors to read this may!
Edit: thank you @linkedsoul for letting me know that I misused the term AAPI in the original post. I’m very sorry about that, and have changed the title to accurately reflect what this list is.
#book recs#book recommendations#hani and ishu's guide to fake dating#my mechanical romance#the henna wars#magical boy#untethered sky#dear wendy#the stand in#the sacrifice#before the devil knows you’re here#This is how you lose the time war#Light from uncommon stars#Iron widow#Adiba Jaigirdar#alexene farol follmuth#Ann zhao#lily chu#The kao#Fonda lee#rin chupeco#autumn krause#Amal el-mohtar#max gladstone#Ryka aoki#xiran jay zhao
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Wdym "fantasy" and horror"? My favorite genre is weird woke chaos
#subcategories include:#magical friend group#middle aged gay couple with issues#ridiculously campy and emotionally devastating AT THE SAME TIME#baldurs gate#bg3#ofmd#our flag means death#ofmd vibes#light from uncommon stars#toh#the owl house#midnight burger#midnight burger podcast#this is a lot of fiction podcasts honestly#good omens
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#light from uncommon stars#ryka aoki#science fiction#book poll#have you read this book poll#polls#requested
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Book recs: Queer science fiction, part 2
There is a lot of queer sf out there, and I read a lot of sf. When I started working on this list, I quickly realized it was impossible to include all that I’ve read and enjoyed in one single rec post. Thus, this is my second queer sci-fi book rec post. For queer sci-fi part 1, click here!
A note: queer here does not necessarily mean “guarantee of an f/f or m/m ship with a happy ending”, but rather simply a significant presence of queerness. Some of the books feature no romance but has a same gender attracted/trans/a-spectrum lead, or features an m/f relationship with bisexual, trans or aro/ace characters, or simply features a world-building which is heavily queer inclusive in ways that don’t always compare to our own ideas of sexuality and gender. I have however disqualified works where the only queer presence is along the lines of “gay best friend”, word of god, and a blink and you’ll miss it confirmation that never comes up again.
For more details on the books, continue under the readmore. Titles marked with * are my personal favorites. And as always, feel free to share your own recs in the notes!
If you want more book recs, check out my masterpost of rec lists!
Empress of Forever by Max Gladstone
Vivian Liao is a highly successful innovator, but she may have bitten off more than she can chew and fears the government may be coming for her. As she goes into hiding, she attempts to pull off one last stunt that could fix everything - but something goes wrong, and suddenly Vivian finds herself waking up in the far future, under attack by an army of robots in space. Hoping to find her way back home, Vivian must assemble a crew of dangerous outlaws to help her hunt down the Empress of Forever, the all-powerful entity who pulled her into the future. Lesbian main character.
The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older
Novella. On the outpost of a human colony by Jupiter, a man has gone missing. On the case to find him - and figure out why he disappeared in the first place - is enigmatic investigator Mossa. Her search leads her to the colony's university, and with it, her ex-girlfriend Pleiti, expert on Earth's pre-collapse ecosystem. Together they come to realize that the case is much larger than just a missing man, and could decide the outcome of humanity's very future. Sapphic.
My Heart is Human by Reese Hogan
Nine years ago, all complex technology was made illegal. This complicates life for Joel, young transgender single father, as a bionic just uploaded itself into his brain without consent. Scared of losing his daughter, Joel tries to keep the bionic secret while using it to fix his life, but things quickly get more complicated as the bionic gains more and more control of his body. A bit simplistic in writing style but makes a lot of cool parallels of bodily autonomy to Joel’s experiences as a transman. M/M romance.
The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez*
A strange child lands on an isolated planet, scaring its inhabitants into handing him over into the hands of Nia Amani. As captain of a transport ship, Nia is not only the planet's only contact with the outside world, she is also a woman out of time, years compressing into months as she travels through space at high speeds. Now responsible for a child who doesn't speak and in a galaxy that wishes them ill, she must rethink exactly what she wants to do with her life, and what she's prepared to give up. Features multiple major queer characters.
The Abyss Surrounds Us (The Abyss Surrounds Us duology) by Emily Skrutskie
Young Adult. Tumblr classic back in the day! Cassandra Leung's family are keepers of sea monsters, genetically engineered and trained to protect ships from pirates. On her first solo mission, Cas finds herself kidnapped by pirates seeking to obtain their own monster. Now they need her help to train it. As Cas seeks to regain her freedom, she must also reckon with unfortunate growing feelings for one of the pirates keeping her under guard. Sapphic.
