https://mppl.org/services/teen-services/good-reads/?list=LGBTQ%2B+Voices+in+YA+Fiction+2026&category=teens
List: LGBTQ+ Voices in YA Fiction 2026
SideQuested: Book 1
Magic makes the world go round, but no one in Charlie Goldskin's world knows precisely where magic comes from. This isn't Charlie's problem. She's the adopted daughter of a woodcarver and is training to be a librarian. It'll be a quiet life, but that's fine with Charlie, as magic is summoned through conflict and she would like to avoid that, thank you very much! Then her birth father shows up to take her from her village and bring her to the king's court. Prince Leopold is gifted in the noble arts of diplomacy and combat, but he's never met anyone like Charlie. Falling in love with her wouldn't be an issue, except he's already engaged, and his fiancee is the daughter of a very powerful evil witch. Charlie, panicking, decides to break the news to Princess Robin... but then she finds love at first sight, too. To resolve this love triangle, the teens are sent on a quest to discover the source of magic! So much for Charlie's plans for a quiet life...
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I Don't Wish You Well
Five years ago, the infamous Trojan murders turned the small town of Moss Pointe, Louisiana into a living nightmare. Four teen boys-all star players on Moss Pointe High's football team-were murdered one after the other by a Trojan-mask wearing killer. Eventually, the murderer was unmasked. But the community has never forgotten-and some folks in town still wonder whether the police got it right. Eighteen-year-old Pryce Cummings is one of them. An aspiring journalist, Pryce is pretty sure he just stumbled upon evidence that throws the killer's guilt into question. It's the perfect story for his own podcast, and a reason to go back to the hometown he's avoided since coming to terms with his sexuality while at college. But in Moss Pointe, digging into the past is anything but welcome. There's so much more to what happened there five years ago, and Pryce is ready to crack it all wide open... if he lives to tell the tale.
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Fake Dates and Mooncakes
Dylan Tang wants to win a Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake-making competition for teen chefs--in memory of his mom, and to bring much-needed publicity to his aunt's struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn. Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy, with a smile that makes Dylan's stomach do backflips. AKA a distraction. Their worlds are sun-and-moon apart, but Theo keeps showing up. He even convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding in the Hamptons. In Theo's glittering world of pomp, privilege, and crazy rich drama, their romance is supposed to be just pretend . . . but Dylan finds himself falling for Theo. For real. Then Theo's relatives reveal their true colors--but with the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can't risk being sidetracked by rich-people problems. Can Dylan save his family's business and follow his heart--or will he fail to do both?
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Bitter
After a childhood in foster care, Bitter is thrilled to have been chosen to attend Eucalyptus, a special school where she can focus on her painting surrounded by other creative teens. But outside this haven, the streets are filled with protests against the deep injustices that grip the city of Lucille. Bitter's instinct is to stay safe within the walls of Eucalyptus...but her friends aren't willing to settle for a world that's so far away from what they deserve. Pulled between old friendships, her artistic passion, and a new romance, Bitter isn't sure where she belongs--in the studio or in the streets. And if she does find a way to help the revolution while being true to who she is, she must also ask: at what cost?
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If I Can Give You That
Seventeen-year-old Gael, a trans boy, learns to let his walls down while finding community, discovering his sexuality, falling in love, and navigating difficult family situations.
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Imogen, Obviously
Imogen Scott may be hopelessly heterosexual, but she's got the World's Greatest Ally title locked down. She's never missed a Pride Alliance meeting. She knows more about queer media discourse than her very queer little sister. She even has two queer best friends. There's Gretchen, a fellow high school senior, who helps keep Imogen's biases in check. And then there's Lili--newly out and newly thriving with a cool new squad of queer college friends. Imogen's thrilled for Lili. Any ally would be. And now that she's finally visiting Lili on campus, she's bringing her ally A game. Any support Lili needs, Imogen's all in. Even if that means bending the truth, just a little. Like when Lili drops a tiny queer bombshell: she's told all her college friends that Imogen and Lili used to date. And none of them know that Imogen is a raging hetero--not even Lili's best friend, Tessa. Of course, the more time Imogen spends with chaotic, freckle-faced Tessa, the more she starts to wonder if her truth was ever all that straight to begin with...
