The Best New Books of September

Lately, we’ve gotten plenty of great, feminist retellings of iconic women in literature and mythology, but Kiersten White’s (Hide, Mister Magic) Lucy Undying breathes fresh life into the tale of Lucy Westenra, Dracula’s first English victim. Since she was first bitten, she’s been trying to escape Dracula, but it’s in the 21st century that she finally meets a woman similarly trying to escape. Iris is charming, but her family—with their ill-begotten health empire—won’t let her out of their clutches. And Dracula, meanwhile, is back on his BS. Still, Lucy’s and Iris’ connection feels real and intense, and it might be a real chance at happiness.

And side, note, but the cover is amazing. I just got a copy and I noticed the wolves in Lucy’s hair. Ugh.

This is already doing numbers in the UK. It follows the Blue sisters, who are all so different—and who are all also messes in their own way. There’s Avery, the attorney who now lives in London with her wife after battling a heroin addiction; Bonnie, the former boxer, who works as an LA bouncer; and Lucky, who parties hard as a model in Paris. There was a fourth sister, Nicky, who was the one thing holding them all together—but it’s been a year since she passed away suddenly. Now, they’re coming back together for the first time in a while to stop the sale of the New York City apartment they were raised in, even as the grief, addiction, and disappointment they’re dealing with still loom large over them.

“For fans of procedurals, social thrillers, family drama, and completed trilogies!

Texas Ranger Darren Mathews would like to live a peaceful, retired life on his farm, hopefully with his girlfriend. But life has a funny way of coming for your plans: the past he can’t shake is looming over his head in the form of a potential indictment and the mother he hates drops a case in his lap. She cleans a sorority house and the only Black girl has disappeared. The other sorority girls swear she just moved out, but her belongings are out by the trash. Mathews doesn’t want to get roped into this, he’s not even technically allowed to investigate it, and he certainly doesn’t want anything to do with his mom. Yet here he is, once again, poking into a case—which is the equivalent of poking a beehive that starts to upend the peace he was aiming for.

You can start here and not be lost, but this is one of the best crime trilogies, so if you want all the goodness (and twists), start with Bluebird, Bluebird and have Heaven, My Home on standby!” — Jamie Canavés

“Once again, if a character has to do something wild to fulfill the stipulations of a will, I will be reading the book. To inherit her auntie’s San Francisco house (you know how much Bay Area real estate is worth?), Evie must go on a matchmaking tour of Việt Nam. There she meets Adam, who only agreed to the tour because his sister runs it. This book follows two stubborn people falling in love, which is just the best.” — Isabelle Popp

“This title? This cover? I’m obsessed. Viv has had a difficult summer after causing an accident that killed her little sister. But now Viv finally returns to Twitch, hoping she can make enough money off of streaming to offer her parents penance for what she has done. Then something strange happens. While playing a horror game, an NPC asks Viv for a secret, and she finally tells the truth about what happened to her sister. Little does Viv know that by doing so she has welcomed a demonic mimic into her life.” — Emily Martin

“This harrowing manga has been out for a little while in Japan, and this is its English debut that you don’t want to miss. Sara and Kouta have high hopes for their unborn child, like all parents. When Sara learns of the failed assassination of Malala Yousafzai, she begins to spiral. If such a bright, young woman could be so threatened, what hope does her child have? As Sara’s worries mount, it threatens her relationship with Kouta and everyone. How can they find their way back?” — Chris M. Arnone

“Originally from a remote village in the Amazon rainforest, as a teenager, Nemonte Nenquimo decides to go to the city to study with a missionary group. But after her ancestors appear in her dream, warning her of the devastation to come, Nemonte Nenquimo returns to her people. There she helps organize against big oil and protect the place that she calls home.” — Kendra Winchester

I am geeked about this YA Black-led, dark academia vampire romantasy with Ethiopian influences (yes, girl). It’s been compared to Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House, which is a particular brand of dark fantasy I vibe with. In it, lost heiress Kidan Adane infiltrates Uxlay University, where students dedicate themselves to studying to preserve peace between humans and vampires. But Kidan is there because her family was killed and her sister kidnapped, with all signs pointing to Susenyos Sagad, the vampire bound to her family, being the culprit. But Susenyos—and giving into her own darkness—is alluring, and after a murder happens that echoes her sister’s disappearance, Kidan finds herself dangerously deeper into the vampire underworld.

“This is one of my favorite picture books about voting. A child’s dad has just become a U.S. citizen and can vote for the first time. In the child’s class, they will also be holding a mock presidential election. Both the child and the dad prepare for their first election by listening to debates, reading, and hearing others speak about the candidates. When a cousin claims that votes don’t really matter, the child worries that he might have a point. But when it comes time to vote in the classroom mock election, it turns out that every vote really does count. Back matter includes more details about who can vote, when and where you vote, how presidents get elected, and why voting matters.” — Margaret Kingsbury