Can be romantic or not. I just want literary fiction featuring intense, obsessive or complex relationships between male characters.
Examples:
Strangers on a train
Enduring love
The talented Mr Ripley
If we were villans
Ladder to the sky
Interview with the vampire
The picture of Dorian Gray
Shards
These Violent Delights
by Viclmol81
15 Comments
The Lord of the Rings is the classic intense (in a positive, wholesome way) male relationship between Samwise Gamgee and Frodo Baggins.
The Spear Cuts Through Water. Everything you’re looking for, and it was my favorite book of 2025. Seriously an incredible read
east of eden is perfect for you
In Memoriam by Alice Winn
Giovanni’s room..
The Goldfinch, A Little Life
The Passenger Sear by Vijay Khurana
A Separate Peace by John Knowles
I fear it does get sometimes over recommended but The Secret History.
Bridgehead revisited
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, I promise you
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
It’s not necessarily a main focus of the book, but Ishmael and Queequeg’s friendship during the narrative of Moby Dick is confusing and adorable.
Blackouts by Justin Torres
A Little Life but goddamn it’s overly depressing
Forbidden Colors by Yukio Mishima