Anyone who knows anything about books will tell you that the arrival of autumn isn’t just great for its sense of reset, its crisp air and its cosy evenings – but for the sea of literary big hitters that it brings with it every year.
2026 is no different, with this month alone seeing the publication of the latest books from Sebastian Faulks, Marlon James, Kate Atkinson and Victoria Hislop, along with the long-awaited return of author Min Jin Lee, the second collection of sexual fantasies from actor Gillian Anderson and a deep dive into the wellbeing industry from doctor and broadcaster Xand Van Tulleken. Here is what else not to miss…
Stations by Louise Kennedy
Second novel syndrome, Kennedy has not. In fact, following her multi-award-winning debut , which was adapted into a TV drama starring Gillian Anderson, she has only got better: the story of Roisin and Red, who grow up in 80s small-town Ireland before plunging into a precarious life London, is a riveting, heart-wrenching read.
The Disappearers by Marlon James
Already longlisted for this year’s Booker – the last time he found himself on the list, for A Brief History of Seven Killing in 2015, he won it – James’s latest novel transports its readers to 80s Jamaica, where eight gay men rehearse for a daring queer play. When a mob arrives, one is killed and two disappear.
Farewell to Eden by Sebastian Faulks
The Second World War is over and Philip, a soldier who has survived Normandy, finds himself posted in Palestine during the last days of the British Mandate. Years later, while working as a teacher back in England and getting close to the music mistress, the scars of his past resurface. Readers of Faulks’s beloved will not be disappointed.
Mestra by Madeline Miller
The Song of Achilles; – anything Miller writes turns to gold. Such is true for this perfectly formed story about the lesser-known Greek myth of Mestra: the daughter of the King of Thessaly, who must decide whether or not to use her powers to rescue her cursed father. At 80 pages, it is ideal to get lost in over a single long, lazy afternoon.
Bloomsbury, £9.99
Our Noble Selves by Kate Atkinson
Atkinson – much-loved for her detective series starring Jackson Brodie – returns to historical fiction with the dazzling story of the 1951 Festival of Britain, which Harry Flynn finds himself helping to prepare among an eccentric bunch. Hijinks ensue, featuring a missing romantic interest, a scruffy dog and a forthright 13-year-old.
Ply by Hernan Diaz
How to follow up a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel? In Diaz’s case, whose previous book earned him the accolade in 2023, it is with an entirely different but equally ambitious and compelling story. is set centuries in the future, where an orphan secretly takes electricity from the grid in order to power the underground punk scene she loves.
Switzy by Emma Cline
The mind of David, a retired exec, is unravelling; his memory increasingly elusive. But during his long journey to a Swiss clinic, aided by his assistant, the past comes rushing in. A sublime, exceptionally worthy longlistee for this year’s Booker Prize.
Chatto & Windus, £18.99
The Wine-Dark Sea by Victoria Hislop
In 1946 Greece, as Fotini nurses her newborn son, her country is spinning into civil war. Soon, she is separated from her daughter and taken to a prison on another island. Bringing to life a horrifying, little-known chapter of Greek history, no one does storytelling like Hislop.
The Housekeeper by Rose Tremain
Imagining the events which led to Daphne du Maurier writing , Tremain pens an atmospheric story of forbidden love between a housekeeper of a stately home and the young writer visiting to research her new novel. It is already being adapted into a film starring Anthony Hopkins and Helena Bonham Carter.
American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee
Nearly a decade on from releasing – the enormously acclaimed multi-generational saga which went on to be adapted for screen – Min Jin Lee returns with an equally sweeping, stirring epic of a novel. It centres on the Koh family, who, reeling from the ‘97 Asian financial crisis, leave Seoul in search of better lives.
More by Gillian Anderson
, the collection of anonymous women’s sexual fantasies curated and introduced by Anderson, was a mega-bestseller – of course it would be followed up with . The sequel goes deeper and darker and kinkier than its predecessor, peeling back layers of shame with each page.
Make Me Well by Xand Van Tulleken
Whether it’s through wearable health tech or vitamins and supplements, listening to podcasts or following influencers, we all buy into the wellness industry one way or another. But how much of it actually makes us well? In this accessible, illuminating read, the doctor and broadcaster separates fact from fiction.
Empire at the Edge of the World by Giles Milton
In 1913, the explorer Vilhjalmur Stefansson became obsessed with a tiny Arctic island off Siberia, certain that conquering it would bring power and glory to the British Empire. And so he dispatched a reckless, fateful mission, as recounted by Milton in this page-turning history.
The Agatha Christie Cure by Cathy Rentzenbrink
Following the end of her marriage, Rentzenbrink sought comfort and escapism – so why not turn to Agatha Christie, her first literary love? Challenging herself to read each of her novels in order, while delving into the ups and downs of Christie’s own life, she discovered there is much we can all learn from the consummate crime writer.