Don’t Know What to Read in November? Try These Fall Book Recommendations, From Dark Academia to Cozy Fantasy

Mar. 15, 2025

Flatiron Books; King’s Hollow; Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Halloween has passed, and we’re speeding toward the winter holidays. For readers, it’s also the best time of year to pull on a cozy sweater, make a hot cup of tea and settle onto the couch with a good book.But what about after you’ve scrounged thespooky season reading lists, and are waiting until the snowy doldrums hit to dive into those cozy winter romances? With the publishing industry slowing down for the year and fewer new releases to choose from, it can be tough to decide what to pick up off the bookstore shelves.One popular sub-genre to dip into is dark academia. Originally an aesthetic that rose to popularityon TikTok, dark academia books typically have gothic-leaning tones or themes, as seen with classics like Oscar Wilde’sThe Picture of Dorian Greyor E.M. Forester’sMaurice.They also tend to take place in schools and universities, like in Donna Tartt’sThe Secret Historyand R.F. Kuang’sBabel.

Flatiron Books; Del Rey

“The gothic feel, [of] wearing a big dress and running through the castle and it’s cold and dark — that is exactly the feel that I’m looking for in a book,” she says. “It’s all about magic and power, so it’s escapism to the maximum.”

Red Tower Books; Bloomsbury

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“You’re staying home more, the days are shorter, and so it’s a great time to get sucked into something,” Freeman says, adding, “I especially love getting into a fantasy series where all the books are already out, so you can just kind of go from one to the next.”

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

“They deal with depression or mental health and all these kinds of issues that we’re dealing with,” Lecumberry says of the characters. “Even when we’re adults, you don’t truly grow up out of that.”

Ballantine Books; Dell; Harper Perennia

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.No matter what you decide to read, what’s important is that it’s enjoyable for you. As Lecumberry puts it, with books, “you just try to find that you’re not alone in this world.”

source: people.com