10/12/2026
THE SECOND CHAPTER BOOK REPORT
Monday, October 12, 2026
Welcome back to the Second Chapter Book Report! I'm Karen, owner of Second Chapter Books in Carthage, North Carolina, and the publishing industry has certainly given us plenty to talk about this week.
From a record-breaking fantasy release and encouraging news for physical bookstores to major changes in the world of advance reading copies, artificial intelligence controversies, and a rather unexpected collaboration between Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Patterson, there's no shortage of headlines.
And while some of these stories are making national news, others are happening behind the scenes in an industry that is far more complicated than most readers realize.
Rebecca Yarros Delivers a Record-Breaking Fantasy Release
Let's start with Rebecca Yarros, because the Empyrean fandom has once again demonstrated just how powerful the fantasy market has become.
According to Publishers Weekly and Circana BookScan, Threshing Day sold an astonishing 857,802 print copies during its first week, making it the biggest book debut of 2026 so far and already one of the year's bestselling titles.
What's particularly interesting is that Threshing Day isn't even the next full-length installment in the Empyrean series. It's a companion collection featuring thirteen stories set within the world readers have come to love. Yet the demand has been extraordinary, demonstrating that readers aren't simply invested in one storyline. They're invested in the entire fictional world.
But while those sales figures are impressive, the release also exposed some of the challenges facing the publishing industry's distribution system.
Customers across the country reported canceled preorders from major retailers, leaving some readers scrambling to locate copies of a book they believed they had already secured.
At Second Chapter Books, we experienced the demand firsthand. We shipped our nationwide preorders ahead of release day so customers could receive their books when they were supposed to. We also hosted our midnight release, and even after receiving an additional case of twenty-four books, we sold through our remaining inventory within roughly a day or two.
For readers, a preorder may seem like a simple transaction. You purchase a book, wait for publication day, and expect it to arrive. But behind that transaction is an entire process involving publishers, distributors, inventory allocations, shipping schedules, and retailers placing orders months in advance.
And sometimes, despite everyone's best efforts, things go wrong.
The important distinction is that accepting a preorder doesn't necessarily mean a retailer has received a confirmed allocation sufficient to fulfill it. That's why monitoring these releases is such an important part of what we do.
When a customer trusts us with their money months before a book is published, I take that responsibility seriously.
And if there's one thing the Threshing Day release has demonstrated, it's that fantasy and romantasy are no longer small corners of the publishing industry. They're driving some of the biggest releases in the entire business.
Physical Bookstores Are Making a Comeback
That enthusiasm for books isn't limited to blockbuster releases, either. New research suggests that physical bookstores are experiencing something of a resurgence.
For years, we've heard predictions that brick-and-mortar bookstores were becoming obsolete. Online retailers were supposedly going to replace them, and the convenience of ordering books from a phone would eventually eliminate the need to visit a physical store.
Well, apparently customers have other ideas.
Recent foot-traffic analysis from Placer.ai indicates that visits to Barnes & Noble locations are approximately 33.6 percent higher than in 2019, while visits to other bookstores have also shown meaningful growth, with figures around 16.5 percent.
Now, it's important to recognize that these are visitor numbers rather than actual sales figures. Barnes & Noble's expansion into additional locations also contributes to its overall growth. But the broader trend is encouraging.
People are still walking into bookstores.
They're browsing shelves, discovering authors, attending events, and enjoying an experience that simply cannot be duplicated by clicking a purchase button.
I see that happen at Second Chapter Books all the time. Somebody walks through the door looking for one particular title, and twenty minutes later we're discussing an entirely different series. Sometimes they leave with a book they never knew existed.
That's what a good bookstore can offer.
Of course, increased foot traffic doesn't automatically translate into financial success. Independent bookstores continue to face rising operating expenses, narrow profit margins, and competition from major retailers that sometimes sell books for less than we can purchase them wholesale.
But the fact that people are returning to physical bookstores tells me something important. The demand for the bookstore experience hasn't disappeared.
And that experience is built on relationships, recommendations, community, and a genuine love of books.
NetGalley and Edelweiss Come Under the Same Corporate Ownership
While bookstores are seeing encouraging signs, some significant changes are taking place behind the scenes in the technology used to discover and promote upcoming releases.
Valsoft Corporation has acquired the Firebrand Group, which includes NetGalley, Firebrand Technologies, and Supadu. Valsoft previously acquired Edelweiss in 2024, bringing two of the publishing industry's major advance-reading and book-discovery platforms under the same corporate ownership.
For readers who aren't familiar with these services, NetGalley and Edelweiss allow publishers to share advance reading copies and information about upcoming books with reviewers, librarians, booksellers, and other industry professionals.
These platforms are incredibly important to what I do at Second Chapter Books.
I read advance copies constantly, not simply because I enjoy reading, but because I want to know what we're putting on our shelves. I want to know which authors deserve attention, which books are worth recommending, and which upcoming releases belong in our subscription boxes.
