My 2027

The Reading Years / A year in progress

50 of the Most Popular Books of 2026 So Far

Letters, rivalries, distant worlds and lives reconsidered. Explore 50 popular books from a reading year still taking shape.

Browse the books
Cover of The Correspondent by Virginia EvansCover of Project Hail Mary by Andy WeirCover of Strangers by Belle Burden

Three ways into the year. Editorial emphasis, not a measured top three.

50 selected worksReviewed through 29 October 2026So Far · source periods varyBrowse all 50 ↓How we chose

Five places to begin

Begin with letters, a small-town stranger, dragon riders, a hockey romance or a memoir. These five are editorial invitations into the wider selection.

Cover of Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

A stranger’s quiet gifts

Theo of Golden

A stranger gives portraits back to the people they depict. Levi makes attention to ordinary lives the starting point for a Southern-town novel.

Read the entry
Cover of The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

A life in letters

The Correspondent

A retired lawyer reveals herself through correspondence. What she chooses to say, and what she leaves unsaid, gives the novel its distinctive form.

Read the entry

Thirteen encounters with a dragon

Threshing Day

An Empyrean companion collection brings together thirteen riders’ dragon-bonding stories. It offers another angle on a world already familiar to series readers.

Read the entry
Cover of Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

Rivals with a private life

Heated Rivalry

Professional hockey rivalry complicates a secret relationship. Reid’s romance draws its tension from the distance between public competition and private attachment.

Read the entry
Cover of Strangers by Belle Burden

When a shared story breaks

Strangers

The sudden end of a marriage leaves Burden reconsidering what she knew. Her memoir follows the work of making sense of a life after that rupture.

Read the entry

Browse all 50

Choose a direction. The order is editorial, with no blended popularity score.

The conversation continues

Letters, portraits, weddings and performances of domestic life open different doors into these novels. Follow an intimate form or a setting that puts relationships under pressure.

Cover of Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

Theo of Golden

Allen Levi
Originally published 2023

A stranger gives portrait drawings back to the people they depict in a Southern town. Levi begins with the act of noticing someone, then lets attention to ordinary lives become the novel’s invitation. Choose Theo of Golden for a small-town story whose starting gesture is a gift rather than a confrontation.

Sources and details (5 observations)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

The Correspondent

Virginia Evans
Originally published 2025

A retired lawyer makes sense of her life through letters. Evans gives the reader access to a person through what she chooses to send, with the gaps and hesitations of correspondence part of the form. This is a novel for readers who enjoy assembling a life gradually, through its relationships and its language.

Sources and details (7 observations)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Yesteryear

Caro Claire Burke
Originally published 2026

A tradwife influencer wakes in the harsh world of 1855. Burke puts a curated image of domestic life against the labour of inhabiting it, making a performance of the past suddenly concrete. The premise gives readers a sharp question: what happens when an attractive fantasy becomes an environment you must survive?

Sources and details (4 observations)About the primary report

The start of this six-month reporting period is not specified.

Print sales at reporting outlets only; the ranking does not cover every format or market.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett

The Calamity Club

Kathryn Stockett
Originally published 2026

Women form an alliance in Depression-era Oxford, Mississippi. Stockett gives readers a social world in which money, work and relationships press against one another. A starting point for historical-fiction readers interested in what people can make possible together when the arrangements around them offer little room to move.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Whistler

Ann Patchett
Originally published 2026

An adult woman reunites with the former stepfather she knew only briefly as a child. Patchett uses that meeting to bring memory and an interrupted relationship into the present. The premise offers an intimate family novel about the people who can remain important long after their place in a household has changed.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Cover of My Friends by Fredrik Backman

My Friends

Fredrik Backman
Originally published 2025

A young artist follows the story behind a painting into the friendship that helped create it. Backman connects the act of looking at art with the lives it holds, moving between youthful bonds and their later reach. Choose it for a novel in which friendship shapes what survives into another person’s life.

