The best books of 2025, wrapped!
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I thought I’d have to discontinue these lists once I had a baby. Who has time to read with a baby?
Turns out, me! I read 162 books, an all time high!
Nearly all of these are via audiobook. Audiobooks have been my sanity saver this year!. When rocking a fussy baby. When awake in the middle of the night. On hour 7 of being solo with my own personal tiny tyrant. Listening to audiobooks has been my own little form of self-regulation when life with an infant is both overwhelming and boring.
That also means my average attention is less. Am I remembering every word? No. But that’s as much down to sleep deprivation as to split attention while listening.
So I’m not trying to tackle War and Peace these days. My choices lean a little closer to beach reads this year, and it’s almost entirely fiction.
But they’re not all fluff! Some of my best books of 2025 made me think, both fiction and nonfiction.
Here are my top ten fiction and top three nonfiction best books of 2025!
My Best Books of 2025: fiction
We Solve Murders, Richard Osman
Netflix’s recent movie version of The Thursday Murder Club has the whole world talking about Osman’s series, but I have to mention his book outside the series published this year! We Solve Murders follows a bodyguard whose clients keep getting murdered, in spite of being good at her job. With the help of a few unorthodox teammates, she sets out to figure out what’s happening and why her clients are being targeted.
Thank You For Listening, Julia Whelan
First things first: you really should listen to this one. Thank You For Listening is about an audiobook voice actor, after all. The main character gets tapped to record one final book by a legendary romance author’s final book alongside the hottest male voice actor. She starts to connect with him as an anonymous voice, while still balance all the realities of real life.
Julia Whelan is also an audiobook narrator, so she’s the perfect person to imagine and voice this story!
The Briar Club, Kate Quinn
The Briar Club was my favorite historical fiction of the year! Kate Quinn is a master of weaving together multiple storylines with relatable yet distinct characters. Five women living in a boarding house slowly become drawn into each others lives after one begins to host dinners. Yet when a sudden attack hits the house, how will they each react?
One thing I loved: it’s a historical fiction, but not a typical war history. The setting is 1950’s New York.
The Likeness, Tana French
I list this one, but really, you need to read the entire Dublin Murder Squad series. Each book follows a different detective, so they each have a different-but-familiar main character. They’re also unified by having impossible to spot twists in the ends!
The Likeness follows Detective Cassie Maddox, who gets pulled into an undercover investigation after a dead body is discover that looks shockingly like her. She goes in to replace the dead woman in hopes of trying to identify the killer. It’s the second in the series, so start at the beginning, but it may have been my favorite!
Bring the House Down, Charlotte Runcie
If you think this list has too many murder mysteries, fear not! Bring the House Down is a fascinating commentary on performance, journalism, and sexism while still somehow being a fun read! I can’t emphasize enough that it was a great, fun, funny book. And also it was a clear eyed portrayal of how gender and privilege still get tied up our choices, without providing pat or simple answers. Highly recommend.
Magpie Murders, Anthony Horowitz
I reread this series this year, and while I liked all of them, the original was probably my favorite! Magpie Murders follows London book editor Susan Ryeland, who settles in for the weekend to read her latest manuscript, the latest murder mystery from a brilliant but difficult author. Annoyingly, the last chapters of the book are missing. When she goes into the office Monday to find it, she learns that the author died – a schocking fall from the roof of his mansion.
Anthony Horowitz has written several murder series I love, and the latest in this series release this year. They all involve clever riddles, anagrams, and puzzles within puzzles; it’s fun to see which you catch on your own!
The Overstory, Richard Powers
Oof this book. It’s such a good story! It’s one of those stories like Cloud Atlas, where several storylines start separately and come together over time. I don’t know how to tell much about it without taking away from the unfolding of the story, but The Overstory follows several characters and their relationships with trees and nature. It’s so well written and so compelling. AND it’ll make you think differently about conservationism, regardless of your politics.
Onyx Storm, Rebecca Yarros
I know this Onyx Storm is on everyone’s list. Yes, I love these. I’ve loved sci-fi/fantasy/epics my whole life (hello, my name is Emma and my favorite move has been Star Wars since I was 11).
I don’t even know what to say about this one. The story structure reminds me a bit of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in that they set out on a quest to a series of islands in an unknown part of the world. The journey is a long shot hunt for a few things in Violet’s eyes: protect the alliance against the venin, answers about the seventh type of dragon, and a cure for Xaden.
The Excitements, C.J. Wray
Imagine two English nonagenarians setting out on one last adventure to close the book on a few unfinished moments from their lives. Oh, alongside their great-nephew Archie who has no idea of their pasts.
The Excitements is delightful. It’s hard to explain why without giving away anything, but if you take a WWII historical fiction and add the vibe of Great British Baking Show, it’s kind of like that. I loved it and would read 15 more of these.
Never Lie, Freida McFadden
Okay, hang with me: a couple drives out to visit a house they want to buy. They both have mixed feelings but love it. Then the realtor never shows, and then they get snowed in! The story is told in several perspectives: the husband, the wife, and via secret recordings, the psychologist homeowner. It’s a great thriller and just the right amount of tense/creepy. And you’ll never guess how it ends!
Never Lie is a great read with several twists. I love any book that surprises me with the ending, and this one threw me for a loop at least three times.
My Best Books of 2025: nonfiction
Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman, Lucy Worsley
As shown by the fiction list, I love a murder mystery. I’ve read most of Christie’s books, especially the Poirot ones – he’s my favorite. So when someone recommended this biography I snapped it up.
Agatha Christie is an interesting woman. She has these whole sections of her life that will surprise you. And her random 11 day disappearance isn’t the main one!
Be Ready When the Luck Happens, Ina Garten
Alright I know everyone and their mom read this last year. I only got to it now. But if you haven’t yet, add it to your list!
Be Ready When the Luck Happens is a delight to read! Even if you don’t know much about Ina Garten. I only peripherally watched her show. She’s funny and fun, and I loved hearing her story!
The Small and the Mighty, Sharon McMahon
You may know Sharon McMahon from her instagram account, @SharonSaysSo. She offers calm, clear explanations of government actions, from a constitutional perspective. Her nickname is “America’s government teacher.”
The Small and the Mighty tells the story of 12 Americans you won’t read about in the history books but who dedicated their lives to serving the people of the US. Real patriots, unsung heroes in the truest sense of the world. It’s a heartening book when the world feels like it’s been a dumpster fire for years.
These are my best books of 2025! Want more? I do a roundup every year! Check last year’s fiction or nonfiction lists, or grab all of them in one place!