When I recommend a book to a customer, I want that recommendation to mean something.
So when two major platforms serving that part of the publishing industry come under the same corporate ownership, I'm paying attention.
There has been no confirmed announcement that the services will merge or that reviewers will lose access. But consolidation naturally raises questions about future pricing, publisher relationships, and how advance copies may be distributed.
For now, it's a development worth watching, particularly for independent booksellers who rely on these platforms to discover books before they're published.
Banned Books Week Renews the Conversation About Access to Reading
Another major conversation in publishing this week centers on access to books themselves.
Banned Books Week took place October fourth through the tenth, bringing renewed attention to challenges involving books in schools, libraries, and other public institutions.
It's a subject that generates strong opinions, and understandably so.
There are several different issues involved, including age appropriateness, parental involvement, school library collections, and broader questions about removing books from public access.
As a bookseller, I deal with age recommendations regularly. We carry everything from children's picture books to some extremely dark adult fiction, and obviously I wouldn't recommend the same title to an eight-year-old that I would recommend to a thirty-year-old.
But I also believe books serve an important purpose beyond entertainment.
They introduce readers to unfamiliar experiences, challenge assumptions, and provide opportunities to understand perspectives different from their own.
Parents absolutely have a role in determining what their children read. At the same time, there's an important distinction between making decisions for your own family and making those decisions for an entire community.
And that's why conversations about access to books remain so important.
You don't have to enjoy every book that's published, and you certainly don't have to agree with every idea presented in one. But literature has always provided a place for exploring difficult subjects, challenging perspectives, and telling stories that might otherwise go unheard.
Independent Bookstores Join Forces for Community Giving
While debates over access to books continue, independent bookstores are also finding new ways to strengthen the communities they serve.
At the Heartland Fall Forum, bookselling organizations discussed plans for a collective charitable initiative that would bring participating independent bookstores together to support a shared cause.
The concept involves bookstores contributing a portion of their sales toward charitable giving, demonstrating how independent businesses can work together to create a larger impact.
And this is a story that hits particularly close to home for me.
At Second Chapter Books, we're currently working on our second annual Angel Tree program in partnership with Moore County Public Schools.
Last year, we helped close to eighty children. This year, the program has grown into something significantly larger.
These are children who have specifically asked for books for Christmas. They've shared their favorite genres, characters, authors, and series, and we're working to provide books that reflect what they actually want to read.
We're not simply handing a child one random paperback and calling it a Christmas gift.
We're trying to give them a Christmas filled with books they'll be excited to open.
And making something like that happen requires an enormous amount of support. It takes individuals purchasing books, businesses stepping forward as sponsors, volunteers helping with organization and wrapping, and a tremendous amount of coordination behind the scenes.
That's one of the things I love about independent bookstores. They can be businesses that generate revenue, employ people, and support the local economy while also making a meaningful difference in their communities.
Those two things can absolutely go hand in hand.
And seeing bookstores across the country looking for ways to collaborate on charitable initiatives is encouraging.
Artificial Intelligence Sparks Concern Inside Major Publishing Houses
Meanwhile, another issue generating considerable attention in publishing is artificial intelligence.
According to reporting from WIRED, employees at several major publishing companies, including HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, and Hachette, have raised concerns about the growing use of AI in publishing workplaces.
Those concerns include the use of artificial intelligence for publicity materials, marketing copy, communications, and other administrative or creative tasks.
At Simon & Schuster, employees have also objected to the potential use of technology capable of monitoring employee work processes and performance. The company has stated that a company-wide rollout of the monitoring system in question is not underway or being considered.
The controversy raises broader questions about the role artificial intelligence should play in a creative industry.
Publishing depends on authors, editors, illustrators, designers, publicists, and countless other professionals whose work involves creativity, judgment, and experience.
Technology can certainly make certain tasks more efficient. Every modern business relies on software and automation to some degree.
But there's a difference between using technology to organize information and using it to replace creative work.
And I think transparency is going to become increasingly important.
If artificial intelligence materially contributes to artwork, writing, or other creative elements of a published book, readers may reasonably want to know.
Authors also have legitimate questions about intellectual property, how their work may be used, and whether their creative contributions are adequately protected.
Employees have concerns about monitoring, performance evaluations, and how automated systems might affect their jobs.
These are complicated questions, and I don't think the publishing industry has finished working through them.
In fact, I suspect we're only beginning to see how significant the conversation surrounding artificial intelligence will become.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Teams Up With James Patterson for a New Thriller
Fortunately, not every publishing headline this week involves controversy.
Because apparently Arnold Schwarzenegger has decided that being a bodybuilder, movie star, and governor of California wasn't enough.
Now he's becoming a novelist.
Schwarzenegger is teaming up with bestselling author James Patterson for a thriller titled The Protector, scheduled for publication on October fourth, 2027.
The story follows Father Viktor Brennan, a Catholic priest and military veteran living in Los Angeles who becomes involved in confronting violence and criminal activity threatening his community.
