Books like 'Unexpecting'
Readers who enjoyed Unexpecting by Jen Bailey also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary romance lgbtq realistic high-school coming-of-age family mlm
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Invisible Boys by Holden Sheppard
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAn emotional tale of identity, sexuality and suicide derived from personal experience about three teenage boys who struggle to come to terms with their homosexuality in a small Western Australian town. On the surface, nerd Zeke, punk Charlie and footy wannabe Hammer look like they have nothing in common... -
![Letters Book One by Michael Robert]()
Letters Book One by Michael Robert
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNew York City financier, thirty-nine-year-old Perry Jackson, discovers a letter from his deceased husband, Jack. Jack’s recent death leaves Perry reeling and alone. After eighteen years together, Perry has no idea how he can move forward.Lucas Jenson, a nineteen-year-old residing in Beaufort, South Carolina, has lost both his mother and the man he dreamed of sharing his life with... -
![Be Our Guest by CJ Bishop]()
Be Our Guest by CJ Bishop
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBlood is just blood. Family ties are knit in the heart and strengthened by love. With most of whom they consider ‘family’ already right there within their tight-knit circle, the Phoenix couples begin to look beyond that circle and contemplate those from the past who rejected and hurt them. Deep down, Dane longs for reconciliation with his parents... -
![You Are Not Me by Leta Blake]()
You Are Not Me by Leta Blake
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFollow Peter into the summer following his senior year to face new beginnings, new friends, and old baggage. After a tumultuous final year of high school, Peter Mandel needs a break. It's the summer of 1991, and his secret relationship with his ‘best friend’ Adam Algedi is put on hold as Adam goes away to Italy for the summer... -
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![Pride High : Book 1 - Red by Jay Bell]()
Pride High : Book 1 - Red by Jay Bell
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhat’s it like being a teenager in the 90s? Let’s ask the characters of Pride High:Anthony Cullen: My life would be perfect, if I wasn’t in the closet. And in love with my straight best friend. Do you think he’ll ever notice me?Omar Jafari: Dude! I’m flunking out of most of my classes, but you know what really matters? A girl talked to me... -
![All I Ever Wanted by Alexa Land]()
All I Ever Wanted by Alexa Land
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsI’ve been given this amazing gift: a second chance. I have to get it right this time. Because Cole Ealy is all I ever wanted, and this is our last shot at forever. River and Cole met, and fell in love, and then it all went horribly wrong. A year has passed, but River can’t move on... -
![Snow Boys by Simon Doyle]()
Snow Boys by Simon Doyle
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDean O’Donnell is a wallflower with a secret and a voice that could steal the show. Preferring to blend into the background at his high school, his world tilts on its axis when he is chosen for a major solo in the upcoming Christmas choir performance. His quiet life is further disturbed when he receives a Secret Santa gift, and an unexpected friendship forms... -
![Lost And Found by Aiden Bates]()
Lost And Found by Aiden Bates
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsI’m going to die on this cliff with only a bobcat kitten for company. I’m sure of it until the hottest man I’ve ever seen swoops in and makes me leap.Eli’s made for danger, and he dedicates his life to finding desperately stranded hikers like me.He’s too perfect to be true.I’ve fallen hard before and ended up bruised and battered.I have to resist him... -
![The Boy from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough]()
The Boy from the Mish by Gary Lonesborough
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA funny and heart-warming queer Indigenous YA novel, set in a rural Australian community, about seventeen-year-old Jackson finding the courage to explore who he is, even if it scares him.'I don't paint so much anymore,' I say, looking to my feet.'Oh. Well, I got a boy who needs to do some art... -
![Ready When You Are by Gary Lonesborough]()
Ready When You Are by Gary Lonesborough
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA remarkable YA love story between two Aboriginal boys -- one who doesn’t want to accept he’s gay, and the boy who comes to live in his house who makes him realize who he is.It's a hot summer, and life's going all right for Jackson and his family on the Mish. It's almost Christmas, school's out, and he's hanging with his mates, teasing the visiting tourists, avoiding the racist boys in town... -
