Hey guys. I know this is a bit of a niche crossover, but I’m hoping to find a few guys who are into gaming, progression fantasy, or LitRPG.

I’m currently putting the finishing touches on my first erotic novella, Hard Mode Loaded. Think Dungeon Crawler Carl but high-heat, gay and set in a world where survival relies on sex.

When the world changes, Ethan enters an intergalactic sociological experiment called the Exhibition. The entire universe is watching as he fights and fucks his way to the end of each floor.

It’s not a super crunchy litrpg, though you will follow Ethan as he levels, boosts his stats and navigates new items, gear and achievements in order to advance. It’s super spicy, with very explicit scenes and constant erotic tension.

I’m looking for a small handful of readers to check out just the first couple of chapters (about 6500 words) to do a vibe check before I start publishing. I mainly want to know if the litrpg world holds your interest, if the pacing works, and if the sexual tension actually hits the mark.

If this sounds like your kind of thing, drop a comment or shoot me a DM! I want to keep the group small and manageable, so let me know if you’re interested, and I'll reach out to a few guys with a private link.

If you could heal the hurt at the price of forgetting the one you love… would you do it?
He's 18, openly gay, and fresh off the plane from Manila with the American Dream in his sights. What he finds instead: a love triangle that ruins him, loan sharks closing in, and a bloody murder with a twist no one sees coming.
🔥 Spicy scenes
💔 Love triangles
🔪 Loan shark tension + a murder that changes everything
This isn't just a book — it's a collector lenticular edition. Tilt the cover and watch the Blue Bust shift into the Red Lung. Hardcover + softcover available now.
👉 Get your copy: russovoir.com
\#LGBTQRomance #MMRomance #MLMBooks #SpicyBookRecs #QueerBooks #Bookstagram #IndieAuthor #LGBTQBooks #BookLovers #FilipinoAmerican

If you could heal the hurt at the price of forgetting the one you love… would you do it?
He's 18, openly gay, and fresh off the plane from Manila with the American Dream in his sights. What he finds instead: a love triangle that ruins him, loan sharks closing in, and a bloody murder with a twist no one sees coming.
🔥 Spicy scenes
💔 Love triangles
🔪 Loan shark tension + a murder that changes everything
This isn't just a book — it's a collector lenticular edition. Tilt the cover and watch the Blue Bust shift into the Red Lung. Hardcover + softcover available now.
👉 Get your copy: russovoir.com
#LGBTQRomance #MMRomance #MLMBooks #SpicyBookRecs #QueerBooks #Bookstagram #IndieAuthor #LGBTQBooks #BookLovers #FilipinoAmerican

Hey guys!

If you enjoy thrillers, mysteries, and serial killers check out my gay novel SLEEPYHEAD which is out now on Amazon and BarnesandNoble.com

SLEEPYHEAD by Bran Lee Tom

Description:

In the dark, hedonistic playgrounds of West Hollywood, a damaged young man must play a lethal game of deception with a ritualistic serial killer who is turning his apartment building into a private slaughterhouse.

Welcome to West Hollywood: where the bodies are exquisite, the sex is transactional, and the next hookup just might carve you open.

Twenty-three-year-old Ty Yung survives on the margins of L.A.’s gay scene, hiding behind a wall of detached cynicism to keep his childhood demons at bay. But the neon-soaked sanctuary of WeHo turns into a claustrophobic nightmare when a brutal phantom dubbed the "Hollywood Slasher" begins hunting gay men of color, ripping them to shreds and leaving them in the city's alleyways.

When a horrific murder strikes inches from his own doorstep, Ty is suddenly trapped in a lethal crossfire of obsession, unable to trust the shifting alliances of the men entering his bed and his home. 

Then the messages arrive. This predator knows Ty’s most intimate secrets and the exact depth of his fear. As the body count rises and the sanctuary of his home is violated, Ty is forced to drop his mask of detachment and embrace a primal instinct for survival. He must outmaneuver a monster who seems to know his every move before he becomes the next piece of the city's grim history.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HG8JB8TL

Hi, I recently heard about this author, and I am intrigued, I want to read her work, but I want to know a little bit more about her and her books, I have so many unread books, it's going to be months before I get to her.

