Queer Lit Readathon Round 15 TBR
Starting to build my June TBR and kick off a summer full of books with the help of the Queer Lit Readathon
Somehow we’re midway through May and already I feel like this month has gone by so fast. With the end of May coming closer, that means summer is right around the corner and the summer reading boom will begin. I’m not the type of person that thinks that far ahead for curating a perfect summer reading list. I do, however, plan TBRs for various readathons and in this post I’m going to go over the first part of my summer reading plans by sharing my TBR for the Queer Lit Readathon.
What is the Queer Lit Readathon?
I went over a brief description about the Queer Lit Readathon during my TBR post for Round 14, but to quote from the article:
The Queer Lit Readathon is a biannual readathon created by Kathy Trithardt and Rogan Shannon, with a rotating ensemble of guest hosts for each round of the readathon. The main objective of the readathon is to read as many books featuring LGBTQIA+ characters and/or written by LGBTQIA+ authors within the timespan of the readathon.
Round 15 is going to be taking place for the entire month of June and I definitely would recommend signing up. Personally, the Queer Lit Readathon is one of my favorite readathons and it’s definitely a laid-back, chill readathon where you get to connect with other readers about books by LGBTQIA+ authors.
With this, I’m going to go over the twelve books I’m planning to read for Round 15 of the Queer Lit Readathon.
Queer Lit Readathon Round 15 TBR
Camp QUILTBAG by A.J. Sass & Nicole Melleby
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Outside
There’s a lot of different ways I could have taken this prompt, but I figured I focus myself on the literal meaning of outside: being outdoors. Camp QUILTBAG has been on my radar for awhile and I’ve never been find the time to read it. The book itself sounds cozy and I’m looking forward to finally reading this one.
Wrong Answers Only by Tobias Madden
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Group Read, Australian Author
Since Wrong Answers Only is the group read for this round, that pretty much determined that this book was going to make the TBR list. Though it also hits the Australian author prompt which I figured it hit two birds with one stone. I’ve never heard of this book prior to the QLR 15 announcement video, but it sounds like something I would enjoy.
Woodworking by Emily St. James
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Small Town Queers, 2025 Release
Knowing that I really need to be reading the books I own, reading Woodworking by Emily St. James would help me to do that and it works for two of the prompts on the board, so it’s an obvious no-brainer to add this book to my TBR.
Be Gay, Do Crime edited by Molly Llewellyn and Kristel Buckley
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Choose Your Own Prompt (Anthology)
Almost every single round, there’s a Choose Your Own Prompt on the bingo board and this round I decided to pick Anthology. Mainly because there’s this short story anthology (Be Gay, Do Crime) that I’ve been really wanting to read1 comes out next month and I’m hoping I can get it from local library. I do back-ups in case I can’t get ahold of the book2 but I’m really hoping I can get this book for the Choose Your Own Prompt.
Beauty Salon by Mario Bellatin
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Short & (or) Sweet, 1990s
Going through the digital library collections I have access to, I stumbled across this book and it definitely grabbed my attention. Since Beauty Salon is a novella originally published in the 1990s, this pretty much gives me an excuse to get to read this one.
The No-Girlfriend Rule by Christen Randall
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Plus Size MC
While it took me awhile to come up with a book that I haven’t already read for the Plus Size MC prompt, I remembered I checked out The No-Girlfriend Rule by Christen Randall from my local library last year but didn’t have time to finish it. Why not pick this book up again so I can finally read it and use it for the Plus Size MC prompt.
Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Alliteration
This was a prompt that kind of had me stumped for a bit because I didn’t know how alliterative that the prompt was looking for nor I could I initially think off the top of my head on my TBR that features an alliterative title. Then I remembered Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo catching my eye a couple of months ago and, lo and behold, it had an alliterative title so I just went with it.
