Fiction
Helm by Sarah Hall
Faber, out now
Sarah Hall is best known for her brilliant short stories, and this is the novel she’s been working on for twenty years. Set in Cumbria’s Eden Valley, it tells the story of the Helm—the only wind in the UK with its own name—from its origins at the dawn of time to the current climate crisis. Spanning millennia, the book features characters ranging from Neolithic shamans to Victorian meteorologists and modern-day pilots.
Katabasis by RF Kuang
HarperVoyager, out now
This follow-up to Yellowface takes its title from the Ancient Greek word for a journey to the underworld. Two Cambridge graduate students studying analytic magic venture into hell to rescue their academic supervisor’s soul in this bold, adventurous fantasy.
Good and Evil and Other Stories by Samanta Schweblin, translated by Megan McDowell
Picador, out now
A haunting new collection from the three-time International Booker-nominated Argentinian author. These stories explore the boundaries between our inner and outer worlds, focusing on moments of violence and revelation.
What We Can Know by Ian McEwan
Jonathan Cape, 18 September
Set a century in the future, an academic in a flooded and impoverished Britain studies literary archives from the wealthy early 21st century. He’s searching for a poem that was read aloud only once but has been wondered about for generations. What was its message, and does it still matter after catastrophe?
Will There Ever Be Another You by Patricia Lockwood
Bloomsbury, 23 September
No one writes sentences as wild, clever, and funny as Lockwood. After her Booker and Women’s Prize-shortlisted No One Is Talking About This, a strikingly original take on social media and family tragedy, this new book continues her autofictional style. It follows an American woman grappling with a breakdown in the aftermath of the pandemic.
The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
Hamish Hamilton, 25 September
Twenty years after her Booker-winning The Inheritance of Loss, Desai returns with a powerful love story already longlisted for this year’s prize. Moving between India and the US, it explores modernity and tradition, generational hope and despair, as a couple navigates fate, family, and their own ambitions.
Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Atlantic, 25 September
Following the critical and commercial success of My Sister, the Serial Killer, the Nigerian-British author’s new novel follows Eniiyi as she tries to break a family curse that dooms its women to heartbreak.
Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon
Jonathan Cape, 7 October
The 88-year-old American literary giant returns with another dose of eccentric noir after 2013’s Bleeding Edge. Set during the Great Depression, private investigator Hicks McTaggart takes on a routine case that spirals into a world of spies, swing musicians, interplanetary languages, and paranormal intrigue.
Big Kiss, Bye-Bye by Claire-Louise Bennett
Fitzcarraldo, 9 October
From the author of Pond and Checkout 19 comes a new novel about intimacy and connection. A woman who has moved to the countryside reflects on fragments of her past.
The Four Spent the Day Together by Chris Kraus
Scribe, 9 October
Kraus, known for the autofictional cult classic I Love Dick, now examines American poverty and division through the story of a murder committed by three teenagers and the woman who becomes obsessed with the case.
The Land of Sweet Forever by Harper Lee
Hutchinson Heinemann, 21 October
A decade after the rediscovery of Go Set a Watchman, this collection features early stories and later nonfiction from the author of To Kill a Mockingbird.
The Rose Field by Philip Pullman
Penguin, 23 October
Thirty years after Northern Lights introduced us to dust, daemons, and Lyra Belacqua, Pullman concludes the Book of Dust trilogy. This final installment follows Lyra’s quest across worlds and promises answers to long-standing questions.Mysteries
Vaim by Jon Fosse, translated by Damion Searls
Fitzcarraldo, 23 October
Named after a fictional Norwegian fishing village, Fosse’s first novel since winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2023 follows a man who sails to the city in search of a needle and thread but instead finds his long-lost love. Two more novels about Vaim are planned.
Tom’s Crossing by Mark Z. Danielewski
Pantheon, 28 October
A new novel from the author of the cult classic House of Leaves, described as his most accessible yet, tells the story of two friends in the American West on a mission to rescue horses destined for slaughter.
The Eleventh Hour by Salman Rushdie
Jonathan Cape, 4 November
These five stories about old age, as life nears its end, move between India, England, and America, exploring public life and private tragedy, regret and mortality, experience and imagination.
The Silver Book by Olivia Laing
Hamish Hamilton, 6 November
Danilo Donati, a designer for Fellini and Pasolini, meets a young English artist in Venice. Laing’s second novel is a queer love story and noir thriller set in the dreamlike world of Italian cinema, leading up to Pasolini’s murder in 1975.
The Wax Child by Olga Ravn, translated by Martin Aitken
Viking, 6 November
After her International Booker-shortlisted The Employees, set on a 22nd-century spaceship, Ravn now turns to the past with a story inspired by a notorious 17th-century witch trial, in which a woman melts beeswax and shapes it into human form.
On the Calculation of Volume 3 by Solvej Balle, translated by Sophia Hersi Smith and Jennifer Russell
Faber, 20 November
The first two books in this Danish time-loop series, where a woman relives November 18th repeatedly, caused a sensation. In the third volume, after 1,143 repeated days, something changes: she meets a man who has also slipped through time.
