Queers Who Don't Quit

I loved that this anthology had a diverse mix genres.
Each story compiled was unique and had a refreshing take on romance and society. An absolute must read!

I find this a tough book to review. The quality of the stories feels uneven - some were fantastic, whereas some felt like a rush job for an English class. But we really, really need more queer stories out in the world! (Personally I'm trying to figure out if I'm aromantic - social norms are hard to extricate yourself from).

The short stories in this anthology are a mix of genres of moods, from the real world, to imagined worlds. Happy endings. Uncertain endings. Bittersweet endings. Dark endings. If I'm being honest, in short stories, what I most enjoy are twists at the end and a bittersweet tang. There were a few too many happy endings in this anthology, but then again, so many mainstream novels don't give their queer characters happy endings, and I can understand why the authors in this one wanted to do different.

I'd give this 3.5 stars if I could; but 4 stars because on the whole, I enjoyed the mix of stories and the diversity of characters.

(With thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy, in exchange for an honest review)

How excited I was in 2014 when my native country Austria, in a ballsy decision I would never have dreamed they were capable of, selected Conchita Wurst, a bearded, glamorous drag queen, to participate in that year’s Eurovision Song Contest (for those who don’t know that competition, with a yearly audience between 100 and 600 million globally, please check it out on Wikipedia)! Of course conservatives all over the world immediately yelled “Freak Show!”, and viscerally anti-gay countries such as Russia even threatened to interrupt their broadcast of the event during Conchita’s performance. But Conchita sang, Conchita was amazing (duh—a good song, a pitch-perfect voice, a fabulous stage performance), and… Conchita won by a landslide (it turned out even the Russian public had voted massively for her). When she was proclaimed the winner, Conchita stepped on the stage again, beaming and beautiful, to accept the award. Then, with fiercely sparkling eyes, she brandished it and shouted, “We! Are! Unstoppable!”

I mention this anecdote because this short story collection reminded me immediately of that amazing moment, which did our community so proud. “We are unstoppable!” could be the leitmotiv of this excellent anthology, too. I was amazed not only by the quality of the assembled pieces, but also by the vast variety of voices—variety being what had always drawn me to the Eurovision Song Contest in the first place. In this collection of seventeen short stories, the whole spectrum of the LGBTQ+-community is represented: amongst the main as well as the secondary characters feature gay men, lesbian women, bisexuals, transsexuals, transgender characters, asexuals (I learned that they use the word “ace” to speak of themselves), aromantics, non-binaries, queers…

The genres and subgenres explored also provided a vast range of choice: there was a story with a SciFi-speculative twist, another one that told a Sci-Fi-Western style plot, yet another turned out to be a historical erotic romance. I encountered ghosts, I met students and teachers, ex-cops, shop managers, doctors, a long-forgotten Celtic goddess, mysterious divas, soldiers… Variety of voices, variety of genres, variety of settings, too. I travelled from planet Mars to rural America, from Ontario to European cities, from Syrian war zones to Israelian universities, and was offered a wide array of themes, too. What makes us attracted to another person? How can we have closure for painful events of our past? How can we deal with intolerance? Is it useful to take a stand and defend who we are? How do me make a new start when everything looks bleak and lost? How do we explain ourselves meaningfully to those around us? What does it mean to be the persons we are?

I read about love and lust, about pain and struggle, about fights and dreams. Above all, I read about many different queer characters, as the book title promises, who “don’t quit”. The main characters have that one thing in common: they don’t give up, they don’t give in. They believe in who they are, and they believe that we are unstoppable indeed. I’ve always liked short story anthologies, especially those dedicated to our diversified community, for exactly that reason: to get different authors express different points of view in different writing styles. ‘Queers Who Don’t Quit’ is a perfect example of how this can be done. An entertaining and thought-provoking read I recommend without a moment’s hesitation.

I enjoyed this collection of short stories

It covers a range of genres, and so there was definitely something for everyone. Some I enjoyed more than others, but that's not unusual for short story collections I find.

I particularly liked that it covered the full spectrum of LGBT. Bi and lesbians are often overlooked, so I liked that a range was included.

Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review

I always find anthologies tough to review and this one is no exception. There were a number of stories I really enjoyed, and a few that were misses for me. The representation this collection of stories gives to the LGBTQIA+ community is amazing, variable and well thought out. The story lengths are vary variable - there are some great stories that were over way too soon. I struggled to get into the first half of the book and thought I was on my way to a three star review - but there are some hidden gems in the second half.

