I’ve been slacking a little bit this year on my reading list. I focused on reading solely for fun – no Goodreads, no challenges. Just picking it up as I please.
Spoiler alert, I haven’t read half as much as previous years.
What happened was that life got in the way, scrolling was the easy fix, and there was no sense of striving for something…even if that something was simply enjoying a good book.
So, to correct myself as we inch along towards the end of the year and the eventual New Year’s resolutions and reading challenges; I’m aiming to read 1-2 books a month for the last four months of 2026.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
This is a re-read for me. The small town New England setting, the dark academia, the crew of oddballs who slip dead languages into daily conversation.
It’s a lesson in pretention. And crime. It’s one of my favorite books ever.
The university setting makes it a great pick for this time of year; it makes me – ten years post college – want get into the stacks and try my hand at a Homeric translation of Paradise Lost. Or, whatever it is that Henry Winter gets up to when he’s not being broody and far-sighted.
For those new to the story, The Secret History follows Richard Papen as he transfers to a liberal arts university in the Northeast. He ends up in a group of Classics students who bring our baser instincts to college life. Meticulous planning can’t overcome modern hubris, and they soon find themselves in the middle of a deadly mess.
I will be reading TSH first to kick-off this mini-reading marathon. It’s like returning to an old friend to catch up, and I think it’s a perfect way to rekindle a reading habit that’s been rocky at best.
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
I’ve been watching a lot of mini-documentaries on the history of the World Wars. History is always relevant but clearly in such *ahem* unprecedented times, looking back at other times of conflict and strife reveals how we relate to each other when things are not easy.
All Quiet on the Western Front is a classic on the tragedy of war, how young people are misled for the benefit of a powerful few, and all of the things we lose at the hands of nationalism, militarism, and abandoning diplomacy.
The 2022 iteration of the film on Netflix was a sad, heartbreaking film. Watching that prompted me to add this to my list, and it will be the first war novel like this that I’ll have read as an adult.
The books follows Paul Baumer, a young German man in WWI who enlists in the war effort on the German side. It doesn’t take long for Paul to be exposed to the horrors of the Great War, and the trauma of the battles and trenches.
Outer Dark by Cormac McCarthy
This novel has been on the top of my to-read list ever since I heard that Jacob Elordi and Lily-Rose Depp are casted to be in the upcoming film adaption. As a absolute fan girl of the Del Toro’s Frankenstein and Egger’s Nosferatu, I can’t even explain how thrilled I am that the two of them are starring in this disturbing Appalachian story.
The story centers on a sibling pair who have a child together. The brother leaves the baby in the woods to die, telling his sister that their child died of natural causes. She discovers his lie, searches the woods for the baby. Hopefully, she finds him first.
It sounds dark, gritty, and certainly not okay. Which is why I have to read it.
Classic Tales of Detection and Adventure by Edgar Allen Poe
Okay, this may obviously be a Halloween-inspired pick. Poe is one of the iconic influences on the modern goth and dreary. While I’ve read some of Poe’s poetry and enjoy it, I haven’t gotten into his short stories before.
This is a collection of his detective stories, mainly starring C. Auguste Dupin as lead investigator. Included in this book are his stories “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “The Mystery of Marie Roget,” “The Purloined Letter;” following the detective and his cases. It also has “Thou Art the Man!” and “The Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall.”
These short stories should be a nice way to break up the traditional novels in this list. It’s timely, of course, for Halloween: my favorite, spookiest time of year.
Bonus: it scratches my crime drama itch.
A Certain Justice by PD James
Another crime drama pick.
This time, it’s a story of Scotland Yard Commander Adam Dalgliesh following a string of murders including that of a high achieving criminal defense attorney. Before her death, the attorney worked to defend a man accused of murdering his mother. Dalgliesh takes on the investigation as murders continue.
My absolute favorite kind of drama to watch on television is a British crime drama. I don’t know what it is about them – the accents, the London rain, the country cottages – that makes it a cozy choice that I’ll soon be absolutely overly invested in.
To experience that it book-mode will be a treat.
The Vanish Cherry Blossom Bookshop by Takuya Asakura
I feel like I don’t read nearly enough books that are translations of non-English speaking authors. This story follows a bookshop owner who assists patrons in facing their regret and sorrows with the aide of a good book and coffee. It’s told over a year, and travelling through the seasons with the characters feels like a good symbol for my own end of the year reflections.
I happened across this book as part of a bookstore deal: buy a drink from the café, get the book for free. That has to be one of the coolest promotions I’ve come across in a store. Better than a free sample, that’s for sure.
The book is short, and will probably be sweet; good to squeeze in around the busy holidays.
Winter Stroll by Elin Hilderbrand
The queen of Nantucket takes us to a local inn whose managing family faces recent tragedies and messy love stories around the Christmas season. Owner Kelley Quinn knows that the family has a lot to be thankful for, but unexpected visitors shake up the season.
It’s giving Nancy Meyer Christmas. I’m usually a dark romance girl, but I can always appreciate a story of lighthearted mess, a little angst and a picturesque backdrop.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Speaking of romance, I have to tackle my favorite love story – the 2005 film Pride and Prejudice.
We know that Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy get off on the wrong foot. She finds him arrogant, he finds her family ill-mannered. In the end, they have a deeper understanding and love for each other than anyone could’ve anticipated. A perfect HEA.
And, if you’ve seen The Proposal, Sandra Bullock’s character – a chic, NYC book editor – says she’s reads it every Christmas.
I’ll try to do the same.
What’s on your reading list this fall and winter? Let us know below!
Little Black Desk 
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