Top 10 Best LGBT Novels of the 21st Century

The best LGBT novels of the 21st century do more than place queer characters on the page. They let you sit with longing, anger, desire, family pressure, first love, old grief, chosen kin, and the strange relief of finally seeing a private truth spoken out loud.

As you read through this list, you will find novels that treat identity not as a slogan, but as lived experience shaped by culture, history, humor, fear, faith, friendship, and love. The century is still young, but queer fiction has already given you stories that refuse to shrink themselves for comfort. These books invite you into lives that are specific, messy, brave, funny, aching, and fully human.

The Top Ten

  1. The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

    Patroclus, an exiled Greek prince, becomes the companion of Achilles after being sent to the court of King Peleus. Their bond deepens as they train together, follow each other into the Trojan War, and face the expectations placed on Achilles as a prophesied warrior. The novel retells events from Greek mythology through Patroclus's view as war, loyalty, and fate shape both of their lives.

  2. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Sáenz

    Aristotle Mendoza meets Dante Quintana at a swimming pool in El Paso during the summer of 1987. As their friendship develops, both boys deal with family histories, cultural identity, emotional distance, and questions about who they are. Their relationship changes as they grow older and begin to understand the nature of their feelings for each other.

  3. The Sun and the Star - Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro

    Nico di Angelo receives a call for help from Bob, the Titan he once knew in Tartarus. He and Will Solace travel into the Underworld and then into Tartarus, where they confront monsters, memories, and the strain their different powers place on their relationship. Their mission forces Nico to face parts of his past while Will learns what it means to stand beside him in that world.

  4. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli

    Simon Spier is a closeted high school student who exchanges anonymous emails with another gay student using the name Blue. When a classmate discovers Simon's messages, Simon is blackmailed into helping him while trying to protect Blue's identity and his own privacy. The story follows Simon as he manages friendships, family, school drama, and the search for the person behind the emails.

  5. Call Me by Your Name - André Aciman

    Elio Perlman is spending the summer with his family in northern Italy when Oliver, an American graduate student, arrives to work with Elio's father. The two move through attraction, hesitation, and intimacy during Oliver's stay at the villa. Their relationship leaves Elio with memories that continue to affect him after the summer ends.

  6. Warrior's Cross - Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

  7. Under the Udala Trees - Chinelo Okparanta

    Ijeoma is a young girl displaced by the Nigerian Civil War and sent away from her family for safety. She falls in love with another girl and later struggles against religious instruction, social pressure, and laws that condemn same-sex relationships. As an adult, she enters marriage with a man while continuing to confront the conflict between survival and her own desires.

  8. The Tin Star - J. L. Langley

  9. Red, White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston

    Alex Claremont-Diaz, the son of the U.S. president, is forced into a public friendship with Prince Henry of Britain after a confrontation creates a diplomatic problem. Their staged closeness develops into a private romantic relationship that conflicts with political expectations, royal protocol, and Alex's public role. When their correspondence is exposed, both men must deal with the consequences for their families and countries.

  10. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid

    Aging film star Evelyn Hugo chooses journalist Monique Grant to write her life story. Evelyn recounts her rise in Hollywood, her seven marriages, and her long relationship with actress Celia St. James. As the interview continues, Monique learns that Evelyn's past is connected to her own family.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    They Both Die at the End - Adam Silvera

  12. ?

    Landing - Emma Donoghue

    13. The Contenders

  13. Shades of Gray - Brooke McKinley

  14. Shattered Glass - Dani Alexander

  15. Less - Andrew Sean Greer

    Arthur Less, a novelist approaching fifty, accepts a series of literary invitations around the world to avoid attending his former lover's wedding. His travels take him through interviews, award events, teaching assignments, and encounters that force him to revisit his work and past relationships. The trip becomes a way for Less to confront aging, heartbreak, and the life he has tried to outrun.

  16. The Disenchantment - Celia Bell

    In seventeenth-century Paris, Baroness Marie Catherine becomes involved with Victoire, another noblewoman, while both live under the restrictions of aristocratic society. A violent attempt to protect their secret draws them into danger as the Affair of the Poisons spreads through Paris and Versailles. Their efforts to evade the authorities place them near accusations of poison, magic, and murder.

  17. The Vast Fields of Ordinary - Nick Burd

  18. Drawn Together - Z.A. Maxfield

  19. Hero - Perry Moore

  20. At Swim, Two Boys - Jamie O'Neill

  21. Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides

  22. The Night Off - Meghan O'Brien

  23. The Gravity Between Us - Kristen Zimmer

  24. Boy Meets Boy - David Levithan

  25. Young Mungo - Douglas Stuart

  26. Felix Ever After - Kacen Callender

  27. A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara

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