Lantern Readers' Choice Awards
Celebrating the books and authors that captured our readers' attention.
Discover this year's standout books and authors, explore the nominees, and cast your vote for the titles you believe deserve recognition.
2026 EditionReader votedVoting is now open · closes 30 September 2026
2026 Edition
8
Award categories
35
Nominees
Published at close
Reader votes
30 September
Voting ends
Vote totals are not published while voting is in progress. No estimated or provisional counts are shown.
Categories
Explore the 2026 categories
Discover the books and authors competing across this year's Lantern Readers' Choice Awards.
Featured category
Book of the Year
Meet this year's leading nominees.
Book of the Year
Cartographers of the Sea
by Adaeze Okafor
Vote totals published when voting closes.
Nominees
2026 nominees
Explore this year's nominated books and authors.
35 nominees shown
The Glass Orchard
by Theo Brandt
Most Discussed BookVote totals published when voting closes.
The North Window
by Julian Reyes
Most Discussed BookVote totals published when voting closes.
The North Window
by Julian Reyes
Best Non-FictionVote totals published when voting closes.
The Monsoon Ledger
by Priya Desai
Book of the YearVote totals published when voting closes.
The North Window
by Julian Reyes
Author of the YearVote totals published when voting closes.
Live reader rankings
See which nominees are currently leading.
Standings for the 2026 Lantern Readers' Choice Awards.
Rankings are published when voting closes.
To keep the ballot fair, Lantern does not publish running totals or provisional standings during the voting period.
Rankings are calculated from valid votes recorded during the official voting period. Ballots that fail review are excluded before results are published.
Cast your vote
Your voice helps determine this year's Lantern Readers' Choice Awards winners.
Voting is now open · closes 30 September 2026
Process
How the awards work
A transparent, four-stage programme repeated each year.
- 01
Nomination
Books and authors are nominated for consideration by readers, authors, and the Lantern editorial team.
- 02
Selection
Eligible nominees are reviewed and assigned to the appropriate award categories.
- 03
Reader voting
Readers cast their votes during the official voting period — one ballot per category.
- 04
Winners announced
Winners are determined according to the published voting rules and announced with a spotlight.
Why it matters
Why reader voting matters
Discover
Help bring exceptional books and authors into the spotlight.
Participate
Have a voice in the books and authors recognised by Lantern.
Recognise
Celebrate writers whose work deserves greater attention.
Winners
Meet the 2026 winners
Winners are published on 15 October 2026.
Winners have not been announced yet.
Each category winner will appear here with a spotlight, the final vote count, and a link to the book.
Archive
Past Lantern award winners
Previous editions of the Lantern Readers' Choice Awards.
2026 is the inaugural edition
Once this year's winners are announced, past editions will be archived here year by year.
Questions
Awards FAQ
Eligibility, voting limits, verification, and results.
Voting is open to Lantern Book Club readers. Each ballot is tied to one reader so that every voice counts once per category.
Once per award category. You may vote in as many of the eight categories as you like, but only a single ballot per category is counted.
Voting for the 2026 edition closes on 30 September 2026 at 23:59 UTC.
Winners are the nominees with the highest number of valid votes recorded in their category during the official voting period. No editorial override is applied to the reader vote.
Yes. Authors and publishers may submit a title for consideration. Submissions are reviewed for eligibility before they appear as nominees.
Winners are announced in mid-October 2026 and published on this page with a spotlight for each category.
Ballots are validated on our servers, limited to one per reader per category, rate limited, and reviewed for unusual patterns before results are finalised. Ballots that fail review are excluded.
The full rules — eligibility, category definitions, tallying and dispute handling — are summarised in the How the Awards Work section on this page.
Your voice can help shape this year's awards.
Explore the nominees, discover your next favourite book, and make your vote count.