Rick by Alex Gino
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: One Time Author, Banned Book
Fun fact: this was one of the first books that I added to my QLR 15 TBR as soon I finished watching the announcement video. My first time reading anything by Alex Gino was when I read Melissa this past March and reading Rick, the companion novel to Melissa, would be a kind of full circle moment for the One Time Author prompt. Plus, I know that this book has been banned/challenged in multiple schools, which pretty much gave me another prompt on the board I could use this book for.
Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Meija and Anna-Marie McLemore
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Borrowed
Most of the books I have listed on my QLR 15 TBR are books I can easily get from the library so I wasn’t technically going to have a book listed here for the Borrowed prompt. However, the other major readathon I’m doing in June, Amazing Readathon 3.03, has a prompt where this was the only book on my TBR I could use for that prompt. Since I can also get this book from the library, that’s why Miss Meteor is on the list.
A Magical Girl Retires by Park Seolyeon
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Manga
I’ll be quite frank in saying that I really didn’t know what to put down for this prompt or if I would even do the prompt. Manga, I’ve learned through several attempts at reading it, isn’t for me and I didn’t know what I could be able to do for this prompt since I really wanted to go for a full board this year but at the same time not wanting to subject myself to a format/genre that isn’t really for me. However, I stumbled across “the magical girl” trope that’s been in countless manga and that led me to discovering A Magical Girl Retires, which is pretty much an ode to “the magical girl” trope in manga.
One of the Boys by Victoria Zeller
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Starts with the Letter “O”
One of the many books on my ARC shelves4, this was one of the few, if not only, book I had that started with the letter “O”. Yes, I could have picked a book that was on my general TBR, but one of my reading goals for this year is to read at least two books on my NetGalley shelves and hence why I’m reading One of the Boys for this prompt.
Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings
Prompt(s) Fulfilled: Continued
Mazey Eddings is one of my favorite authors, and reading her latest book, Late Bloomer, is pretty much a no-brainer for the Continued prompt.
Book Recs Based Off the Prompts
Now, if you’re trying to think of books to complete for each of the prompts and want more suggestions other than what I’ve listed for my TBR, check out these book recs down below for more books that fit each prompt.
Outside
Ash’s Cabin by Jen Wang
Small Town Queers
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Wren Martin Ruins It All by Amanda DeWitt
Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White
Short & (or) Sweet
Camp Prodigy by Caroline Palmer
The Baker & the Bard by Fern Haught
Australian Author
Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales
Don’t Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews
Plus Size MC
For Never & Always by Helena Greer
Mistletoe & Mishigas by M.A. Wardell
2025 Release
We Could Be Rats by Emily R. Austin
The Last Bookstore on Earth by Lily Braun-Arnold
Make Sure You Die Screaming by Zee Carlstrom
Alliteration
Mistletoe & Mishigas by M.A. Wardell
Chef’s Choice by TJ Alexander
Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
Banned Book
Melissa by Alex Gino
Dear Mothman by Robin Gow
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
Manga
Navigating with You by Jeremy Whitley5
Starts with the Letter “O”
Off Menu by Oliver Gerlach
Ariel Crashes a Train by Olivia A. Cole
Thank you for checking out my TBR for Round 15 of the Queer Lit Readathon. Let me know in the comments if you’re planning on participating and what your TBR looks like. As always, make sure to like and subscribe for more bookish content.
Let’s Do Good With Books today and everyday!
Part because one of my favorite authors, Emily R. Austin, is featured in this anthology and part because the whole concept of the anthology sounded cool.
If I can’t get a copy of Be Gay, Do Crime, my two back-ups I have on standby are Gender Euphoria edited by Laura Kate Dale and The Stonewall Reader edited by the New York Public Library and Jason Baumann.
Don’t worry, I will talk about this book and more in my Amazing Readathon 3.0 TBR in the coming weeks.
For One of the Boys, thank you to NetGalley and Levine Querido for the free e-ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Now this isn’t technically manga, but the book on this list features characters that love manga as well as books that feature manga as a central aspect of the book.