10 Must-Read Latinx Books by Latinx Authors to Celebrate Latinx Heritage Month

One of the many joys I get from reading diversely is that I have found so many good books from people of all races, ethnicities, and walks of life different from my own. This is why it’s so important to read diversely with intention and to read books by Latinx authors all year long, not just during Latinx Heritage Month.

But the hard part is knowing where to start reading. I have a list of 10 book recommendations by authors from across Latinidad.

Let’s get into it, shall we?

Note: There are affiliate links below. This means that if you click and buy any of the books in this post, I will get a small commission as a result. This is a great and easy way to support this blog. 

A Lot Like Adiós by Alexis Daria

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

Ablaze by A.H. Cunningham

Mariana Torres Charles is finally ready to fulfill her dream as a bandleader and designer for the up-and-coming Carnival Band LoveVibe for Miami Carnival. The win would be proof that she can follow through on her goals because in love…the follow through is less than stellar. After a long string of crushed lovers, she is done breaking hearts.

When Mason Brathwaite, her forever-friends-with-benefits, needs a date to a networking event to snag a new sponsor for his Student Community Center, she volunteers to attend with him hoping to catch a break from the pressures of dating. But when they meet the mysterious Daniel Robinson, son of Mason’s prospective donor and experienced kinkster, she can’t help but forget her newfound resolve.

Every moment they spend together illuminates her thoughts and desires, but her track record at love tells her it is only a matter of time before their liaison smokes away.

With Mason’s vying for her heart and Daniel’s and Daniel seducing their minds, what can a woman do but succumb to the temptation calling to her? Mariana will deal with the ashes once they come. After all, that’s her specialty.

Ink by Jade Hernandez

Xiomara

My whole life has been riddled with nothing but bad luck, especially when it comes to jobs.

I can never seem to hold anything down, and the truth is, nobody wants to work with someone as volatile and angry as me.

But to take care of my family, I need money, and when the opportunity arises to work the front desk at Devil’s Ink, the local Motorcycle Club’s tattoo shop, I’ll do everything I can to not mess this up. It doesn’t matter that there are rumors of darkness and blood surrounding Los Diablos MC. Or that my dangerous new boss doesn’t think I can do the job. Or that his hungry eyes follow me every step of the way, inciting a lust for someone I can never be with, someone who hates everything about me.

I guess if there’s one thing they’re about to find out, it’s that violence never scared me anyway.

Ink

Only the best work at Devil’s Ink and Xiomara is anything but. With a reputation like hers, I knew she was sure to fail within the week.

I never expected that her steely determination to prove me wrong would result in a lust I don’t need or want. I’m her boss. She’s my employee. Anything between us is bound to end in disaster.

That doesn’t stop my gaze from going over her body. Or obsessing over her laughter. Or wanting my ink tattooed on her skin.

I try to tell myself that my lifestyle is too dangerous for someone like her. And when the violence and blood of my MC touches her perfect skin, I know I’ll do anything to protect her from it.

I guess she’ll see for herself how many souls a Diablo can reap for his woman.

Safe Place To Land by Ryan Webb

Autistic architect Rafael has been in love with his best friend, Henry, since they were teenagers.

Over the nearly two decades of their friendship, they’ve had many romantic close calls. But something always gets in the way, including Henry’s cross-country move.

Now recovering from losing his leg to cancer, Rafael is reunited with Henry for his dream road trip to the Golden Gate Bridge. But can they overcome the baggage between them to finally end up together? Or will life continue to get in the way?

Pretty Promises by K.L. Hernandez

A New Year’s resolution. An unexpected encounter.

A partnership that could ruin their aspirations and shatter their hearts.

Anything can happen when the clock strikes twelve on New Year’s.

For Bruno Aguirre, it means gaining the tipsy courage to manifest his dream: outdoing his brother. The chance arrives when he’s forced to move to Miami, the Magic City, and play the corporate game at Aguirre Hotels and Resorts. He was set to fail at the family company, but a high-stakes opportunity might lead to his success. What does he have to lose? Besides, you know, his pride when he ends up partnering with the man who broke his trust: his ex-boyfriend.

For Álvaro Pérez, it means a dream opportunity. When his worlds clash—the wrestling company he loves, All-Americas Wrestling Alliance, and the construction company he works for, Mount Group—he’s tasked with leading his passion project. The right eyes are on him until the wrong ones return and drag him into the criminal enterprise he escaped from. The startling request will risk the lives of strangers and his loved ones. . .like the ex-boyfriend that shattered his heart two years ago.

Their partnership will reveal dangerous ploys in the present, uncover painful memories from the past, and hinder their second chance at a future

Under Her Skin by Lea Santos

Who would believe that the world-famous supermodel Iris Lujan has a care in the world? Only Mexican gardener, Torien Pacias, who sees through Iris’s facade and offers gentle understanding and friendship when Iris most needs it. Though Torien senses the passion smoldering between them, she doesn’t dare imagine a future with Iris. She is like royalty, and Torien is a woman of simple needs and weighty family obligations. But, how long can Torien resist the charms of this untouchable woman she longs to claim for her own?

Goddess of Filth by V. Castro

One hot summer night, best friends Lourdes, Fernanda, Ana, Perla, and Pauline hold a séance. It’s all fun and games at first, but their tipsy laughter turns to terror when the flames burn straight through their prayer candles and Fernanda starts crawling toward her friends and chanting in Nahuatl, the language of their Aztec ancestors.

Over the next few weeks, shy, modest Fernanda starts acting strangely—smearing herself in black makeup, shredding her hands on rose thorns, sucking sin out of the mouths of the guilty. The local priest is convinced it’s a demon, but Lourdes begins to suspect it’s something else—something far more ancient and powerful.

As Father Moreno’s obsession with Fernanda grows, Lourdes enlists the help of her “bruja Craft crew” and a professor, Dr. Camacho, to understand what is happening to her friend in this unholy tale of possession-gone-right.

Cemetery Boys by Aidan Thomas

In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife.

But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won’t go into death quietly.

The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan.

But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go.

This is Why They Hate Us by Aaron H. Aceves

Enrique “Quique” Luna has one goal this summer—get over his crush on Saleem Kanazi by pursuing his other romantic prospects. Never mind that he’s only out to his best friend, Fabiola. Never mind that he has absolutely zero game. And definitely forget the fact that good and kind and, not to mention, beautiful Saleem is leaving LA for the summer to meet a girl his parents are trying to set him up with.

Luckily, Quique’s prospects are each intriguing in their own ways. There’s stoner-jock Tyler Montana, who might be just as interested in Fabiola as he is in Quique; straitlaced senior class president, Ziggy Jackson; and Manny Zuniga, who keeps looking at Quique like he’s carne asada fresh off the grill. With all these choices, Quique is sure to forget about Saleem in no time.

But as the summer heats up and his deep-seated fears and anxieties boil over, Quique soon realizes that getting over one guy by getting under a bunch of others may not have been the best laid plan and living his truth can come at a high cost.

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