There’s nothing better to take away the New Year blues than to think about all the amazing books that lie in your future. Whilst there is a list as long as my arm of stories I’m eager to shove my nose into during 2026, I had to narrow it down somehow. So I’ve painfully whittled it down to the top five that excite me most. And by excite, I mean I’m tearing my hair out in clumps whilst waiting for them.
The Spell for Unraveling – April 28th
After the chaos of the summer solstice, elder hedgewitch Anne Sterling steps in to take Coven Blackthorn under her wing—and to enlist their help. There’s damage control to be done as threats of a fairy war loom and the upheaval in Elphame spills into the human realm. Leo, in particular, is uniquely positioned to influence the course of events.
But Aziza's top priority is to rescue her oldest friend and former librarian, Meryl, a selkie whose mysterious captor may have closer ties to Blackthorn—and Aziza herself—than she ever realized. To find him, Aziza will venture into the secretive community of witches hidden beneath the surface of mundane society and confront her deadliest foe yet.
Meanwhile, Tristan delves deep into the study of necromancy, certain it will be their best defense against the danger closing in on all sides. But mastery of the infernal arts is not without its own risks. And there are some things you can’t come back from.
I’ve been screaming from the rooftops about this trilogy since I first picked it up a couple of years ago because it is criminally underrated. It’s quite literally everything I want from a series, complete with a side order of emotional torture. This upcoming ending terrifies and thrills me in equal amounts.
A Prince Among Pirates – June 16th
Kit Davenport is in trouble—not that this would surprise anyone who knows him. Headstrong, reckless, and utterly unsuited for the stodgy House of Lords, Kit has spent years dodging his father’s stern disapproval and delighting in clandestine rendezvous. But time is running out. With an arranged marriage looming and the confines of white wigs and stiff decorum closing in, Kit is desperate to escape a life that feels completely wrong for him.
His solution? A wildly impulsive decision that lands him aboard the Deliverance, a galleon captained by the infuriatingly charismatic Reggie Sharpe. With a devil-may-care attitude and a delicious grin, Captain Sharpe commands the waves with his crew of misfits…who all turn out to be pirates. Before Kit can say “wrong ship,” he’s trading ballroom etiquette for rum-soaked camaraderie, explosive gunfights, and, perhaps most excitingly, heart-stopping kisses under the stars.
But life at sea holds just as many secrets as treasures. And when Kit’s past catches up with him, he’ll have to decide who he truly wants to be: a gentleman or a pirate?
I’ll admit it was the cover that dragged me in, okay? I saw it posted on bookstagram because I already followed the artist and was immediately in awe. Luckily, the plot sounds exactly like my cup of tea. I’m a big pirate enthusiast. My only issue is that is has a different cover here in the UK and it’s just…nowhere near as gorgeous. I may have to spend more money that I’m comfortable with to get this version shipped over.
The Ballad of Ronan McCoy – June 18th
Brendan's best friend, his only friend, is Ronan McCoy. He knows things about Brendan that no one else about his job washing the cars at Feeney’s Funeral Home, about the loneliness he sometimes feels even when surrounded by hundreds of others at school. But Brendan never told Ronan about the dark feeling that sits at the bottom of his stomach, the feeling that tells him something bad is coming. It never comes when Ronan's around.
Ronan is smart and sporty and popular, totally comfortable in his own all the things that Brendan himself isn't. But Ronan always makes him feel like a good friend, a good person, a better Brendan.
Standing at the school gates on the first day of term, the dark feeling begins to form in Brendan's stomach. And when Ronan doesn’t turn up, Brendan learns that something terrible happened to his best friend over the summer and he'll never be the same again. Over the course of the final year of school, Brendan will have to learn to navigate the new shape of their friendship and find a place for himself in the world without Ronan to protect him.
I’m cheating a little bit with this one because I have read
it already, thanks to me pleading on my knees for a NetGalley copy. Finding out
that Colin Morgan would be releasing a novel was THE jaw-drop moment of 2025
for me. Naturally, I knew I would be super annoying about it. And I will be
making it my personal mission to get as many people to read this gorgeous story
as possible.
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| Here’s me in my Merlin cosplay at a convention back in 2013. Imagine telling her she’d be reviewing Colin Morgan’s debut novel one day. |
Espiritu – September 8th
Julian used to be a ghost and now he can’t stop seeing them.
Ever since being sacrificed as part of a forbidden ritual, Julian has been able to see and communicate with the spirits of passed brujx. And that would be okay, if it allowed him to be part of his new boyfriend's community. But Julian’s also seeing other shadows in the corner of his eyes, glowing eyes in the dark, and “dark spots” on people – gaping, black gashes that are somehow wrong. He did ask his new magical boyfriend about it, but Yadriel has never heard of anything like it either, and he’s so busy with his new Brujx responsibilities, trying to figure out where all the new malingos are coming from, that Julian hates for his problems to ruin what little time together they have.
Then, a strange new brujx shows up. Ángel, as a nonbinary brujx, can heal the living and release the dead, but more than that, they can also see the same dark spots as Julian. Despite Yadriel’s reservations, Julian eagerly accepts their help. But, Ángel’s ruthless methods feel wrong to Julian, who wants to move away from hurting others.
With the shadows growing darker, and the discovery of a gaping dark spot on his friend Luca, Julian has to decide who he wants to put his trust in, and just how far he’s willing to go to save what is his.
I still can’t quite believe we’re getting a sequel to Cemetary Boys. Those characters carved a special place in my heart, so I cannot WAIT to see what happens to them in this new book. I don't think I can cope with them being made to suffer more though.
The Last King of Faerie – November 3rd
It’s Drusilla Blackthorn's third year at Shadowhunter Academy when a chance encounter at a nightclub turns into a kidnapping. Dru finds herself held prisoner by Prince Ash Morgenstern in the land of Faerie, a place that proves just as dangerous as it is beautiful. Despite herself, Dru is drawn to Ash and the darkness that seems to surround him—but one false move could cost her life.
Meanwhile, a shocking disappearance rocks the foundations of the Shadowhunter world. Kit Herondale and Ty Blackthorn must set aside the bitterness that lingers between them and join forces on a perilous quest to save everything they cherish.
The first installment of the long-awaited concluding trilogy to the Shadowhunter Chronicles has all the nail-biting adventure, heart-pounding romance, and trademark humor that makes Cassandra Clare the reigning queen of YA romantasy.
To be clear: I will not be normal about this book. I actually feel like I’ve spent the past decade waiting for this. The Wicked Powers is Cassandra Clare’s final series in the Shadowhunter Chronicles, and I’m losing my mind just thinking about it. I’ve been reading books set in this world for more than half my life at this point, so I’m sure I will be inconsolable as we delve into the beginning of the end. I’ve also been DYING to see what happens with Ty and Kit since the end of TDA.
There are some books that I don’t have release dates for yet
but I’m almost certain will grace our shelves in 2026 *cough* The Broken Cage *cough*
but these are my most anticipated ones at the moment! I’m so excited for the
reading year ahead.
What books are you looking forward to?
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