Diving into the kaleidoscope of queer stories, amplifying LGBTQ+ authors one narrative at a time.
Anyone who is a fan of the genre can agree – gay romance books have something special. They scratch an itch that no normal romance book can, wielding a sense of feeling and using a touch that makes the knees weak and captures the mind. They sink in slow and sweet – practically forcing one to read on and on until the conflict is resolved and the ‘happy ever after’ sealed.
While the genre of gay romance fiction shares the same intermitted quantity of flawed examples as other writing styles and occasionally suffers from bad taste, tackiness, and insensitive writing from writers inexperienced in queer subject matters, the sheer amount of literature gems on this particular shelf outweighs all opposition, and it goes without saying that with a little bit of foresight, each book you read will leave you positively starving for the next.
You might like them because they present situations that you can enjoy seeing yourself in. Maybe because they’re something other than the rest of what you’ve read and introduce a new world of literature that you can relate to more than the slews of Best-Seller copy-paste.
Or maybe you’re looking for something with a little bit more spice to make things a little more interesting. Hey – I’m not judging, but this might not be the right article for you!
Just as the readers greatly vary, so do the books themselves. It might be a period drama, drawing its tension and rapture from the essence of its time and the social climate at the time, fleeting stolen moments between bouts of uncertainty and strife.
It might be a modern classic – capturing a moment that is just relatable enough to feel familiar and tantalizing, but just foreign enough to remain elusive and provide an escape from reality.
But no matter what form it takes, and no matter which shapes the characters fill, one thing is always certain when it comes to gay romance books – love, baby. That, and a few crush triangles. And a healthy splash of pining and angst too – after all, what would a romance book be without it?
So, without any more ado: let us move on to twenty of the best gay romance books of all time. Enjoy!
What about us? Two women, married to each other. Don’t be offended, he says, gravely. But a man with a man, a woman with a woman: it would be a public execution. We nod. A little silence along the Southeast Corridor. Then I say, Yeah, I love my country. This makes him laugh; we all laugh. We aren’t offended, says Josey. We love you. Sometimes I feel like we’re proselytizing, spreading the Word of Gay. The cab is shaking with laughter, the poor man relieved we’re not mad he sort of wants us dead. The two of us soothing him, wanting him comfortable, wanting him to laugh. We love our country, we tell him. And Josey tips him. She tips him well.
From Three A.M. by Jill McDonough
Don't have time to read them all? Why not try listening to them? Audible is a great platform for listening to audiobooks because it offers a wide selection of books, including bestsellers and exclusive content. With Audible, you can listen to your favorite books on-the-go, whether you're commuting, working out, or doing household chores.
The Audible app also has features like adjustable narration speed, a sleep timer, and the ability to create bookmarks, making it easy to customize your listening experience. Additionally, Audible offers a membership program that gives members access to a certain number of audiobooks per month, making it a cost-effective option for avid listeners.
A great resource for people who want to maximize their time and make the most out of their daily activities. Try a free 30-day trial from Audible today, and you'll get access to a selection of Audible Originals and audiobooks, along with a credit to purchase any title in their premium selection, regardless of price (including many of the books on this list!)
For ebook lovers, we also recommend Scribd, basically the Netflix for Books and the best and most convenient subscription for online reading. While they have a catalog comprising over half a million books including from many bestselling authors, for some of the books on this list, you'll still have to purchase individually - either as a paperback or eBook to load on your Kindle - due to publishing house restrictions.
In this article we will cover...
- Maurice by E.M. Forster
- The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee
- Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
- What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell
- Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
- The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
- Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jedrowski
- The Boys on the Rock by John Fox
- Atom Heart John Beloved by Luke Hartwell
- Lie With Me by Philippe Besson
- A Single Man, by Christopher Isherwood
- A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
- Of Sunlight and Stardust by Riley Hart and Christina Lee
- Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
- The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
- Christopher and His Kind by Christopher Isherwood
- City of Night by John Rechy
- Wingmen by Ensan Case
- Top Secret by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy
- The Best Little Boy in the World by Andrew Tobias aka John Reid
Maurice by E.M. Forster
Maurice hits all the notes and fills all the spots. Held as a classic of British literature in general and as a defining piece of gay writing, the novel mirrors and captures the essence of its time with much skill and feeling, taking the reader on an emotional journey unlike any other.
A classic story of love across all divides of class and separation, the novel follows fourteen-year-old Maurice through his realizations of discomfort with the image of himself in a heterosexual relationship and then on to his first explorations of same-sex prose and relationships during university.
