Summer is always the perfect time for reading. With the warm sun and lots of free time, so many people read an abundance of books. Now, with school starting and homework piling up, it’s harder to find time to read even though the weather is perfect for an academia vibe. These books are sure to give you all the autumn vibes and make you fall back in love with reading.
Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Pages:409
Genres/Tropes: Mythology, Adventure, Rivals-to-lovers, Romance
Rating: 4/5
“It is the first day of November and so, today, someone will die” is an opening sentence that immediately sets the tone for a high stakes challenge against the cool breeze of an early autumn morning. On the misty island of Thisby there live water horses, capall uisce, who have a hunger for human flesh and run wild. Every November competitors come from around the world to compete, bet on, and race in the Scorpio Races, a deadly horse race where jockeys must tame and ride the capall uisce. Puck’s parents have been killed by the capall uisce, and now she’s struggling to take care of her brothers when money is tight. In a desperate moment she enters as the first girl in the Scorpio Races, in hopes that she will win the prize money. Sean Kendrick has a mystical way with the horses and even though he will ultimately have to compete against Puck he agrees to help her train. Stiefvater’s writing is masterful in The Scorpio Races, and the romance is subtle, yet adorable. With thrilling events and life or death situations, this book is the perfect November read.
The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson
Pages:448
Genres/Tropes: Mystery, Crime, Sunshine x Grumpy, Suspense
Rating: 5/5
Sixteen years ago, Annabel Price’s mother, Rachel Price, disappeared, leaving young Bel in the car, and no one has heard from her since. It’s been a long debate across the US of whether Rachel disappeared of her own volition, or was kidnapped. An English director gets wind of the story and drags his small production team overseas to film a documentary of the Price family, completely invading Bel’s life. The production team poking and prodding Bel with questions and mic packs annoys her endlessly but it gets a hundred times worse when one day Rachel Price shows back up in the same outfit she first disappeared in sixteen years ago. The production team is thrilled with the twist this gives their story but Bel is skeptical that the story her mother weaves about her kidnapper is true. Readers join Bel and young camera manager, Ash, as they work together to figure out the truth about the reappearance of Rachel Price. Author Holly Jackson continues to create mysteries perfect for fall with stunning twists and turns, and a raw aspect of humanity.
Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Pages: 408
Genres/Tropes: Greek mythology, Retelling, Queer, Tragedy
Rating: 5/5
Achilles is an unmatched warrior, longing for glory, who’s widely considered “the best of all Greeks,” while Patroclus is his opposite. As a healer, Patroclus wants nothing but peace and safety. Through fate they meet and form an inseparable bond, but when Achilles decides to go to war against the Trojans, destiny has new plans for them. Taking place in Ancient Greece, Song of Achilles is a Greek mythology retelling and a classic of this generation, with gods, fate, and heartbreak around every corner.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Pages: 374
Genres/Tropes: Chosen One, Love Triangle, Dystopian
Rating: 4/5
The Hunger Games is arguably the most famous book of this generation and for good reason. Set in the Northeast, in the future, the fall setting is a perfect cushion to this riveting social commentary. Katniss Everdeen gets selected to participate in the Hunger Games; an event where 24 kids fight to the death as the higher classes watch with glee. Katniss must fight for her life in the midst of a rebellion brewing, and face her own inner turmoil.
Curse of the Specter Queen by Jenny Elder Moke
Pages: 352
Genres/Tropes: History-mystery, Childhood crush, Adventure, Action
Rating: 3/5
Samantha Knox loved going on treasure hunts when she was a kid, but now that she’s lost her family and wealth during World War I, she works at a quiet old bookstore with no adventure. Until one day when she retrieves a package with a mysterious diary inside, and Sam learns that dangerous people are after it. Sam, along with her best friend and childhood crush, venture around Europe on the run, trying to save the sacred book, all while finding what its true power holds. This new take on Indiana Jones has just the right amount of mystery to begin your Halloween vibes, but it’s cozy and light-hearted enough for a sunny afternoon.
The Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron
Pages: 370
Genres/Tropes: Retelling, Contemporary, Queer, Witches
Rating: 4/5
Briseis lives in a small apartment above a flower shop in New York City, which is not the ideal environment for her because she has the unique ability to grow plants with a single touch. In hopes that Bri can learn to control her power, her family moves to an old ancestral home in a small town. Upon arrival Bri immediately notices that everything on the property and everything in her family’s history is not as it seems. As Bri discovers secrets, poison gardens, witches, and multiple love interests, she must relearn everything she knows all while trying to keep her power under control. The Poison Heart has a darker element perfect for fall, but it also has a more romantic aesthetic to it for people who don’t want heart-racing thrillers this season.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Pages: 433
Genres/Tropes: Murder mystery, Thriller, Plot Twist, Slowburn, Suspense
Rating: 5/5
Five years ago seventeen year-old Andie Bell was murdered and her boyfriend, Sal, was accused of committing the crime. Two days later he was found dead too. The entire town believes that Sal killed Andie; everyone except Pip. Pip decides to solve the case of Andie’s murder for her school project with the help of Sal’s brother, Ravi. Pip puts her life on the line and learns more than she ever bargained for in the first book of the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder trilogy. This is the perfect book for spooky season, and will leave you gasping at the bloody twists and turns.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Pages: 559
Genres/Tropes: Classic, Psychological Thriller, Found Family
Rating: 5/5
In Hampden, Vermont, during the early 90’s, a group of eccentric students, with a wide variety of personalities, are studying Greek. But they aren’t just majoring in Greek; they are devoting their entire life to it. The mysterious Greek professor, Julian, makes the students drop any classes that aren’t his, and he coaches them in the classics as they relearn everything they’ve thought about the world. The Secret History is an elegantly written modern classic that is impossible to read any other time of the year.
One for My Enemy by Olivie Blake
Pages: 427
Genres/Tropes: Crime, Forbidden Romance, Retelling, Witches
Rating: 2/5
In New York City two rival gangs of witches are violently fighting for control over their prospective criminal ventures. On one side lies the Antonova sisters, wickedly electrifying girls selling intoxicants to both the magic and non-magic citizens of New York. Koschei the Deathless and his three sons control the other family which specializes in the illegal selling of antique objects and weapons. Despite the harsh rivalry, many members of each family continuously get wrapped up with each other, creating a daring, brutal, and modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet. With intricate and lyrical writing, Blake transports readers to an unsettling side of the Big Apple, where readers will be left shivering from more than the cold as they realize how brutal the characters are to each other, not just physically but psychologically too.
Gilded by Marissa Meyer
Pages: 502
Genres/Tropes: Fantasy, Retellings, Forbidden Love
Rating: 3/5
Marissa Meyer, known for her fairytale retellings, returns to the magical world with a spooky Rumplestilskin retelling. Serilda loves to tell outlandish tales, but one day she goes too far and gets kidnapped by the dark, brutal and mysterious Erkling. In a castle made of shadows and darkness Serilda has one night to spin an entire stack of straw into gold. She believes all hope is lost until a mysterious boy named Gild arrives to help her. Gild and Serilda get closer until romance blooms in this perfectly dark retelling of a classic story.
