Best fantasy books of 2026

Book recommendations
Written By The Bookish Bulletin
 
 

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Fantasy is having a particularly good year. From sprawling romantasy and dragon-filled adventures to magical libraries, cursed kingdoms, vampires, witches, and worlds that feel just slightly removed from our own, there’s no shortage of imaginative fiction to disappear into in 2026.

What I love about fantasy is how much room the genre gives authors to tell different kinds of stories. A book can be an epic adventure and a love story, a political drama and a fairy tale, or a cozy story about finding your place in the world—with a little magic thrown in.

I’ve rounded up some of the best fantasy books of 2026, including highly anticipated new releases, standout sequels, buzzy romantasy, and books I think are especially worth adding to your TBR.

Best fantasy books to read in 2026

Whether you’re looking for your next epic fantasy series, a swoony romantasy, a magical adventure, or simply a book that will transport you somewhere completely new, these are the 2026 fantasy releases I have my eye on.

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Adversary to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
Adversary to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
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By bestselling author and TikTok sensation Hannah Nicole Maehrer

The follow-up to the New York Times bestselling sensations Assistant to the Villain, Apprentice to Villain, and Accomplice to the Villain by laugh-out-loud TikTok darling Hannah Nicole Maehrer.

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The Lion and the Deathless Dark by Carissa Broadbent
The Lion and the Deathless Dark by Carissa Broadbent
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Newest novel in the bestselling Crowns of Nyaxia series

Revenge drives Kyrene toward an impossible mission: kill the goddess of vampires. The only problem? She might lose her heart to the prince leading her there.

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A Trade of Blood by Robert Jackson Bennett
A Trade of Blood by Robert Jackson Bennett
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Ana has hours to stop a war, but every suspect dies before she can question them. As Din gives chase, an impossible murder unravels into something far deadlier.

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Threshing Day Rebecca Yarros
Threshing Day Rebecca Yarros
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COMING OUT
SEPTEMBER 29, 2026

Thirteen stories starring your favourite characters and their dragons

The next book in the blockbuster Empyrean series. The deluxe first edition includes sixteen beautiful original full-color illustrations by artist Joe Requeza.

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Chosen Son by Adrienne Young
Chosen Son by Adrienne Young
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COMING OUT
DECEMBER 15, 2026

Book 2 of the bestselling Fallen City duology

✨ Gorgeous deluxe edition with stunning printed edges available!

Maris dons enemy armor to reach Luca, but as war rages, both must decide if love is worth defying everything they were taught to believe.

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The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
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Sequel to instant bestseller The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy

An assassin should never trust a healer. A healer should never fall for an assassin. But every secret meeting makes walking away even harder.

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Victorious by V.E. Schwab
Victorious by V.E. Schwab
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COMING OUT
OCTOBER 6, 2026

From the bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Victor Vale and Eli Ever have spent years destroying each other. Now the final game begins—and only one of them will walk away.
Part of the Villains series

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The Sixth Faction by Veronica Roth
The Sixth Faction by Veronica Roth
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COMING OUT
OCTOBER 6, 2026

Step into a bold new Divergent series from bestselling author Veronica Roth

In a world divided into five factions, Beatrice must hide what makes her different while surviving brutal training and falling for a boy with secrets of his own.

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The Witches of Cambridge by Alice Hoffman
The Witches of Cambridge by Alice Hoffman
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COMING OUT
SEPTEMBER 8, 2026

From the bestselling author of Practical Magic

At an elite women’s college in the 1950s, two students uncover a centuries-old sisterhood of witches. But someone is targeting its members, and history is repeating itself.

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Taipei Story by R.F. Kuang
Taipei Story by R.F. Kuang
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COMING OUT
SEPTEMBER 8, 2026

From the bestselling author of Katabasis and Yellowface

✨ Deluxe Limited Edition featuring gorgeous stenciled edges available in the first printing only

Lily Chen thought learning Mandarin might unlock her family’s past. But in Taipei, every answer leads to another silence.

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Grim Tidings by B.K. Borison
Grim Tidings by B.K. Borison
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COMING OUT
SEPTEMBER 15, 2026

From the bestselling author of First-Time Caller

✨ First-print Deluxe Edition features stenciled edges and special cover effects

Darcy Moore is a Grim Reaper who refuses to do her job, and when she tries to save the life she’s been sent to collect, she collides with Gabriel Aetos, a Guardian Angel who’s determined to stop her.
Part of the Ghosted series.

