Queer Fantasy Books We Love | Penguin Random House (2024)

The Society for Soulless Girls

by Laura Steven

A sapphic enemies-to-lovers retelling of Jekyll & Hyde, this dark academia thriller follows two roommates who must solve an infamous cold case of serial murders on their campus after an arcane ritual gone wrong prompts another death.

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$12.99

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The Taking of Jake Livingston

by Ryan Douglass

Sixteen-year-old Jake Livingston isn’t like every other student at St. Clair Prep. For one thing, he’s one of the school’s few Black students (something his racist teachers never let him forget), and second of all, he can see dead people. Lots of them. Jake’s world — already disorienting enough — is turned upside down when a new student brings romance into his life while a terrifying, vengeful and powerful ghost begins to haunt him like no other.

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$11.99

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When Women Were Dragons

by Kelly Barnhill

A fiery feminist tale set in 1950s America where thousands of women have spontaneously transformed into dragons, exploding notions of a woman’s place in the world and expanding minds about accepting others for who they really are.

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$17.00

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by Tessa Gratton and Justina Ireland

Bloody magic. Ancient fury. Prepare for the gripping conclusion to the Chaos & Flame saga, the “fast-paced, action-filled fantasy that reads like a mix of Game of Thrones and Avatar: The Last Airbender” (BCCB) from two beloved New York Times bestselling authors.

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$19.99

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Another Dimension of Us

by Mike Albo

The Breakfast Club meets Stranger Things in this thrilling science fiction story about teens from the past and the future who travel across the astral plane to save the ones they love.

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$12.99

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An Accident of Stars

by Foz Meadows

When Saffron Coulter stumbles through a hole in reality, she finds herself trapped in Kena — a magical realm on the brink of civil war. It’s there that her fate becomes intertwined with that of three very different women. Portal fantasy grows up in this immersive series kickoff featuring “a life-changing adventure … compelling characters and a fascinating world” (Martha Wells, author of The Murderbot Diaries).

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$15.99

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Pet

by Akwaeke Emezi

There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. But when Jam and her best friend meet Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, she must reconsider what she’s been told. Pet has come to hunt a grim monster, is Jam brave enough to uncover the truth? A riveting and timely young adult debut novel that asks difficult questions about what choices you can make when the society around you is in denial.

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$11.99

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Misrule

by Heather Walter

Does true love break curses or begin them? The dark sorceress of “Sleeping Beauty” reclaims her story in this sequel to Malice.

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$18.00

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Iron Widow

by Xiran Jay Zhao

18-year-old Zetian only wanted one thing when she enlisted as a concubine-pilot of the giant transforming robots known as Chrysalises: Revenge for the death of her sister. Her plan is a suicide mission, and she goes through with it knowing full well it will kill her. But when her gambit leaves her victorious and unexpectedly unscathed, she’s labeled an Iron Widow — and finds herself in more danger than she could have ever predicted.

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$11.99

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Black Leopard, Red Wolf

by Marlon James

In the stunning first novel in Marlon James’s Dark Star trilogy, myth, fantasy, and history come together to explore what happens when a mercenary is hired to find a missing child.

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$18.00

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The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry

by C. M. Waggoner

Dellaria Wells is a down-on-her-luck petty criminal and fire witch without a penny to her name. Everything changes when she joins a ragtag group of highly peculiar strangers with unique abilities hired to protect a gentlewoman named Winn Cynallum on the eve of her wedding. How much danger could a society woman like this really be in? More than Dellaria could have ever imagined.

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$17.00

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Queen B

by Juno Dawson

This next spellbinding installment of Juno’s “irresistible” fantasy series Her Majesty’s Royal Coven (Lana Harper) takes us back to the reign of Henry VIII and the origins of Her Majesty’s Royal Coven under the beautiful, the bewitching, Anne Boleyn.

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$18.00

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The Spear Cuts Through Water

by Simon Jimenez

Two warriors shepherd an ancient god across a broken land to end the tyrannical reign of a royal family in this epic fantasy. Both a sweeping adventure story and an intimate exploration of identity, legacy, and belonging, The Spear Cuts Through Water is an ambitious and profound saga that will transport you.