Ancestral Night (White space series) by Elizabeth Bear
Haimey Dz is part of a three-man salvage crew in space (one of the crew being the sentient spaceship himself). When the small crew comes across a derelict ship that proves the scene of a horrible crime, they must go on the run as they seek to uncover a conspiracy that involves both ancient secrets older than humanity itself, and Haimey's own hidden past. On their tail is a dangerous space pirate, convinced that Haimey is the key to it all. Lesbian main character.
Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch) by Ann Leckie*
A space opera in which sentient spaceships can walk the ground in stolen human bodies, so called ancillaries. One of these ancillaries, the sole survivor after the complete destruction of her ship and crew, is one the hunt for revenge against the most powerful woman in the empire. This series does very cool things with gender!
The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
Five New Yorkers find themselves experiencing strangness as the city itself begins to wake up. They are its soul, its avatars and its protectors, and now they must keep it safe as it wakes as something alien and monstrous attempts to kill it before it's even fully alive. Mix of sci-fi, supernatural, and lovecraftian horror. Multiple pov characters of varying queer identities.
Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb series) by Tamsyn Muir*
Gideon, raised as a swordswoman by unfriendly nuns, would rather run away and make her own life, but her services are needed. The Reverend Daughter, Gideon's childhood nemesis, has been invited to a trial to win a place as an immortal by the Emperor's side, and she's in need of a bodyguard. Listen, if you’re on tumblr I probably don’t need to explain this book to you. Trust me when I say it’s exactly as good as people claim. Humorous and spooky but also absolutely gut wrenching and clever with a lot of political commentary. There are also, indeed, lesbian necromancers in space.
A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe (Salvagers trilogy) by Alechia Dow
In a universe run on science and magic working hand in hand, Boots Elsworth makes a living selling fake treasure maps and Nilah Brio is a racer. When one of Boots' maps turns out to be more real than expected and Nilah has to go on the run after having been framed for a murder, the two find themselves on the same spaceship, working with Boots' old captain to find the rumored treasure and reveal the conspiracy its hiding before the people hunting them catch up. Features a main f/f relationship.
The Company of Death by Elisa Hansen*
A wild mix of genres, where a zombie apocalypse has struck and vampires gather up humans to keep their food source from going extinct, a robot travels across America with a young man she’s tasked to keep safe, and former-vampire-hunter-recent-zombie Emily teams up with Death himself to stop the apocalypse. Features bi and ace characters! Bonus rec: the author also runs the youtube channel Maven of the Eventide, where she talks about various vampire media. Check it out!
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
Shizuka Satomi is a violin master who made a deal with a devil, and who must now save her soul by delivering the souls of her students in place of her own. Lan Tran is a mother and a refugee of an alien war, hiding on Earth with her children in a donut shop. Katrina Nguyen is a trangender runaway and violin player, in the need of a mentor. As their paths cross, their lives change forever. I would categorize this as cozy, however it does also deal with some pretty heavy themes.
The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson*
Young adult. Young artist June Costa lives in Palmares Tres, a beautiful, matriarchal city relying heavily on tradition, one of which is the Summer King. The most recent Summer King is Enki, a bold boy and fellow artist. With him at her side, June seeks to finally find fame and recognition through her art, breaking through the generational divide of her home. But growing close to Enki is dangerous, because he, like all Summer Kings, is destined to die. While the main relationship is m/f, it features a worldbuilding where bisexuality is the norm, which is portrayed in its major characters.
The Gilded Abyss by Rebecca Thorne
Nix Marr is a soldier and damned good at it, but that doesn't prepare her for her next mission: bodyguard for Subarch Kessandra, beloved royal and Nix's bitter ex, as she ventures into the underwater city of Fall to seek the cause of a bloody murder spree and a possible deadly contagion. But Kessandra has enemies, the answers she seeks marking her as a possible threat for the nation's rulers. On their way in an isolated and enclosed underwater ship toward Fall, the contagion catches up, and Nix will have to put her hurt feelings aside if the two are to arrive alive. Sci-fi with flavors of horror and the supernatural.
Adaptation (Adaptation duology) by Malinda Lo
Young adult. Strangeness is afoot: all over America, birds are hurling themselves against airplanes and causing crashes. As flights are canceled and travelers stranded, Reese and her debate partner and longtime crush David are forced to head home by car. Accident strikes, and the two wake in a military hospital with no memory of the last month. Returning home, strangeness follows the two, especially as Reese encounters the mysterious and beautiful Amber Gray, who may know more than she lets on. Features a bisexual love triangle.
