Welcome to October! This month is totally out of control when it comes to new book releases. I have 23 October releases to highlight, books I hope to read, although if I read half of them I’ll consider it a win. I think I’ve hit all the speculative genres this month, so hopefully you will see something interesting on this list:
How to Fake a Haunting by Christa Carmen. Carmen is one of my go-to authors, and I’ll be reading this haunted house story soon!
All of Us Murderers by K.J. Charles. I see Charles’s books all over the place but I’ve never read one before. This sounds like fun!
Crafting for Sinners by Jenny Kiefer. This story sounds like the very definition of the word “unhinged,” and I cannot wait to start it.
The Works of Vermin by Hiron Ennes. This dark fantasy sounds so intriguing. I’m in love with the cover, and I want to know more about the centipede.
The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow. Harrow’s books are always fun to read, and this sounds like a time travelling Arthurian retelling.
Slayers of Old by Jim C. Hines. I feel like horror and fantasy featuring older protagonists is having a field day, and here is yet another fun sounding story.
Dead & Breakfast by Kat Hillis & Rosiee Thor. Cozy mystery with gay vampires? And an adorable cover? Yes, I will take one of these:-)
Colin Gets Promoted and Dooms the World by Mark Waddell. Workplace horror is just so on point, right? This is another book that sounds like a ton of fun (have you noticed I’m describing a lot of these as “fun”?)
The Last Witch by C.J. Cooke. I’m eager to read another C.J. Cooke book, and I sincerely hope I can get to this one.
Futility by Nuzo Onoh. I’m looking forward to checking out this author, and the story sounds wild!
The Flesh King by Richard Kadrey. I would call this urban horror, and I loved the first book in the series, so I’m excited to dive in.
Hazelthorn by C.G. Drews. I would love to get to this, I have heard very good things about the author.
Cinder House by Freya Marske. A Cinderella retelling where Cinderella is a ghost? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anything quite like this!
Kill the Beast by Serra Swift. This is a romantasy with a cozy vibe, and I’m excited to check it out.
Extremity by Nicholas Binge. This was pushed to October, it was originally a September release, so I hope to read it soon.
We Are Always Tender With Our Dead by Eric LaRocca. I just couldn’t fit all my September books in last month, so this is a carry over.
A Fae in Finance by Juliet Brooks. I like that this is a contemporary fantasy, and it definitely has a humorous, cozy vibe!
We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor. I’ve been hearing about this book for years, so I’m glad Saga Press is rereleasing it!
Apprehension by Mary Robinette Kowal/Red Star Hustle by Sam J. Miller. This is a double book that flips over so you can read the other story. Such a cool idea!
Savage Blooms by S.T. Gibson. Sadly, I have been hearing mostly negative things about this book, but I will give it a shot.
Cathedral of the Drowned by Nathan Ballingrud. I am looking forward to more weird horror from this author!
Atlas of Unknowable Things by McCormick Templeman. I requested this long ago on NetGalley, and now I can’t remember why, lol. This will be an “if I have time” read.
Death at the Door by Olivia Blacke. This is book #2 in the series, so I will need to read the first book before I dive into this.
Honestly, all of these sound exciting!
I agree! I literally do not know what to start next…
Hope you can get to all of them! Enjoy!
Me too! Thanks:-)
I can’t wait for All of Us Murderers; I love KJ Charles’ work in general, and very curious how this one’ll be.
I’ve heard nothing but good things about it!
wow, yes 23 is a lot!! Good luck.
I do have a scifi/dystopia on my October plate, and will probably read more scifi, in preparation for scifi month:
https://wordsandpeace.com/2025/10/02/the-top-7-books-to-read-in-october-2025/
I have to start planning Sci Fi Month too!
Lots of options.
Exactly. I will be able to pick and choose based on my mood.
Wow, 23 is a lot! I know I”m planning to read The Everlasting, and I see a couple here that I’ve already put on my TBR (Cinder House, Kill the Beast), although I”m not sure how soon I’ll get to them. Good luck!
Thanks Lisa! I guess I’ll read whatever I can:-)
23 books??? OK, October has definitely gone crazy LOL. None of these is on my TBR lists, but I hope they’re all…fun ;). (Futility’s cover…yikes).
LOL I want to read Futility just because of the cover. What does that say about me?
Im definitely excited for The Everlasting too, I adore Alix E Harrows writing style I’d also love to check out the C J Cooke title having enjoyed a previous book by ger and have also heard a lot of good things about CG Drew’s books. Plus I simply can’t resist a retelling. This month certainly looks busy, good luck getting to these. Hopefully you have lots of future favourites in store.
At least there’s a lot to choose from! I’m trying to mood read as much as possible, we’ll see how that goes.
October is pure chaos! I already know I won’t be able to read everything on my list, but I did get to How to Fake a Haunting. I hope you’ll get to read that soon so we can compare notes! It started off so ridiculous but then there were some really creepy parts that genuinely shook me!
I’m going to read How to Fake a Haunting next, I’m curious now!
23?! I just read a review for the Colin book that was full of praise, so I hope you have the same experience! Kinda gave me FOMO, but I’m enjoying the freedom right now of not having a ton of ARCs.
I wish I had that freedom, lol. Bad planning on my part!
These look great! I’m also looking forward to Slayers of Old and Cinder House. My October releases list also includes Nghi Vo’s next Singing Hills novella, A Mouthful of Dust.
I’ve only read one of the books in Nghi Vo’s series and it was really good. Enjoy!
You just totally added to my TBR list! So many of these books are right in my reading wheelhouse. Now I just need a second October to read them all. ;D
LOL can I have a second October too? 😉
Such a good month for books.
It is!
None of these are on my TBR BUT Slayers of Old seems fun!
It really does, I hope to read it soon:-)
Nothing wrong with a little “fun” horror this time of year. 🙂 You really did find a nice mix of speculative genres.
Hopefully I can mood read this month since the selection is so good:-)
Sigh, Tammy you always manage to highlight a release that I’ve missed. I mean, it’s incredibly nice of you, but I can’t help partly blaming you for my oversight. …is that unfair?
Only 23 books? Hmmmmm seems low;)
Lol which one did you miss?
The Kadrey one
I really want to check out C. G. Drews’ works. They sound right up my alley. That cover for All of Us Murderers is so good. I know nothing about it, but based on this cover alone, I need to add it to the TBR. Hope you have a wonderful month of reading!
Thanks Alicia!
How many interesting books!! We have Slayers of Old in common and I am really excited about that one!!
Futility’s cover is soooo disturbing! But eye-catching. You can’t ignore it even if you try!
And there are a lot of books on your list that I am curious about, especially K.J. Charles one because I usually enjoy the books by this author and A Fae in Finance because it sounds like fun!!
I hope you will love all of them!
Thanks Susy! I hope we both love Slayers of Old.
These all look so good! You are right about too many books in October, I had to NOT take several review opportunities because I’m trying to catch up on my TBR. Hope we both get to read all we want this month!
I’ve turned down so many October book pitches, sadly!
We do have books in common and I’m sure we also have in common that we didn’t manage to fit them all in ! I’m currently reading and loving the Alix E Harrow latest.
Lynn 😀