Hello again fellow readers! Today I’m sharing with you my Fall 2025 Wrap-Up, where I go over every book I read from September to the end of November. Since I wasn’t able to share as many reviews during this season with you, this is an excellent opportunity to catch up.

The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig – First off is this newly published mystery centering around four adult friends who, when they were teenagers, went camping in the woods with their fifth friend who mysteriously vanished after he climbed a seemingly abandoned staircase. Now, they return to those woods and attempt to find their friend once and for all. This was a good read with an interesting concept with its main weakness being it’s ending where, seemingly, a major question is left open ended. I’m not sure if Mr. Wendig will be writing a sequel but if he isn’t, then the ending feels very underwhelming to me.

The September House by Carissa Orlando – A new favorite that blends horror with comedy, The September House centers around Margaret who, along with her husband, Hal, purchases her dream home. The only problem? It is inhabited by ghosts. When Hal goes missing and Margaret’s grown daughter shows up demanding questions, Margaret has to think on her feet and keep her daughter from discovering the truth and unleashing the monster that inhabits the basement. This was a very quick read and honestly one of my favorite books of the year (will it be on my best books of 2025 list?)

With a Vengeance by Riley Sager – The newest release from Riley Sager that centers around a murder mystery on an overnight train. I absolutely adored Home Before Dark, which I read during Summerween, but this one fell very flat for me. The pacing was sluggish, the main character was uninteresting, and I felt a sense of relief for it when it finally ended. A novella format for this story would have been much more fulfilling.

For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing – No Fall reading list can be complete for me without at least one dark academia book. This 5 star read centers on Teddy, a teacher at a prestigious school, and the dangerous cat and mouse game he enters with one of his students. As the bodies begin to pile up, the reader is left to ask if Teddy will be caught or if he committed the perfect murder. This was a very fast read for me and became an instant favorite.

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – In this horrific mystery, we follow socialite Noemi who is asked by her father to visit her cousin, who sent a cryptic letter begging for her uncle’s help. Noemi arrives at the estate but soon begins to suspect that her cousin’s husband, and his entire family, have sinister intentions. This was well written but I found the execution of the story to be lacking. The horror elements were disturbing and gross so anyone not comfortable with that should probably stay away. I gave this a well deserving 3.5 stars and am open to more of Ms. Garcia’s books in the future.

Don’t Let the Forest In by C. G. Drews – In a dark academia story that fell slightly short, Don’t Let the Forest In is a young adult story that has garnered a huge fanbase in the book community. While I certainly see the attraction, I wasn’t a huge fan of the ending. It is very open ended and while some readers might appreciate this, I was left with just too many questions to be satisfied. That being said, the relationship between the two male students were very well developed and for a young adult book this definitely reads on the more advanced side.

We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer – This psychological thriller was a 4 star read for me with plenty of twists, turns, and fast paced writing. Centering on Eve, who just recently moved into a new house with her partner Charlie, the story follows Eve after she allows a family to enter her house, on the pretext that the father lived in the home as a child. But as the unexpected guests wear out their welcome, strange occurrences begin to happen and Eve begins to question what is real and what isn’t. This is an excellent book to have for a book club as the many twists and turns are fun to unwrap together. My book club that I read this for had a great time discussing all the possibilities and sharing things each person noticed that others didn’t. This book doesn’t receive a full five stars as the ending was open ended and, as we have established, I’m not much of a fan of.

When the Wolf Comes Home by Nat Cassidy – Nat Cassidy, a horror author who is sometimes referenced as the new Stephen King, has been an author on my TBR for awhile. I was able to pickup a copy of his newest book, When the Wolf Comes Home, and read it this spooky season. The story focuses on aspiring actress Jess who finds a young boy hiding in the bushes of her apartment building. She has hardly met the boy before a terrifying creature begins to hunt her and the boy down. As Jess attempts to figure out what is happening, secrets are revealed about the boy. To me, this werewolf story was a fairly standard werewolf book and while the little boy’s big secret was an interesting take I was left a bit disappointed by it. I’ll still give another Nat Cassidy book a try but will have more lowered expectations.

This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead – Speaking of lowered expectations, this newest release from Ashley Winstead left me wanting more instead, which is an odd thing to say being that this true crime story sets at nearly 500 pages. A group of online sleuths travel to a small Idaho town to investigate the murders of several college girls. That’s a good concept but boy does it take us a long time to Idaho! That part of the story doesn’t start to take shape until over 200 pages in, with the first half of the book dedicated to how the group comes into being. That would be fine, but it did not need to be that long and by the time I got to the last 100 pages I was skimming in an attempt to finally finish. If this book had been cut in half it would have been much better.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna – Now what fall season can be completed without reading at least one cozy story? This little book focuses on a witch who is hired to help three young witches control their powers, all while she falls in love with their guardian. Sweet, simply, and very cozy, this book is a nice pallet cleanser and makes you feel all warm inside when you’re done.

Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return by Marjane Satrapi – The final book I read during the Fall season was the sequel to the graphic novel, Persepolis. Picking up right where the first book left off, the reader follows Marjane as she attempts to navigate her new life in Europe. Eventually, Marjane returns to Iran where she tries to make a future for herself but that isn’t easy either. Featuring Ms. Satrapi’s signature humor and vivid drawings, this was a well done sequel to a graphic novel that I adored last year.