For some time, there have been great discussions going on in the LGBTQIA+ book world. The vast majority of popular queer fiction is either romance or features a romantic relationship. This is not bad at all. It's wonderful that romance includes couples (and more) of all kinds. Still, even within that, there's an emphasis on same-gender, monogamous couplehood.
This is beginning to change as we see more people writing #OwnVoices stories that transcend these boundaries. In some older books, non-binary genders and/or attractions were almost non-existent or subsumed by fitting them into tidy genre-acceptable boxes. Some stories only included these elements as hurdles to overcome in order for True Love to happen. Fortunately, we've come a long way since then.
Books were meant to break boundaries and challenge our thinking. This month, we're featuring our books that cross lines and refuse to play by the rules. For a good start, check out some of our best works:
That Doesn't Belong Here, by Dan Ackerman: One of our new releases, this novel challenges what we find acceptable when it comes to love.
Surrogate, by Jeanne G'Fellers: An excellent look at identity and what makes a family through the lens of science fiction.
Various novels by Geonn Cannon: Many of these challenge ideas of what it means to be a woman and even to be human, often with a healthy dose of action, humor, or both.
Quiet Shy, by Brandon Summers: The relationship between the characters is established, not a romance, but they also defy the rules for who it is acceptable to love and what a marriage should look like.
Books with bisexual protagonists: All of these have characters who identify their attraction beyond the binary.
Walking by Faith, by A.M. Leibowitz: The main character, Cat, does not identify as a man or a woman but instead simply refers to himself as queer.
What are your favorite books that challenge us to think beyond the binaries of gender and attraction?