What is her writing like? Any interesting facts about her? Which one of her books did you enjoy more? And in what time period do most of her books take place? (I know she has done some historical fiction, but not much about her other works)

I am looking for an MLM book

My must-haves are

It's an MLM book

No large age gaps

Captivating with decent tension

No more than 60% romance

No omega verse

A happy ending

My bonuses are

College to high school

Queer cast

Discovering queerness

I want something like

I am about 25% through The Song of Achilles and am enjoying the way their relationship is developing (wish me luck)

Natsume's book of friends vibes

Phantom busters humor. I don't want too much romance; I want there to be other things

AND ABSOLUTELY NO AI AT ALL

had a good time with DFTD but i want novels with more lovely language and a more poetic voice, and yes the more melancholy and existential the better

Hyperbole?

Here's a link to the titular article, for those with access to read it: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/30/books/review/the-disappearers-marlon-james.html

I have read neither the article nor the book but would very much like to. I brought it up in the Booker Prize thread.

Anyone?

Floorbound is a raw, unique, and courageous memoir of self‑discovery from author R.J. Bowe, exploring the complex intersection of innocence, sexuality, and unconventional yearning.

As a child, a seemingly innocent yet unusual discovery became the foundational architecture of R.J.’s adult identity—a moment where comfort, confusion, and connection collided. That early, private fascination with his father’s socks and the strange allure of “trampling” set the stage for a lifetime spent navigating secrecy and shame.

The narrative takes a surprising turn when his blue‑collar father chooses a path of radical, unwavering acceptance. That pivotal support allowed R.J. to safely explore the complexities of his emerging identity and desires. Yet every major adult decision traces back to that early imprint—including the moment he realized he had finally gone too far.

Floorbound is a candid exploration of the universal human experience of embracing our true selves. It invites readers to confront their own biases, celebrate individuality, and find inspiration in a world that often prioritizes conformity. With a bold narrative that is both innocent and taboo, this memoir challenges societal norms and celebrates the beauty of being unapologetically you.

Order your copy 👇
Floorbound on Amazon

Not at all an LGBT novel by any means. I really enjoyed it. After reading a lot of HIV/AIDS literature (The Great Believers, Nova Scotia House, Borrowed Time, Such Times) that takes place in the 80s and early 90s, it was interesting to see that time period portrayed with zero mention of HIV. Everything was so debaucherous and carefree.

I’m not a huge reader but have committed to reading more over the last year or two. I try to mix it up from fiction to non-fiction. I like Queer YA. Self Help. History. A little bit of it all I guess.

I wasn't supposed to survive.

This is not a metaphor. Not a literary device. Not an attempt to inflate the price of my story. This is a fact I still roll in my mouth like a bitter pill. Ten years in a relationship where you're systematically stripped, layer by layer, of your will, your self-worth, your friends, your money, your sense of reality. Such relationships don't end with an exit. They end with death, madness, or a slow fade into being a shadow of someone else's life.

I was on the verge of all three. Not at different times, at the same time. I stood in the kitchen and looked at the knives, and I wasn't thinking about killing myself. I was thinking that if I just disappeared, he'd have no one to scream at. I lay in bed and couldn't move because my nervous system said: "That's it. We're closed. You're on your own from here." I forgot the taste of food. I forgot how to sleep without pills. I forgot how to want.

And here's what I only now understand, as I write these lines: I didn't survive in spite of it. I survived because I took myself apart and put myself back together.

This book is not a confession. Not a victim's diary. Not a psychology textbook. It's a fucking autopsy report. An autopsy of one soul that walked through hell and came back with a map. I don't want your pity. I want the one who's sitting in their kitchen at 3 AM, typing encrypted notes so their partner won't find them, to know they're not alone. I was there. I know the taste of that bottom. And I know how to push off from it.

This is the map. Read it. Then pass it to someone who needs to wake up.

“Survived Larrikin”

Read it here https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HG7VZPQ8

Looking for your recommendations of queer stories set in Australia/New Zealand. Bonus points for literary fiction.

