Queereaders discussion

This is for discussion of Fantasy only. There will be a separate folder for Science Fiction. Titles do not have to be exclusively LGBT.

I've been on a Merlin and King Arthur kick lately, would anyone recommend a book about them? I've read The Mists of Avalon a few years back but I wasn't very fond of it.

That was the one I would have suggested, Ralph. I read it years ago and liked it a lot, but haven't felt compelled to pick up any of the sequels.

I know there is a separate group for that... but seriously nobody reads fantasy here?


My most favourite LGBT-themed ones are "The Last Herald Mage" trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and "Nightrunner" series by Lynn Flewelling

Or do you prefer to read about real-life joys and sorrows, that's why you don't read fantasy?

If you are looking for m/m Fantasy, I'd recommend The Student Prince. It's a modern day Merlin/Arthur story. Five stars! It's nice and long and it is FREE!

And as far as fantasy goes, I will recommend the Harry Potter series to everyone for the rest of my life... I know everyone's heard of it, and almost everyone has read it, but I will always love those books and they will always mean a lot to me.

I second the "Nightrunner" series. It was my first exposure to LGBT characters in Fantasy and I love love love it. Great traditional fantasy novel.

For LGBT fantasy I would recommend anything by Ginn Hale.

Strange Fortune by Josh Lanyon is really good and Captive Prince: Volume One and Captive Prince: Volume Two by S.U. Pacat are fantastic.

And of course there's Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner.

I loved Rachel Pollack's Godmother Night. It won the World Fantasy Award in 1997.

Hi guy's
i've just finished reading my first Clive Barker book Weaveworld
it was super trippy, i loved it,
any other Clive Barker books i should be reading?

Weaveworld is the only one I've read, I think, but I loved it. Take a look at Imajica, though.

I really need to read Clive Barker. I've Weaveworld on my shelf for the longest time.

I will never stop recommending The Wraeththu Histories. It's absolutely brilliant and deals with an apocalyptic world where humans are dying out and giving way to a new race of hermaphrodite beings who, being the pioneers of their race, begin to construct their own Gods and nurture their individual abilities - magical, spiritual, combative etc, while dealing with loss, sex, war, innovation and corruption(not political. Of the mind and so forth). There are two sets of books in the series, the first set which may be a little hard to find(it's old) begins with "The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit". The second set(both sets come as trilogy's) begins with "The Wraiths of Will and Pleasure,". The second set was written years later as a companion to the previous books, but I recommend reading it first before reading the original trilogy. It's more polished and the story flows more. So read "The Wraiths of Will and Pleasure," "The Shades of Time and Memory," and "The Ghosts of Blood and Innocence," - these make up the second trilogy. Then read "The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit," "The Bewitchment's of Love and Hate," and "The Fulfillments of Fate and Desire," - which makes up the first trilogy. It's a little graphic at times, but, in my opinion, it's the best series of its genre. And of course, the LGBT elements are a bonus.

I love the Wraeththu series and would like to read them again. It is a very imaginative world. I'm getting ready to read another series by Storm Constantine—The Chronicles of Magravandias

That's another good series but just to forewarn you there are incestuous themes in it. Personally I found it a bit tedious to read and the plot is...odd, but hopefully you'll enjoy it!

Thanks for the heads up, Mock. I don't mind incest. One of the best Gay books of last century, The Carnivorous Lamb, has brother lovers. Tedious, I don't like ;-)

Thanks Francis, i think imajica is going to be my next clive barker,

Nancy, i too had Clive Barker on my shelf for years, and didn't want to pick him up because of those awful hellraiser movies, big mistake, huge.

I quite enjoyed The Chronicles of Magravandias. It's more of a political fantasy and much different from the Wraeththu series. It sort of reminded me of some of CJ Cherryh's works, though less detailed. It is not all that Gay, though there are 3 Gay characters with subtle romance.

oh! Imajica! One of the Books I wish I could read again for the first time! War of the Flowers kind of stands in the same corner of my mental bookshelf.

Have any of you read the immortal circus trilogy? Something for the Neil Gaiman lovers out there I feel.

