Best Fiction Books of 2026

INSIDE : Read along with me this year! Check out the Best Fiction Books to Read of 2026 and see my quick reviews of each of them. Mystery, thriller, memoir, historical fiction and a little self help – I love reading a wide variety of books and I’d love hearing which are your favorites!

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Welcome to one of the favorite blog posts I write each year!

I remember really getting lost in books around the age of 12 and I’ve loved reading ever since. I definitely slowed down the quantity of books read during my children’s younger years, but now that they are in high school and more capable on every level (thank goodness for that!), my reading is back to being one of my favorite activities.

This post will be updated continually throughout 2026, as I read about 10-11 books a month last year!

I’m in two bookclubs (one in person and one online) and do a lot of driving of my kids, so audio books have become a fun resource for reading while on the go! Libby is my favorite way to read online, but Audible.com is great also.

Want to check my favorite books from previous years? 

• Best Fiction Books to read in 2021 (read 23 books)
• Best Fiction Books to read in 2022 (read 35 books)
• Best Fiction Books to read in 2023 (read 65 books)
• Best Fiction Books to read in 2024 (read 99 books)
• Best Fiction Books to read in 2025 (read 109 books)

If you want to see all my recent books in one place, you can check out my Amazon Book page.

So, without further ado here are all the books and my reviews that I am reading in 2026. I’d love you to comment below with your favorite reads, too!

You will see all my fiction books shared below in order of first read in the year to most recently read at the bottom. Below that I have a running list with all other genre of reads I am reading (self help, religion, memoir, etc…). Enjoy!!

2026 book reviews

1. The Bluest Eyes by Toni Morrison

What a read to start the year off with! Phew. This book is a complex story about the cycle of generational trauma. It follows a few of the main characters, but mostly Pecola – an eleven year old Black girl who prays for blue eyes. She believes that if she had “the bluest eyes,” the world would see her as beautiful and the violence / neglect in her life would disappear. We also then learn the stories of both her mother and father. NONE OF IT IS EASY READING.

And I didn’t realize until after finishing this book, that basically sweet Pecola looses touch with reality in the end. Ugh. (I think this is one to read and not listen to. I didn’t realize the subtle shift in narration because I was listening to it and didn’t catch on that she was talking to an imaginary friend. I think you could have caught on to that if reading it with the italic print.)

What a tough read, but it made me feel things and was beautifully written.

I gave it a 5. My heart bent to these characters and I always love that, even if it’s hard to read. The Bluest Eyes by Toni Morrison

2. The Hiding Place by Cornelia Ten Boom

I’ve read this book before as a teenager, but wanted to read it again with my children. I have to be honest, the first half is very slow going as it follows quite a few stories about Corrie Ten Boom’s life before the war and during the very initial years of the German invasion. Regardless, it’s a intense but inspiring recount of her life in a concentration camp and her relentless determination of focusing on the blessings God had given her even during some of the most atrocious living conditions during the Holocaust.

Regardless, 5 stars for sure. It’s a hard read and one that sits with you quite some time after you finish it. To only be so mindful of God’s provision and guidance in our life as Corrie was. The Hiding Place by Cornelia Ten Boom

3. Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

I’ve loved numerous books by Ann Patchett – The Dutch House, Patron Saint of Liars, (Tom Lake and Bel Canto are my favorites). So I was excited to start Commonwealth.

It follows a family and how one choice can change the course of all of their lives. I loved the premise, but there ended up being TEN family members – four parents and six children. Honestly, it was too many characters to keep track of and remember their individual story lines. I ended up liking only a few of the characters progression and although I wanted to keep reading, it felt more of a chore than I would have wanted.

3 stars for me Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

4. Geisha, a Life by Mineko Iwasaki

Last year my online bookclub read Memoirs of a Geisha and we all had mixed reviews. I have loved Japanese culture for most of my life and even took Japanese in high school. So on one side I loved Memoirs of a Geisha, but the more I dug around about the history of the book, the less I liked. The author basically stole the stories from a personal interview he had with Mineko Iwasaki (the most famous Geisha in Japan’s history) but then twisted her words and sexualized the story.

When I found out Mineko had written a book to share her actual truth, I decided I wanted to do her justice and read it. I’m glad I did. There is always more than one way to do things, but from what Mineko shared there was great honor and prestige in all she accomplished during her life. I’m glad I took the time to at least read from her perspective what the ongoings of her life were like, mostly she wanted to be a professional dancer and was able to.

Still felt like there was a veil of secrecy a bit, but I’m still glad I read her book. 4 out of 5 Geisha, a Life by Mineko Iwasaki

5. Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

I need lighter reading to start of this year! The world is too heavy, so I decided to read some spicy fluff. It was spicy and it was fluffy. The story line was pretty typical, very successful lady doctor needs an escape from her abusive ex-boyfriend and oppressive parents and falls in love with a small town super handsome boy who just wants to be with her no matter what, ha.

I went along with it all until the town “some mystic power” started making lightening bolts happen with no clouds or storm and trees starting blooming at a moment’s notice to keep the couple together. So now we are dipping into spicy fluffy sci-fi?? It was fine. It was minimal weirdness. The story turned happy by the end, just like all spicy fluffies do. (I just looked it up and for a Abby Jimenez book, the spice level was 3 out of 5.)

