Afro-Latine voices still don’t get the respect they deserve, be that in publishing at large, in award conversations, or in spaces like BookTok and bookstagram. Black History Month gives us an opportunity to correct that imbalance—to center and celebrate writers enriching the world of books and reading with their stories. But let’s be clear: this isn’t a February-only reading list.
If we’re serious about expanding our shelves and our perspectives, then these authors deserve our attention all year long. From historical and contemporary romance to horror and magical stories for kids, these Afro-Latine authors’ books deserve to be dog-eared, discussed in book clubs, handsold, and recommended often. Black History Month can serve as a starting point and a celebration—but let’s keep that same energy well beyond these 28 days.
Vincent Tirado
You Should Have Been Nicer to My Mom (March 10)
You may know non-binary Afro-Dominican horror writer Vincent Tirado from titles like We Came to Welcome You and the Pura Belpré Award-winning YA novel, Burn Down, Rise Up. Their latest is one of my most anticipated books of 2026, and I can’t wait to get my hot little hands on it.
Papi Ramon is the recently deceased patriarch of a wealthy family, and he’s sown a little chaos in his final will and testament: “One of you is a demon I made a bargain with long ago. Get rid of ’em or be damned. Peace!” No one takes it seriously, save for his undisputed favorite, Xiomara. But when the rest of the family sends the lawyer away to retrieve the original will—you know, to be sure—a storm hits and leaves them all stranded together. Over a harrowing 12-hour time period, all hell breaks loose, and it’s up to Xiomara to suss out the demon and take them out.
Elizabeth Acevedo
With the Fire on High
You know Elizabeth Acevedo, I know Elizabeth Acevedo. She is perhaps best known for her YA novels-in-verse The Poet X and Clap When You Land, and her most recent adult release, Family Lore. All of those are perfection, but don’t sleep on the deliciousness that is With the Fire On High. The recipes in the book are worth the price of admission, but the real magic is the agency afforded to the book’s fierce heroine, aspiring chef Emoni. She has big dreams and an even bigger sense of responsibility to her young daughter, one that makes those dreams feel impossible to pursue. But hers is a kind of talent that can’t be ignored, and giving in to that talent will set Emoni free. I love the descriptions of the food, of Emoni’s family life, of her community, and how her narrative defies the tropes we often see in depictions of teen motherhood. Have snacks on hand for this one!
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Jaquira Diaz
This is the Only Kingdom
Jaquira Díaz’s Ordinary Girls was everywhere in 2019, and I do mean everywhere: it got glowing reviews from Oprah, Publishers Weekly, Time, Bustle, and of course, Book Riot. It is a gut-punch of a memoir about Díaz’s difficult childhood, but also her triumphant coming of age.
Her latest, This is the Only Kingdom, is high on my TBR, and was one of Jamie Canavés’ picks for the Best Books of 2025. “With a focus on mother-daughter relationships, this is a deeply felt, layered generational drama and coming-of-age novel. Maricarmen’s life changes as a teen in Puerto Rico when her mom throws her out after overhearing her confess her love for a boy she was forbidden to date. Decades later, her daughter Nena finds herself in Miami trying to understand generational trauma. This was one of the very few 2025 releases that I was highly anticipating that actually delivered, and just like Díaz’s memoir, I felt this book inside my bones.”
Aya de León
Undercover Latina
Aya de León is a Puerto Rican, African American, and West Indian author, and that’s just a small part of her résumé; she’s also been an acquiring editor for a climate justice fiction imprint, a creative writing professor, and a Poet Laureate at UC Berkeley. She writes for both adults and younger readers and blends genres in her fiction, which generally include crime, romance elements, and social justice themes. I’ve recently been obsessed with The Factory series about an undercover crime-fighting teen in a spy family taking down climate criminals. For a fantastic primer on where to get started with her work overall (and there’s lots to love there), check out this reading pathway.
Mia Sosa
When Javi Dumped Mari
I love me some Mia Sosa. The Worst Best Man and The Wedding Crasher made me realize I kinda dig romances with wedding themes in spite of being high priestess of the Señoras Solteras Association, and her story in the Amor Actually anthology (more Latine Christmas romances, porfis!!) was one of my favorites.
When Javi Dumped Mari was another banger; the “one engagement, two best friends” setup is reminiscent of My Best Friend’s Wedding with a Latine twist. I love the explorations of class difference in relationships, the side characters who are as vividly (and lovingly) drawn as the MCs, and all the many family dynamics . You don’t have to wait long for Sosa’s next release, The Starter Ex, which drops in March 2026 and has a fantastic premise (the MC’s very profitable side gig is dating people’s crushes and making their lives miserable). But if you’re the impatient kind, you can dive into Sosa’s formidable backlist in the meantime.
Claribel A.Ortega
Witchlings
This magical middle grade novel is a delight for kids (and adults, obvio) looking for a witchy read. Twelve-year-old Seven Salazar lives in a magical town where young Witchlings are sealed into covens at a special annual ceremony. Five Witchlings are selected for each of the five magical houses, and three leftover Witchlings have the misfortune of becoming Spares. Sev hopes to join House Hyacinth with her bestie, but any house is fine as long as she isn’t a Spare. But whomp whomp, a Spare is exactly what she is, and the other two Witchlings in her Spare coven are an awkward new girl and Sev’s worst enemy. To add insult to injury, now the ritual to seal their coven has failed. The only option left is something called “the impossible task.” Should be easy!
Adriana Herrera
A Caribbean Heiress in Paris
Adriana Herrera is another romance author with a backlist to get lost in, a collection of contemporary and historical romances that range from sweet to spicy with irresistible Latine characters that leap off the page. I was first introduced to her through Mangoes and Mistletoe, a sapphic foodie holiday novella about a pastry chef and a home chef who meet at a baking competition in Scotland. I really knew she was an auto-read for me with her story in the aforementioned Amor Actually, but her Las Leonas series? This is Herrera’s big one. This series is the kind of diversity in historical romance I’ve been craving so deeply. In this first installment, we get a sexy jaunt set in 1889 Paris with a Dominicana MC who’s an heiress to a rum empire. The whole series is just perfection, and I wouldn’t be mad at you if you stopped reading this post to go read it right now.
Cleyvis Natera
The Grand Paloma Resort
I stumbled upon this book when I’d just finished Season 3 of The White Lotus and was in need of another helping of “rich people problems” media. This book satisfied that need beautifully and made me excited to read more of Natera’s work.
The Grand Paloma Resort takes place over the course of seven days at an exclusive Dominican Republic resort, where two sisters find themselves in an impossible situation. Laura has clawed her way into a successful career at the resort and is on the brink of a promotion that could change her life for good. Her sister Elena is a babysitter at the resort, and one of her charges is missing and presumed dead. That’s bad enough, but then Laura discovers that the missing girl’s father offered Elena a platanos amount of cash in exchange for arranging private time with two young local girls. Gross. Sisters, resorts, rich people being terrible… yep, I’m ready. (And yes, I have been trying to make “platanos” happen as a stand-in for “bananas” for years—I think it might be my “fetch.”)
Related Reading:
5 Contemporary Afro-Latinx Authors You Should Know
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