We’re clearly getting closer to spooky season by the day, because the amount of horror infiltrating new historical fiction releases keeps increasing exponentially. Last month, there were no historical horror books. For September, half of the featured books have a horror tilt. At this rate, there will be nothing but historical horror by October. I may be exaggerating a little here, but it’s true that this kind of increase in horror across all genres is usually the trend this time of year.
But even if historical horror isn’t your preferred reading genre, the other new historical fiction books coming out feature all the intrigue, spies, and stories based on real life you could want on offer. That leaves a little something for everybody.
The Eye of Goliath by Diego Muzzio, translated by Rahul Bery (September 1, 2026)
In this reimagining of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde set in 1920s Scotland, a psychiatrist who takes on the patients no one else will treat finally meets his match. When David Bradley is brought to Dr. Edward Pierce in the hopes that his experimental therapies will be able to cure the man’s strange symptoms—he is unable to stop swimming, whether in water or on land. The man’s diary of his experiences as an engineer sent to examine an Argentinian lighthouse sheds some light on what led to his current situation. But the deeper Dr. Pierce digs to find a possible cure, the more disturbing his scientific experimentation becomes.
The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury (September 1, 2026)
In 1950s England, Gin and Sidney have little in common aside from studying at Oxford University and their hopes of forging a new beginning. But the British Security Service has other plans. They believe there’s a Soviet spy in their midst, and they want to bring together Sidney’s espionage experience from the war with Gin’s debutante charm. Now, they’ll have to follow the trail of clues toward the informant before they’re either discovered or the sparks between them jeopardize the entire mission.
All access members continue below for more of the best historical fiction out in September.
The Chinese Lady by Bo Wang (September 8, 2026)
This debut novel explores the life of the first woman brought from China to the United States in the 1800s. She was known by many names: Little Sparrow, Julia, Afong Moy, Madame Moy, The Chinese Lady. But what her true name was may never be known. She’s traded from hand to hand, first sold off by her mother in Canton, then brought to New York and given to P.T. Barnum to feature in his American Museum. It’s not until she finds her way to San Francisco’s Chinatown that she finally reclaims her name and her independence.
The Library of Leaving by Emily Dunlay (September 8, 2026)
An American librarian living in Switzerland after WWI leads a happy, solitary life cataloguing the books left in her care. But when a draft of a novel written by a man from her past reveals hints about her more colorful past as a nurse for wounded Allied soldiers in the Alps, she fears the quiet life she’s built for herself might be undone. The man claims the book is fiction, but Helen can’t stand the idea of anyone finding out who she once was or whose side she was really on.
American Nightmare by Kelly McWilliams (September 15, 2026)
Inspired by the life and work of Civil Rights activist Walter White, American Nightmare tells the story of a man answering an ad from the NAACP looking for light-skinned Black men to take on dangerous undercover work. Clark Wendell White is sent to investigate lynchings, but a new chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in New York City and the one man who sees right through his disguise threaten to lead him down an even deadlier road.
Mazywood by Tananarive Due (September 22, 2026)
In 1920s Florida, a young girl made a wish for a friend that simultaneously thrust her into stardom. Decades later, her grandson, now a filmmaker himself, takes his family to Mazywood, his grandmother’s California retreat, when a major film project falls through. But wishes are tricky things. There’s a legacy of painful memories in the forests surrounding Mazywood, and they aren’t the only thing haunting the cabin: a beast stalks these woods. Soon, Johnny and his family are fighting for their lives to survive the very thing that helped make his grandmother famous.
If you’d like to add more atmospheric historical fiction for fall to your TBR, try some of these recommendations:
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