After his first relationship ends disastrously, Maurice becomes a stockbroker and attempts to have a hypnotist ‘cure’ him of his sexuality, which results in little more than failure and discomfort. All of this changes, however, when he meets groundskeeper Alec Scudder, who changes the path of his life forever.
While the story inside is memorable by itself, the book’s release also holds a tale worth telling. While it was originally written in 1914, Maurice was published only in 1970 after Forster’s death, given that the author shared the titular character’s fear of persecution and was lax in allowing his work to pass under the eyes of more than a few friends.
However, these inhibitions have somewhat fallen away, allowing Maurice to see a bit more light of day. In 1987 the book received a film adaptation bearing the same name as the novel itself, and later also a play.
The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee
What kind of effort would we be giving to reviewing the romance genre if we didn’t follow up one work featuring British aristocracy with another? Royal intrigue has always been a regular player in the genre. But it would be an equal crime to imply that the narrative of The Gentleman’s Guide exists simply to fill expectations.
While The Gentleman’s Guide isn’t exactly about coming out or coming of age, it still covers a lot of surprisingly serious and important subjects, making for an even more interesting, engaging read than one might assume at first glance. It is a tale of change, of prejudice, and of many colors and faces – a written portrait of a time and place.
The path of the story features privileged lordling Henry “Monty” Montague embarking upon a tour of Europe in what his father hopes to be a catalytic journey that will transform him from a reckless rogue into a responsible noble. Little does Lord Montague know how important this journey will be – and not in the way that he had expected.
Accompanying Monty is his younger sister Felicity, his companion and love interest Percy, and their escort Mr. Lockwood. Together they navigate some of the most known locations in Europe, including London and Florence but to say that physical locations are the only things they explore would be entirely wrong.
As mentioned earlier, the book tackles many intriguing topics with grace and intrigue, weaving the virtue of well-thought-out meaning into the fabric of a captivating story.
Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
A 1996 novel written by Baldwin of ‘Go Tell It on the Mountain’ fame, Giovanni’s Room focuses upon the details of the life of an American-born man living in Paris while his girlfriend turned almost-fiancé spends time in Spain to consider whether she accepts his proposition of marriage.
That man’s name is David, and his time in Paris brings him to meet an Italian bartender named Giovanni, with whom – amongst others – he develops feelings. A large part of the story is spent in the bartender’s room, ergo the name of the novel itself.
While this summary may seem simple enough, however, the same cannot be said for the story itself. The entire tale is narrated not as though the events were taking place and the plot actively developing, but instead from the very end – or almost end – when David is instead in the south of France, and Giovanni is about to be executed.
From there, the story backtracks and is narrated in the tone of David’s bittersweet memories, and the way that things got to be as they are at the end of the tale is discovered piece by piece.
With an author as renowned in the literary world as Baldwin, it comes as no surprise that Giovanni’s Room is a masterpiece of poetic, artistic writing and a masterfully enrapturing story. The experience and emotions behind the words of the novel feel incredibly real, as do the inner struggles and complications felt and fought through by the characters.
What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell
Nothing showcases feelings of need and conflict better than What Belongs to You. The story follows the narrator – a young American teacher living in the center of the Bulgarian capital Sofia – through the everyday rhythms of his career, the nuances of his life, and most importantly, his deepest secret.
The unnamed narrator is different from all those around him. The proof is in his visits to the bathroom of the nearby culture center, where he gives money to a young hustler named Mitko for that which he cannot afford to pay for with romance.
This habit leads to the American teacher questioning and rethinking both his present, past, and future – the state of the world he lives in now and the life that he had constructed about himself, where he is leading himself, and how to move on from his childhood in the south of the US, where being gay was more often a curse than an identity. It is here where we learn more about Mitko as well.
If the merit of its story doesn’t speak for itself, the book was labeled as ‘A rich, important debut, an instant classic to be savored by all lovers of serious fiction because of, not despite, its subject: a gay man’s endeavor to fathom his own heart’ by Aaron Hamburger of The New York Times Book Review, called one of the best books of the year by more than fifty publications and has received sterling reviews across all platforms.
Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
No work is quite as known in the genre of gay romance as Call Me By Your Name. Famous for its tasteful, dreamy, and artistic movie adaptation of the same name (one of the greatest gay romance films of all time..), the book itself holds up equally as well in words as in pictures.
A classic summer love story, this label forms not only the narrative path of the novel but also its crux and the ultimate downfall of its characters. The book begins with the main character Elio Perlman summarizing his life as a seventeen-year-old in northern Italy, and the practice of his father taking on a doctoral student every year to help with his academic paperwork.
