Wondering what to read now? Here are all the hot new September 2022 book releases for you. I’ll let you know what I’ve read, what I can’t wait to read, and what’s getting all the attention this month.
In case you’re new to Booklist Queen, every month I cover all the hottest new book releases. I try to read as many new book releases as I can to give you an honest perspective on what to read and what to skip.
However, I realize that my to-read list might not exactly match yours. That’s why I’ve also included some of the most popular September 2022 book releases from your favorite authors.
Enough from me. Let’s get on to the September 2022 book releases so you can fill up your to-read list.
Top September 2022 Book Releases
The Marriage Portrait
Maggie O’Farrell
Coming off her hit bestseller, Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell returns with another gorgeous historical fiction novel set in Renaissance Italy. When her sister dies, Lucrezia de Medici unexpectedly marries her late sister’s fiance, a man desperate for an heir. As Lucrezia ponders her new husband’s nature – whether he is a kind sophisticate or a ruthless politician – she begins to suspect he is planning to kill her.
Maggie O’Farrell is a gorgeous writer, painting a striking portrait of Lucrezia’s life. Highlighting the constrictions of life for medieval women, The Marriage Portrait‘s plot was slow to build, but the descriptive writing was captivating to read. An excellent read for anyone who loves literary historical fiction.
My Rating:
Publication Date: 6 September 2022
Amazon | Goodreads | More Info
Fairy Tale
Stephen King
Seventeen-year-old Charlie is used to being on his own until he befriends Howard, an old recluse, and his beloved dog Radar, who live in a large house on the hill. After Howard dies, he leaves Charlie a note about a magical portal to a parallel world where good and evil are at war. Now, it’s up to Charlie and Radar to save both worlds.
The Winners
Fredrik Backman
In the long-awaited third and final book in the Beartown series, a small hockey town must grapple with what happened two years ago. With change on the horizon, they try to save their marriages, lay old hurts to rest, and do everything they can to overcome their past to discover what truly makes a family and a community.
The Two Lives of Sara
Catherine Adel West
Pregnant and running from her past, Sara King flees Chicago to settle in 1960s Memphis. At her boardinghouse, Sara falls into conversations about politics, education, and segregation with Jonah, a local schoolteacher. As Sara and Jonah fall in love and fight to help end segregation, secrets from the past threaten to ruin their life together.
Dreamland
Nicholas Sparks
After tragedy ruins his dream of becoming a musician, Colby Mills settles into the life of a small-town farmer. When he spontaneously takes a gig at a bar in Florida, Colby falls in love with Morgan, an ambitious up-and-coming singer. As Colby and Morgan fall head over heels, their lives are changed when they meet a woman fleeing an abusive husband.
Foul Lady Fortune
Chloe Gong
In a spinoff of her bestseller These Violent Delights, Chloe Gong returns to 1930s Shanghai with a tale of dueling spies. After an experiment makes her ageless and immortal, Rosalind Chang becomes a spy for her country hoping to redeem her traitorous past. When the Japanese are suspected of a series of murders, Rosalind must go undercover posing as the wife of another spy to investigate a series of murders.
Shrines of Gaiety
Kate Atkinson
In London of the Roaring Twenties, the nightlife in Soho has become a haven for those recovering from the Great War. With ruthless ambition, Nellie Coker has built an empire amid Soho’s gaiety, desperate to secure advantages for her six children. But success breeds enemies, and the dark underworld of London threatens to ruin everything Nellie has built.
Book of the Month – September 2022
Receiving my blue box from Book of the Month Club is a highlight of every month.
Here’s how it works – each month, they pick 5 books and you get to choose one book or skip until the next month. If you want to add any extra books, then you get them at a discounted price.
Each month is usually a mix of new releases and advance copies of unreleased books. If you are interested in joining, right now you can use my Book of the Month Club affiliate link to get your first book for $5!
The September Book of the Month selections are:
See the Complete List of Upcoming Releases!
Reese’s Book Club September 2022 Pick
On the Rooftop
Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
In 1950s San Francisco, Vivian is ecstatic when her three daughters begin to make a name for themselves as the singing girl group, The Salvations. Although Vivian has arranged a once-in-a-lifetime chance for The Salvations, her daughters have begun to grow up and have desires of their own. As the neighborhood begins gentrifying, Vivian struggles to maintain control even when her past comes back to threaten her.
Read with Jenna’s Book Club September 2022 Pick
Solito
Javier Zamora
Growing up in a small town in El Salvador, Javier Zamora watched and his father and mother both migrated to the United States when he was very young. When he turned nine, Javier left the protection of his extended family to reunite with his parents. Traveling alone with strangers with the help of a “coyote,” Javier’s two-week journey turns into a two-month trek full of danger and uncertainty and the kindness of the strangers he was traveling with.
