There are as many October book releases as there were September ones, so, once again, I’m gong to divide the post into two parts. If you enjoy these, don’t forget to come back tomorrow! And, as a reminder, thanks to my sister, Christie, here are the links to the September Treasures so you can get these books on hold at the library, or pick them up wherever you get your next reads. Here’s Part 1 – https://lesasbookcritiques.com/september-treasures-in-my-closet-part-1-3/. Here’s Part 2 – https://lesasbookcritiques.com/september-treasures-in-my-closet-part-2-4/. Happy Reading!

Kim van Alkamade’s bookl is Upstate: A Novel – A Sapphic Love Story of Grief, Healing, and Hidden Letters in Upstate New York. A grieving writer. An abandoned bookshop. A secret love story hidden in letters. From New York Times bestselling author Kim van Alkemade comes an unforgettable novel about found family, healing, and the power of the past to reshape the present. (Release date is Oct. 27.)

Here’s one I’m eager to read, The Memory of Borrowed Books by Meg Anderson. A sweeping, magical ode to community and the stories we leave behind, The Memory of Borrowed Books follows one librarian who discovers a hidden room of unfinished memories—and must find the one that can save her beloved library from closing forever. Deep in the library lives a hidden room where magic lines the shelves and memories lie in wait Ready for readers daring enough to finally discover the truth. In the coastal town of Foxhollow Bay, librarian Claire Ashford keeps her life as meticulously ordered as the centuries-old library she calls home. But when the town announces plans to shut it down, her sanctuary, and the life she’s built within its walls, begins to crumble. One night, while wandering the stacks after hours, Claire discovers a door that shouldn’t exist. And behind it lies a secret room filled with books no one else can see. Each book pulls her into the memories of those who have passed through the library’s doors—moments half-lived and stories left unfinished. Buried within these pages is a message the library has been trying to share, urging Claire to uncover the path to saving it. (Release date is Oct. 6.)

Donna Andrews’ 40th Meg Langslow mystery is Jay to the World. The Christmas season is underway in Caerphilly. The members of the Hollingsworth clan, Meg’s mother’s family, are beginning to arrive in force, and Mother has several special projects underway this year. One is the playhouse she’s having built for Brynn, her two-year-old granddaughter. Brynn is a bright, lively child who loves animals, especially a wounded jay that she and Meg are trying to rehabilitate. She’s also hoping to play matchmaker and set up her cousin with an old friend of hers who was recently widowed. But all is not going smoothly in Caerphilly. Someone vandalizes the playhouse and sets a dangerous trap that injures and could have killed Mother. She reveals that she has been getting nasty anonymous letters, and it’s obvious that someone is targeting her. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

Embark on a delightfully absurd vacation with Ludwig Bemelmans,. the author of the Madeline books and Hotel Splendide as he blunders his way through 1950s France in How to Travel Incognito. In this madcap fictionalized memoir, Ludwig Bemelmans blends picaresque fantasy with his trademark sparkling humor to create an enchanting travelogue that armchair travelers everywhere will enjoy! When Bemelmans meets the dashing but destitute Comte de St. Cucuface on a Paris train, he is swept into a deliciously absurd adventure across postwar France. Under the Count’s tutelage, Bemelmans learns to hoodwink strangers with immaculate manners and effortless charm, adopting the persona of a German prince and joining his new companion on a series of outlandish escapades. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

A woman and her ghost roommate investigate their most personal case yet in Olivia Blacke’s The Key to a Killer, the next book in the Anthony Award winning Ruby and Cordelia Mysteries. When Ruby Young discovered that her Boston apartment was haunted, she did what any reasonable person would do: befriend the ghost. Their relationship overcame a shaky start―Cordelia Graves never wanted a roommate in life, she certainly didn’t want one in death. After working together to solve a few murders, the two are close friends, but there’s a lingering question neither of them have been able to answer: what led to Cordelia’s death? Lately things have been adding up that suggest foul play. And when Cordelia’s memories of that day start to come back, the roommates can’t ignore it anymore: Cordelia was murdered. Ruby and Cordelia are going to have to piece together what Cordelia’s final days looked like―otherwise a killer could go free. (Release date is Oct. 20.)