An introverted, reserved soul, Elio usually finds this last tradition little more than an invasion of personal space, but this year – 1983 – will be different. More different than he could imagine. When the doctoral student arrives, an American named Oliver, Elio adapts to the change in living with zeal – seeing an opportunity for them to form a bond and doing his best to impress the newcomer to little avail.
Recognizing his attraction to Oliver is no matter of confusion to Elio, but his heart is split over the ambiguity of the most important question he can think to possibly ask – if his feelings are reciprocated.
A masterpiece of word and feeling, Call Me By Your Name is a classic and must-read for all genre fans. The heartfelt twists and turns are sure to leave one swooning.
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Originally a shorter-length novella and then later a fully-fledged book released in 1891, The Picture of Dorian Gray has become a well-known motif in the world of literature, with many adjacent adaptations and copies taking inspiration from its well-rounded tale.
The titular Dorian Grey is a handsome young resident of Victorian England, and the story itself begins with his likeness being painted by the artist Basil Hallward while conversing with one of his acquaintances, Lord Henry Wotton.
Lord Wotton is a hedonist of the legendary report and brags about his exploits to Grey proudly, leading the young man to wonder and covet such things for his own life. If only, he wishes, one could be young forever, and the face in the portrait would age instead of that one upon his bones.
Lord Wutton’s influence soon comes to fruition in Grey’s actions, and he begins to live out his wildest fantasies – waking up in the arms of men and women alike, and delving deep into the depths of the most exotic offerings that Victorian London can bring him.
Before long, it becomes clear that his wish has come true and that there can be no aging his body or sating his all-consuming energy. The portrait ages, and Dorian Grey does not. But, as he will soon learn, nothing comes without a price.
Age has matured this work of art well, and readers will be in for a rollercoaster ride of intrigue and dark fate. This a surefire recommendation.
Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jedrowski
A daring, contemporary gay romance book with as much to say and reveal in the way of gay romance as it does with political intrigue, Swimming in the Dark is a play of extremes – both growth and loss, of joy and pain.
Featuring a time not so far ago and elements that continue to persist even today, the book brings in many real-life influences and statements, weaving them together into a compelling narrative that takes fictional characters and places them in our world.
In Poland in the 1980s, during the final years of the Polish Republic, the main character Ludwik travels with a university study group to an agricultural project camp. He brings a contraband copy of ‘Gionvanni’s Room’, a book mentioned earlier on this list.
Once he arrives at the camp, he meets fellow student Janusz, and after the boy asks to lend his copy of ‘Giovanni’s Room’, the pair discover their shared interest in one another.
Over their months together, the two fall in love with one another and share a perfect summer of abandon and bliss until the camp closes, and they are returned to the political roil and harsh realities of what life had been before they had met one another.
With an apt, emotion-wracked depiction of the shame and segregation related to being gay and trying to maintain relationships against outside confrontation, Swimming in the Dark is unrivaled in execution, making it a revolutionary read.
The Boys on the Rock by John Fox
While first love is a common theme in many romance novels and films, whether they are gay or not, we can all admit that it never gets old and that we, as readers and onlookers, never get bored of it. It’s bittersweet, enrapturing, and makes us swell with hope. A wonderful reading experience.
A perfect example to this effect, The Boys on the Rock encompasses the coming out story of sixteen-year-old swimmer Billy Connors and his entrance into the world of making his way through life as a gay man.
On a page-turning journey laced with humor and witticism, The Boys on the Rock takes the reader on from the beginning – the fantasies that Billy had to make him realize his sexuality, his first attention paid to and received from fellow peers, and how he comes to terms with himself both through his own eyes and through those of his friends.
When his first steps into gay love come, however, it is nothing as he expected, and Billy soon discovers that the difficult part wasn’t simply coming out and balancing his social life all along – but rather coming to grips with who he is inside as well as what people on the outside think of him.
Described in the Washington Post as a classic, Fox’s only novel is a piece and statement for the ages – displaying perfectly what makes gay romance fiction so unique. Ties to real life, true emotions, and in-depth exploration of everyday struggles.
Atom Heart John Beloved by Luke Hartwell
But not all gay romance novels involve deeds of great change and sweeping consequences. After all, sometimes the little things make the biggest differences, which is very much the case regarding Atom Heart John Beloved.
At age thirteen, two boys named John and Nathan became friends, and for the most part, their time together is common history. They grew up, shared time in school, and spent the summers doing whatever was the target of their whimsy.
