2026 has fluttered in like a freshly opened hardcover—pages crisp, spine unbroken, and possibilities tucked into every chapter. Before I race off toward shiny new releases, towering TBR stacks, and the inevitable comfort re-reads, it’s time to pause, dog-ear the past, and look back on my 2025 year in books.
Over the course of the year, I read 68 books, including a handful of beloved re-reads that felt like curling up with old friends—familiar, comforting, and just as magical as ever. I also took a chance on 27 debut or new-to-me authors, discovering several absolute gems whose backlists are now whispering my name from the shelves. While I’m setting aside the A to Z Reading Challenge after sixteen years in favor of a little more reading freedom, 2025 was still a year full of delightful surprises, unexpected favorites, and plenty of bookish joy worth revisiting.
Just like last year, I’m once again sorting my top reads into two carefully curated stacks: Best Books of 2025 (Published in 2025) and Best Books of 2025 (Published in Years Prior). Every book on this list was a first-time read—otherwise a few much-loved authors and perennial comfort books would simply take up permanent residence on my year-end roundup. To keep things fair (and to save myself from endlessly reshuffling the list), the books are alphabetized by author. Any other approach might have had me second-guessing every choice until 2027, and I’d much rather spend that time discovering a new favorite book
Archangel’s Ascension (Guild Hunter, Book 17) by Nalini Singh
Hollow (A Gothic Shade of Romance, Book 1) by Karina Halle
Murder in Highbury (Emma Knightley Mysteries, Book 1) by Vanessa Kelly
Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, Book 1) by Rebecca Yarros
Over the course of the year, I read 68 books, including a handful of beloved re-reads that felt like curling up with old friends—familiar, comforting, and just as magical as ever. I also took a chance on 27 debut or new-to-me authors, discovering several absolute gems whose backlists are now whispering my name from the shelves. While I’m setting aside the A to Z Reading Challenge after sixteen years in favor of a little more reading freedom, 2025 was still a year full of delightful surprises, unexpected favorites, and plenty of bookish joy worth revisiting.
Just like last year, I’m once again sorting my top reads into two carefully curated stacks: Best Books of 2025 (Published in 2025) and Best Books of 2025 (Published in Years Prior). Every book on this list was a first-time read—otherwise a few much-loved authors and perennial comfort books would simply take up permanent residence on my year-end roundup. To keep things fair (and to save myself from endlessly reshuffling the list), the books are alphabetized by author. Any other approach might have had me second-guessing every choice until 2027, and I’d much rather spend that time discovering a new favorite book
Best Books of 2025 (Published in 2025)
The Austen Affair by Madeline Bell
Best Books of 2025 (Published in years prior)
