Diverse Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books

It’s a lot of work to keep up a list like the one I have for books featuring physical disability, but I want to help people find books (and maybe a few games) with other types of representation too, and it occurs to me that many of my followers and visitors may not know that I have tags and posts for all sorts of rep! So this is my page of helpful links to find content on my blog that includes diversity and representation.

For some books, I couldn’t remember the specifics or they were never stated, so I just labeled them broadly as POC, LGBTQIA+, etc. rather than assuming. If you notice something incorrect, feel free to contact me.

I also have shelves for all this rep on Goodreads, and that includes books I haven’t reviewed as well.

I cannot guarantee any of the rep is good, and this isn’t a list of recommendations. It’s just all the books I’ve read/reviewed, whether I liked them or not.

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Books with LGBTQIA+ Rep
Books with POC Rep
Books with Disability Rep
Books with Religion Rep
Diverse & Accessible Games
Blog Posts I Have About Diversity & Accessibility
Other Resources

Books I’ve Reviewed with LGBTQIA+ Rep

All LGBTQIA+ Books

*Note: I changed my method for categorizing romances to be more specific, but I left the old tags for reviews that were already written, so there are two lists below, each with different books. Sorry for any confusion!*

*Note: I know some people differentiate, but letters in 3+ person relationships are in no particular order.*

  • Relationship/Sex Type
  • Books I’ve Reviewed with POC Rep

    Books I’ve Reviewed with Disability Rep

    Books I’ve Reviewed with Religion Rep

    Diverse Books I Haven’t Reviewed

    – The Given & the Taken by L.A. Witt – gay MC and LIs, m/m/m romance
    – Deadly Dreams series by Bella Roccaforte – one POV character has alcoholism
    – The King’s Sun by Isaac Graham – bisexual MC, m/m romance, TW for rape(?)
    – The Ghost on My Couch by L.A. Gilbert – gay MC and LI, m/m romance
    – Dead Boys by Gabriel Squailia – Black MC
    – Artifice by Alex Woolfson & Winona Nelson (webcomic) – gay LI, m/m romance
    – Angel of Darkness by Tyler May – m/m romance, vampire MC is blind
    – His Consort by Mary Calmes – m/m romance
    – Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy – f/f relationship, trans woman MC
    – Last Call at the Nightshade Lounge by Paul Krueger – POC (Chinese) MC
    – The Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht – m/m feelings/hint of romance
    – Vampire Claus by Robert Winter – m/m romance, gay MC and LI
    – The Vampire Grinch by Lacey-Anne Frye – m/m relationship
    – The Trapped Wizard by Yamila Abraham – m/m romance, TW for dub-con
    – Hunter of Demons by Jordan L. Hawk – m/m romance
    – Blind Space by Marie Sexton – m/m romance, MC has temporary blindness and gets sight back before story ends
    – Collared by T. A. Moore – m/m feelings and sex (though not quite romance)
    – Wonderland City by Rhys Ford – m/m kind of romance, gay MC

    Diverse Games I’ve Reviewed (Includes Accessibility Features)

    (In no particular order. New additions to the list are added at the end. This isn’t a list of recommendations, just a list of games I’ve played with accessibility and/or diversity (though I enjoyed many). For more info on accessibility, check the full review. I mostly just mention blind accessibility here.)

    Tusks: The Orc Dating Sim by Mitch Alexander – All gay characters. One trans character. A polyamorous relationship. One character is missing an arm and has depression (the missing arm and depression are unrelated). One elderly character. Fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V once game window has opened).

    Monster Prom / Monster Camp by Beautiful Glitch – Players can choose between he/she/they pronouns and date M or F characters. Characters in-game sometimes make references to queer relationships. Monster Camp also has a nonbinary romance option.

    Dr. Frank’s Build-A-Boyfriend by Heiden – Gay characters.

    Lake of Voices by GB Patch Games – POC MC. A few endings involve what could be considered romance, one of which is f/f.

    Oxenfree by Night School Studio – POC MC. Captions available.

    A Blind Legend by Dowino – Fully accessible game for blind and visually impaired players, and you play as a blind character.

    Distress by Light Machine – If I recall correctly there are POC, LGBT+, and disabled (bionic arm) characters among the crew. Seems to be fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V once game window has opened).

    Voyageur by Bruno Dias – Seems to be fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players using a screen reader (I tested with NVDA on a PC).

    Arcade Spirits by Fiction Factory Games – POC characters. Can choose skin color for player character. One character figuring out gender (no specific label). One character has a terminal illness. Players can choose between he/she/they pronouns and date M or F (or possibly NBY) characters. Players can choose a no romance route. Fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS, including sound cues and necessary visual descriptions (press V once game window has opened).

