The Best New Books Out in October, According to Indie Booksellers

This is the Indie Next List #1 pick for October! The bookseller recommendation is “Laura Dave’s signature blend of twisty mystery, family drama, and moving love story is top-notch in this tender and profound exploration of grief, truth, trust, and forgiveness. A perfect follow-up to The Last Thing He Told Me!” —Alyssa Raymond, Copper Dog Books, Beverly, MA

Here, Rooney’s eye for interpersonal relationships is turned to two brothers, Peter and Ivan Koubek, who aren’t very much alike. Peter fits every bit of the confident and successful attorney stereotype there is—until his father dies, and he starts self-medicating to get to sleep. And, now his relationships with two different women—one his age and one in college—are starting to falter, too. Then there’s his younger brother, Ivan, who is a competitive chess player, and who has never been all that social. Since their father died, his life has changed, too, and he finds himself becoming more and more involved with an older woman. —Erica Ezeifedi

From the author of Leave the World Behind (now a Netflix movie) comes a new “novel of money and morality.” It follows Brooke, a woman looking to make a difference and make a name for herself. When she gets a job helping an elderly billionaire give away his fortune, she gets a taste of what it’s like to have proximity to the kind of wealth that can pull the rest of the world into its gravity. This looks like a thought-provoking and unsettling read about the “seductive distortions of money.” —Danika Ellis

Multi-award-winning Erdrich’s latest follows messy lives against a backdrop of resources being sucked dry through climate changes and the 2008 recession. Gary is a young man about to inherit two farms, and is set on marrying lapsed Goth Kismet Poe, while Hugo’s messy, red-headed behind wants to steal her for himself. Amidst the drama, the people of the Red River Valley try their best to survive, while things like visions of angels and drastic changes complicate things. —Erica Ezeifedi

This is also the October pick for the Good Morning America Book Club! The Indie Bestseller recommendation is “Mesmerizing, romantic, and charged through poignant critiques of nationalistic literature. Saft’s adult debut challenges the dark origins of twisted fairytales with empathy while weaving a tense web of sapphic yearning. A new favorite!” —Isabel Agajanian, The Oxford Exchange, Tampa, FL

Young Mieczyslaw comes to this health resort in what is now western Poland to recover from the lung issues he’s struggled with for far too long. His days are full of getting to know the strange residents of the guesthouse and being exposed to their philosophical and political debates. But as all these questions of gender, humanity, and money circulate, Mieczyslaw begins to wonder if something is profoundly wrong with the town and their surroundings — and if there’s actually a chance of getting better here. This greenery/herbology-filled, historical fiction/mystery/thought-provoking novel mixes all sorts of things together and comes out fascinating thanks to Tokarczuk’s Nobel Prize-winning writing. —Leah Rachel von Essen