Hello 2% readers! I hope you all have had a merry Christmas and are all set to have a happy New Year.
Though I was more consistent sending out reviews this year than I was in 2024, which is what initially prompted “2024 in Review,” I thought it was a nice way of recapping all the books I’ve read since so many of them don’t get reviewed.
In the same format as last year, the ratings I’ve given below are what I’ve given the books on Goodreads (out of 5 rather than the usual 2%-rating out of 10) and if I’d recommend them generally. About half-way through the year I started trying to be more generous with my Goodreads ratings since pretty much anything that didn’t blow me away or cause me anguish received a 3-star. Again, this started mid-year so apologies for the bigger 3-star bucket; I’ll do my best to alleviate that next year.
The books have been categorized by their star rating, and those I would recommend are in bold.
And now a peak into the 50 books of 2025…
5-Star Reads
Fiction
All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
The Will of the Many by James Islington
4-Star Reads
Fiction
Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Three Stories by Truman Capote
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
The Indigo Heiress by Laura Frantz
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Long Island by Colm Toibin
March by Geraldine Brooks
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
The Napoleon of Notting Hill by G.K. Chesterton
The Trial by Franz Kafka
We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
Non-Fiction
American Revolutions: A Continental History, 1750-1804 by Alan Taylor
3-Star Reads
Fiction
The Cone Gatherers by Robin Jenkins
Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley
The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Trust by Hernan Diaz
The Turncoat by Donna Thorland
The Twelve Days of Murder by Cordani Andreina
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
Non-Fiction
How to Winter: Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold, Dark, or Difficult Days by Kari Leibowitz
Jesus: The God Who Knows Your Name by Max Lucado
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer
WayMaker by Ann Voskamp
2-Star Reads
Fiction
Hide and Seek by Ian Rankin
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
And no 1-star reads!
Series
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes:
Book 1: 4-star
Book 2: 3-star
Book 3: 3-star
Book 4: 3-star
The Grandest Game (spin-off series to the Inheritance Games)
Book 1: 2-star
Book 2: 2-star
(Really just kept reading because I’m hooked on the story now.)
For 2026, I aspire to do a better job of diversifying my Goodreads ratings and actually read some non-fiction titles. For those keeping track at home, there was a total of five non-fiction books for the whole of 2025… so send me your non-fiction recommendations if you have them!
I wish you joy and time for peaceful reading this holiday season. Thanks for being a part of the 2% family!