There’s no such thing as a gimme when it comes to the New York Times‘s top ten list . Always surprising, the selections—five works each of fiction and nonfiction—present a snapshot of the year in literature and a peek into the editors’ educated guesses about what just might stand the test of time.

Because the picks are unpredictable and always contain a few titles that haven’t been featured everywhere else, it’s entirely possible for even the most avid reader to find that they haven’t read any. If you’re in that boat, think about it this way: there are at least ten great books you haven’t read yet.

Three of my favorites made the cut, which might be my personal record with an NYT top 10:

• Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
• A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst
• Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy

Both the top ten list and last week’s round-up of 100 notable books of the year include handy checkboxes to track the ones you’ve read and the ones you want to read. You could do a whole lot worse than these thoughtfully curated lists for jumpstarting your 2026 TBR. - RJS

Every month on the Book Riot Podcast, we try to guess what the It Book of the month will be. What will have buzz, acclaim, sales, and that certain extra something that makes it stand out. And at the end of the year, we go back to see how we did. By our accounting, this year, we went 7 for 11 (December is so light on marquee titles that we take the month off).

Here are the four we got wrong:

In February, we picked Death Takes Me by Cristina Rivera Garza, but should have picked One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad, winner of the National Book Award for Nonfiction.

In March, we picked The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami, but we should have picked Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. We knew it would sell, but we didn’t know it would be so good.

In September, we picked Will There Ever Be Another You by Patricia Lockwood, but we should have picked Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy, which has become, I think, the memoir of the year.

And in October, we picked Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon, but we should have picked A Guardian and a Thief by Megan Majumdar, which has been all over 2025’s best-of lists.

🎧 Check out The Book Riot Podcast to hear our full accounting, which doubles as a bit of year-in-review.

A chilling, immersive read for fans of atmospheric horror and literary thrillers.

Bone Ash by Tow Ubukata blends urban horror with deep-rooted Japanese folklore, delivering a haunting portrait of Tokyo and the pressures that shape its modern workforce. Ubukata’s vivid prose and sharp psychological insight drive the story as the main character’s psyche frays, and the fallout turns deadly for everyone around him.

Bonus: this gripping story is a standalone novel, so you can devour it without having to commit to a series.

Best Books Season rolls on with Libro.fm’s 2025 Bookseller Choice Awards, which highlight the year’s best audiobooks as voted on by booksellers from more than 4,000 indie bookstores around the world.

And the winners are:

• 🏆 Audiobook of the Year: Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green, who’s having a hell of a run
• 🌈 Best Under-the-Radar Audiobook: The Lilac People by Milo Todd, an exploration of the experiences of LGBTQ+ people during World War II
• 🎧 Better on Audio: The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar, which features the author singing songs that appear in the book
• 👧 Young Readers: They Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran, a coming-of-age story about a teen girl and her mother in the aftermath of a deadly hurricane

See the whole playlist of winners and runners-up.

Over on the Book Riot Instagram, we’re counting down until the announcement of the 2026 Read Harder Challenge. Only four days to go! Every day, we’re teasing one of the 24 tasks. Can you guess the task from the books that complete it?

If you haven’t participated in the Read Harder Challenge before, here’s what you need to know: every year, Book Riot puts out a list of 24 tasks—that’s two per month—to expand your reading life. It’s an invitation to diversify your TBR and pick up books you wouldn’t have discovered otherwise.

We’ll be announcing this year’s tasks on December 8th. Sign up for the Read Harder newsletter to make sure you don’t miss it! Free subscribers get newsletters throughout the year with two book recommendations for each task, and All Access members get six (or more) recommendations per task, plus community features.

We hope you enjoy completing this challenge as much as we do putting it together. Go forth and discover! And get ready to Read Harder.—DE

Your next rom-com obsession starts here.

The second book in USA Today bestselling author Danielle Allen’s Curve series, Plus Size Player, follows Nina Ford as she reexamines her rules for dating. Juggling multiple partners has kept disappointment at bay... but it might also be keeping her from real love. And the person she’s meant for may have been right there all along.

