Read on to discover just a few of our favourites and tell us in the comments if you will be picking up any of these!

Kisses and Croissants by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

As sweet as a macaron from Laduree, with writing as crisp as a freshly baked baguette, this romantic novel set in Paris about an American ballerina and a charming French boy is parfait for fans of American Royals and Netflix’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.

The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From bestselling author Lynette Noni comes a dark, thrilling YA fantasy perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, and Sabaa Tahir.

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland
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A dark, twisty modern fairytale where three sisters discover they are not exactly all that they seem and evil things really do go bump in the night.

Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Perfect for fans of the Lady Janies and Stalking Jack the Ripper, the first book in the Jane Austen Murder Mysteries series is a clever retelling of Pride and Prejudice that reimagines the iconic settings, characters, and romances in a thrilling and high-stakes whodunit.

The Sky Blues by Robbie Couch
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Sky’s small town turns absolutely claustrophobic when his secret promposal plans get leaked to the entire school in this witty, heartfelt, and ultimately hopeful debut novel for fans of What if it’s Us? and I Wish You All the Best.

She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

High school nemeses fall in love in this queer YA rom com perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Casey McQuiston.

What Beauty There Is by Cory Anderson
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

An exhilarating, emotionally powerful and superbly written thriller that’s Winter’s Bone meets The Road.

Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From the author of the “heart-wrenching yet hopeful” (Samira Ahmed) novel The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali, comes a timely, intimate look at what it means to be an immigrant in America today, and the endurance of hope and faith in the face of hate.

The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldavsky
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New York Times–bestselling author Goldy Moldavsky delivers a deliciously twisty YA thriller that’s Scream meets Karen McManus about a mysterious club with an obsession for horror.

Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet by Laekan Zea Kemp
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I’m Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter meets Emergency Contact in this stunning story of first love, familial expectations, the power of food, and finding where you belong.

My Epic Spring Break-Up by Kristin Rockaway
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A fun and upbeat paperback original romance about a girl who finds a cheat sheet for love.

What’s Not to Love by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka
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An academic enemies-to-lovers YA with all the nerdy drama, high school antics, and heartpounding romance of the Netflix original series Never Have I Ever.

What April YA releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post April 2021 YA Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

If you thought 2020 was a year of breathtaking and riveting queer releases, you ain’t seen nothing yet. With highly anticipated new stories from authors such as Casey McQuiston, Ciara Smyth, and Kelly Quindlen as well as promising debut authors like Morgan Rogers and Robbie Couch, 2021 is shaping up to be the most inclusive and LGBTQIAP+ friendly year yet (and we couldn’t be happier to see it)!

Now, our focus was mainly YA and middle-grade releases, but we’ve also thrown in a couple of queer fantasy, mystery, and romance releases too!  Want even more 2021 releases? Check out our list of Most Anticipated releases, Fantasy and Sci-Fi releases, Young Adult releases, Romance releases, and Queer SFF releases.

Read on to get a glimpse at some of the January to June 2021 #LGBTQIAP+ novels we cannot wait to get our hands on! And as always, tell us what other queer releases you’re looking forward to in the comments below!

JANUARY

Lava Red Feather Blue by Molly Ringle
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

On a magically hidden North Pacific island, when a man awakens a sleeping beauty of a prince, it’s only the beginning of the fairy tale, as breaking the spell unleashes a dangerous force among the fae too.

Be Dazzled by Ryan La Sala
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Project Runway goes to Comic Con in an epic, queer love story about creativity, creation, and finding the courage to be your most authentic self.

Wench by Maxine Kaplan
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A funny, fiercely feminist YA epic fantasy—following the adventures of a tavern wench.

When Tara Met Farah by Tara Pammi
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

“Sunshine Girl needs math lessons” in this sapphic grumpy meets sunshine new adult romance.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Acclaimed author of Ash, Malinda Lo returns with her most personal and ambitious novel yet, a gripping story of love and duty set in San Francisco’s Chinatown during the 1950s.

Not Quite Out by Louise Willingham
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

William Anson is done with relationships, thanks. He’s starting the second year of his medicine degree single, focused, and ready to mingle with purely platonic intentions. Until he meets Daniel, a barely recovered drug addict that turns his world upside down.

The Heiress by Molly Greeley
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

In this gorgeously written and spellbinding historical novel based on Pride and Prejudice, the author of The Clergyman’s Wife combines the knowing eye of Jane Austen with the eroticism and Gothic intrigue of Sarah Waters to reimagine the life of the mysterious Anne de Bourgh.

FEBRUARY

Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A refreshingly timely and relatable debut novel about a young woman whose life plans fall apart when she meets her wife.

