TBR - Polyamorous Reads

Joel and I were talking a little while back about my least favorite plot devices, and at first I couldn't think of anything that I really disliked. Then it came to me...love triangles. I mean, I get it that sometimes you like two people and you're like I don't know, which do I like more? But it gets tricky because every time I read a love triangle, it goes one of two ways. 

Way the first: One of the people is trash, and the other is obviously the one the author wants the main character to end up with. In these situations, why even have a love triangle? It's 2021, y'all, we don't need to waste our valuable time, energy, and emotions on garbage humans. 

Way the second: Both of the people are amazing, the main character clearly has strong feelings for both, and it feels like an impossible decision to choose between the two. Examples: Tessa, Will, and Jem in The Infernal Devices; Lara Jean's feelings for both Peter and John Ambrose in To All the Boys I've Loved Before. In these situations (particularly the first, because SPOILER ALERT, all three were pretty obviously in love with each other), it seems clear that the answer is not forcing a character to choose between love interests at all but actually going with secret option number three: polyamory.

Talking about all this with Joel, I realized that while I read a lot of queer fiction, I have never read a book with (openly) polyamorous characters in it! This is a travesty and something that I need to remedy immediately, so for my inaugural Tuesday Book Recs post, I invite you to join me in checking out some of these polyamorous reads. 

(Descriptions adapted from Goodreads)

1. An Accident of Stars by Foz Meadows

Saffron Coulter is an accidental worldwalker who finds herself trapped in Kena, a magic realm on the brink of civil war, after unwittingly traveling through a hole in reality. Once there, her life becomes entwined with those of three local women, and she finds herself tied to the women and to the fate of Kena in ways she never could have imagined.

2. Ascension by Jacqueline Koyanagi

When Alana Quick, struggling sky surgeon, stows away aboard the Tangled Axon, she quickly discovers that the cargo vessel is more than meets the eye. With her sister, Nova, being pursued by someone who will stop at nothing to capture her, Alana must find a way to make it work with the...unconventional...crew, establish her place on the ship, and protect her sister at all costs.

3. The Compass Rose by Gail Dayton

Captain Kallista Varyl, like the rest of her people, believes the Godstruck are mere legends. Until, that is, she calls upon the One for aid and is imbued with abilities that haven't been seen in centuries. Now she must master her new Godstruck power, learn how to unlock the secrets of the Compass Rose, and protect her nation from powerful enemies - alone.

4. The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

On the day the world ended, Essun returned home to find her son brutally murdered at the hands of her husband and her daughter kidnapped. What's more, the Sanze, a world-spanning empire, has collapsed, and a great rift has torn across the heart of the continent, spewing ash that darkens the sky. Now Essun will stop at nothing, even as the world crumbles around her, to rescue her daughter.

5. Inda by Sherwood Smith

Indevan is the second son born to a powerful prince who grows up believing his role will be to remain at home and defend his family's castle. Then war threatens and Inda is sent to the Royal Academy, where he learns not only about the arts of war but discovers that danger doesn't always come from the outside.

6. Love You Two by Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli

While Pina's friends envy her life with her free-spirited parents, sometimes Pina has to wonder who is raising whom, her or her mother? When she discovers some devastating information about her family, everything she thought she knew about life and love falls apart. Will her family survive her discovery?

7. Luster by Raven Leilani

Edie is an artist trying to find her place in the art world. When she finds herself unemployed and living with Eric, a digital archivist, and his family, she must learn how to navigate not only the complexity of relationships but also a tentative friendship with his wife and becoming a role model for his daughter.

Bonus books:

Adaptation by Malinda Lo

Reese and her crush/debate partner are driving home from Arizona to San Francisco when they are in an accident. They wake up in a military hospital almost a month later, and the doctors won't tell them what happened or where they are. After returning home, only one thing is clear to Reese: she's different. Note: This is a duology, and the polyamory is introduced in the second book.

Kynship by Daniel Heath Justice (3rd book)

The Everland is a world of ancient mystery and shadow inhabited by the Kyn and other Folk. After a thousand years since the last clash between the world of Men and the world of the Folk, the Everland is under siege once more. As the leaders of the Folk strategize how to protect their land against attack, Kyn warrior Tarsa'deshae, exiled after an act of courage goes awry, grapples with her new calling as a Wielder and finds herself swept up in the world of political and spiritual intrigue and the debate between continuing to embrace the old ways or surrendering to the new ways of Men. Can Tarsa'deshae help the council heal her ravaged, wounded world? Note: This is a trilogy, and the polyamory is introduced in the third book.