Hello readers! For my 2026 reading goals this year, I went easy on myself. I didn’t set any, except that I wanted to read more backlist books, which means older titles. And so far, I’ve been quite successful, with studies dating back to 1845 from a few years ago. (vernie the vampire!)
In a world that is obsessed with everything new and young, sometimes it’s hard to fit in as many of the older titles you want. It’s hard to fit in all the books you want to read, period. But it’s fun to try! I’m sharing three backlist fantasy titles that are coming up next on my TBR, so you can add them to your TBR as well. (And you get a TBR! And you get a TBR! And you get a TBR!)
And after checking out these three books, be sure to check out all of their new winners nebula, stokerAnd hideout award!
All Access members, read the three backlist fantasy titles at the top of my TBR.
sour cherry By Natalia Theodoridou
This April 2025 dark fantasy won this year’s Locus Award for Best Debut Novel! It is a retelling of the Bluebeard story, the French folktale about a man who murdered his wife and kept her behind a closed door, and then told his next wife not to look into that room, but of course, she does, and the cycle repeats. It follows Agnes, who cares for a lord’s son, but worries when the child grows up to become an almost inhuman man who appears to be cursed. (Related: Agnes is a really popular name in books right now!)
Multiple murders of dream seller Sameer by Daniel Nayeri
This 2023 epic middle grade historical fantasy is a Newbery Honor Award winner. This is an exciting adventure on the Silk Road, as a young boy named Bandar tries to help his guardian Sameer leave a life of crime. Sameer has committed a scam Very The number of people and now the killers are on their trail! This sounds like a great time.
the blade itself by joe abercrombie
We try to read everything as much as we can, we all have books that are considered classics or essential reading in a genre that we have not read yet. This is mine. I’ve seen a lot of people mention it, so I’m finally deciding. This 2006 release is a dark fantasy about barbarians, wizards, officials, tyrants, and others who become embroiled in a politically charged battle. And to celebrate its twentieth anniversary, there’s a special edition the blade itself Coming in July!
Okay, Star Bitches, now take the knowledge you’ve learned here today and use it for good, not evil. If you want to learn more about books, I talk about books nonstop (when I’m not reading them), and you can hear me saying lots of adjectives about them on the Book Riot Podcast. All the books! and on Instagram.
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