Queer dude SFF to look forward to in 2026

I wrote an equivalent list last year and was struggling to get to 10 SFF books by or about queer dudes; I couldn’t find 10 I was excited about by and about queer dudes. Seems that a fair few others were looking for work in this space, because behiiv analytics tells me it got a decent number of eyeballs. And my hit rate was pretty good - of the 10 books I spotlighted, I didn’t care for 2, didn’t get to 1 (but given it’s Martha Wells I expect I’ll like it), 1 was delayed to 2026 (and will be mentioned below), and 6 were very good to excellent; let’s call it 70% if we count the delayed & missed books as half each. So I figure the exercise is worth repeating.

Like last year, Kila Green has, very very usefully, got a more comprehensive database for queer SFF more generally, so if you’re looking for queers who aren’t guys or masc-leaning enbies, go have a look there. It’s a real service to the community that Kila is maintaining this!

For my part, I have a few more on my radar this year! Happily I can make it to 10 books by men and enby folks that also centre queer masc characters, plus a few more; women have always written some of the best queer guys in fiction, and I’m pleased to see a fair few from new voices and old favourites here.

Here, then, are 10 standalones or series starters and 5 continuations/conclusions of ongoing series that turn their focus to queer dudes. I’ll have a blurb, link to the publisher’s website, and a brief comment for each.

Series starters & standalones

Jared Poon: City of Others (January)

In the sunny city of Singapore, the government takes care of everything—even the weird stuff.

Benjamin Toh is a middle manager in the Division for Engagement of Unusual Stakeholders (DEUS), and his job is keep the supernatural inhabitants of Singapore happy and keep them out of sight. That is, don’t bother the good, normal citizens, and certainly don’t bother the bosses. Sure, he's overworked and understaffed, but usually, people (and senior management) don’t see what they don’t want to see. 
 
But when an entire housing estate glitches out of existence on what was meant to be a routine check-in, Ben has to scramble to keep things under control and stop the rest of the city from disappearing. He may not have the budget or the bandwidth, but he has the best—if highly irregular and supernaturally inclined—team to help him. Together, they’ll traverse secret shadow markets, scale skyscrapers, and maybe even go to the stars, all so they can just do their goddamn job. 

This looks like Peter Grant but instead of London weird cop we have Singaporean weird bureaucrat and also gay. I honestly don’t need more convincing than that. This one’s the only one on the list that’s out already, so you can pick it up now!

Greer Stothers: Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die (February)

All his life, Sir Cameron has stayed as far away from danger as possible. He is, quite frankly, too handsome to die a violent and pointless death in battle. But when the Church hands down a prophecy to his fellow knights predicting that the only way to defeat their nemesis, the mad sorcerer Merulo, is to kill Cameron, he finds himself in a situation too sticky for even his considerable wiles. Short of ideas, Cameron throws himself on the mercy of the one person who now actually wants him to survive: the mad sorcerer.

Merulo isn’t thrilled to be babysitting a spoilt, attention-seeking knight, but fate has tied them together. And transmogrifying Cameron into a vulture is at least a great source of entertainment. Cameron, meanwhile, is on a voyage of self-discovery. It turns out he’s really, really into surly sorcerers who lock him up and tell him what to do. Who knew?

As a legion of knights surround their stronghold, the sorcerer’s poisonous ambitions draw ever closer to fruition. Cameron is quite invested in not dying, but he finds he’s also invested in Merulo. And sometimes, supporting the sorcerer you care about means taking an interest in their hobbies. Even if that hobby is trying to kill God.

Even if it might get you killed, too.

Romantic comedy is hard. Fantasy comedy is hard. Romantasy comedy is really hard, and there’s every chance this one won’t pull it off. But the blurb is charming, it does seem like there might be a bit more to it than fluff, and I’m intrigued enough to pick this up. Also? I am here for a title with punctuation in it that’s not an exclamation mark, a question mark, or a colon. Good comma game.