Another Name for Red is Amber Blaeser-Wardzala’s debut novel. After a young Anishinaabe woman vanishes, her sister tries to pick up the pieces of her broken family, even as her investigations put her at risk of suffering a similar fate. Middle Sister is haunted by everyone in her community who has disappeared—as well as those who remain. Her ex-best friend and ex-boyfriend are walking relics of the girl she used to be, while her family—her activist mother, checked-out father, and attention-starved younger siblings—are reminders of the elder sister she can never live up to. Then there’s John Smith, the infamous white man with red cowboy boots living on stolen reservation land, whose obsessive attentions are as repellant as they are compelling. But most of all, there are the thousands of unacknowledged missing and murdered Indigenous women, including Older Sister, whose year-long absence from the reservation has torn her remaining family apart. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

Murder on Thin Ice is Laurie Cass’ fourteenth Bookmobile Cat mystery. It’s winter in northwest lower Michigan, which means librarian Minnie Niswander and her cat, Eddie, are staying cozy in the bookmobile. But not everything is as it should be. When an elderly housebound patron, Gerald Arnold, fails to answer his door, Minnie knows something is wrong. Her fears are confirmed when the police discover Gerald’s body beneath the surface of a small frozen lake. Minnie knows that the kind and cautious Gerald would never have been so careless as to fall through the ice, and she suspects foul play. But law enforcement rules the old man’s death an accident, and Minnie knows she will have to take the investigation into her own hands. (Release date is Oct. 6.)

It’s “Love and Murder under the Mistletoe” with Home for the Homicides, the first Holly and Mark Mystery by Elle Cosimano and Hannah Morrissey. When Special Agents Holly Frost and Mark Shepherd report to the idyllic town of Christmas to investigate a very less than idyllic murder, they’re in for more than the average whodunnit. Welcome to Christmas, a town so cozy and charming it could be the backdrop of a Hallmark movie, where crime is never in season and it’s the holidays all year round. So when a tourist is found stabbed to death by an icicle ornament in the middle of the town nativity scene, the local police are out of their depth―after all, how do you find a criminal in a town where crime doesn’t exist?
The stakes are high: the whole town is relying on Holly and Mark to solve the crime before the annual Jingle Bell Jubilee festival (which naturally the town’s entire economic survival relies on), plus, whichever of them cracks the case will receive a promotion to Major Crimes―and there’s only one spot. eHolly and Mark are both on thin ice after screwing up on the job. This assignment is their one shot at redemption, if they can put aside their bitter rivalry. And of course, it’s not only their careers on the line, it’s their hearts, too―regrets of their holiday party hookup last year haunt them like ghosts of Christmas past, so they both want to wrap up this rom-com gone wrong as quickly as possible. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

Let’s face it. Some of the holiday rom-coms are hokey, but fun. And Ashley Cowan’s Not Another Christmas Movie knows that, and doesn’t take itself seriously. Thirtysomething Annie Meyers is having a rough year. Her situationship with the noncommittal Chris fizzled out, and her best friend’s impending engagement is the final crunch of the candy cane. Her solution: to spend the holiday slugging boxed rosé and ignoring the rest of the world. That is, until she falls asleep and wakes up in her worst nightmare: a made-for-TV Christmas movie version of her quaint hometown. To make matters worse, Chris is now the town’s hunky widower and owner of a Christmas tree farm. But Annie isn’t trapped alone: Her dorky childhood neighbor, Nick, is here too. Only, he’s not quite as dorky as she remembers. After some mild panic, Annie and Nick realize their escape hinges on playing into classic rom-com tropes. The plan is simple: Annie will woo Chris—the now “perfect boyfriend”—and Nick, his childhood sweetheart, Bailey. But after holiday hoedowns, ice-skating dates, and cookie-baking montages, Annie begins to wonder if the real magic of Christmas—and love—is much closer to home. (Release date is Oct. 6.)

