It’s October, which means it’s practically Halloween! I have a couple of queer YA recommendations for the spooky season, whether you’re looking for something spine-chilling or silly.
Speaking of seasonal reads, 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.
Bookish Goods
Edinburgh Ghosts Bookmark by SnugAndScribble
Have you seen the TikTok trend of painting ghosts into thrift store paintings? These bookmarks remind me of those, but even better. $3.50+ each or $9.50+ for the set.
New Releases
The Homecoming War by Addie Woolridge
Meg is so close to graduating high school and getting out of Huntersville. She’s even class president! But her plans are complicated when her high school is merged with their rival school. Now, she has to work with Davies High’s class president, Chris, as their two schools have an escalating prank war. To make things even more complicated, she might have a reluctant crush on him.
The Glass Scientists: Volume One by S. H. Cotugno
This webcomic turned graphic novel has a simultaneous hardcover and paperback release. It follows Dr. Henry Jekyll as he tries to rehabilitate the image of arcane scientists after that unfortunate Frankenstein incident by founding the Society for Arcane Sciences. But some members want to push science in a radical, dangerous direction — and they’re willing to expose Jekyll’s secrets in the process.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Queer YA Reads for Spooky Season
The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
Looking for a read that proves YA horror doesn’t pull any punches? You need to pick up The Spirit Bares Its Teeth. Silas is an autistic trans teenager stuck in Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium. When a ghost asks him for help, he realizes that he needs to take down this school before it kills him first. Be sure to check out the trigger warnings for this one: it’s a bloody read and includes transphobia, ableism, and misogyny.
Cooking with Monsters (Book One): The Beginner’s Guide to Culinary Combat by Jordan Alsaqa, illustrated by Vivian Truong
Looking for something Halloween-adjacent but not actually scary? How about a fun YA graphic novel about cooking with monsters? Hana has just started at Gourmand Academy of Culinary Combat, and she’s struggling to keep up with her classmates. Pair this with Basil and Oregano by Melissa Capriglione for two different takes on a queer YA graphic novel set at a fantasy cooking school!
That’s it for me! You can usually find me writing the Our Queerest Shelves newsletter. I also have a sapphic book blog called the Lesbrary, and you can also hear me on All the Books, or you can read my Book Riot posts.
Happy reading!
Danika