Reading: Top 10 Must Read Books for 2025

As you set your resolutions, intentions, or whatever you choose to call your plans for the new year, I hope reading will be at the top of your list. The moments spent lost in a book are a gift we can give ourselves. I like Lena Dunham’s suggestion, “Let’s be reasonable and add an eighth day to the week that is devoted exclusively to reading.” While that would take a bit of magic, hopefully instead you will resolve to spend more time with books this year during any free me-time you can spare. Here are our top books for 2025.

Great Big Beautiful Life ($29, by Emily Henry)

Fans of Emily Henry (Funny Story, Book Lovers) will have to wait until April to read her new romance, Great Big Beautiful Life. But it is sure to be worth the wait! In this novel, two writers compete for the opportunity to “tell all” about a well-known heiress who has more than a few plot twists up her sleeve. If you love a suspenseful romance, you’ll like this because apparently there is a bit of a mystery wrapped in with a love story.

Dream Count ($32, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)

Nigerian writer and activist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, author of the much-loved Americanah, has not published a book in 10 years and so her fans are eagerly awaiting her next. Dream Count, coming out in March, takes place between Nigeria and the United States and tells the story of four women linked through family and friendship. Fans of literary fiction are sure to love this novel.

Black Woods, Blue Sky ($29, by Eowyn Ivey)

If you enjoyed To the Bright Edge of the World or The Snow Child (our Covey Book Club did) you will be intrigued to read Black Woods, Blue Sky which will be released in early February. Advance praise for this novel calls this story of a mother and daughter living in the dark Alaskan woods a “stunning tale.” If you like modern fairy tales, this book should be on your TBR list.

Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed To Get Old ($30, by Brooke Shields)

Subtitled “Thoughts on Aging as a Woman,” Brooke Shields’ memoir, to be released in January, aims to change the narrative about getting older. Shields started as a child actor and model and has spent her whole life in the public eye. But at age 59, she’s ready to share more about who she really is. In this highly personal book, she debunks myths about older women and reframes how we should tell our own stories.

Atmosphere: A Love Story ($30, by Taylor Jenkins Reid)

Taylor Jenkins Reid has a new book coming out in June called Atmosphere: A Love Story. Her most recent, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, was an instant hit. This latest novel promises to be the same. Set during the 1980s at the space shuttle program in Houston, this book tells the story of a female physics and astronomy professor obsessed with going near the stars. If you like books with a strong female protagonist, you will love Joan Goodwin and her barrier-breaking rise into space.

Memorial Days ($28, by Geraldine Brooks)

Beloved novelist Geraldine Brooks’ highly anticipated memoir will be released in early February. In Memorial Days, she shares her story five years after her husband’s — Pulitzer-winning writer and historian Tony Horwitz — unexpected death at age 60. A tribute to her husband and the life they had together, Brooks learns how to rebuild her life after an unimaginable loss.

We All Live Here ($30, by JoJo Moyes)

If you love JoJo Moyes (Me Before You, After You), you will be excited to read We All Live Here, a novel coming out in late February. A woman in midlife is dealing with a broken marriage, two wayward daughters, an elderly stepparent, a crumbling house, and a career falling apart. What else can go wrong?

Mark Twain ($45, by Ron Chernow)

Pulitzer Prize–winning biographer Ron Chernow tells the story of the American icon Samuel Clemens in his book, Mark Twain, coming out in May. With the same skill he told the stories of Ulysses S. Grant and Alexander Hamilton, Chernow brings to life the complex and engrossing journey of the man who has been called the father of American literature. If you like biographies, this is sure to be the one to read in 2025.

The Pardon: The Politics of Presidential Mercy ($30, by Jeffrey Toobin)

If you’re interested in American history and presidential politics, The Pardon (to be released in February) will be sure to satisfy. Legal scholar and CNN commentator Jeffrey Toobin takes a deep dive into the behind-the-scenes drama of Richard Nixon’s resignation and Gerald Ford’s controversial pardon of Nixon. It was a precedent that has had reverberating implications in American history. It proves to be a fascinating read heading into 2025.

Onyx Storm ($30, by Rebecca Yarros)

Rebecca Yarros followers should excitedly look forward to Onyx Storm, the latest in her The Empyrean Series, coming out in late January. This popular fantasy series takes place at a war college for dragon riders. The Covey Book Club read The Fourth Wing, the first in this series, in September and became as fascinated with this ongoing saga as the rest of the world. Trust me…give the series a try.

Get more book ideas here.