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Wedding People by Alison Espach

The Wedding People

Alison Espach
Originally published 2024

An uninvited hotel guest becomes entangled with a wedding party. Espach puts the possibility of changing direction inside an occasion built around a carefully planned future. The social setting offers room for comedy and emotional consequences, especially if you like a novel to look behind the polished surface of a celebration.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Women by Kristin Hannah

The Women

Kristin Hannah
Originally published 2024

Coming home is its own struggle in Hannah’s novel about an Army nurse who serves in Vietnam. The story carries wartime experience into a life where recognition and belonging are harder to find. It offers a historical novel centred on nursing, memory and the demands of returning to ordinary life.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Back to sections

Returning worlds, new encounters

Love, danger and imagined worlds meet here. Choose a relationship-led story or follow a speculative adventure into unfamiliar rules and settings.

Romance and romantasy

Follow a relationship: from hockey rivals and dark romance to love amid dragons and faerie courts.

Cover of Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

Heated Rivalry

Rachel Reid
Originally published 2019

Rival professional hockey players build a secret romantic relationship. Reid places public competition beside private attachment, so the roles the men perform for other people complicate what they want together. An adult sports romance for readers drawn to recurring encounters, divided loyalties and a relationship that cannot simply step into the open.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Game On by Navessa Allen

Game On

Navessa Allen
Originally published 2026

A revenge scheme leads to blackmail, fake dating and an enemies-to-lovers relationship. Allen’s third Into Darkness installment turns a familiar romance arrangement toward darker material. It belongs with adult dark romance, for readers choosing that tone deliberately rather than expecting the lighter pleasures of a conventional fake-dating comedy.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez

The Night We Met

Abby Jimenez
Originally published 2026

Larissa falls for Chris, the best friend of the man she chose after a concert. Jimenez makes the friendship network part of the romantic complication, with attraction pressing against existing loyalties. The question is less whether two people feel a connection than what acting on it would mean for the people around them.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Edition: Deluxe edition

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Sarah J. Maas
Originally published 2015

Prythian is the unfamiliar territory Feyre must learn to navigate in the first Court novel. Romantic attraction unfolds inside a dangerous faerie realm, giving personal choices consequences beyond a single relationship. If later installments have made you curious about Maas’s world, this is where its longer story begins.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry

Shield of Sparrows

Devney Perry
Originally published 2025

A princess bound by a treaty travels through a realm of monsters. Perry combines an imposed royal role with the uncertainty of an unfamiliar world, letting danger unsettle the expectations placed on the heroine. Look here for fantasy romance in which a journey changes the terms of the life arranged for someone.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Fourth Wing

Rebecca Yarros
Originally published 2023

Violet Sorrengail enters a deadly college for dragon riders. Training, competition and romance meet in the opening Empyrean novel, where a place in the institution offers no simple promise of safety. Readers arriving through the later books can begin here, before following the series into a larger world.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The collection is linked from the report dated 24 September 2026.

The collection can change and gives no rank.

Reported format: audiobook.

Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Back to sections

Fantasy and science fiction

Choose an alien-controlled dungeon, dragon-bonding companion stories or an astronaut’s scientific puzzle.

Dungeon Crawler Carl

Matt Dinniman
Originally published 2020

Carl and a cat must survive a dungeon game show controlled by aliens. Dinniman makes the rules of a spectacle part of the danger, combining game-like progression with a survival adventure. The premise offers a different kind of fantasy momentum from a traditional quest, with the contestants trapped inside somebody else’s entertainment.

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Threshing Day

Rebecca Yarros
Originally published 2026

Thirteen riders’ dragon-bonding stories offer another route into the Empyrean world. This companion collection shifts attention among individual encounters rather than following one uninterrupted novel. It is a choice for established series readers curious about the different experiences that can sit behind a shared fantasy setting.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

Exact first-week dates are not supplied in the article.

First-week sales reported in an article covering nine months ended 3 October 2026. This is not a nine-month cumulative title total; the figure is approximate.

Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Cover of Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Project Hail Mary

Andy Weir
Originally published 2021

An astronaut wakes alone with missing memories and a task on which Earth’s survival depends. Weir turns the effort to understand an unfamiliar problem into the adventure itself. Project Hail Mary is a science-fiction choice for readers who enjoy discovery, experiments and the gradual satisfaction of making things make sense.

Sources and details (4 observations)About the primary report

The start of this six-month reporting period is not specified.

Print sales at reporting outlets only; the ranking does not cover every format or market.

The report does not supply an ISBN for the tracked edition. The displayed original-hardcover artwork is not confirmed as the edition ranked in the chart.

Report published . Checked .

  • US print sales

    #2 · US BookScan print sales · March 2026

    Circana

    The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

    A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

    The report does not supply an ISBN for the tracked edition. The displayed original-hardcover artwork is not confirmed as the edition ranked in the chart.

    Report published . Checked .

  • US print sales

    #3 · US BookScan print sales · 2026 year-to-date table, published 14 April

    Circana

    The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

    Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

    The report does not supply an ISBN for the tracked edition. The displayed original-hardcover artwork is not confirmed as the edition ranked in the chart.

    Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · US and Canadian public libraries · June 2026

    OverDrive

    The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

    Inclusion in a digital collection; the specific digital format is not identified.

    Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. Artwork edition ISBN 9780593135204. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Back to sections

Suspicion crosses borders

Advice columns, marriages and familiar communities become places of suspicion. Established detectives share this shelf with people drawn into danger for the first time.

Cover of Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden

Dear Debbie

Freida McFadden
Originally published 2026

An advice columnist decides she has tolerated enough mistreatment and begins seeking payback. McFadden turns the person expected to help others into the unstable centre of the thriller. Dear Debbie offers a premise built around that reversal: the voice people turn to for guidance is pursuing an agenda of her own.

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Woman Down by Colleen Hoover

Woman Down

Colleen Hoover
Originally published 2026

A novelist in a remote cabin becomes dangerously involved with a detective who inspires her work. Hoover brings the making of a story inside a suspense plot, blurring creative fascination with personal risk. Readers familiar with her romances should approach this as a thriller, where inspiration may be a dangerous attachment.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

The Housemaid

Freida McFadden
Originally published 2022

A live-in housemaid encounters threats behind an affluent family’s appearance. McFadden uses the intimacy of household work to narrow the distance between observing a life and becoming caught inside it. The appeal is domestic suspense with a practical imbalance of power: a job gives someone access, but also makes escape complicated.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Black Wolf by Louise Penny

The Black Wolf

Louise Penny
Originally published 2025

Armand Gamache investigates a wider conspiracy after a terrorist plot. Penny offers a continuation within an established detective world, with the immediate case opening onto a larger threat. Readers already following Gamache can return to the series; those meeting him here may prefer to explore its earlier books first.

Library borrowing

#1 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell

Don't Let Him In

Lisa Jewell
Originally published 2025

Three women’s lives become entangled through one deceptive man. Jewell makes a relationship that appears reassuring the doorway into questions of identity and trust. The setup offers domestic suspense without the need to enter a long detective series, with different people trying to understand the person they believe they know.

Library borrowing

#2 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: Atria Books / Simon & Schuster. Artwork edition ISBN 9781668033876. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Widow by John Grisham

The Widow

John Grisham
Originally published 2025

A small-town lawyer takes on a wealthy widow and becomes a murder suspect. Grisham puts a legal professional on the other side of the questions he would normally help answer. The change of position gives the mystery its tension, connecting the promise of a valuable client with a much less controllable future.

Library borrowing

#3 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown

The Secret of Secrets

Dan Brown
Originally published 2025

A Prague mystery draws Robert Langdon into scientific research and danger. Brown gives an established character another puzzle to interpret, with the city and its questions expanding the investigation beyond a single crime. It is a continuation for readers who like mysteries to carry explanatory ideas alongside pursuit and discovery.

