James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room invites readers into the intimate world of David, an American in Paris who struggles deeply with his own sexuality.
Set against the vibrant yet lonely backdrop of Europe, Baldwin explores themes of identity, guilt, and longing with emotional intensity. David's profound connection with Giovanni mirrors the ache of desire and self-discovery felt in Call Me By Your Name.
Baldwin's elegant prose captures Paris beautifully, evoking the sensual and atmospheric feel of a European summer, while delivering a powerful and deeply personal story.
The Song of Achilles retells the Greek myth of Achilles and Patroclus, focusing intensely on their love story. Miller weaves mythology into a tender, unforgettably emotional tale filled with vivid language that recalls the lush lyricism found in Call Me By Your Name.
Through Patroclus’s eyes, readers experience passionate first love, profound loyalty, and ultimate tragedy.
Just as André Aciman captures aching vulnerability and longing, Miller's writing reflects deep emotional intimacy, bringing new depth to ancient characters and their bittersweet romance.
Set in Poland during the politically charged 1980s, Swimming in the Dark explores first love against a dramatic historical backdrop.
Ludwig meets Jan at a summer agricultural camp, and their passionate bond grows rapidly, echoing the youthful intensity of Elio and Oliver's summertime connection. Jedrowski portrays hidden desire and societal pressure expertly, capturing the melancholy beauty of forbidden love.
Rich with yearning and nostalgia, this novel examines the powerful internal experiences of personal desire amidst cultural expectations and political turmoil.
In Lie With Me, Philippe, a successful writer in adulthood, looks back on a brief but powerful teenage romance in provincial France.
The novella captures adolescent passion and secrecy superbly, mirroring the yearning, intensity, and melancholy of first love found in Call Me By Your Name.
Besson's graceful narrative brings alive the lingering effects of memories, exploring themes of regret and nostalgia with quiet elegance. Beautifully atmospheric and bittersweet, the story portrays how formative young love can haunt and shape one's entire life.
E.M. Forster's novel Maurice centers on the coming-of-age of its title character, who struggles against his desires in early 20th-century England. Maurice's journey toward self-acceptance and the risks of forbidden attraction recall strongly Elio's inner struggles and growth.
Forster's frankness, remarkable for his time, beautifully captures the longing and internal experience of discovering one's true self. Sweeping and quietly powerful, it addresses the tension between societal constraints and personal fulfillment in a subtle and enduring way.
This novel tells the story of Ari and Dante, two teens who strike up an unlikely friendship, slowly uncovering feelings they never expected.
Set mostly over summer breaks in the Texas desert, this poignant YA novel brings a fresh voice to exploring identity, friendship, and love.
Just as Call Me By Your Name brilliantly captures young desire and self-reflection, Sáenz skillfully blends poetic language and depth of emotion, portraying young love’s discovery with beautiful sensitivity and honesty.
Less follows writer Arthur Less on his humorous and emotional journey around the world, as he tries to escape his ex's wedding. Although lighter in tone than Call Me By Your Name, Greer's novel offers poignant reflections on love, loss, memory, and midlife uncertainty.
With wit and heart, the story examines how past loves shape one's sense of self, echoing Aciman's themes of introspection and bittersweet nostalgia, and capturing the complexity of forming identity and moving forward with acceptance and hope.
Vuong's debut novel takes the form of a beautifully poetic letter from a son to his mother, exploring themes of family, trauma, and queer identity.
The writing style resonates with passion and vulnerability, the narrative vividly capturing the intensity of a young man's first romantic connection.
Like Aciman, Vuong emphasizes the internal, emotional realities of love and longing through lyrical prose that stays with readers long after finishing the last page, giving voice to intimate desires often left unspoken.
Set against the strict societal norms of 1950s America, The Price of Salt depicts the powerful connection between Therese, a young store clerk, and Carol, an elegant older woman. Highsmith describes their attraction and growing closeness sensitively and sharply.
In the spirit of Call Me By Your Name, the novel offers quiet but powerful scenes full of unspoken longing, emotional intensity, and sensual details. Highsmith explores desire and self-discovery under societal repression with subtlety, skill, and emotional depth.
Set in Los Angeles during the 1960s, A Single Man portrays one pivotal day in the life of George, a professor grieving the loss of his partner. Moments of quiet vulnerability reflect internal struggles of deep love and aching solitude.
The narrative shines through subtle details and internal reflections—qualities shared with Aciman’s delicate introspective approach. Isherwood addresses loneliness, longing, and the enduring effects of lost love, capturing George's emotional landscape beautifully and poignantly.
This iconic short novella depicts the secret, forbidden love between two cowboys, Jack and Ennis, in the American West. Proulx’s economical yet evocative prose brings alive raw desire, fear, and painful longing.
Like Call Me By Your Name, Brokeback Mountain is haunted by the bittersweet realization of love both passionate and doomed.
Quiet power resides in the longing and regret felt by characters painfully aware they can never truly be together, pulled apart by social expectations and circumstances beyond their control.
An American teacher living in Bulgaria becomes deeply obsessed with Mitko, a charismatic but elusive hustler. Greenwell’s reflective, lyrical prose vividly captures longing and obsession amid power dynamics and complex desires.
Similar to Elio's intense internal journey, this novel immerses the reader in deeply personal reflections about love, loneliness, and identity.
The atmospheric, evocative Eastern European setting enhances Greenwell’s exploration of sensuality, memory, and emotional vulnerability.
Told across decades, Hollinghurst’s novel unfolds around the lives of several characters linked to an encounter at Oxford. Through a series of richly realized interwoven scenes, the narrative maps the complexities of love across generations.
Like Aciman’s approach, Hollinghurst skillfully conveys internal emotions, shame, societal position, attraction, and desire.
Nostalgia and melancholic reflection linger throughout, vividly rendering life's romantic entanglements, friendships, and consequences across eras and identities.
In Enigma Variations, André Aciman explores love and desire through multiple relationships and memories, creating a narrative structured around intense emotional experiences.
The introspective voice and sensual, nuanced portrayals echo Aciman's powerful writing in Call Me By Your Name. Each relationship unveils a new emotional layer relating to passion, loss, longing, and self-discovery.
With elegant poetic sensibility, Aciman vividly illustrates the lingering impact love has over a lifetime.
This romantic comedy is lighter and charming, centering around the unlikely romance between America's first son and a British prince. Filled with humor, escapism, and heart, the novel offers delightful insight into youthful passion and discovery.
While stylistically lighter than Aciman's work, it holds similar themes of first love’s intensity, identity discovery, and navigating complex relationships.
Readers looking for engaging romance and joyful escapism within queer themes will appreciate McQuiston's fresh narrative style.