Underdog Picks: January 2026 New Releases

Rick Riordan Presents: It Lurks in the Night

By: Sarah Dass
Narrated by: Crystal Clarke
Length: 16 hours 2 minutes

From the author of It Waits in the Forest comes Sarah Dass’s next stand-alone supernatural thriller—a lush and evocative tale of the rot that grows at the heart of even the most beautiful places. Perfect for fans of Angeline Boulley and Tiffany D. Jackson!
All Maya Woods wants is to reunite her three best friends, Pearl, Erica, and Lystra, for... Read more about Rick Riordan Presents: It Lurks in the Night

Lost Girls of Hollow Lake

By: Rebekah Faubion
Narrated by: Hillary Huber & Sophie Amoss
Length: 10 hours 23 minutes

After a group of teens visit a dangerous island where three are left behind, the surviving girls realize they must return to confront the sinister force hunting them. This dark YA thriller is perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

Eight were lost. Five were found. None will ever be free.

For Evie Williams, life is about to get a lot more... Read more about Lost Girls of Hollow Lake

I Identify as Blind

A Brazen Celebration of Disability Culture, Identity, and Power

By: Lachi
Narrated by: Lachi
Length: 10 hours 55 minutes

With style and straight talk, musician and changemaker Lachi flips disability and neurodivergence into an empowering identity, a cultural movement, and an innovation engine

What if the most taboo parts of our identity—the parts we’re taught to mask—are exactly the ones that hold our greatest power? Lachi is an award-winning singer and leader who... Read more about I Identify as Blind

To Ride a Rising Storm

The Second Book of Nampeshiweisit

Nampeshiweisit: Book #2

By: Moniquill Blackgoose
Narrated by: Charley Flyte
Length: 17 hours 35 minutes

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A young indigenous woman and her dragon fight for the independence of their homeland in this epic sequel to the bestselling and multi-award-winning To Shape a Dragon’s Breath, “a remarkable novel that is bound to be a staple of fantasy shelves for years to come” (BuzzFeed).

Anequs has not only survived her first year at... Read more about To Ride a Rising Storm

Burn Down Master's House

By: Clay Cane
Narrated by: Clay Cane
Length: 11 hours 28 minutes

“While reading this book I wavered back and forth about how I would review it. There were times that the characters’ stories seemed incomplete. The dialogue seemed stilted and it felt a bit all over the place. I had to look and see how the publisher categorized the book (LGBTQ & Historical Fiction.) Because a good case could be made to... Read more

The Re-Do List

By: Denise Williams
Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton & January LaVoy
Length: 10 hours 50 minutes

What would you do with a second chance at your first time? Following a bad breakup, Willow Lewis tackles a re-do list with the help of her brother’s best friend in this sweet and sexy new romance from USA Today bestselling author Denise Williams.

Willow experienced all her big firsts with her high school sweetheart. Now, reeling from their very... Read more about The Re-Do List

Missing Sam

A Novel

By: Thrity Umrigar
Narrated by: Reena Dutt
Length: 10 hours 59 minutes

A tense and twisty story of a woman who goes missing on a morning run and her wife's determination to both find her and clear her own name--from the bestselling author of Honor

One night after a party, old grievances surface between married couple Aliya and Sam and the night ends badly with a heated argument. Sam goes for a run early the next... Read more about Missing Sam

The Poet Empress

By: Shen Tao
Narrated by: Eric Yang & Katharine Chin
Length: 15 hours 43 minutes

“I’m shocked this is a debut. Deeply layered and flawed characters riddle this magically political world. The depth of emotion unleashed on the reader is phenomenal; hunger, longing, sadness, hatred, powerlessness, vengeance, the list goes on. While this is not a novel I would recommend to every reader, it IS one I recommend to those with... Read more

The Great Disillusionment of Nick and Jay

By: Ryan Douglass
Narrated by: Desean Terry
Length: 10 hours 40 minutes

“The Great Disillusionment of Nick and Jay by Ryan Douglass is a queer YA reimagining of The Great Gatsby set in Greenwood and Harlem. It is fire and fear and hope. It's vivid and heart-wrenching. Definitely add this one to your TBR. Read more

Better Catch Up, Krishna Kumar

By: Anahita Karthik
Narrated by: Reena Dutt
Length: 10 hours 17 minutes

""Come for the road trip of a lifetime. Stay for the kissing!”— Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries seriesBuckle up for a wild ride with this cheeky and charming rom-com where one girl’s quest across India to seal her first kiss turns into finding first love in the most unexpected places. Perfect for fans of... Read more about Better Catch Up, Krishna Kumar