    Overland by Finji – Randomized player characters include POC, LGBT+, elderly(?), and disabled (none of it affects gameplay, some is just mentioned in mini bios or in-game dialogue).

    As We Know It by Jaime Scribbles – POC characters (two romance options and some friend/supporting characters are Black, one romance option appears to be Asian). LGBT+ characters (you play as female and can romance both male and female options, there’s a m/m side character relationship, at least one of the romance options is bi/pan). Characters have some diversity among body types. There are a few choices for skin color for the player character. Fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V once game window has opened).

    Red Embrace by Argent Games – M/M romances. Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS for text but not menus (press V once game window has opened).

    Red Embrace: Hollywood by Argent Games – Can choose between he/she/they pronouns and have sort-of romance with male characters, regardless of pronoun choice. One character is implied asexual. (Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players but not recommended if you can’t see the screen; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS for text but not menus, stats, or other important elements (press V once game window has opened). Sex scenes are optional.

    Pale Cachexia by Argent Games – Two main characters with a fictional chronic/terminal illness. Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS for text but not menus (press V once game window has opened). Sound/Music closed captions available. OpenDyslexic font option. Disable bright flashes option.

    Blind Men by Man-Eater Games – M/M romances. Main character wears an eye patch. Another character has an advanced prosthetic arm. Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS for text but not menus (press V once game window has opened).

    Cute Demon Crashers by SugarScript – Includes a F/F route. At least one character (if not all) is bi/pan. Incubi/succubus characters are aromantic.

    Mutazione by Die Gute Fabrik – Black MC. MC is presumably female and mentions a crush on a girl.

    Tomai by DarkChibiShadow – Black MC. M/M romances, including a polyam route. Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle) for text and menus but not the selection each day of which character to spend time with, though you can still play if you memorize how many times to hit the arrow to get to each option (right arrow 1 time is Burdoc, 2 is Malik, 3 is Dad, 4 is Lady). Option for sex explicit or non-explicit version.

    Afterparty by Night School Studio – Black MC. Captions available.

    – Code 7 by Goodwolf Studio – Lots of POC and LGBT+ among main and background characters. Supposedly fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players (I did not test the entire game) (press ctrl+V once game window has opened).

    Starfighter: Eclipse by Date Nighto – M/M sex and sorta romance.

    – Milky Way Prince, The Vampire Star by Eye Guys – M/M relationship. One character has borderline personality disorder, though it is not necessarily portrayed in a positive light.

    – Yarrow Valley by DarkChibiShadow – Disabled (prosthetic arm), Black MC. M/M romance. Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle) for text but not menus or one of the choice screens.

    – A Small Encounter by Amiable-apparition – M/M romance.

    – Tomato Clinic by npckc – Trans character you can befriend. Can choose pronouns and change them at any time while playing. Fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle). Note: The only maybe not accessible thing is some audio/visual choices that pop up when the game opens, but you can go into the menu and change them after, so it doesn’t matter what you choose. Note: There’s an option in menu to turn the mini games into text version. Note: On the page where you choose your name, you can just click ok if you don’t care, or find “Lum,” hit enter, type your name, and hit enter again.

    Song of Farca by Wooden Monkeys – POC(?) MC. MC has F/F relationship in story. Lots of POC and LGBT+ among main and background characters.

    – Monster Cafe by neonpolygon – Can have implied romance with M or F character.

    The Sexy Brutale by Tequila Works & Cavalier Game Studios – Includes disabled, POC, and LGBT+ characters.

    – The Descendant by Gaming Corps AB – Black MC.

    ScreamCap by Pixel After Pixel – POC characters. Can have implied romance with M or F characters.

    First Bite by First Bite Games – POC characters. Player can choose between he/she/they pronouns and can have sex/romance with any of the characters. Romance options are also in a throuple sort of relationship and canonically bi/pan. Two characters are implied nonbinary (he/they and she/they).

    The Hepatica Spring by Gallium Games – Nonbinary romance option. Player character gender is unspecified and can have romance (or friendship without romance) with any of the characters.

    Synthetic Lover by HeartCoreDev – M/M romances. Fully accessible for blind / visually impaired players and screen reader users with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle) and full voice acting; however, it says, “H to hide interface,” each time self-voicing finishes the text on-screen.

    Project Zomboid by The Indie Stone – Includes some chooseable player character traits (more are available with mods) to simulate certain disabilities (it’s more about increasing game difficulty than actual representation, because that’s just how the gameplay works).