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Love Makes Mochi
Seventeen-year-old goth fashion designer Lilyn travels to Tokyo to study under a legendary tailor, but as she struggles to blend her dark aesthetic with traditional Japanese style, she finds both inspiration and unexpected romance with Yua, her mentor's rebellious, rainbow-haired daughter.
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Summer Official
Heaven and Saylor could not be more different. Saylor is bubbly, popular, athletic, and always partnered up. Heaven is grumpy and artistic, prefers her skateboard to people, and has never dated anyone. So no one would believe they’d agree to spend the entire summer together. Yet, that’s exactly what happened. When Saylor Ford breaks her arm at Basketball camp, distracted by her mom’s internet fame discussing Saylor’s newfound sexuality, she becomes determined not to spend the summer stuck at home with the woman. Her one saving grace is a girl she’s pretty sure can’t stand her but that she finds absolutely irresistible. Heaven Goo-Campbell. Thankfully, Heaven is willing to let Saylor in on her Summer Bingo challenge, but for a price. Saylor has to help Heaven establish a social media page showcasing her art for her future career as a tattoo artist. They didn’t plan on the intimacy of spending each day together and the deepening feelings that followed. Soon, they become something more than a shared project. But can the girls even have a future together when Saylor is wary of bringing their relationship out into the light—too afraid that her mom’s status as a popular influencer will give Saylor and timid Heaven more attention than they can handle?
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Only on the Weekends
The son of a film director, Mack grows up on set and into a hopeless romantic--one who falls hard for the handsome and popular Karim, who eventually notices him back, right before Mack has to relocate to Scotland. Not wanting to lose his first love, Mack asks Karim to be long-distance, but while they're trying, fearless and confident Finlay shows up on set, and Mack's world turns upside down yet again.
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The Lonely Book
A warm and loving novel-in-verse about how a non-binary person comes to understand and accept themselves by an award-winning queer author. Every morning, when Annie’s moms open up their bookshop, there’s a pile of books on the counter, waiting for the right reader to come and find them. But one day, there’s a book nobody comes for. Nobody ever comes, and each day the book gets lonelier, and the bookshop becomes an unhappy place. Who can the book be for, and why don’t they come? Eventually, the book finds the reader who needs Annie’s sister, Charlotte. Charlotte asks the family to call her Charlie now, and to use ‘they/them’ pronouns. The bookshop cheers up. Customers start buying books again.
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Worst-Case Scenario
An enemies-to-lovers romance about nemeses who are forced to share their school's Queer Alliance presidency following a tie in the election, new from beloved author Ray Stoeve. Sidney has one goal for their junior year. Well... two, if they're being honest. Number one: become president of their school's Queer Alliance club. And number two: keep their self-diagnosed anxiety in check so their grades don't tank like they did last year. But when the election results in a tie with none other than Sidney's arch nemesis, the class clown Forrest, the two are forced to share the presidency until a re-vote at the end of term. Sidney expects Forrest to be insufferable, but it turns out that working together is ... kind of nice? As surprising feelings for Forrest emerge, Sidney's techniques for managing their anxiety stop working. With the reelection approaching and assignments starting to pile up, will all this pressure be too much for Sidney to handle on their own?
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The Wicked Bargain
On Mar León de la Rosa's sixteenth birthday, el Diablo comes calling. Mar is a transmasculine nonbinary teen pirate hiding a magical ability to manipulate fire and ice. But their magic isn't enough to reverse a wicked bargain made by their father, and now el Diablo has come to collect his payment: the soul of Mar's father and the entire crew of their ship. When Mar is miraculously rescued by the sole remaining pirate crew in the Caribbean, el Diablo returns to give them a choice: give up their soul to save their father by the harvest moon, or never see him again. The task is impossible--Mar refuses to make a bargain, and there's no way their magic is a match for el Diablo. Then Mar finds the most unlikely allies: Bas, an infuriatingly arrogant and handsome pirate--and the captain's son; and Dami, a gender-fluid demonio whose motives are never quite clear. For the first time in their life, Mar may have the courage to use their magic. It could be their only redemption--or it could mean certain death.
