The October Girl Book One

A moody, coming-of-age tale for fans of Miss Peregrine's Home for Pecular Children and Nimona, filled with fairies and ogres and magic galore.

Autumn Ackerman grew up believing in fairies and magic and princesses who defeated dragons, but now that she's eighteen and facing a future stuck behind the counter of her small town's coffee shop, she's starting to wonder if this is all there really is to her life.

But then she meets her childhood imaginary friend, Barnaby, in the alley behind the coffee shop one night. Autumn's entire world is turned upside down.

Drawn into the strange and mysterious world of the Night Folk, fantastic creatures that inspired all of humanity's myths about gods and monsters, Autumn is about to discover that there is more to her world than she ever dreamed of as a little girl, and that world is far more dangerous than she could ever have imagined. With the help of Barnaby and Evan Fade, the tragic young boy who inherited the local bookstore, Autumn has to protect herself from the coldly terrifying Mr. Balloon long enough to discover the truth about the Night Folk and her own past.

Author: Matthew Dow Smith
Publisher: Maverick
Published: 10/21/2025
Pages: 184
Binding Type: Paperback
ISBN: 9781960578594
Audience: Young Adult


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 08/25/2025
Kirkus Reviews 01/01/0001
School Library Journal 10/01/2025 pg. 87

About the Author
Matthew Dow Smith is a writer and comic book artist whose work has appeared in Mike Mignola's Hellboy, DC's Starman, and many others.

He was the writer of the X-Files: Origins comic book series, the third volume of the Dark Crystal: Creation Myths graphic novel series, and several Doctor Who comic book stories for IDW, the BBC, and BBC America.

He is the writer and artist of DC's middle grade graphic novel Misfits of Magic, and creator-owned digital comics Amelia Shadows: Daughter of Darkness, Johnny Chaos, and Arch-Nemesis.

He lives on the east coast of the US.