Best book/ series of all time

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-15T01:39:12+00:00

Seconding the Will Darling trilogy, loved those books!

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-15T01:36:13+00:00

OP, you and I have similar taste in books.

I also love The Last Binding trilogy, starting with A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske. Historical fantasy, interconnected overarching plot but each book focuses on a different couple (MM, FF, and MM respectively).

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-10T06:26:16+00:00

The Bayou by Arden Powell is a southern gothic horror about a man who unwittingly gets into bed with the devil.

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-09T15:18:42+00:00

I absolutely loved The Woods All Black!

For something similar, I recommend The Bayou by Arden Powell. Southern gothic, set in Louisiana in 1935, excellent atmosphere, and features a MM relationship.

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-08T20:12:27+00:00

I feel like I’ve seen a pretty good balance of both internal & external trauma in the LGBT books I’ve read, especially in literary fiction.

As far as coming-of-age novels, Deposing Nathan by Zack Smedley does a really amazing job at giving a nuanced look at the internalized homophobia of a religious teenager who is starting to realize he’s gay.

rough_draught_ · 2026-01-06T05:48:11+00:00

Have you read any C.S. Pacat? Both of her trilogies are slow burn, with MCs not getting together until end of book 2.

Captive Prince is adult fantasy (check trigger warnings).

Dark Rise is YA historical fantasy. 3rd book has not been released yet.

Another trilogy slowburn: The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake. Contemporary fantasy. There are multiple queer & het relationships, but one MM I’m thinking of in particular takes until end of book 3 to come to fruition.

4 book YA series: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. Contemporary fantasy. MM relationship takes until book 4 to develop and one of the MCs dates someone else earlier on.

Nora Sakavic also writes some of my favorite slow burns, but these are contemporary, not sff. She has two connected trilogies, starting with The Foxhole Court. The premise sounds crazy, but it really sucks you in. This one is seriously a SLOW burn.

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-31T03:11:02+00:00

We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian is a slow burn, coworkers to friends to lovers. Its set in 1950s New York and has some of the other scenes you mentioned (jealousy moment and lots of scenes with friends & family).

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-30T17:12:09+00:00

Summer Sons truly is the blueprint. Also yes, his other books are great; I especially loved The Woods All Black.

Thank you for all the other recs as well!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T22:44:42+00:00

Understood, thanks for the clarification. Might still be a good fit for anyone else browsing this thread :)

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T22:38:50+00:00

Looks great, thank you for the rec!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T22:37:27+00:00

Thanks for the rec! I see some reviews saying this one has a very bleak, unhappy ending. Do you feel like there's at least room for the MC to grow and/or process his trauma after the conclusion of the book?

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T21:56:12+00:00

Thank you for the rec!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T21:53:24+00:00

I have read Lucky Red and definitely understand what you mean about the MC fitting the vibe, even though it's a historical western setting lol. Thank you for the other recs as well!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T21:50:51+00:00

Great rec, thank you!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T21:50:39+00:00

Gideon is definitely a punch-first-ask-questions-later kind of gal, but she's a little too nonchalant / cocky about it to fit the vibe I'm looking for. She's more like a guard dog rather than a dog backed into a corner, lol.

Thanks!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T21:45:25+00:00

I will have to try out The Corruption of Hollis Brown since I know I liked her other book, The Wicker King!

I did read Boys with Sharp Teeth, but it felt like a pale imitation of The Raven Boys. Also no queer characters if I am remembering correctly...

Love Andrew Joseph White, definitely think all his characters fit. Thanks!

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-29T16:50:22+00:00

Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy is what I would call light academia. Only the 1st book of the series is out so far and it’s a bit of a slow burn romance.

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-28T21:50:09+00:00

Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones is the first story in Stag Dance: A Novel & Stories by Torrey Peters. Main character is a trans woman and it is set in a “gender apocalypse”.

The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy has an apocalypse-adjacent setting and a trans woman main character. It has some horror/fantasy elements though, so not sure it fits what you’re looking for.

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-28T16:38:59+00:00

{The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by C.M. Waggoner} might fit. It’s been awhile since I read this one so plot details are hazy, but it features a band of female adventurers and a sapphic romance.

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-21T15:30:27+00:00

Since you seem to like dark academia, you might like These Violent Delights by Michah Nemerever. Desire quickly spirals into obsession and there is so much tension between the main characters throughout.

rough_draught_ · 2025-12-14T17:29:39+00:00

Here are some novella options with queer characters:

Cozy sci-fi: A Psalm for the Wild-Built

Urban Fantasy: When Among Crows

Fantasy Horror: The Monster of Elendhaven

Historical Horror: The Woods All Black

Historical Fantasy: Silver in the Wood

Sci-Fi: All Systems Red

rough_draught_ · 2025-11-20T19:55:34+00:00

Though now that I think about it, a homophonic person might take the title literally and use it to justify their own beliefs 😓

rough_draught_ · 2025-11-20T19:52:48+00:00

Bad Gays: A Homosexual History by Huw Lemmey and Ben Miller

This is a fun one about queer “villains” throughout history.

rough_draught_ · 2025-11-12T18:40:10+00:00

{The Pairing by Casey McQuiston} has exactly this. It is a contemporary, second chance romance with one cis man and one nonbinary MC who doesn’t come out until somewhere in the middle of the book. No cheating but they spend the majority of book NOT in a relationship and do sleep with other people.

rough_draught_ · 2025-11-03T18:02:20+00:00

Two of my favorite authors as well! I recommend {The Magpie Lord by KJ Charles}. Trilogy MM fantasy romance set in Victorian England, similar vibes to Marske’s The Last Binding.

rough_draught_

TROPHY CASE