Here’s a warning. Delemhach’s The Dues & Don’ts of Magic looks like an intriguing fantasy, but it’s the first in a trilogy. If I can wait a year for the next in a Nora Roberts series, I guess I can wait for the second in a fantasy one. The Spellshop meets Legends & Lattes in this new cozy romantic fantasy trilogy about magic gone wrong, by the bestselling author of The House Witch series! Spidena Kettle runs a quiet magic shop at the edge of town, selling just enough spells and potions to keep herself afloat—and out of trouble—when Benthrop Hozel enters her shop one day. On the run from the nefarious sort, he simply wishes to be forgotten by his pursuers. In exchange, he promises a favor. Such a deal could have dire consequences if Ben is unable to fulfill his end of the bargain. Not that the witch is overly concerned—after all, there’s no risk to her making such an arrangement with a normal human. Only…Ben may be more than he seems. With their fates forcibly intertwined for a full journey, Spidena and Ben must not only evade their enemies and use precious magical resources to get by, but confront the secrets they’ve long kept…that is, if they can manage to stop getting on each other’s last nerve for long enough to do so. (Release date is Oct. 6.)

Jacqueline Frost’s seventh Christmas Tree Farm Mystery is Deck the Halls with Boughs of Murder. New parents Holly White and Sheriff Evan Gray are sleep deprived but incandescently happy to be celebrating their baby’s first Christmas. Their family, friends, and neighbors are spoiling the newest addition. Adding to the perfect holiday season is the recent completion of their newly built home. All that’s left to do is move in and send off those change-of-address cards. But their cup full of cheer turns sour when Holly discovers a dead body. It all started with a sweet trip down memory lane—Candy Cane Lane and Toyland were two of Holly’s favorites as a child, and she had been looking forward to sharing them with her baby. Then she stumbled upon the body of Greysen, the animal keeper, left among the reindeer at the petting zoo. Earlier in the day, Holly witnessed a fight between Greysen and a stranger. Stranger still, the reindeer petting zoo had originally been empty that day—no reindeer in sight until they reappeared along with a corpse. (Release date is Oct. 6.)

I said I wasn’t going to review any more of Laurie Gilmore’s books on my blog. I didn’t say I wasn’t going to read them. And Gilmore’s publisher HarperCollins, is bringing the next spicy romance Wicked Wicked Mate out just a month after her first Maple Hollow romance, Big Bad Wolf. The closer the proximity, the stronger the spark…Phoebe never expected to fall in love, and especially not with the annoyingly handsome werewolf she’s been hanging out with for years. Theo has spent his life comparing himself to his brothers, never quite matching up to his father’s expectations. But in Maple Hollow, everything is different. Theo finally has a life of his own and a chance at redemption and he’s reluctant to risk it for anything, or anyone. But after years of fighting their attraction to each other, Phoebe and Theo find that denying their feelings is no longer possible. Especially when they end up on a road trip that might change everything…(Release date is Oct. 20.)

Split Screen is the seventh Eve Ronin book by Lee Goldberg. I can already tell from the description that this one is going to be tense. When Erin Casey, the actress who plays LASD detective Eve Ronin on TV, is gunned down after a ride-along, the intended target is obvious: the real Eve. What isn’t obvious is why. As Eve hunts the shooter, her world fractures into more deadly reflections. The new sheriff forces Eve to exploit her fame to burnish his image—or he’ll destroy her partner, Duncan. And a reckless half sister Eve never knew she had pulls her toward a criminal conspiracy that’s already dumped a corpse in a Topanga Canyon ravine. To save Erin, protect her half sister, and survive herself, Eve must find the killers before they strike again—and before her enemies inside the department finish the job for them. (Release date is Oct. 20.)

Whoops! Working from one book pile and a list means this title is out of order. It also means I buried the lede for today. Peck & Peck is the next book by Bonnie Garmus, author of the enormous bestseller Lessons in Chremistry. It’s set in the publishing world of 1980s New York City about a young man whose life turns upside down when he is hired by the most prestigious, secretive, and dysfunctional poetry journal in the world: the renowned Peck & Peck. It’s 1982, New York City. Crime is on the rise, muggings are in the streets, and Batter Gray, recent college graduate with a skill that no one wants—an “ear” for poetry—is worried about his future. While all of his friends have real jobs, he’s folding T-shirts at the Gap. As for love? No. Not unless you count Sallie Mae, the student loan tyrant. He hears from Sallie all the time. But when Batter gets a dream job at Peck & Peck, the most prestigious poetry quarterly in the world, his life moves into the literary fast lane. Soon Batter is knee-deep in the secret war between the two Editors in Chief, the famous Peck brothers—twins and enemies—as well as being privy to the private affairs of their thirty-nine editors, whose professed mission is the same: Find originality. Reward creativity. Burn the rest. And by burn, they mean incinerate. Because at Peck & Peck, “good” isn’t good enough, “interesting” doesn’t cut it, plagiarists aren’t tolerated, and parolees run the mailroom. Still want to submit your poem? Go with God. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

