Reader Mailbag: Best Books Read in 2025
In the November newsletter we asked readers what the best book they had read so far this year was. Here were the responses:
B: I could not pick one best book this year, so I had a massive 14-way tie. A lot of my picks were from series and in the mystery/thriller genre.
Here they are:
The Lay of the Land by Richard Ford, the 3rd in his Frank Bascombe series. Frank is both very typical and unique.
Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow [Kindle County]
Nightshade by Michael Connelly [Bosch]
The Proving Ground by Michael Connelly [Lincoln lawyer]
The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman [Thursday Murder Club]
The Doorman by Chris Pavone
The Widow by John Grisham [imho his best in many years]
Broken Country by Claire Leslie Hall
The Jackal’s Mistress by Chris Bohjalian
Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis
We Live Here Now by Sarah Pinborough
So Far Gone by Jess Walter
Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart
King of Ashes by S A Cosby
But, the year isn’t over yet and I’m thinking the book I’m reading now, “Cursed Daughters” by Oyinkan Braithwaite might make the list. And, maybe a couple more I have sitting here waiting to be read.
Mark: Best non-fiction I read this year, by a long margin, was “If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies” by Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares. The subtitle: “Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All” tells you both what the book is about, and why it is so important. Stephen King only wishes he could write something this scary! Runner-up would be “Hitch-22”, a memoir by Christopher Hitchens. Also of interest (well, to me, at least)–I’ve been reading through the Penguin Monarchs. They are a series of short (about 120 pages each) biographies of the English kings and queens. I started at the beginning, and have gotten through Edward II so far.
I didn’t read a lot of great standalone novels this year; the best would probably be Terry Pratchett’s “Nation” and the massive (over 1,200 large hardcover pages!) fourth book in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive, “Rhythm of War”. The best novels I did read were two trilogies, the Wolf Hall trilogy by Hilary Mantel, and the Magicians trilogy by Lev Grossmann.
The best collections of short stories were easily Ted Chiang’s “Exhalation” and Tim Powers’ “Down and Out in Purgatory”. The best anthology was “In the Shadow of the Towers”, science fiction and fantasy stories relating to the islamic terrorist attacks of 9/11.
Neil: Although not new this year these are the books I enjoyed the most so far.
1. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles.
2. The Wager by David Grann.
3. A Gambling Man by David Baldacci.
Chris: I always think that books are a great gift, so this question is a good one. I have enjoyed reading Curtis Sittenfeld’s books ever since I read “American Wife” and have been picking up her other books when I can. This year I read “Eligible” by Ms. Sittenfeld and found it to be hoot. It’s a modern twist on Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” and it was the kind of book that you’d stay up late to finish-which I love. I also liked her book “Sisterland,” which was full of unique characters and situations.
Kathy: On the subject of ‘new book read this year’, I would recommend ‘Those Who Dwell in Darkness: A Vampire Thriller’ by Steve McHugh. This is a 3-book fantasy series, and the writing is excellent.
Suzanne: The best 2 books of 2025 that I read are:
The Women by Kristen Hannah
The Stolen Life of Collette Marceau by Kristin Harmel.
They are captivating,women centric,and deep in emotional detailing.ANY audience will appreciate the deep dive into the true, historical aspects of these novels!
Tom: Hello. I guess the best book is the one I am currently reading “The Institute” by S King. I wish I could recall some of the others. Maybe “The Mysterious Island” by Jules Verne which is a bit different from the original movie from 1961. The 2012 remake was horrible.
Linda: Because I am very careful about the books I choose to read, I hardly ever read one that I do not consider very good to excellent. I read by favorite authors, friends referrals and Order of Books reviews, so I usually get great books. This past year I will list 5 that I loved. “Women” by Kristin Hannah, “28 Summers” by Elin Hilderbrand and the JB Collins series by Joel Rosenberg , “First Hostage”, “Third Target”, and
“Without Warning”. I don’t always read just books that are brand new. I find some older books are just as good as the new best sellers, so I have bookcases full of books that I pick at random to read. Reading is a way of traveling through space, time and location. I live my life through the plots of the books I read. Reading is one of the best hobbies ever.
AJ: My favorite books this year:
Who Will Remember? By CS Harris
Atlas:The Story of Pa Salt by Lucinda Reilly finished by her son Harry Whittaker
Hidden in Smoke by Lee Goldberg
Deadline by Marc Cameron
Don’t Say a Word by Allison Brennan.
As always I love these newsletters and always find something new to read.
