We had hoped it wouldn’t come to be, but 2021 turned out to be more of the same from the previous year thanks to the pandemic. Lots of hunkering-down isolating or enjoying the great outdoors more often than usual. And once again, books played a big part in helping us all cope and maintain some kind of normalcy. Now more than ever, books in all their various formats will make a great gift this holiday season. This year saw a resurgence of Dune; illustrated versions of J.R.R. Tolkien works; memoirs from the world of rock and heavy metal; graphic novel collections; fun, pop-culture-themed cookbooks; stories from the imaginations of Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, and Grady Hendrix; continuing adventures from the Star Trek, Star Wars, and Marvel universes, and much more.

Check out our Holiday Gift Guide 2021 for Books, eBooks, and Audiobooks for our favorite holiday gift picks for the readers in your life.

Welcome first day of Fall 2021…. and with it come lots of new books!

Last year, aka Pandemic Year 1, while self-isolating and staying indoors as much as possible, I threw myself into reading … print books, magazines, ebooks, and audiobooks. So while it was a stressful year on a whole (for all of us), I really enjoyed being able to prioritize reading. This year, what’s become Pandemic Year 2, I wanted to get outside a bit, but also continue to be on the safe side, which meant road-tripping and hiking the great outdoors. Therefore, I’ve leaned more towards audiobooks.

Below are some titles — with accompanying links to the print, ebooks, and audiobooks editions — that I personally am looking forward to this Fall, presented here in order of release date, starting with those releasing in September 2021. After this main list, I’ve included some titles that came out earlier this year that you might have missed, as well as some themed Cookbooks, Crafts, and Guidebooks, along with an Audiobook Spotlight. And with the Fall comes, of course, Halloween and some spookier picks!

Continue on to check out my Fall 2021 Book Recommendations…

At the end of last year, we learned that metal titans Anthrax would be contributing a song to Catch the Throne: The Mixtape Vol. II, the official Game Of Thrones album featuring music inspired by the events of Season 4 of the popular HBO series. The New York thrash band had been in the studio working on their follow-up to 2011’s Worship Music, their first album with lead singer Joey Belladonna since 1990’s Persistence Of Time, when they posted studio photos to their social media accounts that were captioned #”ŽCatchTheThrone”¬. The hashtag was an obvious Game Of Thrones reference, as that was the title of the first mixtape compilation featuring songs inspired by Seasons 1-3.

Now, Anthrax and HBO have released a quick teaser video that contains interviews with several members of the band talking about the television series, intercut with footage of them in the studio, so we get to hear a snippet of the song, which is about the Lannister family.

Check out the teaser video here below, which features guitarist Scott Ian — who just appeared as the Steel Pole Walker on last Sunday’s episode of AMC’s The Walking Dead — bassist Frank Bello, and drummer Charlie Benante.

As part of Amazon’s monthly $5 MP3 album deals, Among The Living is on sale right now in MP3 format for only $5.00. (The CD is currently $6.98 and is an AutoRip, which means with the CD purchase you’ll also get a FREE MP3 download of the entire album.)

Featuring the classic Anthrax line-up of singer Joey Belladonna, rhythm guitarist Scott Ian, bassist Frank Bello, drummer Charlie Benante, and lead guitarist Dan Spitz, this third album from the native New Yorkers has one awesome track after the other. It’s basically a perfect album, but if I had to pick some standouts, I’d say “Indians,” “Caught In A Mosh,” “Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.),” and of course “I Am The Law.” Among The Living is a must-have at the normal price, but for $5, it’s a steal. Highly recommend.

Browse hundred of albums on sale this month for only $5 each!