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The Goodreads Editors Share Their October Book Picks

Here at Goodreads World Headquarters, we sort through a lot of books each month. Our monthly Readers’ Most Anticipated Books feature is exactly that—selections based on the data about the books that Goodreads members are placing on their Want to Read shelves. Essentially, these are the books that your fellow Goodreads regulars are excited about.
Of course, the Goodreads editorial staff gets excited about books, too. And we regularly come across specific new releases that we can’t wait to read—or “won’t shut up about,” to borrow a phrase from the colleagues who sit right next to us.
As to be expected, there are always way more great books each month than we have time to read, so we’re passing our findings along to you, complete with genre tags, our unhinged commentary, and general enthusiasm. Think of this list as our intel on the books you might not be hearing about absolutely everywhere else, from two people who really, really want to help you find a great read.
On the docket for October: Gothic suspense in 1967 Nigeria, absurdist satire in modern academia, and celestial intervention in an alternate-history America. Bonus pick: Korean soups!
Of course, the Goodreads editorial staff gets excited about books, too. And we regularly come across specific new releases that we can’t wait to read—or “won’t shut up about,” to borrow a phrase from the colleagues who sit right next to us.
As to be expected, there are always way more great books each month than we have time to read, so we’re passing our findings along to you, complete with genre tags, our unhinged commentary, and general enthusiasm. Think of this list as our intel on the books you might not be hearing about absolutely everywhere else, from two people who really, really want to help you find a great read.
On the docket for October: Gothic suspense in 1967 Nigeria, absurdist satire in modern academia, and celestial intervention in an alternate-history America. Bonus pick: Korean soups!
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: This tale of a Black cop in Atlanta confronting lies and conspiracies should be on your list if you like both thrillers and literary novels. Spanning two decades, Johnson’s novel is a free-wheeling and witty reimagination of the trope of a good(ish) cop in a corrupt system.
Genre: Literary thriller
Genre: Literary thriller
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: The year is 1929, and infamous moonshiner and womanizer Richard Milford has been found dead. No one’s sad he’s gone, but which of his four “wives” was his killer? Personally, I’m betting on a Murder on the Orient Express situation.
Genre: Historical fiction/Literary mystery
Genre: Historical fiction/Literary mystery
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: You had me at “a horror novel set in a cabin in the woods.” It’s a classic for a reason! A mother and son return to the cabin that holds some Bad Memories to quickly spruce the place up to sell it. However, as the trip keeps getting extended, the mother begins to becomes less herself…and more something else!
Genre: Horror
Genre: Horror
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: This tale of two women reeling in the aftermath of their friend’s death is a kind of two-for-one deal. Told as a paired “double novel,” Fair comes from the perspective of Mara, in the immediate aftermath of the death. Ones picks up a few years later, from Jen’s POV. Look, have you seen the price of books these days? This one’s a steal even before you get to the Lydia Millet of it all!
Genre: Literary fiction
Genre: Literary fiction
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: You know what your Want to Read shelf needs? A lush tale of forbidden love spanning the 20th century! Get ready for yearning, passion, and, I suspect, a few tears. At the heart of this tale are two couples kept apart by convention and prejudice. House (Southernmost) based his new novel on personal and family history.
Genre: Historial fiction
Genre: Historial fiction
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: I was immediately intrigued by the subtitle of this book: Notes on Being Alien and Becoming Cyborg. Franny Choi’s debut essay collection examines notable robots and cyborgs in American culture and asks the very relevant question of “Why are so many of them depicted as East Asian women?” No seriously, what is up with that?!
Genre: Essays/Memoir/Literary theory
Genre: Essays/Memoir/Literary theory
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: At a fictional university that promises to turn students into unique creative beings, everyone seems to end up…eerily the same. When a student attempts to be avant-garde by planning to provoke a stranger to punch him in the face instead seems to spawn a wave of unrelated attacks, there are questions! Oh, and this is all captured by the school’s insane surveillance system…for reasons.
Genre: Fiction/Satire/Madness
Genre: Fiction/Satire/Madness
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: In an alternate timeline where angelic infestations have prevented the original 13 American colonies from expanding westward, a scientist must hunt down her former lab partner who stole her work (how dare he!) to prevent him from reshaping the world for his own dark ends (how VERY dare he!).
Genre: Alternate history sci-fi horror/Weird/Right up my alley
Genre: Alternate history sci-fi horror/Weird/Right up my alley
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: In this gothic novel set in 1967 Nigeria, a young woman must return to her family’s mansion where he brother tragically died. There she finds the past is not as buried as she’s thought. Early readers are loving this moody atmospheric tale that seems to be the perfect October read!
