Category Archives: BIPOC Lit

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases—a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with, and way less experience in the dating department than the average thirty-year-old.

It doesn’t help that Stella has Asperger’s and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion: she needs lots of practice—with a professional. Which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese and Swedish stunner can’t afford to turn down Stella’s offer, and agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan—from foreplay to more-than-missionary position… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism & internalised ableism
  • Internalised misogyny
  • Parental abandonment
  • Sex work
  • Sexual assault recounted
  • Cheating mentioned
  • Anxiety

American Fairytale by Adriana Herrera

American Fairytale by Adriana Herrera

New York City social worker Camilo Santiago Briggs grew up surrounded by survivors who taught him to never rely on anything you didn’t earn yourself. He’s always dreamed of his own happily-ever-after, but he lives in the real world. Men who seem too good to be true…usually are. And Milo never ever mixes business with pleasure…until the mysterious man he had an unforgettable hookup with turns out to be the wealthy donor behind his agency’s new, next-level funding.

Thomas Hughes built a billion-dollar business from nothing: he knows what he wants and isn’t shy about going after it. When the enthralling stranger… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Cheating recounted
  • Domestic violence & abuse (theme)
  • Suicide joke
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Parent with depression
  • Murder of an aunt by intimate partner violence recounted
  • Death of a father from cancer recounted

Mangos and Mistletoe by Adriana Herrera

Mangos and Mistletoe by Adriana Herrera

Kiskeya Burgos left the tropical beaches of the Dominican Republic with a lot to prove. As a pastry chef on the come up, when she arrives in Scotland, she has one goal in mind: win the Holiday Baking Challenge. Winning is her opportunity to prove to her family, her former boss, and most importantly herself, she can make it in the culinary world. Kiskeya will stop at nothing to win , that is, if she can keep her eyes on the prize and off her infuriating teammate’s perfect lips.

Sully Morales, home cooking hustler, and self-proclaimed baking brujita lands in Scotland on a quest to find her purpose after spending years as her family’s caregiver. But now, with her home life back on track, it’s time for Sully to get reacquainted with her greatest love, baking… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Alcohol consumption
  • Anxiety
  • Death of father, off-page

The Bride Test by Helen Hoang

The Bride Test by Helen Hoang

Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions—like grief. And love. He thinks he’s defective. His family knows better—that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships, his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride.

As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can’t turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Ableism & internalised ableism
  • Parental abandonment
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a relative in a car accident

City of Spells by Alexandra Christo

City of Spells by Alexandra Christo

With Wesley as their prisoner, Dante Ashwood and Zekia tear through the streets of Uskhanya, conquering cities at a time with their army of Crafters and enthralled citizens. As Wesley realises the truth of his power and Zekia tries to lure him to darkness, he must fight against the deadly magic that invades his mind and find a way back to his friends before it’s too late.

Meanwhile, as the cities fall, Tavia, Saxony and Karam prepare for a fight unlike any other. With tensions running high and battles at every turn, they must unite an army of Crafters, crooks and even politicians if they truly want to take down Ashwood once and for all.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Murder
  • Torture

Into the Crooked Place by Alexandra Christo

Into the Crooked Place by Alexandra Christo

Magic rules the city of Creije Capital and Tavia Syn knows just how many tricks she needs up her sleeve to survive. Selling dark magic on the streets for her kingpin, she keeps clear of other crooks, counting the days until her debt is paid and she can flee her criminal life.

But then, one day, with her freedom in sight, Tavia uncovers a sinister plot that threatens to destroy the realm she calls home. Desperate to put an end to her kingpin’s plan, Tavia forms an unlikely alliance with three crooks even more deadly than her: Wesley, the kingpin’s prodigy and most renewed criminal in the realm… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Indentured servitutde
  • Sexual assault (nonconsensual kiss)
  • Child abuse
  • Estrangement
  • Hallucinations
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Drugging
  • Blood depiction
  • Physical injuries
  • Dead bodies
  • Plague mentioned
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother & father recounted
  • Death of a brother recounted
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Gun & knife violence
  • Gang violence
  • Strangulation
  • Physical assault, on-page (fight ring)
  • Kidnapping & captivity
  • Imprisonment
  • Disappearance of a loved one
  • Loss of autonomy
  • War themes & battle scenes recounted
  • Poverty discussed
  • Homelessness recounted

American Dreamer by Adriana Herrera

American Dreamer by Adriana Herrera

For Nesto Vasquez, moving his Afro-Caribbean food truck from New York City to the wilds of Upstate New York is a huge gamble. If it works? He’ll be a big fish in a little pond. If it doesn’t? He’ll have to give up the hustle and return to the day job he hates. He’s got six months to make it happen—the last thing he needs is a distraction.

Jude Fuller is proud of the life he’s built on the banks of Cayuga Lake. He has a job he loves and good friends. It’s safe. It’s quiet. And it’s damn lonely. Until he tries Ithaca’s most-talked-about new lunch spot and works up the courage to flirt with the handsome owner. Soon he can’t get enough—of Nesto’s food or of Nesto. For the first time in his life, Jude can finally taste the kind of happiness that’s always been just out of reach… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Coming out
  • Homomisia
  • Racism
  • Misogyny
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Disordered food & weight thoughts
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Terminal cancer
  • Heart attack mentioned
  • Death of a parent, off-page

The Toy King by Adriana Herrera

The Toy King by Adriana Herrera

Valente Correa lives for one thing—leading the Toy Run. He takes his duties delivering toys for the House of Correa very seriously, and as a Magi he never deviates from his mission. But when he’s tasked with transporting his brother’s future bride through the Andes, he doesn’t expect the walking, talking temptation that is Kessina Macias. When a snowstorm strands them together for two nights, Val can’t resist what the luscious, smart-mouthed firebrand offers—even if it means betraying his brother, his father, and his house.

Kessina Macias only wants one thing: independence. After a sheltered life in the mountains with her overprotective father, she yearns for some breathing room. Agreeing to marry a son from the House of Correa … Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Death of a mother recounted

The Love Con by Seressia Glass

The Love Con by Seressia Glass

Sometimes Kenya Davenport believes she was switched at the hospital–how else could a lover of anime, gaming, and cosplay come from STEM parents? Still, Kenya dreams of being able to turn her creative hobby into a career. She finally has a chance to make it big when she joins the reality show competition Cosplay or No Way.

There’s just one catch: the challenge for the final round is all about iconic pairs, and the judges want the contestants’ significant others to participate. Unfortunately, Kenya is as single as can be at the moment. Luckily her best friend, Cameron Lassiter, agrees to be her fake boyfriend for the show.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Child neglect recounted
  • Parent with alcoholism
  • Death of a parent recounted
  • Bullying

The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

The erratic decisions of a prophecy-obsessed king have drained Innis Lear of its wild magic, leaving behind a trail of barren crops and despondent subjects. Enemy nations circle the once-bountiful isle, sensing its growing vulnerability, hungry to control the ideal port for all trade routes.

The king’s three daughters—battle-hungry Gaela, master manipulator Reagan, and restrained, starblessed Elia—know the realm’s only chance of resurrection is to crown a new sovereign, proving a strong hand can resurrect magic and defend itself. But their father will not choose an heir until the longest night of the year, when prophecies align and a poison ritual can be enacted… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Domestic abuse
  • Suicide
  • Suicidal ideation
  • Self-harm
  • Miscarriage
  • Blood depiction
  • Murder
  • War themes
  • Animal death