It says “Book Club” on the front, so, of course, I’m going to read The Mother-in-Law Book Club by Kate Hash. On the plane to Durham for her next big gig, traveling consultant and soon-to-be divorcée Andi gets into an argument about the impossible expectations of mothers-in-law that will change her life forever. When her seventy-something adversary unexpectedly extends an olive branch invitation to her book club, Andi does something completely out of character: she says yes. This social circle is delightfully feisty, gossipy, and also hopelessly clueless about how to navigate frayed relationships with their adult children. Andi spends evenings doling out advice to her new coterie of retired friends, helping to repair generational divides. As the weeks and months go by, Andi has a quiet revelation: life in Durham just fits. The book club members love her, the company loves her, and after a whirlwind romance with a handsome professor, she’s fairly certain her new beau loves her, too. It’s all going great . . . until her past comes walking through the door. Andi must decide what happiness really looks like–and she just might need the wisdom of her new friends to figure it out. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

Jenna Helwig’s post-World War II novel is The Foreign Correspondent’s Wife. Paris, 1949. It’s been five years since the war ended. The City of Light is only just beginning to rediscover its joie de vivre. Americans are arriving in droves, including the fiercely independent former reporter Kat Kelly and her husband—a hotshot foreign correspondent. Forced out of journalism by the old boys’ club, the tenacious Kat has moved on to pursue her love for French cuisine. But this new chapter turns deadly when she finds the bloody body of an American classmate, Toby. After giving her statement to the police and breaking the news to Toby’s girlfriend, Kat quickly suspects that Toby’s life—and death—were more complicated than she imagined. The more Kat learns, the more certain she is that the police are only scratching the surface of the case. When another body turns up, Kat and her husband, Charlie, find themselves embroiled in the investigation. With the killer on the loose and time running out, Kat races to solve the case and save her marriage—and her life. In a glittering city desperate to forget the devastation of war, some secrets refuse to remain buried. But when agonizing truths are forced into the light, no one is safe. (Release date is Oct. 20.)

I just have a teaser about the twenty-second Roy Grace book, Dead in Three Two One by Peter James. The publicist calls it “An entry-point for new readers and another high-stakes thrill for seasoned fans, this new installment in the Roy Grace series is the perfect page-turning novel to dive into this fall.” In DEAD IN THREE TWO ONE, behind the opulent façade of the Royal Courteney Hotel, a nightmare is checking in. The hitman for the mob seeks revenge for his incarcerated boss, placing Roy Grace and his wife, Cleo, in a deadly trap. As the relentless countdown nears zero, Roy must outsmart an invisible enemy and protect his loved ones before their time finally runs out…(Release date is Oct. 20.)

Stephen Graham Jones returns to the Blackfeet reservation with Off the Reservation. The author of the bestsellers The Only Good Indians and The Buffalo Hunter Hunter brings back Nate Yellow Tail. After a terrible accident, he joins a ragtag group of activists, three older Blackfeet, as they set out on a mission to find the bones of the lone Blackfeet boy who died at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, where many indigenous children were abused. They plan to repatriate this boy home. The problem is, when they get the bones, something terrible has escaped with them. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

Elizabeth Kostova, author of The Historian, takes readers into the next chapter with Mystery Play. Across generations, one family of historians has been marked to combat an evil that refuses to die. In Mystery Play, the youngest of them must face a new and terrifying incarnatio. From Gilded Age New York to modern Charleston, from Italy to remote corners of the British Isles, this unforgettable story spans centuries – and the darkest possibilities of human nature. (Release date is Oct. 13.)

That’s enough for today. There are a couple big October releases I’ll cover tomorrow. Think Debbie Macomber and Louise Penny. Along with another sixteen or seventeen more releases. Check back tomorrow, and start your TBR lists today!