There is no better weather than Fall to sit down with a cozy blanket and a book. To get you settled in, we have compiled a list of LGBTQIA books coming out in October. These worlds and characters will keep you company throughout the month and prepare you for the upcoming holiday season.
If you have read the books in our LGBTQIA picks for September, we have 8 new titles to add to your TBR list. Ashley Herring Blake, Rachael Lippincott, and Alyson Derrick are among the authors we highlight this month.
In order of release date, here are 8 LGBTQIA books we are looking forward to reading this October:
1. Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake – October 1
Ashley Herring Blake sets the mood for Christmas in her book Make the Season Bright. Charlotte Donovan believes her life is going smoothly after her ex left her at the altar. However, she discovers otherwise when she decides to join Sloane and the rest of the Rosalind Quartet for Christmas in Colorado.
Her ex, Brighton, is also in Colorado and the same house. Can the exes survive a Christmas together after everything they’ve been through? It might get more complicated between the Christmas mood, the memories, and the music.
Book Description: Two exes find themselves stuck at the same house for Christmas in this holiday romance by Ashley Herring Blake, USA Today bestselling author of Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date.
It’s been five years since Charlotte Donovan was ditched at the altar by her ex-fiancée, and she’s doing more than okay. Sure, her single mother never checks in, but she has her strings ensemble, the Rosalind Quartet, and her life in New York is a dream come true. As the holidays draw near, her ensemble mate Sloane persuades Charlotte and the rest of the quartet to spend Christmas with her family in Colorado—it is much cozier and quieter than Manhattan, and it would guarantee more practice time for the quartet’s upcoming tour. But when Charlotte arrives, she discovers that Sloane’s sister Adele also brought a friend home—and that friend is none other than her ex, Brighton. All Brighton Fairbrook wanted was to have the holliest, jolliest Christmas—and try to forget that her band kicked her out. But instead, she’s stuck pretending like she and her ex are strangers—which proves to be difficult when Sloane and Adele’s mom signs them all up for a series of Christmas dating events. Charlotte and Brighton are soon entrenched in horseback riding and cookie decorating, but Charlotte still won’t talk to her. Brighton can hardly blame her after what she did. After a few days, however, things start to slip through. Memories. Music. The way they used to play together—Brighton on guitar, Charlotte on her violin—and it all feels painfully familiar. But it’s all in the past and nothing can melt the ice in their hearts…right?
2. Skysong by C.A. Wright – October 1
Oriane is a woman who transforms into a bird, using her singing to call the dawn. However, this task has left her secluded from the rest of the world. Even though this seclusion keeps her safe, it makes her feel lonely. Skysong tells her story as she decides to visit the unknown world.
Sadly, this decision leads Oriane to be captivated by the royal palace. As she tries to figure out how to find her way back to her safe life, she discovers there might be someone else like her.
Book Description: A beautiful, lyrical retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s ‘The Nightingale’ about what some will do for power…and what others will do for love.
Oriane is the skylark, and the sun only rises if she wills it.
Every morning, she transforms from woman to bird, calling the dawn with her song. Seclusion has kept her safe her whole life – but it has also left her lonely, and craving freedom. When Oriane finally succumbs to the lure of the wild unknown, she is discovered in the gardens of the royal palace, where she is taken in by the king and treated like a goddess – and a prisoner.
Embroiled in a battle of faith and politics, Oriane yearns to return to her safe, simple life. A growing danger surrounds the palace, and the skylark and her gift are at its centre. But within the whispers, Oriane learns something she never expected: she may not be as alone as she thought. There may be another like her.
The nightingale.
3. Make My Wish Come True by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick – October 1
For queer women who have been waiting for the sapphic version of How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, their prayers have finally been answered. Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick bring Make My Wish Come True, a Christmas rom-com you won’t want to put down.
Arden James needs to fix her bad girl reputation, so she comes up with the perfect idea with the help of her publicist. She goes back home and asks her childhood best friend, Caroline, to pretend to be her long-term girlfriend. In exchange, Caroline will finally get to publish an article in Cosmopolitan. What could possibly go wrong?
Book Description: A sapphic Netflix-esque Christmas movie meets How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days from the New York Times bestselling author duo of She Gets the Girl Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick.
