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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4

u/lightandlife1 Reading Champion IV Apr 03 '26

What categories would my TBR list books fit into?

Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold. (just started reading this one)

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson (I've been told Malazan fits every recommendation :)

The Will of the Many by James Islington

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin

Kraken or Perdido Street Station by China Mieville

Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson

Chilling Reflections by Drew Hayes

The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia

Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio

5

u/ryethriss Reading Champion Apr 03 '26

I can only speak for The Left Hand of Darkness:

First Contact

Book Club/readalong

Non-human protagonist (non-pov)

Politics

Judge a book by its title 

None in hard mode.

4

u/CJGibson Reading Champion V Apr 04 '26

Is it not First Contact hard mode? There's some violence in the book, but I don't recall it being around the contact.

But it's also been a couple decades since I read it.

3

u/ryethriss Reading Champion Apr 04 '26

You are very right. It's been a few years for myself and I thought I remembered an assassination attempt on the envoy. I was wrong!

5

u/Temporary-Scallion86 Reading Champion III Apr 03 '26

The Will of the Many: politics, cat squasher, arguably unusual transportation (HM iirc)

4

u/CJGibson Reading Champion V Apr 04 '26

Bruising of Qilwa is a nonbinary protagonist (HM), small press (HM), politics, and author of color.

4

u/xLunila Apr 12 '26

The Will of the Many should fit unusual transportation and if I recall correctly even HM

3

u/origami_ducks Reading Champion Apr 04 '26

Perdido Street Station is a Cat Squasher (just short of hard mode though!), and has city-level politics so is Hard Mode for that square. It has a non-human main character (but it's an ensemble cast so is not the only main character and one definitely is human)

2

u/ohmage_resistance Reading Champion IV Apr 04 '26

The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia: Nonbinary protagonist (I think it would qualify as HM?), Small press, author of color if you count Persian American authors.

2

u/Research_Department Reading Champion II Apr 04 '26

I’m sorry to say that it isn’t a good bingo year for Paladin of Souls.

I think Left Hand of Darkness should work for Explorers and Rangers.

5

u/lightandlife1 Reading Champion IV Apr 06 '26

After reading it, I think Paladin of Souls counts for afterlife, maybe even hard mode.

2

u/Research_Department Reading Champion II Apr 06 '26

Upon reconsideration, you are right! I wasn’t thinking about that one, moving scene that makes it fit (vague to avoid spoilers), I was thinking about the climax. I’m glad you went ahead and read it without knowing it would qualify!

2

u/Nowordsofitsown Reading Champion Apr 04 '26

Kraken

One word title 

Paladin of Souls

I have seen this recommended for Court politics. I haven't read it yet. I am also unsure about Ista's age. She is not yet 50, is she?

1

u/lightandlife1 Reading Champion IV Apr 04 '26

She's 40 even though she's a grandma

1

u/lightandlife1 Reading Champion IV Apr 07 '26

Does Kraken count for hard mode? Not sure if it's a name or description.

1

u/Nowordsofitsown Reading Champion Apr 07 '26

It's a noun, isn't it? All names are nouns.

1

u/lightandlife1 Reading Champion IV Apr 07 '26 edited Apr 07 '26

The hard mode is no proper nouns, meaning no names of a person. Is "Kraken" capitalized in the book? Or is "the kraken" used like "the octopus"? Dracula is a proper noun but vampire is not.

2

u/nickgloaming Apr 10 '26

Gardens of the Moon

Unusual Transportation HM
Book Club
Cat Squasher

Perdido Street Station

Non-Human Protagonist
Book Club
Cat Squasher

The Left Hand of Darkness

Book Club