I had high hopes for 2026 reads and watches. Those haven’t gone very well, still here’s a little bit on stuff that stood out.
Maggie the Undying #1: This Kingdom will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews
Ilona Andrews never disappoints. This book was so amazing and so much fun! Definitely one of my top 10 reads for 2026. The audiobook narrated by Kristen Sieh probably made the book stand out even more, so special shout-out to her.
This book plays on the “Isekai” trope, where a real world character falls into a fictional world and now must play by the rules of the fictional world while also managing to survive there. I really like this trope and have seen it in Asian TV dramas, but never before in books.
Earth-born Maggie finds herself transported to Rellas, a war-torn fictional world from her favorite SFF books. If she is not careful, she might just get killed. Except… she cannot die permanently… AND she knows what’s going to happen next, so that’s pretty great, right?
Nope. Just when you think that Maggie’s victory if guaranteed, plot twists arrive! Because not dying and knowing a book’s contents come with their own sets of problems.
I have not seen a single reader who did not like this book. Do yourself a favor and read it NOW. Yes, it ends on a cliffhanger, but the found family trope, the ensemble cast is so damn good… Absolutely amazing!
Long Live Evil (Time of Iron #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan
Is this the Isekai year for me? I’d avoided reading this book because I thought it was YA, but folks, that’s a mistake! This New Adult book is downright hilarious, totally moving and very, very clever! Rae in the earthly human world is almost on her dying bed, when she is given the chance to travel to the fictional world of Eyam and win the Flower of Life for herself. Rae naturally accepts, but in Eyam, she is the villainess about to be executed for her crimes. How is she going to get out of this? How is she going to convince her handmaiden, her step-sister, her emperor, her loyal guard etc. etc. etc. that she has finally reformed?
Even if she manages to get out of this conundrum, there’s war at the edges of Eyam and a vengeful god’s son is prophesied to return and ghouls are climbing out of the Abyss?
I highly recommend the audiobook narrated by Moira Quirk, who can do a matchless range of voices for the huge ensemble cast in this one. I am currently reading/ listening to the sequel, All Hail Chaos.
Highly recommended! I cannot believe that I had overlooked this gem.
Deadloch – Season 1 (Amazon Prime)
A hidden gem! This police detective show is set in a quaint Australian (Tasmanian) town which has been notably open to immigrants and the LGBTQ community. A serial killer is on the loose, and right till the very end, nobody — including the TV audience — is able to figure out the whodunnit. This is quirky dark humor at its finest, and I can’t believe more people are not talking about it. I was forcing myself to watch it shorter sessions that it would last longer!
The Courage to be Ordinary by Ichiro Kishimi
I really, really wanted to like this book by the author of the more acclaimed, The Courage to be Disliked. As always, Kishimi writes with a lot of heart and idealism. But I also found the book surprisingly littered with generalizations, personal biases and absolutes (always, never, none, all, inevitable).
At first, the book tries to give possible reasons why and how people think they are inferior or superior or compete with others. Then it becomes a long meandering philosophy on hard work and cooperation. Should, should and more should. At no time is there any acknowledgment of how external circumstances and other people’s antagonism, despite one’s best efforts, may genuinely work against the person. There were some golden nuggets of wisdom here and there which kept me going, but ultimately I found the book too dense for my taste.
The Wonderfools (Netflix)
This is a Korean sci-fi+comedy drama. I have never seen the likes of it before, so it was a breath of fresh air. The first episode was unexpectedly dark, as humans with mutant abilities start showing up in a backwaters town, along with a super creepy cult….
But that’s just the first episode. Right when I thought I wasn’t sure on continuing, the show starts getting warmer, curioser and curioser… and funnier! HEAPS funnier! By the last 3 episodes, I was hooting away with laughter into the night. Phenomenal acting by the entire cast.
If you’re looking for a blend of creepy sci-fi, action, comedy and found family trope, this should be your very next stop.
Have you read or watched any of these? Are you also struggling with your to-be-read and to-watch piles? What has been your first half of 2026 like?