From Thrillers to Self-Help, Cozy Winter Books to Read in 2026

With winter and the New Year here, there’s never been a better time to curl up with a good book and keep those resolutions to read more. We found a few books that fit different genres and interests that’ll make you look forward to staying in with a good read. 

Snowy Escape: The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller

Rather than retreat from winter with a beach read, lean into the season with Andrew Miller’s acclaimed book, The Land in Winter. This historical novel is set in England during the “Big Freeze” winter of 1962-1963, and follows two neighboring married couples who are both expecting children around the same time. Although the couples seem similar on the surface, there are stark differences and hidden stories to each of the characters—some of which are revealed as the cold winter drags on and secrets come out.

In addition to the central theme of one of the most brutal British winters on record, the novel also grapples with historical issues like England in the shadow of World War II and the seismic cultural shifts happening in the 1960s. The recently released book won the 2025 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, was named a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and was shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize.

Thriller: Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins 

Recently published in March 2025, Sunrise on the Reaping is the second prequel to Suzanne Collins’ groundbreaking The Hunger Games series. This book tells the backstory of a young Haymitch Abernathy, who later becomes Katniss Everdeen’s cynical mentor in the original Hunger Games trilogy. This story is set in Panem 24 years prior to the original, during the 50th anniversary Hunger Games. Whereas the novels centering on Katniss focus more on broader rebellion and revolution themes, this book puts a spotlight on the personal psychological and emotional toll of the Games.

It’s an especially good read to add to your list for the new year, as the big-screen version is due in theaters November 20, 2026. Expect to see Joseph Zada as a young Haymitch and Maya Hawke as Haymitch’s mentor, Wiress. 

Thought-Provoking: We Survived the Night by Julian Brave NoiseCat

Readers looking to expand horizons in the new year need to check out We Survived the Night by Julian Brave NoiseCat. The book draws on NoiseCat’s own nuanced upbringing with a Secwepemc father and Jewish-Irish mother, and his personal experiences as a powwow dancer, as well as his abandonment by his father.

Decades later, NoiseCat sets out on a journey to explore Indigenous stories, putting him in contact with activists campaigning to change the Washington football team’s name and movements against the Dakota Access Pipeline. He also retraces his own family’s journey honoring the 50th anniversary of the Alcatraz Occupation. Genre-defying and as much a work of personal reflection and memoir as it is a work of journalism, history, and Native American storytelling, this eye-opening book is a must-read for 2026. 

Self-Help: The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can’t Stop Talking About by Mel Robbins

If you didn’t read this buzzy book when it first came out in late 2024, put it on your list for 2026. For its premise, Robbins, a podcast host, bestselling author, lawyer, and expert in personal growth, puts an interesting twist on self-help: stop giving other people power over you. Just let them—a version of radical acceptance and letting go. This theme is threaded throughout the book in a freeing message to rid yourself of others’ opinions, judgments, and dramas. 

From there, Robbins goes into how to apply the Let Them theory to eight key areas of your life, as well as ways to appropriately redirect the energy you were wasting. Throughout the book, Robbins reinforces her message by using personal anecdotes, advice from experts in different fields, ancient wisdom, and relevant research. 

New and Anticipated Early-2026 Release: Woman Down by Colleen Hoover

The latest novel from popular New York Times-bestselling author Colleen Hoover is due out January 13, 2026—prime time to curl up with this twisty, romantic thriller. In the novel, Petra Rose is an acclaimed author, facing cancel-culture over a gone-awry film adaptation of one of her books. Battling unpaid bills and zero inspiration, she runs off to a secluded lakeside cabin, hoping to reignite her writing career. Things take a turn when Petra meets detective Nathaniel Saint. On one hand, Saint’s presence sparks her creativity—inspiring her to write a law enforcement character who is eerily close to Saint himself. On the other hand, Petra’s “research” sessions get a little too personal and she finds herself in over her head. 

Readers should buckle up—early reviews and even Hoover herself say this is the author’s “darkest book yet.” People may also appreciate the timely parallels between Petra’s struggles and Hoover’s own controversies following the film adaptation of her novel, It Ends With Us. 

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