But then, one night, sharing a bed with Nathan at eighteen, everything changes. John’s life is thrown into disarray, everything is not as it used to be, and he has no idea how to handle himself and his new understanding of what makes him happy.
Caught between religion, family, and a girlfriend and not yet fully comprehending what he feels, the remainder of the novel follows John’s unkind awakening to himself and the sequence of events that happens as a result – putting a five-year friendship on the line, as well as his position at school, in life, and with everyone, he knows at risk.
Held as an important part of gay literature, Atom Hearth John Beloved is an intimate, wonderful glimpse into the feelings and words – or lack thereof – that symbolize the moment when friendship becomes something more. John makes mistakes – and admits the failings of his behavior openly – but that is what makes this book special. Honesty, tying into reality.
Lie With Me by Philippe Besson
Originally written in French and faithfully translated by Molly Ringwald, Lie With Me presents a tale set in the author’s home country of France circa 1984. Two teenage boys happen upon one another in a small, rural town, and from there, everything spins out of control.
The book begins with an adult Phillipe – now a successful writer – catching a half-familiar face outside of a hotel. He cannot place the exact source of familiarity, but the moment causes him to linger and delve into the depths of memory.
We follow him there, glancing through temporary bliss, grasping uncertainty, and wonderful abandon to where we learn of his first love, his younger years, and the all too short time that changed his entire life.
Much younger at the time, Phillipe struggled with his self-image and the mockery he suffered at the hands of his schoolfellows. That was until his attention grew increasingly drawn toward the more popular Thomas Andrieu.
Thomas seems to understand everything about himself: what he likes, how to act in even the most stressful situations, and how to make friends – all things that Phillipe himself longs after being able to know.
Lie With Me is a carefully yet candidly written piece, carrying many of Besson’s experiences directly into the tale and, with them, a truly moving strength of emotion. The result is a gripping turmoil of love, hate, and everything in between as the two young, different men question everything they once knew.
A Single Man, by Christopher Isherwood
Many novels throw everything into trying something new, which can result in a work of genius or disaster. On behalf of A Single Man, however, there is no doubt which of the two it is.
A regaled influence in the gay rights liberation movement, Isherwood’s roster of works is impressive and expansive, but A Single Man is perhaps the very best known, having earned a play adaptation and the appreciation of countless critics and reviewers since its population in 1964.
The book covers precisely one day in the life of middle-aged British professor George and approaches his everyday struggles, deep inhibitions, and combs back into his life to reveal how he got to where he is now.
For George is so much more than his academic position and work for a Los Angeles university might convey. George’s partner Jim died suddenly in a tragic car accident not very long ago, and his existence since has been rudimentary at best. He struggles to perform even the simplest social functions. His job has become a daily challenge, and the rest of his days are a minefield of painful memories.
But he tries. Through revealing many of his pains and inhibitions, George makes every effort to push through them and return to a normal life, painting a realistic image of overcoming everyday challenges and loss. This candid and touching book is a must-read for those who understand the feeling of suffering loss.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
A Little Life was an unlikely bestseller, but despite its considerable length and the difficult nature of the subject matters that it chooses to tackle, it became a worldwide phenomenon of sorts upon its 2015 release.
Rather than focusing purely on one character from the very start, A Little Life takes a third-person viewpoint that watches over the increasingly intertwined lives of characters Jude, JB, Willem, and Malcolm.
Jude is a genius suffering from disability and a mysterious past, Malcolm is an architect, JB, also known as Jean-Baptiste, is an aspiring painter, and Willem is an aspiring actor.
After a self-harm incident on Jude’s behalf, his roommate Willem takes him to a doctor, where they attempt to delve into the array of trauma that holds Jude back from properly communicating with his friends despite the apparent strength of their friendship.
The tale that follows after this spans many decades both into the future and occasionally into the past as Jude attempts to work through and gradually divulges his past and the impact it has had upon his present life. As the friends soon discover, the failed relationships, abuse, and isolation in Jude’s youth know no bounds.
Though not a work for those not comfortable with reading large pieces and not strictly a ‘romance’ novel as much as a novel revolving around romantic inhibitions, A Little Life culminates a lot of factors that make great books great into one volume and is certain to leave one positively staggered.
Of Sunlight and Stardust by Riley Hart and Christina Lee
Writing collaborations have a history of somewhat polarizing results, but when it comes to this work between Hart and Lee, only the highest regard can be given. Following the tale of a recent widower and an ex-convict, Of Sunlight and Stardust explores the depths of love and loss in equal detail and thrives on feeding the promise of something new.