100 Boyfriends by Brontez Purnell
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

An irreverent, sensitive, and inimitable look at gay dysfunction through the eyes of a cult hero

A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

The Cruel Prince meets City of Bones in this thrilling urban fantasy set in the magical underworld of Toronto that follows a queer cast of characters racing to stop a serial killer whose crimes could expose the hidden world of faeries to humans.

Love is for Losers by Wibke Brueggemann
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

In this wry and hilarious queer romantic comedy, fifteen-year-old Phoebe realizes that falling in love is maybe not just for losers.

As Far as You’ll Take Me by Phil Stamper
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

The author of The Gravity of Us crafts another heartfelt coming-of-age story about finding the people who become your home – perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli.

Let’s Get Back to the Party by Zak Salih
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Rich with sharply drawn characters and contemporary detail, provocative, and emotionally profound, Let’s Get Back to the Party is sure to appeal to readers of Garth Greenwell, Alan Hollinghurst, Claire Messud, and Rebecca Makkai.

The Boy from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A funny and heart-warming queer Indigenous YA novel, set in a rural Australian community, about seventeen-year-old Jackson finding the courage to explore who he is, even if it scares him.

MARCH

Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales
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In Sophie Gonzales’ Perfect on Paper, Leah on the Offbeat meets To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before: a bisexual girl who gives anonymous love advice to her classmates is hired by the hot guy to help him get his ex back.

Sweet & Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

In this charming debut fantasy perfect for fans of Sorcery of Thorns and Girls of Paper and Fire, a witch cursed to never love meets a girl hiding her own dangerous magic, and the two strike a dangerous bargain to save their queendom.

Bruised by Tanya Boteju
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Whip It meets We Are Okay in this vibrant coming-of-age story, about a teen girl navigates first love, identity, and grief when she immerses herself in the colorful, brutal, beautiful world of roller derby. From the acclaimed author of Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens.

The Mirror Season by Anna-Marie McLemore
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

When two teens discover that they were both sexually assaulted at the same party, they develop a cautious friendship through her family’s possibly magical pastelería, his secret forest of otherworldly trees, and the swallows returning to their hometown.

She’s Too Pretty to Burn by Wendy Heard
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Inspired by The Picture of Dorian Gray comes an electric romance set against a rebel art scene that sparks lethal danger for two girls in this expertly plotted YA thriller. For fans of E. Lockhart, Lauren Oliver and Kara Thomas.

I Think I Love You by Auriane Desombre
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A YA contemporary rom com about two girls who start as rivals but after a twist of events, end up falling for one another–at least they think so.

Follow Your Arrow by Jessica Verdi
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

For fans of Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera, this is a riveting and irresistible take on love, life, and identity – both online and off.

APRIL

The Sky Blues by Robbie Couch
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Sky’s small town turns absolutely claustrophobic when his secret promposal plans get leaked to the entire school in this witty, heartfelt, and ultimately hopeful debut novel for fans of What if it’s Us? and I Wish You All the Best.

Between Perfect and Real by Ray Stoeve
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A moving #ownvoices YA debut about a trans boy finding his voice—and himself.

These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Three Dark Crowns meets Wicked Saints in this queer #ownvoices retelling of The Firebird, a Russian folktale, by debut author Alexandra Overy.

Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From the author of the “heart-wrenching yet hopeful” (Samira Ahmed) novel The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali, comes a timely, intimate look at what it means to be an immigrant in America today, and the endurance of hope and faith in the face of hate.

Malice by Heather Walter
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A princess isn’t supposed to fall for an evil sorceress. But in this darkly magical retelling of “Sleeping Beauty,” true love is more than a simple fairy tale.

She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

High school nemeses fall in love in this queer YA rom com perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Casey McQuisten

The Key to You and Me by Jaye Robin Brown
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A sweet and funny #ownvoices LGBTQ+ romance perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Julie Murphy, from the critically acclaimed author of Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit!

MAY

Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Felix Ever After meets Becky Albertalli in this swoon-worthy, heartfelt rom-com about how a transgender teen’s first love challenges his ideas about perfect relationships.

It Goes Like This by Miel Moreland
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

In Miel Moreland’s heartfelt young adult debut, four queer teens realize that sometimes you have to risk hitting repeat on heartbreak.

How to Become a Planet by Nicole Melleby
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

11-year-old Pluto struggles with her depression and anxiety diagnosis, which feels like a big black hole sitting on her chest making it too hard to do anything. She makes efforts to find balance with an assist from the friendly voice on the Hayden Planetarium’s Astronomy Question and Answer Hotline.

