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Goodreads Members' Most Anticipated Fall Books
If you’re planning to get some good reading in this fall, better start carving out the time now. This autumn’s lineup of new books is particularly amazing—in fact, there’s an absolute flood of highly anticipated titles from award-winning authors coming round the bend.
For your consideration: new fiction from Diana Gabaldon and Jonathan Franzen, new mysteries from Colson Whitehead and Liane Moriarty, new sci-fi from Alix E. Harrow and genre godfather Neal Stephenson, and new nonfiction from Zeba Blay and David Sedaris. Plus romance and YA and horror, oh my!
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. Be sure to add anything that catches your eye to your own Want to Read shelf, and let us know what you're reading and recommending in the comments.
Irish author Sally Rooney has been called the foremost millennial writer to crack the world book market, and her last one, Normal People, was quickly adapted into a 12-part TV series for the BBC and Hulu. Rooney’s new book concerns four friends whose acquaintances turn intimate. And complex.
Release date: September 7
Release date: September 7
Historical fiction fans will want to consider this latest from Lauren Groff (Fates and Furies): Independent and headstrong, 17-year-old Marie de France is kicked out of the royal court and assigned to oversee a run-down English abbey, where she finds unexpected passion and purpose with her new sisters.
Release date: September 7
Release date: September 7
Pulitzer Prize and four-time National Book Critics Circle Award finalist Richard Powers returns with an intriguing tale of an astrobiologist engaging life on the personal and the cosmic scale. Widower Theo Byrne is set to try an experimental new treatment for his nine-year-old; it involves the recorded electrical patterns of his dead mother’s brain.
Release date: September 21
Release date: September 21
With his 2014 novel All the Light We Cannot See, Pulitzer Prize winner Anthony Doerr took historical fiction to new heights. His new book is even more ambitious, threading together an overarching epic via three separate timelines: in 1453, in the present day, and several decades into the future.
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
From the author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility, this new helping of richly layered historical fiction concerns 18-year-old Emmett Watson. Recently released from a work farm, Watson and his eight-year-old brother run afoul of the law in rural Nebraska, circa 1954. Amor Towles books require and reward careful attention, so set some time aside now.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
Autumn’s parade of marquee authors continues with this latest novel from Jonathan Franzen, author of The Corrections. Crossroads is the first of a planned trilogy that will span three generations of the Hildebrandt family and will endeavor to illuminate the political, intellectual, and social crosscurrents of the past 50 years. Franzen does not play around.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
Pulitzer winner and member of the Anishinaabe nation (also known as Chippewa), Louise Erdrich is counted among the best of the new wave of Native American novelists. Her latest book follows the fortunes of an Ojibwe woman named Tookie and her part in what appears to be a yearlong, worldwide epidemic of ghosts and hauntings.
Release date: November 9
Release date: November 9
Diana Gabaldon’s massively popular Outlander series gets its long-awaited new installment in this ninth book, set in the early days of the American Revolutionary War. Claire and Jamie are reunited with their daughter Brianna and her family in the brambles of backcountry North Carolina. But with war on the doorstep, the past isn’t a safe place to be.
Release date: November 23
Release date: November 23
The debut novel from Korean-born author Juhea Kim is enjoying all manner of advance buzz. Starting in 1917 Korea, the book follows two young friends along an epic arc that sweeps through the wilds of rural Korea to the courtesan schools of Pyongyang, from the cafés of Seoul to the forests of Manchuria.
Release date: December 7
Release date: December 7
Alice Feeney (Sometimes I Lie) returns with another domestic thriller stitched all the way through with twists you don’t expect and revelations that you never see coming. In her new book, Adam and Amelia Wright randomly win a Scottish vacation and a chance to save their foundering marriage. Except maybe the trip isn’t so random after all.
Release date: September 7
Release date: September 7
Writer Colson Whitehead can work literary miracles with genre material—check out his elegant zombie apocalypse book Zone One for ironclad proof. With his new book, Whitehead tackles the heist story with an adventure in the heart of 1960s Harlem, New York. There are no sure things in publishing, except that there kind of are, and this is one of them.
