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Welcome to my favorite blog post of the year! These are the best books I read in 2025.

I seriously debated how many books I should put on the list. I only read 52 books this year. That's not a lot for me. I guess I can't complain. I crammed a lot of life (and a shocking amount of failure) into 2025. I think 2026 is going to be the same. Reading is on the back burner. I miss being able to rot in bed and read for hours. Now I fall asleep if I stand still.

Putting 10/52 books on a "Best" list seems too generous for a cold-hearted witch like me. But, it's been a difficult year. Let's be generous. These books are excellent. I recommend all of them.

Here are my favorite books of 2025. I arranged them countdown style for unnecessary drama.

Drumroll please . . . 

Best Books Of 2025

10. Accountable: The True Story Of A Racist Social Media Account And The Teenagers Whose Lives It Changed by Dashka Slater

True Crime Nonfiction

When a high school student started a private Instagram account that used racist and sexist memes to make his friends laugh, he thought of it as “edgy” humor. Over time, the edge got sharper. Then a few other kids found out about the account, and pretty soon, everyone knew. Ultimately no one in the small town of Albany, California, was safe from the repercussions of the account’s discovery: not the girls targeted by the posts. Not the boy who created the account. Not the group of kids who followed it. Not the adults―educators and parents―whose attempts to fix things too often made them worse. In the end, no one was laughing, and everyone was left wondering: What does it mean to be held accountable for harm that takes place behind a screen?

Why I recommend it: It's true crime about a cyberbullying case that became several court cases. This book was tough to read because I was bullied in school. The author perfectly captures the fear of being forced to attend school with people who want to injure and humiliate you. I put the book down a few times because it's stressful! The author also did an amazing job of examining the bullies' motives and the culture of teenage boys. Every boy wanted to be the funniest, the wildest, the most outrageous kid in the friend group. It's easy to see how bullying can get out of control when teenagers are always encouraging each other to push boundaries.

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9. Ice Ghosts: The Epic Hunt For The Lost Franklin Expedition by Paul Watson

Adventure Nonfiction

Ice Ghosts weaves together the epic story of the Lost Franklin Expedition of 1845—whose two ships and crew of 129 were lost to the Arctic ice—with the modern tale of the scientists, divers, and local Inuit behind the incredible discovery of the flagship’s wreck in 2014. Paul Watson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who was on the icebreaker that led the discovery expedition, tells a fast-paced historical adventure story: Sir John Franklin and the crew of  the HMS Erebus and Terror setting off in search of the fabled Northwest Passage, the hazards they encountered and the reasons they were forced to abandon ship hundreds of miles from the nearest outpost of Western civilization, and the decades of searching that turned up only rumors of cannibalism and a few scattered papers and bones—until a combination of faith in Inuit lore and the latest science yielded a discovery for the ages.

Why I recommend it: It delivers what the title promises. In 1845, Sir John Franklin and his crew went to the Arctic on two ships to map the Northwest Passage. The trip went poorly. None of the men made it home. The two ships were missing until 2014. This book is the story of all the people throughout history who attempted to find Franklin's lost ships. I was completely fascinated by the different attempts to locate Franklin. His wife never gave up on him. It's sad that she died from old age without leaning what happened to her husband. The families of Franklin's crew also had to live with the mystery. I don't think I could have done that. It would have made me insane.

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8. Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke

History Nonfiction

Whether we love them or hate them, think they’re sexy, think they’re strange, consider them too big, too small, or anywhere in between, humans have a complicated relationship with butts. It is a body part unique to humans, critical to our evolution and survival, and yet it has come to signify so much more: sex, desire, comedy, shame. A woman’s butt, in particular, is forever being assessed, criticized, and objectified, from anxious self-examinations trying on jeans in department store dressing rooms to enduring crass remarks while walking down a street or high school hallways. But why? In Butts: A Backstory, reporter, essayist, and RadioLab contributing editor Heather Radke is determined to find out.

Why I recommend it: I bought this book because I like the title and cover. I didn't have high expectations for the insides. I should have had more faith in the book. It's super interesting!

Butts is a nonfiction book about butts. Mostly, women's butts. Mostly, the clothes that women use to cover their butts. It's a deep dive into culture and fashion history. How (and why) do different silhouettes go in and out of style? How do women use clothing, diet, and Buns of Steel workouts to achieve the butt of their dreams?

You can't discuss the history of butts without talking about racism, sexism, cultural appropriation, and pop culture. In addition to clothing styles, the author explores eugenics and the quest to define the "perfect" butt. She also talks about the influence of celebrities like Sir Mix-A-Lot, JLo, the Kardashians, and Miley Cyrus.