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One Word, Six Letters
Freshmen Dayton and Farshid couldn't be more different-or so it seems. When Dayton takes a dare and shouts the f-slur at a visiting author during a school event, it sets off a chain reaction that forces both boys to face parts of themselves they'd rather ignore. Dayton, grappling with the fallout of his actions, faces rejection from his friends, disappointment from his parents, and a growing awareness of the harm he's caused. Meanwhile, Farshid is left to untangle his own feelings-about himself and about the quiet struggle of coming to terms with his queerness in a world steeped in heteronormativity. As their lives unexpectedly intersect, Dayton and Farshid must reckon with what kind of men they want to become and whether they have the courage to defy toxic masculinity and societal expectations.
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According To Plan
Mal Flowers expected senior year fall to be full of cozy sweaters, good coffee, and copyediting. As the new editor-in-chief of their school's literary magazine, they just want to follow The Plan to graduate and get out of their small midwestern town--a place where, as a broke, fat, queer person with ADHD, they've never really fit in. But when budget cuts result in the lit mag's cancellation, Mal is suddenly left scrambling for something to replace it. That is, until Emerson Pike--who also has ADHD but is loud, confident, and Mal's complete opposite--suggests the staff go rogue and create a zine instead. Which would be cool, except that making and selling contraband isn't exactly what Mal envisioned listing as the extracurricular activity on their college application. A zine would be unofficial, unapproved, and definitely not in The Plan. But a zine is also a good way to spend more time with Emerson, whose playful banter and bad jokes Mal can't seem to get enough of. And maybe, with a group of new friends, the back of the charming coffee shop where Emerson works could be somewhere Mal does belong. Because breaking the rules with Emerson--and flirting with her over coffee--is fun. Maybe The Plan isn't the only way to find happiness, but can Mal let go of something they've depended on for so long?
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Transmogrify!: 14 Fantastical Tales of Trans Magic
Transness is as varied and colorful as magic can be. In Transmogrify!, you'll embark on fourteen different adventures alongside unforgettable characters who embody many different genders and expressions and experiences--because magic is for everyone, and that is cause for celebration.
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Better Catch Up, Krishna Kumar
Krishna Kumar may have gotten into her dream college, but that doesn't mean she's stopped being a bi disaster. Even after spending her whole summer in India flirting with her gorgeous neighbor Amrit, she has nothing to show for it. And now, her fate is sealed: she's destined to be the only freshman who's never been kissed. But when her flight home is delayed right as a distinctly flirty text from Amrit lights up her phone, Krishna is determined to seize her last chance at a perfect first kiss with Amrit, even if it means asking her cousin-turned-nemesis, Priti, for help. Because Amrit is miles away at a family wedding--and Priti's best friend, Rudra Desai, is the only one with a car. The unlikely trio set off on a road trip to crash a wedding and save Krishna's summer. But as she starts to fall for the quiet yet irresistibly hot and charming Rudra, who everyone knows is unrequitedly in love with Priti, Krishna realizes her heart better catch up to her head before she skips right past her first kiss and falls directly into her first heartbreak.
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Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
What if you found a once-in-a-lifetime love... just not in your lifetime? Audrey Cameron has lost her spark. But after getting dumped by her first love and waitlisted at her dream art school all in one week, she has no intention of putting her heart on the line again to get it back. So when local curmudgeon Mr. Montgomery walks into her family's Pittsburgh convenience store saying he can help her, Audrey doesn't know what she's expecting... but it's definitely not that she'll be transported back to 1812 to become a Regency romance heroine. Lucy Sinclair isn't expecting to find an oddly dressed girl claiming to be from two hundred years in the future on her family's estate. But she has to admit it's a welcome distraction from being courted by a man her father expects her to marry--who offers a future she couldn't be less interested in. Not that anyone has cared about what or who she's interested in since her mother died, taking Lucy's spark with her. While the two girls try to understand what's happening and how to send Audrey home, their sparks make a comeback in a most unexpected way. Because as they both try over and over to fall for their suitors and the happily-ever-afters everyone expects of them, they find instead they don't have to try at all to fall for each other. But can a most unexpected love story survive even more impossible circumstances?
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Magical Boy : A Graphic Novel
Although he was assigned female at birth, Max is your average trans boy trying to get through high school as himself. But on top of classes, crushes, and coming out, Max's life is turned upside down when his mom reveals an eons-old family secret: he's descended from a long line of Magical Girls tasked with defending humanity from a dark, ancient evil! With a sassy feline sidekick and a loyal gang of friends by his side, can Max take on his destiny, save the world, and become the first Magical Boy?
