The market front

New Short stories books

4 books released in the last eighteen months, best first.

What is new and already good

3 of these have cleared the ordinary bar of 50 ratings; 1 carry an early score from 20 to 49 ratings. The newest arrival is “Lost Lambs” by Madeline Cash.

An early score uses the same formula as everything else, pulled harder toward the category mean until more readers vote. The chip on a row says how much of the number is the readers’ own. Method →

  1. Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, Empathy
    Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, EmpathyMartha Wells · 2025158 ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  2. Hot for Slayer
    Hot for SlayerAli Hazelwood · 2025132 ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  3. Lost LambsMadeline Cash
    Lost LambsMadeline Cash · 2026Early · 21% own48 ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  4. Vigil
    VigilGeorge Saunders · 2026NYT bestseller52 ratings
    7.77.7 / 10
What is the best new Short stories book?

“Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, Empathy” by Martha Wells scores 7.9/10 from 158 reader ratings, the highest of the releases we have enough readers for.

What does “early score” mean?

The book has between 20 and 49 reader ratings. It gets a page and a place on this list, but it does not enter category rankings until it reaches 50, like every other book.

How is this list built?

From reader ratings only: the same Bayesian score as everywhere on the site, with releases of the last eighteen months and at least 20 ratings. Sales, marketing and prizes do not enter it. Refreshed daily.