Cameron Sullivan: The Red Winter (February)

The Red Winter is a historical fantasy drawing on The Beast of Gévaudan, a werewolf origin story about a small mountain village in 18th-century France that was terrorised by a mysterious creature. Written as a memoir by the immortal narrator Sebastian, it’s full of sorcery, demons and debauchery, but most of all it’s a love story about one man who will live for ever and the nobleman he fell in love with, but may have made into a monster.

[Delayed from last year. Still looks extremely promising]. A thin blurb to pin one’s hopes on, but the Beast of Gévaudan is a great resource for adaptation. In addition, the fact that I’ve recently watched the compelling adaptation of the same story in the gorgeous anime The Case Study of Vanitas makes me keen to read another (even) gay(er) take on it.

U M Agoawike: Black as Diamond (March)

Like the rest of the winged eresh keyel, warrior Asaru has spent his life fighting the remnants of a long-dead enemy. When his brother's squadron disappears from a border keep, Asaru travels into the human realm to investigate, only to become ensnared by a fatal - and unbreakable - curse that could wipe out his people.

When he inadvertently commits a terrible crime, Asaru is thrown into the path of Wren, an emotionally tortured former healer playing with dangerous magic. Bound to one another by a spell gone wrong, and on the run from freelance killers, they set out to find the Chronicler, keeper of the eresh keyel's history who could bring them answers, redemption, and the cure to Asaru's curse. But the truths they uncover about the past have the power to break the world into pieces, ending human civilization and settling its remnants into something entirely new.

From Nigerian Canadian author U. M. Agoawike, Black as Diamond is a fresh, dark, and thrilling debut that untangles questions of queer identity, history, and power, illuminating a society crushed by the lingering actions of a few.

A lot of familiar elements in this blurb, but it does seem like they’re being deployed in creative ways that could be really interesting. Plus “queer identity, history, and power” are catnip themes for me. Require a bit of subtlety to pull off well, so hopefully Agoawike is up to it in their debut novel.

Cassidy Ellis Salter: These Shattered Spires (March)

Entombed beneath a tooth-filled sky, the world rots.

Those yet to succumb to the curse of decay inhabit Fourspires Castle, home to arcanists from across the four magical disciplines – blood, bone, stone and botany.

The castle is thrown into chaos when the ruler of Fourspires is assassinated. To crown a new ruler, the arcanists and their human familiars are forced to kill or be killed in the Slaughter, a bloody fight for succession at the top of the Fifth Tower. Familiars, both servants and sources of power to arcanists, are forbidden from even speaking. For them, the Slaughter means certain death.

When Nixie, a botanical familiar, learns that her fate can be avoided and the rotting curse of Fourspires lifted, she'll stop at nothing to save herself. But she must work with familiars from across the rival disciplines – not easy when one of them is her bone witch ex-girlfriend, Taro – find four magical curse keys and climb the deadly Fifth Tower. With just 48 hours until the Slaughter begins, Nixie and Taro must forge an unlikely alliance with rival familiars Alis and Elliot. Together, the four Wyrdos must battle re-animated skeletons, poisonous and possessed plants, un-dead nuns and the deadliest enemies of all; each other.

These Shattered Spires is the first instalment of the sensational and gloriously gothic Wyrdos Trilogy.

The comps say “Gideon the Ninth but YA” and I tend to deeply distrust Gideon comps. However: this book is actually about queer people, and those queer people appear to be moderately awful yet somehow strangely appealing. And those two elements are the key to what actually makes Gideon interesting, so I’m tentatively intrigued by this one.

Max Francis: Honor & Heresy (April)

Roy Dawnseve, the prospective heir to Dawnseve Manor, cares more for philosophy than battle. However, in a society that shuns literature and promotes violence, his fate is compromised. But Roy is given a he can either brave the front lines and fight the Old Ones, the mysterious, black-armored soldiers invading Northgard—or he can investigate their identity in the Orphic Basilica, an ancient, abandoned library.

When Roy chooses to unravel the mystery, it soon becomes clear that the Orphic Basilica isn’t without its own horrors. Strange voices echo down the halls, ghosts with burning red eyes roam the bookshelves, and those who stepped foot in the library have either emerged insane or were driven to their own demise.

