A new trailer for Pride & Prejudice is the sort of bookish news that can make a week. December 3 is the date to circle; the swooning can wait until then.
Here’s the October 29, 2026, Book Riot newsletter. View it online, join All Access, or listen. Share it with friends.
What the bestseller lists are telling us
Bestseller rankings can look definitive, but each list measures the market a little differently. Book Riot’s weekly roundup combines the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Amazon Charts, USA Today, and Indie Bestsellers. That broader view is useful; no single list captures the whole week.
Nonfiction has a strong showing. The selections include 
I’ll Believe in Anything by Jacob Tierney, annotated scripts from the first season of Heated Rivalry; 
The American Way of Killing by Malcolm Gladwell, an examination of the gun violence epidemic; and 
In the Shadow of Eight by Collin Gosselin, a memoir of a traumatic childhood in the orbit of the reality-TV hit Jon & Kate Plus 8.
Fiction is more familiar territory this week: three blockbusters appear on all five lists. 
Threshing Day by Rebecca Yarros is a short-story collection set in the Empyrean series. 
The Witch by Freida McFadden brings a haunted-house thriller from BookTok’s favorite mystery author. And 
Theo of Golden by Allen Levi has topped 1.8 million print copies sold so far this year.
See more trending titles and find out how the roundup is compiled.
Beyond the page: this week’s media picks
Books may anchor a media diet, but they don’t have to fill the whole plate. This week, the Book Riot Podcast turns to television, films, and music. The picks range from 
Nathan Fielder’s genre-bending documentary about convicted grifter Elizabeth Holmes to 
a standout new reality-TV host, 
the century’s most consistently excellent spy series, and 
an ideal plane movie for a transatlantic flight after a couple of glasses of wine.
The list also includes 
a sexy satirical fable with a new spin on “morning wood,” and 
an attempt to recreate a childhood favorite radio station. 
Watch the episode on YouTube, or find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other podcast platforms.
Portal fantasy for middle-grade readers
The hero’s journey keeps drawing fantasy readers in, and chapter books give young characters space to grow as the plot gathers pace. For many readers, that first coming-of-age quest sticks. These recommendations span early middle grade through the edge of YA.
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin, a bestseller and Newbery Honor Award winner, draws on Chinese folklore. After hearing her father’s extraordinary tales, Minli sets out with a dragon to find the Old Man on the Moon and ask how she can improve her poor family’s fortunes.
Middle grade fantasy with room to think
This is a Door by Daniel Nayeri* gives its fairy tale a visual form that should appeal to middle grade readers and confident younger readers alike. Nothing the Younger sets off with a dog and a mouse after being called to confront a Giantess. The quest is also a search for purpose, which gives the adventure more to work with than a simple monster hunt. Nayeri is a National Book Award winner and Newbery Honor recipient.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norman Juster remains a smart pick for classrooms and early middle grade readers who enjoy wordplay—or need a reason to give grammar a chance. Milo escapes his dull routine through a tollbooth and enters a strange world built around language, where the larger question is what makes life feel worth exploring. That combination of play and curiosity is why the book still works as more than a lesson in vocabulary.
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin starts Ged on a path toward becoming a great sorcerer, then makes him reckon with the shadow he releases. The book sits between middle grade and early YA, and Ged is one of fantasy’s first non-white heroes. His story is compelling in part because heroism isn’t handed to him: the series-long journey begins with a reckless, power-hungry boy facing the consequences of his choices.
*A message from our sponsor
“Maxxing” takes the word of the year
Dictionary.com has named “maxxing” its word of the year. The choice is less a word than a suffix attached to gerunds: it describes pushing an activity to its limit or optimizing some part of your life. The label’s broad reach is the point. A small piece of internet slang can frame a much larger fixation on constant self-improvement.
- Looksmaxxing is the best-known example—and a disturbing one. Tokenmaxxing has also had its moment.
Here’s the wrinkle: Dictionary.com’s own usage charts show both terms peaked earlier this year. Naming the suffix itself may signal that “-maxxing” has outgrown any one trend. It could become a shorthand for extreme behavior encouraged by spending too much time online, much as “-gate” came to mean scandal after Watergate. The data doesn’t explain why the terms fell from their peaks, though. Maybe the more appealing countertrend for 2027 would be “algo-minning”: trying to live with as little influence from giant tech platforms as possible. One can dream.
The other finalists were “unc,” “Odyssey,” “data center,” and “affordability.”
Three audiobook picks under 15 hours
A Spotify Premium membership includes 15 hours of audiobook listening per month. These three selections from Spotify Editors’ October picks each fit within that allowance, so you can finish one without spending into next month’s hours.
Grace & Jo Have Never Solved a Murder by Jess Mey, read by Stacy Gonzalez — A woman finds her boss dead, then receives an unexpected offer from his widow: help solve the murder. It’s a setup for a pair of amateur investigators with a millennial edge.
The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman by Deesha Philyaw, read by Janina Edwards — A megachurch pastor’s wife, whose rise runs from rags to Rolex, is competing in a First Lady pageant when a sex scandal upends her polished public life. The scandal is built on a lie, and she’s tired of people quoting scripture while telling her to put the church first.
- This one gets my very screamy approval. If you grew up in the church, buckle up!
- Bad Words by Rioghnach Robinson, read by Katharine Chin and Major Curda — A literary critic once wrecked a debut novelist’s career with a brutal review. Ten years later, she’s asked to assess the book meant to revive it. Another harsh verdict sets off a viral feud, while something gentler starts to emerge beneath the antagonism. —VD
Thrillers powered by female rage
Janasha Prabhu, author of Monster in the Mirror, out now from Sourcebooks Landmark, recommends three thrillers about women pushed past their limits.
There’s a particular satisfaction in watching a woman who’s had enough finally snap. If Gone Girl is your kind of story, or you cheer when a horror movie’s final girl turns on her pursuer, these recommendations should land.
They Never Learn by Layne Fargo, a fellow Chicagoan, centers on Scarlett Clark, an English professor who excels at her work and at getting away with murder. As the number of problematic men killed on campus grows, the university starts investigating more closely. Then Scarlett makes a mistake, and her secret is suddenly vulnerable.
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite pairs Korede with her younger sister, Ayoola, whose boyfriends keep ending up dead. Korede has always cleaned up after her sister. But when Ayoola begins dating the man Korede secretly loves, loyalty turns into a choice about who gets saved.
Maeve Fly by CJ Leede is the bloodiest of the three. Maeve works as a theme park princess by day and haunts the Sunset Strip at night; think a female Patrick Bateman. When Gideon Green, her best friend’s brother, arrives in town, something dark stirs in Maeve and sends her down a dangerous path.
These books don’t soften their anger. If you pick one up, be ready for where it leads.
Before you go
Lee Child was born on October 29, 1954—and he’s British. That may surprise readers who associate him with American settings; it surprised the newsletter’s writer, too.
Five links for your next reading break
Halloween calls for a short, sharp scare: browse these horror books you can finish in one sitting. If mysteries are more your speed, consider the debate over the best mystery novels of the 21st century. Books are also finding their way into the dating scene, with events for book lovers drawing interest. Elsewhere, an artist has strong ideas about Frankenstein, and Sarah Snook is set to take on Hitchcock’s avian horror classic, “The Birds.”
