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This summer, you could hide out in the shade, or you could turn up the heat instead with some spicy, queer beach reads. There’s perhaps no more iconic pairing for the season than a steamy romance novel and a lounge chair by the beach (or the pool, or the lake, or whatever body of water you happen to have access to!) The only problem is figuring out exactly which book to throw in your tote. Faced with this problem, I’ve always opted for quantity: Why not take a bunch? If you want to follow my example, I’d recommend just picking up every book on this list. We’ve got sexy throuples, a trans enemies-to-lovers story, and a hot rock star who’s into BDSM. There’s truly something for every taste; no matter what lights your fire, there’s a book here that will have you fanning yourself all through these sticky, hot months. Besides, you can always save some of them for a rainy day.
But if you want to be a little more selective — romance readers often have very particular tastes, after all! — I’ll share a brief guide to each title, including a summary and why I’d recommend you take it somewhere sandy soon. Here are eight queer books that bring the fire with plenty of sexy moments that will keep you turning pages.
Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly
If you’re looking for plenty of spice in your queer romances, you really can’t go wrong with any Anita Kelly novel. But my personal favorite is Love and Other Disasters, a novel centered around a cooking reality TV show that features a queer romance with a nonbinary love interest. In my humble opinion, there is truly nothing sexier than hot queer characters who know their way around the kitchen.
When London Parker publicly announces their pronouns on one of the most popular cooking competition shows on TV, they know it will be controversial. But they can’t let bigotry get in their way of the ultimate goal: winning the show and proving everyone wrong. One small issue? Dahlia Woodson. London didn’t anticipate falling l in love on TV, and neither did Dahlia. Dahlia is recently divorced and looking to make a name for herself, separate from her past and her ex. But the chemistry between London and Dahlia is intense, and the more time they spend with each other, the less they are able to deny their obvious connection.
The Hate Project by Kris Ripper
You know what’s way more relatable than a grumpy/sunshine relationship? A romance where both characters are giant grouches. And that’s what you’ll get in The Hate Project by Kris Ripper, a M/M romance novel that finds two love interests bickering themselves all the way into the bedroom. But beyond just being a hot romance (which it is), The Hate Project also delivers believable characters and heartbreakingly accurate representations of mental health struggles.
It all starts with a one-night stand. Oscar and Jack had one passionate night together, but that’s all it was ever supposed to be. Oscar is far too depressed and lost in his own thoughts to ever fully open up to another man anyway. Then through an unfortunate turn of events, Oscar ends up working for Jack. When the two are thrown back together, sparks fly, but not in the sexy way. Sure, Jack matches Oscar’s freak, but in that way that makes both of these men horribly annoyed with each other at all times. Still, if anyone is ever going to tear down Oscar’s impossibly high walls, it will be Jack.
Boys Come First by Aaron Foley
If you’re a fan of shows like Sex and the City, The Bold Type, Insecure and other shows in the popular “friend group of women in the big city" subgenre, maybe you’ve wanted to see more stories like that about gay men besides the now-10-year-old Looking? If so, you are going to love diving into Aaron Foley’s Boys Come First. This novel follows the story of three Black men in their 30s living in Detroit, navigating friendships, romantic entanglements, the woes of work life, family drama, racism, homophobia, and more.
Dom has left New York and returns to his hometown of Detroit after losing his job as an advertising copywriter and ditching his cheating ex. Now he’s on a mission to find a husband before he turns 35. In Detroit, Dom reunites with his two friends. There’s Troy, a school teacher who always wants to see the best in people. And then there’s Remy, a real estate agent who’s trying to decide if a long-distance relationship is worth it, or if he should settle for someone local. Dom, Troy, and Remy’s stories are sometimes funny, often sexy, and will always tug at your heartstrings.
Triple Sec by TJ Alexander
What’s sexier than a romance between two women? Easy. A romance between a woman, her nonbinary partner, and a woman they both fall for. TJ Alexander’s Triple Sec provides such a refreshing perspective on polyamory. The whole book is respectful of all three people involved in the relationship, and it’s also super hot.