Genre: Gothic/Creepy/Horror
Genre: Gothic/Creepy/Horror
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: Babs and Nora have been friends for a decade, sharing gossip, drama, and advice from Babs on how Nora, a white woman, can approach raising her adopted Black son, Nathan. But when an encounter with the police leaves Nathan traumatized, the women must confront fissures in their friendship and within their families.
Genre: Fiction
Genre: Fiction
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: Bland? Blank? Boring? Calm? Clean? Corporate? What does the color white, and specifically white paint, really say? Cultural critic Walters does a deep dive into the use of white paint in art history, architecture, and consumer culture. I just love this kind of book and, yes, a dinner party hates to see me and my version of small talk coming its way!
Genre: History/Art/Culture
Genre: History/Art/Culture
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: In this debut novel, Martha, a trans woman so stealth even her husband has no idea, finds herself suddenly, unexpectedly, impossibly…pregnant. Early readers are calling this one unhinged in the best way. Screaming, crying, throwing up—literally!
Genre: Body horror/Reproductive horror
Genre: Body horror/Reproductive horror
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: Bring back the Christmas novel! For too long, Hallmark-esque books have dominated the holiday, but Campbell is giving us a modern Christmas Carol just in time for the shortening days. Told during a family’s Christmas Eve gathering, each member reveals what they can remember from exactly nine years ago, the day their patriarch died.
Genre: Fiction
Genre: Fiction
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: Morello is a homeless orphan and starving artist who gets whisked away from her terrible life by Florence, a benefactor with only a single condition. Each year, the two must hunt and kill one of the art world’s predatory men, staging their murders with theatrical flair. Sounds like a totally normal, not at all weird foundation for a friendship!
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: History junkies already know a new book from Philbrick (In the Heart of the Sea, Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War) is worth tucking into. This time, the historian looks at how the California gold rush changed not just the American West, but the world. Fun fact: Goodreads is based in San Francisco, and this editor (me!) is fascinated by the history of the city.
Genre: History
Genre: History
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: OK, I have such a weakness for books in which a Very Earnest, Very Good person discovers that the person/deity/cause they’ve dedicated their life to is a complete fraud. So much angst! So doomed! So of course I’m looking forward to this fantasy about a knight who’s sworn to protect a god king who turns out to be maybe not very powerful and also not very great.
Genre: YA fantasy
Genre: YA fantasy
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: In an era where we try to forget or fabricate the past, here’s a reading reality check that poses an interesting question: What can the history of the United States’ history tell us about our current relationship to violence? Treuer (The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee) investigates this topic focusing on the 19th-century American frontier through a blend of family memoir and in-depth research.
Genre: History/Nonfiction/Memoir
Genre: History/Nonfiction/Memoir
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: Every now and then, I find myself wanting to sink into a really immersive, beautifully written piece of historical fiction. Luckily for me (and you, if you share this proclivity), literary powerhouse Yiyun Li is back this month with a sweeping tale of two musical prodigies that spans 70 years across the 18th and 19th centuries and multiple continents.
Genre: Literary historical fiction
Genre: Literary historical fiction
Cybil can’t wait to read this book because: When a shunned member of a Mormon mom group is offered a free experimental beauty treatment, she jumps at the chance to (literally) restore her image. What could go wrong?? For the genre savvy, you know it’s gonna get weird! (Bonus: This book is from an actual cast member of Real Housewives of Salt Lake City).
Genre: Body horror/thriller/??
Genre: Body horror/thriller/??
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: Here’s a perfect book for fall as the nights grow longer this month. Recent high school grad Tapeesa must track down her missing sister in the darkening Arctic. But wait, what’s that about the legend of a monster that appears to you wearing the face of someone you love? Surely this won’t pose a problem, right?
Genre: Horror
Genre: Horror
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: October means it is officially SOUP SEASON in my household! I can’t wait to read and cook my way through the entirety of Korean Soups, from the team behind the Queens brand of Korean provisions. True story: I once ate kimbap so delicious at their erstwhile San Francisco superette that I nearly started crying.
Genre: Cookbook
Genre: Cookbook
Sharon can’t wait to read this book because: I got an early peek at this memoir from actress Jane Leeves, who played Daphne Moon on the sitcom Frasier. And when I say early peek, I mean I sent an all-caps email to the book publicist about how much I needed an ARC. Fellow Frasier lovers will enjoy this inside look at Leeves’ early life, the career-changing audition that landed her the role of Daphne, and more behind-the-scenes stories from the show. Daphne, we’re listening.
Genre: Memoir
Genre: Memoir

