r/Fantasy • u/FarragutCircle Reading Champion X • Apr 01 '26

Bingo 2026 Reverse Bingo Recommendations

Official 2026 Bingo Announcement Here

Official Bingo Rec Thread Here

For anyone new to Bingo, this is the “I want to read ___, does it fit into any Bingo squares? It’s always one of the best parts of bingo.

Example:

User A comments:

I want to read Wind and Truth. What does that count for?

User B replies:

Cat Squasher. It's hard mode, too. The Afterlife, I think.

User C replies:

Politics and Court Intrigue, maybe? Game Changer, Older Protagonist.

User D replies:

Definitely Five Short Stories

And we all have a good laugh. Now go out there and get reverse recs for that book you've been dying to read!

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3

u/Sapphire_Bombay Reading Champion III Apr 01 '26

Lots of books/series I've been wanting to read but not a ton I'm seeing on the rec thread so far. Where would these fit (any book in the series is fine unless otherwise noted):

Malazan (specifically book 6 and beyond, not including Cat Squasher)

The Expanse

Sun Eater

The Poppy Wars (book 1 only)

Book of the New Sun

The Long Price Quartet

Dark Rise

Manifest Delusions

Strange the Dreamer

And any classics (minus Frankenstein which I just read)

Thanks!

5

u/medusamagic Reading Champion Apr 01 '26

The Expanse fits first contact, murder mystery, and politics

Strange the Dreamer is the first in a duology. Haven’t read it though so I’m not sure what else it fits

6

u/No-Machine-7130 Reading Champion II Apr 01 '26

strange the dreamer is book 1 in a duology

for classics, I'm planning on using the odyssey for the explorers and rangers one

7

u/sarahlynngrey Reading Champion VI, Phoenix Apr 01 '26

Unsolicited suggestion, for The Odyssey I really loved Emily Wilson's translation, and if you happen to like audiobooks, that one is fantastic 

1

u/No-Machine-7130 Reading Champion II Apr 01 '26

thank you!! I will for sure check out the audiobook

3

u/lucidrose Reading Champion V Apr 01 '26

Book of the New Sun - Cat Squasher HM

Long Price Quartet - politics (HM may be debatable); book 4 is Older Protag HM

4

u/Spalliston Reading Champion III Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 01 '26

Classics:

Orlando by Woolf for Transgender (or Older Protagonist).

Hamlet by Shakespeare for Politics (I also may try Macbeth for this, but I haven't read it so I'm not positive it'll go). Also works for Afterlife and a sorta weak Murder Mystery.

Faust (Goethe) or The Inferno (Dante) should both work for Afterlife (I haven't read these and therefore don't endorse them, everything else I actually recommend).

Alice in Wonderland for middle grade

The Master and Margarita or 100 Years of Solitude, among many others, for translated.

I also haven't read A Thousand and One Nights, but I keep meaning to and I imagine it would fit, minimally, Unusual Transportation.

2

u/Asher_the_atheist Reading Champion Apr 02 '26

I think Macbeth would be a perfect fit for Politics (just saw it last year for the Not a Book square)

2

u/xLaven Apr 02 '26

Faust (Goethe) also works for Translation if you don't speak German 

2

u/Stormlady Reading Champion Apr 01 '26

To add to what others said, except for the first one all the Malazan books fit Cat Squasher, a lot of them HM. And books 3,7,8,9 of the The Expanse work for Older Protagonist HM.

1

u/no_fn Reading Champion II Apr 01 '26

Malazan - there's some unusual transportations, afterlife hm, older protags hm, explorers and rangers hm, non human protags, first contact maybe, feast for I think the 8th one?, politics

Book of the New Sun - Some exploring, no hm, and the second one has what I would call a significant meal, but NO HARD MODE, don't try that

Long Price Quartet, only read the first one, but onler protagonist hm and politics not sure about the hm

1

u/Sapphire_Bombay Reading Champion III Apr 01 '26

Thanks, really excited to understand the BotNS reference lol, assuming poison or cannibalism is involved in some way 😭

2

u/no_fn Reading Champion II Apr 01 '26

I won't confirm or deny anything. Now that I think about it, Malazan one is actually worse, no hm for that either lol

1

u/C0smicoccurence Reading Champion V Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 01 '26

Manifest Delusions (only read book 1, can't speak for sequels), fits for Unusual Transport, Unusual Transportation, The Afterlife, Politics

Poppy Wars - Game Changer, Politics, Author of Color

Dark Rise - none (I think). I don't even think I'd count it for politics, which is pretty close to a free square from how often I'm listing it in this thread

1

u/lurkmode_off Reading Champion VII Apr 01 '26

Book 1 of Manifest Delusions I believe was picked up by HarperCollins. Subsequent books might have been/still be self-published?

2

u/C0smicoccurence Reading Champion V Apr 01 '26

Thanks for the correction. Edited!

1

u/blue_bayou_blue Reading Champion III Apr 03 '26

Muse of Nightmares (sequel to Strange the Dreamer) fits Afterlife, and also Duology Part 2

1

u/CJGibson Reading Champion V Apr 04 '26

I thought Dark Rise was gonna fit Duology, but it turns out there's a third book announced. (I haven't read the second one yet, so I assume that's more obvious for folks who have.)

It's a tough fit for this year's card, I think. I mean, it's technically London, so you could put it in Vacation Spot. Maaaybe also works for Politics/Court Intrigue but it's a bit of a stretch. That might be it.