I appreciated the range of genres - especially as it forced me out of my comfort zone a few times and now has me considering some genres I would not normally have thought about reading. I particularly enjoyed Punchline by G Benson, First Day Back by A.P. Raymond and Some Things Are More Important by Addy Long. This Is What You Get by Evie Riojas, Werewolf Blues by Eve Morton, The Path To Truth by Aila Alvina Boyd and First Cute by Elna Holst also deserve a mention. I will definitely be exploring the work of all these authors further.

The wide range of representation, both of the community and the genres means there is something for everyone in this collection and I would definitely recommend giving this collection a read.

I received an e-ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is not my usual genre, I’m more into romance stories and literary fiction however I wanted to take the opportunity to read something from outside my norm. And I am glad I did!! Thank you for  opening up my mind to something totally different.

I've given star ratings to each individual story and taken an average for the collection as a whole. For a reminder of what my star ratings mean, please see my review policy!


Book Details

The cover of Queers Who Don't Quit, displayed on the screen of a digital reader. The cover image is a person in a raincoat with a black backpack, black jeans, and black converse running across a nearly empty road. There are high rise buildings on both sides of the road. Most of the image is in greyscale, but there is yellow where the sun is just rising or setting on the horizon between the buildings. The text at the bottom reads: "Queers Who Don't Quit", "A Collection of Queer Short Stories", "Edited by G Benson". The Queer Pack logo is in the top left corner (lowercase "qp" in a white circle, with five coloured squares coming out from the circle like an asterisk).The cover of Queers Who Don't Quit, displayed on the screen of a digital reader. The cover image is a person in a raincoat with a black backpack, black jeans, and black converse running across a nearly empty road. There are high rise buildings on both sides of the road. Most of the image is in greyscale, but there is yellow where the sun is just rising or setting on the horizon between the buildings. The text at the bottom reads: "Queers Who Don't Quit", "A Collection of Queer Short Stories", "Edited by G Benson". The Queer Pack logo is in the top left corner (lowercase "qp" in a white circle, with five coloured squares coming out from the circle like an asterisk).
Title: Queers Who Don't Quit (Goodreads)

Editor: G. Benson

Authors (in order of stories): Cameron Von Sant; Evie Riojas; Tabitha O'Connell; A.P. Raymond; Eve Morton; James Penha; Elna Holst; Ayelet Enisman; G. Benson; Ashton Laviolette; Alexis Ames; Cal Benitex; Aila Alvina Boyd; Zoe Brook; Addy Long; Nyri Bakkalian.

Publisher: Queer Pack (Website)

Genres: Mixed - contemporary, historical, sci-fi, magical realism, military.

Pages: 270

Format: eBook ($4.99 from Smashwords)

Content Warnings: Listed with each story below.

Own Voices representation? Yes (see individual stories below)





Blurb (from the publisher's website): "There are times we all just need to forge onwards—or upwards. We can find that strength within ourselves, or people around us help. Sometimes, it’s both. In Queers Who Don’t Quit, queers across the spectrum hurdle the big, the small, and the unfathomable.


"A cowboy and his boyfriend flee across the Martian desert with their stolen robot. Back on Earth, two aromantics bond over their shared love of pop culture. A trans woman finds herself between a rock and a hard place when someone from her past threatens to destroy her future. Space Boy remembers what it’s like to be in love with another boy, and two women have more in common than they think as they fall in love while cosplaying their favourite TV show. Queer men frolic at a gay beach balanced on sands of time. A bisexual, a widow, and a murderer walk into a bar–just wait for it, there’s a punchline. An enby down on their luck gets an offer from a goddess too good to refuse. In 1930s London, split ends are queerly healed. A queer college student seeks to rekindle a dying friendship during a trip to Paris. A trans teacher takes a stand against bigotry and finds love in the process. Love is found amongst giddiness, hard edges, and a darkly passionate theater. An ace vows to finally come out to her sister, and back in space, an arranged marriage connects two queer men. A woman discovers opening a queer bookshop isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. Adrift with her infantry company in one war, a trans warrior must face the ghosts of another. And on their first day back at work, someone can be the person we wish we’d met as a kid.


"Join us in these queer stories of hope, resilience, and perseverance!"



