The 10 Best New Books Of September

Is that the sound of a crunching leaf? The smell of pumpkin spice? The feeling of your coziest sweater? As chilly winds pick up and temperatures begin to drop, there’s no time like fall to curl up with a good book.

Fans of literary fiction have lots to look forward to this month. Booker Prize winner Marlon James returns with The Disappearers, which explores the intricacies of gay life in Jamaica. Emily St. John Mandel, who brought you Station Eleven, has another futuristic speculative fiction work hitting shelves. And Min Jin Lee, the mastermind behind Pachinko, returns with another sweeping multigenerational classic.

Word on the street says cuffing season is upon us, and there are plenty of new romances to celebrate. New York Times bestselling author of Better Than the Movies Lynn Painter is back with a laugh-out-loud rom-com, and former Hilary Clinton campaign writer Kate Stayman-London gives us a sizzling enemies-to-lovers tale set in the world of politics.

Whether you’re clinging on to the last days of summer or embracing sweater season, these are Bustle’s best books of September to get you through.

The Disappearers by Marlon James

Out September 1. Set in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1988, eight queer men convene to put on a play. As rehearsals start, a homophobic attack leaves one dead and all but one severely beaten. In the wake of the act of violence, the men find different ways to cope: some seek revenge, some choose to forget, and others vanish completely.

Under Story by Chloe Benjamin

Out September 1. Reeling from a loss, Laurel Salter has fled her life as a scientist to work as a dishwasher at a research center in Antarctica. But when an unusual display of light stretches across the ice bringing a flock of physicists — including her ex-boyfriend, Eli — to study it, her isolation comes to an end. With a mystery and second chance in front of them, Laurel and Eli fall headfirst into studying the ethereal glow and the sudden swell of hope it brings.

See You Next Tuesday by Kate Stayman-London

Out September 8. Overachieving Type A Anya Katz and charming Gabe Hunt have never gotten along. Working together on countless Democrats’ campaigns, the two disagree over everything but politics and their undeniable attraction. Told over 10 years of late nights, the two morph from enemies to lovers to fierce political rivals without ever losing their fiery chemistry.

The Chinese Lady by Bo Wang

Bo Wang’s debut builds a fictional world around Afong Moy, the very real first Chinese woman to arrive in the United States. Two merchants brought her from modern-day Guangzhou to New York in 1834 to be shown as an exhibit called “The Chinese Lady” for the entertainment of gawking Americans. Moving through 1820s Canton to New York and eventually to San Francisco’s Chinatown where she settles, Wang works to tell stories forgotten by history.

Exit Party by Emily St. John Mandel

Out September 15. Shortly after the collapse of the United States in 2031, the dust is finally settling and Los Angeles’ city-wide curfew is lifted. To celebrate, Ari Waker, recently released from prison, attends a party with her friend Gloria. However, it soon becomes clear that the gathering is not what it seems, and when a mysterious guest arrives, the host, Kareem, disappears.

Fallow by Sarah Anderson

Out September 15. Natalie is drowning in the corporate world. She has no skills, no dental insurance, and no ambition — not to mention a pile of student loans. So when a mysterious flyer advertising a job as an in-house corporate surrogate at The Company crosses her desk, she signs up. Natalie’s role is to deliver seven babies over the course of 10 years; meanwhile, she’ll be treated to high-end housing and top-notch medical care. As her tenure inches to an end, however, she finds herself thrust into a strange new world. Think The Handmaid’s Tale meets Severance.

If Not You by Ellen O’Clover.

Out September 15. Mattie French is a rising star at a small-time advertising agency. The only thing that can get in the way of securing the season’s hottest luxury resort account? Campbell Porter, the golden boy senior copywriter at an established firm — her nemesis. Stuck traveling together for business, Mattie learns there’s more to Campbell than meets the eye.

The W by Tamryn Spruill

Out September 22. To mark the WNBA’s 30th anniversary, journalist Tamryn Spruill dives into the league’s storied history. Starting from its buzzy debut in 1996, she breaks down each season’s highlights and behind-the-scenes developments. The W is an authoritative, meticulous, and honest account of how the WNBA went from a scrappy league full of promise to the powerhouse it is today without shying away from the organization’s controversies.

Trust Fall by Lynn Painter.

Out September 29. In Painter’s latest YA romance, Julia is living in small-town Nebraska when her family unexpectedly inherits millions from their elderly neighbor. Whisked away to an elite private school in New York City, she struggles to fit in and keep up her grades. To stay afloat, she enlists the help of Damion, a rebellious (not to mention good-looking) tutor. Unbeknownst to Julia, however, he’s the wealthy neighbor’s great-nephew — and he’s scheming to claim the fortune.

American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee

Out September 29. The bestselling author is back with another multi-generational saga about the Korean diaspora. At the request of his employer, John and Helen Koh have moved from Sydney back to Seoul with their three children. But when John is betrayed by one of his closest friends and the 1997 Asian financial crisis erupts, their comfortable middle-class status is threatened. Told over the course of the ‘90s and aughts, readers follow the Koh family through their successes and failures, exploring questions about the price of ambition and the role of education.