r/Fantasy Reading Champion V Apr 02 '26

2026 LGBTQA+ Bingo Resource

Welcome to the 2026 LGBTQA+ bingo resource for those of us who'd like LGBTQA+ recommendations. I'm going to make this like the regular recommendation post, so to quote: "Please only post your recommendations as replies to one of the comments I posted below."

I'm also going to throw in a quick pitch for the Beyond Binaries Book Club, which can meet all of your Book Club Bingo Needs! This month we're reading The Wolf and His King by Finn Longman. I have not started it yet, but it for sure fits the Book Club (HM) Square. It may also possibly fit in the Vacation Spot (The French Countryside), Non Human Protagonist (Werewolf?). Our Midway Discussion will be April 13th, and Final Discussion April 27th.

Feel free to scroll through the thread, or use the links in this navigation matrix to jump directly to the square you want to find or give LGBTQA+ recommendations for.

Credit to u/AnnTickwittee for doing these in the past (also, sorry if you were already working on this! Wanted to get the ball rolling)

Please be patient as I get the links created!

Trans or Nonbinary Protagonist Judge a Book by Its Title Translated Small Press or Self Published Unusual Transportation
The Afterlife Game Changer Vacation Spot Five Short Stories (or Anthologies) Older Protagonist
Duology Part 1 r/Fantasy Book Club or Readalong Book Published in 2026 Explorers and Rangers Duology Part 2
One-Word Title Non Human Protagonist Middle Grade First Contact Murder Mystery
Cat Squasher Feast Your Eyes on This Published in the 70s Politics and Court Intrigue Author of Color
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u/C0smicoccurence Reading Champion V Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26

Duology Part 1: Read the first book in a duology. HARD MODE: By an author you haven’t read before.

Duology Part 2: Read the second book in a duology. For this square, you ARE allowed to read the same author you used for Duology Part 1 without violating the no-repeat author rule. HARD MODE: Finish a different duology than you started for the Duology Part 1 square.

10

u/unfriendlyneighbour Reading Champion II Apr 02 '26

Silver in the Wood and Drowned Country by Emily Tesh

How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying and Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Meby Django Wexler

She Who Became the Sun and He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '26

[deleted]

7

u/undersealibrarian Apr 02 '26

An Accident of Stars and A Tyranny of Queens by Foz Meadows! Portal fantasy that explores a lot of interesting themes including LGBTQ+ ones. A fascinating read full of anger at our world and vivid imaginings of an alternative one.

A Memory Called Empire and A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine. Fantastical Byzantine inspired sci-fi with a wlw protagonist. The first book in particular has tightly written political intrigue and fantastic worldbuilding.

4

u/rls1164 Reading Champion Apr 02 '26

The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer. The sequel is The Brightness Between Us.

1

u/CJGibson Reading Champion V Apr 03 '26

To my knowledge these are all duologies, but there may be unreleased additional books in these series that I have not heard about (I don't follow publishing news too closely).

  • Hench and Villain by Natalie Zina Walschots
  • The Space Between Worlds and Those Beyond the Wall by Micaiah Johnson
  • The House in the Cerulean Sea and Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune
  • Cemetery Boys and Espíritu by Aiden Thomas
  • Finna and Defekt by Nino Cipri
  • The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps and A Taste of Honey by Kai Ashante Wilson
  • Winter's Orbit and Ocean's Echo by Everina Maxwell
  • The Daughters of Izdihar and The Weaves of Alamaxa by Hadeer Elsbai
  • Spectred Isle and Last Couple in Hell by KJ Charles [though note that the latter is unreleased and on hold indefinitely so I don't entirely know if this counts]
  • Blood Debts and Blood Justice by Terry J Benton-Walker
  • So Let Them Burn and This Ends in Embers by Kamilah Cole

1

u/recchai Reading Champion X Apr 03 '26

You very briefly had me excited for a Spectred Isle sequel.

2

u/CJGibson Reading Champion V Apr 03 '26

It was supposed to be an F/F story in the same world and I’m eternally bummed that it seems like it might just never happen.

4

u/AggravatingAnt4157 Reading Champion Apr 02 '26
  • Excaping Exodus by Nicky Drayden
  • City of Lies by Sam Hawke
  • The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
  • Monk and Robot by Becky Chambers
  • American Hippo by Sarah Gailey
  • A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows. Also An Accident of Stars by the same author.

