29 Books Coming In 2026 You Need to Know About

Gird your TBRs!

Hi Book Pals,

My reading year is already off to an incredible start. I kicked off with The Heir Apparent by Rebecca Armitage—a (royal) family drama with a dash of romance—and now I’m enjoying the hell out of One & Only by Maurene Goo—a speculative romance with a 40-year-old protagonist. (Why is that so rare?) Hopefully, this is predictive of an amazing reading year ahead. And I want to do everything in my power to make sure your reading year is equally excellent!

To make that happen, I’m switching up the way I do my new release previews. Previously, I’ve done two a year. Each in two parts. Except, the second part always has lower engagement. And I get it. Who needs 50-something recs all at once?

Instead, I’m shifting to 3 previews a year, each in just one part. We’ll start with today’s (looking at books from Jan – April). Expect another in April (with books from May – Aug) and then the final one in August (with books from Sept – Dec). We’ll see how it works.

But what I am sure about is that today I have 29 books I’m wildly excited for—some of which I’ve already read, others that are at the tippity-top of my TBR. So, pour a beverage, stretch your “add to cart” finger, and get ready to place some preorders. Let’s go!

* = I’ve already read and enthusiastically endorse!

A new bombshell—ahem, exciting literary voice—has entered the villa.

1. Dandelion is Dead by Rosie Storey | Romantic Suspense | Jan 13: A woman poses as her deceased sister after discovering messages from a handsome stranger in her sister’s dating app inbox. What could go wrong?

2. Just Watch Me by Lior Torenburg | Contemporary Fiction | Jan 20: I added this to my list after seeing it pitched as Fleabag meets Big Swiss. In it, a woman livestreams her life for 7 days to raise money for her comatose sister.

3. The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams | Historical Fiction | Jan 29: A Black teenager’s search for her father leads her to a secret family curse going back seven generations. If I was a betting woman, I’d put money on this being a major book club’s Feb pick.

4. Laws of Love and Logic by Debra Curtis | Romance | Feb 17: A woman is torn between her first love and her husband. Am I sensing modern-day stateside Broken Country vibes?

5. Too Blessed to Stress by Alli Hoff Kosik | Contemporary Fiction | Mar 3: I have a feeling fans of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives are going to devour this book about 4 christian influencers trying to bring down their mega-church’s pastor.

6. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke | Suspense | Apr 7: Perhaps the buzziest debut of all—it’s already being developed into a movie starring Anne Hathaway. A trad-wife influencer wakes up in 1855, forcing her to live the ideals she preaches on social media, and she’ll do anything to get back to her cushy modern life.

7. Leave Your Mess at Home by Tolani Akinola | Family Drama | Apr 14: The black sheep daughter returns to her Nigerian-American family, and a decade of secrets between her and her equally messy siblings explodes at the Thanksgiving table.

Lots to discuss in these books, and I have a feeling people are going to be talking about them. (Maybe that includes your book club!)

8. Half His Age by Jeanette McCurdy | Contemporary Fiction | Jan 20: The author of I’m Glad My Mom Died makes her fiction debut with this novel about a 17-year-old who becomes romantically obsessed with her creative writing teacher.

9. *So Old, So Young by Grant Ginder | Contemporary Fiction | Feb 17: A book about how 6 friends (and their friendships!) age, told via 5 parties across 20 years. This would be excellent to read in a group—I couldn’t help but map my own friends onto the characters.

10. The Astral Library by Kate Quinn | Historical Fantasy | Feb 17: Have you ever wanted to live inside a favorite book? A down-on-her-luck woman discovers a portal to her favorite fictional worlds. It’s dazzling, until she’s tasked with saving them.

11. Kin by Tayari Jones | Historical Fiction | Feb 24: From the author of An American Marriage comes a new book about two friends born in the Jim Crow South whose lives take them in vastly different directions.

12. *The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer | Magical Realism | Apr 7: Another—lighter—take on living inside fictional worlds. Rainy March is a book witch tasked with protecting fictional worlds, a dream job until she accidentally falls in love with one of her favorite characters. This charmed me!

13. *Last Night in Brooklyn by Xóchitl González | Contemporary Fiction | Apr 7: This is a capital-f Fun book about meaty topics—race, class, and gentrification—told via the social lives of two neighbors in Fort Greene, Brooklyn during the days leading up to the 2008 financial crash.

HEA enthusiasts rejoice!