And apparently, his past holds a few surprises.
According to the announcement, Schwarzenegger has had the idea for this story for decades and is now working with Patterson to bring it to readers.
I have to admit, this is a collaboration I never saw coming.
James Patterson has worked with numerous coauthors over the years, but Arnold Schwarzenegger?
I would love to have been in the room when that conversation happened.
I can just imagine Patterson discussing character development while Schwarzenegger is trying to determine how many explosions they can fit into the third chapter.
All joking aside, this is likely to attract considerable attention. Patterson already has an enormous readership, and Schwarzenegger is one of the most recognizable names in entertainment.
Whether the finished novel lives up to the excitement remains to be seen, but it's certainly an interesting addition to the publishing calendar.
Frankfurt Book Fair Brings the Global Publishing Industry Together
And speaking of the larger publishing world, one of the industry's most important international gatherings took place this past week in Germany.
The Frankfurt Book Fair ran from October seventh through the eleventh, bringing together publishers, literary agents, authors, booksellers, translators, and industry professionals from around the world.
Organizers reported approximately 236,000 visitors from 137 countries, including 119,000 trade visitors, along with thousands of exhibitors and events.
And while the average reader might imagine a giant convention filled with books, Frankfurt is much more than that.
It's one of the major places where the international publishing business happens.
Publishers negotiate translation rights. Literary agents introduce manuscripts to international markets. Companies explore new technology, emerging trends, and opportunities for books to reach readers in different countries.
Think about what happens when a novel originally published overseas eventually appears on the shelves of an American bookstore.
Someone had to discover that book, negotiate the rights, arrange for translation, coordinate publication, and distribute it to retailers.
And eventually, a bookseller decided it belonged on their shelves.
That entire process is something most readers never see.
This year's Frankfurt discussions included artificial intelligence, freedom of publishing, and the evolving international book market, many of the same subjects making headlines throughout the industry.
And I think events like this serve as a reminder that publishing is an enormous global business, even though the final product may be something as simple as a single book sitting on a shelf.
Around Second Chapter Books: ACOTAR, Angel Tree, and Downtown Construction
Closer to home, things are certainly not slowing down at Second Chapter Books.
We're now in the final stretch of preparations for our ACOTAR 6 midnight release party, taking place October twenty-sixth at the Tyson Sinclair Ballroom in Carthage.
Doors open at eight o'clock, and we'll celebrate the book's release at midnight.
This is going to be a very special event, and we've spent months preparing to make it an experience for everyone attending.
When we hosted our first midnight release for Onyx Storm, we were still a relatively new bookstore and had just moved into our current location.
Now we're preparing for another major release, and I couldn't be more excited.
If you've attended one of our events before, you already know we don't believe in simply handing somebody a book and sending them home.
We want readers to have an experience, meet other people who love the same stories, and create memories around books.
Our Angel Tree program is also in full swing, and this is where we really need the community's help.
We're working to provide books for local children this Christmas, and we need individuals and businesses to start participating now.
You can visit 2ndChapterBooks.com and select the Choose an Angel category to purchase books for a child, or you can stop by the bookstore at 101 Monroe Street in Carthage.
We're also looking for businesses interested in becoming Angel Tree sponsors.
All angels need to be fulfilled by December first so we have enough time to order, receive, organize, and wrap the books before Christmas.
And remember, you don't have to live in North Carolina to participate. Our online store is available nationwide, and we ship books across the country.
And finally, we can't finish a Second Chapter Book Report without mentioning the construction around the Carthage traffic circle.
Because apparently the traffic circle has decided to become a permanent member of our staff.
We've had road closures, detours, torn-up pavement, concrete removal, and just about everything else imaginable happening outside the bookstore.
And yes, it has had a significant impact on our business and other downtown businesses.
But we're still open.
We're still here.
And there is parking available.
So please don't assume the businesses around the circle are closed just because the roads look like somebody decided to start an archaeological excavation.
Downtown Carthage businesses still need your support, and every purchase makes a difference.
Closing Thoughts
As we wrap up this week's report, one thing is clear. The book industry is anything but boring.
Rebecca Yarros is delivering extraordinary sales figures. Customers are returning to physical bookstores. Major technology companies are reshaping parts of the publishing business. Artificial intelligence is creating new challenges, and authors are continuing to find unexpected ways to bring stories to readers.
And behind every major headline is an industry filled with people working to get books into readers' hands.
That's what makes this business so interesting, and it's why I enjoy sharing these stories with you each week.
So tell me in the comments, which publishing story caught your attention this week?
And if you enjoy hearing what's happening behind the scenes in the book industry, make sure you're following Second Chapter Books and share this report with another reader.
You can find us online at 2ndChapterBooks.com or visit us at 101 Monroe Street in Carthage, North Carolina.
Thanks for joining me for this week's Second Chapter Book Report.
I'll see you next Monday.
Happy reading!