![The Long Run by James Acker]()
The Long Run by James Acker
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsTwo track and field athletes find an unexpected but powerful love in this unapologetically blunt and unforgettably real YA debut. Sebastian Villeda is over it. Over his rep. Over his bros. Over being "Bash the Flash," fastest sprinter in South Jersey. His dad is gone, his mom is dead, and his stepfather is clueless. Bash has no idea what he wants out of life. Until he meets Sandro... -
![Skater Boy by Anthony Nerada]()
Skater Boy by Anthony Nerada
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsIn this YA pop-punk debut about queer romance and destroying labels, a teen risks everything to write his own story. Perfect for fans of Sonora Reyes and Adib Khorram. Stonebridge High’s resident bad boy, Wesley “Big Mac” Mackenzie, is failing senior year—thanks to his unchecked anger, rowdy friends, and a tendency to ditch his homework for skateboarding and a secret photography obsession... -
![Pumpkin by Julie Murphy]()
Pumpkin by Julie Murphy
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWaylon Russell Brewer is a fat, openly gay boy stuck in the small West Texas town of Clover City. His plan is to bide his time until he can graduate, move to Austin with his twin sister, Clementine, and finally go Full Waylon, so that he can live his Julie-the-hills-are-alive-with-the-sound-of-music-Andrews truth... -
![Shouting Match by Pandora Pine]()
Shouting Match by Pandora Pine
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAfter the death of his father, Capone Lombardi was tasked not only with keeping his father’s legacy alive, but also to look after his mother and three younger brothers. Putting his own love life on the back-burner, he’s spent the last five years ensuring the family restaurant, Lombardi’s, thrives... -
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![Forever by E. Davies]()
Forever by E. Davies
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsJake Gray always wanted a real family. He left his own behind when he began his transition, but if he wants a baby he'll need to come off testosterone and get his life in order. The tips he makes as a waiter are barely enough to pay L.A. rent, let alone raise a child. But he’s made his own way for so long that he doesn’t want to rely on others now... -
![Sheets by Sareyen]()
Sheets by Sareyen
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratings[BxB] Waking up next to someone after having a little too much to drink was no new, riveting story in this day and age. Waking up next to another boy, when you were also a boy, was a little more interesting, but still nothing to write home about. But waking up in Nico Beckett's sheets?To Wesley, it was a nightmare come to life... -
![The Long Way by DomLuka]()
The Long Way by DomLuka
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNote: Book cover incorrectly titled.After tragedy strikes at home and he loses a special friend, is betrayed by someone he trusts and his father discovers he's gay, Owen Dovan moves in with the brothers he hasn't seen in two years. Even in a loving environment things aren't always easy... -
![Once Burned by Alexa Land]()
Once Burned by Alexa Land
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsCameron Doyle is an arson investigator who’s learned he can’t trust anyone. Ignacio Mondelvano is an artist with a secret that could tear them apart. A year ago, shy, quiet Cameron had his trust shattered by a sociopath who used him to gain information on an arson case... -
![Fancy Free by Mia Monroe]()
Fancy Free by Mia Monroe
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe last thing I need is a curious straight guy sniffing around me. So why is he so hard to resist?My life is everything I ever wanted - by design. Being one of the nation’s most sought after wedding planners has led to a life of traveling to glamorous locations, bumping elbows with the rich and famous, and sampling every handsome hunk the world has to offer... -
![Totally Schooled by Nicole Dykes]()
Totally Schooled by Nicole Dykes
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNolanI’m a teacher who has only one thing missing from his life: a healthy relationship.I have a plan in place. This should be easy.No more toxic men. No more casual hookups. I want something real. A love that’s equal, not lopsided. I’m a fixer at heart, but I’m done with the hopeless and the selfish.RafeI’m a dad. Pure and simple.The only thing I want is for my daughter to be happy and healthy... -