Library borrowing

#4 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of She Didn't See It Coming by Shari Lapena

She Didn't See It Coming

Shari Lapena
Originally published 2025

A woman vanishes from a luxury condominium, turning the people around her into possible suspects. Lapena makes an apparently secure domestic environment difficult to read. Choose this for suspense built from proximity: the people closest to an absence may also be the people with the most to explain.

Library borrowing

#5 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Crash by Freida McFadden

The Crash

Freida McFadden
Originally published 2025

A pregnant woman stranded in a blizzard discovers that her rescuers are dangerous. McFadden brings survival pressure into the domestic thriller: accepting help is necessary, yet safety remains uncertain. The winter setting makes dependence immediate, for readers who want the threat to begin with a predicament that cannot simply be walked away from.

Library borrowing

#7 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Nightshade by Michael Connelly

Nightshade

Michael Connelly
Originally published 2025

Detective Stilwell investigates a body and corruption on Catalina Island. Connelly gives a distinct detective a territory whose quieter appearance conceals conflict, offering an entry point beyond his other established series. The island setting supplies boundaries and a community for the investigation to probe.

Library borrowing

#10 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben

Gone Before Goodbye

Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben
Originally published 2025

A combat surgeon becomes a fugitive after a mysterious patient disappears. Witherspoon and Coben place medical skill inside a thriller shaped by secrecy and powerful interests. The professional role gives the protagonist access to danger before turning her into someone pursued by it.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only.

Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: Grand Central Publishing / Hachette Book Group. Artwork edition ISBN 9781538774700. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

My Husband's Wife

Alice Feeney
Originally published 2026

Marriage and disputed identity make an apparently familiar relationship hard to understand. Feeney’s psychological suspense turns on the uncertainty of the account a reader is being given. A choice for those who enjoy domestic mysteries in which knowing who someone is cannot be taken for granted.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

The Divorce

Freida McFadden
Originally published 2026

A woman discarded by her husband responds to betrayal with vengeance. McFadden uses the end of a marriage as the beginning of a suspense story, taking an apparently settled relationship in a more dangerous direction. This offers a different domestic starting point from her household-employment thrillers.

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · Australia and New Zealand, digital borrowing · August 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

    The report supplies neither ranks nor per-title totals and does not cover all libraries in Australia and New Zealand.

    Reported formats: mixed digital.

    Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Last One Out

Jane Harper
Originally published 2025

A mother returns to a shrinking mining town to seek the truth about her missing son. Harper makes the community part of the mystery, giving a personal search a place with its own changing future. Look here for crime fiction in which a return home opens as many questions as it answers.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The exact observation interval is not disclosed.

Included in the library’s most-borrowed fiction section, separate from its staff recommendations. No rank is published.

The format is not stated by the source.

Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Back to sections

Private lives and public structures

Marriage, grief, food, leadership and institutional power ask for different kinds of attention. Memoir and investigation bring personal lives into contact with larger histories.

Cover of The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins and Sawyer Robbins

The Let Them Theory

Mel Robbins and Sawyer Robbins
Originally published 2024

Relationships give Mel and Sawyer Robbins the everyday setting for a framework about control. The book asks readers to distinguish other people’s decisions from their own responses, then reconsider where to direct effort. It is practical self-help to weigh against your circumstances, especially when managing others has become an exhausting habit.

Sources and details (7 observations)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Atomic Habits by James Clear

Atomic Habits

James Clear
Originally published 2018

Clear asks what makes a useful action repeatable. Small changes and supportive systems shape his habit-building framework, directing attention toward routines rather than a single burst of motivation. Readers looking for practical nonfiction can consider how the approach fits the behaviour they actually want to change.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The start of this six-month reporting period is not specified.

Print sales at reporting outlets only; the ranking does not cover every format or market.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst

A Marriage at Sea

Sophie Elmhirst
Originally published 2024

A shipwreck tests Maurice and Maralyn Bailey’s marriage as well as their ability to survive. Elmhirst puts the relationship inside the adventure, asking what two people can sustain together under extraordinary pressure. An intimate partnership gives this true survival story its human scale.

