My Reading Plans For 2026 // Bookmas Day 2

I’ve been thinking a lot about my reading plans for 2026. Mainly because, despite reading so much more this year, I also had some of my biggest slumps yet.

Part of that came from the pressure of having my 25 in 2025 list… which was actually 52 books (what was I thinking?). The other part was simply trying to fit reading into life, especially when life didn’t want to cooperate.

But I’ve realised that although I know reading is my escape, I’m someone who thrives with a plan. So finding the balance between mood-reading and gentle structure is something I really want to work on for the year ahead.

My 2026 reading plans focus on simplifying things, tackling the books I already own, being smarter about spending, and bringing back the parts of reading that genuinely excite me. Like readathons, annotating, and keeping a book journal without ruining it.

Let’s get into it.

My 2026 Reading Goal

I’m keeping my yearly reading goal at 52 books.

One book a week feels like a sweet spot, even though it still sounds like a lot. But since half of those will be my 26 in 2026 picks, the rest of the year lets me get through pre-orders, mood reads and maybe more of my TBR.

My Spending Habits

Let’s be honest… this year I bought a lot of books. Wonderful books. Beautiful books. Books I absolutely do not regret, but books that definitely contributed to both my TBR mountain and the occasional reading guilt.

For 2026, I’m changing things up. I’m not setting a strict monetary limit like I have before. Instead, I’m setting limits on the types of books I can buy, which feels far more realistic and flexible.

My new rule is simple:

• Unless it’s for a book club, the next in a series, or a new book by a favourite author, I have to have read my book for the week before I can buy anything new.

It sounds generous, but it actually keeps me accountable. If life gets busy and I don’t finish a book for two weeks, no new books (outside the reasons above) until I’m back on track. Even if I’m out shopping. Even if I’m standing in Waterstones holding a pretty, shiny book, I have to have read my 1 book a week.

I did contemplate not having the new book by my favourite author, but I have a few authors who I’ve been buying their books as soon as they come out. Meaning they are all in hardback and I want to keep them uniform.

Also, I’m keeping my “don’t pay for delivery” rule. If I don’t hit the free delivery threshold, I simply don’t order. No exceptions. (My bank account applauds this decision.)

Reading My TBR: 26 in 2026

For my main challenge next year, I’m going back to something more manageable, my 26 in 2026 will be books from my physical TBR only.

I’ll put the full list below, but these will be books I already own, no exceptions, no last-minute swaps. And I am hoping it clears my TBR down a little more.

1. The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst
2. James by Percival Everett
3. The Will of The Many by James Islington
4. The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
5. The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence
6. The Boardwalk Bookshop by Susan Mallery
7. Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan
8. God of the Woods by Liz Moore
9. The Night House by Jo Nesbo
10. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
11. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
12. The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick
13. The Accidental Medium by Tracy Whitwell
14. The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods
15. Hate Mail by Donna Marchetti
16. Hell House by Richard Matheson
17. The Next Girl by Emiko Jean
18. The Door-To-Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn
19. The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey
20. The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
21. Girl, 11 by Amy Suiter Clarke
22. Next to You by Hannah Bonam-Young
23. One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
24. Once upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber
25. The Queen’s Rising by Rebecca Ross
26. Finding Love in Ivy Falls by Amy True

This feels achievable. Structured, fits to the times of the year and still feels motivating. But nowhere near as intense as the 52-book list I attempted this year.

Revamping How I Pick My Monthly TBR

I’ve always loved book games. Bookopoly boards, bingo cards, dice rolls, prompts. But I think I burned myself out a bit. I want something fresh for 2026.

I’m still playing around with ideas, but my goal is to create a system that:

• Doesn’t overwhelm me
• Doesn’t feel like homework
• Still gives me a little direction
• Stays fun

I’m torn between a very simple “pick a few from a jar” system or building a new game entirely. I’ll share whatever I settle on before the new year!

Sorting My Pre-Order List

This year, my pre-order list definitely got away from me. For 2026, I want a more streamlined, intentional list.

My plan is to:

• Only pre-order titles by favourite authors or that are next in a series
• Avoid “just because” pre-orders that end up sitting unread for months
• Pay attention to matching covers and formats (because I refuse to apologise for caring about that!)
• Track release dates so I’m not surprised by a sudden cluster of payments

I ended up completing my pre-order list during Waterstones triple points for Black Friday. And I even had £50 in point already to add to it! Bonus!

I have pre-ordered:

• Fever Dream by Elsie Silver
• Broken Dove by Dani Francis
• The Daisy Chain Flower Shop by Laurie Gilmore
• The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez
• The Baby Dragon Bookshop by A. T. Qureshi
• Chasing the Fire by Paisley Hope
• The Witch and the Wolf by Lindsey Kelk
• A War of Wyverns by S. F. Williamson
• The Family Friend by Claire Douglas
• And Now, Back to You by B.K. Borison
• The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst
• Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst
• Disenchanted by Lucy Jane Wood
• How to Cheat Your Own Death by Kristen Perrin
• The Unknown by Riley Sager
• Picnics and Promises at Strawberry Fields by Victoria Walters
• A Dark Forgetting by Kristen Ciccarelli

Looking at my list, all of these are by authors I love or the next in a series, so feeling good applying these new changes already.

Annotating More (But Smarter)

Annotating has been one of my favourite parts of reading in the last couple of years. I know my tastes well enough now that every year I pick 3–5 books (sometimes a series or duology) and buy an extra copy solely for annotation.

The problem? If I keep doing that, I’ll eventually need an entire bookcase dedicated to duplicate copies of books I already own. Just with annotations.

I don’t want to stop annotating, I genuinely love reading back through my scribbles and thoughts. But I’m reconsidering how I do it.

Here are the ideas I’m playing with:

• Annotate in my main copy instead of buying a duplicate
• Use a separate journal for deeper thoughts and page references
• Create a hybrid system of light annotation in the book and in-depth thoughts in a journal
• Just continue and unhaul the non-annotated copies.

If you annotate, I’d love to hear how you do it. I’m still unsure which direction I want to go in, but I’d like something that’s enjoyable and sustainable.

Book Journaling

I have bought this years version of the Little Inkling Designs Always Fully Booked book journal and I am determined to keep it spill free this year. I’ve cleared a space on my peg board from ikea, and bought it’s own holder. Meaning it will be kept high and dry.

I also decided to go for the horizontal weekly spread as I have some ideas to match my every day planner.

Readathons

One thing I loved this year was participating in readathons. They reminded me how exciting reading can be. Especially when people were reading the same things as me. That sense of community really boosted my motivation, and I want more of that feeling in 2026. I have a blog post coming up on readathons I am excited for in 2026.

And those are My Reading Plans for 2026! I’d love to know what your reading goals are for next year. Are you tackling your physical TBR? Pre-ordering new releases? Changing up your reading habits?

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As always, thanks for reading…

Hannah Marie x