3.5 out of 5 Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

6. A Marriage at Sea by Sohpie Elmhirst

Everything about this book’s synopsis was a yes for me. A married couple takes an adventure of a lifetime to sail the ocean together (did I mention this is a true story). A whale capsizes their sailboat and they are left in the middle of the ocean with whatever they could grab and a life raft. A drift for 4 months their very different personalities emerge. All of that is very up alley and I was excited to get reading!

So, it felt like it took forever to get to the ocean portion of the story and then after being rescued I still had 40% of the book to go. It felt slow in the beginning and even slower at the end. The only interesting part was the middle and it just felt like the book should have been edited down to 4 or 5 chapters, a short story perhaps. Liked this book, but not sure why everyone seems to be talking about it right now.

3.5 out of 5 A Marriage at Sea by Sohpie Elmhirst

7. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

My local bookclub read this book last year and I missed that month, so I’ve had it on my read list ever since. It finally was available at the library so I read it last week!

This book was part thriller, part romance, part cli-fi (climate fiction) and I really enjoyed it. It’s about a family living on a remote island when suddenly a woman washes ashore during a wild storm. There is a lot of confusion and secrets about who she is and why she is there, but there seems to be just as many secrets about this family and where all the other people on the island have gone.

Although very isolated, as the family begins to take care of the women, Rowan, both them and her start to warm to the idea of being more than strangers. There are many twists and I actually almost shed a tear, which is rare for me in a book. After finishing the book, I definitely googled “What Really Happened to Hank Jones? ” because there were too many questions I had to figure out!

5 out of 5 Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

8. The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

My local bookclub is reading this book for the month of January. I’ve heard great things about it and was excited to get started. The story follows Sybil Van Antwerp, as a 73 year old woman. The entire story is told through letters and emails spanning several years. If you liked Olive Kitteridge written by Elizabeth Strout, you will LOVE this book. (I didn’t care for OK.)

Throughout Sybil’s life she has used letter writing as a way of formulating and articulating her thoughts. She’s written numerous well known book authors, movie producers, random people she meets on the street, family members and more. Most mornings, she starts her day by sitting down to write letters.

Sybil thinks her life will go along as it always has, but suddenly it feels like everything in her world is being uprooted. She realizes she needs to find forgiveness in her heart and come to terms with her choices to really move forward.

This book is about trying to correct mistakes and continuing to strive for kindness to ALL around you. She had a very interesting life, but she’s not a likable person or character in my opinion.

I liked that the book was written in letter/email format and I adored the friendship she cultivated with the online customer service representative, Basam. I think he was my favorite story line of the entire book.

She talks about how we all will be forgotten with age. Your children will remember you and hopefully your grandchildren, but beyond that you will merely be a photo in a book… but words and letters live on.

4 out of 5 The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

9. The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin

I read this book with my online bookclub for the month of January. I was looking for a light easy read and I think The Music of Bees does just that, but I’m not sure if it’s in a good way.

It felt too much like a warm, cozy Hallmark movie – so that should tell you how I felt about it, ha. I really don’t care for books that miraculously wrap up with a pretty bow. I didn’t like how the neglected, wild teenage wheelchair bound boy, Jake never once missteps once working for Alice. He is agreeable, hardworking and in the end even finds a girlfriend. Each character is like this, heartbroken and battered, but by the end happy and living their best life. So unrealistic and personally I think sort of boring.

I enjoyed learning about beekeeping as that is something I have always founds rather intriguing. I loved the healing through nature aspect of the book. It wasn’t a bad read, but felt a little too sweet and tidy to me. It definitely read like a YA book, but I’m not sure it is.

3 out of 5 for me The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin

10. The Summer I found You by Jennifer O’Brien

11. The Elements by John Boyne

Best Memoir, Self Help and Religious Books of 2026

1. The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

I found Gretchen on Instagram and was very intrigued by the idea of her book, “The days are long, but the years are short,” she realized. “Time is passing, and I’m not focusing enough on the things that really matter.” In that moment, she decides to dedicate a full year to her happiness project.

I enjoyed this read more than I thought I would. She broke the entire book into 12 sections, one for each month of the year. Not all of them did I particularly resonate with, but I liked the analytical way she approached them all. Singing, dancing, spending time outdoors and being adventurous with my kids are huge happiness bumps for me!

4 out of 5 stars The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

2. I Take My Coffee Black by Tyler Merritt

I was hooked during the first few chapters of this book. When he’s talking about a white woman being scared of him and he just keeps repeating different scenarios where he says, “If she truly knew me, she would not be afraid, but might even like me. ” GAH – gutted. And isn’t that the TRUTH! How many times do people judge others without seeing or listening to them AT ALL. I’m listening to this one because I read he does an amazing job reading it and I love his voice. Not even done and I am loving it.

Other favorite quote, “Distance breeds suspicion. But proximity breeds empathy.”

Update, I just finished this book and it was a solid 5 out of 5 for me. Tyler is honest, funny and dives deep into religion, his personal flaws and racial divides. Beautifully written, beautifully read. I’m already excited to read his next book. I Take My Coffee Black by Tyler Merritt

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