Strange books you should read this fall
Though I must warn you: some of these are a little gross
After writing my roundup of strange books for summer back in June, I’ve decided to once again use my love of list-making as a little ritual to welcome in the new season. It goes without saying that strange books are perfectly delightful all year round - in fact, you could make a case for reading any of the suggested summer titles in the colder seasons -, but academic settings, horror elements and stories with eerie, chilly atmospheres always scream sweataweatha to me.
If your perfect fall read:
is strange and thrilling in a way that might make it tricky to recommend or describe to most people,
has impeccable vibes, layered characters and is a little bit gory or gross,
then this list is for you.
Mrs. S by K. Patrick
Mrs. S is here to ease you into this list because, really, this book isn’t all that strange. The most peculiar thing about it is probably the style it’s written in - punctuation is minimal, which makes reading dialogue often challenging (if you have a hard time reading Sally Rooney for this reason, maybe don’t pick this one up), and the whole thing seems to be written with a certain stream-of-consciousness in mind that will probably leave you wondering if what happened was just a dream or something the main character made up on a long car ride.
This is a story of longing, of devotion, that feels sensual and chaste at once. It follows a sordid love affair between the matron and the alluring headmaster’s wife at an elite English boarding school. It’s slow, fairly uneventful and absolutely arresting. A perfect fall read, if you ask me.
You can find my review on instagram.
Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder
I read Nightbitch last summer, but it felt very autumnal to me, what with the physical canine transformation and whatnot. But this isn’t a book about werewolves - it’s actually about motherhood and identity and art, though it uses some body horror elements to illustrate its points.
It’s weird, bizarre, and delightful - it will probably infuriate you, but I hope it will do so in a good way. Much like most of the books on this list, it’s also nearly plotless, being more of a character-driven novel. It’s a wild ride and you probably haven’t read anything like it before.
You can find my review on instagram.
Matrix by Lauren Groff
Picture this: 12th century. The bastard half-sister of the king of England, 17-year-old Marie is all of a sudden cast out of the royal court and sent to an impoverished abbey where nuns are either dying from starvation or disease. Completely abandoned by the crown, with no family to turn to, Marie is bound to spend her entire life there.
Matrix was layered and unpredictable and beautifully written, an angsty, unapologetically sapphic portrait of a morally gray heroine who feels so very human in the best of ways. It’s a story about faith, passion, sensuality, found family, power and greed, and it manages all that in 250 pages. Although it wasn’t perfect, I think about this book all the time and recommend it often to readers who aren’t afraid of vibes over plot.
You can find my review on instagram.
All’s Well by Mona Awad
All Mona Awad books are great fall reads, but let me tell you about All’s Well: it follows Miranda Fitch, an actor-turned-college theatre director after a fatal accident left her with excruciating chronic back pain, a failed marriage, an addiction to painkillers and a profound hatred for her body and her life. Now, she’s determined to put on Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, against her cast’s and the faculty’s wishes, and everything in her life is about to change.
The premise I wrote above tells you nothing about what truly matters when it comes this book, but I would hate to spoil the surprise, so trust me - go in blind. All you need to know is that it’s set on a college campus, it’s as kitsch and weird as Mona Awad gets, it’s clever and dark and visual, and if you’re a David Lynch fan then you’re gonna love what your mind sees as you read this.
A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers
I’ll cut to the chase: this book is about a psychopathic food critic who likes to eat her men for dinner. She’s like a human black widow! It might be the grossest book on this list for that aspect alone, but it is full of some of my very favorite things: humor, female rage, characters descending into madness and decadent writing. You won’t know whether you hate her or lover her - probably somewhere in between.
All in all, a yummy fall pick for fans of American Psycho and Boy Parts.
Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth
Speaking of food, nutrition also plays a big role in Motherthing, where Abby is struggling to find her footing after her mother-in-law, Laura, takes her own life. Abby is fully convinced Laura’s ghost is haunting her and her husband, and that’s when things begin to spiral.
I listened to this on audio and loved it - the dark humor, the grossness that seemed gratuitous at times but ultimately revealed so much about the main character and her relationship with motherhood. Abby is one of those characters you keep shaking your head at, but she is so irresistibly obsessive and unhinged, her inner dialogue so painfully unfiltered, that you can’t stop yourself from (fondly) watching the car crash.
They Never Learn by Layne Fargo
This double POV thriller follows Scarlett Clark, an English professor and part-time murderer of crappy men she meets on campus, as well as freshman Carly Schiller. In my opinion, most thrillers suck, so it was with great joy that I read (and loved!) this one a couple of years back with my book club.
I’m a slow reader, but I read the whole thing in less than 24 hours. It was just gripping and suspenseful and twisty and so good. I don’t recommend thrillers often, but this is a go-to whenever someone asks me for one. If you’re going through a slump, this one might put you back on the reading horse.
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No affiliate links have been used above. However, if you want to support me by using them, you can use my Libro.fm link for audiobooks and, if you’re purchasing books in Portugal, my WOOK affiliate link. Affiliate links are a way to support your favorite creators, and the companies they choose to endorse, free of charge. Thank you!
Matrix by Lauren Groff sounds good!
I've been wanting to read Mrs. S for ages - even though it's Spring here in Australia I'm going to find a copy stat.