26 for 26 before 2026
- madgirlthoughts
- Dec 9
- 7 min read
26 for 26, before 2026
So, another rotation around the sun for me.
Woohoo, Happy Birthday, whoop-dee-doo, and all that jazz.
Since I turned 26 today, here is a list of 26 books/series that I think YOU should read, or at least read my reviews of 😉, in 2026.
Grab some cake (not mine, get your own), pull up a chair, and let’s list this bitch.
Her Majesty’s Royal Coven (Trilogy) - Juno Dawson A set of three brutally gorgeous books by Juno Dawson. Witches don’t just live among us; they have their own governmental department. It’s been that way since Queen Elizabeth I established the coven, yet almost 400 years later, and humans (cough, cough: men) still can’t seem to get their heads around the idea of the witches wanting to help, not hurt. It’s sooooo good, and my reviews of each are in the works as we speak - special recommendation to listen to the audiobooks as Nicola Coughlan reads them from Bridgerton, and she SLAYS.
Hunger Games (Main Trilogy, plus 2 prequels) - Suzanne Collins I will die on the hill that these should be compulsory reading. Each one addresses a very real and very valid aspect of present-day discourse that could so easily tip into dystopia. These books will break your heart, and yes, that is a good thing and one of the many reasons you should pick these for your next reads. I could go into heavy detail, with analyses, arguments, and empirical data, but basically, read the Hunger Games books, or I’ll hit you with a chair.
Everyone You Hate is Going to Die - Daniel Sloss Y’all know I love me a sweary Scotsman - Daniel Sloss’s kind of memoir/self-help/ego-annihilation book is the epitome of ‘writing in your own voice.’ You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you may throw up in your mouth a little (homeboy is VIVID with his descriptions.) I reviewed this back in 2023, so have a little scroll-sy through the archive to see more in-depth thoughts there.
Ninth House (Currently 2 books, with the final due next year) - Leigh Bardugo I love a girl with an unusual name, and Galaxy Stern is undoubtedly an unusual woman.
Crazy is My Superpower - AJ Mendez Brooks Crazy chicks do it better, whether it’s wrestling or writing.
The Invocations - Krystal Sutherland This one is a DOOZY. And I mean that in the best possible way. I’m working on my review of this and number 7, now, and homegirl will give you the SHIVERS in the worst, but like, also the best way. Confused? Good. Go read her stuff and figure it out yourselves.
House of Hollow - Krystal Sutherland The first of Ms Sutherland’s books I read and a very intriguing starting point. Bestie does naturalistic horror like no one else I’ve encountered.
Throne of Glass (8-book series, plus a Novella) - Sarah J. Maas Eight books and a mid-season novella that will melt your heart, then tear it out of your fuckin’ chest. Again, in the worst - but - best way possible. It’s eight books, a mid-season novella, and one epic story of love, and hope, and kindness, and evil, and strength, and fire, and rage, and loss, and magic. And it all starts, when once upon a time, in a kingdom long since burned to ash, there lived a young princess who loved her kingdom. Very much…
Gallant - V.E. Schwab Awwww, my dark and lovely fairy tale - meets - stranger-things favourite little weirdo book. I’ve reviewed this one before, too, so it's time to take another wander through the Archive if you want to read those initial thoughts. But here and now, I’ll reiterate that Schwab is a god among mortals, and Gallant is the perfect book for everyone who feels like they’re one step from Wonderland.
Villains series (Soon to be a trilogy) - V.E. Schwab Did someone say another V.E. Schwab creation? Well. CreationS - plural. Think ‘The Boys’ on Amazon Prime, meets Frankenstein, meets a girl with an undead dog, meets all the best and worst possible parts of humanity and humankind. And not-so-human kind…
Hamilton and Me: An Actor’s Journal - Giles Terera This is the journal/memoir of the actor who originated the role of Aaron Burr when Hamilton debuted in the West End back in 2017. Roles like that, shows like Hamilton, they don’t come around very often. Reading Giles' insights into the casting process, behind-the-scenes perspectives, and his own personal journey with the person Burr was and the character he portrays him as? Beautiful.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (Trilogy, and prequel Novella) - Holly Jackson Representin’ for my true crime podcast girlies, plus any other kid who spent 6 months at the age of about 12, genuinely convinced they could solve the Zodiac Killer case… Just me? Welp, alrighty then. Pip Fitz-Amobi is about to open a very uncomfortable and murder-y can of worms. Determined to get into Cambridge, she decides to complete an EPQ (Extended Project Qualification). But not just any EPQ. Pip has decided to centre her project on the darkest smudge against her small town’s quiet history - the murder of a popular student, Andie Bell, by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who then killed himself. The case is solved, everyone knows who did it, and what happened - yet five years later, Pip can still see the shadows the event casts over her village, neighbours, friends and family. Her EPQ is focused on the Andie Bell murder in retrospect - did the media hold any sway in perceptions of the crime, and if so, how? Did investigators feel pressure due to the racial issues that inevitably arise when a brown boy kills a white girl? All very hypothetical. All based on hindsight and critical theories. All very safe and distanced - a way for Pip to do her project without opening all wounds or rehashing uncomfortable feelings. Or it would have been… But the more Pip researches her project, the more threads of the seemingly solved case start to come loose… or in some cases, unravel completely. When her research-turned-accidental-investigation leads her to Sal’s younger brother, Ravi, she tells him the truth. She tells him how the details aren’t matching up the way everyone has thought for so long. She tells him that someone seems to want her to stop looking at the case, even in theory. And then she tells him what she’s always suspected and now is sure of: Sal Singh was innocent - and may have been a victim of the killer too. . . And that’s just book one! I can’t lie, when I read the third and final book, I threw it across the room because I was legitimately furious about how things went… But hey, hindsight is a wonderful thing, and I’m allowed to grow and change my opinions goddamit!