I thought The War of the Flowers was a lot of fun, but I'm not sure why I haven't read any other books by Tad Williams.

hmm, perhaps because its nice to hold off on enjoyable things so there's always something to look forward to? *smile*

I am a great fan of the Otherland series - it might not count as fantasy for the purists among us but to my mind it has clear fantasy elements: a quest and a band of travellers each with their own strengths and backgrounds among other things. I loved the fact that it was set in an Online virtual reality and really enjoyed the multiple disparate worlds they travelled through.

AND the books are all REALLY big, fat and long. Always a plus.

I'd like to suggest Pantomime by Laura Lam for its bisexual and intersex protagonist.

Ralph wrote: "I've been on a Merlin and King Arthur kick lately, would anyone recommend a book about them? I've read The Mists of Avalon a few years back but I wasn't very fond of it."

I know this question was aked in 2011, but my favorite Merlin series is Mary Stewart's Crystal Cave series.

The Crystal Cave
The Hollow Hills
The Last Enchantment
The Wicked Day

Susinok wrote: "Ralph wrote: "I've been on a Merlin and King Arthur kick lately, would anyone recommend a book about them? I've read The Mists of Avalon a few years back but I wasn't very fond of it."

I know this..."

I loved these, too, Susinok.

Anyone have any recommendations for a lesbian high/epic fantasy with lots of action?

I don't know of any specific LGBTQ fantasy stories but I'm also a fan of the Wraeththu books by Storm Constantine. Very original.
I find generally, fantasy is simply fantasy, efforts made to bring gender identity or sexual preference into the main storyline never seem convincing to me. I want a great story and plot, the characters have to be engaging; gay, straight or other... I don't mind as long as it's written right.

C.J. wrote: "I don't know of any specific LGBTQ fantasy stories but I'm also a fan of the Wraeththu books by Storm Constantine. Very original.
I find generally, fantasy is simply fantasy, efforts made to bring..."

You are right, a great story is a great story. But as much as I've read great high fantasies with straight and gay male characters, I would love some lesbians in the mix. I just can't seem to find any myself...

My Dark Angel book does have two female characters described as 'being occupied' and giggling behind a bedroom door but it's barely more than a paragraph ;-)
I don't think I'd be able to write them credibly as though I'm confident in writing their emotional aspects, I think anything more would cross from fantasy into erotica and I want to avoid that. It'd likely just pander to male expectations and turn out far too cliched :-/
Maybe as I develop further as a writer I may find a story that merits a strong lesbian character but unless a plot jumps at me, I'd worry I'd get it wrong. It's strange as I have a gay male relationship that runs through the trilogy and feels natural and credible that pretty much created itself as a subplot!

Can anyone rec me some urban fantasy? Some idea of what I'm looking for:

- I can't stand instant/fated/impossible-to-resist love. "Destined mates" is my least favorite romance trope ever.
- I don't like romance that much in general, but I'll tolerate it as long as the book is mostly about punching people
- big plus for female werewolves/shifters
- big minus for the trope where female werewolves/shifters are a super-rare commodity
- big, BIG plus for gender variant characters (butch Fae and nelly werewolves? please tell me this exists?)
- ...tbqh I just want more lesbian werewolves (Lunatic Fringe being the only example I know)

I've been reading and re-reading bits of the October Daye series (Rosemary and Rue, etc.) recently, and it fulfills my list pretty well. (The main character is straight but the love triangle was minor and is now resolved, and there is a good romance-to-punching ratio. Mostly they manage to romance each other while punching people, which is very efficient. There are at least four queer female side characters, all of whom I prefer over the narrator, but such is life.)

I'd be indebted for life if y'all have any other ideas for me.

How about historical urban fantasy?

The Golem and the Jinni.

The most unusual werewolves you've (maybe) ever read?

Sharp Teeth.

A third one I really, really like and prefer to be coy about its premise-- at least for a moment:

Tooth and Claw.

Thank you so much!! I've been vaguely meaning to read Tooth and Claw, but I just finished Jo Walton's Farthing* and that bumped it up my list. You just bumped it pretty much to the top.

