Ready Your Reading Nook: The Most Anticipated New Books of Fall 2024

Alex Murdaugh was a benevolent dictator—the president of the South Carolina trial lawyers’ association, a political boss, a part-time prosecutor, and a partner in his family’s law firm. He was always ready with a favor, a drink, and an invitation to Moselle, his family’s 1,700-acre hunting estate. Everyone knew, feared and respected the Murdaugh name. When he murdered his wife, Maggie, and son Paul at Moselle on a dark summer night, the fragile façade of Alex’s world could no longer hold. Journalist Valerie Bauerlein reports on the ghastly truths of the crumbling Murdaugh legacy in The Devil at His Elbow.

Publishing August 20

The Blue sisters are outstanding, each in their own way. Avery, the eldest and a recovering heroin addict turned strait-laced lawyer, lives with her wife in London; Bonnie, a former boxer, works as a bouncer in Los Angeles following a devastating defeat; and Lucky, the youngest, models in Paris while trying to outrun her hard-partying ways. Then there was Nicky, the glue of the family, who unexpectedly passed leaving Avery, Bonnie, and Lucky reeling. A year later, as they each navigate grief, addiction, and ambition, they find they must return to New York to stop the sale of the apartment they were raised in. But coming home is never as easy as it seems.

Publishing September 3

After years of living in less than ideal conditions, Jane, her husband, and their two kids landed a sweet deal as house sitters in a friend’s luxurious home. Jane, a writer, turns to Hollywood for a career move and finagles a meeting with a hot young producer with a seven-figure deal to create “diverse content” for a streaming network. He seems excited to work with a “real writer” to create what he believes will be the greatest biracial comedy ever to hit the small screen. Things finally seem to be going right for Jane—until they go terribly wrong.

Publishing September 3

Clove has gone to extremes to keep her past a secret. Thanks to her lies, she’s landed the life of her dreams, complete with a safe husband and two adoring children who will never know the terror of her own childhood. Clove works hard to bury her past anxiety through mediation. But when she receives a letter from a women’s prison in California, her past comes racing into the present, bringing people she thought she had outrun back into her life.

Publishing September 3

Grace Winters is left a run-down house on a Mediterranean island by a long-lost friend, who passed suddenly. She arrives in Ibiza with a one-way ticket, no guidebook and no plan. Among the beautiful terrain of the island, Grace searches for answers about her friend’s life, and how it ended. What she uncovers is stranger than she could have dreamed—but to dive into this impossible truth, Grace must first come to terms with her past.

Publishing September 3

On an ordinary, short, domestic flight, something extraordinary happens: The passengers learn how and when they are going to die. For some, their death is far in the future, and they laugh at what seemed like a joke. Others have a rapidly approaching end. Just a few months later, one passenger dies exactly as predicted. When news of their death spreads, everyone from the flight is afraid that their own predicted death will suddenly come true.

Publishing September 10

One day, an eerie and cataclysmic event occurs: All of the white people in America walk into the nearest body of water and drown. One year later, Charles Brunton, a Black man living in an entirely new world, receives an unexpected call from his estranged daughter, Sidney. 19-year-old Sidney watched her white mother and step-family drown themselves in the lake behind their house. Desperate for help, she turns to the father she never met, a man she has always resented. Sidney and Charlie meet for the first time as they embark on a journey across America. Everything Charlie and Sidney thought they knew about themselves, and the world, will come tumbling down.

Publishing September 10

Despite the odds, Calla Tuoleimi won Sant-Er’s games and defeated her tyrant uncle, the former King Kasa. Now, she is the royal advisor to Kasa’s son, August—except that Calla knows it isn’t really August. After she betrayed him in the final round of the games, Anton Makusa has taken over August’s body. As tensions come to a boiling point, Calla and Anton must set their conflicts aside and head to the kingdom’s far reaches to prevent anarchy.

Publishing September 10

Belladonna Blackthorn is burned out. It’s not that she’s lost her magical sparkle, she just hasn’t seen it in a while. With a toxic boss and a bookshop to run, Belle barely has time to take care of herself, much less her magic. To get her sparkle back, Belle will need all the help she can get—from the women in her life, from an unlikely mentor figure and even from an infuriating coven watchman who’s sworn to protect her.

