Risingshadow: February 2026 Edition

Books to Read If You Miss Hawkins Already The final episode has rolled, the synth music fades out, and suddenly there is a familiar feeling. That empty pause when a story you followed for years is truly over. Stranger Things was never just a show, it was a mix of nostalgia, friendship, creeping horror, and the sense that something impossible could be hiding just beneath everyday life. If you are missing Hawkins and wondering what to watch next, there is good news. Many books explore the same ... [read more]

(Dresden Files #18)

Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, has always managed to save the day—but, in this powerful entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files, can he save himself? One year. 365 days. Twelve months. Harry Dresden has been through a lot, and so has his city. After Harry and his allies narrowly managed to save Chicago from being razed to the ground, everything is different—and it’s not just the current lack of electricity. In the battle, Harry lost people he cared ... [read more]

FantasyUrban Fantasy

(Expeditionary Force #19)

The mission to destroy the enemy Gateway was literally a smashing success. Except the Pirates were too late, and now not one but two of the enemy are loose in the galaxy. And they are equipped with starships more powerful than Valkyrie. A direct fight would be hopeless, so the Pirates must rely on wacky ideas from the mushy brain of a monkey—and some serious sketchiness. [read more]

Science Fiction

(Pendergast #23)

From the #1 New York Times bestselling duo Preston and Child comes the Agent Pendergast origin story—a golden opportunity for longtime fans and new readers to learn about Agent Pendergast’s strange and shocking first case. It only took six months for the life of Special Agent Dwight Chambers to crumble around him. First, he lost his partner, and then, tragically, his wife. Returning to work at the New Orleans Field Office, Chambers is dismayed to find himself saddled with mentoring a brand ... [read more]

HorrorThrillerMystery

(The Firebird Chronicles #6)

With the alien scourge responsible for the greatest war in humanity’s history in full retreat, Kira Forrest anticipates a few months of rest and relaxation while she and her found family recover from their ordeal. Her hard earned peace is cut short when an attack on the Great Houses reveals cracks in the very foundation of the empire. When blame is laid at the feet of Kira’s birth house, she will have to find the true perpetrators quick if she wants to protect her new home and everyone ... [read more]

FantasyScience FictionRomance

(Last Life #10)

Max has attempted to decipher the ancient script and get answers to his questions, but so far, all these attempts have ended in failure. It's time for a new plan of action. It's time to prepare for the attack his enemies will inevitably launch. And that attack is coming soon - Max has no doubt about that whatsoever. The dark assassin's visit to the Fox Den? That was just the beginning. Besides the renewed activity among the dark forces, the fragile balance of power in Mainland has finally been ... [read more]

FantasyLitRPG

(A Budding Scientist in a Fantasy World #3)

When Alice Verianna went to sleep one night, she was just another teen from the Denver suburbs. She definitely didn’t expect to be transported to an alternate dimension presided over by a mysterious System. Since then, this scientist has navigated her way through monsters, magic, and the shadowy Society of Starry Eyes. In the third volume of this imaginative and highly detailed LitRPG adventure, the System has crashed, and Alice and her companions are trying to pick up the shattered pieces. ... [read more]

FantasyLitRPG

(Shadowbound Fae #2)

If you can’t beat ’em… burn it all down. The fae royalty think I’m their toy. Their entertainment. But I’m the only thing standing between their glittering world and the darkness waiting to consume mine. To buy us time, Tarian enters me into the court games—a bloodsport for the bored and cruel. No allies. No protection. Just monsters wearing crowns and smiling as they watch me fall. My odds of survival? Slim. My resolve? Unbreakable. They’ve always underestimated me. I exist in the ... [read more]

FantasyUrban Fantasy

(The Fractured Crown Trilogy #2)

She survived the Forest Court. She survived the bargain. But will she survive the hunt? Cast out and marked for death, Briar believed the hunt would end if she managed to survive for three days. She was very wrong. Because with Malus free, old magic has awakened, hungry and wrong. Something that has slept for centuries has begun to stir, and it wants what Briar carries in her blood. When the Dawn Court offers sanctuary, Briar has to choose between the safety of light and the pull of shadows. ... [read more]

FantasyRomantasy

(Elydes #3)

Pirates have left Sylspring in charred ruins. The Merian governor is all too eager to sweep the accident under the rug to safeguard his reputation. A reassuring front, while undercover investigators sweep the streets to uproot the rebels. With a brand new profession and one too many secrets, Kai knows it’s time to make himself scarce. What better place to disappear to than right under the governor’s nose in the archipelago’s capital, Higharbor? Sailing to the largest city in the isles ... [read more]

Epic FantasyHigh FantasyLitRPGAdventureDark Fantasy

(To Win a Dark Heart #3)

A widowed queen trapped by her past. A giant who just wants to be left alone. A fowl curse that could cost them both everything. Lindy never wanted to get married or have children—especially not seven stepsons old enough to be her brothers and a doddering royal husband. Just when it seems like things couldn’t possibly get any worse, the king suddenly dies, and her sinister reputation for casting curses means that all eyes and fingers are pointed at her. Rather than support their new ... [read more]