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Like We Were in Paris
In Paris on a class trip, sixteen-year-old Ben and his former friend, Tyler, find themselves locked out of the youth hostel, and set out roaming the streets, exploring the city--and reevaluating their relationship.
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Belle of the Ball
High-school senior and notorious wallflower Hawkins finally works up the courage to remove her mascot mask and ask out her longtime crush: Regina Moreno, head cheerleader, academic overachiever, and all-around popular girl. There's only one teensy little problem: Regina is already dating Chloe Kitagawa, athletic all-star ... and middling English student. Regina sees a perfectly self-serving opportunity here, and asks the smitten Hawkins to tutor Chloe free of charge, knowing Hawkins will do anything to get closer to her.
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Ophelia After All
Seventeen-year-old Ophelia Rojas, well known for her rose garden and her dramatic crushes on every boy in sight, begins to question her sexuality and sense of self when she starts to fall for cute, quiet Talia Sanchez in the weeks leading up to their high school prom and graduation.
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They Want Us Dead
Seventeen-year-old Sam Tombs hopes to get more eyes on the videos they make to raise awareness of crimes against LGBTQ+ teens. A true crime content creator event seems like the perfect opportunity to grow their channel--until the group becomes stranded at an eerie Victorian mansion, and one of them is killed in the night. Sam's alibi, and the only person they can trust, happens to be their mean, dorky internet nemesis Dylan. But the two must now put aside their rivalry and use their investigative skills to figure out who among the remaining teens is the killer, before their own deaths become tomorrow's trending content.
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Queen of Faces
A desperate girl at a cutthroat magical academy faces a choice between life and death: become an assassin for the enchanted elite or watch her decaying body draw its last breath.
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Her Name In the Sky
Hannah has big plans for senior year: football games, Mardi Gras parties, and spring break on the beach with her tight-knit group of friends. No drama, no detours. Just a year to remember. Falling for another girl-her best friend, Baker-was not part of the plan. Hannah knows she should date Wally, the earnest, dependable boy her sister is always teasing her about. She should be happy when Clay, the golden boy of their group, asks Baker to be his girlfriend. She should follow the rules of her traditional Louisiana town-especially those she hears from the pulpit-and bury the feelings that don't fit. But how can she, when Baker makes boxed mac and cheese feel like a love language, when they share dog-eared books and secrets that crack something open inside her, and when being close to Baker feels less like a mistake and more like coming home? Hannah must decide if she's willing to risk everything for the one girl who sees her clearly-and who might just feel the same way. If she and Baker are brave enough, this could be the start of everything.
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The Spirit Bares Its Teeth
Set in an alternate Victorian England where mediums control the dead, sixteen-year-old autistic transgender boy Silas must expose a power-hungry secret society while confined to a cruel finishing school designed to turn him into the perfect wife.
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Something To Be Proud Of
A group of teens, led by sixteen-year-old aspiring comedian Imogen, come together to organize an accessible Pride festival while challenging stereotypes and confronting injustices in their school and beyond.
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A Million Quiet Revolutions
Two seventeen-year-old trans boys in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, struggling to understand themselves and their love for each other, are inspired by an online story about trans soldiers who fell in love during the American Revolution.
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That Which Feeds Us : A Hawaiian Gothic
For the world’s wealthiest, Kōpaʻa Island Resort is more than a destination. It’s the ultimate escape. With no cell service or Wi-Fi, the Hawaiian island is a coveted wellness retreat renowned for its persimmon orchard and promises of rejuvenation. But their dream vacation is Lehua’s nightmare. When her twin sister, Ohia, goes missing, Lehua follows her trail to Kōpaʻa to find her. Instead, Lehua is cut off from civilization--and help--after the island’s boat leaves without her, stranding her with the resort’s lavish guests and enigmatic staff. As Lehua investigates Ohia’s disappearance, she discovers her missing sister isn’t the island’s only mystery. Kōpaʻa’s rich exterior and sweet persimmons hide its dark plantation past. And Lehua can’t ignore the dreams haunting her each night--nor the warning telling her to leave the island at once. To uncover what happened to Ohia, Lehua will have to unearth the island’s bloody history and face the horrors that lurk within its sugarcane fields--or risk being consumed by them.
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