Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently reside at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday involved listing books with a word of your choice in the title. While this is an interesting topic which I might come back to later, I had already decided in advance that this week I would take this opportunity to celebrate the fact that we are into the second half of 2026 by highlighting some amazing books from the first half of the year.
2026 has already proven to be a fantastic year for books, and I have already read some incredible new releases, including impressive standalone books, amazing entries in established series and fantastic debuts. Because of this, I thought that I would take the time to work out what my top ten favourite books from the first half of 2026 were. To be eligible, a book had to be a particularly epic novel released in the first half of this year. I have excluded any books released during this period that I have not so far read, although a couple of releases I have my eye on might have appeared on this list if I had read them in time.
Coming up with this list proved to be a rather bigger task than I originally intended, as I ended up amassing nearly 20 releases, all of which I consider to be outstanding reads. I was eventually able to whittle this down to an acceptable Top Ten list, although I did include my typical generous honourable mentions section. I am rather happy with how this list turned out, although I am surprised at some of the great recent books that ended up being excluded. Still, the entries below represent what I considered to be some of the best books from the first half of 2026, and I would strongly recommend each and every one of them.
Honourable Mentions:
Green City War by Adrian Tchaikovsky
A captivating and unique thriller featuring genetically engineered animals living in the shadow of the human world. A wonderful and addictive read full of Tchaikovsky’s intense imagination.
Warhammer 40,000: Ghazghkull Thraka: Warlord of Warlords by Denny Flowers
A very impressive Warhammer 40,000 novel that sees the always entertaining orks get involved in all manner of civil war shenanigans. I had a great time with this book which provides one of the best looks at the ork faction in this crazy universe.
Red Empire by Jonathan Maberry
The latest Joe Ledger/Rogue Team International novel from one of my favourite authors Jonathan Maberry, Red Empire features a particularly awesome story which pits the protagonists against some of their worst historical foes, while secrets from their mysterious leader’s past are finally revealed. This is turning out to be one of my favourite books of the year, although I’m going to leave it as an honourable mention as I am only halfway through, and I need to see how the final twists unfold.
Warhammer 40,000: Da Freebooterz Code by Justin Woolley
Another outstanding Warhammer 40,000 novel from rising star Justin Woolley. Featuring an epic story about an ambitious ork pirate captain facing off against an increasingly crazed rogue trader, Da Freebooterz Code was one of the funniest books of 2026 and I had an incredible time reading it.
Top Ten Tuesday:
Twelve Months by Jim Butcher
The first book I want to highlight on this list is one of the best books of 2026 so far, the highly anticipated Twelve Months by Jim Butcher. The 18th book in Butcher’s acclaimed Dresden Files series, Twelve Months captures the full traumatic fallout of the previous novel Battle Ground and takes the reader on an emotional and compelling journey. One of the more unique and powerful entries in an already incredible series, Twelve Months had me hooked from the very first page and was well worth the five-year gap between it and the previous entry.
A Parade of Horribles by Matt Dinniman
The talented Matt Dinniman continued his insanely good Dungeon Crawler Carl series this year, with A Parade of Horribles, an instant classic in a particularly epic LitRPG series. Taking the surviving characters on a deadly racing car romp, A Parade of Horribles was an exceptional and hilarious read, that I was incapable of putting down. Loaded with amazing characters, impressive world building and some deeply moving moments amongst the chaotic action and amazing comedy, A Parade of Horribles was Dinniman at his very best, and I cannot recommend this book or its accompanying series enough.
Warhammer 40,000: Hive by Dan Abnett
I had to include at least one Warhammer 40,000 novel on this list, and in 2026 my absolute favourite was Hive by Dan Abnett. A complex and layered novel shown from the perspective of multiple characters in a gigantic and isolated hive city filled with billions of people, Hive has the reader follow multiple unique character arcs as revolution, conspiracy and other hidden insanities seek to bring the city down. I was absolutely addicted to this incredible novel right up to the bitter end, and Hive honestly highlights just how damn good and dark a novel in the Warhammer 40,000 universe can be.
