Hey bookworm friends. I hope you’re having a great start to May! This month is going to be super busy for me but I can’t wait, there’s a lot of fun stuff coming! And lots of great books coming too 😉. This list is slightly smaller than usual but still plenty to enjoy, especially in science fiction which is my biggest category this month. They’re organized loosely by genre categories and then by publishing date. There is one book that published May 1st so I’ll mark it with🎉. Here are 18 books to get excited for, I hope you find something you like🖤.
Book Titles lead to TheStoryGraph links. Except for when it’s not on SG in which case it goes to bookshop.org.
Books To Get Excited For This May
Fantasy
The Hanging Bones by Elle Tesch
⟡ Pub Date: May 12, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: YA Fantasy / Gothic
⟡ Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Some monsters are born. Some are made. All can be killed.
A girl enters a dangerous, magical hunt with the goal of winning the death of her predatory overlord.
The Lustrous Dark by Loretta Chefchaouni
⟡ Pub Date: May 19, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: YA Fantasy / Retelling
⟡ Publisher: Peachtree Teen
Orphaned as a baby, Shay has spent her life training as the midwife’s apprentice. Her role grants her stability, yet Shay has always yearned for more. Namely, motherly affection and answers regarding her mysterious birth—neither of which the midwife deems practical to provide.
Mortedant’s Peril by R. J. Barker
⟡ Pub Date: May 19, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Fantasy Mystery
⟡ Publisher: Tor Books
Irody Hasp is a Mortedant, a cleric tasked with reading the last thoughts of the dead—though no one thanks him for it. No Mortedant is popular, but Irody is scarcely tolerated even by the other members of his own guild, and rarely selected for anything but the lowliest of jobs.
The Palace Beneath The Sea by Lauren Wiesebron
⟡ Pub Date: May 21, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Fantasy
⟡ Publisher: Hodderscape
Nolwenn is sure that her life’s purpose is to defend her beloved city of Ys as a lighthouse keeper. But when a dangerous tide threatens Ys, the queen instead tasks Nolwen with collecting enough rare seasilk to shield the city from deadly sea monsters.
Science Fiction
Lovestuck Maggot by Jarret Brandon Early
⟡ Pub Date: May 1, 2026 🎉
⟡ Sub-genre: Science Fiction Romance
⟡ Publisher: Self Pub
Hardened scavenger, Mona, is smitten with a young recruit named Darien who catches the eye of the reviled Countess Desma Ghool. Darien is abducted and added to Ghool’s revolving collection of unwilling paramours. Mona sets out on a dangerous mission to liberate Darien from Ghool.
Love Galaxy by Sierra Branham
⟡ Pub Date: May 5, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Science Fiction Thriller / Romance
⟡ Publisher: DAW
A young woman from a dead-end planet gets cast on a reality TV show to compete for the hand of the prince—or princess. But not everyone is there for the right reasons…
Cousins From A Distant Sun by Tamar Myers
⟡ Pub Date: May 5, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Cozy Science Fiction
⟡ Publisher: Severn House
An archaeologist is drawn into a mission to save a mysterious community of supernatural beings hiding deep within the Andes.
The Republic of Memory by Mahmud El Sayed
⟡ Pub Date: May 5, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Space Opera / Dystopian
⟡ Publisher: S&S/Saga Press
The Safina is a city ship, two hundred years into its voyage from the ruins of Earth towards a new habitable world. Its crew maintain the ship, generation after generation, while protecting their ‘ancestors’. But a lot can change in two hundred years, and people are starting to ask questions.
And Side by Side They Wander by Molly Tanzer
⟡ Pub Date: May 19, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Science Fiction Novella
⟡ Publisher: Tordotcom
For three hundred years, humanity’s greatest works of art have been on loan at the Museum of the Seed-Born. It was finally time for them to come home…but the alien curators were disinclined to return them.
Romance
Strange Familiars by Keshe Chow
⟡ Pub Date: May 7, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Romantasy / Dark Academia
⟡ Publisher: Ace
Two scholars of magical veterinary science must put aside their lust and loathing to save the world as they know it.
Deathbringer by Sonia Tagliareni
⟡ Pub Date: May 12, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Romantasy / Dark Academia / Mystery
⟡ Publisher: Atria Books
Set within the perilous halls of a magical institute, as a death mage who hates her magic and a poison mage who hates her are forced to work together to stop a killer before one of them is next.
Behind Five Willows by June Hur
⟡ Pub Date: May 26, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: YA Historical Romance
⟡ Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
A homage to Jane Austen set in historical Korea, about a reader and a writer who secretly fight against government book banning and find themselves irresistibly drawn together.