My Overall Review: ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)

This collection from #ownvoices queer authors is definitely diverse in terms of its LGBT+ representation.


I did a quick count, and here is a tally of how many characters are specifically referred to with each of the following labels (I haven't included characters who were only mentioned in passing):

Transgender: 5 (3 trans women, 2 trans men)

Nonbinary: 5

Asexual: 5

Aromantic: 3

Bisexual: 6

Pansexual: 1

Lesbian: 4

Gay: 10


There are several stories where the main characters' sexualities and genders are not explicitly labelled but this is not inherantly a problem, e.g. a story set in the 1930s where modern labels would be jarring. Most of the relationships without labels are sapphic. I also don't think anybody going into this collection would assume that cis and straight are the defaults!


I loved that Queers Who Don't Quit contains stories from a range of genres - I'd challenge any reader to not love at least one of them! There were a couple of stories which I wouldn't typically read and stories which I wouldn't personally reread, but I am glad that I read the whole collection anyway. There were some stories where I wasn't sure if I would like them at first glance and ended up giving them 4 stars!


I was planning to give this collection as a whole 4 stars anyway, and it turns out that's also my mean rating across the 17 stories, so I definitely think it deserves it.


I do wish that this collection included more BIPOC and disabled writers, and hope that future projects by Queer Pack will be more diverse in terms of race and ability. After all, Queer Pack is described on their website as being "home to the queer stories that don’t often have a platform", and intersectionality is crucial when discussing underrepresented queer voices.


I do also want to note that a serif typeface is used throughout the ebook, which might make this text less accessible to dyslexic readers.


Individual Stories Reviews

As I mentioned, there are 17 short stories in this collection, written by 16 authors. I've listed them here in the order they appear, with a few short notes as well as my ratings. A lot of these ratings are down to my personal reading preferences rather than anything inherantly wrong with the story, and I'm sure there are many people who would love the stories I didn't rate very highly! I have included content warnings where applicable; if anybody needs further information on the content, please do feel free to get in touch with me.


If the authors' pronouns, identities, and websites are freely available online I have included them here. For those authors whose identities are not listed please remember that although this is marketed as an Own Voices queer collection, all authors have rights to privacy, and their identities should not be assumed based on the stories they have written here.


Onto the stories!


A Government Sanctioned Marriage by Cameron Van Sant (he/him, trans & pansexual. Click here for Cameron's website.)

Sci-fi, dystopian future

Representation: trans male characters, MLM characters

CW: homophobia, lack of reproductive autonomy

This story is based on an interesting concept and I think that the author did a great job of exploring the social issues, especially considering its length. I would quite happily read a novel based on this, but still found it satisfying as a short story.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


This is What You Get by Evie Riojas (she/her, trans Chicana)

Contemporary, crime

Representation: trans lesbian, PTSD

CW: graphic violence, mentions of drug use & addiction, mentions of infidelity

I found this story a little difficult to read. Although I don't mind occasional graphic violence in a longer story, I'm personally not a fan of stories where it's a major component.

My rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5 stars)


Actually by Tabitha O'Connell (any pronouns, agender asexual. Click here for Tabitha O'Connell's blog.)

Contemporary

Representation: sex repulsed asexual woman, bi man

This story about the main character trying to find a way to come out as asexual to her sister was lovely overall.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


First Day Back by A.P. Raymond (they/he, trans & nonbinary & queer & bisexual. Click here for A.P. Raymond's Twitter.)

Contemporary

Representation: nonbinary main character(s)

This was one of my favourites from the collection. It's such a sweet story and I loved the writing style!

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Werewolf Blues by Eve Morton (she/her. Click here for Eve Morton's website.)

Contemporary (not paranormal!)

Representation: sapphic, trans woman

CW: mentions of death

I'm not personally a fan of the relationship dynamic that comes with a romance between an employer and their employee, so this story didn't do it for me unfortunately.

My rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5 stars)


Crossroads by James Penha (he/him. Click here for James Penha's Twitter.)

1980s

Representation: mixed race (half Puerto Rican) Jewish gay man, Christian gay men

CW: Explicit sexual content, implied sexualisation of minors

I might have rated this story more highly, but there's a short moment where a gay side character seems to sexualise the teenagers in the high school swim team he coaches without being challenged by the people he's talking to, and that's not something I'm comfortable with.

My rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5 stars)


First Cut by Elna Holst (she/her, queer. Click here for Elna Holst's website.)

1930s

CW: sexual content, infidelity

Representation: I'm not going to put labels on this one, since I'm not sure whether one of the MCs would identify as a butch woman or trans masc in modern society! The other character is a woman, though. There is also rep for physical disability.

I liked this writing style and felt sympathetic towards the characters, too.

My rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)


Version of Love by Ayelet Enisman (they/them, aromantic & asexual & agender, Israeli)

Contemporary, set in Jerusalem

Representation: aromantic asexual Jewish Israeli person; gay aromantic Mexican person.

The friendship that develops between these characters is beautiful, and I love their enthusiasm for their project! I'm also a fan of musicals, which are a large part of this story.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Punchline by G Benson (she/her)

Contemporary, set in various European countries

Representation: bisexual woman of colour and a dark skinned nonbinary person of colour

CW: alcohol use, sexual content, death mentioned, grief & depression

If you like complex main characters on a personal journey to recover from loss (and its associated mental health difficulties), this is an excellent story for you.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Help Wanted by Ashton Laviolette (he/him)

Contemporary, magical realism

Representation: nonbinary character

CW: unemployment & poverty

This is a feel-good story overall and made me smile. I love magical realism, and I was so excited when this story took a magical turn.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Under the Valley of Stars by Alexis Ames (she/her, queer. Click here for Alexis Ames' website.)

Sci-fi (with Western vibes)

Representation: Male main characters, implied to be in a romantic relationship but no labels used.

The way the author blended elements of sci-fi with a good old fashioned horseback pursuit through the desert was really intriguing. This story kept me guessing and made me smile.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Space Boy by Cal Benitex (he/him, queer)

Contemporary, mystery?

Representation: possible disability rep (MC is diagnosed with prosopagnosia, a.k.a. "face blindness", but doesn't seem to agree with this)

CW: Drug use (LSD), body horror

I wasn't sure how I felt about this story when I first read it, but parts of it did intrigue me and I wanted to know more. I definitely felt for the main character, who seemed to be coping with quite a lot of trauma.

My rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5 stars)


The Path to Truth by Aila Alvina Boyd (she/her. Click here for Aila Alvina Boyd.)

Contemporary

CW: transphobia, alcohol use. Mentions of past suicide, addiction, overdose

As a queer woman working in a school, I could really relate to the difficulties of feeling the need to stay closeted while wanting to make a change - and I have the privilege of being cis, working in a country with legal protection from workplace discrimination. This story is an important one, and I felt it was well written. I didn't really feel the romantic connection between the characters, though.

My rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)


So She Chose by Zoe Brook (they/them, queer. Click here for Zoe Brook's website.)

Contemporary

Representation: this story is told in the first person and doesn't mention the narrator's gender or sexuality, but the love interest is a woman.

This story was beautifully written. The author also writes poetry, and I think it shows (in a very good way) in their descriptions!

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


Some Things Are More Important by Addy Long (she/they, nonbinary lesbian)

Contemporary

Representation: So much! Pansexual woman, nonbinary person, trans man, bisexual couple, lesbians, asexual character... If it's queer, it's probably here.

CW: homophobia, mentions of conversion therapy

If I had to choose a favourite story from this collection, I think this would be it. What better setting for a story than a bookstore? And I definitely wish a certain bookstore from this story existed! This is a hopeful and inspiring story full of the queer community banding together to make things happen despite adversity.

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)


All That Remains by Nyri Bakkalian (she/her, queer, Armenian-American. Click here for Nyri Bakkalian's Twitter.)

Contemporary, paranormal

Representation: Japanese-American trans woman

CW: military, war, violence, genocide

I'm not generally a fan of military fiction, but I feel the way this story shows the reality of genocide (specifically the Armenian genocide of 1914-23, which led to the deaths of 1.5 million people) is really important. I also don't think it necessarily glorifies the military in the way lots of military fiction does.

My rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5 stars)


Travelling Companions by Tabitha O’Connell (see above - any pronouns, agender asexual)

Contemporary

Representation: aromantic asexual main character (possibly nonbinary), gay male character

CW: toxic friendship (the main character is increasingly aware of this and it is at least partially addressed), alcohol

A wonderful story about friendship, even though not all of the friendships in it are wonderful!

My rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)

This is a unusual genre for me. I am glad I did pick it up!! Thank you for  opening up my mind to something totally different. In this collection of seventeen short stories, the whole spectrum of the LGBTQ+-community is represented: amongst the main as well as the secondary characters feature gay men, lesbian women, bisexuals, transsexuals, transgender characters, asexuals (I learned that they use the word “ace” to speak of themselves), aromantics, non-binaries, queers… It covers a range of genres, and so there was definitely something for everyone. Some I enjoyed more than others

This is a nice collection of stories that shows you all sorts of pairings in all walks of life. As with all anthologies, some you will like and some you will not. But there is something here for everyone and it's a great collection that gives voice to a large part of the LGBTQ+ community. I enjoyed reading this!

*** An ARC was provided by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review ***

May contain spoilers. A collection of short queer stories. Average 3.5. Some really good ones in there.

1. A government-sanctioned marriage by Cameron Van Sant. M/M trans. Arranged marriage in space. Confused guy with a pushy mother. 3 stars.

2. This is what you get by Evie Riojas. F/F trans. The past calls on a family vacation. Threats and secrets. 3 stars.

3. Actually by Tabitha O’Connell. M/F ace. Short little confession story to the sister. 3.5 stars.

4. First day back by A.P Raymond. No romance. Sweet heart to heart about gender. 3 stars.

5. Werewolf blues by Eve Morton. F/F trans. A single mother with a new employee. Cute story. 3.5 stars.

6. Crossroads by James Penha. M/M. Really short story about a married guy meeting some priests. 3 stars.

7. First cut by Elna Holst. Historical F/F. After hours hair appointment whilst the useless husband is away. Wouldn’t mind a sequel of this one. 4 stars.

8. Version of love by Ayelet Enisman. No romance. Aromatic ace finding friendship and inspiration. Cute story. 3 stars.

9. Punchline by G Benson. A woman on the run keeps meeting the same person. Feels like the longest story so far. Bit of suspense. 4 stars.

10. Help wanted by Ashton Laviolette. No romance. Skyler is looking for a job and meets a goddess. Fun story. 4 stars.

11. Under the valley of stars by Alexis Ames. Two guys, a bot and nanobots. Short story nicely wrapped up. 3 stars.

12. Space boy by Cal Benitex. 3 stars.

13. The path to truth by Aila Alvina Boyd. A trans teacher risks it all. Probably the most powerful and painful story out of the lot so far. 4 stars.

14. So she chose by Zoe Brook. Short F/F. Instant attraction for a stage performer. 3 stars.

15. Some things are more important by Addy Long. My favourite so far. After her homophobic boss goes too far Daisy arranges to open up her own book shop. Contains plenty of homophobia but a lot of support as well. Made me both rage and smile. 5 stars.

16. All that remains by Nyri Bakkalian. Military meets ghosts. A little creepy but interesting. 3 stars.

17. Travelling companions by Tabitha O’Connell. Aromatic and Asexual Kat invites a friend to visit Paris. Cue a fake friend, fake friend’s tag along and a real friend. From the start Maddie annoyed me. But some lessons need to be learnt. I hope she and Sean do a redo. 4 stars.

trigger warning
<spoiler> transphobia, drug abuse, trauma, PTSD, emotional abuse, bullying, grief, suicide </spoiler>

If I may quote from one of my favourite stories from this collection: Queer as f*ck!

I got exactly what I came for: Queer own voices stories. The diversity in this one is incredible. There are white and non-white people, the only wish I'd have for another round were some disabled characters. But apart from that, so many queer identities get covered! Trans people, non binary, pan, bi, gay, I met my first fictional agender person in this! Ace and aro people!

Another huge plus is that we have both narratives evolving around the typical human rights problems queer people face, but we also have fun adventures in which the characters happen to be queer. We are more than our suffering. Good representation means all kinds of stories.
Sure, I've never been in the position of being on Mars and having to flee pursuers on horseback in a desert, but sometimes it's exactly what I want to read about.

Some stories come with warnings, but not all. In the first story with warnings, I remember being very irritated because there was other stuff I'd have warned about, that I found even heavier than the issues that were mentioned beforehand.