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
The Delaney family is a fixture in the community and the envy of all their friends, a happy clan with a thing for tennis. But when matriarch Joy goes missing, her husband, Stan, is the prime suspect. The latest from author Liane Moriarty (Big Little Lies) digs deep into the strange history of one conflicted family.
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
Adopted from a Sri Lankan orphanage as a child, Paloma has always felt lucky. Her wealthy adoptive parents always provided. Now on her own at age 30, she attempts to pay her luck forward by helping another newcomer to America, a young man from India named Arun. Then Arun discovers her darkest secret…
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
Richard Osman’s delightful Thursday Murder Club series features a quartet of septuagenarians who solve murder cases from their peaceful retirement village. Their latest case involves diamonds, mobsters, and an old friend with a dangerous dilemma. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron have almost 300 years of life experience among them. Should be no problem.
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
Recommended for fans of Attica Locke, Harlan Coben, and Celeste Ng, this suspenseful thriller follows the strange fate of Ellice Littlejohn, a Black lawyer who finds serious trouble when her boss is found dead. Complication #1: Ellice was kinda-sorta dating her boss. #2: A sinister corporate conspiracy is revealed. #3: Ellice has her own secrets to hide.
Release date: November 2
Release date: November 2
Here’s a thought experiment: What if monsters are real? Like, really real. Like, they’re popping out of hiding all over the world, people are disappearing, mysterious deaths are spiking, and suicides are sweeping the planet. Cadwell Turnbull (The Lesson) asks the relevant question: What has scared the monsters out of the dark?
Release date: September 7
Release date: September 7
T.J. Klune’s warm, wry, and quirky approach to fantasy storytelling has won him a devoted tribe of admirers. His new yarn, Under the Whispering Door, deals with the theme of grief and features a reluctant dead man, a curious romance, a mysterious ferryboat ride, and a powerful being called the Manager.
Release date: September 21
Release date: September 21
Family is a tricky thing. Everyone knows this. But author Ryka Aoki takes things to another level with the story of three women who find one another in a seriously strange universe. Prep yourself for interstellar refugees, desperate musicians, queer romance, haunted violins, Faustian bargains, and a little doughnut shop at the center of the galaxy.
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
How’s this sound? A fierce and feminist retelling of the Sleeping Beauty legend from the author of The Ten Thousand Doors of January and last year’s fabulous The Once and Future Witches. Sounds pretty good, right? Author Alix E. Harrow has earned a sterling reputation for delivering cutting-edge speculative fiction with verve and vigor.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
Cryptonomicon. The Diamond Age. Snow Crash. Zodiac. Writer Neal Stephenson has delivered some of the best and most challenging sci-fi novels of the last 30 years. Stephenson returns this fall with a deeply considered cautionary tale on the current trajectory of climate change and the terrible choices that lie ahead.
Release date: November 16
Release date: November 16
Andrew and Eddie shared a bond deeper than any other they experienced individually. When Eddie is found dead of an apparent suicide, Andrew descends into Eddie’s world of hot boys, fast times, hard drugs, and treacherous academia. Further complicating matters: a bloody apparition that won’t leave Andrew alone. Uh-oh.
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
Set in a dark-mirror reflection of postwar England, Caitlin Starling’s neo-Gothic horror novel features plenty of elements you might expect: a crumbling manor, a mysterious benefactor, dark and stormy nights. But then the twists start twisting. The Death of Jane Lawrence is recommended for those who like Daphne du Maurier but might like to see some subversion applied, too.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
Winner of this fall’s creepiest book cover contest, Cassandra Khaw’s intriguing ghost story features an old Japanese mansion, a deeply unsettling legend, and a severely ill-advised wedding venue decision. Bonus trivia: Author Khaw is a senior scriptwriter at the marquee videogame studio Ubisoft Montreal.
Release date: October 19
Release date: October 19
Popular science writer Mary Roach takes a funny and exuberant approach to the topic of law-breaking animals in Fuzz, a collection of investigations that could technically be filed under the true-crime genre. Trotting the globe, Roach profiles burglarizing bears, larcenous macaws, killer elephants, trespassing moose—like that.