Lizard Radio by Pat Schmatz
Young adult. Fifteen-year-old Kivali, abandoned at birth and adopted by the nonconformist artist Sheila, has as a girl in boys clothes never fit in with the other kids. Sheila has always been supportive, until she one day sends Kivali off to CropCamp. While Kivali chafes at the strict rules of the camp, she also finds herself making friends, and maybe more, for the first time. Strange coming of age story, featuring exploration of gender and sexuality in a dystopian setting.
Isle of Broken Years by Jane Fletcher
Young spanish noblewoman Catalina thinks she’s done for when the ship she’s traveling on is attacked by pirates and she’s captured. Things gets worse when the entire crew is stranded on an inhospitable island where time works strangely, dangerous monsters terrorize the woods and something alien stops them from leaving. Strong Lost vibes. Lesbian romance. Admittedly quite indulgent but very fun and creative.
All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries) by Marta Wells*
After having hacked its own governor module, SecUnit uses its small amount of new freedom to secretly download and watch as much media as it can between doing its job guarding humans. But when the scientists it’s been charged with keeping safe come under attack, it must make a choice about whether to continue keeping its freedom secret or risk it all to save them. The series features both novellas and full length novels, and balances humor with scathing critique of capitalism. While it can be debated whether SecUnit counts as agender, asexual and aromantic, as it is a robot (I leave this up to individual judgmenet), however the series also has a diverse cast overall.
The Quiet at the End of the World by Lauren James*
Young adult. After the spread of a global virus causing infertility, teenagers Lowrie and Shen are now the youngest humans alive as the adults around them race to find a cure. As they investigate the ruins of the world, the two come across records from the past, of how grief stricken people turned to raising artificial children in apps and how these 'children’ developed, and through these records the two learn of their history. Bisexual main character.
Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah*
In a near future America, inmates on death row or with life sentences in private prisons can choose to participate in death matches for entertainment. If they survive long enough - a rare case indeed - they regain their freedom. Among these prisoners are Loretta Thurwar and Hamara “Hurricane Staxxx” Stacker, partners behind the scenes and close to the deadline of a possible release - if only they can survive for long enough. As the game continues to be stacked against them and protests mount outside, two women fight for love, freedom, and their own humanity. Chain-Gang All-Stars is bleak and unflinching as well as genuinely hopeful in its portrayal of a dark but all to real possible future. Sapphic.
The Disasters by M.K. England
A decade ago, the massive ship House of Wisdom was abandoned in orbit after its entire crew was killed in an outbreak in a matter of hours. Now, Zahra and her people hope to claim the ship as their own by kidnapping the sole survivor to gain access to its systems. But the danger of the House of Wisdom is far from gone. Horror, no major romance but has a major gay character.
Nax Hall may be a hotshot pilot, but that doesn't stop him from being expelled from the prestigious Ellis Station Academy in less than 24 hours. But as he's to be transported back to Earth alongside other failed students, the school is viciously attacked. Nax and the three other students only barely escape, and are left as the only witnesses - and the perfect scapegoats. Now they must go on the run together and find a way to clear their names. Bisexual main character.
Dust (Jacob's Ladder series) by Elizabeth Bear
In a dying spaceship, orbiting an equally dying sun, noblewoman Perceval waits for her own gruesome death. Having been captured by an opposing house, her wings severed and life forfeit, Perceval’s execution is imminent - until a young servant charged with her care proves to be Perceval’s long lost sister. To stop a war between houses likely to doom them all, the two flee together across a crumbling, dangerous spaceship. At its core waits Jacob Dust, god and angel, all that remains of what the ship once was. And he wants Perceval. Sapphic and asexual characters, however be prepared for kinda fucked up relationships.
Under Fortunate Stars by Ren Hutchings
Two ships have gotten stuck in a rift in space, isolated outside of time. One of them is the Jonah, a ship dodging a generations long war against an alien species, carrying a small crew of smugglers, an unintended passenger, and a hijacker. The other ship is the Gallion, which arrived from 150 years in the future carrying an alien ambassador - and whose crew is awestruck at meeting the heroes of the Jonah, known to have ended the war. As the two crews struggle to understand each other's timelines, they must also work together to leave the rift before they're stranded forever. Multiple queer characters, however the main romance plotlines are m/f.
