Ben McNally’s top fiction book picks for fall 2011

6. The Spoiler

5. Red on Red

4. Notorious

3. The Night Circus

2. Rules of Civility

1. The Tiger’s Wife

At the recent Kingston WritersFest, Ben McNally, owner of Ben McNally Books in Toronto, and official bookseller at Toronto’s International Festival of Authors, took to the stage to talk about his book picks for fall 2011 — some 26 titles in total. We asked him to narrow down those selections to his top 6 fiction and 6 non-fiction books to share with you. Here, in Part 2, fiction reigns supreme, with tales of magic and mystery, love and loss. To see Ben’s non-fiction choices in Part 1, click here.

1. The Tiger’s Wife, by Téa Obreht.
An astoundingly accomplished first novel set in the Balkans.

2. Rules of Civility, by Amor Towles.
An elegant and intelligent novel of 1938 New York.

3. The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern.
A duel between illusionists has unforeseen consequences.

4. Notorious, by Roberta Lowing.
An absolutely stunning debut; Rimbaud, extraordinary rendition, crime, recrimination and love.

5. Red on Red, by Edward Conlon.
A crisp and contemporary police procedural.

6. The Spoiler, by Annalena McAfee.
Deliciously elegant depiction of a generation gap in British journalism.