A Black Queer History of the United States

ReVisioning History

By: C. Riley Snorton & Darius Bost
Narrated by: C. Riley Snorton
Length: 8 hours 4 minutes

The first-ever Black history to center queer voices, this landmark study traces the lives of LGBTQ+ Black Americans from slavery to present day

Gender and sexual expression have always been part of the Black freedom struggle

In this latest book in Beacon’s award-winning ReVisioning History series, Professors C. Riley Snorton and Darius Bost... Read more about A Black Queer History of the United States

One Week to Win the Chocolate Maker

By: Timothy Janovsky
Narrated by: Mark Sanderlin
Length: 9 hours 5 minutes

The spiciest risks lead to the sweetest rewards

in this delicious, MM retelling of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 

Dario Cotogna has a problem. Per his late grandfather’s wishes, if Dario’s not married by his thirty-second birthday, his family’s chocolate empire will go to his philandering little brother. To make matters worse, Dario’s... Read more about One Week to Win the Chocolate Maker

On Sundays She Picked Flowers

By: Yah Yah Scholfield
Narrated by: Angel Pean, Patryce Williams & York Whitaker
Length: 8 hours 30 minutes

“An intense and lyrical exploration of trauma and of building a life for oneself alongside it. Beautifully written and expertly narrated! Read more

See You at the Summit

By: Jordyn Taylor
Narrated by: Lindsey Dorcus
Length: 9 hours 54 minutes

“The bi romance of your dreams is finally here!” —Cosmopolitan

“There are so many queer readers who need this story and See You at the Summit delivers with heart and heat.” —Alison Cochrun

A heartfelt and sexy romance novel following one bi woman’s messy journey through coming out—and reluctantly falling for a straight man. From the USA TODAY... Read more about See You at the Summit

The Magic of Untamed Hearts

Wild Magic: Book #3

By: Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
Narrated by: Elena Rey
Length: 11 hours 36 minutes

After several years stuck as a ghost, Sky Flores learns to reconnect with the living again with the help of her handsome neighbor in this lush romance from the USA Today bestselling author of Witch of Wild Things.

Like her sisters, Sage and Teal, Sky Flores has a touch of magic, and it’s caused nothing but heartache. Not only did she disappear... Read more about The Magic of Untamed Hearts

Sheer

A Novel

By: Vanessa Lawrence
Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
Length: 9 hours 31 minutes

Told over nine charged days, Sheer is the gripping tale of a controversial beauty mogul’s insatiable ambition and the slippery ground between empowerment and abuse of power.

It’s 2015 and Maxine Thomas, the founder and creative director of the cult makeup company Reveal, has just been suspended by her own Board for a scandalous transgression.... Read more about Sheer

The Queer Thing About Sin

SHORTLISTED FOR FOYLES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025

By: Harry Tanner
Narrated by: Harry Tanner
Length: 8 hours 31 minutes

Bloomsbury presents The Queer Thing About Sin, written and read by Harry Tanner

'BOLD AND BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN' TOM HOLLAND

'MY GOD, THIS BOOK IS NEEDED. HISTORY HAS NEVER SEEMED MORE ALIVE...' RUSSELL T DAVIES

A gripping new journey through ancient history, uncovering the origins of homophobia and the untold stories of those who dared to love.

In... Read more about The Queer Thing About Sin

ITCH!

The darkly feminist horror novel crawling under your skin for Halloween 2025

By: Gemma Amor
Narrated by: Gemma Amor
Length: 9 hours 22 minutes

READERS LOVE GEMMA's DARK WORLD
'If you are after something that is both shocking and horrifically beautiful then take a journey and discover this little atrocity for yourself'' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I kept telling myself I really should turn off the light and get to bed now, eyes dry, head heavy, but every sentence in this book commands the reader... Read more about ITCH!

Fire Sword and Sea

A Novel

By: Vanessa Riley
Narrated by: Robin Miles
Length: 14 hours 22 minutes

""In her latest, Riley provides a fresh take on high seas adventure through the eyes of the courageous, swashbuckling, based-on-a-real-life female pirate Jacquotte Delahaye. The research Riley has done on this 1600s saga is truly remarkable, second only to her depictions of the lush Caribbean setting and the diverse, multi-faceted cast of... Read more about Fire Sword and Sea

You'll Never Forget Me

A Novel

By: Isha Raya
Narrated by: Ulka Simone Mohanty
Length: 8 hours 45 minutes

In this captivating cat-and-mouse thriller, a struggling actress is only just beginning to enjoy the life sheʼs always wanted after inadvertently killing her rival—but now she must contend with the woman who threatens to take it all away.

Struggling actress Dimple Kapoor wouldn’t call herself a murderer, per se—she’d prefer the term... Read more about You'll Never Forget Me