Four Netflix book adaptations you can’t miss in 2026
Oh, to be a novel in 2026, gathering dust on a shelf while its owner swears they’ll finish it, only to become a Netflix sensation the next minute and something everyone’s discussing. With all these book adaptations coming back-to-back, the books definitely have had the last laugh!
Emily Henry’s ‘People We Meet on Vacation’ saw sales jump 97% in the fortnight after its film arrived on Netflix, while Julia Quinn’s ‘Bridgerton’ novels sold three times as much around season four.
But something nobody saw coming was the latest John Steinbeck hit, ‘East of Eden’, which was published in 1952 and has now found itself back atop Amazon’s bestseller list after Florence Pugh brought its world to the screen. Sales rose nearly 200%. Seventy-four years on! You can tell, somewhere, an old English teacher is pleased.
And don’t be worried; nobody’s going to confiscate your bookmark if you watch the adaptation first. Here are four of the best book adaptations Netflix has brought to your screens in 2026, so you might as well put your reading list aside and see what all the fuss is about.
Four Netflix book adaptations you can’t miss in 2026
His & Hers
Alice Feeney must’ve had a great time writing ‘His & Hers’, and it makes sense because someone with a truly wicked imagination can take a murder and force two people who can’t stand the sight of each other to suspect each other. On top of that, this Netflix show leaves us to figure out who’s telling porkies. Feeney’s 2020 novel starts with a woman found murdered in the English village of Blackdown, and before you start investigating, newsreader Anna Andrews and Detective Jack Harper will give you plenty of reasons to be suspicious.
Now, Netflix has shifted the whole business to Georgia, with Tessa Thompson playing Anna and Jon Bernthal as Jack, who happens to be her estranged husband. That’s the kind of mess you’re getting into. The pair are investigating the same murder while suspecting each other, and you’re left trying to work out which one is pulling the wool over your eyes. This limited series keeps the novel’s two sides of the story, so go on and have a guess at who’s telling the truth.
East of Eden
Probably one of the best, most well-performing adaptations of 2026, East of Eden had Florence Pugh playing one of literature’s most terrifying women, and she absolutely nailed it.
Based on John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel, the Netflix limited series East of Eden follows two California families caught in a generations-long mess of love and betrayal, where Pugh plays Cathy Ames, a woman who enters the lives of brothers Adam and Charles Trask and makes everyone’s existence a living nightmare.
Behind the adaptation is Zoe Kazan, whose grandfather Elia Kazan directed the 1955 film starring James Dean. However, this time, Cathy takes centre stage with seven episodes of family dysfunction ahead.
Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials
Oh, for pete’s sake, can these posh English folk not enjoy one simple gathering without somebody ending up dead? Apparently not, and especially when it’s an Agatha Christie mystery gathering where nobody can behave themselves. And Seven Dials takes you to a lovely country house, where a bunch of wealthy guests are practically begging for murder.
Based on Christie’s 1929 novel The Seven Dials Mystery, this Netflix adaptation begins with a harmless prank involving alarm clocks. Soon enough, someone winds up dead, and as usual, everyone is a suspect.
This time, we have Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent, who’s our prime lead and is having absolutely none of this let-the-men-investigate nonsense. Set in 1925, the series follows her as she uncovers a conspiracy far bigger than anyone bargained for.
Man on Fire
Denzel Washington gave us one hell of a performance as John Creasy in Tony Scott’s 2004 thriller, so Netflix having another go at A.J. Quinnell’s creation was for sure going to get people talking. And who’s got the job of stepping into those shoes? None other than Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who took the lead in this seven-part adaptation inspired by Quinnell’s novels, starting with 1980’s Man on Fire.
Our man Creasy is a former Special Forces mercenary dealing with PTSD, and just as he is trying to get his life back on track, he gets to be a part of a conspiracy in Brazil. So much for a bit of peace! He ends up protecting a teenage girl named Poe Rayburn, whose family is caught up in the whole sorry mess, while Alice Braga joins the action as his ally, Valeria Melo.
And we want you to be a little considerate here because most are going to compare every scene with Washington’s version, but before you do that, give the fella a fair chance!