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At the beginning of 2025, I decided that this was the year I would fall back in love with reading (as I had been saying for the past four years…), so I set a goal to read 24 books. Thinking that an average of two books per month would be reasonable to manage. I downloaded Fable to track my reading and find new book recommendations that might re-inspire my passion for cozying up with a good book. I started off January and February strong, reading 13 books in just the two short months.
By July, I quickly realized that I needed to up my goal, and 24 books had come and gone. Currently, as I am writing this article, I have read 38 books out of the revised goal of 40 books. And, yet again, I’m finding that I severely underestimated my ability to burn through an interesting story. But enough rambling, as I’m sure you’re still awaiting the most important information: my favorite books of the year. I’ve spent the months until now exploring various styles of writing, different genres, and plenty of authors (though I do have an affinity for a touching romance novel). Without further ado, here are a few of my favorite books that earned their glowing review.
TWISTED REALITY TV: One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware
As a Love Island fan, I was intrigued by the premise of a suspenseful thriller set in a reality TV show, combining my love of books and unscripted television. Out of the handful of books I have read by Ruth Ware, this is easily her standout novel: five couples meant to compete for a cash prize on a new dating show quickly turns dark as a storm isolates the island and leaves the remaining individuals with a killer on the loose.
This book is the modern retelling of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, mixed with all the drama of Bachelor in Paradise, gripping suspense, and exciting new details with each chapter. I was unable to put my Kindle down when reading. I would highly recommend for fans of these shows or anyone looking for a quick and exciting read.
BOOKTOK ROMANCE: Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
This book truly captures the essence of a romance novel that leaves you feeling all warm and happy inside, or at least, that’s how I felt after reading this book. Travel nurse Emma has always believed that love would never find her, while unlucky Justin has driven away every girl he’s ever taken out on a date. Even though she plans on moving from place to place every couple of months to fulfill her work contracts, there is something about Justin that makes her question everything.
In my personal opinion (what isn’t in this article), nothing can top a feel-good novel like this, even with its predictability. Many times, especially with love stories, I prefer to overlook the obvious ending and focus instead on the journey the characters go through, as that tends to be less obvious. Regardless, this was an easy yet incredibly heartfelt read that made me want to check out more from Abby Jimenez.
DARK & TWISTY: The Resort by Sara Ochs
This book was randomly recommended to me through a “What Book Should You Read Next” quiz, and I’m so glad that it was. I wasn’t expecting to be as wowed by the clever plotting as I ended up. In this thriller, a woman new to a remote island off the coast of Thailand becomes close to a group of friends, but something doesn’t seem quite right. Could it be the mysterious local deaths or the inability to find a straight answer?
While I found the beginning a bit slow, getting to know the characters and all that, the second half quickly accelerated, and I refused to stop reading until I found out what happened. Any guesses that I had about the truth behind this mystery were so far from the real ending that I could never have expected it. My jaw was basically on the floor for the last 50 pages.
EPIC FANTASY: The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni
After the “romantasy” masterpiece that is the ACOTAR series, I wasn’t sure what could follow suit to that. Scouring TikTok for other fantasy series that could fill that gap, I landed on The Prison Healer, which I hadn’t heard anyone talking about. The first book of the trilogy introduces Kiva, trapped for the last 10 years in the kingdom’s deadliest prison and titled as the healer, when the Rebel Queen is captured and assigned to her care. Unfortunately for the healer, keeping her alive is a near-impossible task, given the Queen’s illness, but everything is riding on her.
Upon reading the initial synopsis, I had no idea just how much I would fall in love with this series and these characters. Not only does this book build strong relationships and create a magical world for the reader, but it’s also full of completely unexpected twists and turns. I finished the entire series within a week because I physically could not put the book down. Chalked full of magic, romance, fighting, and everything else that completes a tale, this is a must-read for fantasy lovers.
MINDSET SHIFT: Atomic Habits by James Clear
This book is well-regarded for many reasons, and James Clear spells them all out in his mindset-changing book. What I thought would give me some new small ideas to think about changed the way I go about my day. Instead of taking a passive approach to goals–or even when things don’t go my way–the book has empowered me to build habits that will serve me in the long run.
Something that often frustrates me with other self-help books is the feeling that the author is preaching or writing about grandiose and impractical goals. That is certainly not the case here. This book does a phenomenal job of breaking down concepts in manageable ways, and the writing style makes it feel as if you’re chatting over coffee with the author. Normally, I’m not as interested in the self help genre, but Atomic Habits will be one of the few that I recommend to everyone.
TIKTOK MADE ME READ IT: The Boyfriend by Frieda McFadden
As much as I had heard about both this book and Frieda McFadden from TikTok, I couldn’t believe that all the hype was for good reason. After quickly finishing this book (the suspense was eating me alive), I realized how I had wrongly judged this book by its cover. Just as I thought I knew where the story was headed, I was proven wrong and taken down a path of twists and turns. I mean, how many plot twists can one book have?
I was truly on the edge of my seat with this read and never suspected the ending. While I find many popular thriller books recommended on TikTok to follow a similar “formula” of one semi-predictable twist at the end, this book was completely different. The only thing that had me questioning my review for this was how truly naive the main character was throughout everything, but can it really be a good thriller without a character making dumb choices?
I’m excited to spend the rest of the year exploring even more books and, hopefully, adding to this list of favorites. My time spent reading has replaced my evenings spent laying in bed endlessly scrolling social media, and I couldn’t be happier about the change in routine. It’s not too late to set a reading goal of your own before the year is up!