Fall’s Essential Reads from Independent Publishers.

HISTORICAL FICTION

The Lies They Told

AUTHOR: Ellen Marie Wiseman

PUBLISHER: Kensington (Jul.)

ISBN: 9781496758064

In rural 1930s Virginia, a young immigrant fights for her dignity and those she loves against America’s rising eugenics movement in this timely novel of social injustice, survival, and hope by the New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Girls of Willowbrook.


Women of a Promiscuous Nature

AUTHOR: Donna Everhart

PUBLISHER: Kensington (2026)

ISBN: 9781496740724

Girl, Interrupted meets The Handmaid’s Tale in 1940s North Carolina as a young woman is accused of “promiscuity” and unjustly incarcerated at the State Industrial Farm Colony for Women. A powerful, shockingly timely novel based on the real, long-buried history of the American Plan.


LITERARY FICTION

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, Collector's Edition

AUTHOR: Kim Michele Richardson

PUBLISHER: Sourcebooks Landmark (Nov.)

ISBN: 9781464246524

Now in a stunning collector’s edition, this NYT bestseller—and Indie Next and LibraryReads pick—follows a brave packhorse librarian bringing books and hope to 1930s Appalachia.


Only Son

AUTHOR: Kevin Moffett

PUBLISHER: McSweeney's (Nov.)

ISBN: 9781963270303

After finding his late father’s travel journal, a man and his son retrace his dad’s mystifying journey in this intimate account of fatherhood, discovery, and the experiences of two men far from home.


MYSTERIES & THRILLERS

The Bluest Night

AUTHOR: Aaron Philip Clark

PUBLISHER: Severn House (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781448317080

A young Black PI enlists the help of his ex-cop father to unravel a deadly web of dark deeds lurking beneath the streets of Malibu—and to clear his half-brother of a vicious murder.


The Bridesmaid

AUTHOR: Cate Quinn

PUBLISHER: Sourcebooks Landmark (Nov.)

ISBN: 9781464245701

From the acclaimed author of The Clinic comes a pulse-pounding thriller about a high-society wedding gone fatally wrong—where secrets, status, and murder collide. Perfect for fans of The Unwedding.


Buried Above Ground

AUTHOR: Mike Ripley

PUBLISHER: Severn House (Sep.)

ISBN: 9781448315611

An intricately meta mystery novel in which the race to acquire rights to an author’s backlist proves to be more deadly than the plots in his books! “Catnip for Anthony Horowitz fans.” —Publishers Weekly


I Make My Own Fun

AUTHOR: Hannah Beer

PUBLISHER: House of Anansi Press (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781487014155

The sinister side of celebrity fandom is inverted in this razor-sharp novel that follows the descent of the world’s most beloved movie star into a dark and disastrous obsession.


In the Bones

AUTHOR: Tessa Wegert

PUBLISHER: Severn House (Nov.)

ISBN: 9781448315062

The athlete. The local. The thief. Someone in the North Country is a ruthless killer. One of the three knows exactly who it is. A brand-new series from the author of the Shana Merchant mysteries.


The Intruder

AUTHOR: Freida McFadden

PUBLISHER: Poisoned Pen Press (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781464260919

In this taut, deadly tale of survival, #1 NYT bestseller Freida McFadden crafts a gripping story of how far a girl will go to escape danger—and how deadly the truth can be.


Octavo

AUTHOR: Marty Neumeier

PUBLISHER: Marty Neumeier (Oct.)

ISBN: 9798987158425

Scarlett and Artie uncover a lost Leonardo manuscript while authenticating paintings in Italy. To stop a greedy collector from hiding it forever, they steal it—and run for their lives.


What Boys Learn

AUTHOR: Andromeda Romano-Lax

PUBLISHER: Soho Crime (2026)

ISBN: 9781641296915

A twisty psychological thriller that unravels a mother’s worst nightmare— that her child is capable of terrible violence—when her teenage son becomes a suspect in the murder of two classmates.


ROMANCE & EROTICA

The Defender

AUTHOR: Ana Huang

PUBLISHER: Bloom Books (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781464223334

From Ana Huang comes the sizzling next in series after NYT bestseller The Striker—a forbidden romance between a football captain and the coach’s daughter that tests every rule and all restraint.


House of Rayne

AUTHOR: Harley Laroux

PUBLISHER: Kensington (Sep.)

ISBN: 9781496756831

Gothic sapphic romance meets supernatural suspense on a remote island in the Pacific Northwest, as a night of forbidden passion opens a Pandora’s box of dangerous secrets and dark magic in this sinfully spicy, deluxe edition standalone by New York Times bestselling TikTok sensation Harley Laroux.


Merry Christmas, You Filthy Animal

AUTHOR: Meghan Quinn

PUBLISHER: Bloom Books (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781464230165

From NYT bestselling author Meghan Quinn comes a holiday rom-com with the humor and heat her fans adore. Nothing says love like trespassing, humiliation, and a town-wide Christmas spectacle.