Ali Hazelwood calls Allen “one of the most unique, sizzling voices in romance,” praising her unmatched banter, humor, and spice. Put this fresh, funny, empowering rom-com at the top of your TBR immediately.

We’re excited to share the cover reveal for Jennifer Michelle Herrera’s upcoming novel Siren Says, on sale August 18, 2026 from G.P. Putnam’s Sons. This gorgeous cover is designed by Vi-An Nguyen.

The publisher describes reading Siren Says as feeling like “stepping into your favorite crystal shop—lush, vibrant plants covering every surface, a sense of magic and mysticism in the air. It is a love letter to plant ladies and witchy women alike. Plus, readers will love the enemies-to-lovers action between Idris and Raven that crackles on the page: their razor-sharp banter and slow-burning tension are impossible to look away from.”

The story follows 25-year-old Raven Wynn, whose struggle to control her plant magic leads her to team up with her estranged aunt Delilah. Delilah can help, but only if Raven captures a spirit to grant her a wish. Together with an enigmatic new friend, Cherry, and the handsome stoneworker Idris, Raven sets off on a mission that could break her curse—or trap her soul forever.

🎁 Why drive yourself mad trying to pick out a book the hardcore reader on your shopping list hasn’t read yet when you could celebrate their favorite books instead?

The Scarlet Giraffe offers customized ornaments containing up to 25 miniature books, and they’re still taking orders for the holidays. If ornaments aren’t your jam, take a gander at the mini desk decor, book charm keychains, or personalized bookends.

Because we know you’ll ask: the Book Riot house faves featured in our sample above include Audition by Katie Kitamura, There’s Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraquib, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, and Barbarian Days by William Finnegan.

Ready to level up your reading life? Become a Book Riot All Access member and explore our full library of members-only content, including must-reads, deep dives, and full access to the Read Harder Challenge. For a limited time, the first 100 new All Access annual members get a FREE copy of Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven courtesy of Flatiron Books! The Newmans are the ideal 1960s American family— or at least, they play one on TV. With ratings plummeting and each family member hiding secrets, their final episode marks one last chance to make history. Sign up for an annual All Access subscription today!

I, like many others, have a cherished paperback of Letters to a Young Poet as part of my forever library. But, also like many others, my first exposure to Rilke was in a high school English class. I think it was in that class and on that day that I was first exposed to the idea of close reading, as we talked about Rilke’s “The Panther.” I remember a mini-jolt when I realized exactly what I assume our teacher was trying to get us to realize: “Hey, maybe it’s not only about a panther!”

The Panther by Rainer Maria Rilke (translated by Jessie Lemont)

His weary glance, from passing by the bars
Has grown into a dazed and vacant stare;
It seems to him there are a thousand bars
And out beyond those bars the empty air.

The pad of his strong feet, that ceaseless sound
Of supple tread behind the iron bands
Is like a dance of strength circling around,
While in the circle, stunned, a great will stands.

But there are times the pupils of his eyes
Dilate, the strong limbs stand alert, apart,
Tense with the flood of visions that arise
Only to sink and die within his heart.

(via Project Gutenberg)

🍵 Sip on delicious (Book Riot staff favorite!) Earl Grey loose leaf tea from Keats & Co, and do some good while you’re at it. 100% of proceeds further tuberculosis research.**

💰 Dive into the data from Publishers Weekly‘s annual Salary & Jobs Report.

📚 Find under-the-radar gems on Lit Hub’s best books of 2025.

🩺 Don’t miss the incredible story about how a Tom Stoppard play changed modern medicine.

🧙 Keep holding space for the lyrics of “Defying Gravity.” A Galinda prequel is coming.

_{**This is a product recommendation from the Book Riot team. When you buy through these links, we may earn a commission.}

Written by Rebecca Schinsky, Jeff O’Neal, and Danika Ellis. Thanks to Vanessa Diaz for copy editing.

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