You see this is a collection by a small publisher and that this is from queer people about queer people for queer people. I highly doubt this will monetary profitable, so please, if you're intrigued, go and check it out. Maybe spend some money. I promise you you'll get your money's worth.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a e-arc copy of this amazing book. I was intrigued when I requested this book because of how different it was to anything I’ve heard of.
I love the diversity of the stories and the people who wrote them. Not all the same genre and I love that there was so distinct genre that you looked for, they were all different.

A few of my favorite stories were: First Day Back by A.P. Raymond, Werewolf Blues by Eve Morton, Help Wanted by Ashton Laviolette, The Path to Truth by Aila Alvina Boyd

“this is normal. We define our own lives and our own words. What is normal to us is our beautiful.” From Werewolf Blues

Queers Who Don't Quit is a short story compilation that focuses on queer people persevering regardless of what life throws at them. The stories range from light-hearted sci-fi to brutal depictions of addiction and war, but the overall feel manages to remain hopeful. As with all compilations, there were some stories I loved, some I didn't, but overall it was an excellent collection that I'd recommend picking up.

As this is a short story collection, I'm going to give an overall review before dipping into what I thought of each story.

I loved the connecting theme of these stories. For too long queer stories have had an undercurrent of sadness and tragedy. We weren't allowed to be happy or strong; we weren't allowed to fight back or persevere. With the 'Bury Your Gays' trope being so prevalent in mainstream media, it's no wonder a book about queers continuing to live in the face of difficulties is so brilliant.

The collection pulls from a multitude of different genres which gave the sense that LGBT+ people exist and live in different times, different places, and with different circumstances. Although I generally shy away from contemporary, the short story format allowed me to enjoy them when I wouldn't have otherwise.

This book is incredibly diverse. I was happy to see a lot of representation for sexualities and genders that are glossed over. There were multiple stories with asexual representation, aromantic representation, non-binary, trans-women, gender non-conforming people, questioning people, etc. I've never read anything with such a wide range.

On that note, I'd have liked to see more stories from BIPOC authors in this collection, and more disabled representation. As with most things, more effort needs to be put into making sure the book includes diverse voices from outside of the white queer people bubble.

I'm going to be keeping an eye on my favourite authors from 'Queers Who Don't Quit' because some of these stories are amazing!

A Government-Sanctioned Marriage by Cameron Van Sant

I loved this story! It's set on a spaceship heading away from overcrowded planet Earth, where due to issues with radiation they have an arranged marriage system based on genetics to help with reproduction. When the main character gets paired with a trans man, he and his family struggle with it as he had never considered the idea that he might not be straight. I'm always a sucker for queer sci-fi, and my only problem with this is that it ended too quickly! I could read an entire book with this premise.

CW: Homophobia, Discussion of forced reproduction.

This Is What You Get by Evie Riojas

An interesting story about a trans woman who's relationship is breaking down due to her mistakes. When the couple stops in for dinner she's faced with a horrible reminder from her past. It evoked a sense of dread that I appreciated, but it wasn't the type of story I typically enjoy.

CW: Drug Use, Addiction, Violence, Police Brutality, Murder, Infidelity, Blackmail

Actually by Tabitha O'Connell

A cute short story about an asexual woman wanting to come out to her sister! I wish it had been a bit longer, but it did an amazing job of describing the difficulties of figuring out the right time to come out.

First Day Back by A.P. Raymond

A school trip to a museum leads to a sweet conversation about being gender no-conforming between a non-binary worker and a child. This one was super cute.

CW: Minor addressed transphobia

Werewolf Blues by Eve Morton

When Julie hires Becca to work for her, she later finds out she's a popular trans YouTuber. It was a cute story, but I couldn't help but think if my new boss acted like this, it would be hugely overstepping boundaries. There wasn't enough depth to their relationship to make me comfortable with the employer/employee dynamic.

Crossroads by James Penha

I didn't like this story at all, so strongly that it impacted how I felt about the book overall. Two men are having sex on the beach when they meet up with old college friends who happen to be gay priests. It made me heavily uncomfortable. The way the mixed-race Jewish man in the story was treated leaned into fetishism. The phrase "your colour is so beautiful" made me cringe, especially alongside referring to a nipple as a Hershey's Kiss. There's also a scene where one of the gay characters came across as sexualising teenagers. This would be the one story I'd say it might be worth skipping altogether. No, thank you.