Of Prophecies & Pomegranates: A Dark Fates Novel

AUTHOR: T.C. Kraven

PUBLISHER: Diversion Books (Oct.)

ISBN: 9798895150573

In this irresistible, spicy love story, the forbidden romance between an empowered Persephone and delectable Hades sets in motion a chain of events that will challenge the very fabric of Olympus.


The Primal of Blood and Bone

AUTHOR: Jennifer L. Armentrout

PUBLISHER: Blue Box Press (Sep.)

ISBN: 1963135415

In the shadows and flames, Primals will fall... And from the blood and ash, new gods will rise.


Wild Card

AUTHOR: Elsie Silver

PUBLISHER: Bloom Books (Sep.)

ISBN: 9781464220845

A steamy, rule-breaking romance where desire defies consequence. From bestselling author Elsie Silver, this deluxe edition features a mountain spine to match the rest of the beloved series.


SCIENCE FICTION, FANTASY & HORROR

Academy of Outcasts

AUTHOR: Larry Correia

PUBLISHER: Aethon & Vault (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781638493037

A magicless man on the run stops at nothing to earn a place in a magic academy—not even threats of hell. An epic fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of Monster Hunter International!


Athanasia

AUTHOR: Daniel Kraus

ILLUSTRATOR: Dani

PUBLISHER: Vault Comics (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781638492818

In this darkly disturbing supernatural tale, the heroic dead bleed power into the ground. Unearthed by a down-on-her- luck young woman with unforeseeable consequences, some secrets are best left buried.


Dead Acre: Black Badge, Vol. 1

AUTHOR: Cullen Bunn

ILLUSTRATOR: Riley Brown

CREATOR: Rhett C. Bruno, Jaime Castle

PUBLISHER: Vault Comics (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781638492771

James Crowley met his mortal end in a hail of gunfire. Now, he serves the White Throne to avoid falling to hell. Demons. Monsters. Witches. His sacred duty as a Black Badge is to hunt them down.


Emperor and Hierophant, Book Three, Arcana Oracle Series

AUTHOR: Susan Wands

PUBLISHER: SparkPress (May)

ISBN: 9781684633029

Pamela Colman Smith is abducted and taken to a fortress where she must command her muses for the tarot deck she is creating or let her nemesis, Aleister Crowley, possess her magic and her creations.


Father Gaetano's Puppet Catechism

AUTHOR: Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden

PUBLISHER: Bad Hand Books (Oct.)

ISBN: 9798992483703

From Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden, this dark fantasy novella brings Twilight Zone originality to the page and asks, "Can there be such a thing as too much faith?"


High Priestess and Empress, Book Two, Arcana Oracle Series

AUTHOR: Susan Wands

PUBLISHER: SparkPress (2024)

ISBN: 9781684632343

Pamela, hired by a cult to design tarot cards, summons the tarot muses for her High Priestess and Empress, to battle Aleister's demons and stop the Carlists from trying to destroy all female rulers.


The Internal Sea: Mare Internum

AUTHOR: Der-shing Helmer (writer & artist)

PUBLISHER: Vault Comics (Sep.)

ISBN: 9781638492979

A supernatural science fiction mystery on Mars where the divide between the living and the dead is more transparent and delicate than humanity suspected. Is there a chance for the fallen to return?


Ironbound (Ironbound, Book 1)

AUTHOR: Andrew Givler

PUBLISHER: Aethon & Vault (Oct.)

ISBN: 9781638493044

A vicious attack shatters Castor’s dreams. Now, he must survive enemies, traitors, and the Iron City before he can exact revenge. The action-packed start of an all-new epic fantasy adventure!


Magician and Fool, Book One, Arcana Oracle Series

AUTHOR: Susan Wands

PUBLISHER: SparkPress (2023)

ISBN: 9781684631865

Pamela uses her second sight to illustrate tarot cards for the magicians in the Victorian Golden Dawn. Magician Aleister Crowley is determined to battle her for ownership of her cards and magic.


Moral Code

AUTHOR: Lois Melbourne and Ross Melbourne

PUBLISHER: Nonlinear Publishing (2022)

ISBN: 9780997679205

Keira built her rep on ethical AI. But to stop abusers and restrain dangerous nanites, her MoralOS must evolve—fast. The real threat isn’t AI decision-making. It’s the people behind it.


The Once and Future Queen

AUTHOR: Paula Lafferty

PUBLISHER: Erewhon Books (Dec.)

ISBN: 9781645662891

Outlander-meets-The Princess Bride with a dose of Camelot in a big-hearted, feminist, timeslip adventure that reimagines the epic saga of King Arthur, as told by his spunky and surprising queen, Vera. Arthurian legend with a modern twist in a deluxe, special edition hardcover.


Return to main feature.

[related]