Spot-Lit for October 2013

Here’s our fiction selector’s picks for October releases based on early reviews.

And quite a variety it is. From a Kite Runner read-alike set in Croatia (The Hired Man), to going below-stairs with the servants of Pride and Prejudice (Longbourn), to Dan Simmon’s latest icy thriller, to the first new novel from Donna Tartt in over a decade. In the crime category find previously unpublished stories by Grand Master veteran Lawrence Block, and a new thriller from the redoubtable George Pelecanos (who you may know for his scriptwriting in The Wire). Fantasy author Stephen Donaldson wraps up his long-running, ten-volume Thomas Covenant series, and Mercedes Lackey similarly delivers the goods in her latest Valdemar novel. Fans of speculative short fiction should take a look at Rachel Swirsky’s How the World Became Quiet.

Finally, a mention of a highly anticipated debut featuring the unlikely romance between a genetics professor and a barmaid (The Rosie Project), a set-up not unlike that in Courting Greta – another acclaimed debut we Spot-Lit this past June.

That’s only touching on some of these selections – click on the titles below for additional information or to place items on hold. Happy reading!

General Fiction / Literary Fiction

Longbourn by Jo Baker

The Hired Man by Aminatta Forna

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

The Two Hotel Francforts by David Leavitt

First Fiction

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

The Night Guest by Fiona McFarlane

The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure

The Last Animal by Abby Geni

Crime Fiction / Suspense