I love this book because it forced me to think about a topic I've never really considered. I thought butts were just . . . butts. Heather Radke proves they are much more complicated.

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7. Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

Adult Historical Fiction

A Saturday in 1978 in Florida: In the middle of the night, a man breaks into a female student dormitory. He goes from room to room and kills several residents. He will soon be known as one of the most famous serial killers in the USA. But he was observed committing his crime.

The survivors, including key witness Pamela Schumacher, will be forever changed by this night. They have all become victims. But as they tell their perspectives here, they remain masters of their stories. And they hunt the perpetrator on their own—against resistance from the justice system and the police; against public opinion, which idolizes the serial killer.

Why I recommend it: The characters are so realistic that the book stressed me out. I had to take breaks and read other books.

In 1970s Florida, a man breaks into a college sorority house and murders several young women. The only witness is Pamela, a wannabe lawyer who has a complicated relationship with her sorority sisters. She teams up with other crime victims to bring the killer to justice.

This book is stressful because Pamela is way too relatable at times. She's a perfectionist who badly wants to be in control, but she makes mistakes because she's in over her head. The murder of her friends is more than she can handle alone. She'd never admit to being overwhelmed, though. Yeah . . . I feel called out. I could see myself behaving similarly in Pamela's situation.

I appreciate this novel because it's a unique take on the true crime genre. The book is fiction, but if you know the history of American serial killers, then it's easy to see where the author got her inspiration. Unlike other crime books, the killer does not take over the story. The author keeps the focus on the victims. They're complex characters with full lives. I like that.

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6. The Song of Orphan's Garden by Nicole M. Hewitt

Middle Grade Fantasy Novel-In-Verse

In an arctic world that's getting colder every day, Lyriana's only hope of survival is to get her little brother Zave and herself to the fabled Orphan's Garden. It’s rumored to be the one place in the world not controlled by deadly Winter Spirits or ruled by the tyrant Giant king. In Orphan’s Garden, healing trees will melt away Winter’s pains, and Lyriana and Zave can live safely in the warmth of Spring. If the garden exists, they must find it. They won’t live much longer without it.

Brob, a Giant boy, also needs sanctuary. When the Giant king banishes his family to the Winter Blight, it’s a death sentence. Orphan’s Garden is his family’s only hope, and as far as Brob’s concerned, it belongs to him. After all, he was the one who accidentally used an ancient magic to grow the garden years ago. He has no intention of sharing his haven with pesky humans, who will just use up its magic and ruin it.

When it becomes clear that Orphan’s Garden is in danger of being destroyed, Lyriana and Brob are the only ones who can save it—but only if they can put the ages-old battle between Humans and Giants aside and find a way to work together.

Why I recommend it: There is so much to love about this middle grade novel! My favorite element is the imagery. I like the idea of summer islands in an ocean of winter.

I like that we get to see both sides of the human/giant conflict. The characters have valid reasons to be angry at each other. They also have legends about how the other side wronged them. As the story progresses, the kids learn that legends might not be true, and that saving the world requires you to work with your "enemies." We only have one planet. We're all in this together.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It's a quick, sweet read with loveable characters.

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5. Biased: Uncovering The Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, And Do by Jennifer L. Eberhardt

Psychology Nonfiction

We do not have to be racist to be biased. With a perspective that is scientific, investigative, and personal, Jennifer L. Eberhardt offers a reasoned look into the effects of implicit racial bias, ranging from the subtle to the dramatic. Racial bias can lead to disparities in education, employment, housing, and the criminal justice system—and then those very disparities further reinforce the problem. In Biased, Eberhardt reveals how even when we are not aware of bias and genuinely wish to treat all people equally, ingrained stereotypes infect our visual perception, attention, memory, and behavior.

Why I recommend it: I appreciate the author's approach to the topic. She argues that bias is so deeply ingrained in us that we don't even know it's there. That could be a tricky topic to write about, but the author approaches it scientifically and never shames the reader. She even points out her own biases and how her scientific studies helped her uncover them.

A lot of the book focuses on the US criminal justice system, but my favorite chapters are about the education system. The author discusses a study where seventh graders wrote journal entries as a school assignment. One group wrote entries about their personal values. The other group wrote about non-personal topics. The Black students who wrote values entries earned significantly higher grades in every class than the Black students who wrote non-personal entries. This study stuck in my mind because it demonstrates the importance of treating children as individuals and showing an interest in their lives.

I learned a lot from this book. It's on my personal required reading list.