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
Matthew Pearl, author of the acclaimed novel The Dante Club, turns to nonfiction with this unique book, a historical account of the little-known kidnapping of frontiersman Daniel Boone’s teenage daughter. Jemima Boone was abducted by a Cherokee raiding party just weeks after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. No, we'd never heard about it, either.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
Generally acknowledged as the funniest writer on the planet, professional memoirist David Sedaris returns with a new collection of diary entries. The new book is essentially part two of his previous collection, Theft by Finding, and brings readers more or less up to date on the last 17 years in the delightful saga of David Raymond Sedaris.
Release date: October 5
Release date: October 5
HuffPost culture writer Zeba Blay was among the first to popularize the viral hashtag “carefreeblackgirls,” and she expands on the concept in this new book of essays. Blay's book includes celebratory and thoughtful consideration of Black women throughout history, with profiles of Josephine Baker, Michelle Obama, Rihanna, and Cardi B.
Release date: October 19
Release date: October 19
It’s the kind of book we need right about now: Famed naturalist Jane Goodall (In the Shadow on Man) and author Douglas Abrams (The Book of Joy) present a running dialogue on the concept of Hope. Goodall’s Four Reasons for Hope: The Amazing Human Intellect, The Resilience of Nature, The Power of Young People, and The Indomitable Human Spirit. Speak it, sister.
Release date: October 19
Release date: October 19
Author Xiran Jay Zhao’s intriguing sci-fi story imagines a world where teenage boys and girls are forced to pilot Chrysalises, colossal robots used to fight off giant mecha aliens that threaten humankind. When 18-year-old Zetian survives a terrible ordeal, she’s labeled an Iron Widow, a young woman with the power to end the brutal misogyny and repression in the culture.
Release date: September 21
Release date: September 21
Raised in her father’s magical curiosity shop, Evangeline Fox knows all about the immortal Prince of Hearts. And she knows that you bargain with him at your own peril. But Evangeline is desperate to stop the love of her life from marrying another. Anyway, the Prince has only asked for three kisses. What could go wrong?
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
The sequel to the critically acclaimed Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, this follow-up continues the story of two young gay men navigating a world that doesn’t understand them. When a shocking loss rattles their world, their relationship is tested like never before. Bonus trivia: Author Sáenz studied philosophy and theology in the U.S. and Belgium.
Release date: October 12
Release date: October 12
The world flips upside down for 17-year-old Julie when her boyfriend, Sam, suddenly dies in a horrible tragedy. Abandoning her previous plans—college in the city, a summer in Japan—Julie tries to run away from the past. She calls his cellphone one last time, just to hear his voice. And that’s when Sam picks up the phone, from the Other Side…
Release date: November 9
Release date: November 9
From the A League of Extraordinary Women series, Evie Dunmore’s historical romance spotlights the odd pairing of London banking heiress Hattie Greenfield with handsome and brooding Scotsman Lucian Blackstone. In the world of finance, strategic couplings are a viable business maneuver. But what happens when a marriage of convenience becomes inconveniently hot?
Release date: September 7
Release date: September 7
Debut novelist Ali Hazelwood specializes in romantic comedy stories featuring women in science and academia. The Love Hypothesis posits a thought experiment: What happens when a real scientist stages a fake romance with a hotshot professor? Third-year Ph.D. candidate Olive Smith is about to find out.
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
From the author of You Had Me at Hola, this slowly percolating romance chronicles the complicated love life of corporate marketing executive Michelle Amato. Mich is perfectly content being the black sheep of her marriage-obsessed Puerto Rican Italian family. But when an old childhood friend circles back into her life, several personal and professional opportunities present themselves.
Release date: September 14
Release date: September 14
Witches have love lives, too, you know, and they’re as prone to mistakes as any of us. Mistakes like, say, throwing a hex on an ex-boyfriend that unexpectedly bounces in all the wrong directions. Erin Sterling’s witchy rom-com features irascible ghosts, talking cats, animated wind-up toys, and love in small-town Georgia.
Release date: September 28
Release date: September 28
Which books are you most excited to read this season? Let us know in the comments!
