October 2026 list by Angie R.
 
Ashes at the Altar by Ladarrion Williams
Ashes at the Altar
by Ladarrion Williams

In the haunting finale to the Blood at the Root trilogy, Malik Baron must confront evil spirits, family secrets, and tested loyalties at the magical Caiman University.
With Marinette’s power growing and the magical community at a breaking point, Malik must decide where his loyalties lie. With his family, his future, and the magic in his veins at stake, can Malik fight for what the world has always said is impossible for a Black boy like him: a happy ending?


Blightfall by Brandon Sanderson
Blightfall
by Brandon Sanderson

After decades of war, Arturo Mendez and his team are sent on a seemingly simple mission to contact an isolated human settlement on the mysterious planet Blightfall. But when they’re attacked, it becomes clear the settlement isn’t what it appears to be. Trapped in an unfamiliar world and unsure who to trust, Arturo and his team must uncover long-buried secrets if they hope to make it home.


Capsized by Charlotte Lillie Balogh
Capsized
by Charlotte Lillie Balogh

A mystery and coming-of-age drama set against the backdrop of an elite all-girls rowing club, where first loves, heartbreaks, and secrets put their sisterhood to the test. For varsity captain Margaret Douglas, rowing is everything. But after she mysteriously disappears for the summer, she returns to find her team has moved on without her. Freshman Jo Bryant knows nothing about crew or why everyone is whispering about Margaret, but Margaret is the only one who takes her seriously.
As the biggest race of the year approaches, secrets and scandals begin to surface, and the girls discover that winning isn’t the only thing on the line.


Cursebreaker (Standard Edition) by R. M. Gray
Cursebreaker
by R. M. Gray

Embark on the thrilling finale to the Nightweaver series. Pirate Aster Oberon is finally setting sail, pursuing the evil queen Morana to save the world, while her heart remains torn between Will and Titus. As Morana hunts for three mythical treasures that could destroy the barrier between realms, Aster must find them first. Facing sea creatures, heartbreaking betrayals, and devastating choices, Aster must embrace her true power or risk dooming the Known World to darkness.


Deadly Little Lessons by Danielle Valentine
Deadly Little Lessons
by Danielle Valentine

Squid Game meets high school in this thrilling YA mystery. Lia Michaels, a talented lockpick and hacker, is surprised when she’s accepted to Luminary Prep, an experimental school where only five students will graduate. But the classes are anything but ordinary, with deadly obstacle courses, explosives, and dangerous tests. As students begin vanishing one by one, Lia wonders if it’s not that only five students will graduate, but that only five will survive.


Evamar by Margarita Engle
Evamar
by Margarita Engle

From award-winning author Margarita Engle comes a novel in verse about first love, hidden cultures, and ancestral connections. Evamar travels to Cuba with her abuela’s ashes and one final wish: find her garden, plant the seeds, and read her diaries. There she meets Río, a captivating drummer, and uncovers an ancestral treasure that could change her future and the lives of millions of Caribbeans.


Falling Into You by Emma Harrison
Falling Into You
by Emma Harrison

Rory Graham is determined to lead her cheer squad to victory, but when a teammate gets injured, she’s stuck with Jacob Reilly, a star soccer player and the most annoying boy she knows. As Rory tries to whip him into shape, she discovers cheer is harder than he thought, and Jacob might be something better than perfect.
With chilly football games, pumpkin-spice bake sales, and an opposites-attract romance, Rory must learn to trust the boy whose job is literally to catch her when she falls.


Fear Farm: A Bleak Haven Novel by Vincent Ralph
Fear Farm
by Vincent Ralph

Welcome to Bleak Haven: The town you won't (or can't ) leave... The nail-biting conclusion to the Bleak Haven series, in Vincent Ralph's signature, terrifying style The Fear Farm fright-fest is the one night of the year when Bleak Haven's residents are happy to be afraid. Most people turn a blind eye to the accidents that have previously blighted the attraction, but seventeen-year-old Tori Swift has other ideas. Convinced that there's an aspiring killer in their midst, Tori auditions alongside her classmates, perfecting her role as the ideal villain while secretly searching for the real thing. But when tragedy strikes, a murderer is suddenly on the loose in a place where everyone pays to be terrified.

Look What You Did by Kaitlin Reilly
Look What You Did
by Kaitlin Reilly

After golden boy Will Ashford dies, seventeen-year-old Mackenzie is relieved because she knows the darkness he hid. But when anonymous texts threaten to reveal her secret and her former best friend is found dead, Mackenzie is determined to uncover the truth. To do so, she must confront the past she’s tried to forget, or risk becoming the next girl dead.


Lucy in Between by Sarah Callender
Lucy in Between
by Sarah Callender

Thirteen-year-old Lucy Bains doesn’t understand her brother Henry’s depression, her mother’s focus on his music career, or why her absent father suddenly wants to visit. And most baffling of all, when did her best friend Charles become someone she might want to kiss?
After Henry dies by suicide, Lucy and her grieving mother escape to Peru. There, an unlikely friendship with a bookstore owner helps Lucy confront hard truths about love and family, guilt and grief.


