Top Ten Tuesday: A Delayed Genre Freebie (2026 Historical Fiction I'm Excited to Read)

I've been a little MIA lately due to illness and travel, so I'm playing catch up. I spent a fun extended weekend in Utah, though, attending the largest family history conference in the world: RootsTech by FamilySearch. Since it's not a bookish event, I wasn't going to mention it, but then I realized that a couple of the featured speakers had authored books in addition to doing whatever other cool things they do. The host, Kirby Heyborne, isn't a writer, but he is an actor, musician, comedian, motivational speaker, and an award-winning audiobook narrator. Steve Young, a retired pro football player who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005, was interviewed by Kirby. He's the author of a few non-fiction books, including, most recently, The Law of Love and The Law of Love In Action. I haven't read anything by Young, but I've heard good things about both of these titles. We also heard from the incredible Tara Roberts, a National Geographic Explorer in Residence, who has spent the last seven years diving with and chronicling the experiences of a Black scuba team that searches for slave shipwrecks. She's a bookworm, an editor, a content creator, and the author of a memoir I really want to read called Written in the Waters: A Memoir of History, Home and Belonging. My favorite guests at RootsTech are not authors, but they're talented Irish dancers, the Gardiner Brothers. They were super fun to watch! 

A friend of ours owns Peach & Bee Honey. She mentioned that some of her products were for sale in the gift store at the Salt Palace, where the conference is always held, so my husband and I hied off to do pick up a little souvenier from the Beehive State. In addition to yummy honey products, the shop also had a Little Free Library! I snatched up a crisp, new-looking hardcover of The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny. It's the 19th installment in the Armand Gamache mystery series, which I love. I'm behind on the series, but I'll get to this one eventually. 

Because I was busy getting ready for my trip last week, I missed Top Ten Tuesday. The topic was a Genre Freebie. I was sorry to miss it, so that's what I'm going to do today, even though the prompt du jour is: Top Ten Book Titles Featuring Ordinal Numbers. As always, TTT is hosted by the lovely Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl. 

Genre Freebie: Top Ten 2026 Historical Novels That I'm Excited to Read

- in order of publication -

1. Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven (published January 6)—It's 1964 and the Newman family has been the darling of American television for two decades. Although they play perfect versions of themselves on screen, each of the Newmans is struggling with maintaining their flawless image. With ratings falling, Dinah Newman—the matriarch—decides its time to bring the show to an end. Will she have the courage to go out with truth and integrity or will the family be forced to continue living a lie?

2. Keeper of Lost Children by Sadeqa Johnson (available February 10)—Centered on themes of race and identity, this novel tells the stories of several main characters: 

• Ethel Gathers, a white military wife living in Occupied Germany in the 1950s, discovers an orphanage filled with the abandoned mixed-race children of Black American GI's and German women, and vows to find homes for them all. 
• Ozzie Phillips, a Black volunteer with the newly-desegregated army, is serving in Germany in 1948 when he embarks on a relationship with a German woman that will change both of their lives forever.
• Sophia Clark, a young Black woman in 1965, is given the chance to attend a prestigious all-white boarding school. While there, she discovers a secret that changes everything, leading her on a journey to find out who she really is.

3. The Fourth Princess by Janie Chang (published February 10)—I love me a gothic novel, and this one sounds super intriguing. Set in 1911 Shanghai, it features Lisan Liu, a woman who is hired to perform secretarial services for Caroline Stanton, the new American mistress of Lennox Manor. The home has a haunting reputation, which Lisan feels right away in the form of terrifying nightmares and visions of a mysterious woman in red. Like her new secretary, Caroline is hiding her own secrets, secrets she will do anything to keep hidden. When Princess Masako Kyo comes to the Manor asking difficult questions, both women feel threatened.

4. A Crown of Stars by Shana Abé (published February 24)—What does it say about me that I can't get enough of books about maritime disasters? Nothing good, probably! Nonetheless, I'm looking forward to this book about the sinking of the Lusitania. An English actress, Rita is visiting New York City for a premiere when she receives word from her sister that their beloved brother is about to enlist so he can fight in the war that is raging across Europe. Desperate to see him before he leaves, Rita boards the fastest ship available, in spite of the fact that the Lusitania is a British ship, a fair target for the German forces. What begins as a luxurious ride full of drinks and dancing soon turns into a disastrous struggle for survival.

5. The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives by Elizabeth Arnott (published March 3)—Good Morning America just announced this historical mystery as its book club's March pick. I was lucky enough to win two copies to give away in my Little Free Library. Yay! Set in California in 1966, the novel is about three women, all wives of convicted murderers, who form an unlikely friendship. When a string of killings rocks their area, they decide to investigate the crimes themselves. After all, who is better qualified to identify a predator?

6. Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict (available March 24)—Although her father and his partner received international fame for finding the treasure-rich tomb of Pharaoh Tuttankhamun, it wouldn't have been possible without the help of Lady Evelyn Carnarvon. Her burning curiosity made the find possible; now, Evelyn's turned her focus to female pharaoh Hatshepsut. Determined to find her tomb in the hopes of better understanding her bold reign, she finds herself in a battle to either protect her father's legacy or forge her own.

7. The Moonlight Runner by Karen Robards (available March 24)—Set in Ireland in 1918, this novel features a young nurse who treats wounded soldiers and the boy she loves, who has taken up gunrunning to support the rebellion. When Rynn hears rumors of a British offense being planned against the gunrunners, she hurries out at midnight to warn her boyfriend, only to find herself caught up in a shocking turn of events that propels her down a terrifying path that leaves her fighting for survival in a world torn apart by war.

8. The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett (available May 5)—Ever since loving The Help, I've been waiting for another book to come out by this author. I'm in the middle of reading an e-ARC of The Calamity Club, and I'm enjoying it. The story moves veeerrrrryyyy slowly. Stockett's writing is colorful and engaging, so the book isn't boring, but it definitely takes its time getting anywhere. I thought my Kindle was lying to me when it said it would take me 14 hours to read this door stopper. Nope! The print version is 656 pages long.

The story is about a group of women from different walks of life who band together in 1933 Mississippi to face a host of challenges, including economical, emotional, marital, and everything in between.

9. The Young Will Remember by Eve J. Chung (available May 5)—It's 1950 and Chinese American journalist Ellie Chang is on a military flight headed into the mountains of North Korea to cover a battle when her plane is shot down. Surrounded by the enemy, she fears the worst. When a woman saves her by claiming Ellie is her long-lost daughter, she's relieved. Determined to get herself and her rescuers to safety, the journalist leads them on a journey south, one that will also hopefully lead the family to their real missing daughter.

10. Up From the Ashes by Sharon Cameron (available October 26)—This YA novel is based on the true story of a Jewish couple who meet and fall in love during World War II while imprisoned in Holland's Sobibor death camp. When the prisoners come up with a daring plan to escape Sobibor, the duo must decide what they're willing to risk for freedom—and for each other.

There you go, ten 2026 historical novels that I'm looking forward to reading. Have you read any of them? Which new historicals are you excited about? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.

Happy TTT!