Charlotte County Library: Must-Read Books: October 2025

Adult Fiction

The academy
by Elin Hilderbrand

When a surprise national ranking thrusts underachieving Tiffin Academy into the spotlight, a viral gossip app begins exposing students' and staff's secrets, unraveling reputations and relationships as the boarding school's carefully curated image gives way to chaos, scandal and unexpected alliances.

The art of a lie : a novel
by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

After her husband is murdered, Hannah Cole fights to save her struggling confectionary shop on Piccadilly, contends with suspicion from magistrate Henry Fielding, and finds an unlikely ally in William Devereux, whose introduction of iced cream sparks both opportunity and peril in eighteenth-century London.

Butcher & Blackbird
by Brynne Weaver

When a chance encounter sparks an unlikely bond between rival murderers Sloane and Rowan, they find something elusive -- the friendship of two like-minded, pitch-black souls who just happen to enjoy killing other serial killers. But as their friendship develops into something more, the restless ghosts left in their wake are only a few steps behind, ready to claim more than just their newfound love. Can Rowan and Sloane dig themselves out of a game of graves? Or have they finally met their match?

House of earth and blood
by Sarah J Maas

Seeking oblivion in nightclubs in the aftermath of a shattering loss, half-fae Bryce is unwittingly dragged into a murder investigation at the side of a Fallen angel. By the best-selling author of the Throne of Glass series.

How to age disgracefully
by Clare Pooley

The quirky members of the Senior Citizen's Social Club join forces with the tiny members of the daycare next store to thwart the city council's planned sale of the building housing both centers.

The Intruder
by Freida Mcfadden

In the middle of a storm, a girl appears on Casey's doorstep, obviously in need of help, but soon things take a violent turn.

Her soul for a crown
by Alysha Rameera

This epic, slow-burn romantasy inspired by Sri Lankan mythology follows a fierce orphaned young woman with an affinity for poisons and revenge who would do anything to end the reign of heartless rajas—even sell her soul to the most dangerous cursed god of all—the Blood Yakka, Reeri.

Not quite dead yet : a novel
by Holly Jackson

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder - now a hit Netflix series - returns with her first novel for adults: a twisty thriller about a young woman trying to solve her own murder. Thirty-six hours after being attacked, Jet wakes in the hospital to grim news that a bone fragment is putting pressure on her brain’s arterial wall and will cause a fatal hemorrhage--instead of choosing surgery with a slim chance of survival, she uses her last week to find her murderer.

Love at first book
by Jenn McKinlay

When her favorite author, Siobhan Riordan, offers her a job in Ireland, Emily, jumping at the opportunity, helps Siobhan author the final book in her acclaimed series and spends her days bantering with Siobhan's annoyingly handsome, mercurial son, making her decide if she's ready to start a new chapter in her life.

Adult Nonfiction

Deadwood : gold, guns, and greed in the American West
by Peter Cozzens

Tells the true story of a notorious Black Hills gold rush settlement of its most colorful cast of characters, from Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane to Al Swearingen and Sheriff Seth Bullock. Illustrations. Maps.

Turkey and the Wolf : flavor trippin' in New Orleans
by Mason Hereford

Drawing inspiration from his childhood, the James Beard Award-nominated owner of Turkey and the Wolf in New Orleans puts a bold, fresh twist on some of the most beloved Southern dishes. Illustrations.

Deliberate cruelty : Truman Capote, the millionaire's wife, and the murder of the century
by Roseanne Montillo

Describes how author Truman Capote became obsessed with the true crime story of a Manhattan socialite who shot her banking heir husband in 1955, and discusses how publication of his book led to her suicide and his own scandalous downfall

Dominion : how the Christian revolution remade the world
by Tom Holland

Crucifixion, the Romans believed, was the worst fate imaginable, a punishment reserved for slaves. How astonishing it was, then, that people should have come to believe that one particular victim of crucifixion-an obscure provincial by the name of Jesus-was to be worshipped as a god. Dominion explores the implications of this shocking conviction as they have reverberated throughout history. Today, the West remains utterly saturated by Christian assumptions. As Tom Holland demonstrates, our morals and ethics are not universal but are instead the fruits of a very distinctive civilization. Concepts such as secularism, liberalism, science, and homosexuality are deeply rooted in a Christian seedbed. From Babylon to the Beatles, Saint Michael to #MeToo, Dominion tells the story of how Christianity transformed the modern world.

Youth Fiction

The Green ember
by S. D. Smith

Heather and Picket are extraordinary rabbits with ordinary lives until calamitous events overtake them, spilling them into a cauldron of misadventures. They discover that their own story is bound up in the tumult threatening to overwhelm the wider world. Kings fall and kingdoms totter. Tyrants ascend and terrors threaten. Betrayal beckons, and loyalty is a broken road with peril around every bend. Where will Heather and Picket land? How will they make their stand?

The Bears' Famous Invasion of Sicily
by Dino Buzzati

One terrible winter, King Leander leads his troop of bears down the mountains of Sicily in search of food. Along their treacherous and sometimes heartbreaking journey, the bears encounter an army of wild boars, a wily professor who may or may not be a magician, ghosts, snarling Marmoset the Cat, and, worst of all, treachery within their own ranks. A wonderful story for children and an allegory for adults about the absurdity of war, presented here with an introduction and guide to the text by Lemony Snicket

The magician of Tiger Castle
by Louis Sachar

As political pressure mounts in the faltering kingdom of Esquaveta, Princess Tullia falls for a scribe, forcing disgraced court magician Anatole to choose between salvaging his reputation and protecting the one person who still believes in him.

Alcatraz vs. the evil Librarians
by Brandon Sanderson

Foster child Alcatraz Smedry receives a bag of sand which is stolen by the evil Librarians who are trying to take over the world, and Alcatraz is introduced to his grandfather and his own talent, and told that he must use it to save civilization

Contact your librarian for more great books!