A running ranking of the books that I have reviewed this year, updated and reranked after each book that I finish.

Whether you’re looking for the next viral BookTok recommendation, a thriller from a favorite author, or a Pulitzer-worthy literary fiction masterpiece, I’ve rounded up the top upcoming books of 2026 that you need to preorder now.

★★★☆☆ A stranded group faces predators—both animal and human—in a South African game reserve in this twisty thriller that falls short on execution.

★★★★★ A coming-of-age novel set at an elite boarding that focuses as much on class, race, and outsider status as it does on the central murder mystery.

★★★★☆ A depressing, poignant look at agoraphobia and abuse in many forms, focused on a woman who hasn't left her home in over three years.

★★★★☆ Wren Darlington's journey picks up immediately where Silver Elite ended, continuing to explore the conflict between the Uprising and Command.

★★★☆☆ A woman returns to a mythical floating island she once visited as a child, only to become stranded with the ageless man who is living there.

★★★★★ One month shy of her thirtieth birthday, Phoebe Berman is determined to conquer her neuroses and finally lose her virginity in this laugh-out-loud rom-com.