Nonfiction
All the Way to the River: Love, Loss and Liberation by Elizabeth Gilbert
Bloomsbury, 9 September
A departure from Eat Pray Love, this memoir portrays a compelling but destructive relationship, touching on terminal illness, addiction, and the difficult path to recovery.
Fly, Wild Swans: My Mother, Myself and China by Jung Chang
William Collins, 16 September
Jung Chang’s 1991 book Wild Swans profoundly shaped Western views of Mao’s China. Over 30 years later, she returns with a sequel, blending memoir and social history to examine the era of Xi Jinping.
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: The Case Against Superintelligent AI by Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares
Bodley Head, 18 September
Should we fear superintelligent AI? Influential tech doomsayer Eliezer Yudkowsky says yes. The good news: we’re not there yet, and there are still ways to prevent disaster.
When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows … Common Knowledge and the Science of Harmony, Hypocrisy and Outrage by Steven Pinker
Allen Lane, 23 September
Human societies rely on common knowledge—shared assumptions about how we think and behave. Cognitive scientist Steven Pinker examines how this knowledge is structured and how it can mislead us.
107 Days by Kamala Harris
Simon & Schuster, 23 September
When Joe Biden ended his bid for a second term, Kamala Harris had 107 days to turn the Democrats’ fortunes around and prevent another Trump presidency. She failed, but not without a fight—this book details the grueling campaign.
The Boundless Deep: Young Tennyson, Science and the Crisis of Belief by [Author Name Missing]Richard Holmes
William Collins, 25 September
Holmes’s acclaimed 2009 book, Age of Wonder, showed how scientific breakthroughs in the 18th and 19th centuries influenced the literature of the era, from Keats’s poetry to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. His new biography of Tennyson examines the poet against the backdrop of the growing tension between faith and the emerging theory of evolution.
On Friendship by Andrew O’Hagan
Faber, 9 October
This charming collection of short essays delves into the many forms of friendship and loyalty—from workplace relationships to bonds with animals—while weaving in plenty of literary references along the way.
The Big Payback: The Case for Reparations for Slavery and How They Would Work by Lenny Henry and Marcus Ryder
Faber, 9 October
Author and comedian Lenny Henry and media executive Marcus Ryder ask a pointed question in this thoughtful book: “Why were slave owners compensated with public funds, while the enslaved and their descendants received nothing?” They explore what it would truly take to address the historic injustices of the slave trade.
The Chain by Bradley Wiggins
HarperCollins, 23 October
In this candid memoir, Tour de France winner and Olympic gold medalist Bradley Wiggins opens up for the first time about his struggles with depression and addiction, delving into the most difficult chapters of his life.
The Uncool: A Memoir by Cameron Crowe
4th Estate, 28 October
Most know Crowe’s origin story: as a teenage music journalist, he chronicled legendary 70s bands, a journey immortalized in his film Almost Famous. But his later career directing movies like Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Vanilla Sky was just as fascinating. Uncool recounts a life spent at the forefront of popular culture.
The Seven Rules of Trust: Why It Is Today’s Most Essential Superpower by Jimmy Wales
Bloomsbury, 28 October
The founder of Wikipedia could have turned his creation into a profit-making venture and joined the ranks of billionaires like Peter Thiel and Elon Musk. Instead, he fiercely guarded its status as a free public resource trusted by billions. In this book, he shares his vision for a better internet—and, by extension, better politics and institutions.
Dead and Alive by Zadie Smith
Hamish Hamilton, 30 October
The latest essay collection from the author of White Teeth and The Fraud roams widely across pop culture and politics, touching on topics from Tár to Stormzy, Trump to Starmer, and Martin Amis to Hilary Mantel.
We Did OK, Kid by Anthony Hopkins
Simon & Schuster, 4 November
In 1948, a 10-year-old boy from Port Talbot saw Laurence Olivier’s Hamlet in a cinema—a moment that changed his life and set him on the path to six Oscar nominations and two wins. Now 87, Hopkins reflects on his modest beginnings and illustrious career.
Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run by Paul McCartney
Allen Lane, 4 November
How did McCartney, who turned 83 this year, find time to write a book while touring 79 dates on his Got Back tour? With some help: this nearly 600-page volume draws from 500,000 words of interviews, edited by a former Clinton White House speechwriter. It offers new perspectives on the intensely creative period after the Beatles broke up.
Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts by Margaret Atwood
Chatto & Windus, 4 November
Fans of one of the world’s most celebrated writers have long awaited a memoir—and now it’s here. Atwood revisits her childhood and shares the inspirations behind the 18 novels that made her a household name.
Bread of Angels by Patti Smith
Bloomsbury, 4 November
The singer and poet’s first memoir, Just Kids, centered on her intense relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, capturing a lost New York of cheap rents and avant-garde art. This new volume focuses on her life as an artist.In her own right—from childhood inspirations to adult acclaim.
One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson
Jonathan Cape, 13 November
Winterson draws on the Arabic folk tale One Thousand and One Nights, using the figure of Scheherazade—a woman weaving stories each night to escape death—to reflect on the value and future of storytelling.
