Winner of The 2023 American Book Award, The Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Memoir, and a Stonewall—Israel Fishman Non-Fiction Honor Award

Gomez’s witty memoir follows a touching and often hilarious spiralic path to embracing their gay, Latinx identity against a culture of machismo—from their uncle’s cockfighting ring in Nicaragua to cities across the U.S.—and the bath houses, night clubs, and drag queens who helped them redefine pride.

I’ve always found the definition of machismo to be ironic, considering that pride is a word almost unanimously associated with queer people, the enemy of machistas . . . In a world  desperate to erase us, queer Latinx men must find ways to hold onto pride for survival, but excessive male pride is often what we are battling, both in ourselves and in others.

A debut memoir about coming of age as a gay, Latinx person, High-Risk Homosexual opens in the ultimate anti-gay space: Gomez’s uncle’s cockfighting ring in Nicaragua, where they were sent at thirteen years old to become a man. Readers follow Gomez through the queer spaces where he learned to love being gay and Latinx, including Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, a drag queen convention in Los Angeles, and the doctor’s office where they were diagnosed a “high-risk homosexual.”

With vulnerability, humor, and quick-witted insights into racial, sexual, familial, and professional power dynamics, Gomez shares a hard-won path to taking pride in the parts of themselves they were taught to keep hidden. Their story is a scintillating, beautiful reminder of the importance of leaving space for joy.

Click through to pre-order at Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, or Indiebound. It’s also available through Amazon, but please support your local indie bookstore if possible!

(Breaking fourth wall to say I get a 10% kickback if you buy through the Bookshop link, but do you!)

What People Are Saying:

***FEATURED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, VOGUE, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, HARPER’S BAZAAR, NYLON, NBC NEWS, BUZZFEED, USA TODAY, ESQUIRE, OPRAH DAILY, THE LA REVIEW OF BOOKS, BITCH MAGAZINE, POETS & WRITERS, SHONDALAND, TODAY, THE LA TIMES, PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY, BOOKPAGE, COSMOPOLITAN, THE MILLIONS, BOMB, THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY TIMES, ELECTRIC LITERATURE, LAMBDA LITERARY, XTRA MAGAZINE, THE BAY AREA REPORTER, KIRKUS REVIEWS***

“A breath of fresh air. Gomez’s voice is equal parts warmth and acid wit, like a good friend you’re slightly afraid of . . . An exciting debut from an author with a rare point of view."

—JP Brammer, The New York Times

“Hilarious and touching . . . Edgar Gomez's tone is personal, heartfelt, and introspective, with a healthy dose of humor."

—David Vogel, BuzzFeed

“Edgar Gomez’s incandescent prose flickers with an intensity that illuminates his insecurities, his disappointments and his courage.”

—Henry L. Carrigan Jr., BookPage

“Funny, insightful, earnest, clever — Gomez’s debut memoir is a book that will stick with you.”

—Sarah Nielson, Shondaland

“...heartbreaking, funny, and vulnerable... High-Risk Homosexual pulls apart the neat narratives we often see about what it means to come out--and to pursue your creative dreams."

—Eva Recinos, Bitch Magazine

“Outstanding... throughout this impressive memoir [Gomez] writes candidly and with great dexterity about the joys and fears that grounded his innocent childhood and continue to inform and empower his adulthood."

—Jim Piechota, The Bay Area Reporter

"Edgar Gomez is the chaotic queer hero we both need and deserve—with humor and charm, he tenderly leads us into night clubs, bathhouses, the backseat of cars with anonymous men, asking us to examine our current place in the world amongst the lonely and brokenhearted, the ones who dare live our truest lives. For anyone whose coming out and coming of age is messy in all the ways, let High-Risk Homosexual be a road map."

—Christopher Gonzalez, author of I'm Not Hungry but I Could Eat

“High-Risk Homosexual is a keen and tender exploration of queer identity, masculinity, and belonging. From the cockfighting ring in Nicaragua, where he was taken by his uncles to learn how to be a man, to Pulse Night Club in Orlando, where he witnesses freedom and joy on the dance floor, Edgar Gomez writes with honesty and humor about the difficulty of straddling boundaries and the courage of finding oneself. This book signals the arrival of a major new talent.”

—Laila Lalami, author of Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America and The Other Americans

“In this crackling debut, Gomez recounts his coming-of-age as a queer man, passionately exploring what it means to celebrate one’s identities and to make space for joy in the most unlikely places… The result transcends a simple coming-out story to instead offer a brilliant and provocative interrogation of sex, gender, race, and love.”

—Publisher’s Weekly, Starred Review

"The search for a way to exist at the intersection of ethnic identity and sexuality—a fraught expedition filled with alarming discoveries and awkward encounters—is fiercely articulated in this excellent debut memoir.”

