Books are my thing.
I read each night before bed until my eyes cross and my phone slips from my hand (falling on my face, a subtle hint that it’s time to go to sleep). I read in the car waiting for the kids, at the doctor’s office, in line at the pharmacy, and everywhere else I have a minute or two to spare. I’d choose books over streaming shows every single time.
With the new year, I always check out my favorite authors and see who is working hard to give me something new to read. None of my favorite authors write fast enough, in my opinion, and that’s my one major complaint about each and every one of them.
But complaints aside, a lot of my favorite authors are releasing new books this year. My most-read categories tend to be Fiction, Romance, and Thriller, and here are the books I’m most anticipating in 2025:
T.J. Klune
Fantasy and LGBTQIA+ Literature
Books I’ve Loved:
I’m not a Fantasy reader. In fact, I didn’t list Fantasy above as a category because it’s a genre I so rarely read. But someone recommended Under the Whispering Door, and it was so quirky and engaging that I didn’t feel like I was suspending reality at all, and I immediately became a fan. Klune mirrors real life through fantasy in such a thought-provoking way, and I’m looking so forward to his newest release, The Bones Beneath My Skin, which will be released on February 4, 2025.
Abby Jimenez
Romance
Books I’ve Loved:
Abby Jimenez writes a solid love story. We all know the formula for a romance, yet she draws me in and tugs my heartstrings until the very last sentence every time. She makes her characters so likable that I feel guilty for putting her books down before they’re finished. Her latest book, Say You’ll Remember Me, debuts on April 1, 2025.
Jasmine Guillory
Romance
Books I’ve Loved:
Jasmine Guillory writes real characters with depth and shares their stories with hints of humor all over the place. As soon as you finish one of her books, you’ll be googling other titles of hers, I guarantee it. Her newest book, Flirting Lessons, comes out on on April 8, 2025.
Jeneva Rose
Thriller
Books I’ve Loved:
Jeneva Rose knows how to twist an ending into so many coils you have to hold on tight until the last page. She’s also very entertaining to follow on Instagram. Jeneva’s next book is a sequel to The Perfect Marriage called The Perfect Divorce and it comes out April 15, 2025.
Emily Henry
Romance
Books I’ve loved:
Emily knows how to create tension between characters yet weaves stories peppered with humor— you don’t even realize you’re smiling your way through her books. Emily Henry’s latest book, Great Big Beautiful Life, comes out on April 22, 2025.
Katherine Center
Romance
Books I’ve Loved:
What makes a great love story is the ability to create characters so endearing that readers desperately want them to find their happy endings. Katherine Center knows how to bring characters to life on the page. She’s so good at creating chemistry that I want to finish the story so I can get to the happily ever after, but at the same time I want more pages so I never have to leave the world she created. Her newest book, The Love Haters, comes out May 20, 2025.
Taylor Jenkins Reid
Fiction
Books I’ve loved:
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Taylor Jenkins Reid has a new book coming out on June 3, 2025 called Atmosphere: A Love Story. It’s set in the ’80s around the Space Shuttle program. She’s known for writing historical fiction in a way that draws you back in time seamlessly, and while I consider historical fiction to be stories that took place in a time before I was born, apparently the 80’s and 90’s count as “historical”. I prefer to think of it as “vintage fiction”— either way, she’s a master at writing about a time before today.
Riley Sager
Thriller
Books I’ve loved:
A good thriller is full of suspense and keeps you guessing. Riley Sager’s books do that so well. He takes you to dark places, but makes the trip worthwhile. His newest thriller, With a Vengeance, is due out June 10, 2025.
Sarah Pekkanen
Thriller and Fiction
Books I’ve Loved:
Sarah Pekkanen has written books solo as well as with her editor, Greer Hendricks. The books range from thrillers to contemporary fiction and she’s one of those authors who when I see her name on a book, I know I’m going to like it. She writes a very strong female character. Her newest book, The Locked Ward, comes out August 5, 2025.
Other favorite authors who have books coming out in 2025:
January 3, 2025 – Kiersten Modglin: The Last Trip (Thriller)
January 28, 2025 – Freida McFadden: The Crash (Thriller)
February 25, 2025 – Gillian McAllister:Famous Last Words (Thriller)
March 4, 2025 – John Marrs: You Killed Me First (Thriller)
March 4, 2025 – Robyn Harding: The Haters (Thriller)
March, 2025 – Harlan Coben: Nobody’s Fool (Thriller)
April 89, 2025 – Jennifer Weiner: The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits (Fiction)
May 6, 2025 – Tia Williams: Audre + Bash are Just Friends (YA)
May 6, 2025 – Alex Finlay: Parents Weekend: A Novel (Thriller)
May 27, 2025 – Annabel Monaghan: It’s a Love Story (Romance)
May 27, 2025 – Carley Fortune: One Golden Summer (Romance)
June 24, 2025 – Lisa Jewell: Don’t Let Him In (Thriller)
July 17, 2025: Shari Lapena: She Didn’t See It Coming (Thriller)
July 22, 2025: Holly Jackson: Not Quite Dead Yet (Thriller)
