Dear reader,
I can’t believe 2025 is over! My main goal for 2025 was not so much to reach a number of books read, but instead to recapture the passion I have for reading after a slump that has followed me for far too long.
But even though I didn’t finish reading as many books as I hoped to in 2025, I did have some standouts I want to highlight. What follows is a list of my 5 Best Books of 2025 (in alphabetical order). These were the five books published in 2025 that have stuck with me. From historical horror to literary mystery, the books that have landed on this list stood out for their excellent writing, captivating characters, and engrossing stories. Let’s get to it!
Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (F)
Bruce Holsinger’s Culpability was both exceptionally well written and engrossingly paced. This prescient story explores the intersection of ethics and artificial intelligence. Instead of a preachy sermon, Culpability is a riveting thriller. Add to those intriguing themes simmering marital secrets, shocking twists, and breathless pacing, and you’ve got a winner. Clear your schedule for this thought-provoking, intellectually stimulating suspense novel.
Along with Vera, or Faith and Wild Dark Shore, both included below, Culpability is a zeitgeisty novel that taps into the feel of this moment. That’s one pattern I noticed in my reading this year; the books I loved the most were those that had something profound to say about the complicated world we are living in. If you love novels like that, too, add this one to your list.
How to read it: Purchase Culpability on Amazon
Three Days in June by Anne Tyler (F)
As I get older, I find myself getting mired in my ways. I often doubt I have the energy or motivation to make progress on improving myself and addressing my innumerable flaws. At its heart, Anne Dyler’s novel Three Days in June offers a radical proposition to the reader: you can change—no matter your age—if you’re willing to try. I loved this novel and the gift it gives its readers, the message that you can still find redemption no matter how old you are… if you’re brave enough to do the difficult self-work it requires. This novel is only 165 pages, but I’m still thinking about it six months later.
How to read it: Purchase Three Days in June on Amazon
Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart (F)
In my August review, I declared Gary Shteyngart’s Vera, or Faith to be my best book of the year, and it was. You can read that column here. Months later, it’s still my favorite book of 2025. This satirical novel, featuring precocious 10-year-old heroine Vera, offers a distorted look at how kids view our equally distorted adult world. Which is to say, it’s royally screwed up. If you don’t have much hope for saving humanity, read Vera, or Faith and you’ll find some. Our best shot? To nourish and encourage the younger generations to bail us out.
How to read it: Purchase Vera, or Faith on Amazon
Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito (F)
This historical horror novel was absolutely unhinged, and I absolutely loved it!
Set in the 19th century, Feito’s Victorian Psycho is narrated by low-born Winifred Notty, a psychotic governess who has recently taken a position caring for the children of the wealthy Pounds family. But Winifred has a secret motivation that has led her to the Pounds, one not fully revealed until the shocking finale.
I love wicked characters, and I found Winifred downright fascinating. I appreciated Winifred’s dark sense of humor, which gave the gory novel some levity. More than anything, I was astonished by Winifred’s unforgettable voice.
How to read it: Purchase Victorian Psycho on Amazon
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (F)
Sometimes it can feel like the world is a cold, dark place. A literary answer to that feeling is Charlotte McConaghy’s Wild Dark Shore, which is actually set in a cold, dark place: Shearwater, a (fictional) remote island near Antarctica. This novel explores the relationships among the people who choose to live in such an isolated setting, one whose existence is threatened by climate change. Wild Dark Shore left me emotionally devastated—yet solidly hopeful—that we can overcome the problems our planet and its occupants face. This aching, beating heart of a novel is an uplifting story that’s the perfect anecdote for the gloomy days of winter that are upon us. It’s a flashlight in book form.
How to read it: Purchase Wild Dark Shore on Amazon
What were your favorite books you read this year?
A version of this article appeared in The Swarthmorean.