I am also super excited about The Golem and the Jinni, I'd never heard of that one! It looks like a really original take on the urban fantasy idea, and I'm also very into anything related to Jewish mythology. :)

* holy cow, EVERYONE IS GAY. <3 <3 <3

When you're done with The Golem and the Jinni, Tooth and Claw, I suggest you look for Jo Walton's more recent My Real Children, drat, no werewolves, but what's there is neat!

For Jewish fantasy look for Lisa Goldstein's The Red Magician is the one I've read. Or Jane Yolen's Briar Rose.

For anyone looking for a great coming of age low fantasy series, I'd recommend the When Women Were Warriors trilogy by Catherine M. Wilson. It's definitely not action-packed, but it has wonderful characters and an enchanting setting. As it's a classic hero's journey, I'd recommend marathoning the series.

Thinking about this thread, I remembered the Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare which has a Gay couple or two in a happen to be sense.

These are not great books, but are fun, quick reads and YA. My granddaughter and I had a lot of fun talking about them.

I'm a Fantasy and Sci-Fi fanboy, like Queer elements in novels, but not those that are primarily romances. So much ramance is mawkish.

Kernos, those books were a guilty pleasure for me. I read all four (the number there were at the time, maybe there's more now?) and really enjoyed them. Very fast moving and engaging with some good twists that didn't feel lazy or cheap. Not too deep of course but fun.

Guilty pleasure is a perfect way to say it! I have her other series, cant remember the name, but have yet to read it.

I may have to re-read Harry Potter, now that we know Dumbledore was Gay. A new slant may make it fun again.

A dear friend of mine, Seana, recommended The Engelsfors Trilogy by Mats Strandberg and Sarah B. Elfgren to me not long ago. She says it's excellent. I haven't read more than a couple of pages of the first book yet. Just finding English language copies in the US was a pain in the butt. I understand they're much easier to come by in the UK, where my friend lives. The author's website is an option for seeking them out. The second book Fire is the one that's difficult to get a hold of, as I recall.

Anyway, I trust Seana's recommendations. She's the one who suggested I try both Seanan McGuire and Caitlín R. Kiernan, and they've both become among my favorites. I have no doubt but what this will be very good too.

The Engelsfors trilogy is amazing! I finished the last book today. Even though they are chunky, I read them in a couple of days each.

Jan wrote: "I'd like to suggest Pantomime by Laura Lam for its bisexual and intersex protagonist."

This was really good! And it definitely falls into the fantasy genre. I picked up its sequel, too, and that's been sitting on my nightstand waiting to be read.

Is Pantomime still in print?

Nancy wrote: "Is Pantomime still in print?"

Wow - that's a good question. I can't imagine why new copies are so expensive on Amazon! It looks like you can still get used copies for $12.

I bought mine new from Amazon last summer for $8.

I wonder if it's being re-released.

It is going to be released by Tor UK this fall:
https://staticsplit.wordpress.com/pan...

Thanks, Nancy! This book is good enough that it needs a wider audience. I didn't realize it was out of print...

Adding the YA Carry On (Rowell) and Every Day (Levithan) to the lgbt fantasy list.

Other general fantasy favorites are the Mistborn Trilogy, American Gods and Neverwhere (Gaiman), and the Blackthorn & Grim books (Merillier).

Levi Amichai wrote: "Can anyone rec me some urban fantasy? Some idea of what I'm looking for:

- I can't stand instant/fated/impossible-to-resist love. "Destined mates" is my least favorite romance trope ever.
- I don'..."

I know this is an old question, but I'd recommend the Mercy Thompson series, the Jane Yellowrock series, the Kate Daniels series, and the Walker Papers series.

Whitney wrote: "I know this is an old question, but I'd recommend the Mercy Thompson series, the Jane Yellowrock series, the Kate Daniels series, and the Walker Papers series. ..."

No, that's great Whitney - always good to get some good recommendations! :)

Whitney, have you read the Wraeththu series (2 trilogies, IIRC) by Storm Constantine? They're heavily LGBT and on my definite re-read list.

Not yet, but I want to now!

In case this is interesting:
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/4...