8 Must-Read Books Releasing in October 2024 by Asian Authors
From magical adventures to heartwarming stories and thrilling dramas, these eight new releases offer something for every reader. Embrace the fall vibes and dive into these captivating reads, perfect for your autumn book stack!
A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang
Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.
Her beauty hides a deadly purpose.
Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within.
Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods.
Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.
Publication date: October 1, 2024
Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 336
Why should you read it? A Song to Drown Rivers is a gripping historical fantasy inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of Ancient China's Four Beauties. Follow Xishi as she uses her beauty as a weapon to infiltrate the enemy court, seduce a ruthless king, and seek vengeance for her sister’s murder—all while navigating the dangerous tensions of love and war. With high stakes, complex relationships, and a protagonist wielding her appearance as both shield and sword, this novel explores themes of womanhood, sacrifice, and power in a richly detailed, perilous world.
Zodiac Rising (Descendants of the Zodiac #1) by Katie Zhao
At a secret Manhattan boarding school, the Descendants of the Chinese zodiac have hidden away since the source of their magic—the twelve zodiac statues—was vandalized and lost to time. Thus, a curse befell the Descendants, and they’ve lived as creatures of darkness . . . until now.
When the lost statues suddenly resurface and a powerful classmate is found dead, all signs point to foul play from the fae. The Descendants finally have the chance to take back what's rightfully theirs and break the curse. To pull this deadly heist off, though, they must assemble an elite crew:
THE VAMPIRE: After a century of burning hunger, Evangeline is out for blood.
THE SHAPESHIFTER: Nicholas yearns to restore justice to his people—and make peace with his past.
THE MORTAL: Alice seeks the truth of her mysterious heritage, and this mission may be the key.
THE WEREWOLF: Tristan will do anything to break free from the monstrous wolf inside.
Only these four have the power to save the Descendants, but the wrath of the fae waits at every turn. One wrong move and the fate of their kind will come crashing down. . . .
Publication date: October 1, 2024
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal
Pages: 416
Why should you read it? Enter a secret Manhattan boarding school where the cursed Descendants of the Chinese zodiac, living as dark creatures, finally have a chance to break their curse after the resurfacing of the lost zodiac statues. When a powerful classmate is found dead, the Descendants suspect foul play from the fae and must assemble an elite crew—a vampire, shapeshifter, mortal, and werewolf—to pull off a high-stakes heist. With danger lurking at every turn and the fate of their kind hanging in the balance, this thrilling, magical adventure is a battle for survival and justice.
Fledgling: The Keeper's Records of Revolution by S.K. Ali
The first book in a gripping duology from acclaimed author S.K. Ali introduces a fractured world on the brink of either enlightenment or war.
Would you trade love for peace?
Raisa of Upper Earth has only lived a life of privilege and acquiescence. Ever dutiful, she accepts her father’s arrangement of her marriage to Lein, Crown Prince of the corrupt, volatile lands of Lower Earth. Though Lein is a stranger, Raisa knows the wedding will unite their vastly different worlds in a pact of peace: an infusion of Upper Earth technology into Lower Earth will usher in the final age of enlightenment, ending war between humans forever.
Or is justice more urgent?
Newly released from imprisonment, Nada of Lower Earth has found her own calling: disrupting the royal wedding. Convinced her cousin Lein’s alliance with Upper Earth will launch an invasive, terrifying form of tyranny, Nada sets out undercover to light the spark of revolution.
When Raisa goes missing a week before the wedding, all eyes turn to the rebels, including Nayf, Nada’s twin brother—a fugitive on the run. And when Nayf and Raisa meet, the long-simmering animosity they feel toward each other's worlds slowly burns away into something unexpected.
But the Crown Prince wants his bride—and future—back. And he will go to the ends of the Earths to reclaim them.
Publication date: October 8, 2024
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopia
Pages: 544
Why should you read it? In her latest duology, S.K. Ali’s plunges readers into a fractured world where Raisa, a privileged woman from Upper Earth, is set to marry Lein, Crown Prince of the corrupt Lower Earth, in a union meant to bring peace and enlightenment. But when Nada, a revolutionary from Lower Earth, aims to disrupt the wedding to prevent a new tyranny, the future of both realms is thrown into chaos. As alliances shift and a brewing revolution unfolds, this story raises thought-provoking questions about love, justice, and the true cost of peace.
