After David Levithan co-wrote "Will Grayson, Will Grayson," with fellow Young Adult literature heavyweight, John Green, anyone who's at all invested in YA is aware of him. But, what's even better than a talented writer bringing deserved celebration to YA lit? That same talented writer is also bringing much needed diversity to the genre. That's right, Levithan also writes solo books about gay boys ( "Two Boys Kissing," anyone?)

And on the lady side of things, there's the wonderful Nina LaCour who writes lesbian contemporary lit, such as her latest love story, "Everything Leads to You." In fact, Levithan and LaCour teamed up to combine their legendary gay talent and co-wrote "You Know Me Well," a contemporary novel released just this year about not just one, but two LGBTQ characters! I'm ravenous for it.

But, let's move away from the YA icons for a little while so that your summer reading list can fully feel the beautiful and diverse queer evolution that has descended upon YA, no matter what genre you're into.

1. Fantasy

"The Raven Cycle" series by Maggie Stiefvater

A four-book series that concluded just this year with the long anticipated "The Raven King," this is an epic tale about unflinching friendship, dead Welsh kings, conquering your fears, the relativity of time and queer boys. Stiefvater is a force to be reckoned with: she expertly jumps between POVs, navigates the complexities and intensities of friendship and weaves magic and muscle cars effortlessly into her prose that are equal parts sass-packed and evocative. But perhaps her most tremendous feat in this series is managing to write about two queer boys, one gay and one bi by my count, without romanticizing or dramatizing their journey to their identities. This series is about a group of four friends, so this isn't a constant gay-fest, but let's just say book two focuses primarily on a certain troubled, tattooed gay boy. Dig it. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

2. Dystopian

"Love in the Time of Global Warming" by Francesca Lia Block

If you're more the gloom-and-doom type of person, this book is for you. Loosely based on Homer's "Odyssey," this book is about the end of the world. Our MC, Penelope, travels around a decimated western U.S. in search of her family and other survivors of the Earth Shaker that ripped the land apart. In between battling cyclops and tidal waves, Pen picks up a motley crew of queer kids, from her trans love interest to her two gay friends. The apocalypse can't be all bad if the queer kids survive. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

3. Satire

"Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

Premise: a plane full of beauty queens crashes onto a deserted island on the way to the pageant. Oh yes, this book is just as ridiculous as it sounds and it's fully aware of that. Every word of this book is tongue-in-cheek and yet each character is heart-achingly sincere. Bray takes on sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, fame and identity in this book, and you'll be laughing while you stick your middle finger up at the man. These beauty queens turn into survival goddesses and take on scary animals, celebrity pirates and their traumatic pasts. This book has lesbians, a trans guy and a girl with a tray lodged in her head. Plus lots of glitter. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

4. Historical Fiction

"Honey Girl" by Lisa Freeman

Okay, so I haven't actually read this one yet. But I've had my eye on it for some time and when I saw it on display at my local bookstore's LGBTQ display in the YA section, I vomited rainbows. "Honey Girl" is about a half Hawaiian, half white girl living in the '70s who is forced to move to California. Once there, she not only has to deal with snotty local surfers and race issues, but she also has to come to terms with her budding attraction to a fellow surfer girl. Everything about this is right up my alley and, frankly, if it's not up your alley too, I don't know what you're doing reading this list. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

5. Fairy Tale Retellings

"Ash" by Malinda Lo

There have been a million and one retellings of Cinderella (my personal favorite is the 1997 film starring Brandy), but how many of them include a queer Cinderella? Definitely this one. Girl love, magic, fairies, a kick-ass huntress/love interest who has her own prequel (aptly titled "Huntress") and the aftermath of death and grief? Sign me the heck up! Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

6. Contemporary

"None of the Above" by I.W. Gregorio

A contemporary YA about a young intersex girl. You heard it here first, friends -- well, probably not, since this book has been out for over a year. STILL. This book tackles one of the lesser-represented letters in the growing queer acronym and for this, I am eternally grateful for it. I actually haven't read this one yet either, but I've heard nothing but great things about it in the YA community. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

7. Drama

"Exit, Pursued by a Bear" by E.K. Johnston

This book could also be considered a member of the "contemporary" genre, since it is actually a contemporary, or also perhaps under "retellings," as it is loosely based on Shakespeare's "Winter's Tale." But I have to include it and since it is much less romance-heavy than many other YA contemps, I slipped it in under drama. Anyway, Hermione and her best friend, Polly, are star cheerleaders. While at cheer camp before their senior year, Hermione is raped. This book is not light reading. But it's a stellar book that deals with the heavy topics of sexual assault, PTSD and coming out. Friendship is also an important theme here, as is figuring out who you are outside of your friendships and after trauma. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

8. Sci-Fi

"Adaptation" by Malinda Lo

This is the moment we've all been waiting for (or, at least I have). I present to you a book about a bisexual girl. I could also tell you that it's about teens with strange powers, government conspiracies and birds flinging themselves into jet engines, but that's not what's important here. The main character is a bi girl. Malinda Lo is my hero. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

9. Anticipated

"If I Was Your Girl" by Meredith Russo

This book just came out in May and I haven't read it yet, but I've been hearing buzz about it for ages. It is without a question one of my most anticipated books of this year and I've basically had to swallow my wallet every time I see it in stores to keep myself from buying it (I have too many unread books already piled up that I need to read before thinking about buying new releases). It's about a trans girl navigating a new school, fledgling romance, transphobia and her sense of self. I'm so ready for it. Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Goodreads

Now, I can't leave you without dropping Robin Talley's name into the pot. She's another fabulous queer author with a handful of fabulous queer books (historical and contemporary) already published and waiting for you to dip into. So go forth, friends, and gay up your summer reading lists like you know you want to.