The widower – Tanner Rowe – is doing his best to live in his wife’s honor – moving to the farmhouse she had always wanted to buy and trying to start a new life. The convict Cole Lachlan, however, is homeless and without a penny to his name.
At least until the two meet, and Rowe offers board in exchange for Lachlan helping him rebuild the old barn on his property.
Their relationship begins to form slowly until they find a hidden journal from 1948 written by a young man pining for his friend.
What follows is a slow yet undeniable shift – forward in life, away from the pain and hurt of the past and strangers to friends, and then onto hope for something more to last the ages.
But not everything goes as well as the whimsy in the book’s title might suggest. As the mystery of both their paths begins to unravel and lay before them, spirits of the past threaten to return to the present day, and both men must choose whether to hold together or fall apart in the avalanche of their lost lives.
Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
Probably the most well-known out of this list to those not necessarily familiar with gay romance and gay literature as a genre due to its famous film adaptation, despite some criticism of the movie itself, Brokeback Mountain is solely responsible for inspiring a new era of gay fiction and representation in media.
Originally a short story published in the New Yorker, Brokeback Mountain follows the daily lives of two young men hired to manage a sheep range in the range about the foot of the fictional Brokeback Mountain, supposedly located in Wyoming.
They come from opposite corners of the state, and both dropped out of school, but though the two men – Jack Twist and Ennis del Mar – take up their new occupation with very little expectations of or from one another, they soon begin feeling an undeniable force drawing them together and begin to dive deep into experimentation and attachment.
Though a narrator tells the story, it nonetheless carries an incredibly strong gravity of emotion, following the two characters later in their lives as they marry, have children, and move away from their homes.
Despite this, they often reunite and share secluded camping trips where they remain in touch and continue sharing the passion they discovered so long ago.
A definite classic like the rest of the books in this list, Brokeback Mountain is certainly an even more compelling read than others and a shoo-in as one of the best gay romance novels ever.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
The story of Achilles and Patroclus is a classic and a perfect example of the gay romance stories of old. Nevertheless, Miller’s take on the tale is fresh and inspired – taking a gripping narrative touch to the legend and bringing it to a modern masterpiece.
Taking Greek mythology by the horns, The Song of Achilles takes place in a time of great tribulation and conflict. The Trojan War is raging at full force, and the classical world waits for a decisive outcome with bated breath.
Son of a goddess and a king, Achilles is the best of the Greeks – or so he is called. A living legend and hero, the warrior is known for deeds of impossible strength and virtue. Patroclus, however, is a shy and meek character by contrast – standing in awe of Achilles’ proficiency and feeling as though he could never possibly come to be as fearsome and intimidating as the icon himself.
Narrated from the viewpoint of Patroclus, The Song of Achilles takes turn after turn in unexpected directions, adding a surprising amount of depth to an already classic piece of historical fiction.
Despite the dramatic and mythological premise, The Song of Achilles is soft, sensual, and unexpectedly gripping, leaving the reader wanting more, and questioning how much we know of the true story mirrors the book’s words. We can be sure of one thing, however – the legend lives on, extended for another 3000 years in the pages of this wonderful story.
Christopher and His Kind by Christopher Isherwood
Covering the years between 1929 and 1939 in the life of the writer Christopher, Christopher and His Kind follows Isherwood as he leaves England to spend a week in Berlin against his mother’s wishes. He spends some time there, experiencing the city’s offerings before deciding to stay.
After making his living offering English lessons and taking up residence at a boarding house, Christopher encounters street sweeper Heinz Neddermayer, and together they spark a romance that threatens to consume everything they know and the lives around them.
Isherwood spends most of the book describing his life in 1930s Germany, culminating in his attempts to save Heinz from the rise of Nazism.
Compared to other works of gay fiction, Christopher and His Kind provide a rare glance into the havens and safe communities found by gay people rather than their struggles and challenges. For the most part, it takes on a gritty, realistic, yet equally blissful angle on the everyday proceeds of Christopher’s life and his time spent both in Berlin and outside of it.
Though the book itself was published to a shining reception in the niches where it saw interest, its autobiographical nature is supposed to have caused a real-life divide between Isherwood and the real Heinz from the book, leading to their separation and the two never sharing contact again.
This gives a bittersweet ending to the book’s surroundings, but in another way makes its story all the more interesting and enthralling.
