18 Trans Books By Trans Authors That Belong On Your 2023 TBR

Looking for more trans representation in literature? 2023 has got you!

As a trans person who came out ten years ago, the increase in trans literature being released in the past few years has me absolutely thrilled.

When I came out, these types of books barely existed, and they definitely did not exist in the mainstream. Yet, 2023 is right around the corner, and here I am writing a list of eighteen upcoming books by trans authors about trans characters and/or trans issues! While the political landscape for trans folks is looking less than great, I hope that some, like me, will find refuge in some of these stories, many featuring trans joy and love. Because we deserve to have our stories told, too.

1. All the Things They Said We Couldn’t Have: Stories of Trans Joy by T.C. Oakes-Monger

Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Release date: January 19, 2023

What it's about: All the Things They Said We Couldn't Have is a memoir of sorts, told through multiple stories of the author's own experiences of trans joy. This important collection celebrates the beauty of being a trans person today and invites trans readers to celebrate their identities alongside the author.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

2. Am I Trans Enough? How to Overcome Your Doubts and Find Your Authentic Self by Alo Johnston

Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Release date: February 1, 2023

What it's about: In Am I Trans Enough? author Alo Johnston details his own journey to self-acceptance, allowing the reader to walk alongside him and learn to accept themselves. The book delves deep into internalized transphobia and feelings of inadequacy that so many trans people face while encouraging those in all stages of transition to explore themselves and realize that there is no perfect or correct way to be trans.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

3. Always the Almost by Edward Underhill

Wednesday Books

Release date: February 14, 2023

What it's about: Edward Underhill's debut YA rom-com follows 16-year-old trans boy Miles as he attempts to fulfill his two New Year's resolutions: to win back his ex-boyfriend Shane, and to finally beat his arch-nemesis at the midwest's biggest classical piano competition. However, neither of these goals will be easy to achieve. For one, Shane broke up with Miles two weeks after he came out as trans and has been stubbornly ignoring him ever since, and his new piano teacher thinks his playing needs work. 

To make things even more complicated, Miles finds himself drawn to the new boy in town, Eric Mendez, a proudly queer cartoonist who respects his pronouns and makes him feel things he hasn't felt since Shane. After the two pretend to date in order to attend a couples-only Valentine's celebration, things get a little too real when they share a kiss. Miles, who has never felt like he has been enough for anyone, can't manage to wrap his head around what Eric sees in him. In order to let love in and achieve his dreams, he'll need to realize that the only person who's ever thought of him as not being enough is himself.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

4. World Running Down by Al Hess

Angry Robot

Release date: February 14, 2023

What it's about: This sci-fi debut follows Valentine Weis, a salvager in the future wastelands of Utah. Due to body dysphoria, Valentine dreams of earning enough money to get citizenship and move to Salt Lake City, a sort of utopia where the medical transition he dreams of is free, and where he will be safe and well-fed. For Valentine, the idea of earning the type of money to achieve this is a pipe dream. That is until he meets Osric, a powerful AI from Salt Lake City. Osric has been forced into an android body against his will and was sent by his new employer to the wasteland to offer Valentine a job retrieving his employer's stolen androids. The reward for succeeding in the job is a visa into Salt Lake City, giving Valentine a chance at the life he's always wanted. However, problems arise when the two begin attempting to retrieve the stolen "merchandise" and it turns out that the android ladies have become more self-aware and are less than enthused about returning to their old lives. Valentine is tempted by the prize, but following through with the job would go against everything he stands for, and he will need to decide whether he is willing to put aside his own dream life in order to allow the AIs to live theirs. 

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

5. If I Can Give You That by Michael Gray Bulla

Quill Tree Books

Release date: February 28, 2023

What it's about: Gael is a 17-year-old transgender high school senior whose social life consists of waiting tables part-time, spending time with his 20-year-old best friend, Nicole, and doing his best to care for his mentally ill mother. After Gael and his mother decided to relocate after his parent's divorce, Nicole has been his only friend and he doesn't have any desire to make more. He only wants to keep his head down in order to get through one final year at his conservative Tennessee high school. But things change when Nicole drags him along to a meeting for Plus, a support group for LGBTQIA+ teens, where he meets the sweet and charming Declan, who will open up his world in ways he'd never dared to dream of.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