Check out more recent articles:
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Goodreads Members' 20 Most Popular Book Club Picks
Check out more recent articles:
69 New and Upcoming Debut Novels to Discover
The 36 Most Anticipated Upcoming YA Novels
Goodreads Members' 20 Most Popular Book Club Picks
Comments Showing 1-50 of 69 (69 new)
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Aug 16, 2021 06:30AM
Excited for You've Reached Sam!!!
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Very excited for Louise Erdrich new one, The Sentence. Also want to read Jane Goodalls and Alix E. Harrows.
So many books to fall in love with (bad pun intended)
How is The Book of Magic not on this list?! (10/5/21)
Super excited for a new Alix E Harrow, and very intrigued by The Ex Hex!
Added many to my TBR, but topping the list is Go Tell the Bees I'm Gone.
SO many great choices for Fall reading! I can't wait to get started!!
*points to fantasy & science fiction, YA, and half of the horror list* Yea all of that. Excitement is REAL!
Some really good new releases coming up! Does anyone have an recommendations for books actually set during Fall?
You missed Leviathan Falls, the conclusion to James S.A. Corey's The Expanse! Coming out November 2021.
Anything written by Colson Whitehead is always on my list!
Well, duh, Anthony Doerr and Amor Towles and Liane Moriarty in the same month??
Good to see a few male writers on the list!
Beulah wrote: "Good to see a few male writers on the list!"I agree.
Termination Shock, which I just received through Netgalley! It's massive, but could be massively good as well. I hope
Me: HEY BEES!Bees: zzzzzzzzzzz
Me: KEREN’S GONE!
Bees: zzzzzzzzzzz
I did good work here today.
Go Tell the Bees I Am Gone…been waiting for 6 years!!
Kasturi wrote: "Excited for You've Reached Sam!!!"My thoughts exactly!!
What on earth is "fall"? Is it anything like autumn, which occurs every year in English-speaking parts of the world?
The first Aristotle and Dante book was excellent and I have been anticipating this sequel with relish.
Anthony Doerr and Amor Towles each have a new book coming out within weeks of each other. It's going to be a good autumn!
A Neal Stephenson cli-fi?? Hopefully it ends better than Snowcrash and Diamond Age.
My most anticipated book for autumn (of the year even!) is ‘The Thorn of Emberlain’ by Scott Lynch. It’s book 4 of the Gentleman Bastard Series and it’s been a long time coming. Hopefully it’ll be worth it and just as good (or better) than the first three.
Oooh, looking forward to the Neal Stephenson and Mary Roach releases.
Christine Feehan's "Dark Melody". I love this series.
A Gentleman in Moscow is one of my all time favorites... cannot wait for the Lincoln Highway... I just preordered it from Amazon...
Feels a little bit meh, from me. The one that looks good from the blurp alone is No Gods, No Monsters. An interesting concept, reminiscent of a World of Darkness plot.
I can't wait to get into some of these!
I look forward to The Lincoln Highway, and the new Matthew Pearl book sounds intriguing. That this list doesn't include the The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny and Daughter of the Morning Star by Craig Johnson mystifies me.
A Gentleman in Moscow was one of my favorite fiction reads of the last year. Fingers are crossed that The Lincoln Highway is as good. As for the Jemima Boone book, the subtitle makes me dubious. "The True Story of the Kidnap and Rescue That Shaped America" makes it sound like there was some big scintillating secret to it. Besides, "The little-known kidnapping" shouldn't be all that little known. It's mentioned in nearly every article, book, show, museum exhibition, etc. about Boone's life or the settling of Kentucky. It was fictionalized and worked into Cooper's Last of the Mohicans and talked about quite a bit in all the PR for the Mohicans movie. I remember it from 3rd or 4th grade history class. Then again, I'm always wary when novelists attempt non-fiction.
i need beautiful world where are you ASAP
Excited for Aristotle and Dante dive into the waters if the world.....and also Under the Whispering Door
Pretty sure the biggest books of all time shall again be the biggest books of this fall, in comparison to which this fall's newcomers are but tenuously-connected motes of dust.
Oooo a new Mary Roach and David Sedaris. Nice.
