In this episode, I (Richard) roped Austin into a tier-list video—yes, I know, I usually have a general disdain for tier lists, but this one was actually fun. We’re predicting what book trends are going to look like in 2026 and sorting them from “will be huge” all the way down to “dear God I hope not.” The whole thing is a mix of internet sleuthing (what people were already whispering about in 2025) plus our own spicy guesses from living in fantasy/sci-fi book world 24/7. We get into immersive audio (GraphicAudio, Soundbooth Theater, full-cast productions) and why it feels like the “special edition” of audiobooks—plus the messy side question: does it still “count as reading,” especially when the text gets edited? We argue about hybrid genres and how publishers are going to market the next “X meets Y meets Z” trying to strike gold again. We also talk about modern spins on old tales, whether romantasy is finally on the way down from peak heat, and why special editions aren’t going anywhere. And yes, we hit the ugly one: full AI novels. We’re pretty aligned on “dear God I hope not,” even if we think some slop will sell anyway. That’s the 2026 vibes—some exciting evolution, some trend fatigue, and some stuff we’re actively rooting against.