1986 in books
Who ruled 1986? Robert Ludlum was Author of the Year on the NYT Hardcover Fiction list. Every #1 bestseller of 1986, the biggest books and the top authors.
NYT Hardcover Fiction
| # | Author | Era Power | Crowns | Top-five weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Ludlum | 306 | 8 | 19 |
| 2 | Jean M. Auel | 306 | 6 | 21 |
| 3 | Danielle Steel | 285 | 4 | 19 |
| 4 | Garrison Keillor | 280 | 1 | 22 |
| 5 | Tom Clancy | 274 | 4 | 22 |
| 6 | Stephen King | 246 | 12 | 17 |
| 7 | Louis L'Amour | 198 | 4 | 14 |
| 8 | Judith Krantz | 196 | 2 | 12 |
| 9 | John le Carré | 195 | 5 | 12 |
| 10 | Ken Follett | 184 | 2 | 11 |
| First week at #1 | Title | Author | Weeks at #1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 5, 1986 | The Mammoth Hunters | Jean M. Auel | 6 |
| Feb 16, 1986 | Lie Down with Lions | Ken Follett | 2 |
| Mar 2, 1986 | Lake Wobegon Days | Garrison Keillor | 1 |
| Mar 9, 1986 | The Bourne Supremacy | Robert Ludlum | 8 |
| May 4, 1986 | A Perfect Spy | John le Carré | 5 |
| May 25, 1986 | I'll Take Manhattan | Judith Krantz | 2 |
| Jun 22, 1986 | Last of the Breed | Louis L'Amour | 4 |
| Jul 20, 1986 | Wanderlust | Danielle Steel | 4 |
| Aug 17, 1986 | Red Storm Rising | Tom Clancy | 4 |
| Sep 14, 1986 | It | Stephen King | 12 |
| Nov 23, 1986 | Whirlwind | James Clavell | 4 |
| # | Title | Author | Peak | Weeks | Book Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Red Storm Rising | Tom Clancy | #1 | 50 | 496.5 |
| 2 | It | Stephen King | #1 | 35 | 369.4 |
| 3 | The Bourne Supremacy | Robert Ludlum | #1 | 32 | 306.4 |
| 4 | The Prince of Tides | Pat Conroy | #4 | 50 | 253.8 |
| 5 | Wanderlust | Danielle Steel | #1 | 28 | 243.4 |
| 6 | Last of the Breed | Louis L'Amour | #1 | 26 | 205.6 |
| 7 | Whirlwind | James Clavell | #1 | 22 | 200.3 |
| 8 | A Perfect Spy | John le Carré | #1 | 24 | 199.6 |
| 9 | I'll Take Manhattan | Judith Krantz | #1 | 24 | 196.4 |
| 10 | Lie Down with Lions | Ken Follett | #1 | 24 | 184.3 |
Author of the Year and the rankings are the ChartReign Power model: the author with the most chart power over the year, not the most #1s. Crowns are weeks crowned Author of the Week. How it works