Top Seasonal Reads to Embrace Autumn: Discover the Magic of Stories for Every Season
As children, seasonal living comes naturally. Without thinking about it, we have more free time, spend time outdoors, and celebrate the beauty of nature. As adults, however, the demands of work and life can take over, making it easy to lose track of the time of year. We often feel like time flies by without truly enjoying the season we’re in.
For someone like me, who grew up surrounded by nature and the changing seasons, I quickly slipped out of the habit of being in awe of how nature shifts throughout the year. Living more seasonally now requires conscious effort, but I’ve found a way to do it that feels natural and enjoyable—through seasonal reading.
What is Seasonal Reading?
Seasonal reading refers to aligning your reading choices with the changing of the seasons. While it’s not often discussed in the context of seasonal living, it’s a way to embrace the power of stories to help us appreciate and enjoy the passage of time. Humans have long associated certain tales with specific times of the year, from folklore to classic literary themes.
For many, seasonal reading involves selecting books set during the current season. What’s wonderful is that it’s personal—what feels seasonal to you might differ based on your own experiences. For example, a summer novel could evoke memories of visiting your grandparents, even if it doesn’t traditionally scream “summer” to everyone else.
Why Autumn is the Perfect Season for Reading
Autumn, with its moody atmosphere and changing colors, is the ideal time to start a seasonal reading habit. The season’s mystical allure has inspired countless authors, and many stories reflect the spirit of fall with folklore characters like ghosts, vampires, and witches.
Here are five autumnal reads across various genres to immerse you in the essence of the season.
Top 5 Books for Seasonal Reading in Autumn
- The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones (YA fantasy)
Set in Autumn and inspired by Welsh folklore, “The Bone Houses” tells the story of Ryn, a young gravedigger in the remote village of Colbren, near a cursed mountain. The curse causes the dead to rise from their graves, pulling Ryn and mapmaker Ellis into the heart of danger.
This atmospheric fantasy novel, rich with horror and fairytale elements, is perfect for autumn. It blends classic themes of grief and death in a way that feels poetic and comforting, making it an excellent choice for those who love folklore-inspired tales.
2. A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson (Adult fantasy)
“A Dowry of Blood” is a haunting retelling of Dracula through the eyes of his bride, Costanza. Rescued from the brink of death and turned into a vampire, she follows Dracula across centuries, from Medieval Transylvania to Paris in the Roaring Twenties.
With its gothic atmosphere and exploration of toxic relationships, this novel is perfect for readers who enjoy dark, introspective stories. The crisp autumn air is the perfect backdrop for diving into a book that explores love, abuse, and freedom.
3. Briefly, A Delicious Life by Nell Stevens (Historical fiction)
This story starts on a sunny November day on the island of Majorca in 1838. November on the island looks like summer to the foreigners who moved into the charterhouse, but onlooker Blanca knows better. She is not just an islander but a three-century-old ghost, and the newcomers are none other than Frédéric Chopin and George Sand with her children.
The coming together of this unlikely assemblage is the bizarre, clever premise of Nell Stevens’s “Briefly, A Delicious Life,” a luscious and imaginative Mediterranean ghost story based on the real-life relocation of Sand and Chopin to the Spanish island. The result is a profoundly sensorial, philosophical story pervaded by the growing dread of a good Gothic tale.
4. Babel by R.F. Kuang (Historical fantasy)
Perhaps because school starts in September in many places across the world, many associate Autumn with academia and stories that center around this world. Set in an alternate version of Victorian England, “Babel” follows Robin Swift and the fellow students he meets at Oxford University.
Written by an academic and translator, this is a fantasy book but also an allegory of how systems of oppression like colonialism, racism, and classism use knowledge and academia as tools to perpetuate themselves. It’s a sharp, ingenious book that pairs its plot with brilliant academic passages about translation, languages, and etymologies.
5. Dead-End Memories stories by Banana Yoshimoto (Short stories)
If there is a time of the year when the stories from “Dead-End Memories” are meant to be read, that time is Autumn. There is a cozyness about them that doesn’t come just from the autumnal atmosphere, the small and familiar settings, or the comforting food scenes peppered through the book but from the earnest hopefulness often found in Banana Yoshimoto’s work.
It’s a cohesive, invigorating collection about many things: ghosts, tragedies and growth, and the miracles brought about by human connections. The women in these stories and the contemplative, complex people they meet along the way have the warmth of real life, masterfully reproduced in a prose that is as gentle as it’s clever.
How to Start Your Seasonal Reading Journey
Starting your seasonal reading habit doesn’t have to be complicated. Simply pick a book that resonates with the time of year, whether it’s a moody gothic novel in the fall or a light, summery romance. What matters is that it helps you reconnect with the present season and allows you to savor the moment.
So, as the leaves begin to change and the days grow shorter, why not immerse yourself in stories that complement the magic of autumn? The books above are just a starting point, and there’s a whole world of seasonal reads out there waiting for you.
