It’s the second quarter of 2026 already, so it’s time to share the books I’m most looking forward to for the next three months. My tradition is share five books for each month of April, May and June that I’m most excited about. Keep reading til the end to see how I did with my First Quarter list!
April 2026 Most Anticipated:
Thistlemarsh by Moorea Corrigan. This is a fae fantasy with a lovely cover, and I’m excited to dive in!
Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker. I can’t wait to finally see what all the fuss about Kylie Lee Baker is. I also have a copy of Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng waiting in the wings:-)
The Verdant Cage by Jess Loury is getting some Hunger Games comparisons, and it’s also getting great reviews. I can’t wait to start this!
The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer. I have already read and reviewed this and loved it. Kliewer is two for two so far!
The Hive by Ronald Malfi. I try to never miss one of Ronald Malfi’s books, and even though this is a big book, I can’t wait to read it.
May 2026 Most Anticipated:
Abyss by Nicholas Binge. “Severance meets Lovecraft” is a very tempting comp, and I’m curious to see if it’s true. I read my first Nicholas Binge book recently and I’m eager to read more.
Death’s Daughter by S.A. Barnes. Barnes completely switches genres from sci-fi horror to romantasy, and I’m curious to see how that goes!
Strange Familiars by Keshe Chow. This is the first book in a fantasy duology and involves a vet who heals magical familiars, and I love that idea so much!
The Gatepost by Tim Weed. I’m so excited to see what Weed does as a follow up to the amazing The Afterlife Project, and this sounds like another winner.
The Girl with a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean. I loved Dean’s last book, and this historical fantasy set in Hong Kong sounds amazing.
June 2026 Most Anticipated:
Three Hitmen and a Baby by Rob Hart is the third book in this hysterically funny, action packed series.
The Children by Melissa Albert. This book is getting some great buzz, and I’ve loved every one of her books. I can’t wait to get to this!
The Sixth Nik by Daniel Kraus. I never miss one of Daniel Kraus’s books, and although this sounds a bit out of his wheelhouse, I’m here for it:-)
Headlights by C.J. Leede. I have read both of Leede’s previous books and loved them, so I have high hopes for this one!
The Summer Fun Massacre by Craig DiLouie. One of my favorite authors takes on the summer camp slasher subgenre, and I can’t wait!
First Quarter Results:
I’m actually very pleased with these results. Out of fifteen books, I only missed reading three. One of those was because I still don’t have a copy of the book (Daytide), so you almost can’t count that one. Whidbey is a Goodreads giveaway win, and I definitely plan to read it at some point.
I’m really looking forward to Melissa Albert’s upcoming book!
Me too, I’ve seen some rave reviews, which makes me excited!
Oops, I forgot to put THISTLEMARSH in my April 2026 book releases list! You did a great job reading a lot of your Q1 books, well done!
I probably left off some books too, there are just so many April releases!
I’m not sure what to make of that cover for Headlights, it’s wild. And really, really nice job checking off first quarter reads.
I had to look at the cover a few times too, lol.
Great results on your previous quarter! For your upcoming books, I don’t have any firmly on my agenda right now, but I’ll want to get to the Craig DiLouie book sooner or later, and I’m keeping an eye on Thistlemarsh and The Children too!
I’ve heard amazing things about The Children, I can’t wait!
There are some good books! Strange Familiars is on my TBR as well. Great job with the first quarter reading too!
https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2026/03/27/read-along-review-taming-demons-for-beginners-the-guild-codex-demonized-1-by-annette-marie/
Thanks Lisa!
I am thinking about Thistlemarsh and Strange Familiars too.
I hope we both get the chance to read them:-)
We don’t have any anticipated books in common this quarter, but Strange Familiars sounds like a lot of fun so I might be adding it to my list too! Great job on the Q1 reading.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy your Q2 books as well:-)
I’ve definitely had my eye on Thistlemarsh, though I don’t think I’ll get round to it that quickly — so many books, so little time, ahaha.
So true, I have a bunch I want to read at the same time, but that doesn’t really work for me so I have to read one at a time:-)
These look good and you’re doing great with your reading. Summer Fun Massacre looks good! So does Thistlemarsh.
I’m especially excited for Summer Fun Massacre!
I hope you enjoy all of these and have a wonderful quarter, there are so many interesting books due out. I loved Japanese Gothic and hope you enjoy it too. I cant wait for The Children either and will be very curious to see what you make of Barne’s genre shift.
Well done on getting to so many from your previous list too, thats wonderful.
I will probably read Japanese Gothic next!
How many interesting books!! Strange Familiars and Death’s Daughter are on my list too! While I have heard some interesting things about Japanese Gothic!
I am excited for Fury Bound!