Do you like to match your reading with the seasons? Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t, but this year I’ve found myself in the mood for some solid autumn reads, so I decided to create a list of books for you with strong fall vibes. These are all clean (no cursing, no spice) with at least some element of romance, some are spooky but not too scary, and all of them have big fall energy.
They are not listed in any particular order—I like them all for different reasons! So without further ado, let’s get to the list.
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11 Books to Read This Fall
Imagine Tasha’s surprise when her favorite romance author, Amelie de Pierre, turns out to be a handsome Frenchman writing under a pen name. She’s even more surprised when his agent calls with a marriage proposal. This small-town marriage of convenience romcom is charming and hilarious!
This book was so well-received that the author actually released another book following characters introduced in this story later on called He’s So Not My Valentine, which I also really liked.
The Vampire Hunter and the Heiress
I got this book on a whim during a free book promotion a few months ago and went into it with pretty low expectations, mostly because the cover isn’t my favorite. I loved it! This story follows a monster hunter who has been chained to a desk doing admin work for far too long when he gets assigned to help a young woman rid her family manor of vampires. He soon realizes this isn’t your typical vampire assignment, and the plot and attraction thicken from there. It was an action-packed, surprise-filled, fall-vibing read that wasn’t at all scary despite the gruesome subject matter, and the sweet, clean romance was five stars for me. Also, Greg is my favorite, and I bet he’ll be yours too.
Becca Kinzer is SO FUNNY. The banter and shenanigans in this book balance out perfectly with the deep emotions and issues that go along with complicated relationships. If you are in the market for a later-in-life romance (they’re not geriatric, just not the twenty-something you often see in romcoms) then you’ll want to add this to your TBR. I feel like the official description for this book captures it really well:
Rom-com writer Gracie Parker hasn’t written a bestseller since she and her husband, a major league baseball star, divorced five years ago. On thin ice with her publisher―and with a looming deadline―Gracie couldn’t have picked a worse time for a painful injury that has her flat on her back. At this point, she’d accept help from anybody . . . except her first love and ex-husband, Noah Parker.
The baseball season has just ended in massive disappointment for Noah. He’s facing the stark reality that he gave up everything for a career that’s let him down and that it might be too late to get back the one person he should’ve held on to. So when Gracie’s nephew calls, saying Gracie’s looking for a tenant for her next-door rental, it feels like it’s meant to be.
All Gracie cares about is turning in her manuscript on time, which is directly at odds with Noah’s attempts to win her back, even if she is slightly charmed by his kindness. But can people ever really change? Then Noah throws a curveball that could give Gracie the extension she needs, but it will mean working directly with Noah, something she’s not sure she can face. With no other choice, and everything on the line, Gracie must decide if it is too late for a second draft of their own love story.
This is and maybe always will be one of my favorite books of all time. I’ve re-read this deeply moving, poignant, atmospheric historical romance several times and always enjoy it. When young widow Aven sails to America to help care for the Norgaard brothers, she’s surprised and dismayed to find that they aren’t the boys she pictured from her late husband’s aunt’s letters—they’re all grown men, and all very different from each other. Most intriguing of the three brothers is Thor, a gentle giant who is Deaf and mute during a period in history that wasn’t kind to those who are different. This book deals with racism in post-Civil War Appalachia, feuding neighbors, alcoholism, and more. There are so many layers to this story that I won’t try to list them all, but I implore you to pick up this book as soon as possible.
When Evie finds herself picking up the pieces with her newborn son, her overprotective brother enlists his best friend—a.k.a. her childhood crush—to move her back to their hometown and help her start over. Soon she’s living in the apartment over Maverick’s garage and remembering all the reasons she liked him all those years ago. This a sweet, cozy single mom/brother’s best friend romcom that is perfect for this time of year. And if you like this one, you’ll definitely want to check out the rest of the But He’s a Carter Brother series.
Parker hasn’t seen Logan in ten years—not since he left town to join the NHL and broke her heart in the process. Now he’s back in Harvest Hollow to play for the Appies following an injury, and as the team’s social media manager, she’s tasked with working closely with him to help improve his image. Which somehow leads to them fake-dating? No one is more confused about this than Parker, especially as her old feelings start to resurface.
This hockey romcom was such a hit that now there is an entire series following the Appies hockey team that is just a blast. I’ve read all of them, and I can’t possibly choose a favorite because they’re all so good.
Did I write this book? Yes, I did, which is how I know that it’s a perfect fit for a fall books list. When Brenna finds out that her mom took it upon herself to set her up with a (totally unacceptable) family friend for the Thanksgiving couples competition she invented, Brenna has to come up with a solution fast. Enter Zach, who agrees to pretend to be Brenna’s boyfriend for a few days since he’s burned out and taking a break from dating anyway. Throw in a demanding boss, quirky family traditions, and a shared bathroom, and you have a recipe for a Thanksgiving neither of them will soon forget.
Ok, so maybe Emmy confessed her feelings for Owen to him on his wedding day, and maybe it left her heart bruised when he didn’t return them. And just maybe those feelings roar back to life when she finds out he’s back in town—a fact she learns when he rescues her from a housefire very heroically and dramatically. But Owen has sworn off romance of all kinds, focusing all his energy on his job as a firefighter. Which is bads news for Emmy, the most romantic of all romantics to the point that she secretly hosts a podcast giving romantic relationship advice. This book is sweet and funny and hits all the right notes for a fall love story!
Evangeline Wilder Is Still Single
Oh, hey, it’s me again. Yes, I wrote this one too, and it’s very autumnish. It takes place in a small (completely fictional) town called Maple Mountain, and there are plenty of falling maple leaves and nippy temperatures to set the scene. When Evangeline and Jackson bump into each other for the first time since high school, the attraction hits both of them pretty hard. Things escalate quickly and before they know it, they’re engaged for both personal and professional reasons. Will they be able to make it around the bumps that inevitably pop up in the road or will they be forced to admit that they moved too fast?
The Premonition at Withers Farm
I am a super fan of anything Jaime Jo Wright with her masterfully plotted dual timeline mysteries that are spooky but not too scary for chicken readers like me. Of all her books, this one sticks in my mind as having a distinctly fall vibe. The historical timeline follows Perliett, a young woman being pursued by a killer. The current day timeline follows Molly, a woman battling depression after a string of miscarriages who finds herself drawn into investigating a century-old murder while trying to ignore the eerie sounds in the old farmhouse she and her husband have just moved into. This book is fantastic. I loved the poignant and realistic portrayal of Molly and her husband several years into a marriage that is floundering. The story is mysterious and atmospheric, and yet somehow carries a throughline of hope despite the darkness surrounding the characters.
Breaking up with Ezra is the hardest thing Autumn has ever had to do, even if it was for his own good. Now, ten years later, she’s forced to work with him on a project and all their old feelings for each other come rushing back to the surface. Autumn is convinced that too much time has passed and that he’s better off without her, but Ezra isn’t so sure. For the first time, he’s starting wonder if there isn’t a deeper reason than she let on when she cut him loose all those years ago. This is a story of grief and sacrifice and people doing the best they can, and also a story of forgiving both other people and yourself. It’s sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and always heartfelt.