First published in the UK as Maurice and Maralyn.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Good Things by Samin Nosrat

Good Things

Samin Nosrat
Originally published 2025

Nosrat brings recipes together with rituals for cooking for people you love. The book treats making a meal as a form of attention to others, giving practical cooking a social purpose. It can be approached as a resource to return to, as well as a book to read from beginning to end.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Family of Spies by Christine Kuehn

Family of Spies

Christine Kuehn
Originally published 2025

Kuehn investigates her family’s Second World War espionage history and its link to Pearl Harbor. A personal inquiry becomes a way into a larger historical account, with inherited stories open to reconsideration. Readers interested in family secrets can follow the search into the evidence of a public past.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Nobody's Girl by Virginia Roberts Giuffre

Nobody's Girl

Virginia Roberts Giuffre
Originally published 2025

Giuffre recounts abuse, survival and the work of speaking publicly about her experience. Her memoir brings a personal perspective to events often approached through headlines, with the account shaped by her own voice. It is a testimony to consider on its own terms.

Written in collaboration with Amy Wallace.

Library borrowing

#9 · Burlington, Canada · physical books · first half of 2026

Burlington Public Library, Ontario

Sources and details (3 observations)About the primary report

Borrowing in the named local library system only. This observation is separate from the novel’s award history.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks

Memorial Days

Geraldine Brooks
Originally published 2025

After the sudden death of her husband, Tony Horwitz, Brooks writes about the experience of grief. Memorial Days offers a personal account of loss and the work of living beyond it. Its scale is intimate, for readers seeking one person’s encounter with bereavement rather than a general prescription for recovery.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The exact observation interval is not disclosed.

No numerical rank or format is published for this borrowing observation.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardern

A Different Kind of Power

Jacinda Ardern
Originally published 2025

Ardern recounts leadership, political challenges and personal experience. Her memoir places the work of public responsibility beside the life of the person carrying it. Readers interested in political memoir can approach it through those choices and pressures, with room to consider the account independently of agreement with her politics.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The exact observation interval is not disclosed.

No numerical rank or format is published for this borrowing observation.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Strangers by Belle Burden

Strangers

Belle Burden
Originally published 2026

The sudden collapse of a marriage leaves Burden reconsidering a shared life. Strangers follows the effort to understand what has happened and respond to a future no longer arranged as expected. A memoir for readers drawn to the unsettling distance between intimacy and what one person can know about another.

Sources and details (4 observations)About the primary report

The collection can change. This records its June-labelled inclusion as checked on 29 October 2026; no rank or share is reported.

Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · September borrowing favourites · September 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article does not specify a geographic population.

    Twenty favourites drawn from popular borrowing, rather than an exhaustive leaderboard. The article’s list numbers are not popularity ranks.

    The specific digital format is not stated.

    Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · UK borrowing highlights · August 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

    Borrowing highlights without ranks or per-title totals; no combined total across digital formats is reported.

    Reported formats: mixed digital.

    Report published . Checked .

  • Library borrowing

    Included · Libby · Australia and New Zealand, digital borrowing · August 2026

    OverDrive / Libby Life

    The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

    The report supplies neither ranks nor per-title totals and does not cover all libraries in Australia and New Zealand.

    Reported formats: mixed digital.

    Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe

London Falling

Patrick Radden Keefe
Originally published 2026

A young man’s death leads his parents toward a secret life they did not know. Keefe follows the investigation into a London shaped by money and influence, connecting an intimate loss with larger structures of power. This is nonfiction for readers drawn to the questions and gradual disclosures of a mystery.

Sources and details (2 observations)About the primary report

The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

Borrowing highlights without ranks or per-title totals; no combined total across digital formats is reported.

Reported formats: mixed digital.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of A Hymn to Life by Gisèle Pelicot with Judith Perrignon

A Hymn to Life

Gisèle Pelicot with Judith Perrignon
Originally published 2026

After surviving sexual violence, Pelicot chose to give public testimony and reject the shame imposed on victims. Her memoir retraces the life surrounding that decision and the difficult process of recovery. It brings a personal account to events many readers first encountered through the news.