    A Ghost Story? by Licorice Games – Player character is male, and you can choose between male, female, and nonbinary characters to romance. Fully accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle). Note: There are two bits of info you’ll miss without seeing the screen (not 100% necessary in order to understand the story, but I think they’re nice to know), which I mention in my review.

    I Was a Teenage Exocolonist by Northway Games & Finji – Canonically not-straight characters and relationships (and you can date characters of any gender regardless of your gender). Dateable and background characters who are trans, nonbinary, demisexual, polyamorous, POC, neurodivergent, and physically disabled. You can choose what pronouns and gendered words are used for the player character, with full customization. You can also choose appearance between masculine, feminine, and androgynous. You can change those choices at any time. Trigger/content warnings available here.

    Ace in Space by Cadaver Carnival Studios – Player character is asexual, nonbinary, Black, and has cancer. Most romance options are asexual and nonbinary. Fully accessible for blind / visually impaired players and screen reader users with Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle); however, images are not described which may cause a problem understanding Sero’s ending.

    Citizen Sleeper by Jump Over the Age & Fellow Traveler – A lot of diversity among the characters you meet—gender, age, race, disability. The player character is never given a gender.

    Chronicles of Tal’Dun: The Remainder by Square Weasel Studio – Can choose he/she/they pronouns for player character. Other main character in story is nonbinary.

    The Secret Life of Dorian Pink by amberlimshin – You play as a male character trying to save his boyfriend.

    Sweet Pool by NITRO CHiRAL – M/M… something. I’m hesitant to call it romance. (Mind the content warnings.) Japanese characters.

    Alt-Frequencies by Accidental Queens – Fully accessible for blind players and screen reader users, though you might need to see the screen or get help to turn the screen reader mode on the first time. (I don’t remember if it automatically offers that the first time you open the game, sorry. It might.) I also explain an issue in my review that is frustrating, but still playable. Also accessible for deaf players. All the audio is also in text, and you can turn on extra captions that include other sounds or important context. Can play with either keyboard, controller, or mouse.

    Dear Monster by Y Press Games – Partially accessible for blind and visually impaired players; has Ren’Py self-voicing mode / TTS (press V to toggle) for text but not menus. Warning for a flashing light sometimes. M/M romance pairings.

    Brookhaven Grimoire by Little_Amethyst – Disabled, POC, and canonically queer NPCS, including love interests (including one who is Black and visually impaired).

    – The Outbreak Story by Bas-Makes-Games – F/F couple. One character loses an eye. Accessibility options include disable shaking, disable flashing lights, swap mouse buttons, change keybindings, add outlines to characters/enemies/scenery/more (each one is a separate toggle), and trigger warnings at beginning of game.

    Moonstone Island by Studio Supersoft & Raw Fury – There are nonbinary, POC, and neurodivergent dateable NPCs. Player gender is never stated.

    Blog Posts I Have About Diverse Rep

    Book Recs: 10 Lesser-Known Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books with Disabled Characters
    Book Recs: 10 LGBT+ Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books by LGBT+ Authors
    Book Recs: 10 LGBT+ Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books by LGBT+ Authors (2)
    Book Recs: 5 Diverse Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books Set in the US
    Book Recs: 10 Lesser-Known M/M Vampire Books
    Book Recs: 10 Lesser-Known M/M Vampire Books (2)
    Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring Disability
    Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring POC Characters
    Bookish Musings: Disabilities Being Magically Cured in Books
    Bookish Musings: I Want More Books about… Disability & Medical Needs in Post-Apoc Worlds
    Bookish Musings: A Surprising Similarity Between Vampirism and Chronic Illness
    Bookish Musings: How to Listen to eBooks with TTS (and Why It’s Great!)
    Gamer Musings: How to Make Visual Novels Accessible for Blind / Visually Impaired Players and Screen Reader Users
    Bookish Musings: Thoughts on Disability Representation in Books
    Book Recs: 10 Lesser-Known M/M Urban Fantasy Books
    Gamer Musings: Accessibility in Gaming
    Book Recs: 10 Gay Ghost Books to Check Out
    Book Recs: 10 Lesser-Known Gay Space Books to Check Out
    Book Recs: 5 Popular Gay Space Books Worth the Hype

    Other Resources for Diverse Rep

    These lists won’t be entirely sci-fi/fantasy, but they’re still great if you’re looking for more diverse books! If you have or know of another resource for finding diverse books, let me know!

    The Bookish Diversity Link List @ Dora Reads
    Disability in Kidlit
    The Discriptionary
    Webcomic Library
    Off-Planet Books – Di gave me info on a bunch of books to add to my SFF Books with Disability Masterlist and has lots of reviews for SFF books with disability rep!