Yes, it’s time for Literary Hub’s annual Ultimate Fall Reading List, in which I read all of the seasonal literary recommendation/anticipation/best of lists I can find, and then collate them for you in a handy list-of-lists. After all, there’s no season like fall for a popularity contest. This season, I processed 41 total lists from 26 outlets (including this one), which collectively recommended a total of 470 individual titles. 84 of these were included 3 times or more, and these I present to you in descending order of popularity.
The list of lists surveyed is, as ever, at the bottom. Enjoy: Hernan Diaz, Ply Emily St. John Mandel, Exit Party Emma Cline, Switzy Bonnie Garmus, Peck & Peck Marlon James, The Disappearers Deesha Philyaw, The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman Chloe Benjamin, Under Story Chad Harbach, The Brightness Louise Kennedy, Stations R.F.
Kuang, Taipei Story Nathaniel Philbrick, The Rush Kai Bird with Susan Goldmark, American Scoundrel John Green, Hollywood, Ending Leigh Bardugo, Dead Beat Patrick deWitt, Dodge City Tananarive Due, Mazywood Ariel Lawhon, The Pirate Queen Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Splintered Harmony Audrey Niffenegger, Life Out of Order Sylvester Stallone, The Steps Gloria Steinem, An Unexpected Life Lucy Foley, Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel James Gleick, The Telephone: A New History Alice Hoffman, The Witches of Cambridge T. Geronimo Johnson, The Occidental Book of the Dead Naomi Klein & Astra Taylor, End Times Fascism Robert Kolker, The Vanishing Family Michael Lewis, Blockers Imbolo Mbue, Every Story is a Love Story Richard Osman, We Chase Shadows Jodi Picoult, Hollow Bones Rioghnach Robinson, Bad Words Jon Ronson, The Castle Jane Schoenbrun, Public Access Afterworld Ayad Akhtar, The Radiance Joe Biden, Promise Me, America Michael Douglas, One Helluva Ride Dustin Hoffman, Look at Me Stephen King and Peter Straub, Other Worlds Than These Julie Orringer, Luna, Phoenix, Queen Nafissa Thompson-Spires, The Four Wives and Five Deaths of Richard Milford Emily Wilson, Crossing the Wine-Dark Sea Bob Woodward, Secrets: A Reporter’s Memoir Kate Atkinson, Our Noble Selves Nadia Bowers, Dear Dealer: A Memoir Jared Diamond, Profits, Prophets, Coaches, and Kings Ari Emanuel, Roll the Calls Evan Gershkovich, This Cursed Beautiful Land Malcolm Gladwell, The American Way of Killing John Grisham, The French Illusion Lydia Millet, Fair Ones Doireann Ní Ghríofa, Said the Dead Sarah Perry, Death of an Ordinary Man Rose Tremain, The Housekeeper David Treuer, The Savage Mind Rebecca Yarros, Peculiar Stars Solvej Balle, On the Calculation of Volume, Book V Natalie Baszile, Friends and Family Marcia Chatelain, How Bright the Path Grows Tracy Daugherty, Cormac McCarthy: A Legacy Revisited Judi Dench, Is It Too Late to Make a Run for It?
Fleetwood, Between the River and the Railroad Tracks Kim Ghattas, The Best Kind of American Anand Ghiridharadas, Man in the Mirror Rachel Gillig, The Knave and the Moon Scott Hawkins, Blacktail Stephen Graham Jones, Off the Reservation Colin Kaepernick with Nick Chiles, The Perilous Fight Mahmoud Khalil, No Land to Stand On: Notes from Detention Ben Macintyre, Redwood Kyle MacLachlan, Fictional Selves Will Maclean, Solace House China Miéville, The Rouse Liane Moriarty, Big Little Truths Rebecca Perry, May We Feed the King Amanda Peters, The Birthing Tree Ke Huy Quan, Never Say Die: A Memoir Veronica Roth, The Sixth Faction Anthony Scaramucci, All the Wrong Moves V.E. Schwab, Victorious Kawai Strong Washburn, The Names of the New World Kirkus’s 60 Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2026 • Los Angeles Times’s 29 new books to keep on your radar this fall • The New York Times’s 35 Novels Coming This Fall and 29 Nonfiction Books Coming This Fall • The New York Times Book Review podcast’s It’s Time for a Big Ol’ Fall Book Preview • The Boston Globe’s 40 of the best new books to read this fall • The Guardian’s The biggest books this autumn • The Times’ The 40 books not to miss this autumn • Harper’s Bazaar’s The Bazaar Guide to Fall 2026 Books • Cultured’s 19 Books Our Editors Can’t Wait to Read This Fall • BookPage’s Our most anticipated books of fall 2026 • Oprah Daily’s The Best Books of Fall 2026 • People’s Must-Read Books of Fall 2026 • Town & Country’s The 67 Must Read Books of Fall 2026 • Goodreads’ Readers’ 60 Most Anticipated Fall Books • AARP’s Fall 2026 Books Preview • AP’s 5 books to read this fall and Fall Books • Five Books’ Notable Novels of Fall 2026 • E!News’s Dare We Say You’ll Fall Hard for These New Autumn Books • The Minnesota Star Tribune’s Fall Books • Country Living’s The Most Anticipated New Books of Fall 2026 to Preorder Right Now • Shereads’ Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2026 • B&N Reads’ The Biggest Books of Fall 2026: Fiction Edition and The Biggest Books of Fall 2026: Nonfiction Edition • Publishers Weekly’s Adult Books for Fall 2026 (top 10s in all 13 categories) • Vulture’s 11 Books We Can’t Wait to Read This Fall • The Seattle Times’s 15 anticipated fall book releases • and of course, Literary Hub’s 34 Books You Need to Read This Fall.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