When Women Were Dragons - Kerry Barnhill Rawr, rawr, bitch.
The Near Witch - V.E. Schwab Witchy, witchy, witchy-woos. If it were a choice between Bloody Mary and the Near Witch…
Weyward - Emilia Hart May my witch-kicks never die. Three women. Three timelines. One family of powerful women and the men who fear their strength.
You Could Be So Pretty - Holly Bourne One for my angry feminist besties. Get mad. Get absolutely furious xx.
A Court of Thorns and Roses (5-book series, soon to be 6) - Sarah J. Maas Fairies, magic, and fcuking! Oh, plus a kickass plot, insane worldbuilding, gorgeous dialogue and character arcs, and emotional healing you probably won’t know you needed till it’s too late. But sure, let’s ignore all that and not take a thing seriously because it has sex scenes in it...
After the Fire - Will Hill Nearly nine years later, and this book still lives rent-free in my head. Moonbeam didn’t know that she was growing up in a cult. Most people who do grow up that way don’t know it, or realise it for a while. All Moonbeam knew was that Father John made the rules, the world outside the Fence was dangerous, and that she and all those who lived inside the Fence must follow Father John and his word of God to prepare for the final battle. That was what she knew. But then there was the fire. And Moonbeam isn’t so sure what she knows anymore…
I Am Not a Number - Lisa Heathfield Y’all know how I love to read a book that hits just that little bit too uncomfortably close to home/reality…
The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas One of my earliest reviews on this little gremlin site of mine. My love and appreciation still stand—a YA must-read.
Crescent City (Trilogy) - Sarah J. Maas An angel, a werewolf, a fae prince, and a half-human walk into a bar… Except they don’t. Well, the half-human does, and then she goes home to find the werewolf murdered, chases down the beast that did it, is arrested by the angel and then bailed by the fae prince, who is also her half-brother… Still with me? Look, I am very aware that on the surface (particularly the hilarious way I have chosen to describe the basics) this series sounds like a fuckin’ fever dream that spawned in some parallel universe Eastenders’ hellscape. What it actually is is one of the best examples of urban fantasy I’ve ever read. It has some of the most raw and truthful depictions of trauma I’ve ever read. In a story set in a city filled with vampires, demons, werewolves, angels, fae, merfolk, witches and more… it actually is one of the most human stories I’ve ever read, and is where I’ve felt most at home. Eww, emotions. NEXT!
Girl A - Abigail Dean This mf is NOT for the faint of heart. Everyone loves a good crime thriller, working out whodunnit… but what about dealing with the aftermath that follows? Lex Gracie and her siblings survived hell in their own home. Christened ‘Girl A’ by the authorities upon being rescued, she’s now a grown woman with a strong career and an unfathomable shitstorm of trauma. The book follows Lex as she reconnects with all her brothers and sisters in the build-up to their eldest brother’s wedding, and each interaction provides a new insight into exactly what happened to the Gracie children in the ‘House of Horrors’ that still lurks on the outskirts of Manchester. I repeat. This mf NOT for the faint of heart.
Shadow and Bone (Trilogy) - Leigh Bardugo Read. Review. Rave about it. Repeat.
Six of Crows (Duology) - Leigh Bardugo Read. Review. Rave about it to the point of physical pain. Repeat.
King of Scars (Duology) - Leigh Bardugo Read. Review. Rave about it to the point of physical pain. Cry into your hair. Curse the gods. Repeat.
The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
“I have hated the words, and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right.”
So, there you go! 26 books/series for 26 years of me 🙂
Aren’t I good to you guys, giving you this present on MY birthday? As if my existence wasn’t enough of a gift already.
Hug your friends, listen to your parents, tell your dog I said hi, and don’t do drugs kids.
Catch you on the next one xx
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