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The Big Books of Fall
As serious bookworms know, autumn reading is particularly rewarding. The days get shorter, the air gets cooler, and curling up with a good book becomes a powerfully appealing proposition.
We have good news: For book lovers, this fall promises to be one of the best in recent memory. Due in part to the disruption of the Covid-19 crisis, many highly anticipated new books intended for earlier release are now dropping in the autumn. Like leaves from a tree, you might say. Fans of speculative fiction are about to get particularly lucky—a broad range of fantasy and science fiction titles are just around the bend.
As always, our fall book guide is based entirely on what readers are letting us know—our list is assembled according to how many times a book has been added to Want to Read shelves. New releases this time around include books from familiar authors such as Nicholas Sparks, Ken Follett, Ruth Ware, Tana French, Susanna Clarke, Don DeLillo, and Ernest Cline. But also watch for buzzed-about new titles from Yaa Gyasi, Stuart Turton, Rumaan Alam, Bryan Washington, Tiffany D. Jackson, and celebrity restaurateur David Chang. Happy reading, all.
This much-anticipated follow-up to the bestseller Homegoing traces the fortunes of Gifty, a fifth-year candidate in neuroscience at Stanford and the bright shining heart of her Ghanaian immigrant family. With her loved ones in distress, Gifty looks for the scientific cause of human suffering.
Release date: September 1
Release date: September 1
A whimsical new crime novel from the author of A Man Called Ove—there’s a Tom Hanks movie adaptation on the way—Anxious People chronicles a hostage situation gone very, very wrong. What’s a self-respecting bank robber to do when he makes the wrong choice and finds himself surrounded by eight impossible people?
Release date: September 8
Release date: September 8
Pulitzer Prize–winning author Ayad Akhtar returns with a powerful and personal novel about an American man and his immigrant father finding their way in the world that 9/11 forged. Part family drama, part sociological investigation, it’s been called “unputdownable” by Salman Rushdie, and that guy knows his adjectives.
Release date: September 15
Release date: September 15
Those who have read Follett’s Pillars of the Earth already know that the writer is a flat-out master of historical fiction. With his new book, Follett provides what is essentially a prequel to that 1989 classic: It’s the tail end of the Dark Ages, and one man in England has plans for a new abbey and center of learning.
Release date: September 15
Release date: September 15
This suspenseful thriller from the author of Rich and Pretty finds two families stranded together in a Long Island rental property after some unknown catastrophe descends on New York City. With the power out and the internet down, no one knows what to do or who to trust. Throw in some complexities on race and class, and things get interesting. And by “interesting” we mean terrifying.
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
The author of the young adult novel The Miseducation of Cameron Post makes her adult fiction debut with this horror-comedy centered on a cursed New England boarding school for girls. This spooky gothic tale begins in 1902 when two students meet an untimely demise and continues 100 years later as infamy and legend grow around the "haunted" school.
Release date: October 20
Release date: October 20
Benson and Mike have a good thing going. Together for years, they’re still in love, even if things are getting choppy. But when Mike leaves for Japan to visit his dying father, Benson finds himself with a new roommate—Mike’s straight-talking mom. Apart for the first time in a long while, the two men find their love tested and lives changed.
Release date: October 27
Release date: October 27
In the decaying Manhattan neighborhood known as Little Syria, a closeted trans boy tries to navigate the suspicious death of his ornithologist mother. An abandoned property and an old journal reveal incredible secrets going back generations, plus a mysterious connection to a rare species of bird that appears to be haunting his family. Intriguing, isn’t it?
Release date: November 3
Release date: November 3
A Brooklyn neighborhood falls into fear and paranoia in the new thriller from Alyssa Cole (A Princess in Theory). Gentrification can get ugly in 21st century New York City, but it gets downright deadly for native Brooklynite Sydney and new arrival Theo. Where do all those people go when gentrification pushes them out? You’ll be surprised.