Malevolent Souls by Delilah S. Dawson
Malevolent Souls
by Delilah S. Dawson

A spine-tingling YA horror about the untold origins of Maleficent’s dark magic, because evil is seldom what it seems. Maleficent believes she’s destined for greatness, but when she’s denied the wings and magic she’s always dreamed of, she joins four teens determined to defy their fates. Their journey leads to a mysterious abandoned castle that gives them everything they need, but won’t let them leave. As shadows haunt the halls and fear tears the group apart, Maleficent will do anything for the magic she desires. Anything.


Mirrorwoven by Bori Cser
Mirrorwoven
by Bori Cser

Del is secretly Adeleine Ventris, a runaway princess who faked her death and magically changed her face to escape her responsibilities. Now living as a simple musician in Salato, her identity can only be revealed by true love’s kiss. Luckily, Del has had enough of love.
But when she becomes court bard to sweet, inexperienced Clara, Del is pulled back into politics and grows closer to both Clara and her brilliant, dangerous sister, Nasca. As Del’s deceptions become harder to maintain, it will take only the slightest push to bring her new life tumbling down.


Our Dark Unraveling by Margot McGovern
Our Dark Unraveling
by Margot McGovern

Two roommates are left reeling when Jude Sinclair, a classmate and ex-boyfriend, dies in a freak accident. But when his ghost appears at their elite boarding school, it’s clear the dead have unfinished business. Grieving Lyssa discovers a way to summon Jude and confides in her outcast roommate, George, who hated him...or so she thought. As buried secrets surface and Jude’s powers grow, Lyssa realizes he’s just as controlling in death as he was in life. Love never dies. That’s the problem.


Practically Magic by Jen Calonita
Practically Magic
by Jen Calonita

On the eve of Halloween, a sister’s well-intentioned love spell turns into a curse in this witchy, flirty rom-com.
Kat Hadley has always felt invisible to boys, until she discovers her older sister, Harriet, cast a curse to protect her from heartbreak. Furious, Kat loses control, shattering their sisterhood and magic itself. Suddenly, every spell the Hadley witches have ever cast begins to reverse, and Mystic Hollow is in danger. As the sisters race to repair the magic, every crush who’s ever rejected Kat suddenly falls for her. But with Halloween approaching, Kat must figure out what’s real, what’s a spell, and how to save her town before it’s too late.


Pretty Evil by Rebekah McKendry
Pretty Evil
by Rebekah McKendry

As seventeen-year-old teen star Mallori searches for her missing mother, she quickly discovers her mom lived a double life as a momager and a demon slayer, and now Mallori must battle demons to save her.

A Quest for Greatness by Sarah Beran
A Quest for Greatness
by Sarah Beran

She’s the king’s mild-mannered secretary. He’s the impulsive younger prince with something to prove. With twelve impossible tasks ahead, keeping their hearts intact might be the hardest. Iona Gemara loves her orderly life as the king’s secretary, even if it means dealing with Prince Herrick’s latest trouble. When Herrick is given twelve tasks to prove himself, Iona is sent along for the quest. A Quest for Greatness is a no-spice retelling of The Twelve Trials of Hercules featuring opposites attract, forced proximity, and he falls first.


There Are Ghosts Here by Adrienne Tooley
There Are Ghosts Here
by Adrienne Tooley

Willa has no memory of anything before arriving at Dorsey House, the mysterious reformatory perched at the edge of the sea. The only other wards, Caroline and Ivy, seem to know her better than she knows herself, even claiming she’s been there before. As Willa’s memories slowly return, the line between reality and nightmare begins to blur. Dorsey House may be haunted, but by what? And if Willa can’t remember leaving, how will she ever escape.


Waiting on a Miracle: A Twisted Tale by Anika Fajardo
Waiting on a Miracle
by Anika Fajardo

What if Mirabel and her sisters had to leave the Encanto? In this magical Twisted Tale, Mirabel believes she’s responsible for the Madrigal family’s fading powers and is determined to save their magic. But when Antonio leaves the Encanto searching for a solution, Mirabel recruits Luisa and Isabela to bring him home. What begins as a rescue mission becomes a magical quest that reveals their family’s hidden secrets, and disappearing gifts may be only the beginning.


We're All Going to Die Tonight! by Veronica Bane
We're All Going to Die Tonight!
by Veronica Bane

A twisty, off-the-rails mystery about seven teens forced to spend a stormy and deadly night together.
The Coastal Canyon debate team has plenty of reasons to hate each other. Now they’re stuck at an Airbnb during the storm of the century. Then a flat tire, a severed landline, an unconscious teammate, and a body outside make one thing clear: No one is safe. But safe from who? A teammate? A teacher? Or a stranger lurking in the woods? Seven students. Three teachers. One body. Lock the doors and trust no one. Death isn’t up for debate.


Wicked Endeavors by Kamilah Cole
Wicked Endeavors
by Kamilah Cole

This high-stakes romantasy follows Caya, a vengeful teen who cons her way into an elite society of tyrannical witches to destroy them from within. Disguised as beautiful aristocrat Marisol Vinyet, Caya enters the witches’ cutthroat social season with one mission: kill enemy prince Tomás Castellan. But Tomás is more charming than expected, and her estranged childhood friend Bas stirs feelings of both attraction and hatred. To get her revenge, Caya must keep her identity hidden and her heart in check, because even though she’s made herself a weapon, she might be the one to bleed.