We’d hate to give away the reason Katharina Volckmer’s darkly hilarious debut The Appointment qualifies as a LGBTQI+ book – that’d really take all the fun out of it. From the confines of a Jewish doctor’s office in London, this quick 130-page read dives into the mind of a young German woman seeking treatment from Dr. Seligman, although her exact reason for being there isn’t revealed at first. Told in a rapid-fire, stream-of-consciousness format (this is a one-way conversation), we slowly learn about her fears, desires, sexual history, and intense hatred for the heimatland. Bouncing between Hitler sex fantasies, potshots at Deutsche kultur, and fierce examinations of gender roles, Volckmer’s created a savagely incisive and deeply provocative monologue for the ages – a nasty cyclone filled with piss and vinegar that’ll have you cackling on one page and shocked (or even slightly offended) on the next. Trust…you won’t find another novel this sharp and meticulously worded all year. (Out September 1 via Avid Reader Press)

Fans of dark academia novels like Donna Tartt’s The Secret History or M.L. Rio’s If We Were Villains will find plenty to love in Micah Nemerever’s stunning debut These Violent Delights. Set in the early ‘70s and strong on moody university atmosphere, the story follows a toxic, obsessive relationship that develops between two young men – Paul, a sensitive ecology major still grieving over his father’s recent death, and Julian, a charmingly aloof rich kid. A game of one-upmanship sparks between the two, not to mention a violent, co-dependent romance, setting the stage for disaster. “Compulsively readable” is a bit of a cliché in the literary world, but that’s what this is – pretty much impossible to put down. Nemerever’s sensitive and observant prose constantly dazzles and it’s hard to believe this is their first novel. Filled with Hitchcockian touches that recall both the Leopold and Loeb inspired 1948 film Rope as well as 1951’s Strangers on a Train, These Violent Delights counts itself amongst the smartest thrillers of recent memory. (Out September 15 via HarperCollins)

Emily Hashimoto’s delightful romcom A World Between feels a bit like a queer Asian version of Four Weddings and a Funeral – it’s the story of two college students who meet at university and find themselves coming in and out of each other’s lives, often while celebrating other people’s big day. The novel opens in 2004 when college students Eleanor Suzuki and Leena Shah meet-cute in an elevator – their brief but intense romance stalls until they run into each other again years later on the streets of San Francisco. There’s one hitch: Leena is now engaged to someone else. The rest of this charming, modern novel plays up its “will they or won’t they get together” narrative and comes with a heaping serving of pop culture references. Hashimoto knows and loves these characters and her thoughtful debut offers plenty of insight into the messiness that comes with the transition from college to adulthood. (Out September 15 via The Feminist Press at CUNY)

A thrilling survival tale set on an remote island off the coast of Costa Rica, Adam Sass’ engrossing YA debut Surrender Your Sons follows Connor Major, a gay Illinois teen whose recent coming out lands him at at a conversion therapy camp run by a pack of violent zealots. Aimed at teen readers but something adults will also enjoy, this one’s a real page-turner – Sass throws countless obstacles in his young protagonist’s path and it’s a joy to accompany him as he attempts to outsmart his captors. The sarcastic, music-loving Connor is an immensely likable character, and the other queer kids in his company are all richly imagined with engaging stories of their own. Sass weaves a complex tale – the story includes more than one villain and blurs the line between victim and aggressor once we learn the secret history of this camp. Intense, funny, and at times terrifying, this is one of those novels that constantly screams “make me into a movie!” Extra points for a perfectly placed RuPaul’s Drag Race reference. (Out September 15 via North Star Editions)