English translation by Natasha Lehrer and Ruth Diver.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

Borrowing highlights without ranks or per-title totals; no combined total across digital formats is reported.

Reported formats: mixed digital.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams

Careless People

Sarah Wynn-Williams
Originally published 2025

What happens to responsibility inside a powerful technology company? Wynn-Williams approaches the question through her experience at Facebook and observations of its leadership. The memoir offers an insider’s account to place beside more detached company histories, with public ambitions and internal decisions examined from a particular position.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

Borrowing highlights without ranks or per-title totals; no combined total across digital formats is reported.

Reported formats: mixed digital.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of The Finest Hotel in Kabul by Lyse Doucet

The Finest Hotel in Kabul

Lyse Doucet
Originally published 2025

Kabul’s Inter-Continental hotel becomes a route through modern Afghan history. Doucet follows the institution and the people connected to it, bringing political change into a place where lives meet. The setting gives readers a concrete way into a history larger than any single guest or member of staff.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The article was updated on 6 October 2026.

Borrowing highlights without ranks or per-title totals; no combined total across digital formats is reported.

Reported formats: mixed digital.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Back to sections

The calendar matters here, too

A screen world, dragon adventures, a truck’s spring journey and seasonal bunnies offer choices for younger readers. Form and series position can help you find a starting point.

Cover of For the Fans! (KPop Demon Hunters) by Angela Song (adapter); Golden Books (illustrator)

For the Fans! (KPop Demon Hunters)

Angela Song (adapter); Golden Books (illustrator)
Originally published 2025

The characters of KPop Demon Hunters make the move into a Little Golden Book. This illustrated introduction offers young fans a familiar world to explore on the page. Angela Song adapts the material, with illustrations credited to Golden Books: a compact way to connect a screen interest with shared reading.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The exact reporting endpoint is not stated. This is an early-year observation, not October year-to-date sales.

Print sales for the tracked editions only. Their edition dates do not establish the work’s original publication year.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Cover of It's Not Easy Being a Bunny by Marilyn Sadler

It's Not Easy Being a Bunny

Marilyn Sadler
Originally published 1983

P.J. Funnybunny tries life as other animals before accepting being a bunny. Sadler gives an early reader a clear pattern of experiment and return, with the pleasure of seeing what each change brings. A simple premise for a child beginning to follow a story through repeated attempts.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

How to Catch the Easter Bunny

Adam Wallace
Originally published 2017

Children try to catch the Easter Bunny in a seasonal picture-book adventure. Wallace’s premise gives a shared reading session an immediate question to follow, with the illustrations carrying part of the action. A choice for families looking for a book tied to an occasion rather than a long series commitment.

Illustrated by Andy Elkerton.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Cover of The Hybrid Prince by Tui T. Sutherland

The Hybrid Prince

Tui T. Sutherland
Originally published 2026

Umber and Sora travel to a hidden dragon refuge in the sixteenth Wings of Fire volume. Sutherland offers an ongoing fantasy world for younger readers already invested in its characters. Check the series sequence before choosing it as an introduction: this is a continuation with a history behind it.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Little Blue Truck's Springtime

Alice Schertle
Originally published 2018

A truck’s springtime journey reveals baby animals behind lift-the-flap pages. Schertle makes discovery a physical part of the reading experience, giving a child something to uncover as the story moves. The board-book form is suited to sharing and returning to the same small surprises.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The source labels the table March 2026 but does not give the exact reporting dates.

A monthly print table, not an annual rank. Publication dates in the table describe the editions it tracks.

Report published . Checked .

Publisher artwork has not been verified for this guide.

Cover of Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Dr. Seuss
Originally published 1990

Humorous verse and illustrations follow life through progress, setbacks and new beginnings. Dr. Seuss gives encouragement room for difficulty rather than imagining a journey without obstacles. A familiar read-aloud or gift choice for marking a transition, with the rhythm and pictures central to the experience.

Sources and details (1 observation)About the primary report

The start of this six-month reporting period is not specified.

