The best new science fiction books of 2026 include new novels from Ann Leckie and Adrian Tchaikovsky

I may have to eat my hat later, but I reckon 2026 is shaping up to be an excellent year for science fiction. With eight months of books announced, the table is already loaded with delightful offerings.

In January, we welcome new books from two big hitters. There is Peter F. Hamilton’s A Hole in the Sky, the first in an ark ship trilogy, and a change of pace for the author, who made his name with sprawling, science-heavy, brain-warping books. This one is short and straightforward, written from the point of view of a teenage girl. Hamilton hopes his current fans will enjoy the book, which is aimed at a younger audience.

The novel is also a change in terms of its publishing schedule, since all three books will be published this year – the second in June, the third in December. It will be interesting to see how that works for readers.

Our second big arrival is Vigil, a new novel from George Saunders, who won the 2017 Booker prize for Lincoln in the Bardo. Vigil isn’t sci-fi, but it has a claim to be climate fiction, because it centres on the death of an oil tycoon, and it certainly sounds speculative.

In February, expect The Forest on the Edge of Time by Jasmin Kirkbride, which is pitched as “time-travel climate fiction”, and The Rainseekers by Matthew Kressel, about a group of people who travel to witness the first rain on Mars.

There’s also After the Fall by Edward Ashton, billed as “part-alien invasion story, part-buddy comedy… part-workplace satire”. Which is cool if it works.

The highlight in March (for me, at least) will be the fourth book in Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children of Time series, this one entitled Children of Strife, which will feature at least one uplifted mantis shrimp. I’m in.

Other notable releases in March include The Library of Traumatic Memory, the first work of sci-fi from film director and writer Neil Jordan, and Jitterbug by Gareth L. Powell, described by its publisher as an action-packed adventure featuring a crew of bounty hunters in a devastated solar system.

In April comes The Subtle Art of Folding Space, a debut attracting excitement because its author, John Chu, has won big awards for his short stories. We should also see The Photonic Effect by Mike Chen, marketed as “a page-turning space opera”, featuring a galactic civil war.

But that’s not all. The Radiant Dark by Alexandra Oliva is also due out (Arrival meets Wild Dark Shore“, say its publishers), as is The Language of Liars by S. L. Huang (“science fiction about linguistics and consequences”) and Ode to the Half-Broken by Suzanne Palmer (described as “hope-punk sci-fi”).

Then there’s We Burned So Bright by TJ Klune. He’s an author I have never read, but know that I should. This one is about “an older gay couple on an end-of- the-world road trip”.

The highlight of May will surely be Radiant Star, a new work from Ann Leckie set in her magnificent Imperial Radch universe. But let’s not forget an eighth Murderbot book, Platform Decay, from the marvellous Martha Wells.

We can also expect The Republic of Memory by Mahmud El Sayed, described as an ambitious work of Arab Futurism, and Not With a Bang by Temi Oh, billed as a family drama perfect for fans of Emily St John Mandel’s Station Eleven.

In June, we can look forward to Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim, “an immigrant story like no other”, and The Traveler by Joseph Eckert, which tells the story of a reluctant time traveller and his son. Also due out that month is Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay, billed as a “genre-bending near-future tech nightmare… as bitingly funny as it is horrifically believable”.

Last but not least, August will see the publication of The Infinite State by Richard Swan, another bestselling author (his books include the Empire of the Wolf trilogy). This one is apparently “a thrilling tale of survival” and “a blistering science fiction epic”.

I am excited to get stuck in.

Emily H. Wilson is the author of The Sumerians trilogy. She is currently working on her first science-fiction novel