Release date: September 1
Release date: September 1
Readers of Ruth Ware’s latest delicious mysteries, The Death of Mrs. Westaway and The Turn of the Key, will be psyched to hear about her new book, concerning a tech company retreat, a remote mountain cabin, an avalanche, and a bloody new rearrangement of the corporate food chain.
Release date: September 8
Release date: September 8
Isabel Lincoln has disappeared, and it’s Grayson Sykes’ job to find her. But what if Isabel doesn’t want to be found? The new mystery thriller from Rachel Howzell Hall (They All Fall Down) explores the corrosive nature of secrets in a complex game of pursuit between two very smart and increasingly desperate women.
Release date: September 22
Release date: September 22
A strong case can be made that author Tana French is the single best practicing mystery writer on the planet. Her new book follows retired detective Cal Hooper to a remote village in rural Ireland, where his unique skill set once again proves useful. Read our recent interview with French for more from this modern master of the psychological mystery story.
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
A 30-year-old geography teacher, accused of sexual misconduct, wanders into the dark world of incels—involuntarily celibate males obsessed with their own raging insecurities. Meanwhile, a child psychologist is stalked by a former child patient who suddenly disappears. And it’s all happening on the same street. Expect some twists, then some turns. Then some more twists.
Release date: October 13
Release date: October 13
It’s the year 1634 and Samuel Pipps—the world’s greatest detective—is in big trouble on the high seas. He’s being transported to Amsterdam for execution for a crime he didn’t commit. Probably. That’s trouble enough, but then comes the dead leper stalking the decks of the ship. And the slaughtered livestock. And the arcane symbols. And the demon.
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
For xenobiologist Kira Navárez, it was just another routine research mission on an uncolonized planet. But the dramatic discovery of an ancient alien relic beneath the surface changes everything. Author Christopher Paolini provides an epic tale of first contact, travels to the edge of the galaxy, and just maybe the fate of all humankind.
Release date: September 15
Release date: September 15
From the celebrated author of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell comes a hypnotic new novel with some elastic notions on the time-space continuum. Piranesi lives in a home of infinite rooms and endless passages. His only companion is an entity known as The Other. As Piranesi maps his new environs, which include an entire ocean, a terrible truth begins to unravel. There’s yet another resident in the house.
Release date: September 15
Release date: September 15
You think Harvard is a tough school, try Scholomance. An advanced institute for the magically gifted, Scholomance has only one rule that really matters: Succeed or die. Deadly monsters and other horrors haunt the halls. No teachers. No holidays. No fun at all. But one student, El, has a chance—if she can learn to harness the dark magic within her.
Release date: September 29
Release date: September 29
France, 1714: Addie LaRue has made a Faustian bargain. In exchange for eternal life, she’s cursed to be forgotten by everyone she ever meets. As the decades roll by, Addie discovers the aching despair at the heart of her decision. Until one day, after 300 years, she meets a young man who remembers her...
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
The first in an ambitious new series inspired by the civilizations of the ancient Americas, Black Sun chronicles events during and after the winter solstice in the holy city of Tova. A solar eclipse heralds deadly disruption as Xiala, captain of a ship from a distant land, arrives in the city. Xiala’s ship carries one passenger, blind and scarred. Then things get complicated.
Release date: October 13
Release date: October 13
An intriguing flight into historical fantasy, the new book from Alix E. Harrow (The Ten Thousand Doors of January) tells the story of the Eastwood sisters, three spirited siblings who have just joined the suffragist movement in New Salem. Witchcraft no longer exists in the world, except that it kinda-sorta does—you just have to dodge the dark forces who will not suffer a witch to vote.
Release date: October 13
Release date: October 13
A major release from one of the most acclaimed writers of our time, The Silence finds Pulitzer Prize winner Don DeLillo (Underworld) in a dark mood about our future prospects. On Super Bowl Sunday 2022, a catastrophic event changes the world. Five people in Manhattan turn to face an uncertain fate. DiLillo has a disturbing track record for unnerving prescience, so heads up.
Release date: October 20
Release date: October 20
This cleverly titled sequel to Ready Player One, the blockbuster novel and film, is among the most anticipated books of the fall. Advance details are scarce, but we're hoping for plenty of pop culture references.
