Current List

Annual List

Since 2009, the goal of the Lariat Adult Fiction Reading List has been to highlight outstanding fiction that is simply “a pleasure to read.” Each year, 25-30 outstanding fiction titles are selected by a nine member committee.

Each year, authors from past and current lists are invited to speak at the Lariat List Adult Fiction Author Event held at the TLA Annual Conference.

2026 Lariat Adult Fiction Reading List

* = denotes top 10 books

1. Atmosphere: A Love Story by Taylor Jenkins Reid (Ballantine Books / Penguin Random House) *
2. Back After This: A Novel by Linda Holmes (Ballantine Books / Penguin Random House) *
3. The Blackbirds of St. Giles by Lila Cain (Dafina/ Kensington Publishing)
4. The Book of Lost Hours: A Novel by Hayley Gelfuso (Atria Books / Simon & Schuster)
5. Broken Country by Claire Leslie Hall (Simon & Schuster) *
6. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab (Tor Books / Macmillan)
7. The Correspondent: A Novel by Virginia Evans (Crown / Penguin Random House) *
8. Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (Spiegel & Grau) *
9. The Dream Hotel: A Novel by Laila Lalami (Pantheon/ Penguin Random House)
10. The Favorites: A Novel by Layne Fargo (Random House / Penguin Random House)
11. Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray (Berkley / Penguin Random House)
12. Hollow Out the Dark by James Wade (Blackstone Publishing)
13. The Human Scale: A Novel by Lawrence Wright (Knopf / Penguin Random House) *
14. I See You’ve Called In Dead by John Kenney (Zibby Media) *
15. Julie Chan Is Dead: A Novel by Liann Zhang (Atria / Simon & Schuster)
16. Make Your Way Home: Stories by Carrie R. Moore (Tin House / Zando Publishing)
17. The Names: A Novel by Florence Knapp (Pamela Dorman Books/ Simon & Schuster)
18. Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis (Hillman Grad / Zando Publishing)
19. The Once and Future Me: A Novel by Melissa Pace (Henry Holt & Co/ Macmillan)
20. Promise Me Sunshine: A Novel by Cara Bastone (Dial Press / Random House) *
21. The Road to Tender Hearts: A Novel by Annie Hartnett (Atria Brooks / Penguin Random House)
22. Salt Bones: A Novel by Jennifer Givhan (Mulholland Books / Hachette)
23. The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau: A Novel by Kristin Harmel (Gallery Books / Simon & Schuster)
24. This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead (Sourcebooks Landmark / Sourcebooks)
25. What Kind of Paradise: A Novel by Janelle Brown (Random House / Penguin Random House)
26. When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi (Tor Books / Macmillan)
27. The Whyte Python World Tour: A Novel by Travis Kennedy (Doubleday / Penguin Random House)*
28. Wild Dark Shore: A Novel by Charlotte McConaghy (Flatiron Books / Macmillan) *
29. Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix (Berkley / Penguin Random House) *
30. You Deserve to Know by Aggie Blum Thompson (Forge Books / Macmillan)

2026 Lariat Reading List

2026 Lariat Reading List, Annotated

2026 Lariat Reading List, Supplemental Materials

2026 Lariat Reading List Announcement

Collection Development Statement
The Lariat List is not designed to support any particular curriculum. Librarians are not required or expected to purchase every book on the list. Due to the diversity in age range and topics, librarians should follow their local collection development policies and guidelines when considering which titles to purchase for their library.

Thank you to this year’s committee members for their hard work in producing this year’s list!

• Miranda Robbins (Chair)
• Kelly Brouillard (Vice Chair)
• Tina Oswald
• Samantha (Sherece) Johnson
• Mary Jo Humphreys
• Mary Woodard
• Emily Raymond
• Joanna Bliss
• Laura Laguerri.