If this month feels especially epic to you, it’s probably because Christopher Paolini is releasing a new book this month. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars might be my most anticipated of the month as it combines space, aliens, and the end of humanity in a tight little package. I’ll gladly accept that package from Paolini and can’t wait til this one arrives on my doorstep.
Of course, I am nothing without my cozies and the latest in the Cajun Country Mystery series looks like a winner. I loved my visit to New Orleans and since I can’t go back right now, these books do a good job of bringing me the creole I need. Another book I am excited for is Murder at the PTA. I don’t normally buy books on title alone, but with a title like that – I’m already hooked.
September is always a great month for horror with Halloween right around the corner and this month is no exception. The latest from Stephen Graham Jones is always going to go on my reading list and The Loop sounds like a ton of fun. I’m a big fan of zombies and Stranger Things so anything that combines my two loves like that is a must-read in my book!
I’m also excited to check out When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole. With all that is going on in the world right now, this story of a gentrification conspiracy feels like the perfect read. Then when I’m done with that one I’ll wash it down with a nice palette cleanser, Well Played by Jen DeLuca. House-flipping and romance? Sign me up!
Here are some of my tops books that I am excited to read in September 2020:
Best Upcoming Cozy Mystery Books: September 2020
Murder in Devil's Cover by Melissa Bourbon and Wendy Lyn Watson - Buy at Amazon: This is the first book in the Book Magic Mystery series by the team of Bourbon and Lyn Watson. The story follows two cousins who live on opposite coasts, but both have the unique gift of seeing the future and unraveling the past with the help of books. This book sees Pippin using the power of the books to figure out what happened to her father twenty-five years ago and stop another murder from happening in the present day.
Murder in the Bayou Boneyard by Ellen Bryon - Buy at Amazon: The sixth entry in the Cajun Country Mystery series by Ellen Byron is Murder in the Bayou Boneyard. Maggie Crozat is the proprietor of the historic Cajun Country B&B and is trying to shore up some business by hosting a Pelican’s Sppoky Past event. The event includes a play in the cemetery, but a mask is poisoned and an actor is left dead. It’s up to Maggie to try and solve the case.
Profiteroles and Poison - Buy at Amazon: This is the 21st book in the Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery series. This book can be read as a standalone, but is more enjoyed as part of the larger series. This story sees the drummer of a local band murderer which puts the cat-loving Julia and her quirky family back on the case.
Murder at the PTA by Lee Hollis - Buy at Amazon: A brand new series by Lee Hollis starts this month. The series is a mix of Desperate Housewives and Murder, She Wrote that follows Maya and Sandra as they solve mysteries. The book starts in high school where a gossipy website called Dirty Laundry is causing trouble. The website has taken aim at PTA President Sandra Wallage with some ruinous rumors. Sandra teams up with Maya Kendrick, a local PI, to investigate and they head to the office of the gossip columnist only to find a dead body. The police rule the death a suicide, but Sandra and Maya think otherwise as they team up to solve the mystery.
Winner Cake All by Denise Swanson - Buy at Amazon: Denise Swanson’s series follows a chef named Dani Sloan from a small town of Normalton, IL who solves mysteries when she’s not cooking. She gets a job catering a swanky wedding for Yvette Joubert and Franklin Whittaker. The event is her chance to show what she can do, but a storm hits the party and dinner is ruined. However, it turns out a whole more than that is ruined when Yvette is found dead. The question of whether the death was an accident or a murder is something that Yvette will seek to find out.
Best Upcoming Fantasy/Sci-Fi Books: September 2020
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini - Buy at Amazon: This epic novel from Christopher Paolini follows a girl named Kira Navarez who has always dreamed of life on new worlds. She is doing a routine survey mission on an uncolonized planet when she finds an alien relic. This is what she has always wanted to find, but soon that delight turns to terror as ancient dust begins to move and Kira is sent into a new world. The first contact does not turn out as she imagined and now she may be the only one who can stop humanity from total annihilation.
