Photo by Vlada Karpovich
When there’s a chill in the air and cloudy days become more common, I know fall is on the way and anticipate cozy afternoons curled up in a chair with a book. I look for something that will whisk my mind away on an adventure or give me the feel-goods. If you’re also looking for books to curl up with this fall, the novels below are for you.
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01 | Candy Apple Kisses by Amy Clipston
When Emily Carmichael’s crush and childhood best friend asks for her help with his family’s apple orchard, she wastes no time in jumping in to help. Jake Hughes has missed Emily since she moved away years ago but now that she’s back, he notices a shift in their relationship.
Between a persistent ex-girlfriend, a business facing stiff competition, and his father’s resistance to change, he’s not prepared to reexamine his reliable relationship with Emily. As they throw themselves into reviving the orchard, Jake is forced to reconsider his future and whether he can live without Emily in it.
02 | Autumn at the Cat Cafe by Kathleen Fuller
Via Dalton dreams of buying the bookstore next door to her cat cafe, but those dreams are dashed when the deceased owner’s nephew, Leo Brewster, claims his inheritance.
Leo wants to sell his estranged uncle’s bookstore and hightail it back to LA. Yet, in order to inherit, his uncle stipulated that Leo must stay in the tiny town of Pecan Corner for thirty days and find select titles in the store. He enlists Via’s help and in exchange he accompanies her as she completes her fall bucket list.
As they participate in corn mazes and make wreathes, Via does everything in her power to convince Leo to keep the bookstore. And the longer Leo spends time with Via, the less he wants to leave and the more he wants to find a way to have her in his life forever.
03 | Wormwood Abbey by Christian Baehr (The Secrets of Ormdale #1)
After the unexpected deaths of her uncle and cousin Edith Worms, a vicar’s daughter and secret mystery novelist, travels with her family to their estate, Wormwood Abbey. She immediately senses her remaining cousins and their family friend, Simon Drake, are hiding something… a scaly, mythical something.
One day Edith comes upon a small creature that turns out to be a dragon and she learns her family are one of England’s few remaining secret dragon keepers. Edith’s own role and special gift is set to change how her family interacts with the dragons. And when someone tries to steal one of the creatures for their own gain, she will need to use her creativity and wit to save the dragons and her family.
The sequels are Drake Hall, Castle of the Winds, City of Serpents, and Valley of Dragons and the companion series is The Gilded Age of Dragons.
04 | The Queen’s Gambit by Beth Brower (The Books of Imirillia #1)
Queen Eleanor of Aemogen’s peaceful reign shatters when a mysterious soldier from the dreaded Imirillian army seeks sanctuary at the same time Imirillia gives her six months to surrender before they decimate Aemogen.
The soldier, who calls himself Wil Traveler, offers to help train her army so they are prepared to defend the small country. As Aemogen prepares for war, Eleanor seeks to understand Wil and his many secrets while he is drawn to the intelligent yet gentle ruler.
As secrets and conflicted interests obstruct their budding relationship, Eleanor and Wil undertake separate yet parallel journeys that will not only change their lives but also the countries they have given themselves to. The sequels are The Ruby Prince and The Wanderer’s Mark.
05 | To Steal a Heart by Jen Turano (The Bleecker Street Inquiry Agency #1)
When one of the young women in her boardinghouse is wrongly convicted of theft, Gabriella Goodhue uses her old skills as a thief to crack a safe and prove the young woman’s innocence.
During the break-in she runs into her old partner, Nicholas Quinn, who abandoned her and let her take the fall on their last job. To add insult to injury, he is a wealthy gentleman while she works as a seamstress. Nicholas has no idea why Gabriella is upset with him, though he’s thrilled to find his old friend again.
When it becomes clear that Gabriella is the target of a criminal, she will need to work with Nicholas again to uncover who is bent on destroying her and why.
The sequels are To Write a Wrong and To Disguise the Truth.
06 | Seeking Persephone by Sarah M. Eden (The Lancaster Family #1)
Adam Boyce, Duke of Kielder, finds himself in need of a wife and offers a small fortune to a penniless family in exchange for marrying the eldest daughter. Persephone Lancaster is shocked to receive the Duke’s proposal and his stipulation to not meet before the ceremony, but accepts for the sake of her family.
When she meets the duke she finds a cold, scarred, angry man content to isolate himself within his ancient castle. Adam doesn’t know what to do with his young wife and Persephone is unsure how to handle the distant man who fears being abandoned.
Can her sweet but persistent spirit break through the duke’s walls, or will he shut her out forever?
The sequels are Courting Miss Lancaster, Romancing Daphne, Loving Lieutenant Lancaster, and Charming Artemis.
07 | A Lady’s Guide to Marvels and Misadventures by Angela Bell (Daughters of Genius Society #1)
After her family is accused of lunacy, Clara Stanton runs herself ragged trying to keep her family’s eccentricities under wraps. All her efforts are dashed when her grandfather takes a journey across Europe in a flying machine shaped as an owl and invites her to follow along via a scavenger hunt he’s designed.
Accompanied by her mother and her grandfather’s mysterious but sanguine apprentice, Mr. Arthur, Clara visits the places she’s only read about and once dreamed of seeing. Theodore Kingsley chooses to hide under the name Mr. Arthur after his father disowns him and believes he is useless. But someone who wishes to harm Clara’s family follows them to all the stops and he does everything he can to protect the Stantons in his care.
If Clara is to prevent greater disaster from befalling her family, she will need to relinquish her need for control and accept help from Mr. Arthur.
The sequel is A Lady’s Handbook to Gadgets and Guile.
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