Dear Book Friends,
I cannot contain my excitement. It’s finally October, and I’m feeling extremely festive! October is the month when I want everything to slow down so I can take in every joyous day of the best month of the year. But with all the fun stuff I have planned this month, I’m afraid it’s going to go by in a flash. So now, while we’re on the first Monday of the month, let’s all just take a moment. Breathe in. Enjoy that great October air. And just savor this gorgeous day. Are you with me? Let’s talk books.
Autumn is here, which means it’s time to curl up with a great read and get cozy — whatever your version of cozy looks like. Whether it’s romance, creepy reads, modern classics, or escapist reads you crave, TBR can help you find the perfect books for your fall reading, with options curated to your specific reading tastes.
Book Deals and Reveals
Get excited for this upcoming reality TV-based sapphic rom-com written by real-life couple Karelia and Fay Stetz-Waters. Karelia Stetz-Waters shared the cover reveal for Second Night Stand on Instagram. It hits shelves on May 21, 2024.
A group calling themselves Friends 4 Levine Querido have raised almost $110,000 in an auction to support the indie children’s publisher Levine Querido. LQ, which specializes in publishing books from BIPOC and LGBTQ authors, has been hit hard by book bans.
Sara El-Arifi has revealed the cover of her novel Faebound. It’s out from Penguin Random House on January 23, 2024.
At last, we’ve gotten a cover reveal for Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper: Volume 5! The graphic novel will be released in the U.S. on December 19, 2023.
Barnes & Noble has announced the 2023 Discover Prize Finalists. Last year’s prize went to Tess Gunty’s debut novel The Rabbit Hutch.
A Smithsonian museum has acquired a huge Phillis Wheatley collection that tells of the poet’s life as well as a country at odds with itself.
From new series to high fantasy, rom-coms to chilling horror, your guide to fall 2023 YA book releases has everything.
A survey conducted by Book Riot and the EveryLibrary Institute found that most parents think book bans are a “waste of time” and infringe on their parental rights.
Book Riot Recommends
Hi, welcome to everyone’s favorite segment of Book Radar called Book Riot Recommends. This is where I’ll talk to you about all the books I’m reading, the books I’m loving, and the books I can’t wait to read and love in the near future. I think you’re going to love them too!
Book Riot has podcasts to keep your ears listening for days! Check them out and subscribe.
Prepare Your Shelves!
Organ Meats by K-Ming Chang (One World, October 24)
Fasten your seatbelts because you’re in for a wild ride with K-Ming Chang’s latest, Organ Meats. It all starts when best friends Anita and Rainie visit an old sycamore tree and the stray dogs who live nearby. When the girls discover that the dogs can communicate with them, they also find out that they, too, have the power to turn into dogs. Anita convinces Rainie to turn into a dog with her; and to find their way back to each other, they tie red string collars around their necks.
But as soon as the girls become separated, all bets are off. Anita falls deep into a dream world filled with ghosts and bodily entrails. In the real world, as Anita’s mind strays further and further into her dreams, her body begins to rot. Now, Rainie must gather new organs to rebuild her friend’s body and keep her tethered to reality.
If this book sounds absolutely bananas, that’s because it is. But it’s also beautiful and grotesque and heartbreaking and brutal. And you can experience it for yourself later this month!
What I’m Reading This Week
What Kind of Mother by Clay McLeod Chapman
Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas
Lunar Love by Lauren Kung Jessen
Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong
The Beast You Are by Paul Tremblay
People Collide by Isle McElroy
Monday Memes
This was true for me, but then I discovered audiobooks. Just sayin’.
And Here’s A Cat Picture
Remy loves to flop around this cat tree. This is another one of those times I wish I could share a video because he likes to flop around from platform to platform like he’s a Slinky.
And with that, we’re already done with the first newsletter of October! How sad! Time is truly flying already! I hope you have a wonderful week, and I’ll see you on Thursday!