Hello Mondays, welcome back to #5OnMyTBR, a meme created by the wonderful E @ The Local Bee Hunter’s Nook. This bookish meme gets us to dig even further into our TBRs by simply posting about five books on our TBR! You can learn more about it here or in the post announcing it. You can find the full list of prompts (past and future) at the end of this post!

This week’s prompt is: Pride Free Day.
I’m taking this to mean that it’s a freebie so I’m looking at my most anticipated LGBTQ+ releases for the latter half of 2020!

I mean, it’s not that I don’t already have enough LGBTQ+ books on my *truly endless TBR* but I mean, of course I’m only going to be adding more because why not? But honestly, there are so many incredible sounding queer books being released this year. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m trying to actively diversify my reads because it’s so easy to stick with what’s in front of me just because it’s (obviously) there. Being part of the book community has meant discovering all the diverse and inclusive reads available out there and I’m so thankful for it. I really don’t know how I found my books before I knew the community existed 😂

Anyway, before I go off on an even bigger tangent, let’s get to it! Although I definitely have more than this on my list, here are five of my anticipated LGBTQ+ releases for the latter half of 2020 (because it’s really already June, friends — aah!):

*book covers linked to Goodreads pages*

07 July 2020

It’s 200 years after Cinderella found her prince, but the fairy tale is over. Teen girls are now required to appear at the Annual Ball, where the men of the kingdom select wives based on a girl’s display of finery. If a suitable match is not found, the girls not chosen are never heard from again.
Sixteen-year-old Sophia would much rather marry Erin, her childhood best friend, than parade in front of suitors. At the ball, Sophia makes the desperate decision to flee, and finds herself hiding in Cinderella’s mausoleum. There, she meets Constance, the last known descendant of Cinderella and her step sisters. Together they vow to bring down the king once and for all–and in the process, they learn that there’s more to Cinderella’s story than they ever knew . . . This fresh take on a classic story will make readers question the tales they’ve been told, and root for girls to break down the constructs of the world around them

I’m not sure that I’ve read a Cinderella retelling before (and admittedly it wasn’t my favourite fairytale growing up) but Cinderella is Dead gives me mad pick-me-up-right-now-or-you’ll-regret-it vibes and I’m totally here for it lol

---

07 July 2020

A captivating and utterly original fairy tale about a girl cursed to be poisonous to the touch, and who discovers what power might lie in such a curse…
There was and there was not, as all stories begin, a princess cursed to be poisonous to the touch. But for Soraya, who has lived her life hidden away, apart from her family, safe only in her gardens, it’s not just a story. As the day of her twin brother’s wedding approaches, Soraya must decide if she’s willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time. Below in the dungeon is a demon who holds knowledge that she craves, the answer to her freedom. And above is a young man who isn’t afraid of her, whose eyes linger not with fear, but with an understanding of who she is beneath the poison. Soraya thought she knew her place in the world, but when her choices lead to consequences she never imagined, she begins to question who she is and who she is becoming…human or demon. Princess or monster.

I can’t mention Girl, Serpent, Thorn without mentioning this cover. It’s *gorgeous* and I legit can’t even stand snakes (I’m not sorry). The story sounds so good and I can’t wait to read it!

---

14 July 2020

Some people are extraordinary. Some are just extra. TJ Klune’s YA debut, The Extraordinaries, is a queer coming-of-age story about a fanboy with ADHD and the heroes he loves.
Nick Bell? Not extraordinary. But being the most popular fanfiction writer in the Extraordinaries fandom is a superpower, right? After a chance encounter with Shadow Star, Nova City’s mightiest hero (and Nick’s biggest crush), Nick sets out to make himself extraordinary. And he’ll do it with or without the reluctant help of Seth Gray, Nick’s best friend (and maybe the love of his life).

I still have yet to read anything by T.J. Klune but I honestly haven’t heard one bad thing about any of his books? I was lucky enough to get the eARC for The Extraordinaries and I’m quite excited to dive in!

---

01 September 2020

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can’t get rid of him.
When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.
However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school’s resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He’s determined to find out what happened and tie up some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

You might’ve seen Cemetery Boys around a fair bit because I defo have and each time I see it pop up I feel even more FOMO and basically I just need this book in my life now. Plz? It looks so good and this cover gives me life!

---

24 november 2020

In Julia Ember’s dark and lush LGBTQ+ romantic fantasy Ruinsong, two young women from rival factions must work together to reunite their country, as they wrestle with their feelings for each other.
Her voice was her prison…
Now it’s her weapon.
In a world where magic is sung, a powerful mage named Cadence has been forced to torture her country’s disgraced nobility at her ruthless queen’s bidding. But when she is reunited with her childhood friend, a noblewoman with ties to the underground rebellion, she must finally make a choice: Take a stand to free their country from oppression, or follow in the queen’s footsteps and become a monster herself.

I don’t know that I’ve ever read a fantasy where magic is sung and well, that’s all I really needed to see to know that I want to read Ruinsong. But on top of that we have this gorgeous purple cover and *chefs kiss* it’s just perfection! Please give this to me now.

May:

• 18/05/2020 — Unconventional format (e.g. text messages, emails, verse etc.)
• 25/04/2020 — Blue Cover

June:

• 01/06/2020 — LGBTQ+ Main Character
• 08/06/2020 — Pride Free Day
• 15/06/2020 — Rainbow (on the cover, made from covers… be creative!)
• 22/06/2020 — LGBTQ+ History (non-fiction or historical novels)
• 29/06/2020 — LGBTQ+ Author

Have you read any of these queer books? I’d love to hear any recommendations you might have down in the comments below!