Upcoming October 2026 Book Releases to Look Forward to

The following books are upcoming releases in October that I'm looking forward to. There are tons of new books being released each month but these ones caught my attention. They are displayed randomly, not in a particular order. Can't wait for them to come out, happy reading!

1. To Dream in Darkness by Ann Liang is releasing October 27, 2026.

Synopsis:

China in the age of brilliance, where gods freely wander the three realms. Amongst them is the cruel and beautiful Death God, who has never failed to collect a soul on time. Until now. For when he seeks out Rujia, the noble god of healing―and the only god he is fated to kill with his own hands―she makes him an offer he can’t refuse: she will help lift the excruciating, century-old curse placed upon him if he gives her a one-month reprieve.

Rujia knows she isn’t as noble as everyone believes. Her deal with Death is merely an excuse to buy herself time while she figures out an escape plan. But when her plan causes the Celestial Palace’s collapse and the beloved crown prince’s disappearance, she and Death are both held responsible. The only way to avoid the wrath of all the other gods is to travel across the realms and safely retrieve the crown prince themselves.

Yet the journey proves far more treacherous than expected. As the unlikely alliance between them blooms into more, and Death’s resolve to kill Rujia weakens by the day, neither can outrun their intertwined fate without devastating consequences: A mysterious plague. An empire-destroying flood. A thousand deaths―and rising―to restore the balance Rujia's disrupted. And if Rujia continues to live despite the will of the Heavens, this is only the beginning...

Publisher Website: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250289483/todreamindarkness/  

2. The Keeper by Ana Huang is releasing October 27, 2026. 

Synopsis:

Famed goalkeeper Noah Wilson doesn’t do relationships or complications. The only thing the grumpy single dad wants is to do his job and spend more time with his daughter.

Unfortunately, his bachelor status has made it impossible to find the right nanny for her. With the World Cup looming and a string of fired nannies in his wake, he has no choice but to hire the last person he wants close to his orbit.

Carina is too stubborn and far too appealing for her own good, but she’s also a natural with his daughter.

And the way his heart skips a beat whenever she’s around? That’s nothing more than a coincidence. He’s sure of it.

***

Carina Vu has a problem. She’s worked multiple jobs and saved up for years to fulfill her childhood dream of visiting Antarctica, but just when she’s close, an unexpected emergency wipes her account clean.

Now, she’s back to square one. The clock is ticking, and she needs another job ASAP. Her best (and only) option is to nanny for Noah, the brooding athlete whom she’s convinced hates her.

But the more time she spends with him and his adorable daughter, the more cracks she sees in his gruff exterior. And the man underneath all that grumpiness? He’s enough to make her rethink everything—including what (and who) it is that she actually wants.

Publisher Website: https://www.bloombooks.com/9781464223341-the-keeper-deluxe-edition-tp.html  

3. Broken Rival by Tessa Bailey is releasing October 6, 2026.

Synopsis:

Magnolia Brown loves Friday night football games, volunteering and dominating at high school swim meets. Just your average everyday eighteen-year-old. Except for one thing:

She’s from fifty years in the future.

Magnolia’s parents, two brilliant scientists, are the inventors of time travel, but due to widespread destruction and rampant abuse of the technology from a corrupt few, time travel is outlawed and punishable by death. When Magnolia’s parents are seized and executed for illegally traveling to the past, they leave Magnolia stranded in 2026 without a way to get home.

Now Magnolia has nowhere to turn but a complicated Kansas family with two sons—Fallon, her high school sweetheart with secrets of his own, and Ramsey, the brooding militia commander who hunts and kills criminals like her. Magnolia knows Ramsey resents and hates her, but how can he be her true enemy when he looks at her with such hunger, despite his callousness, and guards her with his very life? Which brother can she trust and is the real danger coming from inside the house?

Publisher Website: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/broken-rival-tessa-bailey?variant=44805631377442  

4. Before You Were Anne by Emiko Jean is releasing October 6, 2026.

Synopsis:

A murdered woman. A missing daughter. A truth buried across two continents.

Married, pregnant, and thriving in her career, Detective Chelsey Calhoun’s life finally feels whole, until an explosive new case shatters everything. A mother is dead. Her sixteen-year-old daughter, Naomi, has disappeared. And the search will awaken questions about Chelsey’s own origins—questions she’s spent a lifetime afraid to ask.

The victim called herself Anne Walker. But she was born Rika Takahashi, and her journey from a remote Japanese farm to suburban Seattle conceals decades of deception. Across Tokyo’s shadowed underworld, an isolated Idaho town, and years of carefully constructed lies, Rika reinvented herself at every turn. But she was always running—from someone, or something.

Now, Chelsey must find Naomi before she becomes the next victim. But the deeper she delves into Rika’s hidden life, the more she discovers: some secrets are worth killing for. And the most dangerous truths may be the ones closest to home.

Publisher Website: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Before-You-Were-Anne/Emiko-Jean/Chelsey-Calhoun/9781668023969