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.

★★★★☆ Six authors compete on a remote Scottish island to finish a dead writer's final novel in this middling Clue-like send-up of the publishing industry.

★★★★☆ When a woman's fiancé leaves her on their wedding day, she ends up taking her lifelong (gorgeous, heterosexual) male best friend on her honeymoon. What could happen?

★★★★★ Jaw-dropping dialogue and moral judgement set the tone for this dark exploration of five neurodiverse characters, one of which we're told will die by the end of the book.

★★★★☆ A thought-provoking sci-fi debut exploring identity and immigration through "instances" where a copy of a person is created when they immigrate to a new country.

★★★★☆ In this unflinchingly honest memoir, Christina Applegate lays bare her life in Hollywood and her private battles with breast cancer, MS, and self-loathing.

★★★★★ When a professional matchmaker meets her "fated" match, she must choose between her prophesied destiny and an undeniable connection she has with someone else.