Print sales at reporting outlets only; the ranking does not cover every format or market.

Report published . Checked .

Cover artwork: publisher or author source. The pictured edition may differ from the first publication or the edition covered by a chart. Checked .

Back to sections

A retired lawyer’s letters, a stranger’s gifts and an astronaut’s scientific puzzle offer three routes into 2026. Elsewhere, hockey rivals fall in love and memoirists reconsider lives they thought they understood. This guide brings together 50 books seen in the year’s sales and borrowing reports so far, with room for a first encounter as well as a return to a familiar author.

By the Read2027 editorial desk. Updated .

What the evidence reveals

Read the year through different kinds of attention.

Earlier books, fresh choices

Theo of Golden, Heated Rivalry and Dungeon Crawler Carl all appear in the first-half US print report, though their stories began before 2026. A small-town novel, a hockey romance and a dungeon adventure offer three very different ways to explore an older book now.

Publishers Weekly, citing Circana BookScan

The library holds more than the latest release

Baltimore County’s first-six-month borrowing lists place earlier books alongside its readers’ other choices. The Correspondent and Yesteryear appear in the wider guide through their own 2026 observations, giving you both returning novels and new arrivals to consider.

Baltimore County Public Library · Publishers Weekly, citing Circana BookScan

Reading has its seasons

Bunnies and springtime journeys appear in March’s print table. For a family choosing a book to share, the occasion may matter as much as the premise. Those monthly appearances capture a moment in the year, while the adult novels offer other kinds of return.

Circana

Another place, another reading path

Burlington’s borrowing list includes The Black Wolf, Kingston’s includes Last One Out, and Libby’s UK August highlights include London Falling. Together they suggest routes through detective fiction and investigative nonfiction, with each local or platform observation kept in its own context.

Burlington Public Library, Ontario · Kingston Libraries, Victoria · OverDrive / Libby Life

Look back. Read ahead.

Real author and series connections to the verified 2027 calendar.

Kristin Hannah

The Fire

Continue with Kristin Hannah. The Fire moves to contemporary America; it is a same-author connection, not a sequel to The Women or The Nightingale.

4 May 2027 · US hardcover · Publisher source

Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Forgotten Melody

Return to Prythian in 2027. A Court of Forgotten Melody continues the Court series; start with the original Court novel if you are new to this world.

12 January 2027 · US hardback · Publisher source

Rachel Reid

Unrivaled

Read ahead with Ilya and Shane. Unrivaled continues their story in 2027. Its exact date remains under verification because the publisher lists June and July timing on the same record.

2027 · exact date under verification · US ebook · Publisher source

What stays with the year

The year remains open. A letter-based novel may lead to a memoir; an imagined world may send you back to a series’ beginning. Keep exploring the books here, then look ahead to the authors returning in 2027.

Evidence, in context

How this guide was made

These 50 books have dated 2026 sales or borrowing evidence reviewed through 29 October 2026. They include new releases and earlier works. Each entry links to its own report, with the relevant market, format and period.

This is a So Far selection, not a final-year or worldwide ranking. March sales, first-half print reports and later library observations do not cover a uniform October reporting window. Sales and loans are different measures and are not added together. Our editors choose the books and write the notes independently; inclusion cannot be purchased.

Cover artwork can depict a different edition from a sales chart. First-publication history, artwork edition and the observed reading year are kept separate.

Read our editorial standards or report a correction with a supporting source.

Does popular mean best?

Popularity gives us a reason to look at a book. It does not decide whether it will be the right book for you. The notes help you choose by story, subject, form and tone.

Were all these books new in 2026?

No. Earlier books qualify through evidence from 2026. Their original publication years appear beside the titles, so you can distinguish a new release from a new encounter with an older book.

How can I suggest a correction?

Send the title, passage and a supporting source to editorial@read2027.com. Significant factual corrections will receive a visible note.

What will change as the year continues?

Later sales and borrowing reports may change this selection. A completed-year guide will follow only after 2026 has ended and the relevant reports have been reviewed.

Return to the 2027 release calendar