Hollywood teen actor Arden James’ messy reputation is interfering with her career when a notoriously picky director won’t give her a role based on her party-girl image. So she and her publicist make up a lie – not only is she from a small town (true) but her childhood best friend Caroline, is her long-term girlfriend (false) and she can prove it when she goes home for Christmas.
Caroline Beckett hasn’t thought about her ex-best friend Arden James for years, focusing instead on her dreams about becoming a journalist. When Arden turns up on her doorstep and promises her an article in Cosmopolitan magazine on their twelve snow-covered romantic days together, Caroline agrees to play along.
But when old feelings start to bubble up, what will fall faster – Arden and Caroline or the Christmas Eve snow?
4. I’ll Be Gone for Christmas by Georgia K. Boone – October 8
Sticking to the movie themes, I’ll Be Gone for Christmas gets inspiration from The Holiday to tell readers the story of Bee and Clover. Bee needs a break from her busy San Francisco life and her perfect sister/business partner. She joins Vacate, a house-swapping app, and visits the countryside.
On her end, Clover must escape her life, where she has just lost her mother and decided to leave her fiancé. As the two swap lives, they also swap the people in it. Bee begins to bond with Clover’s ex, while Clover can’t stop thinking about Beth, Bee’s sister.
Book Description: For fans of The Holiday comes a heartwarming Christmas house-swap rom-com debut in which finding yourself and finding love come hand in hand.
Bee Tyler needs a break. In the bustling San Francisco tech community, no one ever seems to stand still—especially her perfect sister and business partner, Beth. So when her best friend suggests a getaway on the wildly popular house-swap app, Vacate, Bee decides a countryside retreat might be exactly what she needs.
Clover Mills has had a year. Between losing her mother and making the complicated decision to leave her fiancé, sticking around the idyllic Christmas obsessed town of Salem, Ohio, just doesn’t feel right. So when she hears about Vacate, she jumps at the chance to spend the holidays in the unfamiliar city of San Francisco.
Soon enough, Bee is living in Clover’s cozy Salem cottage, and Clover is living in Bee’s sleek San Francisco apartment. As Clover can’t seem to stop running into Bee’s frustratingly gorgeous sister, Beth, and Bee finds herself spending more and more time with Clover’s ultra charming ex-fiancé, Knox, the two women realize that this Christmas they may find just what they were looking for and more…
5. All the Hearts You Eat by Hailey Pipe – October 15
If you like small-town mysteries and horror, The Hearts You Eat is the perfect October reading. Ivory finds the body of Cabrina Brite in Cape Morning alongside a mystery poem. As she tries to discover what happened to Cabrina, she begins to see her ghost everywhere she goes.
However, Ivory isn’t the only one seeing Cabrina’s ghost; her friends see her too. The group decides to continue exploring the possibilities of what happened to their friend and hopefully unravel the truth behind her death.
Book Description: A visceral and heartbreaking work of gothic horror about small town mysteries, local folklore and the things we leave behind when we’re gone, from the Bram Stoker Award winning author of Queen of Teeth.
What really happened to Cabrina Brite?
Ivory’s life changes irrevocably when she discovers the body of Cabrina Brite on the sands of Cape Morning, along with a mysterious poem. How did she die, and why does it seem she was trying to swim to Ghost Cat Island, the centre of so many local mysteries?
Desperate to uncover the answers surrounding Cabrina’s death, and haunted by her discovery, Ivory begins to see the pale ghost of Cabrina, only to shake it off as a mere hallucination. But Ivory is not alone. Cabrina’s closest friends have also seen a similar apparition, and as they toy with occult possibilities, they begin to unravel the truth behind Cabrina’s death.
Because Cape Morning isn’t a ghost town, but a town filled with ghosts, and Ivory is about to discover just what happens when you let one in.
6. Metal from Heaven by August Clarke – October 22
Chauncey is the sole manufacturer of the most valuable metal in town, Ichorite. However, he runs into trouble when his workers go on strike because they fall sick while doing their jobs. That is when Chauncey brings out the big guns, and only the daughter of one worker, Marney, survives.
Marney swears she will get vengeance. Her plan sets in motion when Chauncey seeks someone to marry his daughter. Disguised as an aristocrat, Marney becomes the most powerful suitor, getting closer to Chauncey and her revenge.