FantasyRomanceYoung AdultRetellingsFairy Tale Retellings

(Azarinth Healer #6)

Ilea survived the eclipse on Erendar, and she didn’t return alone. With the Meadow settling in Hallowfort and her third class finally unlocked, Ilea finds herself looking for new ways to test and improve her powers. After duelling a few locals, delving into the depths of a rotten, forgotten tomb, battle-testing her Sentinel students, and herding a literal bunch of cats, Ilea decides to get back to her roots. The green-eyed machines left behind by the Taleen. But this time, she’s not ... [read more]

FantasyLitRPG

(Supernatural Investigations #4)

The gripping fourth book in the #1 New York Times bestselling Supernatural Investigations series that began with Amari and the Night Brothers! Perfect for fans of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and Nevermoor. In the wake of the extreme losses to the Bureau during the war with Dylan Van Helsing and the magicians, Amari has stepped back from being a Junior Agent to spend the school year as a normal kid. But as she prepares to graduate eighth grade, ... [read more]

FantasyYoung AdultChildrens

(Ajax's Ascension #5)

Ajax just made a name for himself on the international stage by winning the under fifty tournament, now he will continue his trip outside the borders of Gryndor as he goes to delve into the Dungeons of Sylvanthal and Deepwood. How will he get along with his former competition? How will the foreign nobles react to his presence? What about his friends all of whom are children of high ranking nobles. Ajax will keep pushing himself to fight in dungeons more than twice his own level in his quest for power. [read more]

FantasyLitRPGSword and Sorcery

(Mimic & Me #5)

A man and a mimic, stuck in a battle between gods... We've assembled a unified force of monsters and adventurers. Chester has so many new transformations he's gone from one-mimic army to one-mimic armada. But it still isn't enough. The Calamities are overriding the System itself. We're stalked through our dreams by a monster who can see into our hearts and souls. Our only option is to acquire some divine power for ourselves. Let's just hope that me and Chester's followers don't end up killing each other in some crazy religious schism. [read more]

FantasyLitRPG

The Pied Piper Meets The Cruel Prince and Throne Of Glass in this Dark Fairy-Tale Retelling Romantasy Her Duty. To ProtectHis Mission. To ConquerHer Secrets Will Destroy Him.His Heart? Already intertwined. In a world where magical creatures like the fae are thought extinct, arena warrior Morana is forced to become the bodyguard of the cunning, ruthless, egotistical and let’s not forget, achingly handsome prince of Apollo. Morana would rather be in the arena instead of guarding a prince whose ... [read more]

FantasyRomanceRetellingsFairy Tale RetellingsRomantasy

(Prince of Sin #3)

“Beware of waking the gods, their dreams are often our nightmares...” A book of dangerous magic draws two readers into a perilous quest to find it—and their own happy ending—in this action-packed standalone fantasy romance from New York Times bestselling sensation Kerri Maniscalco. A prince who prefers games of the head to those of the heart. Prince Sloth hates leaving his enchanted library, but when a forgotten deity threatens the very fabric of the Underworld, he’s thrust into a ... [read more]

FantasyYoung AdultHistorical Fiction

(Sols & Shades #1)

The Hunt was intended to make us an example, not a threat. That changes now. Thirty-year-old Orelle Bren knows the best way to avoid death is to play by the rules of a society that only values women as wives and wombs. Though it would be nice to reclaim the dream life her ex-husband stole from her, Orelle would gladly settle for a loveless engagement that exempts her from being among the ten unwed, childless women drafted for the annual Hunt. It’s supposed to be an honor, being selected to ... [read more]

FantasyRomanceDystopia

(The Stubborn Skill-Grinder In A Time Loop #3)

Having awakened a ground-breaking Celestial-rarity skill at the climax of his fight against the Eldritch Avatar, Orodan's problems have suddenly grown bigger. Otherworldly attention. The champions of various worlds come seeking to capture him for their own factions. Worst of all, his tendency towards directly telling everyone about the time loops draws a dangerous sort of attention. That of those related to it. Facing extra-planar pursuit right from the start of every loop, Orodan must not ... [read more]

FantasyLitRPG

(The Shadow Age #2)

Against an ancient shadow with a deadly agenda, Petra Grady’s luck may be about to run out, in the next book in the enthralling contemporary fantasy series from the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Hollows novels. It’s been months since Petra Grady bonded with the shadow Pluck. With the help of researcher Benedict Strom, she has made a place for herself at St. Unoc University as the first weaver to use shadow magic in a thousand years. But some are not happy to acknowledge the new ... [read more]

FantasyRomanceUrban Fantasy

(Celestial #3)

Alpha Hunter Chain never expected to lose everything at once. Separated from his family. His sister in mortal danger. And his fated mate, the one person meant to stand by his side forever, left him shattered and alone. Now he must rise from the ashes of betrayal to become the leader his pack deserves. But as Hunter fights his personal demons, REAL demons are gathering at the borders. Dark forces that threaten to destroy everything. With a prophesied battle looming, Hunter must accomplish the ... [read more]

FantasyRomanceFated Mates