2026 Genesis Finalists

Contemporary
Elise Browning – Chasing Light
Kate Mackereth – Binding Vines
Sarah Nichols – All the Ways We Come Home

Historical
Bryan Harsh – The Sign
Terri Miller – The Year They Buried King Cotton
Shannon Skaer – The Prisoner in the Library

Historical Romance
Jessica Gustafson – A Price for Her Hand
Amy King – More Precious than Silver
Megan Southon – Carry Me

Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Marilyn Brandon – Finding Juvie Blue
Will Eason – Endgame Protocol
Jeffrey Friedel – Twelve Words

Novella
Lakeisha Heeringa – A Shard of Truth
Suzanne Montgomery – Storm Waters Rising
Bill Quimby – Ring Walker

Romance
Amy King – The Tempest
Grace Lakin – Considering Calla Lilies
Tiffany Miller – We’re Only Mostly Married

Romantic Suspense
Cherie Fresonke – A Dream Worth Fighting For
Jess Noble – True Believer
Brittney Peek – Cold Case Files: Off the Record

Short Novel
George Brooks – Grit and Greed
Laura Elizabeth Salas – Their Second Chance Family
Dave Sprecher – When Steeples Fall

Speculative
Faith Behrens – The Queen’s Assassination
Kimberly Cornelius – The Healer Prince
Kimberly Cornelius – The Temple Atoner

Young Adult
M. A. Bellers – Into the Rising Sun
Allison Cook – Gems of My Father
William DeWitt – The Memory Room