Two books got five stars from me in October, one recent and one not. Weirdly, the one that was appropriate for the spooky season was the one the DIDN’T contain imprisonment, suicide, and a triple digit number of deaths.

THE SUMMER WAR by Naomi Novik

Celia discovered her talent for magic on the day her beloved oldest brother Argent left home. Furious at him for abandoning her in a war-torn land, she lashed out, not realizing her childish, angry words would suddenly become imbued with the power of prophecy, dooming him to a life without love.

This is almost a traditional fairy story, complete with brave knights, solemn oaths, and even a princess trapped in a tower. But that “almost” is doing a lot of work, and the differences make this one something very special.

HANGSAMAN by Shirley Jackson

Natalie Waite, daughter of a mediocre writer and a neurotic housewife, is increasingly unsure of her place in the world. In the midst of adolescence she senses a creeping darkness in her life, which will spread among nightmarish parties, poisonous college cliques and the manipulations of the intellectual men who surround her, as her identity gradually crumbles.

This is a novel filled with observations so sharp they leave you bleeding. My reading of it was the story of a college freshman coming to psychological terms with the fact that she’s been sexually assaulted, with no help available from her toxic family, her vicious classmates, or her predatory teachers. But it’s an ambitious, ambiguous work that rewards careful attention and still sometimes leaves you questioning.

Some other great books I read in October were: HEMLOCK & SILVER by T. Kingfisher, STRANGER THINGS HAPPEN by Kelly Link, SARAH CANARY by Karen Joy Fowler, LADY’S KNIGHT by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner, HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE by Dahlia Adler, ORMESHADOW by Priya Sharma, ORBITAL by Samantha Harvey, THE WINTER PRINCE by Elizabeth Wein, and CARRION CROW by Heather Parry.