![New Tricks by Davidson King]()
New Tricks by Davidson King
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAfter thirteen years together, Malcolm and Embry are all too familiar with their differences. Malcolm is free-spirited and spontaneous while Embry prefers having everything planned out... -
![Breaking Walls by Tracie Puckett]()
Breaking Walls by Tracie Puckett
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIt’s not about the rules anymore. It’s about the sacrifice. She’s already given up too much to lose faith now. Gabe has walked away, and Mandy’s fate with the Raddick Initiative is hanging in the balance. Media attention has the whole town talking. Friends are making wild assumptions, and one of her own teammates has turned on her... -
![Stronger In Your Hands by Diane Adams]()
Stronger In Your Hands by Diane Adams
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsEighteen and still trapped at prep school, Alex feels he and Jared will never get together, and then a surprise visit from Jared puts all doubt to rest. After Alex graduates everything seems to fall right into place. The heat between them is scorching, but secrets from Jared's past and his need to take care of everyone around him, jeopardizes their fledgling relationship... -
![Legendary Daddy by Mia Monroe]()
Legendary Daddy by Mia Monroe
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsI knew he would be my Daddy one day. Now I have to convince him.My vision board has three things on it:Move to LABecome a popular directorMeet my idol and make him fall for meWhat can I say, I’m a dreamer. My chances of making that last one happen were slim to none, until one day, fate shined upon me and I was standing face to face with the man himself, Legend... -
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![Exchange of Hearts by N.R. Walker]()
Exchange of Hearts by N.R. Walker
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsEighteen-year-old Harrison Haddon has grown up alone. Surrounded by wealth, nannies, and material things, all he craves is the approval of his father. Sent away to the boarding school his father and grandfather attended, it’s assumed he will follow in their footsteps from Sydney’s prestigious Ivy League school straight into medical school.But Harrison doesn’t want to be a doctor... -
![Henry Hamlet's Heart by Rhiannon Wilde]()
Henry Hamlet's Heart by Rhiannon Wilde
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA sparkling queer YA romance set in Brisbane, Henry Hamlet’s Heart follows one guy and his sometimes hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking journey to love.Henry Hamlet doesn’t know what he wants after school ends. It’s his last semester of year twelve and all he’s sure of is his uncanny ability to make situations awkward. Luckily, he can always hide behind his enigmatic best friend, Len... -
![The Road to Amazing by Brent Hartinger, Josh Hurley]()
The Road to Amazing by Brent Hartinger, Josh Hurley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratings"I think gay guys like weddings more than anyone. And it's not because we want to destroy marriage, like some people say. It's because we really, really want to get married!"Russel Middlebrook is gettin' hitched! The wedding is taking place in a remote lodge on an island in Puget Sound... -
![Tutus and Tinsel by Rhys Ford]()
Tutus and Tinsel by Rhys Ford
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsZig Reid-Harris has everything an eleven-year-old girl could ever want: a great home, two fantastic fathers named Deacon Reid and Lang Harris, and all the books she could possibly read. When a school assignment about holiday traditions unexpectedly broadsides her, she discovers burying the past isn’t as easy as it looks, and the stark reality of her life before her adoption sinks in... -
![Hair Balls by Tara Lain]()
Hair Balls by Tara Lain
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhat happens when a blue-collar dude who hides behind his Sasquatch hair gets sheared by a toppy femme in pink lace bikini panties?Contractor, Rick Ronconi can’t admit what he really wants because it’ll lose him his job, his father, his few friends, and maybe even the one thing he really cares about—his sister, Alice... -
![Afterglow by Phil Stamper]()
Afterglow by Phil Stamper
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAfter a summer of life-changing, these four friends are finally ready for senior year.Gabriel is thrilled to create his school's first LGBTQ+ advocacy group, but his long-distance relationship is fading from summer love to something else... Heath feels secure for the first time in years, but with his future riding on a baseball scholarship, each pitch triggers his anxiety.. -
