Two things are true about Asexual and Aromantic representation in literature: There is a severe lack of representation but there is also probably more out there than you think. Books with lesser-represented identities often don't get large books deals and lots of publicity. Many of them don't get traditionally published at all and instead are published independently via small presses or self publishing. Having the right resources can make the difference between finding dozens of books with these identities and never reading about them at all.
The Aro Ace Database
The Aro Ace Database was started by Claudie Arseneault, a SFF author who not only writes amazing books with aro and ace characters, but is also a phenomenal resource for finding a-spec books by both indie and traditionally published authors. The database contains a list of 464 fictional characters (and is constantly growing) that identify on either the aro spectrum, the ace spectrum, or both. Each listing includes details on how the character identifies, whether the representation is on-page or implied, and the role the character plays in the story. Many listing also include content warnings and additional details about the character. It is completely searchable and sortable so it is a perfect resource if you are ever looking for a character with a specific representation or need to check to see if there's an a-spec character in a book you are interested in.
Check out the Aro Ace Database here!
Check out the Aro Ace Database here!
Queer Books for Teens
If you are looking for asexual and aromantic characters in young adult fiction, QueerBooksforTeens.com is the best site to visit. I cannot even begin to express how useful this site has been for me. With a mix of mainstream and indie titles, Queer Books for Teens has categorized every queer YA book by the type of representation it contains. You can filter books by character gender, sexual orientation, romantic orientation, race/ethnicity, religion, and disability. You can even select more than one category to find intersectional representation. When you visit a book's individual page, you can see which characters have each identity and any potential content warnings that have been noted.
Check out the Queer Books for Teens search engine here!
Check out the Queer Books for Teens search engine here!
Quiet YA
Quiet YA is a project by a lovely blogger named Julie with the intention to celebrate great young adult books that are not bestsellers or highly hyped. In addition to running the Tumblr, Julie also keeps a list of books with asexual main characters which is a great resource. The list itself is not limited to YA books, even though that is the focus of Quiet YA, and it contains both adult and new adult titles. The books are also labeled as #OwnVoices if the author publicly identifies as asexual and marked with "**" if the word asexual is used on the page. Upcoming releases in all age categories are also included at the bottom of the list.
Check out Quiet YA's list of books with asexual main characters here!
Check out Quiet YA's list of books with asexual main characters here!
My Asexual Characters Post
I shared a post in December that is a comprehensive list of every YA book published in 2018 that features asexual characters. It's a good resource if you are looking for recent YA releases, both indie and mainstream. Because it is comprehensive, I also included OwnVoices reviews so that readers can easily find out which books have good rep and which ones do not.
These resources are some of my favorites, but they are far from the only resources available! If you're looking for more, here's a few to try:
- Lynn E. O'Connacht's study on Asexual Representation in Mainstream Speculative Fiction
- Lynn E. O'Connacht's Patreon which has awesome resources for her patrons including videos like Asexuality in Fiction #1: A rough overview from 1985 to 2018 which will be available for non-patrons soon!
- F Yeah Asexual's list of Asexual characters in fiction
- Rosiee Thor's Goodreads list of 2019 releases with ace and aro characters
I hope this post helps all of your find lots of great books with ace and aro characters to read! Don't forget to check out the A-spec April readathon if you want to join in.
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