Welcome to this week's Book Briefing where we round up the news for the week!
This week there's announcements, award winners, and so much to get excited about! We hope you enjoy this week's round up, and are as excited as we are for all the bookish goodness coming out way.
Dolly’s legacy continues with books in children’s hands
Following the devastating passing of icon and ‘Book Queen’ Dolly Parton, her incredible legacy will live on, with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library confirming it will continue sending free books to millions of children around the world each month. Launched in 1995 to honour her father, the Imagination Library has sent more than 300 million books to children aged five and under, helping to get books into homes and fostering a love of reading from an early age. It’s the good news we need.
‘The Everlasting’ by Alix E. Harrow named Best Novel at the 2026 Hugo Awards
An exciting night for the sci-fi and fantasy community, with the lady-knight novel ‘The Everlasting’ winning Best Novel at the 2026 Hugo Awards. First presented in 1953, the Hugo Awards are among the most prestigious awards in the sci-fi and fantasy genres, and this year’s winners were announced at LAcon V in Anaheim. Other 2026 winners include Amal El-Mohtar, who won Best Novella for ‘The River Has Roots’, while ‘Old Man’s War’ by John Scalzi took home Best Series.
Cover reveal for the first book in a new four-book series by Liz Tomforde!
‘Cardinal Rule’ has had its stunning cover reveal, kicking off a spicy brand-new series from sports romance queen Liz Tomforde, author of the incredibly popular ‘Windy City’ series. Expected in March 2027, the new series is called ‘Wilder Woods’ and will follow one family, four athletes and three new sports teams. We cannot wait.
A sequel to ‘Donnie Darko’ is coming, and it’s a book.
After 25 years of the cult-favourite movie ‘Donnie Darko’ being out in the world, we finally have a sequel on the way, and it’s a book. Titled ‘The Philosophy of Time Travel’ and written by the film’s original writer-director, Richard Kelly, the book takes its name from the mysterious text featured in the original movie. It will continue Donnie’s mind-bending story, exploring what happens after the bizarre events of the film.
Josh Silver’s ‘Traumaland’ wins the 2026 YA Book Prize
The dark thriller has taken out the prestigious award, which celebrates the best fiction for teenagers and young adults from the UK and Ireland. Inspired in part by Silver’s experience working as a mental health nurse, the story follows Eli as he discovers an underground club where people use virtual reality to experience increasingly terrifying scenarios. Judges praised the novel for its originality, dark humour and authenticity, with Silver triumphing over a shortlist of 10 books.
Beautiful cover revealed for new instalment in the ‘Emily Wilde’ series
Ahead of its publication in January 2027, the beautiful purple cover of ‘Emily Wilde’s History of Dark Faerie’ has been revealed, and it’s just as whimsically wonderful as the rest of the series! This is the fourth book in the cosy academia series about researcher Emily Wilde and her insatiable quest to understand the world of faeries. With a missing friend somewhere in Germany’s faerie-haunted Black Forest, we’ll be getting three different viewpoints to tell this story about the most dreaded faerie realm yet.
Devney Perry’s dystopian romance series goes to eight-way auction
Publisher Tor Bramble has successfully walked away from an eight-way auction with the ‘City of Saint’ series by Devney Perry, a set of four interconnected but standalone dystopian romances. After absolutely losing our minds over Perry’s epic ‘Shield of Sparrows’ romantasy series, we cannot wait to become obsessed with a whole new world from the author of more than 50 romance novels. She knows what she’s doing, and we are here for it. The new series is rumoured to be coming our way in the second half of next year, alongside Book 3 in the ‘Shield of Sparrows’ series, which is scheduled for release in March 2027.
Olivie Blake’s dystopian satire novel gets stunning cover treatment
Releasing in August 2027, ‘Newphoria!’ sounds absolutely bizarre, and we already love it. A daring dystopian satire about technology, the internet and a futuristic society overrun by life-or-death tournament games, ‘Newphoria!’ is yet another genre pivot from the author behind dark academia stories like ‘The Atlas Six’ trilogy. Blake spoke about the novel, saying it’s “as much about our capitalist monoculture as it is about the existential stakes of how to live.”
Andy Serkis is releasing his first memoir at the end of this year.
Coming November 3, Andy Serkis is sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a beloved movie star who has been part of huge franchises like ‘The Lord of the Rings’, ‘Planet of the Apes’, ‘Star Wars’ and more. Packed with stories from his time on set, his childhood spent living in unexpected corners of the world, and the creatures and characters that have shaped his extraordinary career, this is bound to be unique, fascinating and probably a little bizarre. We can’t wait.
Rachel Reid donates $300K to save rural libraries from closure
Author of ‘Heated Rivalry’ Rachel Reid has donated $300,000 to five rural branches of a regional library in Canada after discovering they were being forced to close due to a lack of funding. Calling libraries an essential service, Reid’s donation will help keep all 11 branches in the region fully operational through to the end of the 2026–2027 fiscal year. As if we needed another reason to love her!
Could ‘ACOTAR’ and ‘Fourth Wing’ be fashion’s next big inspiration?
Romantasy is now a billion-dollar industry, and Vogue Business is asking whether luxury brands should be paying much more attention to its incredibly passionate fanbase. While official fashion collaborations have been relatively limited so far, experts believe everything from jewellery and corsets to dragon-inspired activewear and elaborate Fae balls could be a huge opportunity. With major new releases from Sarah J. Maas, Rebecca Yarros and other favourites on the way, the influence of the genre could soon extend well beyond our bookshelves.
Gen Z is reading more and choosing print
Despite plenty of headlines suggesting young people are moving away from books, new research is showing the opposite. A recent study found 66% of Gen Z now identify as readers, up 14 percentage points from 2022, while 65% had read at least one physical book in the previous year. Rather than turning entirely to screens, younger readers are increasingly reaching for paper as a form of “digital detox”, giving them a break from the constant noise of phones and social media. Libraries are also seeing a resurgence among younger generations, proving that physical books definitely aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Fern Brady makes the move from memoir to debut novel
Scottish comedian Fern Brady is releasing her debut novel, ‘High Energy Unpleasant’, exploring themes of medical misogyny and bodily autonomy through a character who self-medicates in unorthodox ways. Brady released her brilliant memoir, ‘Strong Female Character’, in 2023, chronicling her experiences with neurodiversity, and we can’t wait to see her sharp, funny writing translate into fiction. ‘High Energy Unpleasant’ is set to release in March 2027.
Tonies reports huge growth in the first half of 2026
Things are going very well in the world of screen-free audio, with revenue reaching approximately NZ$477 million in the first six months of the year, up 38% compared with 2025. Much of the success has been attributed to huge demand for the Toniebox 2, while North America was its fastest-growing market, up 48%, and Australia and New Zealand helped the Rest of World region climb 41%. The company has also confirmed its outlook for the rest of the year, expecting another strong 2026.
The September Book Club Picks are in!
That's all for this book briefing! For more bookish news, new releases, staff picks and plenty more from all the team at Book Hero, follow us on Instagram at @bookheronz and check back here on our blog as we post regularly!
