Just a quick post to tell you what I’ve been reading and picking for my book clubs for October and November because there were some very good new releases you might want to fall into. (Get it? “Fall”? Because it’s Fall? Sorry. I’ll stop.)
In October we sent members of the Fantastic Strangelings Book Club (JOIN US) copies of Solace House by Will MacLean and I cannot even tell what genre it is because it was weird as hell in a good way. Locked rooms, hidden relics, secret passages. And next month we’re sending you The Killing of a Chestnut Tree by Oliver K. Langmead, which sucked me in with the tagline…BE GAY, SOLVE CRIMES! So good, so fun. Also, it’s the start of a series but it has a very solid ending without a cliffhanger so don’t worry about that. I WOULD NOT DO THAT TO YOU, FRIEND.
Then for our Nightmares from Nowhere horror club (GET IN HERE, WEIRDO) we sent It Looks Like You in the Dark by Mathilda Zeller, a propulsive Indigenous horror debut focusing on Alaskan Native folklore. Utterly engrossing. And in November we’ll be sending out MILKTEETH by Caitlin Starling, which is a vampire story unlike any I’ve read before. Like, picture Interview with a Vampire but focused on motherhood and female rage and queer longing and a hefty amount of body horror.
And if you need more to quell your thirst, here are a few other new fall releases I loved:
Death of An Ordinary Man by Sarah Perry – This book was so good I considered picking it for the book club but it made me cry so much I got dehydrated and I wasn’t sure if everyone was ready for that. BUT IT IS SO GOOD. A memoir on death and grief that is honest and uplifting and beautiful.
When the Night Comes Knocking by Katherine Daniel – Appalachian horror that had me HOOKED. Also, spoiler: the dog lives. Sorry, but I hate opening a horror book and not knowing if a pet survives and I suspect I’m not alone.
There Are No Giant Crabs in This Novel: A Novel of Giant Crabs by Jason Pargin. Smart, funny, satirical, brutal. This book is part of the John Dies at the End universe but you don’t have to have read the previous books to understand it. I’ve only read two of them and forgot both of them but still really loved it even though I’m sure I missed a lot of inside jokes. A bit gory, fyi, if you’re sensitive to that.
The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson – This is part of the Truly Devious series and Maureen Johnson is on my automatic buy list for a reason.
Behind the Gate by Amparo Dávila – Gothic creepy stories to read in bed from one of Mexico’s great writers.
Sidekick by Naomi Shihab Nye -Poetry drawing on her family’s deep roots in Palestine, written with love and heartbreak. Direct, challenging and important.
Cloud Runner: Poems by Joy Harjo – Three-term U.S. Poet Laureate writes of the grief and pain of losing her daughter, and how art can transform suffering. I made my heart hurt, but in a good way. (I recommend you read it in pieces because it’s heavy.)
As always, thank you for supporting Nowhere Bookshop and Indie bookshops everywhere!
Happy reading!
My mind has been blocked and I haven’t been able to read since June. Unless you count subtitles, then I’ve read a lot. Because I’ve ingested so many Chinese Dramas. I was even in a 60 hours manic episode and by hour 50 was convinced:
Same here.