Crime: Spies, Lies, and the Return of the Da Vinci Codebreaker
Each September, bookshops are flooded with new releases from crime and thriller heavyweights. Leading the pack once again is Richard Osman, returning to his Thursday Murder Club series with The Impossible Fortune (Viking, 25 September), where a wedding guest fears for their life. In Robert Galbraith’s eighth Cormoran Strike novel, The Hallmarked Man (Sphere, out now), the detective and his partner Robin continue to navigate their complicated feelings. Mick Herron serves up more espionage and deception in the ninth Slow Horses installment, Clown Town (Baskerville, 11 September), rooted in a Northern Ireland cover-up.
Janice Hallett’s latest cozy mystery, The Killer Question (Viper, out now), revolves around pub quizzes, while William Boyd’s The Predicament (Viking, out now) is a swinging ’60s spy thriller featuring “accidental spy” Gabriel Dax, first introduced in 2024’s Gabriel’s Moon. After an eight-year break, Dan Brown returns with The Secret of Secrets (Bantam, 9 September), another race-against-time conspiracy adventure for his Harvard symbologist hero Robert Langdon.
October brings a James Bond spin-off with Vaseem Khan’s Quantum of Menace (Zaffre, 23 October), the first in a cozy mystery series starring Q, now ousted from MI6 and investigating the death of a quantum computer scientist. Meanwhile, Shetland detective Jimmy Perez returns in Ann Cleeves’ standalone novel The Killing Stones (Macmillan, 7 October), where he moves to Orkney to uncover the truth behind a childhood friend’s murder. Expect dark secrets and simmering tensions against a ruggedly beautiful backdrop.
Memoir: From Hollywood to Harvey Nicks… More Life Stories
If the end of the year is a time for reflection, celebrities haven’t missed the memo (and it probably has nothing to do with Christmas sales). Musicians take center stage: Huey Morgan of Fun Lovin’ Criminals recounts ’90s excess in The Fun Lovin’ Criminal (Quercus, 11 September). For a grungier vibe, try Evan Dando of the Lemonheads with Rumours of My Demise (Faber, 6 November). Outshining them both in star power—sorry, guys—is Lionel Richie, whose autobiography Truly (William Collins, 30 September) is sure to be a bestseller, given his 125 million albums sold worldwide. Yusuf/Cat Stevens shares his journey in Cat on the Road to Findout (Constable, 18 September), and drag DJ Jodie Harsh spills on London’s ’00s club scene in You Had to Be There (Faber, 25 September).
From Hollywood, Charlie Sheen’s tell-all The Book of Sheen (Gallery, 9 September) recounts a life he “shouldn’t be alive” to write about after what he euphemistically calls a “vortex of extracurricular activities.” Michael J. Fox offers a slice of his acting life in Future Boy (Headline, 14 October), focusing on his ’80s hits Family Ties and Back to the Future. Rocky Horror Show star Tim Curry looks back on his unconventional career in Vagabond (Century, 14 October).
It’s not just actors: retail expert Mary Portas explains how she got her start at Harvey Nichols in I Shop, Therefore I Am (Canongate, 2 October), while comedian Ben Elton ponders What Have I Done? (Pan Macmillan, 9 October)—a question that might also apply to tennis star Boris Becker.Boris Becker’s new book, Inside (HarperCollins, 25 September), recounts his journey from Wimbledon champion to inmate at Wandsworth prison. Malala Yousafzai returns with Finding My Way (W&N, 21 October), sharing her experiences after becoming a global human rights icon. Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief, offers Joyride (Atlantic, 6 November), a memoir about her adventures chasing stories for The New Yorker. To explore any of these featured books, visit guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about the seasons most anticipated books written in a natural tone with clear direct answers
General Questions
Q What does most anticipated books actually mean
A It refers to new books that are getting a lot of advance buzz from critics booksellers and readers before they are even published Theyre often by famous authors or cover very timely topics
Q Why should I care about these lists
A Theyre a great way to discover your next great read and stay in the loop about whats new and exciting in the literary world It can also give you something to look forward to
Q Where can I find these lists of anticipated books
A Major publications like The New York Times The Guardian and literary magazines publish them seasonally Bookstores like Barnes Noble and websites like Goodreads also have them
Questions About Specific Books Authors
Q Thomas Pynchon has a new book I thought he was very private and rarely published
A Yes a new Pynchon novel is a major literary event because he is famously reclusive and publishes very infrequently Each new book is dissected by fans and scholars
Q What kind of book is Margaret Atwoods memoir
A Its a nonfiction work where she shares stories and reflections from her own life her writing process and her perspectives on the world which will likely interest her many fans
Q Are there any new authors on these lists I should watch for
A Absolutely Most anticipated lists always include promising debut authors They are a fantastic way to discover fresh new voices before they become widely known
Practical Questions
Q How can I get a copy of these books as soon as they come out
A The easiest ways are to preorder them online or place a hold on them at your local public library For very popular books placing a hold early is key
Q These books are always expensive in hardcover Any tips