Not My Problem by Ciara Smyth
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From the author of The Falling in Love Montage, this queer coming-of-age story about a slacker who inadvertently becomes her school’s underground problem-solver is wry, multilayered, and unflinchingly honest—perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Nina LaCour.

Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Cool for the Summer is a story of self-discovery and new love. It’s about the things we want and the things we need. And it’s about the people who will let us be who we are. 

Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

To All the Boys I Loved Before meets LGBT romance in this funny, heart-warming rom-com about first love and identity.

May the Best Man Win by ZR Ellor
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A trans boy enters a throw-down battle for the title of Homecoming King with the boy he dumped last summer in ZR Ellor’s contemporary YA debut.

JUNE

The (Un)Popular Vote by Jasper Sanchez
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Red, White and Royal Blue meets The West Wing in Sanchez’s electric and insightful #ownvoices YA debut, chronicling a transmasculine student’s foray into a no-holds-barred student body president election against the wishes of his politician father.

Jay’s Gay Agenda by Jason June
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From debut novelist Jason June comes a moving and hilarious sex-positive teen rom-com about the complexities of first loves, first hookups, and first heartbreaks—and how to stay true to yourself while embracing what you never saw coming.

The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

They Both Die at the End meets The Loneliest Girl in the Universe in this mind-bending sci-fi mystery and tender love story about two boys aboard a spaceship sent on a rescue mission.

The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon
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To save a fae kingdom, a trans witch must face his traumatic past and the royal fiancé he left behind. This debut YA fantasy will leave you spellbound.

Yes, Daddy by Jonathan Parks-Ramage
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A propulsive, scorching modern gothic, Yes, Daddy follows an ambitious young man who is lured by an older, successful playwright into a dizzying world of wealth and an idyllic Hamptons home where things take a nightmarish turn.

Trouble Girls by Julia Lynn Rubin
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A queer YA reimagining of Thelma & Louise with the aesthetic of Riverdale.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

From the New York Times bestselling author of Red, White & Royal Blue comes a new romantic comedy that puts a queer spin on Kate & Leopold.

What queer 2021 book releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Anticipated Queer Book Releases You Can’t Miss In 2021 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

In the past ten years there’s been immense growth in race representation within mainstream media. While there’s always been a market for books with POC leads, the amount of POC books that can be found in the forefront of book media has grown spectacularly, alongside the growth of diversity as well. With Black History Month still fresh on everyone’s minds, here are some books with POC leads that everyone should read at least once in their lifetime.

Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America

Black Enough is an anthology that is filled with beautiful short stories about different, and often hidden, experiences of being a black teen in America. The anthology has well crafted stories that resonate deeply with black people around the world who have experienced or heard of similar situations within their lives. Black Enough is a unique book that everyone should invest in reading in order to gain understanding of black experiences and black communities, not only in America, but also worldwide. The anthology contains stories that are strong both by themselves and within the collection as a whole.

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Binti is a sci-fi coming-of-age novella that explores the difficulties of balancing and not losing your heritage while going against traditions in order to fulfil your dreams. The book explores racism and segregation in a straightforward way that isn’t overwhelming for most readers. It’s an easily digestible book and can be read in one sitting, but yet it’s still packed with lessons and informative situations that can teach anyone something about race, gender, and the way different types of communities/tribes work.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas 

A list about books with people of colour leads wouldn’t be complete without The Hate U Give being mentioned. The award winning young adult book created waves not only in literature, but in the world as well. The book tackles racism, police brutality and activism in a way that correlates closely to what many black people in America face in a daily basis. The Hate U Give was the start of an era of young adult POC literature being in the forefront of media and carving a permanent spot at the media table. The book was revolutionary and will go down in history as one of the biggest diverse books of the time period. One things for certain, the book is definitely worth the hype.

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before was a teen phenomenon when it was adapted into one of the biggest Netflix movies of 2018. The cute, romantic book had hearts full as we all got drawn in by a story with a POC lead that wasn’t necessarily focused on being a person of colour. The book takes romance and makes it accessible to a younger audience, which made the story huge within pop culture. There’s something refreshing about reading a sweet, and not heavily political book, that still has impact and makes waves in the POC community.

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

The Poet X is one of the best books of the era, period. The book tells a story in such a unique way by using prose. Each page, no matter how minimal, feels like a poem with meaning inside it. The book was highly hyped around its release, and it deserved every bit of hype that it got. The book should be a really should be a staple on everyone’s bookshelf.

And here are a few extra recommendations for those avid readers out there:

Let’s Go Swimming on Doomsday by Natalie C. Anderson

Forced to become a child soldier, a sixteen-year-old Somali refugee must confront his painful past in this haunting, thrilling tale of loss and redemption for fans of A Long Way Gone and What is the What

The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan

A gritty novel that doesn’t shy away from the darkest corners of ourselves, The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali provides a timely and achingly honest portrait of what it’s like to grow up feeling unwelcome in your own culture and proves that love, above all else, has the power to change the world.

