If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin

If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin

In this honest and stunning novel, James Baldwin has given America a moving story of love in the face of injustice. Told through the eyes of Tish, a nineteen-year-old girl in love with Fonny, a young sculptor who is the father of her child, Baldwin’s story mixes the sweet and the sad. Tish and Fonny have pledged to get married, but Fonny is falsely accused of a terrible crime and imprisoned. Their families set out to clear his name, and as they face an uncertain future, the young lovers experience a kaleidoscope of emotions — affection, despair, and hope.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Misogyny
  • Rape
  • Sexual assault
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The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod

The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod

Growing up, Antonia “Toni” Bennett’s guitar was her only companion…until she met Sebastian Quick. Seb was a little older, a lot wiser, and he became Toni’s way out, promising they’d escape their small town together. Then Seb turned eighteen and split without looking back.

Now, Toni B is all grown up and making a name for herself in Philadelphia’s indie rock scene. When a friend suggests she try out for the hottest new band in the country, she decides to take a chance. She’s in for a surprise when one of the decision-makers… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Misogyny
  • Parental abuse & neglect
  • Recreational drug use
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The Keeper of Bees by Gregory Ashe 

The Keeper of Bees by Gregory Ashe

Emery Hazard has pretty much everything under control. He and his fiancé, John-Henry Somerset, are more in love than ever, despite the stress of wedding preparations hanging over them. His business as a private investigator is growing. He’s even enjoying time with his growing circle of friends. The only major problem on the horizon is whether or not he and Somers will be dancing at the wedding reception.

When Mitchell Martin shows up in his office, though, everything changes. The year before, Mitchell was abducted and tortured… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism & racial slurs
  • Ableism
  • Homomisia
  • Transmisia
  • Misogyny
  • Sexual assault of a child
  • Drugging
  • Kidnapping
  • Stalking
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Wayward by Gregory Ashe 

Wayward by Gregory Ashe

Emery Hazard is trying to plan his wedding, even though his fiancé, John-Henry Somerset, isn’t exactly making things easy for him. To be fair, Somers has been distracted lately; his father is running for mayor in a hotly contested election, and their hometown is splintering under the weight of divisive politics.

In a matter of hours, those poisonous politics invade Hazard’s life in a way he couldn’t have imagined. Glenn Somerset, Somers’s father, shows up on their doorstep, and he wants two things: first, for Hazard to neutralize a blackmail threat; and second… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Sexism
  • Homomisia
  • Racism
  • Parent with cancer
  • Death of a parent
  • Blackmail
  • Psychiatrist-patient relationship
  • Animal abuse mentioned
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Transactional Dynamics by Gregory Ashe 

Transactional Dynamics by Gregory Ashe

Emery Hazard is ready for Valentine’s Day. He’s made reservations months in advance, he’s ordered flowers, and he’s got a boyfriend he wants to treat right—even if John-Henry Somerset occasionally lets the dishes sit in the sink a little too long. They even have an extra reason to celebrate this year: Somers has received a special commendation for his police work.

Everything begins to go wrong, though, when Hazard’s ex-boyfriend shows up on their doorstep. Billy claims he just needs help getting away from… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Homomisia
  • Sexism
  • Sex work mentioned
  • Domestic abuse mentioned
  • Emotional abuse & gaslighting
  • Alcoholism
  • Drug use mentioned
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Police Brutality by Gregory Ashe 

Police Brutality by Gregory Ashe

For the first time in a long while, Emery Hazard’s life is good. His new business as a private detective is taking off. Things are good at home. He loves his boyfriend, John-Henry Somerset; he loves their daughter. He might even love the new friends they’ve found. There’s only one problem: Somers has been talking about marriage.

When a former colleague, Walter Hoffmeister, comes to Hazard and hires him to look into a series of anonymous death threats, Hazard eagerly jumps on the distraction. Hoffmeister might be a jerk… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism
  • Misogyny
  • Racism
  • Homomisia
  • Transmisia
  • Rape mentioned
  • Suicide mentioned
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The Unbinding of Mary Reade by Miriam McNamara

The Unbinding of Mary Reade by Miriam McNamara

There’s no place for a girl in Mary’s world. Not in the home of her mum, desperately drunk and poor. Not in the household of her wealthy granny, where no girl can be named an heir. And certainly not in the arms of Nat, her childhood love who never knew her for who she was. As a sailor aboard a Caribbean merchant ship, Mary’s livelihood—and her safety—depends on her ability to disguise her gender.

At least, that’s what she thinks is true. But then pirates attack the ship, and in the midst of the gang of cutthroats, Mary spots something… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism & ableist language
  • Sexism
  • Homomisia
  • Transmisia
  • Attempted rape & sexual assault
  • Child abuse
  • Domestic violence
  • Alcoholism
  • Death of a friend
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Explosion
  • Hunting mentioned
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Like Other Girls by Britta Lundin

Like Other Girls by Britta Lundin

After getting kicked off the basketball team for a fight that was absolutely totally not her fault (okay maybe a little her fault), Mara is dying to find a new sport to play to prove to her coach that she can be a team player. A lifelong football fan, Mara decides to hit the gridiron with her brother, Noah, and best friend, Quinn-and she turns out to be a natural. But joining the team sets off a chain of events in her small Oregon town and within her family that she never could have predicted.

Inspired by what they see as Mara’s political statement, four other girls join the team… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Lesbomisia
  • Sexism
  • Sexual harassment
  • Bullying
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Dangerous Play by Emma Kress 

Dangerous Play by Emma Kress

Zoe Alamandar has one goal: win the State Field Hockey Championships and earn a scholarship that will get her the hell out of Central New York. She and her co-captain Ava Cervantes have assembled a fierce team of dedicated girls who will work hard and play by the rules. But after Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party, she finds a new goal: make sure no girl feels unsafe again. Zoe and her teammates decide to stop playing by the rules and take justice into their own hands. Soon, their suburban town has a team of superheroes meting out punishments, but one night of vigilantism may cost Zoe her team, her scholarship, and her future.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Sexism
  • Rape mentioned
  • Sexual assault
  • Sexual harassment
  • Emesis
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Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

Running into a long-ago friend sets memory from the 1970s in motion for August, transporting her to a time and a place where friendship was everything—until it wasn’t. For August and her girls, sharing confidences as they ambled through neighbourhood streets, Brooklyn was a place where they believed that they were beautiful, talented, brilliant—a part of a future that belonged to them. But beneath the hopeful veneer, there was another Brooklyn, a dangerous place where.… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Misogyny
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Rape
  • Sexual assault
  • Adult-minor relationship
  • Alcoholism
  • Suicide
  • Self-harm
  • Overdose mentioned
  • Pregnancy
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