One Last Stop by Casey McQiston*
Twenty-three-year-old August has a lot to deal with. She just moved to New York, got new job at a pancake diner, and acquired several slightly chaotic roommates. So what if she likes to flirt with the pretty girl on her subway commute? But Jane turns out to be more than just a charming stranger: she's lost in time, displaced from the 70s, and unable to leave the subway. Romance with a dash of timetravel sci-fi, One Last Stop is a delightful story of love and queer community.
The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings*
In an alternate version of our present, the witch hunt never ended. Women are constantly watched and expected to marry young so their husbands can keep an eye on them. When she was fourteen, Josephine’s mother disappeared, leveling suspicions at both mother and daughter of possible witchcraft. Now, nearly a decade and a half later, Jo, in trying to finally accept her missing mother as dead, decides to follow up on a set of seemingly nonsensical instructions left in her will. Features a bisexual lead!
Salvation Day by Kali Wallace
A decade ago, the massive ship House of Wisdom was abandoned in orbit after its entire crew was killed in an outbreak in a matter of hours. Now, Zahra and her people hope to claim the ship as their own by kidnapping the sole survivor to gain access. But the danger of the House of Wisdom is far from gone. Horror, no major romance but has a major gay character.
Alien: Echo by Mira Grant
Young adult. Twin sisters Olivia and Viola's parents are both xenobiologists, bringing them all over the galaxy. Most recently they’ve settled on a new colony world to study its life, but it proves more dangerous than they could’ve ever imagined. Under attack from alien monsters, the sisters must keep each pther alive while also coming to terms with a dark family secret. Sapphic horror. Part of the Alien franchise but stands well on its own.
#nella talks books#empress of forever#a mimicking of known successes#my heart is human#the vanished birds#the abyss surrounds us#ancestral night#imperial radch#the city we became#the locked tomb#a big ship at the edge of the universe#the company of death#light from uncommon stars#the summer prince#the gilded abyss#adaptation#lizard radio#isle of broken years#the murderbot diaries#the quiet at the end of the world#chain-gang all-stars#the disasters#under fortunate stars#one last stop#the women could fly#salvation day#alien echo#jacobs ladder
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Trans people used to look for reflections of ourselves in metaphors and subtexts — but now, a lot of us are realizing that it's way better when stories feature actual trans characters who get to live complicated lives. And you can even feature living, breathing trans characters alongside metaphors for transness. My latest, over in @them.
#books#writing#trans#transgender#nonbinary#the matrix#lilly wachowski#al hess#he edgmon#h.e. edgmon#world running down#ryka aoki#rivers solomon#sorrowland#light from uncommon stars
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Where does the music end and love begin?
Ryka Aoki, Light from Uncommon Stars
#Ryka Aoki#Light from Uncommon Stars#music#love#love quotes#American literature#sci-fi literature#LGBTQ literature#LGBTQ author#quotes#quotes blog#literary quotes#literature quotes#literature#book quotes#books#words#text
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Light from Uncommon Stars ✨🍩🌌🎻by Ryka Aoki
Thinking about violins, The Whispering Star (2015) by Sion Sono and Lee Young-ae in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005). Read this mostly in a daze and loved it so much. Was nothing like what I thought it would be — intertwined cosmic tales with fantasy elements, destiny, trauma, love. At its core it’s about finding belonging, finding your passion and your person. I probably sobbed a few times, listened to Paganini and Alexandra Streliski’s music on repeat and yearned for a nice warm donut. I get fuzzy warm feelings when I think about this book ☁️💫
#light from uncommon stars#ryka aoki#queer lit#wlw books#trans pride#sapphic#lesbian#books#books and reading#moodboard
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DEAR MUTUALS I JUST FINISHED A LIFE CHANGING BOOK
MAY I COMPEL YOU TO READ IT PLEASE?
Light from Uncommon Stars (Ryka Aoki)
tw for sexual assault, drinking and drug use, racism, sexism, transphobia (A LOT OF THIS), homophobia, slurs (racial, homophobic, and transphobic unfortunately), parental abuse/violence, and a lot of descriptions of food
that said this book was undeniably hopeful and I cannot tell you how much it made me smile as well as fucking bawl my eyes out
It's about a young transgender violinist (Katrina Nguyen) finding security in her sound after running away from abuse for all of her life
luckily Shizuka Satomi, her new teacher, and accompanist/housekeeper/Shizuka's bestie Astrid take her in and teach her how to love herself by finding her sound (I say sound because as well as finding her violin sound, she finds her voice its very cute)
one tiny problem. Shizuki Satomi has long since entered into a contract with hell. She has one year left to deliver one more student, otherwise she will be dragged to hell and her music never heard again (she's also cursed so she can't perform)
Also another problem. Endplague. Lan Tran, Shizuka's new milf love interest aka 'donut lady' is a refugee from the Imperial Army from another galaxy. I won't give too much away about what it is etc but Big Issue.
