It’s hard to believe it’s already for the November Treasures in My Closet posts, isn’t it? It’s time to check out the forthcoming books so you can pre-order them from your favorite bookstore, or check them out at your public library.

This year, Queen Victoria seems to be the focus of biographies, novels, and PBS. Julia Baird brings us Victoria The Queen, “An intimate biography of the woman who ruled an empire.” (Release date is Nov. 22.)

Carol Birch’s Orphans of the Carnival is the story of two women. In the mid-1800s, Julia was alternately vilified and celebrated as a freak with her unusual face, despite her fluency in three languages, and her gift as a musician. She traveled the world, but longed for genuine human connection. A century later, Rose feels the weight of history, and finds herself drawn to an unusual object, one that binds her to Julia. (Release date is Nov. 8.)

I always appreciate receiving books from Canadian authors. As close as they are, I’m not as familiar with them as I could be. Here’s Jolene Nowell Butler’s Matowak: Woman Who Cries. When Canada’s retired Minister of National Defense is murdered in his home, Corporal Danny Killian, an aboriginal man tortured by his wife’s unsolved murder is handed the case. His chief suspect? The victim’s widow, still grieves for the deaths of her son, a woman who was horribly abused. Killian is left with some difficult choices. (Release date is Nov. 1.)

In PhDeath: The Puzzler Murders by James P. Carse, the faculty at a major university finds itself in deadly intellectual combat with the anonymous Puzzler. And, even with the assistance of a team of experts, they’re no match for the Puzzler’s perverse talents. (Release date is Nov. 1.)

Cat Got Your Diamonds by Julie Chase launches the Kitty Couture mystery series. Opening Furry Godmother, pet boutique and organic treat bakery in New Orleans’ Garden District is Lacy Marie Crocker’s dream come true, until her glitter gun becomes a murder weapon and she’s suspect number one. (Release date is Nov. 15.)

Lee Child takes readers into Jack Reacher’s past in Night School. It’s 1996, and Reacher is still in the army. Then, along with an FBI agent and a CIA analyst, he’s given a special assignment. Find an unknown American who wants a hundred million dollars. Reacher and associates need to prevent an epic act of terrorism. (Release date is Nov. 7.)

In the latest Charles Lenox mystery, The Inheritance, by Charles Finch, Lenox receives a cryptic plea for help from an old schoolmate, Gerald Leigh. But, Leigh has disappeared, leaving Lenox to look for clues in two mysterious bequests that his old friend received. (Release date is Nov. 1.)

Karin Gillespie’s novel, Love Literary Style, has already caught my attention. “They say opposites attract, and what could be more opposite than a stuffy literary writer falling for a self-published romance writer?” By the time novelist Aaron Mite realizes Laurie Lee is a self-published writer, he’s already fallen in love. (Release date is Nov. 1.)

This House is Mine is Dorte Hansen’s debut novel, an international bestseller. The story covers seventy years, and introduces women who are searching for home. In the end, they discover something they never thought they’d find, family. (Release date is Nov. 15.)

I probably don’t need to say much more to many readers than Faithful is Alice Hoffman’s latest novel. One icy night, Shelby Richmond’s walks away with a burden of guilt while her best friend’s future is destroyed in an accident. But, Shelby has to fight her way back to her future. Now in New York City, she finds a circle of equally lost and found souls, including an angel who’s been watching over her ever since that tragic night. (Release date is Nov. 1.)

Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee tell the story of a girl and her dog in The Secret Life of Souls. Stephen King calls it, “A terrifying, can’t put it down narrative of a family on the verge of disintegration.” The psychological suspense novel is the haunting depiction of a family’s fall and the extraordinary gifted dog who knows the truth. (Release date is Nov. 8.)

Wally Lamb’s latest novel, I’ll Take You There, is the story of one baby boomer’s life and the trio of women who have changed it. Felix Funicello is a film scholar who was introduced in Lamb’s Wishin’ and Hopin’. Now, Felix has the chance to revisit scenes from his childhood, while reconnecting with the women who are the most important in his life. What more can I say about a novel that’s been called a “radiant homage to the resiliency, strength, and power of women”? (Release date is Nov. 22.)

If this isn’t enough, check back tomorrow, when there’s another list of forthcoming books. One of my favorite authors has a title in tomorrow’s list. Come back!