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March on! We may be farewelling summer, but the days are still long and the couch is calling your name. It's a good time to be a reader.

From local thrillers to big-scale dramas, stunning short stories and memoirs, Charley Vokoun, the face behind Book Smut has the best of March 2026's new releases covered for you.

Watch: On this episode of Parenting Out Loud — Amelia Lester talks about the book she inhaled on a plane (instead of rewatching Crazy Rich Asians like the rest of us). Post continues below.

The best books to read in March 2026.

A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides by Gisèle Pelicot, translated by Natasha Lehrer and Ruth Diver - Out now.

Gisèle Pelicot's memoir is an agonisingly honest chronicle of her life with a man who did the unthinkable and the rallying cry that followed.

In 2020, Gisèle made the horrific discovery that her husband of nearly 50 years had been secretly drugging and raping her; and inviting strangers to abuse her in their home for a decade.

As devastating and enraging as it is awe-inspiring and life-affirming, Gisèle's eloquence through a seemingly impossible writing project is stunning.

The decision to waive her right to anonymity in her legal fight against her ex and the fifty men accused of sexually assaulting her, activated and inspired millions of people around the world. This is essential reading.

I can not recommend the audiobook version enough – plus it is read by The Emma Thompson, who delivers Gisèle's story with flawless empathy and strength.

It's Not What You Think by Clare Mackintosh - Out March 26.

Mackintosh, an ex-cop herself, sets us up with endless twists and options as to 'who dunnit' in this next-level British crime thriller.

She has confirmed herself as an instant-buy author for me. If you, too, are wishing you had another season of Line Of Duty up your sleeve or wondered what the Gaffa was up to today, THIS is the book for you. I literally could not put it down.

A woman speeds home, thinking her partner is having an affair. When she gets there, he's dead and everything gets darker and stranger from there on out.

The writing, plotting, characters and dialogue are all perfect. This is British crime done very, very well. It's spicy, political, timely and absolutely inhalable.

You will love it whether you can still hum The Bill theme song, or not.

Brawler by Lauren Groff - Out now.

Sometimes you pick up writing that is just so tight, confident and bloody brilliant that it makes you really stop and savour every word.

When I read Groff's Fates & Furies years ago, I did just that. So when I saw she had a short story collection on the horizon — and I'm always weirdly reluctant to pick up a short story collection — I put everything else aside.

Brawler is a masterclass in no fluff, all awe. This collection is dark and atmospheric and taps into today's America so brilliantly. From class to gender, from despair to joy, she packs so much into every single compact and complex story.

If you think, 'Meh, can I even get into short stories?' this is what you need. Less, evidently, is more.

The author's notes on each story are hidden right at the back and I wish they'd followed each story, because Groff's notes on the when, why and how each of these stories came together made them sing even more. Actually, I'd love that from all novels going forward: a making of.

Profound, stunning and timeless.

Like Follow Die by Ashley Kalagian Blunt - Out now.

It's Aussie thriller season! This timely, tense and provocative new release dives into the darkest corners of the internet and made me clutch my kids even tighter.

We've got a Sydney mum whose life is falling apart. When a homicide detective unexpectedly knocks on her door, she knows they want to talk about her son, Ben. How did her sweet-natured child, who loved history and dreamed of swimming for Olympic gold, grow up to do the unthinkable and what really happened?

Think Adolescence meets every terrifying story you've ever read about Andrew Tate, and then, bring it all closer to home.

Listen: After being inundated with requests for this topic, we're here to share the books that are guaranteed to get you out of a reading slump.

The Cursed Road by Laura McCluskey - Out now.

The sophomore novel from the Melbourne author of The Wolf Tree delivers gothic vibes and more men doing more bad things.

A young woman's body has been found in a remote stretch of the Scottish Highlands, with the name of another missing woman carved into her flesh.

Enter two troubled detectives, rugged wilderness, generational curses and cagey locals. Spooky, clever and dark.

The Gambler by J. P. Pomare - Out now.

Born in New Zeland and residing in Melbourne, J.P. Pomare has written some of my favourite gaspy thrillers in recent years.

His latest tasks a private investigator with uncovering why a respected local woman opened fire at a political rally, killing a promising young uni grad.

You'll be chomping your nails off as the stakes escalate and the plot is peeled back.

Hooked by Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton - Out March 12.

Hugely anticipated by the lit set, Hooked is the distinctive pink cover you're about to see everywhere. I loved Yuzuki's debut, Butter, and cannot wait to dig into this biting thriller about women, appetite and what we'll do to feel chosen.

Think Japanese fish markets, a parasocial relationship with a housewife blogger and an unsettling obsession.

Kin by Tayari Jones - Out now.

We've been waiting for a new novel from Jones since her mega-hit An American Marriage nearly ten years ago.

Kin follows two motherless daughters from their Louisiana childhoods through to starkly different lives. It's a slow burn, with stunning writing and scene setting. You'll see this beautiful cover in every bookshop's front window for the foreseeable.

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Feature Image: Supplied.