![Undercurrent by Pandora Pine]()
Undercurrent by Pandora Pine
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTWO LOST MEN, ONE SAFE HARBOR…Internationally best-selling author, Landon Fairchild struck gold with his first novel, but can’t seem to string two words together now... -
![Theoretically Straight by Alexander C. Eberhart, Amy Bailey]()
Theoretically Straight by Alexander C. Eberhart, Amy Bailey
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTheo Briggs is a rule follower. A decent student in his junior year, an appeasing son, and a lifelong Christian, just trying to make it through high school unscathed… and maybe create a viral video in the process.Caleb Raynard is a romantic... -
![Heartmates by Marcus Herzig]()
Heartmates by Marcus Herzig
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAs childhood friends, Lars and Connor were inseparable. Now, in the social gauntlet of high school, neither boy can even muster a single word to the other. When Connor enters a romantic relationship with Jaden-Dominic Choi, the hottest social influencer in school, a barely healed wound is torn wide open again... -
![Friction by Kindle Alexander, Jae Ashley]()
Friction by Kindle Alexander, Jae Ashley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBeau Brooks The guy of my dreams sweeps me off my feet and over my handlebars, quite literally. But our budding relationship takes a turn when my troubled past resurfaces, shattering any hope for a future. Now, I feel like a hollowed-out version of myself. Memories of piercing blue eyes and sweeping blond hair are all that remain to get me through a day... -
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![A Guy for Christmas by K.C. Wells]()
A Guy for Christmas by K.C. Wells
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDear Santa,Please can you send me a guy for Christmas? Someone kind, good-looking, sweet… but who knows what he’s doing? ( If you get my meaning ;-) ) You must know SO MANY people. Surely you can give someone a shove in my direction?I’m serious here!I need your help.I’m eighteen and I’m a virgin... -
![Something Like Rain by Jay Bell]()
Something Like Rain by Jay Bell
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNice guys finish last, but that doesn’t mean they give up the fight. Sometimes it’s necessary to keep trudging through the rain in the hopes of finding a break in the clouds. William Townson is a good person. He’s kind, considerate, and the last thing he ever wanted was to hurt anyone. Accidents happen though, and when they do, all that can be done is to pick up the pieces... -
![Enlightened by J.P. Barnaby]()
Enlightened by J.P. Barnaby
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLittle Boy Lost is the story of Brian McAllister, the boy next door. Brian goes to school, does his homework, and helps his foster parents around the house. Brian also has a secret: he is in love with his best friend, Jamie. But in Crayford, Alabama, being in love with another boy is the worst kind of sin. Brian and Jamie will discover just how deep their emotional bond runs, and at what cost... -
![The Truth Project by Dante Medema]()
The Truth Project by Dante Medema
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSeventeen-year-old Cordelia Koenig was sure of many things going into her last year of high school. For one, she wasn’t going to stress over the senior project all her peers were dreading—she’d just use the same find-your-roots genealogy idea that her older sister used for hers... -
![True Letters from a Fictional Life by Kenneth Logan]()
True Letters from a Fictional Life by Kenneth Logan
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsIf you asked anyone in his small Vermont town, they'd tell you the facts: James Liddell, star athlete, decent student and sort-of boyfriend to cute, peppy Theresa, is a happy, funny, carefree guy.But whenever James sits down at his desk to write, he tells a different story... -
![Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden]()
Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAll it takes is one missed step for your life to change forever.Luca Mason knows exactly who he is and what he In six months, he’s going to be accepted into the Australian Ballet School, leave his fancy private high school, and live his life as a star of the stage―at least that’s the plan until he falls down a flight of stairs and breaks his foot in a way he can never recover from... -
![Between Perfect and Real by Ray Stoeve]()
Between Perfect and Real by Ray Stoeve
