If you’re not reading books in translation, you’re cutting yourself off from most of the planet’s best writers. Only a tiny percentage of authors published in languages other than English get their works translated, which is a shame, but the more we read and promote books in translation, the more will get published. Whatever your reading taste, there are books in translation that you’ll love—it’s not just literary fiction.
That’s why task #21 of the 2026 Read Harder Challenge is “Read a genre (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) book in translation.” Below, I’ve highlighted a title or two in a range of genres. Some are harder to find than others: Nordic noir and Japanese horror, for example, are whole subgenres to themselves, while romance in translation is difficult to find. Let us know in the comments: what are your favorite genre books in translation?
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