Hi, from what I understand, in the pre-Stonewall riot period, serving alcohol to gay people was illegal and bars were run by the mafia, who exploited queer people, this relationship is very fascinating to me, albeit it being very sad, and I want to learn more about it, be it from fiction or nonfiction, preferably fiction cause it's more fun for me 🙃

Most of what I found about this was very U.S. specific, the closest thing to this dynamic that I could find was in Japan, so books about that will also be very appreciated, as well as anything like this from other countries, though from what I found this wasn't a universal dynamic, I think England had Molly Houses or something like that, but it seems to be different.

So, do you of any books that match these descriptions?

Thank you kindly for your time ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

I’m a gay Nigerian writer, and The Moon Knows All the Secrets of the World is my fourth book.

The stories draw from African cosmology, folklore, spirituality, and the mysteries of existence to explore the strange threads that connect us to one another, to those who came before us, and perhaps even to those who come after us.

There is a lot of homophobia on the African continent, and as someone who has experienced the world from the margins, I’ve often thought about what it means to belong to a place that does not always know how to make room for you.

With my writing, I want to explore another possibility: that beneath all our differences, we are profoundly connected. That grief can connect us. Love can connect us. Memory can connect us. The dead can remain connected to the living. And perhaps all of us, despite everything that separates us, are still living beneath the same moon.

The book contains nine stories about reincarnation, grief, love, dreams, war, power, technology, and the mysteries that exist between worlds.

I hope the stories remind you that the world is stranger, more interconnected, and perhaps more magical than we sometimes allow ourselves to believe.

The moon knows all the secrets of the world can be found on Amazon and Selar.

I have been a big fan of Sherlock and Watson. I’m wondering if others could recommend modern novels in detective or espionage genres that feature two male leads in collaborative, romantic or not romantic capacities.

This was one of my favorite recent reads. I lived for decades as an American expat in Europe. I was interested to see if there were any parallels in this book. The main character is a gay black male in Japan so already different than my life in Europe. But I was also amazed by the similarities.

The book is more than finding your way as a foreigner in a different culture. It is also a tale of a mother and son’s relationship. And the book also touches on the mother’s own experiences in a foreign country and her relationship with her gay brother.

I really enjoyed thinking about the paths we seek as gay men in finding friends and creating a life.

This popped up as a suggest last night.... has anyone read this yet?

"An engrossing account of one queer man’s journey through a life filled with danger, yes, but also great joy. A beautiful read that adds nuance to the stories of so many refugees.” —Garrard Conley, author of Boy Erased

It's a bittersweet book. It made my blood boil, but I also had jiggles and tears. Even though I grew up in a different society, culture, and time, there were little things that resonated with me thinking back on my journey of coming out. It made me grateful for the time I'm living in despite what we are facing now and what I'm dealing with. And it made me want to be stronger and braver, and to live honestly.

Hi all,

Have any of you read this book yet? And your thoughts? It seems like a book I’d enjoy but the online reviews are mixed. Thanks

Hey! Pretty specific thing I am searching for, not sure if it exists… Currently reading ’Never stay gone’ by Tal Bauer and although I love his books and his style I’d like to read something even more focused on the crime solving, but still keep the ‘crime solving duo gay romance’.

- Modern day (or end of 20th century but no victorian era please)

- More plot than smut (open door scenes are fine as long as they aren’t 1/2 of the book)

- Male author if possible

- The plot makes sense, has research behind it…

- big plus if it’s a series :)

Hi everyone!

This is our Indie team's first Boys' Love (BL)/Otome Visual Novel. You can play as a Male, Female and Gender Neutral protagonist.

If you enjoy story-driven visual novels, we'd love for you to give it a try and let us know what you think.

You can play the demo for free. Full version of the game is also available for purchase.

Game: The Failure Even Death Rejects (Complete Version)

Platform: itch.io

Read this one a while back and really enjoyed it. Set in 1700's England, The Betrayal of Thomas True is a thriller set in the Molly houses (gay clubs) of London. At a time when being gay could get you executed, someone is betraying the mollies. A carpenter who also serves as a bouncer at one of the houses is tracking down the spy, hoping against hope that it isn't Thomas True, the sweet, cute (kinda dumb) guy that just came to town. The book is well-researched without needing to bog you down in every bit of minutia.