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA moving YA debut about a trans boy finding his voice—and himselfDean Foster knows he’s a trans guy. He’s watched enough YouTube videos and done enough questioning to be sure. But everyone at his high school thinks he’s a lesbian—including his girlfriend, Zoe, and his theater director, who just cast him as a “nontraditional” Romeo... -
![Desert Sons by Mark Kendrick]()
Desert Sons by Mark Kendrick
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA coming-of-age novel for gay males ages 15-30. Scott Faraday is 16, gregarious, talented, never been in a relationship, and is out to only a select few. Ryan St. Charles is 17, hot-tempered, has already has been in a long relationship, yet is barely out to himself. Behind Ryan's carefully fashioned façade is emotional scarring from a past he's never been able to reconcile... -
![Take a Bow, Noah Mitchell by Tobias Madden]()
Take a Bow, Noah Mitchell by Tobias Madden
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThere Are No Cheat Codes for ShowmanceSeventeen-year-old gaymer Noah Mitchell only has one friend the wonderful, funny, strictly online-only MagePants69. After years playing RPGs together, they know everything about each other, except anything that would give away their real life identities. And Noah is certain that if they could just meet in person, they would be soulmates... -
![Lane’s by Nash Summers]()
Lane’s by Nash Summers
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMaps doesn’t believe in growing up.He believes in his experiments, Benji’s new driving skills, Perry’s knowledge of “adult things”, and his interstellar boyfriend, Lane.Maps certainly doesn’t believe in graduating. And he especially doesn’t believe in his friends attending separate colleges.Because if Maps believed in any of those things, it would mean he was growing up... -
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![To Wish for Impossible Things by John Goode]()
To Wish for Impossible Things by John Goode
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA Special Lost Tale of Foster HighAfter coming out to the whole school, Brad Greymark and Kyle Stilleno could use some downtime. They should be studying, but soon their focus wanders to the pursuit of the impossible. Together, they just might find where they belong... -
![Taking Chances by John Goode]()
Taking Chances by John Goode
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA Tales from Foster High Story Fearing the backlash of living as a gay man in Foster, Texas, Matt Wallace runs away to California, only to find it isn’t the Promised Land he’d hoped for. Christmas sees Matt returning to Foster, where he bumps into his old flame, high school jock Tyler Parker... -
![Into This World We're Thrown by Mark Kendrick]()
Into This World We're Thrown by Mark Kendrick
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“While Desert Sons deftly handles the difficult and sometimes dangerous coming out process of young lovers Ryan and Scott, the sequel finds that lingering tensions remain, while new challenges continue to surface. Infidelity, jealousy, town gossip, and buried feelings threaten to destroy their relationship. Worse yet, the threat of violence looms constantly in their lives... -
![Barefoot in the City of Broken Dreams by Brent Hartinger]()
Barefoot in the City of Broken Dreams by Brent Hartinger
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“There was no way moving to Los Angeles was going to make me give up my soul. After all, I’d already seen all the movies about Hollywood. I knew how things worked.” Twenty-four year-old Russel Middebrook and his boyfriend have moved to Los Angeles so Russel can try to make it as a screenwriter... -
![Theoretically Perfect by Amy Bailey, Alexander C. Eberhart]()
Theoretically Perfect by Amy Bailey, Alexander C. Eberhart
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTheo Briggs just wants to be perfect. The perfect son. The perfect friend. The perfect boyfriend. But the harder he tries to keep up appearances, the more difficult juggling all of those expectations becomes. Where Theo usually turns to his faith for comfort, he now finds confusion and apathy.Caleb Raynard finally has the boyfriend of his dreams... -
![The Rebel's Guide to Pride by Matthew Hubbard]()
The Rebel's Guide to Pride by Matthew Hubbard
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen the mayor of a small Alabama town starts targeting Pride events, bad boy Zeke begins hosting a series of “Pride Speakeasies” in this joyful queer coming-of-age!There’s nothing Zeke Chapman wants more than to tarnish the perfect reputation his father is so obsessed with. He quit the baseball team, started fighting at school, and nearly flunked junior year...
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