6. The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa

Random House Books for Young Readers

Release date: February 28, 2023

What it's about: Mar Léon-de la Rosa is a transmasculine nonbinary pirate with a secret ability to manipulate fire and ice. But even their magic isn't enough to stop el Diablo from coming to collect his payment for a wicked bargain made years earlier by Mar's father. On Mar's sixteenth birthday, el Diablo arrives to collect the soul of Mar's father and his entire crew. When Mar is miraculously rescued by the only remaining pirate crew in the Caribbean, el Diablo returns to offer them a choice: to give up their soul to save their father by the Harvest Moon or never see him again. Mar finds this to be an impossible choice, refusing to make a bargain, and they know that their magic is no match for el Diablo. But things change when Mar meets some powerful allies who may give them the courage to use their magic, and maybe even a chance to save their father.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

7. Ander & Santi Were Here by Jonny Garza Villa

Wednesday Books

Release date: April 4, 2023

What it's about: Ander Lopez is a nonbinary Latinx muralist who has been working at their family's taquería for as long as they can remember. But when Ander graduates high school and decides to take a gap year, their family fires them in order to force them to focus on their murals and prepare for art school. Things completely change when Ander meets Santiago Garcia, the restaurant's hot new waiter, and his replacement. Ander quickly falls for Santi, who they learn is an undocumented immigrant at risk of being sent back to Mexico at any time. Santi's situation completely changes Ander's worldview and allows them to realize just how fragile their view of home really is.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

8. Any Other City: A Novel by Hazel Jane Plante

Arsenal Pulp Press

Release date: April 18, 2023

What it's about: Any Other City is a two-sided fictional memoir written by Tracy St. Cyr, frontwoman of beloved indie rock band Static Saints. Side A of the "memoir" follows Tracy's past, when she arrives in a new city and unexpectedly falls in with a group of trans women, including iconic visual artist, Sadie Tang. Side B follows a semi-famous Tracy living in the same strange city in 2019, writing her memoir. Said to be "a love letter to trans femmes and to art," this unique novel is one you won't want to miss.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

9. Transmogrify! Edited by g. haron davis

Harperteen

Release date: May 6, 2023

What it's about: This magical anthology of fantasy literature features 14 different stories by popular young adult authors. All stories center trans and nonbinary characters in magical scenarios — because magic is for everyone.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

10. Venom & Vow by Anna-Marie McLemore

Feiwel & Friends

Release date: May 16, 2023

What it's about: Written by spouses Anna-Marie McLemore and Elliot McLemore, Venom & Vow is the story of a transgender prince and a bigender assassin who, due to mistaken identities are simultaneously falling for one another, and trying to kill each other. When things get complicated, the two will realize they have far more dangerous enemies than each other.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

11. Paper Planes by Jennie Wood

Mad Cave Studios

Release date: May 16, 2023

What it's about: This young adult graphic novel follows former best friends Dylan and Leighton as they do everything they can to get through their summer at a camp for troubled youth. Both of them need to succeed at this camp, otherwise, they will be sent away and never see their high school friends again. The two get closer and are able to discuss their past and reexamine the events that sent them to camp in the first place, an event that threatens their whole futures and their friendship with each other.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

12. Court of the Undying Seasons by A.M. Strickland

Feiwel & Friends

Release date: May 16, 2023

What it's about: Nineteen-year-old Fin has volunteered to take the place of her secret love in their village's Finding, and she is terrified. If she is chosen at the Finding, Fin will be taken away to Castle Courtsheart, a vampire school where her only options are to succeed and become a vampire, fail and spend the rest of her life as a human thrall to vampires, or die before becoming either. Fin is not interested in any of these options. She wants revenge for her mother who was taken by vampires years ago, and she's willing to kill to get it. As Fin enters the vampire world, she begins to discover new aspects of her own identity and newfound powers. When she stumbles across a string of murders with possible connections to what could be a larger ritual, one that would be a threat to humans and vampires alike, Fin must find the killer and save herself and those she's grown to care for.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

13. A Trans Man Walks Into a Gay Bar: A Journey of Self (and Sexual) Discovery by Harry Nicholas

pridestoremcr.com

Release date: May 18, 2023

What it's about: In this transmasculine memoir, author Harry Nicholas has just ended a relationship with his girlfriend of five years and is beginning his life as a newly out gay trans man. He knows that coming out was the right decision, but Harry is terrified of how this new situation will unfold. Will he be accepted in the gay community? After all, he's just learning to accept himself as a man, let alone a gay man. Would the community reject him? Would he ever be able to find love again? This book follows Harry's life as a newly out gay trans man, exploring the nuances of being both trans and queer, and allowing the audience to feel for the author's struggles, and rejoice in his successes, while hopefully finding out a bit about themselves along the way.

