Daily Book News Monday, 12th January 2026
Publishing’s first full weekend of 2026 was anything but sleepy. A fresh slate of deals saw thriller star Freida McFadden re‑up with Sourcebooks while Angry Robot and other presses snapped up new fiction; industry reports tallied modest gains in 2025 print sales and a surprise Bible boom. Meanwhile, critics and columnists pondered upcoming releases, AI‑assisted translation, reading ambience and more..
Publishing Industry News
Bestselling thriller author Freida McFadden, who had three of 2025’s top‑selling books, extended her partnership with Sourcebooks. The publisher bought world English print rights to three new novels to be released from 2027–2028, continuing the momentum that has already sparked film adaptations.
Publishers Weekly’s latest rights roundup reports that Putnam nabbed North American rights to Monika Kim’s novel *What Hungers in the Dark*, Bloomsbury inked a two‑book deal with Rebecca Flint Marx, Ballantine bought world rights to K.L. Speer’s thriller *Bones*, and additional deals include Antony Johnston’s *The Forest of Death* and Emma MacDonald’s satirical “romantasyland” project.
Publishers Weekly’s year‑end report shows print book sales in the U.S. rising 0.3 % to 762.4 million units in 2025. Adult fiction grew 1 %, romance climbed 3.9 %, and fantasy sagged 8.7 %. Non‑fiction declined 1.5 %, while Mel Robbins’s self‑help title *The Let Them Theory* was the year’s top seller.
Driven by uncertainty and a surge in faith‑based interest, Bible sales reached a 21‑year high in the United States at 19 million units (up 12 %). U.K. sales were up 134 % compared with 2008, indicating renewed demand for religious texts.
Atlantic Books’ crime imprint Corvus named Stephanie Carey as editorial director. She joins from Embla Books and previously worked at Joffe Books, bringing experience in digital‑first publishing to Corvus.
Book Industry Communication, the U.K. standards organisation for book supply chains, added librarian Sue Kelly and production specialist Sheila Pinder to its board. The appointments follow BIC’s nomination process and broaden its expertise.
Imprint Angry Robot acquired debut author S Hati’s novel *The Carousel of Forgotten Places*, described as a time‑travel romantasy exploring motherhood, memory and family. The rights deal was announced on 9 January.
Hera, the digital‑first publisher, announced a deal for *Such a Nice Boy*, a debut novel that explores online safety and toxic masculinity. The book was pitched as a conversation‑starter about modern parenting.
Fox & Ink Books acquired two works by poet and children’s author A.F. Harrold: the novel *Thorn*, due in August 2026, and a poetry collection titled *If I Met a Tiger* planned for November. The deal reflects Fox & Ink’s growing children’s list.
Spiracle Audiobooks’ innovative “Audiobook in a Card” product—an audio download embedded in a greeting card—was shortlisted in two categories of the U.K.’s Gift of the Year awards, highlighting crossover opportunities between gifts and publishing.
The new Gambling Book Awards, created to recognise literature about gambling culture and impact, announced its first shortlist of four titles. The awards were launched in September 2025 and aim to bring greater attention to books on the subject.
Good e‑Reader reports that Baker & Taylor, the United States’ largest distributor of print books to public libraries, is shutting down. The 200‑year‑old company will cease both physical and digital distribution, forcing thousands of libraries to migrate to other suppliers and exposing the fragility of relying on a single distributor.
Self‑Publishing & Independent Publishing News
The Alliance of Independent Authors’ news roundup notes that review journal **Kirkus** acquired **AudioFile** magazine and plans to integrate its audiobook coverage. The post also reports that long‑time Publishers Weekly editor Andrew Albanese has been named editor‑in‑chief of *Publishing Perspectives*, bringing industry‑insider experience to that digital trade magazine.
Good e‑Reader reports that shadow‑library site Anna’s Archive had its primary .org domain suspended and has switched to alternative domains. The site—a metadata aggregator for sources like Z‑Library, Sci‑Hub and Library Genesis—warned users to check its Wikipedia page for current domains and urged donations to stay afloat.
Speculation swirling on social media suggests that Amazon’s Kindle devices could gain access to third‑party cloud storage such as OneDrive and Google Drive. Currently only the Kindle Scribe supports these services; Good e‑Reader notes Amazon’s forthcoming AI features like Story So Far and Ask This Book and hints at DRM‑free EPUB/PDF downloads becoming available to Kindle users.
Amazon’s First Reads promotion for January allows Prime members to download two of nine editor‑selected Kindle e‑books at no cost, while non‑members pay a discounted price. The featured titles span genres from suspense (*Read Between the Lies*) to fantasy (*The People’s Library*) and add a permanent volume to readers’ libraries.
Academic & Scholarly Publishing
Publishing Perspectives reports that after textbook authors complained about guidance on the Anthropic AI copyright‑infringement settlement, publisher Sage has agreed to clarify that authors may pursue claims beyond their standard royalty rate. The Textbook & Academic Authors Association urged authors to opt out or file claims before March 8 and May 5 deadlines, and a corrected email has been sent.