CW: Sexual Content, Fetishisation of a Brown Character, Sexualisation of Minors

First Cut by Elna Hoist

This one was fun! Set in the 1930s, a hairdresser who has a frayed relationship with her husband has an after-hours appointment with a gender non-conforming woman. I enjoyed this a lot, the characters were sympathetic, and it was so good to see gender non-conformitivity in a historical setting.

CW: Sexual Content, Infidelity, Potential/implied abuse

Version of Love by Ayelet Enisman

A fun story of friendship between two asexual people, featuring an exploration of the difficulties of living in a romance-focused world, and musicals! I loved the dynamic between the two characters and watching their friendship grow including awkward moments with family and serious discussions.

Punchline by G Benson

I loved this. A woman has gone travelling to run away from her past mistakes. When she keeps running into a person doing the same thing, the two confront their loss together. I love a good recovery story mixed in with rom-com worthy serendipity. The two characters are incredibly complex while remaining sympathetic; this was one of my faves in the collection.

CW: Sexual content, mention of death, depression, alcohol use, mention of a car accident, mention of medical surgery.

Help Wanted by Ashton Laviolette

After walking out of their job, Skyler is struggling to find a new one. That is until a Goddess decided she's willing to help out. This was wholesome; I especially loved how out of date the Goddess was because it led to some smile-worthy moments.

Under The Valley of the Stars by Alexis Ames

A horseback chase across the desert of Mars? Yes, please. This one was great fun. It mixed the western feel alongside sci-fi elements to great effect. I'd love to see a longer story with these two space cowboys.

CW: death

Space Boy by Cal Benitex

I'm not sure how to describe this story. The main character has awoken after drug use and a fall and is unable to recognise their mother. I found it quite strange, and although intriguing, it left me feeling a bit perplexed.

CW: drug use, injury, potential amnesia

The Path To truth by Alia Alvina Boyd

This follows a trans woman working at a school who decides to speak out about the bathroom bill in North Carolina and is subsequently fired. It brought up a lot of important topics and despite setbacks ended on a hopeful note which I enjoyed.

CW: Transphobia, mention of suicide, mention of addiction

So She Chose by Zoe Brook

The main character sees a beautiful performer. The writing in this story was beautiful and evocative. I wish there had been more to it though.

Some Things Are More Important

A very important and uplifting story. The main character quits her job at the bookshop after her boss puts conversion therapy books on the LGBT+ shelf. She decides to set up her own bookshop and although facing homophobic setbacks the community rallies around her. I would love to live this life. This story is exactly what this book is about, queers who face setbacks but keep on fighting to succeed.

CW: Mention of Conversion Therapy, Homophobia, Homophobic hate crime

All That Remains

This story takes place in the Syrian Desert and looks into the Armenian genocide; soldiers see ghosts. I think this story is very important and well-written; the only reason I didn't like it more is that I don't enjoy fiction that focuses on the military.

CW: Genocide, War, Violence

Travelling Companions by Tabitha O'Connell

Our main character is going to Paris, posts about it on her Facebook page and is accompanied by a complicated group of people. One of which is her old friend who she has a difficult relationship with due to her erasing her asexuality. I enjoyed this a lot. It looks at those old friendships and the difficulties that they have when you grow into two different people, are you even friends anymore?

CW: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, acephobia

Overall, I enjoyed a lot of this book! I loved what it set out to do, and I thought the focus on under-represented identities was amazing! I'm looking forward to seeing what will come out of these authors in the future!

Like every anthology, this one had great and not so great stories. They were all wonderful in their own way, but I want to point out the ones which really stuck with me.
First of all - I loved how many characters in this books were trans, enby or ace. I haven't read an anthology with so many enby, ace and trans characters and I think it was just beautiful.
My most favourite stories were the story about the Space cowboys, the trans woman who went to court because of the bathroom situation at her school, the ace woman who finally told her sister about her feelings, the woman who opened her own queer bookstore and the very first story. Matter of fact, I would have loved to read a whole book about that couple of gay boys who got matched by the algorithm. And one of them was a trans man? I was in love.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy. I absolutely enjoyed reading this anthology.

Short story collections are usually hit and miss for me ... and I’m going to be honest, the majority of these were mostly ‘misses.’ Due to content or writing style, I made a good faith effort to read the stories that didn’t interest me, but I have to admit, I didn’t finish some of them. Despite all that, I think queer stories written by queer people are very important, and it is good a collection like this exists. It just didn’t really do it for me, unfortunately.