I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver

At turns heartbreaking and joyous, I Wish You All the Best is both a celebration of life, friendship, and love, and a shining example of hope in the face of adversity.

Do you have any other recommendations or favourites? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Five Books With Wonderful POC Lead Characters appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

This month sees the release of two highly anticipated January YA releases—King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo and Holly Black’s sequel, The Wicked King. There’s also the intriguing Unmarriageable, which is a retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan, and Sally Thorne’s new romance novel 99 Percent Mine.

Read on to discover our picks and tell us in the comments below if you will be reading any!

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr. Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money, and leave. But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr. Shields may know what she’s thinking…and what she’s hiding. As Jess’s paranoia grows, it becomes clear that she can no longer trust what in her life is real, and what is one of Dr. Shields’ manipulative experiments. Caught in a web of deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.

The Suspect by Fiona Barton
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

When two eighteen-year-old girls go missing on their gap year in Thailand, their families are thrust into the international spotlight: desperate, bereft and frantic with worry. Journalist Kate Waters always does everything she can to be first to the story, first with the exclusive, first to discover the truth – and this time is no exception. But she can’t help but think of her own son, who she hasn’t seen in two years since he left home to go travelling. This time it’s personal.

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war—and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army. Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built.

The Paragon Hotel by Lyndsay Faye
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

The new and exciting historical thriller by Lyndsay Faye, author of Edgar-nominated Jane Steele and Gods of Gotham, which follows Alice “Nobody” from Prohibition-era Harlem to Portland’s the Paragon Hotel.

A Cathedral of Myth and Bone by Kat Howard
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In these sixteen exquisite stories Kat Howard deftly weaves in and out of the countries of myth and hagiography to write the lives of women untold and unexplored, including where a woman being written into her boyfriend’s fiction is at first flattered to be his muse, but then finds her real life literally consumed and overtaken by his.

The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker
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A mesmerising novel about a college town transformed by a strange illness that locks victims in a perpetual sleep and triggers life-altering dreams—by the bestselling author of The Age of Miracles, for fans of Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven and Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go.

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Set in Paris 1889, no one keeps tabs on secrets better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier, Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. But when the all-powerful society, the Order of Babel, seeks him out for help, Séverin is offered a treasure that he never imagined: his true inheritance. To find the ancient artifact the Order seeks, Séverin will need help from a band of experts: An engineer with a debt to pay. A historian who can’t yet go home. A dancer with a sinister past. And a brother in all but blood, who might care too much.

An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma
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A contemporary twist on the Odyssey, An Orchestra of Minorities is narrated by the chi, or spirit of a young poultry farmer named Chinonso. His life is set off course when he sees a woman who is about to jump off a bridge. Horrified by her recklessness, he hurls two of his prized chickens off the bridge. The woman, Ndali, is stopped in her tracks.

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal
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In this one-of-a-kind retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan, Alys Binat has sworn never to marry—until an encounter with one Mr. Darsee at a wedding makes her reconsider.

The Wicked King by Holly Black
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked king, Cardan, to her, and made herself the power behind the throne. Navigating the constantly shifting political alliances of Faerie would be difficult enough if Cardan were easy to control. But he does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her even as his fascination with her remains undiminished.

The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali tries her hardest to live up to her conservative Muslim parents’ expectations, but lately she’s finding that harder to do. Luckily, only a few more months stand between her carefully monitored life in Seattle and her new life at Caltech, where she can pursue her dream of becoming an engineer. But when her parents catch her kissing her girlfriend Ariana, all of Rukhsana’s plans fall apart. Being gay may as well be a death sentence in the Bengali community so her parents send her to Bangladesh, where she is thrown headfirst into a world of arranged marriages and tradition. Only through reading her grandmother’s old diary is Rukhsana able to gain some much needed perspective.

99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

If Darcy Barrett hadn’t met her dream man when she was eight years old, the rest of the male population wouldn’t be such a let-down. No one measures up to Tom Valeska, but worse is the knowledge that her twin brother Jamie saw him first, and claimed him forever as his best friend. Tom’s off limits and loyal to her brother, 99%. One percent of Tom has had to be enough for Darcy. Will Tom ever see Darcy as anything other than a little-sister obstacle to get around? And can she stand up to her most formidable opponent—her twin? This time around, she’s determined to make Tom Valeska 99 percent hers, and he’s never managed to say no to her yet…

Will you be checking out any of these books? Tell us in the comments below!

The post January Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.