Anyway this was gut-wrenching and heart-warming within the space of every paragraph, and particularly cutting and healing, since I myself am a trans violinist
100000/10 would recommend best book I've read in a while (idk about best ever but it'd be up there! I'm probably biased because of the trans violin thing but hey if its good its good).
There's lesbians, demons, aliens, good food, good music, trans people, adorable found family, a classic sci-fi plague, and some good old fashioned music snobbery.
I mean come on!!!!! READ IT!!!!!!! *foaming at the mouth*
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The thing about Light from Uncommon Stars is, when you read the description, sure it sounds like there's some strife but it mostly sounds like a cute coffee shop romance. And in tiny ways, it is. But if you go into it thinking it will be all warmth and donuts and gooey love, you will not be prepared for The Horrors. Cuz fuck, it goes from zero to one hundred so fast, so many times. Aoki tricks you by not putting some of these things fully on page, starting something shocking/traumatic but bouncing off it quickly, or fading to black, or just not describing it to the level where you'd think "exactly what genre is this again?!" that will occasionally leave you wondering if That actually happened.
And even the romance isn't what you'd expect. Lan and Shizuka have what my autistic ass can only describe as a very autistic relationship. It's kind of refreshing tbh
It's a very good balance, a very fun book, but definitely one I'll always remind people to check the trigger warnings for.
#lex rambles#light from uncommon stars#booklr#bookblr#bookish community#book community#book talk#book discussions
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Transfem Book Recs for International Women's Day
Happy International Women's Day! Here are some transfem book recommendations for you:
Book Titles:
Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
Cheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Frasier
Joy, to the World by Kai Shappley and Lisa Bunker
A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall
Tell Me I'm Worthless by Alison Rumfitt
Just Happy To Be Here by Naomi Kanakia
Me and My Dysphoria Monster by Laura Kate Dale and Hui Qing Ang
Pet by Akwaeke Emezi
For the Love of April French by Penny Aimes
Fake It by Lily Seabrooke
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Fierce Femmes And Notorious Liars by Kai Cheng Thom
Princess of the Pomegranate Moon by Emily Wynne
Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson
The Ojja-Wojja by Magdalene Visaggio and Jenn St-Onge
Galaxy: The Prettiest Star by Jadzia Axelrod and Jess Taylor
Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy
Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) by Hazel Jane Plante
#light from uncommon stars#cheer up: love and pompoms#joy to the world#a lady for a duke#tell me i'm worthless#just happy to be here#me and my dysphoria monster#pet#for the love of april french#fake it#detransition baby#fierce femmes and notorious liars#princess of the pomegranate moon#her majesty’s royal coven#the ojja-wojja#galaxy: the prettiest star#into the gray#little blue encyclopedia (for vivian)#transfem#trans books#queer books#transfem books#transfeminine books#trans book of the day#bookblr#booklr
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#cc#booktok#book recs#can confirm that this book is amazing#probably the best book I've read this year#it and juniperþ by ava reid but if for some reason someone felt like#they needed to hold me at gun point and choose#i'd pick#light from uncommon stars
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light from uncommon stars mock posters/book covers! had a really fun time doing these :)
#shizuka satomi#light from uncommon stars#lan tran#katrina nguyen#book cover art#digital illustration#eneriart
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The Locked Tomb Series Summary:
The “Lesbian Necromancers in Space” book series
Light From Uncommon Stars Summary:
Alien running a donut shop falls in love with a woman who made a demonic deal for violin powers
#the locked tomb#tlt#gideon the ninth#tamsyn muir#light from uncommon stars#ryka aoki#lgbt books#lgbt literature#queer books#queer literature#lgbtqia#poll
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youtube
finally got around to posting another BookTube video~
#the rise of kyoshi#light from uncommon stars#mala and the mask of gold#is love the answer#franklin delano donut#fiona and jane#squad graphic novel#doctor aphra#she who became the sun#booktube#book recs#Youtube
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