10 Best New Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books to Read Fall 2026

As much fun as it is to put together summer reading lists and imagine flipping pages while lying on the beach, fall is often the best time to actually get some reading done. When the weather turns rainy and cold, there’s nothing better than getting cozy and curling up with a good book.

This fall brings new entries in some of the most popular fantasy series, fresh ventures from celebrated authors, and ambitious standalone sci-fi novels. Whether you prefer dark humor, epic tales, or surreal mysteries, you’ll find something to love among the most exciting titles releasing this fall.

Dead Beat by Leigh Bardugo (Sept. 15)

The conclusion of Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House trilogy follows Alex Stern, a Yale University student charged with regulating the secret societies that operate on campus. Demons are loose in New Haven and feeding on souls, and Alex will have to literally go through hell in order to prevent a war. Luckily she’s got some new allies to face the darkness with her.

Exit Party by Emily St. John Mandel (Sept. 15)

Station Eleven author Emily St. John Mandel turns her focus to quantum entanglement in the globetrotting sci-fi book Exit Party. The book presents two parallel futures for the United States, one where the country has collapsed into civil war and another where it’s become a surveillance state. The search for a man who vanishes into thin air takes the story from Los Angeles to the criminal underworld of Greece, to a lunar colony.

The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace (Sept. 22)

Macmillan paid seven figures to publish Adalyn Grace’s adult fantasy debut. The author of the Belladona series found inspiration in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive and anime including Fullmetal Alchemist and Jujutsu Kaisen for her new trilogy about a knight bound to both an angel and a demon. Those connections lead her to question the war she’s fighting, even as she looks for a way to finally end it.

Threshing Day by Rebecca Yarros (Sept. 29)

Rebecca Yarros’ Empyrean series is a fantasy juggernaut, with a Prime Video adaptation in the works. Fans are eagerly awaiting the fourth book about the dragon rider Violet Sorrengail, which doesn’t have a release date yet. Threshing Day will fill that void with a collection of short stories set in the same world. On Threshing Day, cadets need to bond with a dragon without getting incinerated or killed by another prospective dragon rider with a grudge. The event will be brought to life with 16 full-color illustrations by Joe Requeza.

Other Worlds Than These by Stephen King and Peter Straub (Oct. 6)

Stephen King and Peter Straub co-wrote The Talisman in 1984 and teamed up again for the sequel, Black House,in 2001. While Straub died in 2022, King used his ideas to complete the trilogy — and maybe even bring an end to his turn in The Dark Tower’s Mid-World at the same time. Other Worlds Than These continues the adventures of Jack Sawyer as he has to stop a rampaging gang of murderous teenagers from ending the world. Artist Gabriel Rodriguez brings the story to life with 36 black-and-white illustrations.

The Thrice-Bound Fool by Christopher Buehlman (Oct. 13)

Christopher Buehlman further developed the world of his hilarious dark fantasy novel The Blacktongue Thief with prequel The Daughter’s War, and now he’s continuing the story of the trickster Kinch Na Shannack in The Thrice-Bound Fool. This time around, Kinch is doing his best to decipher the secrets of a murderous sentient book, which might be able to save the world. Hunted by the guild that trained him in magic and thievery, Kinch and his knight protector Galva have to flee to unknown lands, where they find even more trouble.

A Court of Splintered Harmony by Sarah J. Maas (Oct. 27)

The sixth book in Sarah J. Maas’ juggernaut A Court of Thorns and Roses romantasy series finally arrives five years after the release of A Court of Silver Flames. Koschei the Deathless has been bound for millennia, but his influence is now stretching across the Fae territories as his allies aim to rebuild their strength by reclaiming land now occupied by humans. While the Night Court wants to protect the innocent, they’ll first need to repair the rifts caused by recent wars and betrayals.

Public Access Afterworld by Jane Schoenbrun (Oct. 27)

The first novel from I Saw the TV Glow and Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma director Jane Schoenbrun explores the same themes of self discovery and weird television as their films. The genre-bending book spans three timelines and multiple realities as a group of outcasts try to uncover the mysteries of Public Access Afterworld, whose secrets are hidden in pirate TV broadcasts and strange livestreams.

The Wolves of War by John Gwynne (Nov. 3)

John Gwynne, author of The Faithful and the Fallen and The Bloodsword Saga, kicks off a new epic fantasy series based on Slavic mythology. War is brewing between two rival princes and Ivan is just trying to protect his family from the conflict. His daughter Halia dreams of running with wolves and communicating with the fae who lurk in the forest, and if she can master her power, the family might just be able to survive.

The Fires of December by Brandon Sanderson (Dec. 8)

Brandon Sanderson is working on adapting his Mistborn series into a movie, but the absurdly prolific author still found time to write another standalone novel set in his Cosmere fantasy universe. Joining Tress of the Emerald Sea and Yumi and the Nightmare Painter in his Hoid’s Travails series, The Fires of December follows a young woman trying to navigate court intrigue in order to protect her land from a devastating plague.