Roy’s only companion—and his partner in the investigation—is Percival Atherton, a manipulative, enigmatic and distractingly charming scholar who has no qualms about belittling Roy. As a fierce snowstorm sinks its claws into the city, isolating them from civilization, Roy and Percival must grapple with their tormented pasts, an unexpected romance, and an age-old conspiracy whose secrets are certain to wipe Northgard from history.

Filled with all the yearning of a rivals-to-lovers romance, the intrigue and fear of a dark academia, and the wonder and discovery of an epic fantasy, Honor & Heresy is ultimately a story of self-discovery amidst the chaos of war and a long, cold winter.

Comps are a risky thing because one of the comps for this book is Katabasis and I’ll just say I hope this book trusts its reader to be less of a total fool than Kuang tends to. But unfortunate comp aside, a lot of the beats in this blurb sound like entirely My Jam, and to be honest for a trend as pervasive as dark academia, there’s surprisingly little adult fantasy in that category with queer dude leads. So I am very keen to try this out.

Cheri Radke: An Accident of Dragons (April)

In theory, the dragoness of Summer can make any resident on her island the ruler, if the previous Lord Summer is so careless as to die without an heir. In practice, absolutely no one expected her to choose Teddy, the last lord’s middle-aged fancy man. With his quick wit, heaps of charisma, and excellent dress sense, Teddy brings plenty of virtues to his new role, but statecraft, pedigree, and decorum are not among them. That’s all he’s done his duty to the island, and his five-year-old daughter, Zinnia, will make a brilliant Lady Summer when her time comes.

Except when a ship of desperate mainlander thieves arrives, Zinnia’s caught in the fracas and taken hostage. Teddy jumps into the rescue mission without delay, even though his days of adventures on the mainland are long buried with his lover. But his sailors have never seen their destination, and worse, the hard-liner admiral who leads them thinks Teddy’s a worthless dandy. Against a conniving robber baron, a sorceress who’s tamed her own dragon, and ordinary people with everything to lose, the crew faces terrible odds. But with all he loves in danger, Teddy must prove there’s more to him than he’d ever intended to show.

So what interests me here is this looks very much like the beats and tone of cozy fantasy with plot and character set up (middle aged flamer as lead, sex worker main characters, and stakes ramping a bit higher than the norm for the subgenre). And this could be a mess or it could be very interesting. A slight thumb on the scale of “interesting” is that this is being put out by Erewhon, who have a good track record of curating books that successfully pull off reasonably high concept. Cautiously intrigued.

Nathan Tavares: The Disco at the End of the World (June)

In 1977 - a world in which America launched its space program shortly after WWII - Mitch Ward followed Flynn, the lost love of his youth, into the US Space Guard. Now, he’s stuck on a backwater moon base with his only friend, Gloria, watching every shuttle in the hope Flynn will be on it.

After an inexplicable encounter with a strange, euphoric being, Mitch and Gloria find themselves dishonorably discharged, and stuck in a USA rapidly sliding into fascism with no plans and no future. There’s nothing for it but to move to Los Angeles to chase their dreams, and find their people in the discos of the city.

But when Flynn crashes back into their lives, claiming to be the host for an emissary of a utopian civilization approaching Earth, he offers Mitch the power to protect himself and friends across the queer community, so they never have to live in the shadows or face oppression again.

With the world on the brink of cataclysm, and Mitch and his friends being squeezed out of every space, it’s down to this community of disco-loving outcasts to stand up for what is beautiful and right.

Tavares’ past two books had brilliantly drawn relationships and settings and plotting that just frayed slightly at the edges as they progressed. Both more than good enough to make me want to read what he does next. This one sounds like it’s working in a slightly different space, and here’s hoping the worldbuilding and story can be just slightly sharper to match what I’m sure will again be superb character work.

C L Polk: The Feywild Job (June)

Saeldian has sworn never to fall in love. That oath isn’t just a personal promise, but rather a magical pact, granting them powerful abilities. The only catch? They must never give their heart away—a deal that Saeldian is perfectly content with. They’ve seen firsthand how messy love can get.