—Rigoberto González, author of Butterfly Boy

"High-Risk Homosexual is a vivacious, compelling, and intimate portrait about queer coming of age and finding oneself. Gomez’s writing has this special way of inviting us in, like an old friend, catching us up to the pains, doldrums, and pleasures of living, reminding us at every turn of the exquisite messiness that is life. This memoir is a sheer delight, and one not to be missed."

—Marcos Gonsalez, author of Pedro’s Theory: Reimagining the Promised Land

“This book examines Latinx queer identity in all its layers while incisively critiquing the notion of machismo as a cultural marker. In prose that is at turns funny and savvy as it is serious and contemplative, Gomez has written the memoir I wish I could have.”

—Alex Espinoza, The LA Times

“Poignant, vivid, and often hilarious, this coming-of-age memoir fearlessly explores intersectional identity and shows what it means to live and love authentically as a gay man today. An engagingly candid memoir from a promising young writer.”

—Kirkus Reviews

"A must-read memoir about sex, love, and queerness . . . [Gomez] balances tender moments with the sharpest wit."

—Adam Vitcavage, Debutiful

“Gomez has a gift for taking in small, strange details as though they were rusty pennies on the ground for him to polish and shine… Gorgeous and hilarious.”

—Sophia June, Nylon

"I loved this memoir so much. Gomez had me crying and laughing while also taking deep breaths throughout the pages."

—Lupita Aquino, TODAY

"Gomez has done the near-impossible: written a queer coming of age tale that feels entirely fresh and unique... his prose sparkle with the sort of deliciously dry wit that can’t be bought or taught..."

—The San Francisco Bay Times

“A bracing cri de coeur of personal liberty... This memoir is also a kick in the face—and a sexy touchdown dance afterward—at the pervasive culture of machismo in Latinx society.”

—Ernesto Mestre-Reed, Oprah Daily

“Gomez’s vulnerable and humorous voice gives strength to High-Risk Homosexual . . . there is a universal narrative that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt marginalized.”

—Trey Burnette, The LA Review of Books

“The laughs the book elicits are as loud as the beating heart binding its pages.”

—Greg Mania, BOMB Magazine

"Gomez could write beautifully about a toothpick... High-Risk Homosexual makes a convincing case that no matter what society makes of you—criminal, reject, a high-risk homosexual—a life of one’s own making is worth every risk."

—Matthew Caprioli, Lambda Literary

“A riotously funny and poignant debut by a quick-witted new voice . . . This book—open, anguished, brimming with humanity—is, above all, a work of hope.”

—Isabella Pilotta Gois, Latino Book Review

“High-Risk Homosexual is like a delicious cocktail: sharp, nuanced, sweet and tender when the bite must be tempered. Edgar Gomez writes with the magnetic candor that flourishes at gay bars, with as much style as all the queens at DragCon, with observant eyes well-trained in steamy bathhouses—all of which he sketches in these electric pages. This book parses queer spaces, the queer self, with a heart as intelligent and thoughtful as its author. As he proves in his unapologetic memoir, Gomez is a force to be reckoned with.”

—Matt Ortile, author of The Groom Will Keep His Name

“Edgar Gomez has written a memoir that stands out among so many others, with a narrative voice that's singularly hilarious and observant and unforgettable, so perfectly nuanced with memory and humor in limning the landscapes of love in Florida and Nicaragua. At the center is his mother, a bright vivid burst of fear and tenderness and absolute deephearted love. High-Risk Homosexual presents a brand new voice of impeccable clarity and vision.”

—Susan Straight, American Book Award finalist and author of In The Country of Women

"There's a rhythm to vulnerable, honest writing and Edgar Gomez doesn't miss a beat in High-Risk Homosexual. His characters—his mother, his friends, his lovers—are his dance partners that he lovingly dips and twirls across the page, their beauty on full display even as he bares their humanity and his own to the audience. This memoir is a master class in humor with warmth, not ridicule, and truth with tenderness, not overexposure. Pick this book up for the laughs, but have your tissue ready for a few tears too."

—Minda Honey, author of An Anthology of Assholes

"High-Risk Homosexual is an absolute marvel in voice, style, and its raucous, tender, heartbreaking, compassionate, and ultimately triumphant examination of gay spaces, the politics of gender, violence against GLBTQ folks, and, of course, the human heart. Edgar Gomez is an unforgettable writer with enviously fantastic storytelling skills. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll rage, you'll buy this book for all of your friends."

—Emily Rapp Black, author of Sanctuary and Frida Kahlo and My Left Leg

"Rich in detail, intelligence, and emotion, High-Risk Homosexual is a literary joy... with grace and humor, [Gomez has] served up a remarkable, inspiring, and poignant book that belongs in every library and on every high school and college reading list."

—Daniel A. Olivas, The Millions