Next Read ClubBest Books to Read in 2026
Not every book published this year — the ones we'd actually hand a friend in 2026, across genres and moods.
A quick honest note before this list: this isn't an attempt to cover every book published in 2026.
Nobody reads everything, and a list that pretends to is usually just a press-release roundup with no actual opinion in it. This is the other kind of list — the books we'd genuinely tell a friend to start this year, pulled from across our catalog, organized by what you're in the mood for.
If you want a page-turner
1.
Project Hail Mary
Andy Weir
Science fiction, mystery, and genuine humor in one of the most purely fun books in our catalog.
Explore this book →
2.
The Thursday Murder Club
Richard Osman
A lighter mystery with real warmth underneath the jokes.
Explore this book →If you want something that lingers
3.
The Midnight Library
Matt Haig
Still one of our most-recommended books, and still worth it if you haven't gotten to it yet.
Explore this book →
4.
Klara and the Sun
Kazuo Ishiguro
Quiet, strange, and one of the gentlest, saddest narrators in recent fiction.
Explore this book →If you want to disappear into another world
5.
The Night Circus
Erin Morgenstern
Atmospheric, romantic, and one of the most purely immersive books we recommend.
Explore this book →
6.
Circe
Madeline Miller
Greek mythology retold with a genuinely compelling main character at the center of it.
Explore this book →If you want nonfiction with real ideas
7.
Atomic Habits
James Clear
Still the clearest, most practical habit-building book we recommend — a reasonable one to actually start the year with.
Explore this book →8.
Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari
Big-picture nonfiction that's genuinely readable, not just genuinely long.
Explore this book →For more by genre, our best fantasy books, best fiction books, and best self-development books hubs go deeper than any single yearly list can.
Want a pick made just for you?
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