The best new books to read in January 2026 ...Middle East

If reading more is one of your goals for 2026, then the year’s first wave of new releases is an excellent place to begin. January brings with it a whole host of brilliant reads, whether it is new work from literary heavyweights (Julian Barnes, Ali Smith) or spiky, page-turning debuts (Best Offer Wins ought to be everywhere) and thoughtful non-fiction (Art Cure will change the way you think about well-being) – there is almost definitely something here to get you back into the habit of curling up with a good book…

Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino

This debut set against the brutal housing market follows a frustrated former journalist pushed past her limits. Sharp on class, ambition and desperation, it’s tightly paced, funny and convincing about how quickly good intentions curdle under pressure.

Doubleday, £16.99

Wreck by Catherine Newman

Newman has become the new queen of the bittersweet novel. Her latest follows a family shaped by anxiety after a sudden, random death, balancing genuine laughs with emotional weight and a clear-eyed understanding of modern family life.

Doubleday, £16.99

Palaver by Bryan Washington

Set in Tokyo, this is a restrained, intimate novel about a mother and son rebuilding trust after years apart. Washington writes with warmth and precision about work, care and chosen family, finding drama in small, human shifts.

Atlantic Books, £14.99

Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy

The first foray into fiction from McCurdy, author of the multimillion-copy-selling memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died, is a provocative coming-of-age novel centred on a teenage girl’s fixation on her married creative writing teacher. It explores power and desire while exposing how badly young longing can misfire.

Fourth Estate, £20

Departure(s) by Julian Barnes

Barnes traces a lifelong love story while quietly circling mortality, memory and bodily decline. Gentle and reflective, this latest from the Booker winner is a short novel that gains its force from what it leaves unsaid.

Jonathan Cape, £18.99

Glyph by Ali Smith

Moving between childhood and adulthood, reality and invention, Smith’s latest is a followup to 2024’s Gliff but can be read as a stand-alone. As ever with this author, the novel is playful without being slight, and alert to the present moment while committed to imagination.

Hamish Hamilton, £20

Chosen Family by Madeleine Grey

The author of the hit novel Green Dot returns with a story about two queer women whose intense bond shifts as adulthood complicates intimacy. Hilarious and emotional, the novel examines friendship, love and separation without sentimentality.

Weidenfeld & Nicolson, £20

The Poet Empress by Shen Tao

This epic fantasy rooted in poetry follows a peasant girl trapped in an imperial court. Richly imagined and politically driven, it combines intrigue with a focused emotional arc about survival, language and agency. Expect this one to be everywhere this year.

Gollancz, £20

Want and Needs by Roxy Dunn

In this smart novel about post-breakup drift, dating apps and ethical non-monogamy, Dunn writes frankly about dependency and self-knowledge, drawing you in with her protagonist’s messy (and page-turning) experiment in love.

Fig Tree, £16.99

The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams

This multi-generational family saga spans a century of American history, the lives of seven women and the many secrets passed between them. Williams handles big themes like inherited trauma and resilience with control, grounding them in the kind of storytelling you sink into.

Simon & Schuster, £18.99

David Bowie and the Search for Life, Death and God by Peter Ormerod

Who knew we needed another Bowie book? This deep-dive into the artist’s spiritual curiosity traces how faith, mysticism and doubt shaped his music. Thoughtful rather than fan-driven, it adds a fresh take to the canon.

Bloomsbury Continuum, £20

The Flower Bearers by Rachel Eliza Griffiths

Part memoir, part love letter, this book by Salman Rushdie’s wife is one of both sorrow and profound intimacy. Griffiths writes with care about friendship, marriage and survival, showing how mourning can force a reckoning with who we were.

John Murray, £22

Art Cure by Daisy Fancourt

Drawing on extensive research, Fancourt makes a clear case for the arts as central to health, much like movement and diet. Accessible and fascinating, the book connects science and everyday experience without overpromising, arguing persuasively for cultural investment.

Cornerstone, £22

Everybody Loves Our Dollars by Oliver Bullough

Bullough exposes the scale and normalisation of global money laundering, showing why decades of regulation have failed. Forensic and unsettling, the book links abstract financial systems to real human damage, and asks who truly benefits from inaction.

W&N, £25

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