2026 has provided readers with a glorious wealth of new releases. From horror to romance, a new book fits every mood and taste. The sequel releases alone will keep your TBR stacked for months on end. And if you still have a book hangover from your favorite reads of last year, whether it be a series favorite from Jennifer Lynn Barnes or R.F. Kuang or a highly anticipated new release from a favorite author like V.E. Schwab, 2026 delivers with a bounty of new releases that are just as good as the year before.
If you’re not sure which of these new releases to start with, we’ve created a list based on some of the most popular books of 2025. Be sure to visit your local independent bookstore or put these on hold at your local library. There’s no doubt you’ll find a new favorite book of the year.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Glorious Rivals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes:
You must read the latest in the Stevie Bell YA mystery series, The Velvet Knife by Maureen Johnson. Like the others in the series, you can read these as standalones. They maintain the same thrilling, page-turning plots as the Inheritance Games spin-offs.
Synopsis: Stevie might be the greatest teenage detective Ellingham Academy and the world has ever seen, but even she can’t figure out what happened with her boyfriend, David. What she needs is a distraction: a good old-fashioned murder. Stevie is much happier dealing with dead people. They’re a lot less confusing—they don’t send cryptic texts and make out with other girls in British pubs.
But then Stevie gets exactly what she wanted when a dead body turns up in the middle of a Manhattan apartment complex, and this one is . . . complicated. Caught in a web of messy alive-people feelings, Stevie finds herself questioning all human connection. Is magnetism only manipulation? Can you trust anyone? Does anyone realize that they’re joining a cult—before it’s too late? And are things with David really over?
On Sale now via HarperCollins. Order here.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Katabasis by R.F. Kuang:
One of the most anticipated new releases of the year, Blacktail by Scott Hawkins is a unique, dark fantasy that will appeal to readers that love Katabasis because they share the same outstanding storytelling DNA. Both authors are known for their outstanding voices and for the ability to craft a layered story.
Synopsis: The wolf Blacktail is faithful to his Forest God, but in these times, faith is not enough. His world is besieged by men. Soon his territory will be overrun, and then there will be nowhere left to go. When his mate, a house dog, is killed, Blacktail rebels. He invades the house of her owners, seeking vengeance.
Blacktail’s fury catches the notice of an ancient and terrible feline witch, who makes an offer. What if Blacktail could end the human race responsible for the death of his family and for the destruction of the natural world, altogether? To do so, Blacktail must find and wake the Forest God. Only He might stand against the plague of men. Blacktail knows that his north woods are dwindling to nothing. He sees no other choice.
As Blacktail journeys farther from his wild home and deeper into the world of man, he encounters strangers—animal, mortal, and otherworldly—who, for their own reasons, want to help Blacktail rid the world of humans. Along the way, it becomes clear that he is more than just a wolf. The Forest God is sleeping, yes. But what will be the price of waking him?
On Sale now via Crown. Order here.
If your favorite book of 2025 was The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow:
Synopsis: A ruthless spy. A deadly mission. A thief who could ruin it all.
Nore Gordon is a woman of many talents: she can speak a variety of languages, disguise herself in plain sight, and has made a name for herself as a successful wine merchant. But unbeknownst to those closest to her, it is all a front for Nore’s true role as the favored spy of the Lindle crown.
Tasked with infiltrating enemy lands in search of a powerful relic, Nore is forced to engage the services of a great thief. Unfortunately, the only person for the job is her estranged husband Caspian.
Both Nore and Caspian bear the scars of the disastrous end of their marriage, but if they are to survive their deadly new assignment, they must pose as a happily married couple to avoid detection. As danger closes in, Nore finds herself tangled in a web of lies and deceit-and though Caspian is at the centre of it all, she may not hate him as much as she once did. But Caspian has betrayed her before, and trust can be far more deadly than deception.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson:
Synopsis: Ten years after her father—the infamous serial killer Gabriel Thorn—was caught, Ryan Shipley is back in Starling, Tennessee, trying to lay low. No one can know who she really is. No one can know the truth about her past.
But as fresh eyes dig deeper into the case, old secrets refuse to stay buried. Cryptic texts, eerie coincidences, and a chilling note leave everyone wondering—does Ryan know more than she’s letting on? As the truth unravels, one thing becomes clear: in a town full of secrets, Ryan might be the biggest mystery of them all.
The world is hunting for answers. Now get ready for a thriller with unexpected twists and turns.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
Rose despises Raven, the god of Death. His mysterious command and mercurial moods. His closed heart. But most of all, she loathes that she was forced to become his Harbinger, a human mercenary tasked to fulfill their god’s every want and whim. Still, she would do it again, because being a Harbinger is the only thing keeping her best friend alive. When a murder rocks the world of the gods, Rose is suddenly thrust into the immortal realm’s spotlight as Raven’s heir. This is her chance to free her friend once and for all. But in order for her to ascend, she must first prove herself to the other gods—and the one person standing in her way is a fellow Harbinger.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins:
Synopsis: Orphaned as a baby, Shay has spent her life training as the midwife’s apprentice. Her role grants her stability, yet Shay has always yearned for more. Namely, motherly affection and answers regarding her mysterious birth—neither of which the midwife deems practical to provide.
After Shay discovers her birth mother, Hind, is still alive and addicted to a magical drug called Snow, she determines to get the woman clean. But when Hind betrays Shay to get her hands on more Snow, Shay’s abandoned within a deadly forest and forced to rely on a band of monstrous ghouls for safety.
Shay’s realm has long stood on the brink of war between the men who control magic and the revolutionaries who want to eliminate it. But in the forest, Shay hears the pleading call of ancient spirits who claim that not only has magic been stolen, but Shay has the power to return it. With the help of a spitfire revolutionary and the boy who’s winning over her heart, Shay discovers the horrific truth of who produces Snow and will have to decide for herself whether to heed the spirits’ charge or fade into obscurity.
This emotionally raw and gorgeously rendered fairy tale combines the lush worldbuilding of This Woven Kingdom with the mother trauma of Snow White and a dash of Tim Burton. Steeped in mysticism and mythology, The Lustrous Dark confronts injustices against women with a righteous scream that’ll inspire readers to rally against the patriarchy and oppressive regimes worldwide.
On Sale via Peachtree Teen. Order here.
If your favorite book of 2025 was Accomplice To The Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer:
Synopsis: When new recruit Helspira takes on the doomed mission that no other soldier wants, life–and death–start to get a little complicated. Helspira must play escort to Sikras–a frustratingly handsome necromancer with the power to raise the dead–as he attempts a mission that he’s failed twice before; stopping an undead army at the edges of the kingdom. No one thinks he will succeed. Not even Sikras.
But the more time the two spend together, the more they find they can imagine a brighter future. As secrets come out and the two grow closer–and Sikras’s lively skeleton companion Benjamin tries desperately not to be a third wheel–will Sikras’ and Helspira’s changing feelings for each other be enough to overcome the growing danger?
On sale via Orbit. Order here.
What books from 2025 have inspired your latest purchase?
Brianna Robinson is a book publicist and Sarah Lawrence College alum. She lives in New York with too many books and two enthusiastic dachshunds. You can find her on twitter @blrobins2.
