Women’s Prize for Fiction 2026 Longlist Reaction

Firstly, I tried to record my reaction to watching the longlist for the first time… it recorded part of it, before telling me my phone storage was full! So I’m quite gutted I haven’t been able to react to the whole thing 🙁

Anyway, in this blog, I dive into the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2026 longlist, including:

My initial predictions
Longlist reaction – which ones surprised me, which didn’t
Books moving onto my TBR
Dare I predict the shortlist…

More into Non-Fiction? Check out my YouTube video reaction to the Non-Fiction Longlist announcement (blog also in the works!).

My initial predictions

Anyway, here were the books I predicted might be on the list…

Women's Prize for Fiction 2026 longlist prediction — My Women’s Prize for Fiction 2026 predictions

Reaction video coming soon!

Women’s Prize 2026 Fiction Longlist

What do I think about the 2026 Fiction Longlist?

Not surprised

It’s no surprise to see Audition and Flashlight make the list, as they’ve appeared on several prize longlists across the world.

With The Benefactors and Wild Dark Shore, they seem very fitting for the Prize – there’s been so much hype around them too!

VERY surprised

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans – thought it might be too commercial for this prize. Either way, I’m not mad!
The Best of Everything by Kit De Waal – she led the 2025 Fiction judging panel! It’s also waiting on my Kindle, having been hooked in months ago 😀
The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson – I thought I recognised the cover… I got a bookmark advertising the book from when I attended Women’s Prize Live last year

Longlisted books for my TBR

I won’t lie, this looks like an intriguing list this year (dare I say, more appealing than last year?)

All I want to do is get reading! So, which books instantly grab my attention?

The Benefactors
The Correspondent
The Best of Everything
The Mercy Step

Shortlist predictions…

As I did last year, I like to predict who might be in the shortlist and even WIN!

I know it’s only from an initial glance of the blurbs, but my possible shortlist:

The Benefactors – it’s EVERYWHERE! I’ve a feeling this might be similar to Trespasses by Louise Kennedy from the 2023 shortlist
Audition – made so many shortlists
Flashlight – again, it’s made so many shortlists, so why not?
Paradiso 17 – the blurb gives Enter Ghost vibes from the 2024 shortlist
Kingfisher – a short book often makes it
A Guardian and a Thief – it’s giving Brotherless Night vibes (2024 winner)

And the winner?

I’ve not read either, but I think it’ll be close between Audition and Flashlight. Even though Benefactors has the hype, as is normally the way, I’ve observed it has the opposite effect and doesn’t win!

Therefore, my winner prediction is…

Flashlight by Susan Choi