Saeldian prefers their no-strings-attached life as a con artist, pulling off heists and leaving a trail of broken hearts behind them. But when a grift goes horribly wrong, they catch the eye of a mysterious patron with a job offer they can’t refuse.

The mission? Steal a gem called “The Kiss of Enduring Love” and return it to the Feywild. Simple enough, until Saeldian discovers their ex-partner, Kell—a charming bard—is part of the team.

The last time Saeldian saw Kell, things hardly ended on good terms. A kiss became a betrayal, leaving Kell hurt and confused for almost a decade. But Kell can’t just walk away—not when this job might finally be his ticket back to the Feywild.

Forced to work together again, their adventure takes them from high-society parties to Feywild couple’s therapy. But as Saeldian and Kell rekindle their chemistry, they realize the gem is much more than a fey bauble, and their simple heist has summoned powerful enemies.

D & D tie in fiction returns and it’s m/enby romantasy by C L Polk? Sign me the hell up. I have a huge soft spot for D & D tie-ins (Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms tie-ins were some of the stuff I absolutely devoured in my ‘middle grade’ years), but this is a new angle for this genre space, and I’m very keen to see what a writer as skilled as Polk can do with it.

dave ring (ed): Shatter the Sun: Queer Tales of Untold Adventure (Spring 2026)

Shatter the Sun: Queer Tales of Untold Adventure will be an anthology of pulp heroism in conversation with Samuel R. Delany's Nevèrÿon, Conan and Red Sonja, Imaro and Xena. It will join the shelf beside previous anthologies from editor dave ring and press Neon Hemlock, including Glitter + Ashes, Unfettered Hexes, Luminescent Machinations and, most recently, The Crawling Moon. 

Join us for stories of queer heroes forged and tempered in the fire, fighting dark stars and bright suns, and overthrowing tyranny in all its forms. These tales will invoke swords and sorcery, sweat and sandals, souls and stars. 

Not just queer dudes, but plenty of queer dudes in this collection of stories, and hell yes should modern sword & sorcery be in conversation with Nevèrÿon as much as humanely possible. Neon Hemlock have a record of excellent products, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy the bulk of the stories in this volume.

Continuing series

Ariel Kaplan: The Kingdom of Almonds (March, The Mirror Realm Cycle #3)

Toba and Naftaly have stepped through the Gate of Luz into the mythic world of Aravoth, home to the Ziz, the bird of legend capable of raising the sea. Aravoth—the fabled third realm—is more dizzying and terrifying than Toba or Naftaly could have imagined. Nor had they expected to find someone already there, waiting for them.

After barely escaping the burning city of Zayit, Elena and the old woman have a new Barsilay, heir of Luz, is being held for an exorbitant ransom by the paranoid Queen of P'ri Hadar. As Barsilay sits in his dark, demon-inhabited prison cell, he begins to realize the queen is guarding an ancient secret that might be the key to his release.

And the tyrant Tarses continues to close in on P’ri Hadar, wielding an army that spans the Mazik and mortal worlds and newly-powerful visions that reveal his most longed-for future—visions that he and Naftaly seem to share.

In this triumphant finale, the mirror realms must find their balance, or risk being lost altogether.

Finale of a very solid Jewish epic/portal fantasy series. The leading queer character is a delight, the worldbuilding is distinctive and well-drawn and I’m very keen to see where this story finishes.

Ginn Hale: Price of a Thousand Blessings Volumes 3 and 4 (May & June)

After dissipating a magical bomb in the capitol and repelling a bloody ambush in the Sacred Necropolis, Cymin has finally reached the famous port city of Yanyeo. From there, he and his friends expect to sail to Saigrath under the care of the powerful Waethir. But when local politics delay their departure, Cymin is secretly happy. At last, he has a chance to steal some time alone with Laithondi. In addition, Cymin can champion Nyle’s return to their group—all while trailing the Waethir at the behest of spymaster Mazilane. 

Naturally, Cymin finds Yanyeo charming and fascinating.

