Recs if you like Orlando...

in progress

Basically, a huge list of every book I ever heard features sapphic characters.

I have not read all of these, so I cannot be sure of the amount of the time on page of the sapphic characters or of the quality of the books.

Some of these I do not plan to read at all, since they are not my style. If you feel like a book doesn't belong here, let me know.

For my favs / read, check out my other lists & shelves.

Open to suggestions for more titles.

Don't shoot the messenger.

Historical fiction books with queer characters

Based on the list/book published in 2006, general editor Peter Boxall.

these books are both aligned with and offer a queering of ‘weird girl literature’, a genre that manipulates horror, dark comedy, and/or surrealist elements to excavate the internal world of complex and unconventional characters. they are deviant, daring, and perverse reads for the weird queers among us.

*girl in quotation marks to allow this list to extend beyond the binary. recommendations welcome!

as an antidote to the ‘bury your gays’ trope, here are queers who defy death; who are reincarnated, immortalised, or escape death by the skin of their teeth. these characters may die at some point following this, but are allowed well-rounded arcs before that point.

please note that due to the nature of the list, spoilers may follow. enter at your own risk.

recommendations welcome!

Just a fun little list of books that have inspired songs. Please list the book and the song with the artist in your suggestions, or if it's a concept album based on a book, just include the book and the album with the artist. I will not be including any books by JKR, Neil Gaiman, or Orson Scott Card, or songs by Iced Earth. Will not be adding musicals based on books, songs written for films based on books, or songs that are classic poems to music.

books featured in the cozy video game “tiny bookshop”

Books recommended by musician Lucy Dacus, a solo artist and member of the band boygenius. Pulled from her goodreads list.

Speculative (sci-fi, fantasy, horror etc.) novellas less than 200 pages long that are either standalone or read like a standalone story

classic literature only written by women, because why would a man be there??

i've included fiction books of all genres on this list! please recommend some more so i can add them!!

The only queer & GNC lists/quests I’ve seen have been genre. I love them, but I wanted to also curate a list of literary fiction with LGBTQIA+ characters and themes!

these books explore queer space and time, rejecting hetero temporality and spatiality across fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry. inside, you’ll find genderqueer immortals, spirits dipping in and out of linear reality, and queer meditations on bodies and aging. recommendations, as always, are very much welcome.

Books for those who want to be well-read without the debt (created by someone with said debt)

Note: I will be deleting my PB account within the next two weeks, and I believe this list will be erased. Feel free to screenshot it if you see anything that interests you! ☺️ 3/17/2026

Books featuring LGBTQ+ characters and/or themes that are considered to be classics in one way or another

Penguin asked its readers in 2022 for the must-read classics. This is that list!

Queer books and books written by queer authors that are featured in the indie game "Tiny Bookshop", a cosy bookstore management life sim by the studio Neoludic

a list of classics with a focus on global and marginalised authors.