Publishing September 17

Lorelei Kaskel, a folklorist, is on an expedition with six eccentric nobles in search of a fabled spring. The magical spring promises untold power, which the king wants to harness to secure his reign. The expedition is off to a good start when its leader—Lorelei’s beloved mentor—is murdered. The only person Lorelei knows must be innocent is her longtime academic rival, the insufferably gallant and beautiful Sylvia Von Wolff. Now the lead of the expedition, Lorelei must find the spring before the murderer strikes again—but there are other dangers lurking in the forests.

Publishing September 17th

Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He still does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his pub quizzes, his favorite bench, and his cat at home. His days of adventure are long over. Adrenaline is his daughter-in-law Amy’s job now. Working in private security, every day is dangerous. She’s currently on a remote island protecting mega-bestselling author Rosie D’Antonio when a dead body and a bag of money show up in paradise. So she sends for help from the only person she trusts.

Publishing September 17

After losing her beloved aunt, Evie Lang is unceremoniously fired from her poetry professorship. Lacking both income and inspiration, she’s stuck in Ohio with no idea how to move forward—until a letter shows up. Auntie Hảo left Evie the deed to her San Francisco row house, but to inherit, she must go on a pre-arranged matchmaking tour in Việt Nam. A world away, Adam Quyền is working around the clock for his sister’s elite matchmaking business, a job complicated by her insistence that he knows nothing about love. Adam thinks Evie is wild and erratic. Evie thinks Adam is crabby and high strung. But from the bustling streets of Hồ Chí Minh City to the soaring waterfalls in Đà Lạt, their dislike is charged with attraction.

Publishing September 24

More than a million women lose a pregnancy each year, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, or termination for medical reasons. For most, the experience often casts a shadow of isolation, shame, and blame. In the aftermath of the 2022 decision to overturn Roe v Wade, 25 million women of childbearing age live in states with laws that restrict access to abortion, including for those who never wanted to end their pregnancies. Combining powerful personal narratives with extensive research, I’m Sorry for My Loss is a comprehensive examination on how pregnancy loss came to be so stigmatized and politicized, and why a system of more compassionate care is critical for everyone.

Publishing September 24

Brothers Peter and Ivan Koubek seem to have little in common. Peter is a successful Dublin lawyer in his thirties, and in the wake of their father’s death, he’s struggling to manage his relationships. Meanwhile, Ivan is a twenty-two-year-old competitive chess player. He has always seen himself as introverted. In the early weeks of his bereavement, Ivan meets Margaret, an older woman emerging from her own turbulent past, and their lives become rapidly intertwined. For two grieving brothers and the people they love, this is a new interlude—a period of desire, despair, and possibility.

Publishing September 24

Tamsyn felt as though she never truly fit in. Her life guaranteed her the treatment of both the highest and lowest ranking members of the royal court. So when she is tasked with the ultimate sacrifice of pretending to be one of the true royal princesses and marry Fell, the Beast of the Borderlands, Tamsyn accepts her fate even if it means tricking the deadly warrior. Upon her wedding night, Tamsyn’s secrets are exposed. When they emerge, they will ignite a flame bright enough to burn the entire kingdom to the bone.

Publishing September 26

Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—who believed a woman’s beauty and marital status were her best qualities. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty to crumble the rival Kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is enter the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within. After infiltrating the enemy kingdom, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the kingdom’s affections. The higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the more her and Fanli must sacrifice—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

Publishing October 1

Aiz is no stranger to suffering. An old tragedy fuels her need for vengeance, but it is love of her people that propels her. Sirsha is a down-on-her-luck tracker who speaks to the earth, air, and water. Destitute, she agrees to hunt down a killer who has murdered children across the Empire. Quil is the crown prince of the Empire, nephew of a famed empress. The lives of three young characters intertwine as they grapple with power, treachery, love, and the devastating consequences of unchecked greed.

