There’s something about fall that makes you want to slow down. Grab a blanket, light a candle, put on a pot of something warm, and disappear into a good book for a while. And there’s no better way to do that than with a story written by someone from right here in the 901.
From spooky family secrets to Civil War love stories to globe-trotting thrillers, Memphis authors have been busy, and we’ve got some good ones to add to your stack this season. Here’s your guide to cozying up with local this fall.
👻 The Sisters of Crimson House by Melissa Sweazy
Memphis author and podcaster Melissa Sweazy is making her fiction debut this September, and if you’ve been waiting for the perfect spooky season read, this is it.
The Sisters of Crimson House follows Charley Bryde, the only woman in a long line of famous psychics to not inherit the family gift. She spends her days inside Crimson House, the Bryde family’s coveted Memphis mansion, living in the shadow of her talented older sister, Miranda. When tragedy scatters the family across the globe, Charley is left to fend for herself, and when the money runs out, she turns the manor into a haunted attraction, faking her way through tarot readings and family lore to keep the lights on.
But when a skeptic starts calling out her fraud, and Miranda shows up unannounced after eight years away, the secrets buried in Crimson House start clawing their way to the surface. Family secrets, ghosts, chilling mysteries, and twists that keep the pages turning make this one belong at the top of your fall list. 👻📖
Pre-order now before it hits shelves this September.
🔥 While We Were Burning by Sara Koffi
If you like your thrillers tense, twisty, and full of complicated women who don’t apologize for it, Memphis-based author Sara Koffi has you covered. While We Were Burning is set right here in the city, using Memphis’ civil rights history and cultural landscape as what Sara calls “the secret character” of the book.
“I don’t see a lot of thrillers taking place in medium-sized cities,” Sara says. “I was like, why not place it in a place that I’m from? We definitely have big stories happen here too.”
Born out of the tension and frustration of summer 2020, the novel channels real anger into gripping fiction and doubles as a bit of a love letter to the Memphis food scene, since nearly every restaurant mentioned in the book is based on a real spot.
🌙 Memphis Moon by Matthew M. Watkins
For a fall read with a little more history and heartbreak, pick up Memphis Moon from retired chemical executive-turned-debut-novelist Matthew M. Watkins. Sparked by a family genealogy discovery- a relative buried in the same Elmwood Cemetery plot as real-life Civil War spies Virginia and Charlotte Moon, Watkins built a meticulously researched love story set against the Battle of Shiloh, the 1878 yellow fever epidemic, and the Memphis area’s Civil War-era landscape, from Germantown to LaGrange.
“It’s one thing to just speak of it, another thing to really make you feel like you’re there,” Watkins says. “I want readers to take away that they’ve read one of the most beautiful love stories they’ve ever read.”
🕵️ The Hard Line by Mark Greaney
Want something fast-paced to burn through in a weekend? Lifelong Memphian and #1 New York Times bestselling author Mark Greaney just dropped The Hard Line, the 15th installment in his globe-spanning Gray Man series, and celebrated with a hometown launch at Novel. bookstore in East Memphis.
The good news for new readers: every book in the series is written as a standalone.
“Even though this is the 15th book in the series, you don’t have to have read any of the others,” Greaney says. “Each book is self-contained, and that’s just always the way I like to write them.”
Twenty-seven books and 30+ countries of research later, Greaney still calls Memphis one of his favorite places on earth, proof you can go global without ever losing your 901 roots.
Want to celebrate a new release in person? Memphis author TK Bell is launching her dystopian thriller When Time Runs Out with an exclusive book launch party on Saturday, August 29, from 4–7 PM at ZenHouse Memphis, hosted by IB Creative Co just days ahead of 901 Day.
Set in a world where time isn’t just measured but controlled, the novel follows multiple perspectives and parallel realities in a race against an unforgiving countdown, and the launch promises the full experience: an introduction to the book, a live discussion with TK Bell, behind-the-scenes insight into how the story came together, book signings, photo ops, and a celebration of Memphis culture leading into 901 Day. Early bird tickets include complimentary champagne.
📚 Buy Local, Read Local
However you like your fall reads- haunted mansions, Civil War romance, or international espionage- double your Memphis support by grabbing your copy from a local bookstore. Supporting local authors and local bookstores is definitely a fall tradition we can get behind.
Know any other local books good for fall? Let us know!