The book is available for pre-order here.

14. Chef’s Choice by T.J. Alexander

Atria Books

Release date: May 30, 2023

What it's about: After being unceremoniously fired from her horrible office job, Luna O'Shea is doing her best to look on the bright side: she's a proud trans woman with plenty of supportive friends, an awesome roommate, and a life she really enjoys in New York City. She's happy. But happy doesn't pay the bills. So it's pretty much fate when Jean-Pierre, a cute trans man and the heir to a huge culinary empire, suddenly enters her life and is in need of a fake girlfriend. In order to hold up her end of the bargain, Luna must help Jean-Pierre prove himself to his celebrity chef grandfather in order to inherit his family's culinary empire. Along with the fake dating, Luna (who, by the way, is not a cook) also has to learn to make a series of elaborate family recipes in order to help Jean-Pierre prove himself. It's a good thing for both of them that Luna is determined not to let her lack of cooking skills, or her growing feelings for Jean-Pierre, get in the way of their goal.

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

15. Pageboy: A Memoir by Elliot Page

Flatiron Books

Release date: June 6, 2023

What it's about: In his groundbreaking coming-of-age memoir, beloved actor and transgender activist Elliot Page shares never-before-heard details and thoughts on gender, love, relationships, mental health, and Hollywood. 

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

16. A Shot in the Dark by Victoria Lee

Dell

Release date: July 11, 2023

What it's about: It's been almost a decade since Elisheva Cohen fled the Brooklyn and Orthodox community that raised her, and later shunned her due to her substance abuse. Despite the passing of time, these wounds are still fresh, but when Ely gets a life-changing opportunity to study photography with art legend Wyatt Cole, she's willing to take the leap and move back home to Brooklyn. On her first night back, Ely goes out for a celebratory night of dancing at the queer club Revel, where she is swept off her feet and into bed by a gorgeous man with a face like James Dean and a thick Carolina accent. When she wakes up the next morning to rush to photography class, the last thing she expects is to find out that her anonymous hookup from the night before was with none other than Wyatt Cole, her new teacher. 

Wyatt Cole is a legend in the art world, everyone wants to get close to him, and his notorious personal life makes him even more compelling, despite it being hard to discuss. After coming out as transgender, Wyatt was dishonorably discharged from the military and disowned by his entire family, which led to him getting serious about his sobriety and channeling his pain into his art career. While Ely and Cole's relationship began as solely physical, their similar struggles only bring them closer together, and while their chemistry is undeniable, their new relationship as teacher and student means they will have to keep their emotions in check and their relationship appropriate (and platonic).

Get it from Bookshop or your local bookstore via Indiebound here.

17. The Borrow a Boyfriend Club by Page Powars

Hachette Children's Group

Release date: September 12, 2023

What it's about: Transgender high school student, Noah, decides that in order to master the art of romance and prove his identity, he must join his school's secret Borrow a Boyfriend Club. While his main goal in this was to try and get his classmates to view him as his true gender, he is surprised when he finds himself falling for the club's grumpy president.

Get it from Bookshop and look out for other pre-order options!

18. Godly Heathens by H.E. Edgmon

Wednesday Books

Release date: November 28, 2023

What it's about: Gem Echols, a nonbinary Seminole teenager living in the tiny town of Gracie, Georgia, is doing their best to always be at their best, hiding their extreme anxiety in order to be a good queer role model for their peers. The only person who truly knows Gem is Enzo, another trans kid who, unfortunately, lives a thousand miles away in Brooklyn. The one thing Gem hasn't told Enzo, or anyone else, is that he's having bad dreams — dreams with haunting visions of magic and violence that feel much too close for comfort.

Despite not telling anyone about the dreams that haunt them, Gem is shocked to find out that the new girl in town, Willa Mae, knows about them. Willa Mae acts like the two are old friends and seems to know things about them that no one else does. But when Gem is attacked by a stranger claiming to be the Goddess of Death, Willa Mae comes to their rescue and finally offers them some answers. She reveals to Gem that the two of them are reincarnated gods who have known and loved each other across many lifetimes. Willa Mae also reveals that in their past lives, Gem wasn't the most agreeable diety, having made a lot of enemies in the pantheon who, like the Goddess of Death, are sure to keep coming. As their past lives catch up with their present, Gem will realize that everyone has something to hide. 

Look out for pre-order options for this book (follow author H.E. Edgmon on Twitter)