Critically Acclaimed Books

Ranking the Best Fiction Published in 2026 (35 Titles)

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4 Honors
Kin: A Novel
Kin: A Novel
by Tayari Jones
3 Honors
Keeper of Lost Children
Keeper of Lost Children
by Sadeqa Johnson
3 Honors
Just Above My Head
Just Above My Head
by James Baldwin
3 Honors
Burn Down Master’s House
Burn Down Master’s House
by Clay Cane
2 Honors
If I Ruled the World
If I Ruled the World
by Amy DuBois Barnett
1 Honor
Score
Score
by Kennedy Ryan
1 Honor
Capone: A Black Mafia Romance
Capone: A Black Mafia Romance
by Jahquel J.
1 Honor
Big Girl Blitz
Big Girl Blitz
by Danielle Allen
1 Honor
There’s Only One Sin in Hollywood
There’s Only One Sin in Hollywood
by Rasheed Newson
1 Honor
Fire Sword and Sea: A Novel
Fire Sword and Sea: A Novel
by Vanessa Riley
1 Honor
Where the Wildflowers Grow
Where the Wildflowers Grow
by Terah Shelton Harris
1 Honor
The Seven Daughters of Dupree
The Seven Daughters of Dupree
by Nikesha Elise Williams
1 Honor
The Revelation of Dionne Daphne
The Revelation of Dionne Daphne
by Mara Brock Akil
1 Honor
A Pair of Aces
A Pair of Aces
by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
1 Honor
The Disappearers
The Disappearers
by Marlon James
1 Honor
Junie (paperback)
Junie (paperback)
by Erin Crosby Eckstine
1 Honor
Leave Your Mess at Home
Leave Your Mess at Home
by Tolani Akinola
1 Honor
The Great Wherever
The Great Wherever
by Shannon Sanders
1 Honor
King of Ashes (Paperback)
King of Ashes (Paperback)
by S. A. Cosby
1 Honor
Cool Machine
Cool Machine
by Colson Whitehead
1 Honor
House of Margins
House of Margins
by Tlotlo Tsamaase
1 Honor
On Sundays She Picked Flowers
On Sundays She Picked Flowers
by Yah Yah Scholfield
1 Honor
Bad Seeds
Bad Seeds
by Mary Monroe
1 Honor
Dey
Dey
by Edwidge Danticat
1 Honor
The Missed Connection
The Missed Connection
by Tia Williams
1 Honor
Rich and Rotten
Rich and Rotten
by Jahquel J.
1 Honor
The Fourth Cross
The Fourth Cross
by Spike Adams
1 Honor
Pure Men: A Novel
Pure Men: A Novel
by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr
1 Honor
The Hospital at the End of the World
The Hospital at the End of the World
by Justin C. Key
1 Honor
With Love from Harlem: A Novel of Hazel Scott
With Love from Harlem: A Novel of Hazel Scott
by ReShonda Tate
1 Honor
Worse than a Lie: A Beau Lee Cooper Novel
Worse than a Lie: A Beau Lee Cooper Novel
by Ben Crump
1 Honor
Judge Stone
Judge Stone
by Viola Davis and James Patterson
1 Honor
Love by the Book
Love by the Book
by Jessica George
1 Honor
The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman
The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman
by Deesha Philyaw
1 Honor
Ghalen: A Romance in Black
Ghalen: A Romance in Black
by Walter Mosley

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