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Dead Beat by Leigh Bardugo
Dead Beat by Leigh Bardugo
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COMING OUT
SEPTEMBER 15, 2026

The highly anticipated conclusion to the Ninth House trilogy

Alex Stern has been to hell and back—but this time, she may have brought something back with her. As demons spread through Yale, she and her allies face a war they may not survive.

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Light Wielder by Rachel Schneider
Light Wielder by Rachel Schneider
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Book 2 of the Fire & Metal series

Four years after Jovie's betrayal ignited a war, she and Acker are still bound through their dreams—forced to choose between the kingdoms they serve and each other.

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The Midnight Train by Matt Haig
The Midnight Train by Matt Haig
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From the bestselling author of The Midnight Library

When Wilbur boards the mysterious Midnight Train, he’s offered the chance to relive his honeymoon in Venice—and maybe undo his greatest mistake, even if it costs everything.
Read my review

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The Ballad of Falling Dragons by Sarah A. Parker
The Ballad of Falling Dragons by Sarah A. Parker
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Highly anticipated sequel to #1 bestselling When The Moon Hatched

With blood on her hands, Raeve must uncover a buried truth from her past as a catastrophic moonfall approaches, while Kaan races to save his kingdom before time runs out.

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A Parade of Horribles by Matt Dinniman
A Parade of Horribles by Matt Dinniman
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What starts as a bizarre dungeon racing game quickly spirals into glitches, conspiracies, and a reckless plan that could destroy everything.

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Seek the Traitor's Son by Veronica Roth
Seek the Traitor's Son by Veronica Roth
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From the bestselling author of The Divergent series

When soldier Elegy meets feared general Rava, they learn only one of them is destined to lead their people to victory.

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Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen
Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen
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A new queen, a fractured kingdom, and a deadly war… Meryn must fight for her crown while resisting the pull of the dark Alpha at her side.

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Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter
Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter
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You duel or you die, and Astrid has always known her fate, until Prince Zryan makes survival feel like a dangerous possibility.

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Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry
Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry
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Sequel to the bestseller Shield of Sparrows

Separated from the man she loves, a princess must cross a cursed realm, protect a child, and embrace a destiny she never wanted before her kingdom falls.

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This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews
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Maggie wakes inside her favorite unfinished fantasy series, armed with knowledge of every betrayal and death, and determined to rewrite the ending before the kingdom falls.

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Starside by Alex Aster
Starside by Alex Aster
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From the bestselling author of the Lightlark series

Every fifty years, mortals cross into the realm of gods. Aris enters for one reason: to kill the goddess who destroyed her family (if she survives the trials first).

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The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer
The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer
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From the bestselling author of The Wishing Game

Bound by strict magic laws, book witch Rainy partners with a fictional detective to recover a stolen book and her missing grandfather before her coven discovers the truth.

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The Wings That Bind by Briar Boleyn
The Wings That Bind by Briar Boleyn
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Bloodwing Academy was dangerous before. Now dragons are awakening, loyalties are breaking, and Blake—the boy who betrayed me—may be hiding a secret powerful enough to ruin us all.
Part of the Bloodwing Academy series

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The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan
The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan
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A retelling of the hunt for the Beast of Gévaudan

Haunted by the Beast he once killed, Sebastian is summoned back to Gévaudan—and to Antoine, the lover tied to both the monster and his darkest secret.

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The Astral Library by Kate Quinn
The Astral Library by Kate Quinn
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From New York Times bestselling author Kate Quinn

Alix discovers a hidden library where souls escape into books. Pursued by an enemy, she and the Librarian flee through literary worlds to save its inhabitants.

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Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett
Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett
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In 1920s Montreal, a cat rescuer and a reformed wizard join forces to save a shelter, stop old enemies, and navigate unexpected romance.

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The Poet Empress by Shen Tao
The Poet Empress by Shen Tao
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✨ Stunning collector’s edition with gilded edges, intricate endpapers, and case art

To save her starving family, Wei Yin becomes concubine to a brutal prince and is trapped in a palace sliding toward civil war—and forced to wield forbidden poetry magic.

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Broken Dove by Dani Francis
Broken Dove by Dani Francis
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Sequel to the bestselling dystopian romance Silver Elite

After escaping enemy territory, double agent Wren Darlington joins the Uprising—but as loyalties blur and old flames reignite, she must decide who to trust and what she’s willing to sacrifice.

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We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune
We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune
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From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The House in the Cerulean Sea

Husbands Don and Rodney embark on a final cross-country sprint to complete unfinished business before a black hole consumes Earth.
Read my review

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Looking for more books?

Continue discovering your next read:

📅 Upcoming fiction books of 2026

📚 New fiction releases this week

⭐ My latest book reviews

🔍 Book recommendations

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