Gender Fluid | Queer Books for Teens

Mala & The Mask of Gold

By Jaime Martin Ko Atilano

Deep down, Mala always knew they were different from the other children of Zambo. But it is not until they are visited by Sidapa, the Deity of Death, that they learn why.

Siblings Mala and Salem have more potential than meets the eye. As Mala finds themselves a part of an ancient prophecy, Salem must decide if he should follow his dream of becoming a defender of Zambo. They travel together to Isla Sirena where they find that mythical beasts have come to life! Mala learns that they must find the Mask of Gold before the dragon-like Bakunawa devours the moon by the next Lunar Eclipse and leaves the entire world in total destruction.

Mala & the Mask of Gold is a character-driven, coming-of-age novel that explores siblinghood, identity, and Filipinx mythology. This book will transport you to a magical realm where mythical creatures are real and danger lurks around every corner.

Representation: genderfluid MC; trans and queer side characters.

Ownvoices: for Filipinx and queer representation.

Loki: Where Mischief Lies

By Mackenzi Lee

Before the days of going toe-to-toe with the Avengers, a younger Loki is desperate to prove himself heroic and capable, while it seems everyone around him suspects him of inevitable villainy and depravity . . . except for Amora. Asgard’s resident sorceress-in-training feels like a kindred spirit-someone who values magic and knowledge, who might even see the best in him.

But when Loki and Amora cause the destruction of one of Asgard’s most prized possessions, Amora is banished to Earth, where her powers will slowly and excruciatingly fade to nothing. Without the only person who ever looked at his magic as a gift instead of a threat, Loki slips further into anguish and the shadow of his universally adored brother, Thor.

When Asgardian magic is detected in relation to a string of mysterious murders on Earth, Odin sends Loki to investigate. As he descends upon nineteenth-century London, Loki embarks on a journey that leads him to more than just a murder suspect, putting him on a path to discover the source of his power-and who he’s meant to be.

Representation: gender fluid and pansexual MC.

The Moon Within

By Aida Salazar

A middle grade novel in verse.

Celi Rivera’s life swirls with questions. About her changing body. Her first attraction to a boy. And her best friend’s exploration of what it means to be genderfluid. But most of all, her mother’s insistence she have a moon ceremony when her first period arrives. It’s an ancestral Mexica ritual that Mima and her community have reclaimed, but Celi promises she will NOT be participating. Can she find the power within herself to take a stand for who she wants to be?

Representation: genderfluid side character.

Once & Future

By Amy Rose Capetta

When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind.

No pressure.

Representation: pansexual and gay MCs. Side characters include genderfluid, pansexual, gay, and asexual representation.

Ownvoices: queer authors.

Please Send Help

By Gabby Dunn

In this follow-up novel to I Hate Everyone But You, long distance best friends Ava and Gen have finally made it to the same time zone (although they’re still over a thousand miles apart).

Through their hilarious, sometimes emotional, but always relatable conversations, Ava and Gen are each other’s support systems through internships, relationship troubles, questionable roommates, undercover reporting, and whether or not it’s a good idea to take in a feral cat. Please Send Help perfectly captures the voice of young adults looking to find their place in the world and how no matter how desperate things seem, you always have your best friend to tell it like it is and pick you back up.

Representation: Gen is gender fluid and bisexual; Ava deals with anxiety. Jewish MCs.

Ownvoices: bisexual representation.

I Am Water

By Meg Specksgoor

A novel in verse. Hannah works as the only female river-rafting guide in her closed-minded small town. Labeled a tomboy, she often struggles to reconcile the way she fits into normal gender stereotypes. Hannah meets Ezra, who blurs the lines between woman and man. They begin an exciting new relationship, but soon Ezra starts pushing Hannah’s limits and her definition of love.

Representation: gender fluid MCs.

Into the Real

By Z Brewer

Three Quinns. Three realities. Three Brumes.

The first Brume is a waking nightmare, overrun by literal monsters and cutthroat survivors. For Quinn, who is openly genderqueer, the only silver lining is their friendship with Lia—and the hope that there might still be a safe place somewhere else in the world.

The second Brume is a prison with no bars. Forced to “sort out” their sexuality with other teens at Camp Redemption, Quinn must also figure out why presenting as female has never felt quite right.

The third Brume is a warzone. For Quinn, who presents as male, leading the Resistance against an authoritarian government is hard, since even the Resistance might not accept them if they knew Quinn’s truth.

As Quinn starts to realize that they might be one person alternating among these three worlds and identities, they wonder: Which world is the real one? Or do they all contain some deeper truth?

Representation: Quinn is genderqueer, presenting differently in each version of Brume.

The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea

By Maggie Tokuda-Hall

A desperate orphan turned pirate and a rebellious imperial daughter find a connection on the high seas in a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic.

Aboard the pirate ship Dove, Flora the girl takes on the identity of Florian the man to earn the respect and protection of the crew. For Flora, former starving urchin, the brutal life of a pirate is about survival: don’t trust, don’t stick out, and don’t feel. But on this voyage, as the pirates prepare to sell their unsuspecting passengers into slavery, Flora is drawn to the Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, who is en route to a dreaded arranged marriage with her own casket in tow. Flora doesn’t expect to be taken under Evelyn’s wing, and Evelyn doesn’t expect to find such a deep bond with the pirate Florian.

Soon the unlikely pair set in motion a wild escape that will free a captured mermaid (coveted for her blood, which causes men to have visions and lose memories) and involve the mysterious Pirate Supreme, an opportunistic witch, and the all-encompassing Sea itself.

Representation: Asian bisexual MC, Black genderfluid sapphic MC, Black side characters, nonbinary side character.

Ownvoices: Asian representation.

The Storm of Life (The Brilliant Death #2)

By A.R. Capetta

Teodora diSangro and Cielo, the strega she loves, are on a mission to save their country of Vinalia from its manipulative leader, who wants to exploit streghe and use them as his weapons. But will marshaling a small but powerful band of streghe be enough to wrest power from a cunning dictator? And what if Teo’s been setting her sights on the wrong enemy all along? This epic sequel to The Brilliant Death completes the Italian-inspired fantasy duology with shocking twists, steamy romance, and magic that will dazzle your imagination and make you wish Vinalia were a real place.

Representation: gender fluid MCs.

Sword in the Stars (Once & Future #2)

By A.R. Capetta

Ari Helix may have won her battle against the tyrannical Mercer corporation, but the larger war has just begun. Ari and her cursed wizard Merlin must travel back in time to the unenlightened Middle Ages and steal the King Arthur’s Grail—the very definition of impossible.
It’s imperative that the time travelers not skew the timeline and alter the course of history. Coming face-to-face with the original Arthurian legend could produce a ripple effect that changes everything. Somehow Merlin forgot that the past can be even more dangerous than the future…

Representation: pansexual and gay MCs. Side characters include genderfluid, nonbinary, gay, sapphic, and asexual representation.

Ownvoices: queer authors.