Kat: i just started
Dogged Pursuit (Andy Carpenter, #31)
Rosenfelt, David
its so good so far, i love the series! this one shows how he got ‘tara the wonder dog’. wish i didnt have chores so i could sit and read the whole thing, but this makes it last longer
Linda: Being in a book group for over 20 years is a great way to diversify my reading habits. However I enjoy series:
Curiosities by Louise Penny (best of series)
(Enjoy the way she has builds character)
An Enemy in the Village, A Bruno Chief of Police Novel by
Martin Walker-international journalist, loves the Dordogne and Washington DC. Good read, love, life, food, dripping with French atmosphere, history and murder.
Lastly, “How to be perfect” by Martin Schur, tv writer, checking your moral compass-best listened to-Michael is the reader (a must) Maybe while you are running!
Brenda: As Graeme did, allow me to also list my top 5 books of 2025 so far, in no particular order.
The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North
The Red Shore by William Shaw
We Are All Guilty Here by Karin Slaughter
The Quiet Librarian by Allen Eskens
The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly
Regarding The Lincoln Lawyer, I tried to read this book years ago. I just couldn’t get into it and DNF’d it. That always bothered me over the years. How could I not like a Michael Connelly book?!?! So I tried reading it again this summer and OMG, it was fantastic.
Louis: I finally read Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus and while not a typical story line for me, it was terrific. I enjoy good food and great reads and this one qualifies in both areas.
As we are working towards an important holiday, I’ll add a Christmas Novella, A Christmas Witness by Charles Todd. This setting is just after WW I and the Chief Inspectors mental companion, Hamish, offers his caustic remarks (as usual) with his typical Scottish brogue throughout the tale. Quite good.
Nancy: What a task. There are so many enjoyable books out there, but here are two that I recommend to friends and acquaintances:
Atmosphere – Taylor Jenkins Read – This really hit home because it hit on so many themes and spoke frankly about them. First that you could have a lesbian as the main character, second that it pointed out frankly the sexism in the space program. Well written and timely. An excellent read.
The Grey Wolf – Louise Penny – This whole series about the imaginary village of Three Pines and Inspector Gamache and his team has been a terrific read since Still Life, the first in the series. Forget the two tv shows, read the series. You don’t have to start at number one, but it helps as the character development is spot on. She creates scenes like few other authors. I absolutely recommend this whole series.
Priscilla: The Proving Ground, Michael Connelly’s latest Lincoln Lawyer novel, is my recommendation for a “must read”. The topic of AI is so appropriate for our times and his detailed description made understanding the technology easy and exciting. It’s a gripping courtroom drama at Connelly’s best.
Phil: The best book I read this year was “Field Of Schemes” A Lloyd Keaton mystery by John Billheimer. Enjoy your weekend.
Joyce: I love this month’s question and will eagerly await everyone’s list. I have recorded six so far this year that I gave my highest rating to:
The Whispers by Ashley Audrain
The Boomerang by Robert Bailey
The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Lios
Nobody’s Fool by Harlan Coben
The Long Road Back to You by Buck Turner and
Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow
Veronique: I recently finished 1984. I had never read it nor seen the movie adaptation. I loved it! Lots to think about – and frightening.
Phoenix: This month’s question was what was the best book I’ve read so far this year. I used to keep track of all the books I read, but I didn’t do it this year, so this is a guesstimate. Early in the year, I read Matt Haig’s, “The Midnight Library.” I borrowed it from the library, but liked it so much that I bought my own copy. It made it onto my “Five Books I’ve Ever Read” list.
This book is all about choices. I think we’ve all asked ourselves how our lives might have been different if we had only done such-and-such instead of what we actually did. In “The Midnight Library,” Nora decides her life isn’t worth living and attempts suicide. Instead of dying, however, she finds herself transported to The Midnight Library, where she has an opportunity to explore what her life would have been if she had made different choices. It’s kind of like “It’s a Wonderful Life.” It’s one of those books that I suspect I will read again and again. Highly recommend!
Christine: It’s a tough one to pick the best one I have read this year, and unfortunately, normally the most recent read best-read sticks out, which is “End Game” by Jeffrey Archer – it was face paced and of course, very good. But there are a lot of good books out there!
Toni: Well, I would have to say We Are All Guilty Here by Karen Slaughter. Slight spoilers ahead Hernan books are always engaging. I usually have “ideas” about how things will turn out, who will end up with whom, or who the guilty person is but this one actually shocked me at the end, revealing something I HADN’T EVEN THOUGHT OF!! It’s been a long time since that’s happened! I’ve already read over 150 books this year but kudos to this one for keeping me on my toes!
Lgl: Five of the books I’ve enjoyed the most so far this year in no particular order:
The Maid by Nita Prose
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
Stolen Focus by Johann Hari
We Do Not Part by Han Kang
Normal Rules Don’t Apply by Kate Atkinson
E J & G S: The best book I read during 2025 was Karin Slaughter’s We Are All Guilty Here.