Release date: November 24
Release date: November 24
In this new autobiography, world-famous restaurateur David Chang tells of his journey from modest NYC noodle-bar owner to industry titan. Chang opens up about his difficult childhood, feelings of paranoia, and a long struggle with depression. The memoir is said to be a deeply personal and honest telling of a culinary coming-of-age.
Release date: September 8
Release date: September 8
Recommended for fans of Anne Lamott and Cleo Wade, Keep Moving from author Maggie Smith (Good Bones) is written for anyone going through a difficult time. The collection of quotes and essays draw on various world philosophies, like kintsugi, the art of mending broken ceramics with gold. Change is difficult, almost always, but new beginnings can be amazing.
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
True-crime writing, memoir, and investigative reporting come together with this unique book on a 1969 murder at Harvard University. Author Becky Cooper first heard the stories as an undergrad: The dead student, the surprising suspect, the awful details. After years of research, Cooper presents some very uncomfortable answers involving violence, gender, and institutional silencing.
Release date: November 10
Release date: November 10
Pulitzer Prize finalist Laila Lalami returns with a memoir of her journey to America as a Moroccan immigrant. But that’s just the starting point. From there, Lalami digs into the concept of “conditional citizenship,” a kind of invisible caste system that perpetuates itself by keeping some Americans on top and others below.
Release date: September 22
Release date: September 22
Yadriel has a problem. He’s summoned a ghost and now it won’t go away. Author Aiden Thomas tells the story of an aspiring teenage sorcerer, or brujo, whose overly traditional Latinx family has issues accepting his gender. With the help of his best friend and cousin, Yadriel sets out to prove himself. But the ritual goes wrong and now he’s got a new spectral partner with some scores of his own to settle.
Release date: September 1
Release date: September 1
The lone Black girl in her suburban high school, Enchanted Jones has dreams of being a famous R&B singer. When music mogul Korey Fields takes an interest, things start looking up! Then Korey Fields is found dead and things start looking grim. Especially since all signs point to Enchanted as the murderer.
Release date: September 15
Release date: September 15
The debut novel from Chloe Gong is an interesting specimen—a retelling of Romeo and Juliet set in 1920s Shanghai, China. Eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai finds herself in the middle of a blood feud between two rival criminal syndicates, the White Flowers and the Scarlet Gang. Complicating matters, there’s a contagion in the city and a monster in the Huangpu River. It’s never easy, is it?
Release date: November 17
Release date: November 17
Three cousins are invited by their mysterious and wealthy grandmother to work at her island resort for the summer. The weird thing is, Grandma broke off relations with the rest of the family years ago, after some unspoken incident, and no one has communicated with her in years. What does she want? What’s on the island? And why is everything getting so creepy?
Release date: December 1
Release date: December 1
The second installment in Evie Dunmore’s series A League of Extraordinary Women turns to the story of Oxford suffragist Lady Lucie, who has been issued an indecent proposal from her rival Lord Ballentine. Yes, that kind of indecent proposal. What follows is an epic battle of wile, will, and words.
Release date: September 1
Release date: September 1
Genre godfather Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook) is back with the story of wounded veteran and Navy surgeon Trevor Benson. A mortar in Afghanistan has left Trevor recovering in his grandfather’s North Carolina cabin. When two women enter his life, dark secrets from the past are revealed, along with some promising paths into the future.
Release date: September 29
Release date: September 29
Holidays with the family can seem to last forever, but Maelyn Jones has a bigger problem. Her Christmas trip to Utah is literally lasting forever. Some kind of time slip has Mae reliving her vacation over and over. Her only hope is to get longtime crush Andrew under the mistletoe at just the right moment to break the time loop.
Release date: October 6
Release date: October 6
Workaholic professor Naya Turner has decided to try a new kind of to-do list. When she meets a handsome stranger in town on business, she sets some short-term goals, including a no-strings-attached hookup. And it works! Kind of. Now she’s got two options: Return to her staid life of academia or take a chance on a new direction.
