Top new literary-fiction books out this week: 5 Oct - 11 Oct 2025
Last updated:
October 11, 2025
This week featuring new releases by Mitch Albom, D'Arcy Adrian-Vallance, Carson Faust, Kirsten Miller, Terry Fallis, Grace Byron, Jennifer Fawcett, Lindsay Merbaum, C.M. Alongi, Dani Elias and many more.
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Twice by Mitch Albom
What if you got to do everything in your life —twice? The heart of Mitch Albom’s newest novel is a stunning love story that dares to explore how our unchecked desires might mean losing what we’ve had all along.When he is eight years old, Alfie Logan discovers the magical ability to get a second chance at everything. He can undo any moment and live it again...fiction · contemporary · fantasy · literary-fiction · young-adult · drama · magical-realism · romance · low-fantasy · book -
fiction · sci-fi · mystery · classics · literary-fiction · contemporary · children · book · literary · adult
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If the Dead Belong Here by Carson Faust
When a young girl goes missing, the ghosts of the past collide with her family’s secrets in a mesmerizing Native American Southern GothicWhen six-year-old Laurel Taylor vanishes without a trace, her family is left shattered, struggling to navigate the darkness of grief and unanswered questions...horror · fiction · indigenous-mc · literary-fiction · poc-mc · poc-author · mystery · unreliable-narrator · ghosts · supernatural -
The Women of Wild Hill by Kirsten Miller
A witty, spectacular, and timely tale of modern-day witches waging war on the patriarchy, from fan favorite Kirsten Miller, the author of The Change and Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books.There are places on earth where nature’s powers gather. Girls raised there are bequeathed strange gifts. A few have powers so dark that they fear to use them...fantasy · horror · fiction · magical-realism · witches-wizards · paranormal · magic · supernatural · literary-fiction · gothic -
The Marionette by Terry Fallis
Bestselling and beloved author Terry Fallis' tenth novel, The Marionette, introduces readers to a new hero, James a world-famous thriller writer whose life takes an unexpected turn from the pages of his novels into the perilous world of espionage...fiction · mystery · literary-fiction · satire · thriller · humor · military · politics · crime · action-adventure -
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Herculine by Grace Byron
Manhunt meets Lord of the Flies in this blistering horror debut following a young trans woman after she arrives at the all-trans girl commune founded by her toxic ex-girlfriend, only to discover that demons, both literal and figurative, haunt her fellow comrades—and she's their next prey!Herculine’s narrator has demons...horror · lgbtq · fiction · wlw · trans-mc · contemporary · audiobook · cults · fundamentalism · 21st-century -
Keep This for Me by Jennifer Fawcett
The acclaimed author of the “chilling, mesmerizing debut” (Rachel Harrison, author of The Return ) Beneath the Stairs returns with a gripping, atmospheric suspense novel about a woman investigating a serial killer’s connection to her mother’s disappearance—for fans of I Have Some Questions for You and Notes on an Execution. One hot August night in 1993, a young couple go to a party...suspense · fiction · serial-killers · thriller · survival · multi-pov · kidnapping · family · contemporary · literary-fiction -
Vampires at Sea by Lindsay Merbaum
Immortal beloveds Rebekah and Hugh are on vacation! Against a backdrop of ongoing war, this pair of chic emotional vampires from San Francisco sets off on a queer Black Sea Cruise, eager to relax, join an orgy, and feast upon their fellow passengers’ desires and sorrows...horror · fantasy · vampires · lgbtq · fiction · paranormal · contemporary · humor · supernatural · steamy -
Heart of Iron by C.M. Alongi
Fresh out of prison, Jennifer Charles (JC) is desperately trying to turn their life around and make things right, and seems to find a golden opportunity in CaFae Latte as an under-qualified but talented baker.However, they soon learn that, as dark and unfortunate as their own history is, it pales in comparison to their kind Fae boss, Violet...fantasy · urban-fantasy · audiobook · found-family · lgbtq · fiction · fae · literary-fiction · contemporary · vampires -
Surprise Me Tonight by Dani Elias
She’s forty-two, newly divorced and rebuilding from the ground up. He’s thirty-three, brooding, brilliant and entirely too fit to be her boss. This was never meant to happen.Callum WrightI came to the countryside to slow down, not set my life on fire. Then Stella Marsh showed up for an interview. Quiet voice, mumsy cardigan, clearly nervous and knocked the breath out of me anyway...romance · billionaire · age-gap · small-town · forced-proximity · boss-employee · fiction · contemporary · found-family · workplace -
The Second Chance Cinema by Thea Weiss
A magical theater atop a cobblestone path alters what a couple knows about themselves—and each other—in this scintillating debut brimming with nostalgia and life-affirming wonder. At the end of a fog-covered alley, glitters a glamorous cinema. It’s nearly impossible to find...romance · fantasy · magical-realism · fiction · literary-fiction · womens-fiction · urban-fantasy · humor · comedy · family -
Thorns That Bloom by Kat Sinclair
Sam is doing everything he can to climb back from rock bottom and get his life on track. After enduring months of legal battles in the aftermath of an assault by several alphas at his workplace, he decides that the best thing for himself and his future child is to move forward, which means taking up a job at the company’s sister branch... -
Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon
Milwaukee 1932, the Great Depression going full blast, repeal of Prohibition just around the corner, Al Capone in the federal pen, the private investigation business shifting from labor-management relations to the more domestic kind...