Welcome to the midyear list bonus of the best of the year (so far). As book lovers, we’re always shouting about our favorite books to anyone who will listen, so waiting until the end of the year to compile a big list is torture. That’s why I love the June marker, where we get to do the first part of the list. While 2026 is not an easy year for a human being to enjoy things, it’s really saying something when a book is able to cut through all the noise and completely grab the reader’s attention.
Below, I have chosen three of my companions riot book The authors’ picks from this mega list of the best books of the year so far (which covers all genres!), and then there are my personal picks. There’s true crime, a family-centered novel that follows everyone’s opinions after a tragedy, an intriguing puzzle mystery, and many more great releases in 2026 for crime readers!
selection of rioters
a good person By Kirsten King
If Delulu were a book, it would be a good person. Lillian has convinced herself that her on-and-off boyfriend Henry is the real deal. Except that Henry left Lillian, so she performed a little DIY hex on him and the next day he was found dead. When Lillian is named a suspect in a murder case, her ideal image as the grieving girlfriend is shattered. Henry’s actual long-term girlfriend and family keep getting in Lillian’s way! Lillian is a terrible person and that’s why this book works so well. She finds herself rational and admirable while thinking about all these horrible things and it’s extremely entertaining to read. -Courtney Rodgers
good people By Patmina Sabit
This quietly shocking book deserves to be read by everyone. It’s a powerful debut about a refugee family in the United States. The affluent Sharaf family seems to have achieved the American dream. Starting from scratch in America, with talented children, a big house and lots of wealth, they have become a success story. But when a family member dies, it raises a lot of questions and speculations. Narrated by interviews with coworkers, neighbors, classmates, police detectives, and others, it is a searing tale of the country’s prejudices and assumptions about immigrants, as well as an examination of the destructive side of rumors and the Internet. -Liberty Hardy
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london is falling By Patrick Raden Keefe
The story of London Falling is a tangle in itself – the mysterious death of one family’s 19-year-old son reveals a double life with ties to London’s criminal underground – and in the hands of Raiden Keefe, you’ll forget you’re reading nonfiction. His painstaking research, from extensive conversations with the boy’s family to interactions with gangsters and oligarchs, is matched by the care he takes in piecing together a narrative that is deeply compelling without veering toward sensuality. This is the PRK way (see Say Nothing, Empire of Pain, etc.) and that’s why this book will definitely be the best book of 2026 for many readers at the end of the year. -Vanessa Diaz
My Favorite Mysteries and Thrillers of 2026 So Far
The main list has two of my picks that you should check out – the conclusion of a crime trilogy and a NY cabbie turned amateur detective. And below, in no particular order, I have even more picks that my fellow rioters haven’t already picked up. For some context, I’ve read about 100 books as of writing this, 40% are in the crime genre, and 76% are audiobooks!
And a final note: T Kira Madden’s Whidbey It is in the main list under fiction, which I am not arguing against, because it is literary. It’s also technically on my personal favorites list as a crime novel, which it is, so it’s a must-read if you’re a literary crime fan.
The mystery of the stolen World Cup trophy By Angela Cervantes
Diaz—a boy named after Lionel Messi’s jersey number—doesn’t want to follow in the football star’s footsteps, instead he wants to be like Poirot and solve mysteries! When the World Cup trophy is stolen from the party he was attending, he gets a chance to prove his skills.
Things I especially liked:
– Middle school mystery with a very cute child detective.
– References to mystery books, Poirot and library programs.
– Remains consistently funny even when dealing with sad subject matter.
-Twisty.
-Understands that Miami is an equally serious and funny place.
hard times By Jeff Boyd (AOC)
Buddy is a Chicago high school teacher who is torn between protecting his students and his career while juggling politics at work and at home when his brother-in-law, a police officer, jeopardizes everything.
Things I especially liked:
– Good social crime novel with multiple POVs that doesn’t create cartoon characters.
– Boyd’s writing immediately immerses you in the community and the lives of the characters.
– Very good speed.
together we see by Ari Tison
Ula must consider her strained relationship with her father, after whose death her brother was close to her. A death that immediately looks like it could be murder.
Things I especially liked:
-A perfect blend of family drama and murder mystery.
-Brother-sister relationship.
-Costa Rica setting.
– Bribery culture and history.
-Audiobook narrator, Ina Barron.
A Terrible Catastrophe (Veronica Speedwell #10) by dianna reborn
This Victorian mystery series continues to deliver an excellent balance of mystery, plot, adventure, romance and super fun banter as it follows a lepidopterist and a historian.
Things I especially liked:
-The characters are debating/joking about whether vampires can exist (Joe). Is Related to the murder mystery plot!) is the chef’s kiss.
– Reborn always has interesting historical tidbits.
– Audiobook narrator, Angel Masters.
clock house murders (House Murder #4) by Yukito Ayatsuji, Ho-Ling Wong (Translator)
An intricately built house – known for a decades-old murder, its architecture and its clock collection – becomes the site of a group of stranded visitors as they begin to die one by one…
Things I especially liked:
– Super layered, puzzle mystery that clearly nods to the classics of the genre.
– Japanese culture.
– Twisty.
– So many murders, a séance, a mystery writer, and students in a mystery club.
Tuxedo Societyy by Paul Rudnick
Andrew is working in New York, selling candles with dreams of stardom, when dinner with the Tuxedo Society leads him into a secret and dangerous world of espionage where he joins an all-gay crime fighting team.
Things I especially liked:
– Super fun, action-packed, and fun.
– Gadgets!
– A serious/not serious secret spy agency.
– Audiobook narrator, Daniel Henning.
– I want this to be a series and give me the adaptation now!
browse books Recommended in previous newsletters of unusual suspects on this heLeft look more 2026 Release! until next timebring talk books with me blue sky, goodreads, litsiAnd Majority included.
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