Tantalizing Tales — October 2026 — Part One

The first weekly roundup of October has three awesome titles to choose from, beginning with a globe-trotting historical mystery reminiscent of both classic Sherlock Holmes and James Bond.

A E Goldin’s Death On The Pearl River is the sophomore novel of the Ben Canaan mystery series. It’s 1856 and young Ben has established himself as a star detective on the payroll of Her Majesty’s Executive, after successfully solving a string of challenging cases. The murder of a notorious crime boss in London’s East End draws him in to his latest assignment. Someone is targeting some of the most powerful men in the opium trade, and Ben’s investigations will send him all the way around the world to the newly founded British colony of Hong Kong.

This lawless frontier town on the southern edge of the Qing Dynasty would be challenging enough for a newcomer to navigate, even without the turmoil inherent in an empire on the brink of collapse and a nation on the verge of civil war. The prominent trading firms that run the town all have links to the murder victims and little interest in assisting a British interloper. The most ruthless corporate interests would rather just see him dead. As Ben confronts a labyrinthine conspiracy in pursuit of the truth — and to prevent more blood from being spilled — he’ll have to make hard choices between doing what’s necessary and what’s actually just.

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If you’d like some supernatural with your sleuthing, especially given the advent of spooky season, check out Madison Tyler Nelson’s Portrait Of A Haunting.

Tatum Alexander has spent years denying her Sight, the ability to see spirits that she inherited from her notorious artist mother. Amarina is both acclaimed and infamous, after murdering her lover and using his blood for her final painting. Given this tragic history, Tatum is understandably reluctant to either embrace her powers or get close to the man she loves.

As she’s grown into an adult, the largest witch coven in Manhattan has helped her hide and control her Sight, as has her best friend Mischa. But when Mischa is murdered in an act eerily connected to Amarina’s crime, Tatum will no longer be able to block out the spirits as they insist on conveying two important messages. First, Mischa’s killer is coming for her next. Second and more ominously, a price must be paid.

With the help of her friends and allies, living or undead, Tatum will have to unravel the mystery of Mischa’s death and confront her mother’s most dangerous secret in the process. Will she be able to keep her loved ones safe, or will she be forced to ultimately risk everything?

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Want something a little lighter and, dare I say, more romantic but still paranormal? Then Audrey Goldberg Ruoff’s witchy, sapphic, romcom mystery Vengefully Matched is absolutely the book for you!

From the delightful promotional materials:

“Priscilla Hart does not do regret—except maybe for the spectacularly disastrous choice of fleeing her own wedding in a cloud of magical fireworks. Now the town’s most infamous runaway witch, she’s determined to rebuild her reputation on the Witchery Council and prove she’s more than a scandal in designer heels.

“Agatha Vanderbilt Voisin, the newly elected council president, is everything Priscilla can’t stand: composed, proper, and infuriatingly perfect. But when a string of dangerous magical explosions points to Priscilla as the culprit, Agatha makes an impulsive move—announcing that they’re dating—to save her from exile.

“Faking a relationship in public should be simple even for such opposites…until late-night arguments turn into slow-burn attraction, and the two discover that something wicked is brewing in Hallowcross. To survive the magic—and their feelings—they’ll have to stop pretending and risk falling for real.

“Can they outwit a magic powerful enough to destroy them, or will trust be the most dangerous risk of all?”

But also, can we be so for real about how appealing that cover is?! I cannot be the only reader with a massive crush on Sabrina Carpenter, and would absolutely pick this book up for the resemblance depicted on the cover art alone, lol.

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All of these books are either available or available for pre-order now, so let me know if you’re able to get to them before I do, dear readers! I’d love to hear your opinions, and see if that will spur me to push any of them higher up the mountain range that is my To Be Read pile.

And, as always, you can check out the list of my favorite books in my Bookshop storefront linked below!