Horr0r
Spider, Spider by L. C. Winter
⟡ Pub Date: May 5, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Historical / Gothic
⟡ Publisher: September Publishing
Young Nancy Ratcliffe is on the run. Her father had sought refuge for his family with the Brethren, led by the charismatic but dangerous Prophet. But now her father is gravely ill, and even the sooty streets of Victorian London hold less terror for Nancy than the brutality of Brethren Hall.
The Temptation of Charlotte North by Camilla Bruce
⟡ Pub Date: May 19, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Historical / Gothic Fantasy
⟡ Publisher: Del Rey
Be careful what you wish for. It might come true….
A rebellious young woman desperate to escape her predetermined life joins forces with an unlikely ally—a sinister spirit
Bone of My Bone by Johanna van Veen
⟡ Pub Date: May 26, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Folk Horror / Historical Fantasy
⟡ Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
It is said that if you reunite the saint’s skull with her body, a wish will be granted. Desperate for salvation, and each with secret desires of their own, a young nun and a sharp-witted peasant, follow a ragged map across the blighted countryside.
Mythology & Mystery
Library After Dark by Ande Pliego
⟡ Pub Date: May 5, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Mystery Thriller
⟡ Publisher: Bantam
A bookseller must escape the infamously haunted library that holds her darkest secrets, but with a murderer in her tour group, escaping alive is not as simple as it seems.
The Lost Book of Lancelot by John Glynn
⟡ Pub Date: May 12, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Arthurian Myth Retelling / Historical Fantasy
⟡ Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
A queer retelling of the legend of Sir Lancelot, following the famous knight as he grows up orphaned, falls in love, and attempts to fulfill his destiny at the Round Table.
Andromeda by E. S. McLeod
⟡ Pub Date: May 14, 2026
⟡ Sub-genre: Greek Myth Retelling
⟡ Publisher: Bantam
Blessed by the gods with unparalleled beauty, Andromeda lives a life of ease within her Aethiopian palace walls. Content with her sanctuary, the young princess has no concerns other than the royal expectations her parents have for her – until a single, fateful proclamation changes everything.
I wish you nothing but great books in May!🖤
I did my best to list the expected pub dates but you never know, dates can change. If you’re interested in any of these releases please make sure you keep an eye on the latest updates in your part of the world.
Let’s chat in the comments!
Are you looking forward to any of these? Or, did I miss any that you would add to the list?
May definitely has potential! I have a few of these on my plate: Strange Familiars, Mortedant’s Peril and The Temptation of Charlotte North. I hope you enjoy whatever you’re able to read😁
Yes, it’s got quite a few things I’m curious about! I hope you enjoy those three if you do try them and thank you :D!
The first two fantasy titles are new to me so of course those ones went straight onto my TBR 😂 I’ve already read Mortedant’s Peril and would definitely be curious to see what you think of it. Love Galaxy sounds like it should be a fun read. I added Republic Of Memory to my TBR based on Gem’s review. I’ve been seeing Strange Familiars everywhere, it seems like such a popular title!! I cant wait to read Behind Five Willows having loved another book by the author before. It sounds so good too 😍 and I recentlt added Spider, Spider to my TBR thanks to Instagram; I mean how could I not with that cover! I’m also pretty sure the last five listed here are also on my own TBR, they all sound so good. Plus I saw a lovely review for Andromeda recently. I hope you love all of these whenever you get to them 🥰
Haha to be fair, your TBR is where fantasy books belong, they have a lot of good company there 😉. Ah nice, I need to go check out if you shared your thoughts on Mortedant’s Peril. Love Galaxy sounds like a generally fun premise. I keep hearing great things about Republic of Memory too! I haven’t read anything by June Hur yet but a couple have captured my curiosity. I just knew Spider, Spider would be up your gothic alley! That cover is honestly gorgeous! Oh that’s awesome haha! Andromeda sounds incredible 🙂 Thank you!
Thats very true, they’ll certainly never lack for familiar company 😂 thanks for reading my review 🥰 and I’ve seen even more positive ones about Republic Of Memory since so it certainly seems to be a popular one. I hope you manage to try something by June Hur soon. I actually have one other of her books on my shelves and really must get on and read it 🙈 you know me well 😂
Hey, more from Molly Tanzer! 🙂
I haven’t read anything from Molly Tanzer yet, what have you read and loved by the author?
We get the next Murderbot book in May! I’m really looking forward to that one in a couple of days. Happy reading!
I’m excited for you and I hope you love it! Happy reading to you, too!
What a great list! From your list, I’m excited to read Cousins from a Distant Sun. I’m also really looking forward to The Midnight Train by Matt Haig this month 🙂 So many books, so little time.
So many books so little time, So accurate! I’m particularly excited about Cousins from a Distant Sun too and I hope you enjoy it if you give it a try! I have not read any Matt Haig books but I hope you love this newest one 😀