The Lost Book of the White by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu - Buy at Amazon: The second book in the Eldest Curses series continues the journey of High Warlock Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood. The story begins with peace as the two are happily living in New York City with their son Max. That all changs when someone breaks into Magnus’s apartment and steals the powerful Book of the White. Now, the two will have to drop everything to get it back before it manages to threaten the entire world.
The Other Side of the Sky by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner - Buy at Amazon: Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner combine for this tale of magic and logic, fate and choice, and a deadly love. It tells the story of Prince North who lives in the sky in a city held aloft by engines and powered by technology, and Nimh who is the living goddess of the the people on Surface. North and Nimh’s lives are entwined in many ways, but a terrifying prophecy ensures that their hearts can never be. The two are caught between duty and fate, and now face the consequences of what might happen if they succumb to their forbidden bond.
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas - Buy at Amazon: This debut from Aiden Thomas tells the story of a trans boy who summons a ghost to prove his gender to his family, but is now struggling to get rid of him. Yadriel has a plan to set free the ghost of his murdered cousin, but things go wrong and he summons the ghost of Julian Diaz, the school bad boy, instead. Julian is not going to go quietly into death and Yadriel will have to help him to get what he wants, but the more time the two spend together – the closer they get.
Fable by Adrienne Young - Buy at Amazon: The first book in a new series of the same name by Adrienne Young. The story follows a young girl who has only known the sea as her home for her entire life. She lost her mother to a storm four years ago and then her father abandoned her on an island filled with thieves. Now, she must fight to survive as she makes her plan to get off the island and back onto her father’s ship.
Best Upcoming Horror Books: September 2020
The Nesting by C.J. Cooke - Buy at Amazon: Two daughters lost mother Aurelia to suicide and now their father is determined to finish building their dream house to honor her. The father hires Lexi Ellis as the girls’ nanny and she instantly falls in love with them, but something feels off about the isolated house they live in. Things get creepy when muddy footprints appear inside the home and Aurelia’s diary finds its way to Lexi’s room. Lexi begins to suspect that Aurelia’s death was no suicide at all and there is something sinister after her and the children.
The Residence by Andrew Pyper - Buy at Amazon: Based on true events, this book sees the White House haunted by the President’s late son and threatening all who live in it. The year is 1853 and the President is Franklin Pierce. He is traveling with his family to DC when disaster strikes and his son is killed in the train crash. The family forges ahead and moves into the White House only to be plagued by disturbing and bizarre events. The First Lady sets up a seance with the infamous Fox Sisters which goes completely wrong when something horrific comes through. The Pierce family must overcome their grief and confront their dark secrets if they want to rid America of this terrifying entity.
The Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones - Buy at Amazon: If you’ve read Stephen Graham Jones before, you know what you are getting here. If you haven’t, you’re in for a treat. This book sees a teen prank gone horribly wrong and all hell breaking loose. Is there a psychopath on the loose? Or is this a matter of the supernatural? Why not both?
It Will Just Be Us by Jo Kaplan - Buy at Amazon: It’s a great month for haunted house stories and this new gothic horror novel from Jo Kaplan should do the trick. Sam Wakefield lives in her ancestral home that was built by mad ancestors and is filled with ghosts of the past. When her pregnant sister moves in, the house shifts and a new ghost appears, a boy who commits disturbing acts. The boy is somehow connected to a locked, forgotten room in the house and Sam realizes she’ll need to work fast to unravel the mystery before her sister brings a new life into this house marked by death.
The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson - Buy at Amazon: A small Oregon town in the hills becomes the center of violence when the children of executives from a local biotech firm become ill. The teenagers first become ill and then become very agressive and murderous. The entire town is on edge and one group of teenagers must stick together to survive the night. This book is Stranger Things meets World War Z and sure to be a hit this fall.