Publishing October 1

Since what feels like ancient times, the Haddesley family has tended the cranberry bog. In exchange, the bog sustains them. The seasons of their lives are governed by the ritual sacrifice of their patriarch, and in return, the bog produces a “bog-wife.” Brought to life from vegetation, this woman is meant to carry on the family line. But when the bog fails to honor the bargain, they face an unknown future. Brimming with loss and the universal struggle between honoring family commitments and the drive to strike out on one’s own, The Bog Wife is a haunting tale of environmental power.

Publishing October 1

The Elements of Marie Curie narrates the famous scientist’s life of discovery and fame alongside the women who became her legacy. Curie was transformative in the science of radioactivity, but as brilliant as she was in the laboratory, Marie Curie was equally passionate outside it. This biography explores the hidden secrets of the life of the world’s most famous female scientist.

Publishing October 8

When Scarlett Melrose receives a call from her estranged sisters, she immediately knows something is wrong. Their mother’s inn has been cursed, and they need her help to save it. As the distant middle child, the thought of returning home makes Scarlett squirm. When her spell to break the curse goes horribly wrong, all Scarlett wants to do is flee back to the peace and quiet of her San Francisco flat. But she can’t keep running away forever, and she’ll need all the help she can get to solve this magical mess.

Publishing October 10

High school senior Andrew Perrault frequently escapes to the twisted fairytales that he writes for his best friend Thomas Rye. But something strange is going on with Thomas. After the murder of his absuive parents, Thomas is seen with blood on his sleeves. Thomas won’t say a word about it, and shuts down whenever Andrew tries to ask him questions. Andrew follows Thomas into the forest one night, only to discover the terrifying truth.

Publishing October 29

Funke is happy in Nigeria. She loves her art teacher mother, her professor father, and even her annoying little brother (most of the time). But she is sent to the unfamiliar England in the wake of disaster. A place she has only heard of from her mother’s stories. Surprised, she finds the esteemed estate to be run down, the food tasteless, the weather grey. Worse still, her mother’s family are cold and distant, with the exception of her cousin, Liv. Liv becomes fiercely protective of her, and Liv’s free-spirit gives Funke a place to heal. As they grow together, each woman will struggle to chart a path forward, separated by country, misunderstanding, and ambition.

Publishing October 29

Teddy Andersen is used to being a leader, but now she feels like she’s getting left behind, wondering if life in the small town she loves is enough for her anymore. Gus Ryder has a lot on his plate between taking care of his family’s 8,000 acre ranch and parenting his spunky six-year-old daughter. Gus has always been the dependable one, but when his workload starts to overwhelm him, he admits that he needs help. His little sister’s best friend, a woman he can’t stand, is not who he had in mind—but when no one else can step in, Teddy’s the only option he’s got. Tempers flare, tension builds, and for the first time ever, Gus and Teddy start to see each other in a different light.

Publishing November 5

Inez Olivera is left devastated from her beloved cousin’s murder, and her mother’s betrayal. When Tío Ricardo issues an ultimatum about her inheritance, she’s left with only one option to consider: marriage to Whitford Hayes. Whit has his own mysterious reasons for staying in Egypt. With everything on the line, Inez might have to bind her fate to the one person whose secret plans could ruin her.

Publishing November 5

After losing both their parents, Bristol Keats and her sisters struggle to stay afloat in their small, quiet town of Bowskeep. When Bristol begins to receive letters from an “aunt” she’s never heard of, the mysterious sender promises she can help. Reluctantly Bristol agrees to meet her—and discovers that everything she thought she knew about her family is a lie. Even her father might still be alive, not killed but kidnapped by terrifying creatures in another realm—the one he is from. Desperate to save her father and find the truth, Bristol journeys to a land of unknown. Pulled into a dangerous world of magic and intrigue, she makes a deadly bargain with the fae king, Tyghan. And he is just as determined as she is to find her father—dead or alive.

Publishing November 12

This novel revisits a town Haruki Murakami readers will remember from his previous works. It’s a place where a Dream Reader reviews dreams and where our shadows become untethered from our selves. The City and Its Uncertain Walls intertwines a love story, a quest, an ode to books and to the libraries that house them, and a parable for these strange post-pandemic times into one on Murakami’s most anticipated literary fictions.

Publishing November 29