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$18.99

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Magic’s Pawn

by Mercedes Lackey

As one of the first fantasy novels to feature a gay protagonist, Magic’s Pawn is a groundbreaking adventure that has captivated readers since 1989. Set in a world full of magic and monsters, the story follows the adventures of a young man named Vanyel, who shuns the path of magic and warriors to follow his dream of becoming a bard. Vanyel’s plans are interrupted when he falls in love and a raw, hidden power deep within him emerges.

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$7.99

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Reign of the Fallen

by Sarah Glenn Marsh

As a master necromancer, Odessa knows the stakes of raising the dead. It’s a dangerous task, and if her magic is done incorrectly the dead transform into terrifying, bloodthirsty beings known as Shades. Odessa’s world is shattered after the death of a close companion reveals a terrible conspiracy: Someone with her powers is raising the dead and purposely turning them into Shades. It is now up to Odessa and a group of powerful mages to unravel the violent mystery that’s enveloped her world before it takes her with it.

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$10.99

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The Spirit Bares Its Teeth

by Andrew Joseph White

New York Times bestselling author Andrew Joseph White returns with the transgressive gothic horror of our time! London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old trans, autistic Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker wife. A blood-soaked and nauseating triumph that cuts like a scalpel and reads like your darkest nightmare.

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To Shape a Dragon’s Breath

by Moniquill Blackgoose

The remote island of Masquapaug has not seen a dragon in many generations — until fifteen-year-old Anequs finds a dragon’s egg and bonds with its hatchling. But some people have a very specific idea of how a dragon should be raised, and who should be doing the raising — and Anequs does not meet any of their requirements. Anequs and her dragon may be coming of age, but they’re also coming to power, and that brings an important realization: The world needs changing — and they might just be the ones to do it.

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$18.00

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Bonds of Brass

by Emily Skrutskie

Ettian has spent years cobbling his life back together after the merciless Umber Empire invaded his world. He’s gone so far as to join the empire’s military academy, climbing its ranks and falling for his irresistible roommate, Gal. Just when everything seems to be on solid ground for once, Ettian’s world is rocked by the revelation that Gal is actually the heir to the empire that shattered his world. Faced with an impossible choice, Ettian must decide between his heart and his desire to build back the life that was taken from him.

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$16.00

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Hell Followed with Us

by Andrew Joseph White

A furious, queer debut about embracing the monster within and unleashing its power against your oppressors.

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$12.99

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Practical Rules for Cursed Witches

by Kayla Cottingham

From the New York Times bestselling author of My Dearest Darkest comes a cozy fantasy romance about a teen witch who must complete her magical training by breaking a powerful family’s curse. But her own affliction — to never find true love — gets in the way when she falls for the girl she’s trying to save.

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$19.99

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The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea

by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Lady Evelyn Hasegawa is on a one-way voyage to an arranged marriage with her own casket in tow. But when the captain of her ship reveals herself to be the pirate Florian, all of her plans go overboard. These two women — both of whom have lived lives controlled by others — fall in love and choose to manifest their own destiny. The only thing standing in their way? Everything.

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$10.99

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Lucha of the Night Forest

by Tehlor Kay Mejia

An edge-of-your-seat fantasy about a girl who will do anything to protect her sister — even if it means striking a dangerous bargain. Dark forces, forgotten magic, and a heart-stopping queer romance make this young adult novel a must-read.

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$18.99

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The Wicked Bargain

by Gabe Cole Novoa

El Diablo is in the details in this Latinx pirate fantasy starring a transmasculine nonbinary teen with a mission of revenge, redemption, and revolution.

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$12.99

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A Sweet Sting of Salt

by Rose Sutherland

Once a young woman uncovers a dark secret about her neighbor and his mysterious new wife, she’ll have to fight to keep herself — and the woman she loves — safe in this stunning queer reimagining of the classic folktale “The Selkie Wife.”

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$18.00

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The Other Merlin

by Robyn Schneider

Channeling the modern humor of The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, bestselling author Robyn Schneider creates a Camelot that becomes the ultimate teen rom-com hotspot in this ultra-fresh take on the Arthurian legend.

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$12.99

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