Best Upcoming Mystery/Thriller Books: September 2020
Shadows in Death by J.D. Robb - Buy at Amazon: The 51st book in the long-running Eve Dallas/In Death series by J.D. Robb is Shadows in Death. In the latest adventure, Eve will delve into the darkness of her husband’s past as she’s desperate to protect him when a hitman comes looking for him.
And Now She's Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall - Buy at Amazon: The latest from Rachel Howzell Hall sees a woman named Isabel Lincoln who has gone missing and a woman named Grayson Sykes who has been assigned to find her. Sykes is reluctant to search for someone that doesn’t want to be found, but a job is a job. As she digs deeper into the search she finds more secrets that Isabel has hidden from her family with each revelation becoming more complicated and dangerous. The two women are in a dangerous game of cat and mouse as Howzell Hall expertly explores the nature of secrets.
Grave Secrets by Alice James - Buy at Amazon: This is the first in a new series known as The Lavington Windsor Mysteries by Alice James. The book is a quick read and great for anyone who has enjoyed Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse series. Toni Windsor is trying to live a quiet life, but that’s not easy to do when there are zombies rising from their graves and vampires sneaking out of their coffins. Toni is dating one of the vampires and if her plate wasn’t full enough, now she has a murder to solve.
These Vengeful Hearts by Katherine Laurin - Buy at Amazon: These Vengeful Hearts takes place at Heller High where a secret society known only as the Red Court is responsible for all things scandalous. The group deals out social ruin and favors equally with only their leader, the Queen of Hearts, knowing their true identities. Ember Williams knows what they are capable of and sets out to take them down from the inside, but the cost of revenge may be too high for her.
When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole - Buy at Amazon: Alyssa Cole brings a terrifying thriller of gentrification in Brooklyn. The born and raised Brooklynite Sydney Green is seeing her neighborhood changing on a daily basis and decides to start a walking tour to persevere the neighborhood’s history. However, what she finds is that the push to revitalize the community may be far more deadly than she could’ve ever imagined.
Best Upcoming Romance Books: September 2020
Tools of Engagement by Tessa Bailey - Buy at Amazon: Bethany Castle is a house flipper who gets selected by a television producer to be on “Flip Off” against her brother, a TV show competition where two people compete to do the best renovation. Betahny needs help if she wants to win and enlists the help of a handsome cowboy named Wes Daniels. The two don’t get along, but she needs him to complete the house and soon the sparks are flying, but Bethany knows that falling for a guy like Russ could be a flipping disaster.
A Rogue of One's Own by Evie Dunmore - Buy at Amazon: The second book in the A League of Extraordinary Women sees an angry Lady Lucie trying to win a revolution against Parliament with only one man standing in the way of her success: Lord Ballentine. Her old nemesis has feelings for her and will try to outwit her, but Lucie is no easy match and will do what she can to out-maneuver Tristan in the boardroom and the bedchamber because all is fair in love and war.
The Beat Match by Kelly Siskind - Buy at Amazon: Weston Aldrich is on the brink of taking over his family business with a massive merger on the horizon. He is set in his goal and there is only two things that could possibly derail his goals: his night job as a masked DJ and Annie Ward. The same Annie Ward that drives him crazy. This is the third book in the Showmen series, but it is a standalone.
Rules for Dating Your Ex by Piper Rayne - Buy at Amazon: There are five important rules for dating your ex if you want to keep your feelings at bay and not fall for him all over. Of course, following them is easier said than done.
Well Played by Jen DeLuca - Buy at Amazon: Stacey loves working at the local Renaissance Faire, but she is jolted when her friends Simon and Emily get engaged. She decides that it’s time to get her life figured out and find The One, but could The One be right in front of her this entire time in the form of her summer fling, Dex MacLean? She never felt an emotional connection to him, more of a physical thing, but that all changes when he starts sending her tender emails. As the Faire returns to Willow Creek, Stacey goes to meet the man who has been emailing her and finds that it’s not Dex, it’s someone she barely knows.
Anything I missed? Let me know any other good books or what you’re reading this month in the comments below!
