8 Best New Books Releasing in June 2026

The Sixth Nik

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Blending two of our go-to genres – sci-fi and horror – as well as plenty of action and adventure, Daniel Kraus’ The Sixth Nik is right at the top of our to be read (TBR) list this month. Plus, we know we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but just look at it.

Set deep in space, abroad The Sickness – “a ship woven from biomatter and capable of reacting to every need of its human crew” – a nine-year-old cultist whose brain has been enhanced by arcane tech known as “niks”, boards with one goal in mind, to find out more about a plague-riddled planet that has abruptly gone rogue. However, the crew are keeping their cards close to their chests and The Sickness is mutating and hiding secrets of its own. Intrigued? We know we are.

Thrilling Tales of Modern Men: Stories by Danny McBride

Release date: June 23

Thrilling Tales of Modern Men

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Many of us will know Danny McBride from his starring roles on everything from The Righteous Gemstones and Eastbound & Down, to box office hits like Pineapple Express, Tropic Thunder, and even Alien: Covenant. Though, he’s now equally as well known for writing, producing and creating, as we saw from the recent Halloween reboot. Yet, he’s been writing short fiction since childhood, and he’s now bringing us a collection of short stories that we can’t wait to get stuck into.

With lots of crazy twists and turns and even a few emotional moments, each story aims to probe what he refers to as “the fragile masculinity that’s become inherent to modern American culture” and the modern man. There’s a washed-up sitcom actor who is looking to take revenge on the coyote that killed his dog, an amateur magician taking on a deadly stunt at a local mall – of all places – plus much more. If it’s anything like we’ve come to know and expect from him, we don’t think we’ll be disappointed.

Bonus Deal: 3 Months of Audible for $0.99 Per Month

New and Return Subscribers

3 Months of Audible Standard for $0.99/mo

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Quick bonus mention before we move on, as Audible’s latest summer deal is now live. Both new and returning Audible subscribers can sign up for three months of Audible Standard for just $0.99 per month for three months.

Standard gets one free audiobook per month that you can read so long as you maintain your membership. The upper tier, Premium Plus, gets you one free audiobook that you keep indefinitely, which is the major difference between the two.

Unless you really want an audiobook to keep every month, then the Standard subscription is definitely the better deal. You’ll save $72 on subscription fees per year not including the discount you’re getting with this current deal. If there any books on here that you want to listen to, Audible is likely the way to read even more for the next few months.

The Unicorn Hunters by Katherine Arden

Release date: June 2

The Unicorn Hunters

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From the author of the Winternight Trilogy comes a fantastical new read. Anne of Brittany’s life has been blighted by pain and loss, and with her territory now being occupied by her enemies, the last remaining objective to complete her realm’s subjugation is her forced marriage to the King of France. Yet, this is something she promised her deceased father that she would never do, as she would never let her home be conquered by the French. Which is why she secretly betroths herself to France’s biggest enemy, and to keep them off her back, she tells them that she’s going unicorn hunting, even though that is far from the truth.

However, when she enters the forest, a unicorn actually appears and alongside it a wounded stranger. What ensues is something that will possibly change not only her destiny, but the destiny of an entire nation.

Headlights by CJ Leede

Release date: June 9 (US) and June 18 (UK)

Headlights

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It would be concerning enough if a slew of people were waking up on the side of the highway, with no memory of how they got there. The fact that they’re coming to clad in the skin of other victims is obviously even more alarming. And it’s not the first time that this has happened.

With Special Agent Daniel Stansfield getting ready to hand in his gun and badge, and leave the FBI for good, he’s pulled back in on his very last day on the job, as he’s summoned back to the exact place that he ran from four years earlier. In order not to end up as one of the next victims, he’ll need to deal with his own demons and trauma to do so.

Exodus: The Helium Sea by Peter F. Hamilton

Release date: June 18

Exodus: The Helium Sea

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If you’re looking for an epic sci-fi action-adventure RPG to be completely swept up in – at over 750 pages, it will certainly do that – look no further than the conclusion to the Archimedes Engine duology. And there’s still plenty of time to catch up or reacquaint yourself with the first book in the series before this one’s release.

Picking back up with the Crown Dominion in crisis, this very much could be a turning point for the Centauri Cluster, as an exiled faction makes their return and demands vengeance for what has happened to them and their people over the past few thousand years.

At the same time, this might be good news for Finn and his fellow humans. However, will they be able to band together to earn their own independence and power in the Crown Dominion? It’s going to take courage and tenacity, as well as a little help from the ancient artifacts – the ones with the power to give them what could just be a much needed edge.

We’ve also got an exclusive extract from the new novel, that you can read right here on IGN.

This Immortal Heart by Jennifer Saint

Release date: June 4 (UK) and June 9 (US)

This Immortal Heart

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We always get excited by a new Jennifer Saint book, and this time she’s taking on the tale of Aphrodite and Ares. What happens when the Goddess of Love and the God of War fall in love? Well, as you might imagine, things don’t go too smoothly.

When fate brings the two opposing deities together, it only confirms that even the gods aren’t immune to love and to loss. But can their connection protect them from the fates of Mount Olympus? Or will their love end up ruining them both? Essentially, if you love a good mythological retelling or reimagining, this is one that you won’t want to miss out on.

The Someday Garden by Ashley Poston

Release date: June 16

The Someday Garden

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For fans of magical realism, sprinkled with a healthy dose of romance, we personally can’t get enough of Ashley Poston’s books (if you haven’t given The Dead Romantics a read yet, you are seriously missing out), and her latest one centres around a small-town love triangle and a mysterious garden. As the title would allude to.

It follows Sophie, someone who isn’t necessarily chasing or looking for love, but who finds it all the same in the bucolic gardens and hedge maze of Lilymoor House. Yet, when she discovers a door that seems to move each time that she sees it, it leads to a completely different and altogether unkempt garden where a grump of a man is trapped inside. I mean, we would probably feel the same way if we were trapped in a secret garden too. And what follows is a brilliant grumpy x sunshine story, where – if you pardon the pun – love may very well bloom.

The Adventures of Juan Planchard by Jonathan Jakubowicz

Release date: June 2 (UK) and June 9 (US)

The Adventures of Juan Planchard

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Already a huge hit in Latin America, Jonathan Jakubowicz’s The Adventures of Juan Planchard gets its international release this June, and with it being compared to Scarface meets The Wolf of Wall Street, it’s safe to say that it’s piqued our interest, too.

Taking advantage of and playing into the rampant corruption taking place in his own country, Juan soon has millions in the bank and access to the very finest things in life. From private jets and model girlfriends, to the opportunity to befriend many an oligarch, it turns out that power is the most important currency of all. Leaning into that greed, and all things morally grey, could everything change when he meets Scarlet? Or might she end up being the reason for his eventual downfall?

Ellis is a freelance journalist, based in the UK, with a love of all things books. She also routinely chairs bookish events up and down the country, getting the scoop from some of the biggest and bestselling authors to keep you in the know.