The Restaurant of Lost Recipes by Hisashi Kashiwai, Jesse Kirkwood (Translator)
The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is the second book in the bestselling, mouth-watering Kamogawa Food Detectives series, for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold.
We all hold lost recipes in our hearts. A very special restaurant in Kyoto helps recreate them...
Chef Nagare and his daughter Koishi serve their customers more than delicious food at their Kamogawa Diner down a quiet street in Kyoto. They can help recreate meals from their customers’ most treasured memories. Through ingenious investigations, these “food detectives” untangle flavors and pore through old shopping lists to remake unique dishes from the past.
From the swimmer who misses his father’s lunchbox to the model who longs for fried rice from her childhood, each customer leaves the diner forever changed—though not always in the ways they expect…
A beloved bestseller in Japan, The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is a tender and healing novel that celebrates the power of community and delicious food.
Publication date: October 8, 2024
Genres: Fiction, Translated Japanese Literature, Contemporary
Pages: 224
Why should you read it? The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is a heartwarming tale set in a Kyoto diner where Chef Nagare and his daughter Koishi serve more than just food—they help customers recreate treasured dishes from their past through meticulous detective work. From lost lunchbox meals to childhood fried rice, each dish uncovers deeper emotional connections and leaves the diner’s patrons transformed. This bestselling, feel-good novel celebrates the healing power of food, memory, and community, making it a perfect read for fans of reflective, tender stories like Before the Coffee Gets Cold.
The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan
Inspired by Chinese myths of ancient dragon gods and threads of fate, Katrina Kwan’s dazzling fantasy debut is an adventure perfect for fans of Sue Lynn Tan and Hannah Whitten.
At the spry young age of twenty-five, Sai has led a quiet life, keeping the family teahouse up and running—even if that means ignoring the past-due notices—and taking care of his ailing mother. But he has a not-so-secret gift that he’s parlayed into a side career: he was born with the ability see the red threads of fate between soulmates, which lends itself nicely to matchmaking. Sai has thus far been content not to follow his own thread, the only one he’s ever seen that’s gray and fraying.
But Sai’s ordinary existence is about to be turned upside-down by a pair of shining dragon scales. When his mother’s doctor sells them to him, claiming them as a miracle cure, Sai is pretty sure he’s being scammed. When the medicine actually works—and the terrifying, ruthless emperor catches wind—Sai is thrust into the search for a dragon long thought extinct that will lead him into the throes of a brewing war and deep into foreign lands, facing down challenges both magical and mortal on an unexpected adventure. And for the very first time, as his own thread of fate begins to move, he may be able to solve the mystery of his Fated One on the other end of the line.
Publication date: October 8, 2024
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Adult
Pages: 320
Why should you read it? Katrina Kwan’s The Last Dragon of the East is a captivating fantasy inspired by Chinese myths, where Sai, a teahouse owner with the ability to see soulmates' red threads of fate, leads a quiet life until a pair of magical dragon scales change everything. After his ailing mother is miraculously cured, Sai is thrust into a dangerous quest to find a long-lost dragon, pursued by a ruthless emperor and drawn into an impending war. As his own gray thread of fate starts to unravel, Sai embarks on an epic adventure, blending magic, myth, and romance, perfect for fans of Sue Lynn Tan and Hannah Whitten.
Love Can't Feed You by Cherry Lou Sy
A beautiful, tender yet searing debut novel about intergenerational fractures and coming of age, following a young woman who immigrates to the United States from the Philippines and finds herself adrift between familial expectations and her own burning desires
Love Can't Feed You is a stunning, heartbreaking, and compressed look at coming of age, shifting notions of home, and the disintegration of the American dream. It asks What does it mean to be of multiple cultures without a road map for how to belong?
After a harrowing flight, Queenie, her younger brother, and their elderly Chinese father arrive in the United States from the Philippines. They’re here to finally reunite with Queenie’s Filipina mother, who has been working as a nurse in Brooklyn for the past few years—building a life that everyone hopes will set them up for better prospects. But her mother is not the same woman she was in the Something in her face is different, almost hardened, and she seems so American already.