The Hard Line by Mark Greaney
Another top novel for me in 2026 was the new Gray Man novel by Mark Greaney, The Hard Line. A wonderful addition to the series that sets up some major ongoing storylines, The Hard Line sees the spy protagonist attempt to uncover a major espionage conspiracy hitting Washington, while also fending off the attentions of a legendary assassin, intent on getting revenge. An ultra-exciting and cleverly written thriller, The Hard Line was another outstand novel from Greaney that I had so much fun with.
Pretenders to the Throne of God by Adrian Tchaikovksy
The master of unique fantasy and science fiction had an exceptional 2026, although my favourite new book from him had to be Pretenders to the Throne of God. The fourth book in the author’s Tyrant Philosophers series (City of Last Chances, House of Open Wounds and Days of Shattered Faith), Pretenders to the Throne of God followed multiple compelling characters around the siege of a fantasy city, with politics, personal ambitions and dark secrets all throwing calamity at both besieger and defender. Featuring a combination of excellent new storylines and the intense return of some familiar characters with major problems, Pretenders to the Throne of God was an exceptional novel from start to finish, and I am so damn excited to see how the series ends next year.
Ironwood by Michael Connelly
The legendary Michael Connelly provided more outstanding crime fiction delight in the first half of 2026 with his new novel, Ironwood. A sequel to his 2025 novel, Nightshade, Ironwood returns the reader to Catalina Island where his latest police protagonist investigates multiple murders occurring on his seemingly picturesque slice of California, only to uncover an even darker conspiracy coming for him. Easily one of the best crime fiction reads of 2026 so far, Ironwood was so damn good and I managed to finish it off extremely quickly. A very easy entry on this list, and one that comes highly recommended.
Our Lady of Blades by Sebastien de Castell
One of the more unique fantasy entries on this list had to be the impressive Our Lady of Blades by Sebastien de Castell. A compelling, character-driven fantasy novel that works as both a standalone read and part of de Castell’s Greatcoat universe, Our Lady of Blades follows a mysterious duellist who returns to her corrupt city to get revenge for her murdered family. However, nothing is what it seems, not even the identity of the protagonist, and the resulting narrative is a wonderful mixture of pain, impressive characters and amazing action.
The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan
While I knew well in advance of their releases that I was going to love most of the books on this list, the one that took me completely by surprise was the incredible debut novel, The Red Winter by Australian author Cameron Sullivan. An entertaining and moving fantasy epic that takes place across three different periods of French history, The Red Winter was an amazing novel that had me hooked very early on. I especially love how well Sullivan tied The Red Winter’s story into a unique historical event in rural France, and the resulting tale of magic, love and betrayal, was incredible from beginning to end. Easily the best debut of 2026 so far, and one that all fans of fantasy fiction should check out.
Jeremy Robinson continues to provide outrageous science fiction hybrid novels in 2026, as he drops one of his best novels yet, 30Seven. A wonderfully warped novel, 30Seven follows a damaged father who is abducted by aliens alongside his son and multiple campers at an isolated campground. However, things quickly get even more insane when it is revealed that one of the other abductees is the serial killer responsible for the murder of the protagonist’s wife, and who is now unleashing artistic terror across the alien ship. An amazing novel full of twists, horrors and interesting alien encounters, 30Seven was so much fun, and I cannot wait to see what Robinson comes up with next.
Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman
The final book on this list is also the second entry from one of my new favourite authors, Matt Dinniman, with the powerful standalone novel, Operation Bounce House. Following a group of colonists on an isolated human world when they are invaded by murderous gamers piloting mechs from back on Earth, Operation Bounce House was a compelling novel about family, community and survival. Featuring a more subtle story than Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series, Operation Bounce House was a particularly moving book, that provides its own brand of epic action and clever humour. An exceptional novel from an author who has really shown his ability to craft unique stories and worlds in the first half of 2026.
Well, that’s the end of this latest list. As you can see, I have already read some amazing and epic books so far in 2026 and we are only halfway through the year. I am pretty happy with how this list turned out, and it will be interesting to see which of these books ends up being amongst my top reads of the year. All the novels above come very highly recommended, and you are guaranteed to have a wonderful time reading them. Let me know what your favourite releases for the first half of the year are in the comments below and make sure to check out my two most anticipated reads lists for the second half of 2026 (fantasy and science fiction and other). Make sure to also check out my other Top Ten Tuesday list of the week, where I highlight some of my favourite movies and television shows from the first half of 2026.