14. *One & Only by Maurene Goo | Speculative Romance | Feb 3: A woman with an inherited gift for matchmaking decides to have an out of character fling with a younger man, only to discover his boss is her fated match. (Fans of Rebecca Serle will love this one!)

15. You & Me and You & Me and You & Me by Josie Lloyd & Emlyn Rees | Speculative Romance | Feb 10: A couple has lost their spark after 25 years married, and seek to recapture it by time traveling back to earlier eras of their love story.

16. No Matter What by Cara Bastone | Romance | Mar 3: More married people falling back in love—is this a new romance trend?—this time via a figure drawing class.

17. How to Write a Love Story by Catherine Walsh | Romance | Mar 24: One of my favorite holiday romance authors has a new all-seasons romance about a grieving writer finishing her father’s final fantasy novel after his death and the hotshot editor who’s ready to help.

18. Almost Life by Kiran Millwood Hargrave | LGBTQ Romance | Mar 24: Two women meet studying in Paris in the 1970’s and start a decades-long forbidden love affair.

Even as a certified scaredy cat, I’m willing to risk my sleep schedule for these.

19. The Storm by Rachel Hawkins | Thriller | Jan 6: An Alabama town is famous for 3 things: deadly hurricanes, the historic inn that’s survived them all, and the local girl rumored to have murdered her lover during a storm in 1984. When she returns decades later, looking to clear her name, the wind whips up all sorts of hidden secrets.

20. The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave | Thriller | Jan 6: A confusingly-titled sequel that picks up five years after Dave’s The Last Time I Saw Him. Hannah has finally put the past behind her until Owen shows up again.

21. Woman Down by Colleen Hoover | Romantic Thriller | Jan 13: A blocked writer finds inspiration—and attraction—when a detective arrives bearing bad news.

Some little weirdos. Will they be good? We’ll see.

22. Is This a Cry for Help? by Emily R. Austin | Contemporary Fiction | Jan 13: A librarian returns to work after a mental breakdown only to confront a spate of book bannings. But more than the plot, it was a quote calling the author “queen of darkly quirky, endearingly flawed heroines” that really caught my eye.

23. Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash | Family Drama | Jan 13: The parents have opened up their marriage. Their three children are spiraling with their own crises. This sounds like heaps of mess, which can make for a fun read.

24. Dear Monica Lewinsky by Julia Langbein | Contemporary Fiction | Apr 14: When another author is raving about a book in my comments section, I take it seriously. This time, it was Katy Hays shouting about how much she adored this weird, wonderful book about a woman revisiting the inappropriate relationship she had with a professor while studying abroad only to realize it happened the same summer as the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

25. Famesick by Lena Dunham | Memoir | Apr 14: I haven’t seen a single ARC floating around for this memoir about the author’s decade post-GIRLS filled with health crises and falling in love. Does that mean it’s bad? Was delivered late? So juicy they don’t even need advanced reader buzz? I, for one, can’t wait to find out!

I would buy these completely blind. These authors have earned my unending loyalty.

26. The Future Saints by Ashley Winstead | Contemporary Fiction | Jan 20: Is there any genre Ashley Winstead can’t conquer? (My guess is no!) One of the most prolific and multi-talented authors of our time tackles her first contemporary fiction in this book about a manager tasked with rehabilitating an out of control band fronted by a grief-stricken lead singer.

27. *Little One by Olivia Muenter | Suspense | Feb 3: After growing up in a wellness-based cult led by her father, Catharine has developed a tightly-controlled adult life to avoid her past catching up with her. But when a reporter comes sniffing around, all her careful planning is threatened. This book! THIS BOOK! I gulped it down in a single sitting because I needed to know what happened, and I’m not even usually a thriller person. Brava, Olivia!

28. Once and Again by Rebecca Serle | Romance | Mar 10: The Novack women have the power to turn back time once in their life. When Lauren finds herself torn between her long-distance husband and her newly-returned first love, she wonders if she should use hers one shot to undo old hurts.

29. American Fantasy by Emma Straub | Romance | Apr 7: Do I even need to tell you what this is about when Ann Patchett said, "I can hardly remember the last time I read anything that brought me such pure joy.” OK, fine, I will anyway: a newly-divorced woman connects with a heartthrob from her teen years on a boy band cruise.

Alright, your turn: What sounds good here? What winter/spring releases am I missing? Anything you’re already looking forward to later in the year?

Happy reading,

Becca

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