Transgender
2024 curated booklist
The Sunbearer Trials
Aiden Thomas
As each new decade begins, the Sun’s power must be replenished so that Sol can keep traveling along the sky and keep the chaotic Obsidian gods at bay. Sol selects ten of the most worthy semidioses to compete in the Sunbearer Trials. The winner carries light and life to all the temples of Reino del Sol, but the loser has the greatest honor of all―they will be sacrificed to Sol, their body melted down to refuel the Sun Stones, protecting the world for another ten years.
Teo, a seventeen-year-old Jade semidiós and the trans son of the goddess of birds, isn’t worried about the Trials . . . at least, not for himself. His best friend, Niya is a Gold semidiós and a shoo-in for the Trials, and while he trusts her abilities, the odds of becoming the sacrifice is one-in-ten.
But then, for the first time in over a century, the impossible happens. Sol chooses not one, but two Jade competitors. Teo, and Xio, the thirteen-year-old child of the god of bad luck. Now they must compete in five trials against Gold opponents who are more powerful and better trained. Worst of all, Teo’s annoyingly handsome ex-best friend and famous semidiós Hero, Aurelio is favored to win. Teo is determined to get himself and his friends through the trials unscathed―for fame, glory, and their own survival.
Category: Fantasy, Young Adult, Series
Representation: Transgender, diverse sexualities
Content Warnings: Bullying, character death, violence
ISBN: 9781035008612
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The Witch King
H.E. Edgmon
To save a fae kingdom, a trans witch must face his traumatic past and the royal fiancé he left behind.
In Asalin, fae rule and witches like Wyatt Croft…don’t. Wyatt’s betrothal to fae prince Emyr North was supposed to change that. But when Wyatt lost control of his magic one devastating night, he fled to the human world.
Now a coldly distant Emyr has hunted him down. Despite transgender Wyatt’s newfound identity and troubling past, Emyr claims they must marry now or risk losing the throne. Jaded, Wyatt strikes a deal with the enemy, hoping to escape Asalin forever. But as he gets to know Emyr again, Wyatt realizes the boy he once loved may still exist. And as the witches face worsening conditions, he must decide what’s more important—his people or his freedom.
Category: Fantasy, Young Adult, Series
Representation: Transgender, bisexual, non-binary, lesbian, gay, diverse sexualities
Content Warnings: Abuse, character death, mental illness, self harm, suicide, substance use/abuse, violence, racism
ISBN: 9781335425843
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Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution
Kacen Callender
Lark Winters wants to be a writer, and for now that means posting on their social media accounts––anything to build their platform. When former best friend Kasim accidentally posts a thread on Lark’s Twitter declaring his love for a secret, unrequited crush, Lark’s tweets are suddenly the talk of the school—and beyond.
To protect Kasim, Lark decides to take the fall, pretending they accidentally posted the thread in reference to another classmate. It seems like a great idea: Lark gets closer to their crush, Kasim keeps his privacy, and Lark’s social media stats explode. But living a lie takes a toll—as does the judgment of thousands of Internet strangers. Lark tries their best to be perfect at all costs, but nothing seems good enough for the anonymous hordes––or for Kasim, who is growing closer to Lark, just like it used to be between them . . .
In the end, Lark must embrace their right to their messy emotions and learn how to be in love.
Category: Young Adult, Romance
Representation: Non-binary, transgender, diverse genders, BIPOC
Content Warnings: Bullying, mental illness, racism, suicide, police violence/brutality, transphobia, substance use/abuse, character death
ISBN: 9781419756870
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Felix Ever After
Kacen Callender
Felix Love has never been in love—and, yes, he’s painfully aware of the irony. He desperately wants to know what it’s like and why it seems so easy for everyone but him to find someone. What’s worse is that, even though he is proud of his identity, Felix also secretly fears that he’s one marginalization too many—Black, queer, and transgender—to ever get his own happily-ever-after.
When an anonymous student begins sending him transphobic messages—after publicly posting Felix’s deadname alongside images of him before he transitioned—Felix comes up with a plan for revenge. What he didn’t count on: his catfish scenario landing him in a quasi–love triangle….
But as he navigates his complicated feelings, Felix begins a journey of questioning and self-discovery that helps redefine his most important relationship: how he feels about himself.
Felix Ever After is an honest and layered story about identity, falling in love, and recognizing the love you deserve.
Category: Young Adult
Representation: Diverse gender identities, diverse sexualities, transgender, BIPOC
Content Warnings: Bullying, homophobia, transphobia, racism, substance use/abuse
ISBN: 9780062820259
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Dreadnaught
April Daniels
Until Dreadnought fell out of the sky and died right in front of her, Danny was trying to keep people from finding out she’s transgender. But before he expired, Dreadnought passed his mantle to her, and those secondhand superpowers transformed Danny’s body into what she’s always thought it should be. Now there’s no hiding that she’s a girl.