Book Description: For fans of The Princess Bride and Gideon the Ninth: a bloody lesbian revenge tale and political fantasy set in a glittering world transformed by industrial change – and simmering class warfare.
Ichorite is progress. More durable and malleable than steel, ichorite is the lifeblood of a dawning industrial revolution. Yann I. Chauncey owns the sole means of manufacturing this valuable metal, but his workers, who risk their health and safety daily, are on strike. They demand Chauncey research the hallucinatory illness befalling them, a condition they call “being lustertouched.” Marney Honeycutt, a lustertouched child worker, stands proud at the picket line with her best friend and family. That’s when Chauncey sends in the guns. Only Marney survives the massacre. She vows bloody vengeance. A decade later, Marney is the nation’s most notorious highwayman, and Chauncey’s daughter seeks an opportune marriage. Marney’s rage and the ghosts of her past will drive her to masquerade as an aristocrat, outmaneuver powerful suitors, and win the heart of his daughter, so Marney can finally corner Chauncey and satisfy her need for revenge. But war ferments in the north, and deeper grudges are surfacing. . .
H. A. Clarke’s adult fantasy debut, writing as August Clarke, Metal from Heaven is a punk-rock murder ballad tackling labor issues and radical empowerment against the relentless grind of capitalism.
7. The Bloodless Princes by Charlotte Bond – October 29
High Mage Saralene has spent her life educating herself and researching old tales, but visiting the underworld shows her that might not be all she needs to survive. After an incident with a dragon, she decides to visit the afterlife and beg of the Bloodless Princes.
Saralene takes her companion, Sir Maddileh, with her to the underworld. But will they survive on old tales and the Fireborn Blade alone?
Book Description: Orpheus meets A Natural History of Dragons in a tale of death, honor and true love’s embrace.
It seemed the afterlife was bustling.
Cursed by the previous practitioner in her new role, and following an… incident… with a supremely powerful dragon, High Mage Saralene visits the afterlife with a boon to beg of the Bloodless Princes who run the underworld.
But Saralene and her most trusted advisor/champion/companion, Sir Maddileh, will soon discover that there’s only so much research to be done by studying the old tales, though perhaps there’s enough truth in them to make a start.Saralene will need more than just her wits to leave the underworld, alive. And Maddileh will need more than just her Fireborne Blade.
A story of love and respect that endures beyond death. And of dragons, because we all love a dragon!
8. Once Upon a Dark October by Jessie Thomas – October 31
Elspeth is stuck in a town full of vampires. One day, she finds herself the target of a rogue vampire and is forced to get help from a vampire coven. Morrigan, part of the coven, is tied to Elspeth now that she carries the vampire power. They are now pulled together beyond their control.
Meanwhile, something dark and sinister hides in the shadows of the town. This pushes their bond to deepen, but can it ever be broken?
Book Description: All curses made in blood must be broken with blood.
Dreadmist Harbor sleeps under a near-perpetual veil of coastal fog, home to mortals, vampires, and those somewhere in between. Already down-on-her-luck, mortal charwoman Elspeth finds herself the target of a rogue vampire, shattering the peaceful coexistence. Forced to seek help from a reclusive vampire coven, she barely makes it to their dreary seaside perch before she succumbs to the bite.
Morrigan and her coven are haunted by a bitter rivalry that has left them devastated and fractured. As their old feud is once again rekindled, she is inexorably tied to Elspeth, who now carries an ancient vampiric power within her. The two are quickly swept up into a tangle of bloodlust and sorcery after the fraught transformation—realizing that matters of the heart are complicated, especially in undeath.
While something sinister gathers in the shadows of their quiet town, they are pulled deeper into a world of curses and magic, dark dealings and betrayal. But Elspeth and Morrigan soon learn that all power must come with a price, for curses are not so easily broken.
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What will you be reading in October? Share your picks in the comments below!
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Lara Rosales
By day, Lara Rosales (she/her) is a solo mom by choice and a bilingual writer with a BA in Latin-American Literature who works in PR. By night, she is a TV enjoyer who used to host a podcast (Cats, Milfs & Lesbian Things). You can find her work published on Tell-Tale TV, Geek Girl Authority, Collider, USA Wire, Mentors Collective, Instelite, Noodle, Dear Movies, Nicki Swift, and Flip Screened.