Mel is bartending at a New York cocktail lounge called Terror & Virtue when she sees Bebe walk in and is immediately smitten. Mel soon learns that Bebe is married to Kade, but they’re in an open relationship. Curious, Mel allows herself to get swept up in a romance with a married woman and soon realizes she has feelings for Bebe’s partner as well. Being with Bebe and Kade opens up Mel’s world in unexpected ways. Mel had all but given up on love, but now she’s starting to wonder if real love just looks different from what she thought it would be.
Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner
When it comes to sports-themed romances, everyone is on the tennis train thanks to the popularity of Challengers, with its delicious churro-eating scene. But hear me out. Soccer is actually the hottest sport. Imagine Ted Lasso, but sapphic and steamy enough to get your heart racing. That’s Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner, a novel about two soccer rivals turned lovers. (Plus Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe are adapting this one for TV!)
Grace Henderson is a soccer superstar. At the age of 26, she’s already been on the U.S. Women’s National Team for an entire decade. But with the World Cup on the horizon, Grace gets injured and ends up being replaced by Phoebe Matthews. There’s so much to admire about Phoebe. She’s talented, she’s funny, and sure, she’s also incredibly gorgeous. But when Phoebe takes Grace’s spot on the team, she also establishes herself as Grace’s main rival. And after the two end up sharing a kiss, tensions only get higher.
D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding by Chencia C. Higgins
A beach read romance list is incomplete without at least one fake dating novel, and D’vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding is a really spicy one. This one is also set against the backdrop of a reality TV show that would fit well among real-life programs like Four Weddings or Married at First Sight. But the premise is also wild and a hell of a lot of fun. This book is a glorious celebration of queer and Black love, and you’ll savor every moment of it.
On Instant I Do, couples have to convince their families that they’ve fallen in love and are now getting married in only two months. If anyone catches on to the fact that the wedding is totally fake, the couple loses. If they win, there’s a cash prize on the other side of this lavish fake wedding. D’Vaughn and Kris both sign up for the competition for their own reasons, and they’re both determined to win. Their families aren’t making it easy, though, and when real feelings get involved, pulling off this wedding becomes about more than the prize money.
Hold Me by Courtney Milan
Any time I read an enemies-to-lovers, online-to-real-life romance, my first thought is always You’ve Got Mail. But you know what? Upon revisiting that movie, Tom Hanks was actually a total jerk, and the love interests in Courtney Milan’s Hold Me are anything but jerky. Plus, this novel is deliciously sexy, and it features a bisexual hero and a trans heroine, so this is just a multitude of wins. Am I saying this is better than a classic Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks rom-com? Yes, absolutely.
Jay na Thalang and Maria Lopez first meet online after Jay responds to Maria’s blog posts about apocalyptic disasters. Their relationship remains comfortably online (and mostly anonymous) for years. But when the two finally see each other in person, the encounter is less than perfect. Jay is rude and Maria is totally put off by his attitude. When Jay realizes that Maria is the woman he’s been talking to online, he will have to work hard to try to win back her affections.
Syncopation by Anna Zabo
Let’s talk about rock stars with six packs, BDSM, and the sexiest thing of all: consent. That’s what you can expect from Syncopation, the first novel in Anna Zabo’s Twisted Wishes series. This book also includes an aromantic main character and thoughtfully explores what it means to be aromantic while still exploring relationships.
Way back in high school, Ray Van Zeller asked Zavier Demos to be the drummer in his band Twisted Wishes, but he said no. Years later, Zavier is temporarily joining the band to help them out on tour after their previous drummer suddenly left. Ray and Zavier have known each other for years, but they’ve never been particularly close, despite the obvious sexual tension between them. Now that they’re on the road together, they will have to learn how to trust each other before a volatile situation becomes explosive.
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