Release date: December 1
Release date: December 1
Which books are you most excited to read this season? Let us know in the comments!
Check out more recent articles, including:
48 Highly Anticipated YA Novels for the Rest of 2020
Readers’ Top 40 Book Club Picks
Goodreads Members Suggest: 32 ‘Vacation’ Reads
Check out more recent articles, including:
48 Highly Anticipated YA Novels for the Rest of 2020
Readers’ Top 40 Book Club Picks
Goodreads Members Suggest: 32 ‘Vacation’ Reads
Comments Showing 151-190 of 190 (190 new)
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Debi
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Sep 17, 2020 12:18PM
How is Battle Ground by Jim Butcher not on this list?!?
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I, personally can't wait for Spy School: Revolution. Not sure when that's coming out, though.
Maggie wrote: "It may shock you all, but haF of the world is entering spring. So nice to be constantly negated."
Seriously. Southern Hemisphere has Xmas in summer. The UK and USA are not the entire world. Shocking, I know.
I think Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson is the book I'm most looking forward to this fall. I also had Once and Future Witches on my list!
fall is my favorite! i love all the colors of the leaves! and its so cool outside!
Robin wrote: "I thought Sparks says he didn't write romance? And really, is this all you could come up with in romance? The most prolific and popular genre? (my opinion, of course)"its based on what the Goodreads members added the most to their shelves 🤷🏼♀️
Micah wrote: "I, personally can't wait for Spy School: Revolution. Not sure when that's coming out, though."me too
The one book I'm looking forward to reading is "The Return" by Nicholas Sparks. I've always been a huge fan of his and I've been waiting what seems like forever for a new book from him. I can't wait!
Fall is automatically my favourite season! Nothing feels better than reading a book on rainy and windy days.
Yea..no anyone using bulllshit Latinx instead of Latino gets a hard no from meOn bright I found early Christmas gift for my mom with Ready Player.
Ok of course I want all of them . Too many books , defintely not much money .
Great list! I've marked 6 for my "Want to Read" list. Of those I'm most intrigued by:Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
All of which are authors whom I have not read before, so that's exciting!
Favorite season of all! Fall!!! Although in my country it only either rain or blazing hot out but i still love fall! Can't wait to read those thrillers/mystery in the spirit of the Halloween month!
I added Piranesi, Black Sun, Keep Moving, Plain Bad Heroines, Leave the World Behind, and To Sleep in a Sea of Stars to my To-Read list. Thanks!
more books just got added to my never ending tbr😫
Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity, and Change is the only decent book that I would read from this list.
Ready Player Two and To Sleep in a Sea of Stars these seems quite appealing to me. Just can’t wait for the arrival of autumn.
can't wait for READY PLAYER TWO!
Robin wrote: "I thought Sparks says he didn't write romance? And really, is this all you could come up with in romance? The most prolific and popular genre? (my opinion, of course)"Sparks is mostly all romance. The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, A Walk to Remember...all romances. However, I do agree with the list for romances...kinda boring and disappointing.
Madilynn wrote: "Yes! Can't wait to read a new book! Love fall!"Summer reading is unequivocally my best , but reading outside in a cozy chair on an early fall day is a good second . Thanks for reminding me .
So many good reads and I have some I have purchased coming soon and I need a library to hold them all!
Debbyanne wrote: "So many good reads and I have some I have purchased coming soon and I need a library to hold them all!"Home libraries are cool . Why not start one of your own ?
My newest book takes place in Mane and fall plays a big part in "The One Called Jade" also check out Kaileb's Dream. Finally Fall time to break out the pumokin-spice and settle into a good Novel!
The only ones I don't I don't think I'll read are the memoirs and Nicholas Sparks. But the others look good.
Good old McManus, writing the same book over and over again just tweaking the plot slightly XD
A league of extraordinary women is absolutely awesome ! I loved them both
Serewyn wrote: "Lovely selection. Can't wait for anxious people, leave the world behind and one by one"Leave the World Behind was one of my favourite reads this year.