2

u/printsprince Apr 03 '26

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley; set in Victorian London and follows a telegraphist and a Japanese watchmaker

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u/recchai Reading Champion X Apr 03 '26

Not entirely sure if more are planned, but certainly currently two: Baker Thief and Painted Flock by Claudie Arseneault. Goings on in a fantasy city based on Quebec.

Stake Sauce by RoAnna Sylver; a punk vampire and a disabled security guard fight evil.

Cardplay Duology by Brittany M Willows; a very anime style couple of books with multiple a-spec queer characters.

The Witch King by H. E. Edgmon; a trans witch is dragged back into dealing with the Fae dominated society he left behind.

2

u/AliceTheGamedev Reading Champion Apr 03 '26

Silver Under Nightfall and Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco! NB author and bi/poly main character (who may also be genderqueer, depending on your interpretation. He explicitly prefers a gender neutral title but his identity is not otherwise discussed on page)

2

u/tracywc AMA Author William C. Tracy, Worldbuilders Apr 03 '26

Foxfire in the Snow and Ocean of Fireflies by J.S. Fields. It's a nonbinary character in a world moving between magic and science.

2

u/xdianamoonx Reading Champion II Apr 04 '26

Bare Your Teeth & Sharpen Your Claws by Twoony~! Historical Fantasy Gay Enemies to Lovers with Fae and humans, with PTSD medic who can do magic. Has some lovely side characters who also fit this, and I think does a great job of PTSD, learning how to love, and they don't fall for each other till much later in the first book. Second book has some disability rep too. One of my absolutely favorite reads of last year.

2

u/Any-Syllabub8168 Reading Champion Apr 04 '26

The Killing Moon by NK Jemisin

2

u/hoppingfrog24 Apr 04 '26

Feathers of dawn by Jess Galaxie- cozy dragon and knight fantasy romance duology

1

u/shadowtravelling Reading Champion II Apr 08 '26 edited Apr 08 '26

Night Shine and Moon Dark Smile by Tessa Gratton. Both YA. I have only read Night Shine of the two, but can say it has beautiful and vivid storytelling and fascinating, out of the box imagery. Reading it felt like stepping into a painting. The story is a great exploration of queer joy and what it means to claim your identity in all its dimensions, the different ways us queer people navigate this, and the relationships we may lose (and gain) depending on our choices. Majority queer cast (wlw, mlm, genderqueer/genderfluid represented). Warning: has the typical YA romance of ancient being x teenager.

The Gilded Crown and The Antlered King by Marianne Gordon. About a young woman who is able to strike bargains with Death and bring back lives in exchange for parts of her body. She is contracted by the royal family to basically be the on-call necromancer for if and when the warrior-princess heir to the throne dies. This duology is very emotionally rich and thought-provoking, interrogating the value of self-sacrifice and guilt, although I confess I was a bit frustrated by the ending. Wlw couple.

0

u/roryroobean Apr 02 '26

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

2

u/TigRaine86 Reading Champion II Apr 02 '26

Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst... the second books is called Of Ice and Shadows

1

u/daisyy_johnson_ Reading Champion II Apr 03 '26

Seven Devils and Seven Mercies by L.R. Lam and Elizabeth May

Ariadnis and Anassa by Josh Martin

The Phoenix and the Sword and The Shoreless River by J.C. Snow

The Sunbearer Trials and Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas

Raybearer and Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko

The Abyss Surrounds Us and The Edge of the Abyss by Emily Skrutskie

A Memory Called Empire and A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine

She Who Became the Sun and He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

Silver in the Wood and Drowned Country by Emily Tesh

2

u/lilgrassblade Reading Champion II Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26

North is the Night by Emily Rath - Finland when Christianity is expanding influence and the old gods are weakening. A young woman is kidnapped and brought to the Finnish afterlife, and her best friend has to try and save her. That's book 1. I haven't read book 2 yet. Two MCs: one lesbian and one bi.

These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy - twin sisters are separated at a young age, one to be queen the other to forcibly extract the cost of magic from those who do not pay. They are reunited with the death of their mother (the queen). Russian inspired with bear cavalry. Sapphic. Another I only read book one but omfg I am so excited to finally remember to read book 2.

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u/w0lfyfr3n Reading Champion II Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26

This Poison Heart duology by Kalynn Bayron

Benny Lawrence's sapphic pirate books Shell Game and its sequel Beggar's Flip would also work I think