GMA Book Club September 2022 Pick
The Fortunes of Jaded Women
Carolyn Huynh
Mai Nguyen knows that she and her daughters are cursed never to find love or happiness thanks to her ancestor who left her husband for true love and was cursed by a Vietnamese witch. Desperate, Mai consults a trusted psychic who predicts the family will have a marriage, a funeral, and the birth of a son, a prediction that will bring together the estranged women in Nguyen’s family.
Oprah’s Book Club September 2022
That Bird Has My Wings
Jarvis Jay Masters
For her latest book club pick, Oprah has chosen the inspiring story of a death row inmate. Jarvis Jay Masters was the son of heroin addicts, sent to foster care as a child. Masters explains how his unstable childhood led him to take the easy route of crime and violence, where he was eventually imprisoned in San Quentin at the age of nineteen. After moving to death row for allegedly participating in the death of a prison guard, Masters eventually turned to Buddhism.
The Most Anticipated September 2022 Book Releases
Lucy by the Sea
Elizabeth Strout
Elizabeth Strout returns with the third book in her Lucy Barton series. When the pandemic hits, Lucy Barton leaves her life in New York City to live in isolation with her ex-husband in Maine. Alone in isolation, Lucy and William must come to terms with their complex past to find hope for a brighter future.
The Golden Enclaves
Naomi Novik
In the conclusion of Novik’s spellbinding dark academia trilogy, El and Orion must deal with the aftermath of their grand graduation breakout. Though they escaped the Scholomance, a brewing enclave war threatens the lives of everyone they saved. Thus, El must return to the Scholomance to uncover the true nature of the enclaves. If you haven’t read A Deadly Education yet, I strongly recommend you try this fun series.
Spells for Forgetting
Adrienne Young
Emery Blackwood’s life was shattered at her high school graduation when her boyfriend August was accused of murdering her best friend Lily and then he moved away without her. Still living in their small superstitious island town, August’s return sets the whole town atwitter. In town to bury his mother’s ashes, August must confront his high school sweetheart and a town that doesn’t want him back.
Adrienne Young’s new novel is a slow-burn mystery with hints of witchy magic. Honestly, there’s not much action in the story (or much magic), just an overhanging sense of dread and secrets running through the town. The atmospheric story was good enough to hold my interest, but I could easily see others being bored with the lack of character development.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Ballantine Books through Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
My Rating:
Publication Date: 27 September 2022
Amazon | Goodreads | More Info
The Kiss Curse
Erin Sterling
In a sequel to last year’s witchy hit, The Ex Hex, Gwyn Jones is perfectly happy to have her cousin Vivienne back in Graves Grove, Georgia. They’ve established a new coven and Gwyn loves working in her family shop until Wells Penhallow moves back to town and sets up a competing shop across the street. When a new coven comes to town and Gwyn’s powers begin to fade, Gwyn and Wells must fight to save the town, while fighting their chemistry, as well.
American Demon
Daniel Stashower
If you want a chilling true crime story to read this fall, Daniel Stashower’s latest book is just what you need. In 1934, a day at the beach turned gruesome when beachgoers discovered the lower half of a woman’s body. The first of a dozen victims, for four years Cleveland was gripped in terror by a serial killer who butchered and dismembered his victims. Stashower’s account details the horror of the city and the determination of Eliot Ness to capture the killer.
The Butcher and The Wren
Alaina Urquhart
This debut novel from the cohost of the true-crime podcast Morbid gives a dual-perspective thriller told from the viewpoints of a serial killer and the medical examiner hot on his trail. In the Louisiana bayou, forensic pathologist Dr. Wren Muller gets drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with a brutal serial killer with a taste for medical experimentation.
Killers of a Certain Age
Deanna Raybourn
After spending a lifetime as deadly assassins for The Museum, four women are given an all-inclusive vacation to celebrate their retirement. Once the network’s most prizest assets, Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie are being cast aside now in favor of younger more tech-savvy individuals. When they realized they are being targeted for assassination, the four women turn against their organization and prove that killers of a certain age can still be deadly.
Killers of a Certain Age was just as silly as the cover implies, much to my disappointment. No deeper narratives for nuanced characters here. Just backstories and character development that never scratches the surface, leaving you with a cozy mystery that might make you chuckle but won’t leave a lasting impression.
My Rating:
Publication Date: 6 September 2022
Amazon | Goodreads | More Info
Popular September Upcoming Releases
What September 2022 Book Releases are You Most Excited to Read?
What books can you not wait to get your hands on this month? Did I miss any September 2022 book releases that you are anticipating? As always, let me know in the comments!
More New Book Releases:
Gaili Schoen says
Thanks so much for your September list! So many great titles ahead!
Ann says
Just finished The Marriage Portrait & have learned a new word: uxoricide.
Apparently it was a common thing.
I guess Henry VIII was not the only one.
Picked up Carrie Soto is back (having a hard time getting into it) & Lessons.
I never like the in between time when I finish a book & try getting into the next.
I have a huge stack in addition to the ones above. Forbidden City by Vanessa Hua, A Place In The World by Frances Mayes are just a couple.
My library seems to have gotten slow again about getting newer titles.