City of Night by John Rechy
Published in 1963 and teased earlier in various magazines in newspapers, City of Night is a noir novel for the ages, following a young hustler traveling across the United States in pursuit of profit and fulfillment.
The cold, serious subjects tackled by the book are analyzed in equal strides with the story itself, exhibiting large ties to real-life experiences and issues present at the time, including but not limited to the real-life Cooper Do-nuts Riot, during which he was arrested in real life.
Though the full image of the book is hard to grasp, this blurb from the author tells the story best –
“This is a novel about America. It is a novel about loneliness, love and the ceaseless, furtive search for love. Set in the seamy, neon-lighted world of honky-tonk USA–Times Square in New York, Pershing Square in Los Angeles, Hollywood Boulevard, and the French Quarter of New Orleans–and dealing with a little-known world of hidden sex, City of Night represents a radical departure from all other novels of this kind.“
“It is not lurid or defensive; it treats its subject squarely and forthrightly, revealing many facets of this subculture in a way they had never been revealed before when the novel was published in 1963, even in the novels of Jean Genet.”
Worth a read for the strength of its intriguing storytelling alone, the book’s historical premise carries it on to become a world-famous classic and an easy recommend.
Wingmen by Ensan Case
Set during World War II, Wingmen follows two American fighter pilots through their dance with death and life in equal measure, painting a convincing periodical picture of romance in even the most unlikely of situations.
Balanced perfectly between a historical interest in wartime history and exploring romance, Wingmen fits many boots simultaneously, enabling it to be a satisfying read for those with many different tastes.
Locked in the middle of brutally crusading his way through the first half of the 1940s, pilot Fred Trudeau offers to fill an empty position in the adjacent fighter squadron ‘VF-20’. There he meets Jack Hardigan, a lieutenant commander which he quite soon begins to respect and trust with his life as they continue to fight and camp together.
Bonding and eventually drawing close despite the antics and plight of the other squadron members and the war raging around them, the story focuses upon the coming-and-going nature of their affections for one another as both pilots struggle to balance their feelings with the pressing nature of their surroundings and other forces pulling them to and fro.
Though the popular life of Wingmen at the time of its actual publication was relatively short, it experienced somewhat of a resurrection much later and even gained somewhat of a following because it is one of the earliest known novels with a strong gay protagonist, making it somewhat unique amongst the other books of its time and kind.
Top Secret by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy
Allowing us to take a break from the serious and historical for a moment, Top Secret is a classic of a different kind – capturing everything we love from romance novels and bundling it into an easily readable, touching, emotional, angsty, and gripping bundle. Everything in one!
The story follows our main characters, Keaton and Luke, through their time at Darby College. Keaton is a jock with wealthy parents, but these factors haven’t been enough to save him from his share of overworking and leading a complicated, conflicted lifestyle.
Little does he know that it will get a lot more complicated. Keaton’s girlfriend hopes to have a threesome for her birthday and implores him to use a dating app to find them a third.
Luke, however, is not a man of complication. He is fully aware of his bisexuality and often uses the very same app himself to find a good time. Luke is not rich, but he is smart – working on a plan to beat Keaton to being the head of their fraternity. Or at least that is what he was doing until the two chance upon each other and connect in a way neither thought possible.
The story is told from the greatly varying perspectives of Keaton and Luke, respectively, and while the young men seem to have absolutely nothing in common at first, they soon discover that sometimes even the most conflicting brews can make the perfect mix when put together in the right way.
The Best Little Boy in the World by Andrew Tobias aka John Reid
Taking a note from some of the most legendary novels of all time, the Best Little Boy in the World is a classic piece of gay literature, describing with great skill and narrative prowess the story of a boy growing up gay in America and the challenges he comes to face both early and later in life.
Rather than form a tale about a trailblazing figure for gay rights or a tragically closeted man who misses out on the best parts of his life due to his inner shame, The Best Little Boy in the World settles perfectly in the middle. Tobias’s story is a tale of making a normal life for himself despite the odds and doing his best to remain a perfect function despite the difficulties others could afford him due to his sexuality.
The Best Little Boy in the World was originally written under the name John Reid, which was eventually revealed to instead be little more than an alias for bestselling author Andrew Tobias.
While times have changed since this book has written, unfortunately, the tale it tells and the experiences it describes remain true to this day, and many may find it relatable in unexpected ways.
Though the world moves on and we come to accept new things, the time when gay people no longer have to feel ashamed of themselves and face discrimination seems forever on the horizon. Maybe one day, as the authors dare to hope, this will no longer be the case.
