Books I Want to Read this Fall (Based on Vibes)
Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog!
Today is September 23, which means (as of yesterday) it is officially Autumn, aka my favorite season! Someone please come and tell that to the weather, I beg. Although, it's 89 degrees Fahrenheit today, so at least it's below 90. You have to take the small wins, you know?
Anyway, I thought today I would give you my tentative Fall TBR. I did this a few months ago with my Summer TBR (check that out here) and decided to just go ahead and keep doing it with the books on my physical TBR. Most of the books I have on this list are because they're perfect for spooky season, but there are a couple that are more academia-oriented, or they just have Autumn vibes. Just because a book is on this list doesn't necessarily mean I will get to it in the coming months. I'm a mood reader and TBRs tend to fall apart with me. This is just a list of books that I own that I think would be good to read in the Autumn months.
Okay, with that little disclaimer out of the way...let's get into the books!
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Generally regarded as the first story in the gothic genre, The Castle of Otranto is about Prince Manfred and his desperate attempt to marry his son's betrothed, Isabella, in order to secure his line after his son Conrad dies in an untimely accident. It's full of secrets, ghosts, and all of those other staple tropes that make up a gothic novel. It's rather short, coming in at only 160 pages, so that should help with the language. Originally published in 1764, I have a feeling that this will be a little difficult to read, but I'm willing to take on the challenge. I love gothic tales so I'm very excited to see where it all began.
Another gothic novella (this one only 134 pages long) published in 1898, The Turn of the Screw follows a young governess as she accepts the job to take care of two orphan children in a sprawling country house. However, soon the governess begins to believe that something evil and otherworldly is stalking the children, and consequently, her. This novella is the inspiration behind Mike Flannigan's The Haunting of Bly Manor (which I haven't technically watched, but I've seen a lot of video essays about it). I tried to read this a few years ago but the edition I got from the library was horrible, so I'm going to be starting anew.
Wow, what's this? Another gothic novel? Aw, you shouldn't have! First published in 1796, The Monk was torn apart by critics and figures of "polite society" for it's obscenity, even more shocking when you realize the author was only 20 years old, and a member of Parliament. The story follows a monk who slowly falls into debauchery (among other things) when a young girl arrives at the monastery, disguised as a boy. Lewis was eventually charged with blasphemy for this book, and had to republish an edited version (though the Penguin edition is the original publication, and that is the one I have).
This is technically a reread for me, but not really. I've read Frankenstein, but the regular edition that you can find anywhere, published in 1831. Supposedly the 1818 text is a lot more philosophical and minimizes Victor Frankenstein's free will, making him more an agent of destiny. It also changes Elizabeth's backstory. Supposedly, the 1818 text more closely resembles Mary Shelley's original vision for the story. I really want to read both the 1818 edition as well as the 1831 edition back to back, so I can compare and contrast the two. It's been a few years since I read Frankenstein and I've only read it the one time, so this will probably be my next big project.
This is really only on the list because I recently read Katabasis by R.F. Kuang (you'll get my full thoughts in September's wrap up) and that put me in the mood for Dante. The Inferno is also technically a reread, but I read a different translation back in my school days, and we only read certain cantos (at least, I don't think we read the entire thing). I chose the Robert Pinsky translation because it's what Emma recommended, and I like that it's a bilingual edition, having the original Latin on the left and the English translation on the right. Unfortunately, Pinksy has only translated Inferno, so if I want to continue the Divine Comedy I will have to find a different translation for the last two books.
A modern book, hooray! T. Kingfisher's horror books are some of my favorite in the genre, and this is the last book of hers that I have on my physical TBR. I read The Twisted Ones last year and I really enjoyed it, and I've heard a lot of people say that The Hollow Places is even better. It's a rather similar plot: a young woman is cleaning out a dead relative's home and finds something she shouldn't, and becomes obsessed with trying to figure out the big mystery. T. Kingfisher really likes certain tropes, and I have to give her credit because she always does them well.
To round off the spooky vibes, I have a nonfiction about different haunted locations throughout the US. I got about half-way through this book once way back in 2016 (nearly ten years ago!) but had to DNF because my hold from the library was due. But this time, I actually own the thing, and I will finish it! I remember I really liked all of the history thrown in, and of course I knew of about half of the places mentioned, but it's always fun reading about haunted places. At least, it's fun for me.
Now for a more academic approach to Autumn. Bunny is kind of a cult classic at this point, and I feel almost ashamed at not having read it yet. The story follows Samantha, a college student who is enamored with a group of girls on campus. They're popular. They're mysterious. They only ever refer to themselves and each other as bunny. And one day, they invite Samantha to join their clique. I don't know what happens next, but you can bet that I'm going to find out. Everyone I know who has read this has loved it. I'm not expecting it to be a new 5-star favorite, but who knows?
This might be the biggest outlier on this list. It's more slasher/thriller than spooky/scary. Battle Royale follows a middle-school class as they are abandoned on a deserted island and forced to kill each other until there is only one left standing. Sound familiar? Though this was originally published in 1999, it's often described as the "Japanese Hunger Games." A lot of other books, movies, and TV shows are inspired by it, including the popular show Squid Game. I put it on this list because it's about a middle-school class, and my brain registered that as "academia" even though it has nothing to do with actual school. Don't ask me why, because I can't give you an answer.
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And that's all for today! I'd love to know what is on your Autumn TBR. Leave a comment below, or DM me on Instagram (link in sidebar under the heading "More Media").
Until next time, friends!
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