It should be the happiest time of her life, but Danny’s first weeks finally living in a body that fits her are more difficult and complicated than she could have imagined. Between her father’s dangerous obsession with “curing” her girlhood, her best friend suddenly acting like he’s entitled to date her, and her fellow superheroes arguing over her place in their ranks, Danny feels like she’s in over her head.
She doesn’t have much time to adjust. Dreadnought’s murderer—a cyborg named Utopia—still haunts the streets of New Port City, threatening destruction. If Danny can’t sort through the confusion of coming out, master her powers, and stop Utopia in time, humanity faces extinction.
Category: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Representation: Gay, transgender
Content Warnings: Discrimination, mental illness, self-harm, suicide, violence
ISBN: 9781682300688
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I Was Born for This
Alice Oseman
For Angel Rahimi life is about one thing: The Ark — a boy band that’s taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark’s fandom has given her everything she loves — her friend Juliet, her dreams, her place in the world. Her Muslim family doesn’t understand the band’s allure — but Angel feels there are things about her they’ll never understand.
Jimmy Kaga-Ricci owes everything to The Ark. He’s their frontman — and playing in a band with his mates is all he ever dreamed of doing, even it only amplifies his anxiety. The fans are very accepting that he’s trans — but they also keep shipping with him with his longtime friend and bandmate, Rowan. But Jimmy and Rowan are just friends — and Rowan has a secret girlfriend the fans can never know about. Dreams don’t always turn out the way you think and when Jimmy and Angel are unexpectedly thrust together, they find out how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.
A funny, wise, and heartbreakingly true coming of age novel. I Was Born for This is a stunning reflection of modern teenage life, and the power of believing in something — especially yourself.
Category: Young Adult
Representation: Transgender, bisexual
Content Warnings: Substance use/abuse, violence, transphobia, homophobia, suicide, sexual violence, mental illness
ISBN: 9781338830934
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The Feeling of Falling in Love
Mason Deaver
Just days before spring break, Neil Kearney is set to fly across the country with his childhood friend (and current friend-with-benefits) Josh, to attend his brother’s wedding―until Josh tells Neil that he’s in love with him and Neil doesn’t return the sentiment.
With Josh still attending the wedding, Neil needs to find a new date to bring along. And, almost against his will, roommate Wyatt is drafted.
At first, Wyatt (correctly) thinks Neil is acting like a jerk. But when they get to LA, Wyatt sees a little more of where it’s coming from. Slowly, Neil and Wyatt begin to understand one another… and maybe, just maybe, fall in love for the first time…
Category: Young Adult
Representation: Transgender, bisexual
Content Warnings: Transphobia, homophobia, sexual activity, mental illness, character death, substance use/abuse
ISBN: 9781338777666
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These Violent Delights
Chloe Gong
The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery.
A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal.
But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.
Category: Young Adult, Historical, Fantasy
Representation: Transgender, gay
Content Warnings: Homophobia, transphobia, sexual activity, violence, racism, character death, self-harm, suicide,
ISBN: 9781665921763
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She Who Became The Sun
Shelley Parker-Chan
She Who Became the Sun reimagines the rise to power of the Ming Dynasty’s founding emperor.
To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything
“I refuse to be nothing…”
In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness…
In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.
When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother’s identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.
After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother’s abandoned greatness.
Category: Historical
Representation: Transgender, non-binary
Content Warnings: Homophobia, transphobia, gore, violence, sexual activity, character death, substance use/abuse
ISBN: 9781250621818
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Master Of One
Dani Bennett and Jaida Jones
Sinister sorcery. Gallows humor. A queer romance so glorious it could be right out of fae legend itself. Master of One is a fantasy unlike any other.
Rags the thief has never met a pocket he couldn’t pick, but when he’s captured by a sorcerer with world-ending plans, he realizes even he is in over his head. Forced to use his finely honed skills to nab pieces of an ancient fae relic, Rags is stunned to discover that those “relics” just happen to be people:
A distractingly handsome Fae prince,
A too-honorable Queensguard deserter,
A scrappy daughter of a disgraced noble family,
A deceptively sweet-natured prince,
A bona fide member of the Resistance,
And him. Rags.
They may all be captives in the sorcerer’s terrible scheme, but that won’t stop them from fighting back. And, sure, six unexpected allies against one wicked enemy doesn’t make for generous odds, but lucky for him, Rag’s not generous—he’s smart. And he has a plan that just might get them out of this alive.
With the heist and intrigue of Six of Crows and the dark fairy tale feel of The Cruel Prince, this young adult fantasy debut will have readers rooting for a pair of reluctant heroes as they take on a world-ending fae prophecy, a malicious royal plot, and, most dangerously of all, their feelings for each other.
Category: Young Adult, Fantasy
Representation: Transgender, gay
Content Warnings: Violence, character death, gore, police violence/brutality, mental illness, suicide
ISBN: 9781733245814
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