The Best New Books Out in October, According to Indie Booksellers

The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave

This is the Indie Next List #1 pick for October! The bookseller recommendation is “Laura Dave’s signature blend of twisty mystery, family drama, and moving love story is top-notch in this tender and profound exploration of grief, truth, trust, and forgiveness. A perfect follow-up to The Last Thing He Told Me!” —Alyssa Raymond, Copper Dog Books, Beverly, MA

Intermezzo by Sally Rooney

Here, Rooney’s eye for interpersonal relationships is turned to two brothers, Peter and Ivan Koubek, who aren’t very much alike. Peter fits every bit of the confident and successful attorney stereotype there is—until his father dies, and he starts self-medicating to get to sleep. And, now his relationships with two different women—one his age and one in college—are starting to falter, too. Then there’s his younger brother, Ivan, who is a competitive chess player, and who has never been all that social. Since their father died, his life has changed, too, and he finds himself becoming more and more involved with an older woman. —Erica Ezeifedi

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Entitlement by Rumaan Alam

From the author of Leave the World Behind (now a Netflix movie) comes a new “novel of money and morality.” It follows Brooke, a woman looking to make a difference and make a name for herself. When she gets a job helping an elderly billionaire give away his fortune, she gets a taste of what it’s like to have proximity to the kind of wealth that can pull the rest of the world into its gravity. This looks like a thought-provoking and unsettling read about the “seductive distortions of money.” —Danika Ellis

The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich

Multi-award-winning Erdrich’s latest follows messy lives against a backdrop of resources being sucked dry through climate changes and the 2008 recession. Gary is a young man about to inherit two farms, and is set on marrying lapsed Goth Kismet Poe, while Hugo’s messy, red-headed behind wants to steal her for himself. Amidst the drama, the people of the Red River Valley try their best to survive, while things like visions of angels and drastic changes complicate things. —Erica Ezeifedi

A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang

This is also the October pick for the Good Morning America Book Club! The Indie Bestseller recommendation is “Mesmerizing, romantic, and charged through poignant critiques of nationalistic literature. Saft’s adult debut challenges the dark origins of twisted fairytales with empathy while weaving a tense web of sapphic yearning. A new favorite!” —Isabel Agajanian, The Oxford Exchange, Tampa, FL

The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones

Young Mieczyslaw comes to this health resort in what is now western Poland to recover from the lung issues he’s struggled with for far too long. His days are full of getting to know the strange residents of the guesthouse and being exposed to their philosophical and political debates. But as all these questions of gender, humanity, and money circulate, Mieczyslaw begins to wonder if something is profoundly wrong with the town and their surroundings — and if there’s actually a chance of getting better here. This greenery/herbology-filled, historical fiction/mystery/thought-provoking novel mixes all sorts of things together and comes out fascinating thanks to Tokarczuk’s Nobel Prize-winning writing. —Leah Rachel von Essen

Swordcrossed by Freya Marske

I mean, the cover alone is enough to sell this one, but it’s also from an author you might recognize: Freya Marske, the author of the Last Binding Series (starting with A Marvellous Light). This low fantasy bodyguard romance is about Matti, who has hired a swordsman to be his best man for his arranged marriage. Otherwise, a sword-challenge at his wedding could upend his plans for securing his family’s financial stability. All he can afford, though, is con artist Luca. In the lead-up to the wedding, they are drawn into the intrigue and sabotage that put Matti’s family in danger of ruin, and Luca’s secrets come out. The reviews say this is both “deliciously cozy and blisteringly hot.” —Danika Ellis

A Sunny Place for Shady People: Stories by Mariana Enriquez, translated by Megan McDowell

Mariana Enriquez’s haunting novel Our Share of Night solidified her reputation as one of the biggest names in Latin American literature right now. In this collection of short stories, ordinary people in Argentina find their lives upended when they encounter the supernatural, from ghosts and goblins to women who have turned into birds. —Danika Ellis

The Crescent Moon Tearoom by Stacy Sivinski

This October release is giving off Practical Magic vibes. The Quigley sisters have gotten by reading tea leaves, ever since the death of their parents. But when the Council of Witches informs them that magic has left their city diviner, Anne, Beatrix, and Violet start to wonder about other lives outside their tea shop. Are they all destined to spend their days staring into the bottom of a cup, or can they break a family curse and take charge of their own futures? This is a heart-squeezy story of sisters, tea leaves, and destiny. —Liberty Hardy

Family Meal by Bryan Washington

This one is the from the Indie Next List picks for Now in Paperback. Family Meal is Washington’s follow-up to Memorial. In it, Cam has returned to his hometown of Houston after a stay in rehab, but he’s still struggling with the loss of his love, Kai. In need of work, he takes a job at his childhood friend TJ’s family’s bakery, and the two have to navigate a new stage of friendship, one marred by the uncertainty of estrangement. TJ doesn’t know what to do with or for Cam, who’s drowning in self-destructive behaviors and who has visions of his deceased former love. And then there are TJ’s own uncertainties. Washington’s exploration of grief, food, love, and sex is tenderly expressed. —Erica Ezeifedi