Published by St. Martin's Press on September 1, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Enchanted Realism, Fiction
Rating:
Goodreads
Part ghost story, part love story and steeped in magical realism, Paper Ghosts will transport you to a place where old secrets echo through the years and love finds a way of bringing us home.
Every family has its secrets... The Wester women live inside theirs.
For decades, the women of Wester House have unsettled and fascinated their small, timeless North Carolina town. Their home is full of whispers, old griefs, and uncanny knowing. But when Willamena Wester reaches out to the granddaughter she once pushed away, long-buried truths begin to stir.
1976:
Restless young Willamena falls for a stranded musician who brings freedom and the promise of another life to her carefully controlled world. Their brief, incandescent love story promises to escape the pull of the Wester legacy until Willamena makes a fateful choice that changes her life forever.
Present Day:
Returning home is the last thing Bailey Wester wants. Yet as she reconnects with Willamena, the grandmother she feared, Bailey begins to understand the love, heartbreak, and impossible choices that shaped the women in her family and realizes the past may not have been trying to haunt them after all.
A luminous novel filled with Sarah Addison Allen’s stunning prose and signature blend of romance, Southern charm, and wonder, Paper Ghosts reminds us that in order to have the future we really want, sometimes we need to live with the past, and not let go of it.
"Once upon a time, there was a family of witches. But witches, it turns out, are sometimes only women who have been hurt, and are determined not to be again"
It was such a thrill to be back in a Sarah Addison Allen world. She never fails to stir my emotions and hold me rapt with her mix of beautiful prose, family drama, romance, and magic. Paper Ghosts was the story of three generations of Wester women, and the trauma and choices that shaped them making them legends in Hen Town.
First and foremost, I was very engrossed in this story. I cared so much - first for Wills, and then for Bailey. They both had suffered and there were gaping holes in their hearts. I ached for them and shed tears for them. I was so happy that Bailey returned home, and she and Wills could heal from their pasts and move forward.
One thing I always appreciate about Allen's books is how she incorporates magic in a gentle way. The magical elements never hijack the story. They are woven into the story in an organic way that just feels right to me and serve to enhance the tale.
The characters were complicated, but I cared deeply for them. Bailey, Wills, Tug, Tasha, Jack - all became important to me. I wanted them to find some peace and closure. Though Theo comes in towards the end, he was wonderful too, and I loved the nod to Other Birds.
Overall: Paper Ghosts was a beautifully told and magical tale of love, heartbreak, and healing which captivated me and touched my heart.
Published by St. Martin's Griffin on September 8, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Rating:
Goodreads
Kristyn J. Miller's cozy autumn romance will have you falling for its changing leaves, hot apple cider, and unforgettable characters.
Lenore’s life is falling apart. Propelled home from Manhattan to rural Vermont to spend one final autumn at her family’s historic apple orchard before it’s sold, Lenore struggles to say goodbye. Not only to French Hill Farm, but to everything that once inspired her art. Soon enough, entries in her late grandmother’s journal reignite memories of Lenore’s childhood—and the crush on the groundskeeper's son she's since tried to forget.
Callan’s path has been laid out for him for as long as he can remember: live, work, and die in Whitbury, Vermont. He’s taken over for his father as the groundskeeper at French Hill Farm, but now that it’s soon to be sold, his future has turned abruptly uncertain. The last thing he needs is a distraction—like Lenore French showing up out of the blue, looking even better than he remembered. As his best friend’s little sister, she’s always been off limits, and the last time they saw each other, he blew his chance anyway.
Lenore has long believed that her dreams are too big for the small town she grew up in—the same town Callan believes he can never outrun. But one last autumn together could paint their hometown—and each other—in a brand new light.
When Lenore left Whitbury, she was embarking on a new adventure and taking a first step towards making her life as an artist, but after nine years, she was returning feeling uninspired and grieving. This trip was meant to serve as a goodbye to her childhood home, Whitbury, and her grandmother, but it actually helped her find clarity regarding her future and reconnect with pieces of her life that she had lost.
Loved this! I cannot get enough of autumnal books this year! I adored the pining, the Vermont small-town setting, the touch of mystery, and Lenore’s healing journey. This book was so much more than I was expecting, and for me, that's a wonderful thing.
The romance was a sweet one. It seems, after many years, that Lenore was still crushing on her brother's best friend, Callan. The mutual pining was perfection, and I sure was hoping that warning from Lenore's brother had an expiration date because Callan and Lenore were so good together. I loved how they challenged each other, and Callan never failed to encourage Lenore and support her pursuits. And they had a LOT of history. They had known each other for many years which was meaningful. It meant something that Callan knew her grandmother and understood how painful it was to watch her slowly fade away. It meant something that Callan had a connection to her family and understood Lenore's past. All I can say is that the chemistry was crackling and it was a thrill to watch their romance unfold.
There was a plot line I did not expect, but I was so excited about it. My imagination took it and ran to all sorts of conclusions that would make me happy. When it played out exactly as I hoped it would, I was over the moon.
Overall: A beautiful story of grief and loss, love and healing with a fall flair that won my heart.
*ARCS PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER
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