Queenie, on the cusp of adulthood, has big dreams of attending college, of spending her days immersed in the pages of books. But there is not enough money for her and her brother to both be in school, so first she must work. Queenie rotates through jobs and settles, tentatively, into her new life, but her brother begins to withdraw and act out, and her father’s anger swells. As the pressures of assimilation compound, and the fissures within her family deepen into fractures, Queenie is left suspended between two countries, two identities, and two parents.
Publication date: October 8, 2024
Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary
Pages: 336
Why should you read it? Love Can't Feed You is a poignant debut novel that explores intergenerational fractures and the complexities of immigration, as Queenie, a young woman from the Philippines, navigates the pressures of assimilation, familial expectations, and her own dreams. After reuniting with her mother in Brooklyn, Queenie is caught between her desire for education and the financial strain of supporting her family. As her family’s tensions rise and her sense of belonging becomes increasingly fragmented, the novel offers a heartbreaking look at the disintegration of the American dream and what it means to exist between two cultures.
If You're Not the One by Farah Naz Rishi
This funny, electric rom-com follows a teen struggling to reclaim her perfect life and the perfectly wrong guy who sees through her facade, from the acclaimed author of It All Comes Back to You.
Anisa Shirani is…well, perfect. A fact, not an opinion. Of course, it’s all a front to feed her own praise-obsessed ego. Behind closed doors, she is—some might say—a little slobbish and snobbish, and she works obsessively to maintain her God-given talents. Fate has favored her, but Ani knows better than anyone that fate is made by effort.
But she must, especially when all signs point to her being a top-notch lawyer with a top-notch education and being destined to marry Isaac, total heartthrob and eldest son of the richest family in the community. A perfect girl deserves a perfect life, and Ani’s perfect life is going exactly the way it should…
Until Ani’s parents announce they’re getting divorced.
Until Isaac shows all the signs of…cheating. Sort of.
Until she starts catching feelings for Marlow, an overly friendly weirdo she’s hated since the moment she laid eyes on him in class.
How can fate be so wrong?
Publication date: October 8, 2024
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Pages: 352
Why should you read it? This hilarious rom-com follows Anisa Shirani, a seemingly perfect teen obsessed with maintaining her flawless image and ideal future. But when her parents announce their divorce, her perfect boyfriend Isaac may be cheating, and she unexpectedly starts falling for Marlow, a quirky classmate she’s always despised, Ani’s meticulously crafted life begins to unravel. With wit and heart, this story explores the pressure of perfection, self-discovery, and the unpredictable nature of love, making it a delightful read for fans of electric romantic comedies and personal growth.
A Brush with Magic by Flora Ahn
A heartfelt, magical middle grade adventure—inspired by Korean folklore and set in modern-day Seoul—about sisterhood and belonging, perfect for fans of Tae Keller and Kelly Yang.
It’s finally summer break, and Yumi is headed to Korea with her older sister, Minji for the very first time. She can’t wait to explore the city of Seoul together—but Minji has other plans. The moment they land, Minji ditches Yumi to hang out with their cousins, who are more fashionable, better at soccer, and just all around cooler than Yumi.
Feeling lost and alone, Yumi is stuck at home painting with her grandfather. But when she discovers a magical ink brush in the attic, she accidentally summons a friend straight out of the Korean fairy tales her grandfather is always telling her about.
Together with this new friend and the ink brush, which has the power to bring anything Yumi paints to life, Yumi explores everything Seoul has to offer, from bustling street markets and ancient palaces to riding the subway. But as the consequences of this newfound power come home to roost, Yumi must find the strength to embrace who she is and speak up for herself—before she loses everything and everyone she loves.
Publication date: October 22, 2024
Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Pages: 288
Why should you read it? This heartfelt middle-grade adventure blends Korean folklore with modern-day Seoul, following Yumi as she navigates feelings of isolation after being ditched by her sister during their first visit to Korea. Left to bond with her grandfather, Yumi discovers a magical ink brush that brings her paintings—and a new friend from Korean fairy tales—to life. As she explores the wonders of Seoul, Yumi learns to embrace her true self and finds her voice amidst the magical chaos. Perfect for fans of Tae Keller and Kelly Yang, this enchanting tale celebrates sisterhood, self-discovery, and the power of belonging.
