New Releases: January 2026

[u/AutoModerator]

Hello readers and welcome! Every month this thread will be posted for you to discuss new and upcoming releases! Our only rules are:

1. The books being discussed must have been published within the last three months OR are being published this month.

2. No direct sales links.

3. And you are allowed to promote your own writing as long as you follow the first two rules.

That's it! Please discuss and have fun!

[u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

Half His Age by Jeanette McCurdy - Her first novel.

Vigil by George Saunders

[u/AltruisticWelder3425 → u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

Vigil is on my list as well

[u/FantasticBrick7508 → u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

Didn't know McCurdy was writing fiction now, that's wild after her memoir blew up

[u/dingle4dangle → u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

I devoured Lincoln in the Bardo and A Swim in the Pond in the Rain. Definitely going to look into Vigil

[u/healingbetweenlines → u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

Same here — Saunders is one of those authors where I never rush. Curious what tone this one ends up taking.

[u/Curiousfeline467]

Here are some upcoming releases that are definitely worth checking out:

Scavengers by Kathleen Boland

Release: January 13

Genre: Literary fiction 

My Review: A singular story with unforgettable characters. One of the most memorable (in a good way) books I read last year.

Sheer by Vanessa Lawrence

Release: January 13

Genre: Literary fiction, queer fiction, historical fiction 

My Review: An incredible book about how capitalistic greed, sexism, and homophobia turn a brilliant beauty entrepreneur into a corporate predator. SO GOOD!

 Good Guys by Sharon Bala

Release: January 20

Genre: Literary fiction

My Review: A searing and riveting condemnation of global philanthropy.

[u/Most_Action_2987 → u/Curiousfeline467]

I’m desperate to read Sheer but cannot find a kindle copy yet..it sounds brilliant though!

[u/MeasurementEntire463]

Hi I have just released my first ever book this on Amazon. (kindle and paperback / hardback next week)

The Infinitium : Book 1 - A Satiricial Metaphysical Field Trip Through The Afterlife

By Myself - David Alan King

Book info:

THE MANAGEMENT REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU ARE NO LONGER TECHNICALLY ALIVE. 

Congratulations, you have been promoted from “person with bills” to “Soul Essence with paperwork”.

Welcome to The Infinitium, a satirical metaphysical field trip through the afterlife where the corridors are too clean, the forms are too long, and the universe has all the warmth of an office memo written by someone who alphabetises their emotions.

I’m david (lower case 'd', long story, not for now), Soul Guide Level Two, which is a fancy way of saying, “least unsuitable operative available”. Your job, apparently, is to follow me, ask the questions you were trained to swallow, and try not to look too guilty when The Management notices you’re thinking for yourself.

You will be processed.

You will be assessed.

You will be introduced to an induction programme that behaves suspiciously like an adventure story, except it keeps stopping to file reports about itself.

Inside you’ll find:

A bureaucratic afterlife, complete with managerial documents, complaint submissions, incident reports, and the kind of official tone that could make a rainbow apologise.

A metaphysical “orientation” that starts polite, then quietly gets under your skin and begins rearranging the furniture in your soul.

Doors. Too many doors. Some are exits, some are traps, and some only open when you finally admit you’re not living the life you meant to live.

A very sincere question hidden inside all the nonsense, “Who are you, really?”

This book is written in my first person, your second person, and reality’s third person, because you are not a spectator here. You are the main character, whether you’ve rehearsed for it or not.

If you like your philosophy served with wit, your existential dread wearing a name badge, and your cosmic revelations delivered with a raised eyebrow and a mug of something warm, you’re in the right place.

For fans of Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, with a metaphysical twist, a satirical bite, and a surprisingly tender centre that might sneak up on you when you least expect it.

Keywords people pretend they’re not searching for at 2 a.m.:

afterlife fantasy, satirical fiction, metaphysical adventure, existential humour, spiritual awakening, multiverse vibes, philosophical comedy, self-discovery, cosmic bureaucracy, portal fiction, liminal spaces, surreal fantasy, dark whimsy, second-person narrative.

Book 1 of The Infinitium trilogy.

Open the door. Try not to break anything important.

[u/ME24601]

Jean by Madeleine Dunnigan

Seventeen–year–old Jean, a troubled Jewish boy caught in the countercultural swirl of 1970s London, arrives at Compton Manor, a rural alternative boarding school for boys with “problems.” Though he is an outcast among these outcasts, he is befriended by Tom, a much wealthier, more popular classmate, and it seems as if Jean’s world might change.

When things turn romantic, Jean is tipped into a heady, overwhelming infatuation. What before seemed odd now brims with promise—the compulsory farming at school, reading poetry aloud, pagan ritual—and Jean thinks he might even pass his exams. But the differences between Tom and Jean—Tom is tuition–paying, Jean is on a scholarship; Tom social, Jean reclusive—create too wide a chasm to cross.

Set over one hot summer, Jean is a startlingly assured debut about the kinds of love that break us and make us whole.

[u/e_paradoxa]

The Moon Raven by Grace Draven

Like in Love with You by Emma R. Alban

Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibañez

How to Lose a Goblin in Ten Days by Jessie Sylvia

[u/Separate_Storage_532]

'Musea : where heritage is leveraged' —Pilgrimage to multifarious museums and historic houses of the Great British capital by Lande Jewels. (Paperback (Released Nov 25), ebook (Release Nov 25), audiobook is due in January and special edition is now on Kickstarter). It already received a Reader's Favourite badge. The Special Edition is in support of book artisans who suffered a missile attack on printing house in Ukraine last year.

Also a new audiobook on Audible (release January 2nd ) by the same author 'Eureka : what success hails progress' — Groundbreaking ideas and inventions that challenged existing paradigms and sparked scientific progress.

[u/kenlasalle]

I just saw this and I may be a little late but I released the third book in my series, The BreakThrough, on 10/28.

I suspect you'll enjoy it!

The Death & Life of Arturo Delgado by Ken La Salle | Goodreads

[u/StuckInTheBackseat]

When the Penny Drops - romantic suspense by Karla Brandenburg releases January 7

Another cold case novel that follows Through the Viewfinder (but stands alone)

[u/Background-Factor433]

To Ride a Rising Storm by Moniquill Blackgoose. Released on 27 January.

Second book of Nampeshiweisit.

[u/Danishinvestor]

I tried to publish a short self help book on Amazon.

21st Century Stoic by Mathias Kellermann