Summer Reading List 2026

A nonfiction pick that was also a Jack Carr Book Club selection for June, this incredible work traces the life of one of history’s most interesting characters, Emanuel Nobel. If you know the Nobel name it is likely from his uncle Alfred of Nobel Prize fame, but it is Emanuel who, as one of the wealthiest men in the world, ran afoul of Joseph Stalin and whose legacy was then erased from history. Check out my conversation with author Douglas Brunt here: officialjackcarr.com/the-lost-empire-of-emanuel-nobel

A novel that takes you right back to those thrillers you loved to read growing up.  This one transports you into the heart of the Cold War with characters and international locations that leap from the page.  This was another Jack Carr Book Club Selection.

I look forward to the new Daniel Silva novel every summer.  His latest Gabriel Allon thriller, Ransom, just hit shelves and I can’t wait to read it. Daniel Silva is a true master of the craft.  If you are not reading Silva, start with Ransom and then go back to the beginning.  You are in for a treat! Find my conversation with Daniel Silva from last summer here: officialjackcarr.com/an-inside-job/.

I was lucky enough to read an advance copy of Empire of Ashes and could not put it down.  James M. Scott is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and my coauthor on the Targeted series.  He is also one of the preeminent historians of our time. In Empire of Ashes he chronicles the final months of World War II and the decisions that led to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This book belongs on the shelves of every American household and library.  A masterpiece.  It is my August Book Club selection and I will be talking with James about it on the August episode of the podcast.

The warrior Telamon rides into the Iberian Peninsula with bow, sling, sword and spear, taking us into battle and proving once again why Steven Pressfield remains a legend. It asks the question, “Can a man born to fight ever lay down his sword?”  Read it now and then go back and add everything Steven has written, both fiction and nonfiction, to your library.

Hot on the heels of her groundbreaking work Nuclear War: A Scenario, New York Times bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen is back with Biological War: A Scenario.  It comes out July 28th and I will be reading it week one! Global infection…mass death…societal breakdown…as with Nuclear War I am sure this one will keep me up into the early morning hours…and also give me some ideas for a future thriller…

Find my conversation with Annie covering Nuclear War: A Scenario here: officialjackcarr.com/nuclear-war-by-annie-jacobsen/