A new year brings a new stack of books to add to the TBR – and 2026 is brimming with standout releases already!
If these early highlights are any indication, 2026 is shaping up to be a rich, rewarding year for women’s voices in literature. Whether you’re drawn to sharp social satire, quiet introspection, or informative non-fiction, there’s something on this list for every kind of reader.
Here are a few of the books we’re most excited to read this year…
22 January
2025 Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction judge, Emma Gannon’s memoir explores the time she spent doing nothing after a period of severe burnout. Following Emma’s quiet rebellion against the cult of doing, A Year of Nothing is a gentle, hopeful guide to what happens when you stop trying to fix everything and choose to feel instead.
26 February
In this spellbinding anthology, Ireland’s most electrifying female writers breathe new life into ancient Irish myths, reclaiming the stories of women who have too long stood in the shadows of warriors and kings. With contributions from every corner of Irish literature, Banshee features luminous re-tellings by 2021 longlisted Naoise Dolan, 2024 longlisted Megan Nolan, and 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction judge, Salma El-Wardany.
23 April
Fiercely funny and instantly relatable, this is the first novel from the No.1 Sunday Times bestseller and 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction judge, Bryony Gordon, which follows protagonist Olivia Greenwood – a life-long people pleaser – on her journey to self-discovery, after once raucous night out changes her forever.
18 June
2025 Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction judge, poet and academic Elizabeth-Jane Burnett has also penned her debut novel; a story of resistance and renewal, that follows two friends, Kenjo and Leah, whose lives become irrevocably changed as the armed rebellion against the British colonial regime in Kenya intensifies. This is a tale of courage, survival and restoration that captures the healing – and destructive – power of time, and unearths the hidden traces it leaves behind.
4 June
Awake Awake is the new novel from 2018 Women’s Prize for Fiction longlisted author Fiona Mozley. A perceptive exploration of the mutable landscape of our memories and the fragility of the trust we afford them, Awake Awake is a powerful story of friendship and moral duty.
2 July
Award-winning author Candice Carty-Williams is back with the long-awaited follow-up to her 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction longlisted novel, Queenie. Queenie is Working On It is a scalpel-sharp, poignant and hilarious novel that shines a dazzling light on the realities of modern womanhood.
26 March (Paperback)
From 2014 winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction comes the paperback edition of The City Changes Its Face, an intimate and immersive story of passion, jealousy, and family, set in an apartment inhabited by two lovers, Stephen and Eily. As time goes on and the obsession of the pair’s new relationship wanes, old secrets emerge, and Stephen and Eily must speak the unspeakable if they want to find each other again.
29 January (Paperback)
From 2015 Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlisted author, Anne Tyler, comes the paperback edition of Three Days in June. A funny, touching, hopeful story of love, marriage and second chances, Tyler expertly explores themes of family dynamics, awkwardness, and the complexities of love and acceptance through poignant, humorous, and touching moments.
21 May
From 2010 Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlisted author of global bestseller The Help, comes her highly anticipated second novel, 17 years in the making. The Calamity Club is an unforgettable story of resilience and friendship, featuring a sisterhood of underestimated women who risk everything to take back control of their fates.
13 August (Paperback)
From 2026 Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction judge, Nicola Williams, comes the paperback edition of a gripping thriller about a murder at the heart of the legal system. Exploring how easily prejudices can snowball into convictions, this second book in the Lee Mitchell series follows Mitchell as she steps in to defend a junior clerk who is accused of murder.
16 April
From 2014 Women’s Prize for Fiction judge, Mary Beard, comes Talking Classics, an exploration of why the deep past does really affect us all. Beard points to the surprising connections between antiquity and the present. From revolutionaries to dictators, Bob Dylan to Beyoncé, she joins forces with the varied modern characters who have been transfixed by the ancient world.
12 March
Dorothy Koomson was a judge for the 2022 Women’s Prize for Fiction, and is currently judging Discoveries 2026. Her explosive new Kez Lanyon thriller about the lengths people will go to to protect their own, The Quiet Girls, follows Kez as she goes undercover as a school therapist to uncover the mystery behind a murdered teacher and a missing student; and along the way, unearths secrets some will go to any length to keep buried.
12 February (Paperback)
February sees the paperback publication of Fundamentally, 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlisted title from 2026 Discoveries judge, Nussaibah Younis. A wildly funny and razor-sharp exploration of love, family, religion and the decisions we make in pursuit of belonging, Fundamentally follows Nadia as she is tasked with rehabilitating ISIS women in Iraq. There she meets Sara, and a powerful friendship forms between the two women, until a secret confession from Sara threatens everything Nadia has been working for.
2 June
Following the multi-award-winning film adaptation of Hamnet, we are thrilled there is a new book from 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction winner, Maggie O’Farrell, on the horizon. Land is a multi-generational epic of loss, hope and reunion, as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy. Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, work for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland; and along the way, they learn that when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.
7 May (paperback)
Naomi Alderman won the 2017 Women’s Prize for Fiction with The Power; and her latest non-fiction read is just as electrifying. Don’t Burn Anyone at the Stake Today, available now in hardback and soon available in paperback, is a thought-provoking exploration of how the digital era is reshaping our world. Alderman examines how advancing technology opens up new ways of being and helps us chart a way forward, through the turbulent seas of information overload.
26 March
Tayari Jones, 2019 winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction for An American Marriage, returns with an exuberant, richly told story about mothers, daughters, and a lifelong friendship that is as dangerous as it is unbreakable. Kin follows Vernice and Annie as they are pulled back together over a yearning for their missing mothers following a devastating tragedy, navigating the dangers and heartbreaks of racially segregated America.
