“I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
— L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
Reading a book pairs beautifully with autumn weather. Imagine yourself curled up in your favorite spot, a cup of tea nestled in your sweater-clad arm, book laying open on your lap. A soft creature sleeping nearby while rain patters on the window. Le sigh. Since autumn is so ideal for reading, I’ve compiled a list of over 5 dozen books to read in autumn. Many of the authors on this list (Stephen King, Agatha Christie, Jane Austen) have a large body of work from which to draw. Also, many of these books are the first in a series. Not all take place specifically in autumn, but they still have the quiet, ghostly atmosphere perfect for the season.
FYI, all recommendations are completely my own, but I may earn a small commission if you purchase a book through a link in this article. Read about my affiliate link policy here.
Classic Books to Read in Autumn
- Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
- The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
- Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
- The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
- The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
- The Crucible by Arthur Miller
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- Dracula by Bram Stoker
Fantasy Books to Read in Autumn
- Ninth House Leigh Bardugo
- Small Favors by Erin A. Craig
- Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
- The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow
- Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
- Uprooted by Naomi Novik
- The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid
- Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
- A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
- The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkein
General Fiction Books to Read in Autumn
- First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen
- The Familiars by Stacey Halls
- Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson
- Pumpkin Everything by Beth LaBonte
- Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty
- September by Rosamunde Pilcher
- The Simplicity of Cider by Anne E. Reichert
- Autumn by Ali Smith
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Anne Shaffer and Annie Barrows
- Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Horror Books to Read in Autumn
- House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski
- The Good House by Tananarive Due
- The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
- Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
- The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
- The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
- The Hunger by Alfa Katsu
- Misery by Stephen King
- Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin
- Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado
- White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi
Mystery/Thriller Books to Read in Autumn
- Murder in the Mystery Suite by Ellery Adams
- Cold Clay by Juneau Black
- Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell
- Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie
- The Guest List by Lucy Foley
- The Searcher by Tana French
- The Maidens by Alex Michaeledes
- Still Life by Louise Penny
- Borrower of the Night by Elizabeth Peters
- Broomsticks and Burials by Lily Webb
YA Fiction Books to Read in Autumn
- The Rag and Bone Shop by Robert Cormier
- The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle
- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
- The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
- Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks
- City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab
- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell
- The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
- Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
For even more ways to find books to read in autumn, try these:
- Cozy Mystery Series You Can Find for Free on Library Apps
- The Scary Books that Doomed Millennials as Children
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