Love & ghosts in October

For October's newest fiction, I've compiled a list of titles people are excited to dig into the fast-growing-cold season. There's a little love and a little ghostliness in these books. So grab a throw, a mug of hot beverage and cozy up to these new fall favorites.

1. The Next by  Stephanie Gangi

The deceased victim of breast cancer, Joanna DeAngelis cannot find peace. She was bitterly hurt by former lover Ned, a younger man who deserted her for someone more upmarket. Drifting about between this world and the next as a ghost, ignoring the deep love of her daughters and her dog as she lay dying, Joanna plots revenge but must eventually come to terms with what was her life so that she can let go. - Library Journal Reserve The Next

2. The Mothers by Brit Bennett

Bennett's debut novel, set in the U.S. Marine Corps base city of Oceanside, examines the consequences of secret decisions as they play out in the lives of three young people, decade by decade. The story is narrated in part by the eponymous mothers, a ­chorus of elder church women who demonstrate no compunction in judging and discussing the choices made by their fellow parishioners of the Upper Room Chapel. - Booklist ReviewsReserve The Mothers

3. The Guineveres by Sarah Domet

Four teenage girls are trying to escape the convent in which their various parents have left them. The attempt fails, and stern Sister Fran sentences the four to care for comatose soldiers who have been brought to the convent’s infirmary. When one of the soldiers awakens, and an older girl leaves the convent to help care for him, the Guineveres see another avenue for escape. Each girl claims a solider and tends to him diligently, pinning her hopes of a life outside the convent walls on her patient. - Booklist Reviews Reserve Guineveres

4. Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil by Melian Marchetta

Marchetta, whose Jellicoe Road won the American Library Association's Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, here turns to adult fiction. Suspended cop Bish Ortley rushes to the scene of a bus bombing to be with his injured daughter when he learns that the main suspect is a 17-year-old girl whose grandfather set off a suicide bomb 13 years earlier. - Library Journal Reserve Tell the Truth

5. The Survivor's Guide to Family Happiness by Maddie Dawson

Meanwhile, the last thing Lindy McIntyre wants is someone like Nina bursting into her life, announcing that they’re sisters and campaigning to track down their mother. She’s too busy with her successful salon, three children, beautiful home, and…oh yes, some pesky little anxiety attacks.

Reserve Survivor's Guide