By day lotus-strewn canals teem with lively merchants, artisans and entertainers. At night the pleasure houses and gambling dens light up with indulgence and revelry. All of it reminds Cymin of the delights of his past life and the secrets that he and Laithondi now share. 

But deep beneath the canal waters a curse has been released and an enemy from Cymin’s past is on the move. Talented mages all across the city are quietly going missing while mutilated remains have washed ashore.

Then Cymin’s friend, Xaon disappears. 

Racing to find him, Cymin and Laithondi must plunge into the lair of a criminal syndicate and risk not only exposing their secrets but their very lives.

I am a certified Ginn Hale fan & this continuation of her current series is most welcome. Legend of Korra-era magitech worldbuilding, complex past life plotlines overlapping with the present, and simmering, slow-burn romantic tension, while continuing to explore Hale’s regular themes of empire and ecology. Read the first two then read these.

KD Edwards: The Misfit Caravan (July, The Tarot Sequence #4)

Book IV, titled The Misfit Caravan, still takes Rune and his crew on a cross-country road trip through modern-day America, culminating in a major showdown beneath an underground fae city.

Not entirely certain on the timing of this one. You’ll see there’s no link to the publisher and no formal blurb. Edwards understandably hasn’t said anything but you get the sense things from the publisher’s end have… not been amazing. But the Tarot Sequence is genuinely an absolute delight in every respect. Queer as hell, tonally shifting between cozy found family, tense action, and some pretty creepy horror, and unlike pretty much anything else out there. I really hope some of these delays are resolved and we do, indeed, see The Misfit Caravan some time in the middle of this year.

Robert Jackson Bennett: A Trade of Blood (August, Shadow of the Leviathan #3)

In the canton of Sapirdad, two of the Empire’s most powerful families are moments away from going to war with each other, their hundreds of retainers gathered with swords drawn. If blood is spilled, the whole of the empire may be plunged into starvation and chaos.

To deescalate matters, someone must do the impossible: prove that one family’s eldest son is innocent of a gruesome and unforgivable murder, despite the incontrovertible evidence against him.

It is with this undertaking that the great detective Ana Dolabra is tasked, her assistant Din at her side—and the two find themselves racing with great speed and little dignity to the scene.

As ever, the impossible proves little obstacle for the deadly combination of Ana’s intellect and Din’s keen eye, and mere hours after riding into the dusty town, Ana glimpses the greater pattern behind the crime. A deeper, subtler web of death is being woven in plain sight, by a mastermind with an ancient magical technology at his disposal.

But even Ana's uncanny insight is of little use when each new suspect she uncovers ends up dead--with each new killing calculated to bring tensions between the two rival clans past the boiling point. And as Din pursues their adversary through the canton's wild ranges, sprawling ranches, and reeking slaughterhouses, he finds his loyalties divided in unexpected ways.

I will read every book Bennett cares to put out in this series. Well crafted fantasy mysteries (a very hard genre to do well), fantastic worldbuilding, and surprisingly deep exploration of themes of government, freedom, and the common good. Plus Ana and Din are wonderful leads, and I will forever stan Din, the rare (in my reading) Kinsey 4-ish bisexual man in fiction.

T Kingfisher: Daggerbound (August, Swordbound #2)

Four hundred years ago, three warriors were trapped inside enchanted swords, cursed to be immortal servants of whoever wielded the blade. One of them is the Dervish, a restless, fiery soul who hates his captivity and hates his wielders even more, but has never found a way to escape the sword’s magic.

Then one day, a disillusioned scholar named Learned Edmund is tasked with delivering the sword to a distant city, and, in the greatest of peril, draws the blade. The Dervish finds himself bound to a sweet, brilliant, and above all kind young man. And while he may be able to protect Edmund from bandits, cultists, dragons, and strange inhuman diplomats, he may find it much harder to protect his own heart.

A return to the Swordheart corner of the World of the White Rat! A return of Learned Edmund from the Clocktaur War! Notable homosexuality appears to be in the offing. I’ve yet to be disappointed by one of Kingfisher’s fantasy-romance-comedy-horror outings, and I’m sure this won’t break that streak.