Everyone’s heard of a beach read: a perfectly thick paperback book with a bright cover depicting two people walking along the coast. They beg to be read by the water and under the warm glow of a July sun. Who doesn’t indulge in a sickly sweet beach read?
But as the crisp autumn air creeps in, a different genre takes the stage. You heard me, it’s time to clear your book shelves for my top five fall reads. The feeling of a warm blanket is embedded in the pages of these books. Make sure your pumpkin candles are nearby, because you are going to need them!
For the Mystery and Thriller Lovers:
Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson
In seven days, Jett Mason will be dead. A dryly funny and witty main character must solve her own murder after being attacked on Halloween night and suffering a major head injury. This fast-paced book will get your heart racing and demands to not be put down. Full with secrets, break-ins, and the essence of Halloween, this book is always at the top of my recommendation list. And it’s based in Vermont!
For the Historical Fiction Lovers:
Wolf Worm by T. Kingfisher
A gothic novel about the sinister inhabitants of the North Carolina woods, Wolf Worm is guaranteed to send shivers down your spine. Sonia Wilson moves to North Carolina for a job as a scientific illustrator for a renowned researcher. Except when she gets there, she quickly notices something is amiss in the woods behind his mansion. Major creepy crawly factor in this book; proceed at your own risk.
For the Vampire Lovers:
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
The walls of Coldtowns are locked from the inside; once you enter, you can never leave. Within these walls, quarantined monsters and humans live together as predator and prey. Tana wakes up after a party to find her ex-boyfriend and a mysterious man imbued with a deadly secret and she must embark into the heart of Coldtown to save them.
I read this book in seventh grade and it has lived in my head rent free since then. Holly Black, you’re a genius.
For the True Crime Lovers:
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
A true story from inside an opulent mansion in Savannah, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil pleads the case of murder versus self-defense. This book reads like fiction despite its nonfiction tale. From the society ladies, to the funny black drag queen, and an infamous antiques dealer, the characters in this story are anything but ordinary, and make up the heart and soul of this novel.
I toured the house when I visited Savannah and can confidently say, this book is worth the read.
For the Summerween Lovers:
I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones
Set in West Texas in the summer of 1989, seventeen-year-old Tolly Driver is an outcast who narrates this story as his future autobiography. After being cursed and compelled to kill for revenge, Tolly teams up with his best friend Amber to live out the classic horror-movie slasher trope. This novel is a testimony to the 1980s slasher genre and features the influences of hair metal and 80s nostalgia.
If you need me, I’ll be under a cozy blanket reading my next thriller novel. Want more recommendations? The link to my Fable is here!