Hot Girls with Balls

Nguyen dazzles in her riotous debut, which follows two Asian trans women as their rival indoor men’s volleyball teams compete for a championship. Pro athlete–influencers Six, 27, and Green, 28, who have been long-distance dating for nearly two years, split their time between preparing for the tournament, securing brand deals, and hosting their weekly Instagraph show where they broadcast their relationship to their fervent fans. But as their social media fame grows, tensions rise between the couple. Green, anxious to catch up to the more “trendily genderfluid” Six’s follower count, wants to keep aspects of their relationship private, while laid-back Six pushes for transparency. When news breaks of the murder of three Asian trans women, Green sees an opportunity to use their platform to advocate for trans rights and plan their post-volleyball future, but their efforts backfire as followers accuse them of exploiting the tragedy. Meanwhile, Green’s teammate Walt battles dysphoria and uncertainty about coming out as trans herself, and the anonymous account @transaretrans takes harrowing measures to undermine Six and Green’s success. With agile prose and tongue-in-cheek humor, Nguyen delivers sharp insights into the pressure trans people face to justify their identities and gender presentations. This bold novel hits as hard as a spike to the face. Agent: Danielle Bukowski, Sterling Lord Literistic. (July)

Correction: A previous version of this review misdescribed the three murdered trans women as sex workers.