This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
As I write this, it’s swelteringly hot outside. I just went swimming in the river for a reprieve. But autumn is so close I can taste it. Despite beach reads, vacation reads, and summer reads, fall is the ultimate season for readers. It brings a deluge of exciting new releases, and it’s the perfect weather for snuggling up with a book.
If you, too, are counting down the days until cooler weather, here are three autumnal queer graphic novels to transport you. I plan on leaning into horror and gothic recommendations in September and October, so these are less Halloween, more generally autumnal. They include a couple of fantasy graphic novels that take place in fall as well a beloved series with falling autumnal leaves as its calling card.

Life of Melody by Mari Costa
I requested this graphic novel from the library the second I saw the cover. How cute and autumnal is that? When Razzmatazz, a fairy godfather, and Bon, a beast man, find a human child in the woods, they argue about what they should do. Eventually, they agree to coparent this kid in the human world, but the more time they spend together, the closer they become. You can also read the original webcomic online for free!

Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker
Tell me this isn’t the coziest opening to a book you’ve ever read: in this graphic novel, Nova is a queer teen witch who is working at her grandmothers’ magical bookshop when her childhood crush, a nonbinary werewolf named Tam, reappears in her life. Witches, werewolves, and magical bookshops: this is the fantasy world I want to live in this autumn. Together, Tam and Nova research the horse demon Tam fought in the woods, and along the way, they unearth secrets this town is hiding…and they make mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival!

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman
The Heartstopper series takes place over several seasons, but I couldn’t leave off this story that has falling autumn leaves as its calling card. One of the biggest associations of fall—at least in the northern hemisphere—is with school, and part of why Heartstopper has been so successful is that it paints a version of high school many queer people wish they had been able to experience. In this story, it’s a predominantly accepting place, and the main characters are able to build a queer community around them. It’s a balm for those readers who had a very difference experience with high school.
Our Queerest Shelves
Sign up for bookish LGBTQ+ news and recommendations!
Looking for more? Check out these Comforting Queer Graphic Novels and these Cozy Queer Autumnal Books.