A Publishing Perspectives feature explores two current stories about AI and translation. In France, translators protested Harlequin/HarperCollins for using a machine‑translation firm, arguing it undermines cultural stewardship. Meanwhile, Japanese publishers are using AI to detect and block manga piracy, with support from the Agency for Cultural Affairs and KDDI.
The Society for Scholarly Publishing’s Pulse Check survey gathered 563 responses from scholarly publishers. Results show AI adoption is widespread but inconsistent; respondents see opportunities in efficiency and improved quality but worry about ethics, legal concerns and preparedness.
Notable Book News & Book Reviews
The Guardian’s 9 January review column surveys new science‑fiction releases. Van Jensen’s *Godfall* follows a sheriff investigating murders after an alien’s arrival in Nebraska, Rebecca Ferrier’s *The Salt Bind* blends magic and romance, and the roundup also discusses works by Shen Tao, Peter F. Hamilton and Brian Aldiss.
Novelist Sarah Moss tells The Guardian she never loved *Wuthering Heights* as much as *Jane Eyre* and recalls reading *The Witches* under the covers as a child. She praises the observational wit of Barbara Pym and says John Updike’s short stories influenced her writing.
A Guardian reviewer calls Manish Chauhan’s novel *Belgrave Road* a tender depiction of love among Leicester’s Gujarati community. The book’s protagonist Mira encounters love described as both “disease and medicine,” and the narrative portrays the isolation faced by immigrants in Britain.
Mark Fisher’s 10 January Guardian essay argues that writers like Jorge Luis Borges foresaw contemporary realities such as mass surveillance, the metaverse and populist nationalism. He highlights Borges’s 1941 story “The Garden of Forking Paths” as an early exploration of multiverse theory.
Irish Times columnist Mary O’Donnell writes that Gothic fiction offers a way to explore humanity’s “raging shadow side.” She argues that reading gothic stories allows readers to map the imagination and confront anxieties.
Harry Clifton’s poem “Swatragh fever,” published by the Irish Times, conjures a rainy night in a bar where a feverish man listens to talk of towns, politics and ghosts. The poem captures atmosphere through rain, conversation and an “ashen‑faced” youth.
The Irish Times highlights forthcoming nonfiction titles such as Katriona O’Sullivan’s memoir *Hungry: A Biography of My Body*, Aimee Donnellan’s health‑focused *Off the Scales*, and Michael Harding’s reflective collection *A Maybe Morning*.
A companion article previews 2026’s most anticipated novels. Highlights include Maggie O’Farrell’s multigenerational epic *Land*, which spans decades and continents, and new work from international and Irish authors.
An index of Irish Independent book articles dated 9 January advertises several pieces: a review of Tom Hindle’s Costa Rica–set murder mystery with a killer twist; features on two new David Bowie biographies released for the 10th anniversary of his death; columnist Madeleine Keane’s New Year resolution to keep a reading journal; and a review of Tanya Sweeney’s dark debut *Esther is Now Following You* that offers a sex‑, drugs‑ and rock’n’roll spin on Bridget Jones. Full articles are behind a paywall, but the headlines signal a mix of crime fiction, music biography and debut‑novel commentary.
The Irish Examiner’s 9 January books page notes two features: a children’s and young‑adult recommendations column offering free sample chapters to start 2026, and an opinion piece cautioning readers not to let end‑of‑year lists dictate their reading plans. Access to full articles is restricted, but the headlines indicate a focus on children’s books and reader autonomy.
The Washington Post highlights a trend in which readers use “ambience videos” and playlists—like crackling fireplaces or cozy coffee shops—to create immersive reading environments. BookTok and YouTube creators curate these soundscapes, and the article suggests these digital backdrops make reading feel like a special event.
Reviewing Kevin Birmingham’s biography *Nothing Random*, the Washington Post notes that Bennett Cerf co‑founded Random House, published writers from Faulkner to Ayn Rand, and enjoyed a glamorous personal life. The book details his publishing adventures and the glamorous milieu of mid‑20th‑century New York.
The Post’s critic finds Xiaolu Guo’s gender‑flipped *Moby‑Dick* retelling *Call Me Ishmaelle* promising in concept but lacking in execution. The review argues that Guo’s novel doesn’t add much insight to Melville’s classic and struggles to sustain its reinterpretation.
LitHub’s Book Marks column rounds up the week’s best‑reviewed titles. Critically hailed books include Ben Markovits’ novel *The Rest of Our Lives*, Stefan Merrill Block’s campus novel *Homeschooled* and Xiaolu Guo’s *Call Me Ishmaelle*. Reviewers praised the books’ rich characterisation and originality.
In a craft‑focused essay, author David Arndt urges writers to give themselves ample time, read widely and write at the same time each day. He cites Marcus Aurelius and other writers to illustrate how reading and writing in tandem sharpens creative instincts.
Good e‑Reader reports that InkPoster and Italian design house Pininfarina have launched the Duna, a 40‑inch color ePaper art frame that uses E Ink Spectra 6 technology. The frame shows more than 60,000 colours with no backlight, runs for a year on one charge and is expected to cost around $6,000.