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4. The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin

Middle Grade Historical Fiction

Summer, 1940. Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie share a love of riddles and puzzles. And now they’re living inside of one. The quarrelsome siblings find themselves amidst one of the greatest secrets of World War II—Britain’s eccentric codebreaking factory at Bletchley Park. As Jakob joins Bletchley’s top minds to crack the Nazi's Enigma cipher, fourteen-year-old Lizzie embarks on a mission to solve the mysterious disappearance of their mother.

The Battle of Britain rages and Hitler’s invasion creeps closer. And at the same time, baffling messages and codes arrive on their doorstep while a menacing inspector lurks outside the gates of the Bletchley mansion. Are the messages truly for them, or are they a trap? Could the riddles of Enigma and their mother's disappearance be somehow connected? Jakob and Lizzie must find a way to work together as they race to decipher clues which unravel a shocking puzzle that presents the ultimate challenge: How long must a secret be kept?

Why I recommend it: If this book had been around when I was a kid, it would have become an instant favorite. The plot is a quick-paced mystery. Lizzie is a quirky detective with a friend group that made me laugh a few times. I like the teens' boldness. They're completely confident they will find Lizzie's mother. Even the bombs falling from the sky won't discourage them.

This is a delightful novel. Read it if you like historical mysteries.

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3. Being Mortal: Medicine And What Matters In The End by Atul Gawande

Health Nonfiction

Medicine has triumphed in modern times, transforming birth, injury, and infectious disease from harrowing to manageable. But in the inevitable condition of aging and death, the goals of medicine seem too frequently to run counter to the interest of the human spirit. Nursing homes, preoccupied with safety, pin patients into railed beds and wheelchairs. Hospitals isolate the dying, checking for vital signs long after the goals of cure have become moot. Doctors, committed to extending life, continue to carry out devastating procedures that in the end extend suffering.

Gawande, a practicing surgeon, addresses his profession's ultimate limitation, arguing that quality of life is the desired goal for patients and families. Gawande offers examples of freer, more socially fulfilling models for assisting the infirm and dependent elderly, and he explores the varieties of hospice care to demonstrate that a person's last weeks or months may be rich and dignified.

Why I recommend it: The author is a surgeon who works with cancer patients. He talks about his personal experience with people who are at the end of their life, and he shares his research on nursing homes and other options for people who can no longer live independently. I love this book because it's relevant to every reader. We'll all die eventually. The author argues that medicine isn't always the answer to every health problem. Medicine has advanced so much that we can keep people's bodies alive long after their brains are dead. Should we be doing that? Are we prolonging life, or just prolonging suffering?

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2. I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us And A Grander View Of Life by Ed Yong

Biology Nonfiction

Every animal, whether human, squid, or wasp, is home to millions of bacteria and other microbes. Many people think of microbes as germs to be eradicated, but those that live with us—the microbiome—build our bodies, protect our health, shape our identities, and grant us incredible abilities. In this astonishing book, Ed Yong takes us on a grand tour through our microbial partners, and introduces us to the scientists on the front lines of discovery.

Why I recommend it: I spend more time than I'd like to admit thinking about "bad" microbes. I don't give much thought to the others. This book is about the others! Have you ever been curious about the microbes that live on (and in) you? Why are they there? What do they do? It turns out that they kind of do everything. They make up part of your immune system and help you digest food. They can even influence your behavior. Humans aren't the only ones who rely on microbes to stay healthy. Microbes are in plants, animals, dirt, and the air we breathe. Everything is an ecosystem. For a biology book, it's extremely accessible. You won't need Google to understand what the author is talking about. I learned a ton from this book.

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1. All The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Young Adult Dystopia Series

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Why I recommend it: I don't normally put rereads or whole series on my "Books Of The Year" lists, but I'd be lying if I put any other book in this spot.

During the first part of 2025, around the time when Sunrise On The Reaping came out, I got disgustingly sick for several weeks. I was struggling to take showers and make food and breathe. It was nasty. I'm glad there were no witnesses.

Anyway, I wanted to read while I was sweating in bed, but I quickly discovered that I had the brain power of a badly inbred goldfish. I couldn't retain new information. I decided to reread The Hunger Games for the millionth time. When I felt (slightly) better, I read Sunrise On The Reaping for the first time.

I enjoyed every book in this series. I like the fast pacing and the cliffhangers. There are so many cliffhangers! It makes the books very difficult to put down. They were also a great distraction from feeling lonely and sorry for myself.

If you haven't read this series, you should give it a try. Have you read Lord Of The Flies? The Hunger Games is like an updated version of that novel. Same murderous vibes; more relevant to life in the current century.

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What's the best book you read in 2025?