My Autumn Reading list (to end all seasonal reading lists)...

Bridget Jones' Diary

“Season of mist and mellow fruitfulness…” For anybody like me who simply associates this quote with Bridget Jones’ Diary - you know, right before Hugh Grant falls into the lake? – this is the beginning of Keats’ poem ‘To Autumn.’

For me, Autumn means cosy days spent drinking copious amounts of coffee and cocooning under blankets whilst the rain beats against the windows. It’s watching a classic Nora Ephron film whilst I paint my nails a glorious burgundy, blasting Taylor Swift’s ‘Red’ album on a long drive down the old country lanes around my hometown, and reading all the books that give me the ‘Warm Fuzzies.’

And of course, my personal favourite, the beloved PSL.

After a Summer of reading all the Sophie Kinsella and holiday romance novels I can get my hands on, as soon as September hits I’m frantically searching for books that give me a warm glow in my tummy and make me think of aforementioned seasonal activities. As such, I present to you my autumnal reading list, categorised by mood nonetheless!

For wallowing in the bath, burrowed as far as you can before you're underwater, listening to the storm rage outside with a candle flickering away and playing Taylor Swift's 'All Too Well (10 Minute Version) - Sad Girl Autumn, pausing intermittently to scream "I'm a crumpled-up piece of paper lying here..."

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Perhaps the ultimate ‘Sad Girl Autumn’ read, ‘The Bell Jar’ is often thought of as a semi-autobiographical novel due to its strong parallels with Plath’s own descent into mental illness. This book follows the breakdown and subsequent recovery of Esther Greenwood, portraying the brutal reality of living with mental illness like no other book I’ve read as yet.

As a quick disclaimer, the book contains references to suicide, self-harm, and attempted rape.

Personally, I would avoid reading this book when I’m not emotionally in tip-top condition and I was definitely still consumed by it a week after finishing. If you’re needlessly extra like me, you could try playing Lana Del Rey’s ‘hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have’ quietly in the background which references Sylvia Plath directly.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Another book that explores life with mental illness, ‘The Midnight Library’ is a captivating read, perfect for all ‘Sad Girl Autumn’ contemplations. I’ll start with another content warning: this book also contains strong themes of suicide. Protagonist Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library, a sort of half-way between life and death, when she decides to take her own life. The purpose of the Midnight Library is to allow its guest the chance to experience the alternative lives they may have lived if they had made different choices.

Heart-breaking yet hopeful, this book is packed with imagery that gave me a warm glow. My personal favourite: ‘The Three Horseshoes’ chapter.

For snuggling under a blanket with a pumpkin spiced latte, Norah Jones’ 'Turn Me On' on a loop in the background, glancing out the window every now and again to see the crisp orange leaves fall from the trees as the golden hour sun hits just right:

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

The story centres around the Owens sisters (who happen to be witches), brought up by their aunts who have their very own spellcasting enterprise going on, if you will. Somewhat disillusioned as they grow older, both escape their town but are reunited by somewhat strange circumstances.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Another magical read, The Night Circus has been raved about for good reason. The novel follows Le Cirque des Rêves – The Circus of Dreams – through the rivalry between two forms of magic. My personal favourite feature of this book: the elaborate descriptions of the clocks Herr Friedrick Thiessen creates.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

Although not necessarily set around Autumn, this book is one of my favourites and never fails to fill me with the warm fuzzies. An epistolary novel, the story follows writer Juliet Ashton to post-war Guernsey after a chance interaction with local Dawsey Adams. This book was the first I read that seemed to convey perfectly what I love about reading and the feelings a good book can elicit.

Finally, for burrowing down in the middle of the night/ early hours of the morning, with just the dim glow of a lamp on the bedside table and the Irish coffee for a bit of courage, Spooky Season playlist providing suitably haunting ambience:

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

The perfect ghost story for Spooky Season, the book sees lawyer Arthur Kipps uncover the dark secrets of Eel Marsh House and its ghostly resident. Complete with the house that finds itself marooned in high tide, eery noises of children’s cries and sudden appearances of the Woman in Black herself, read at night if you’re brave enough and don’t let the misconception that novels can’t be as scary as films fool you: I couldn’t go upstairs alone at night for days after finishing the book.

Verity by Colleen Hoover

Another book I couldn’t read alone at night, Verity follows writer Lowen Ashleigh as she embarks upon a once in a lifetime job opportunity: finishing a series of books renowned author Verity Crawford is unable to, after an accident has left her paralysed. All is not as it seems in the Crawford household however, and what ensues is a series of horrifying discoveries.

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

It feels fitting to end with my namesake, Rebecca. This book didn’t keep me awake at night but it is the book that turned me into a bit of a Daphne Du Maurier fanatic. Perfectly utilising the themes of gothic literature, the novel follows the protagonist, known only as Mrs de Winter, as she marries an intriguing widow and becomes the new mistress of the house – the infamous Manderley.

What she hadn’t bargained for was the obsessive and extremely unnerving head housekeeper Mrs Danvers, as well as constantly living in the shadow of Maximillian de Winter’s previous wife, the revered Rebecca herself.

I’ll be off blasting Spotify’s ‘Pumpkin Spice’ playlist, sinking my teeth into another Daphne Du Maurier whilst I wait for the weather to match the mood. “Season of mist” indeed.