Most Anticipated Books of Spring 2026

By Keri Horan | January 7 2026 | AdultGeneral

As 2026 gets underway, readers and booksellers around the world are already buzzing about the literary year ahead! From heavyweight literary fiction and award winning front and backlist authors to transformative nonfiction and boundary-pushing debuts, your customers are sure to find their next favorite read on the Penguin Random House list. Here are a few upcoming 2026 titles readers can’t stop talking (and posting!) about.

9798217300969
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of I'm Glad My Mom Died comes a sad, funny, thrilling novel about sex, consumerism, class, desire, loneliness, the internet, rage, intimacy, power, and the (oftentimes misguided) lengths we'll go to in order to get what we want.
$20.00 US
Jan 20, 2026
Paperback
288 Pages
Ballantine Books
US, Opn Mkt (no CAN)
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9798217197811
An electric novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling, Booker Prize–winning author of Lincoln in the Bardo, taking place at the bedside of an oil company CEO in the twilight hours of his life as he is ferried from this world into the nextNot for the first time, Jill “Doll” Blaine finds herself hurtling toward earth, reconstituting as she falls, right down to her favorite black pumps. She plummets towards her newest charge, yet another soul she must usher into the afterlife, and lands headfirst in the circular drive of his ornate mansion.She has performed this sacred duty 343 times since her own death. Her charges, as a rule, have been greatly comforted in their final moments. But this charge, she soon discovers, isn’t like the others. The powerful K. J. Boone will not be consoled, because he has nothing to regret. He lived a big, bold, epic life, and the world is better for it. Isn’t it?Vigil transports us, careening, through the wild final evening of a complicated man. Visitors begin to arrive (worldly and otherworldly, alive and dead), clamoring for a reckoning. Birds swarm the dying man’s room; a black calf grazes on the love seat; a man from a distant, drought-ravaged village materializes; two oil-business cronies from decades past show up with chilling plans for Boone’s postdeath future.With the wisdom, playfulness, and explosive imagination we’ve come to expect, George Saunders takes on the gravest issues of our time—the menace of corporate greed, the toll of capitalism, the environmental perils of progress—and, in the process, spins a tale that encompasses life and death, good and evil, and the thorny question of absolution.
$20.00 US
Jan 27, 2026
Paperback
192 Pages
Random House
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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9798217300976
A science-based, practical blueprint for cultivating a life—at work and at home—full of belonging, joy, and vitality, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Culture CodeWhat is a meaningful life, and how do we make one? How do certain communities foster closeness, fulfillment, happiness, and energy?In Flourish, bestselling author and leading culture expert Daniel Coyle trains his eye on the groups and people who demonstrate exceptional connectivity, presence, and dynamism. He draws on research and original reporting—taking us inside an unlikely brotherhood of thirty-three men who were trapped in a Chilean mine, a tiny Michigan deli that blossomed into a $90 million ecosystem of businesses, an inventive Dutch soccer team that revolutionized the sport as we know it, and a disconnected Paris district that remade itself into a tight-knit neighborhood—to reveal the principles and practices that ignite and sustain thriving. He finds that flourishing groups do two things: They make meaning (creating deep connections) and build community (forging a common good).Through captivating real-world stories, rigorous scientific studies, and firsthand accounts, Coyle reveals what sets some groups apart—and offers you the tools and insights to flourish in your own life.
$22.00 US
Feb 03, 2026
Paperback
208 Pages
Bantam
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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9798217191987
A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.
$22.00 US
Feb 10, 2026
Paperback
448 Pages
Ace
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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9798217192335
An enemies-to-lovers spicy novella set in the world of video gaming from the New York Times bestselling author of Problematic Summer Romance—now in print and ebook!
$15.00 US
Feb 10, 2026
Paperback
208 Pages
Berkley
US, Canada, Open Mkt

9798217300754
A woman who runs a cat rescue in 1920s Montréal turns to a grouchy but charming magician to help save her shelter in this heartwarming cozy fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Wilde series.“Absolutely magnificent! Full of cats and magic, this is the kind of book you want to instantly reread. I loved every character, every cat, and every moment with all my heart!”—Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The SpellshopAgnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life, and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for stray cats.Now it’s the shelter that needs a new home. And the only landlord who will rent a space to a cat rescue is a mysterious man called Havelock—who also happens to be the world’s most infamous magician, running an illegal magic shop out of his basement. Havelock is cantankerous and eccentric, but not not handsome, and no, Agnes absolutely does not feel anything but disdain for him. After all, rumors swirl about his shadowy past—including whispers that his dark magic once almost brought about the apocalypse.Then one day a glamorous magician comes looking for Havelock, putting the magic shop—and the cat shelter—in jeopardy. To save the shelter, Agnes will have to team up with the magician who nearly ended the world . . . and may now be trying to steal her heart.Havelock is everything Agnes thinks she doesn’t need in her life: chaos, mischief, and a little too much adventure. But as she gets to know him, she discovers that he’s more than the dark magician of legend, and that she may be ready for a little intrigue—and romance—in her life. After all, second chances aren’t just for rescue cats. . . .
$20.00 US
Feb 17, 2026
Paperback
368 Pages
Del Rey
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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9798217183586
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of From Strength to Strength, an account of how the modern world sets us up to fail at finding meaning—and a plan for finding what you seek.
$22.00 US
Mar 31, 2026
Paperback
304 Pages
Portfolio
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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9798217238514
An unforgettable YA murder mystery set in an escape-room themed game show, by Marissa Meyer, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles, and Tamara Moss, rising star and acclaimed author of Lintang series.It’s all fun and games until someone ends up dead.
$12.00 US
Apr 07, 2026
Paperback
416 Pages
G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
US, Canada, Open Mkt
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