Speculative fiction is a genre that separates itself from reality to explore the extremes of “what if?” It deals in alternate universes that often comprise our deepest, darkest fears. In this genre exists a large body of literature detailing these speculative societies through an LGBTQ+ lens. From toying with gender roles to finding yourself in the throes of a morbid cult, queer speculative fiction is as diverse as it is expansive. It asks and answers the questions that claw at our throats and keep us up well past midnight. Below is a collection of speculative fiction works that utilize a queer lens to tell an incredible story.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness follows human envoy Genly Ai on an icebound planet called Gethen (Winter). Gethen’s population possesses both female and male biological characteristics and enters a sexual state called kemmer once a month. This state and the fixed gender roles it inspires are beyond Ai’s comprehension, as is most of the culture of Gethen. As he navigates the political tensions between Karhide and Orgoreyn and his complicated relationship with Estraven, Ai is forced to confront his own biases and understanding of identity.
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
Gideon has a sword, dirty magazines, and no time for undead bullsh*t. But the Emperor needs necromancers, and the Ninth Necromanacer needs a swordswoman. Alongside Harrowhawk Nonagesimus, Gideon travels to the First House, where necromancers and their cavaliers compete to become servants of the Emperor. Without Gideon’s sword, Harrowhawk will fail, and the Ninth House will die.
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar
In the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandment finds a letter reading: Burn before reading. Thus begins a correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on fighting for separate orders. But what begins as a battlefield taunt soon grows into something epic, romantic, and world-altering.
The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez
An outcast named Keema joins the emperor’s son, Jun, to escort an imprisoned moon goddess across a dystopian land. The people are suffering under the tyrannical reign of the Moon Throne, who bleed the land and oppress the citizens with the terrifying powers of a god locked underneath their palace. But that god cannot be contained forever, and all reigns must come to an end.
The Unbroken by C.L. Clark
Stolen as a child and raised to kill and die for the emperor, Touraine is a soldier. But now, she has been sent back to her homeland to stop a rebellion and has to face the fact that the ties to her blood might be stronger than she thinks. Luca needs a turncoat, someone desperate enough to tiptoe the edge between treason and orders; Luca needs Touraine.
You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White
Masses and worms and flies have taken root in the dark corners of Appalachia. In exchange for loyalty and fresh corpses, these sentient creatures offer a few struggling humans salvation. It’s an offer that few can refuse, including Crane, who finally gets a chance to live a life that won’t destroy him. It is in this hive cult where he meets Levi, an ex-marine and handsome killer who treats him as a man. But when Levi gets Crane pregnant, the hive demands a child. Crane’s desperation will drive him away from the hive that saved him and into a bloody and dangerous journey.
Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
Seven months pregnant and desperate to escape the religious compound where she was raised, Vern flees into the woods. There she gives birth to twins and plans to raise them far from the reaches of her home, but even in the forest, Vern is a hunted woman. Forced to fight back against the community that raised her, Vern must reckon with her body being wracked by inexplicable and uncanny changes and the violent history of the compound and the America that raised it.
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
In Virginia Woolf’s beloved novel Orlando, a young nobleman named Orlando wakes to find himself inhabiting a female body. Taking the reader through the start of Orlando’s life in the Elizabethan era, Woolf writes a story about the navigation of love, identity, gender, and shifting social norms. A landmark of queer literature.
The Honeys by Ryan La Sala
A genderfluid teenager investigates their twin sister’s death at the elite summer retreat where she died in this tantalizing horror novel. Mars has always been the lesser twin, and their gender fluidity excludes them from the traditional norms everyone around them is intent on adhering to. They also find themself excluded from Aspen Summer Academy, the last place to see their sister alive. With grief still fresh, Mars insists on attending in her place. What they find in the aftermath of her death is a strange friend group dubbed the Honeys and an academy that seems to be decaying under their feet. Something is also hunting Mars.
The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling
When Gyre lied her way into the expedition, she’d thought that mapping cave collapses and gear malfunctions would be her biggest problems. She also thought she would have a skilled surface team, monitoring her suit, keeping her safe. Instead, she gets Em. Em, who sees nothing wrong with controlling her body as she maps the mineral deposits of the cave. Em, who knows all of Gyre’s secrets and has some of her own. Gyre finds herself losing grip with reality and giving in to paranoia as the expedition continues. She must confront more than just the dangerous terrain if she ever wants to see the surface again.
Speculative fiction is a diverse and expansive body of literature, including queer works. While this genre has a lot more to offer than the books listed above, these are a handful that will best get you started on your very own expedition into the unknown. Be sure to check them out and add them to your TBR. Happy reading!
Interested in more books to add to that ever-expanding TBR? Check out some more recommendations here.
Find these titles and more on our Dystopian Worlds, Technology, and the Universe in Science Fiction shelf.
