My Top 10 Books of 2025
Books • December 31, 2025
2025 was the year when I got back into reading.
Reading was one of my first loves. Before I was obsessed with basketball or product or anything else, I was the nerdy little kid who carried a Harry Potter book with him everywhere he went. I once got kicked out of my fourth grade math class for secretly reading underneath the table. In the days since then, however, I fell out of the habit of reading. I read some great books here and there, like Project Hail Mary, the first Red Rising trilogy, and The Art of Racing in the Rain, but my reading was very inconsistent. The biggest culprit of my reading decline was probably my obligatory daily doomscrolling quota, which had been melting my brain.
I would still read a book or two every year, but I wouldn't have considered reading to be a hobby of mine. This year, I decided to change that. Instead of losing hours to Instagram Reels or other short-form content, I decided I would spent that time reading. This decision ended up being one of the highlights of my year, as I read 26 books in total.
Reading made me laugh, cry, and feel every emotion in between this year. I am so glad that I decided to pick this habit back up. I plan to make sure that it's one of my top hobbies going forward.
Among the 26 books I read this year, ten stand above the rest. Here are my favorite books that I read in 2026, spoiler-free.
Note: I'd like to give Sooley by John Grisham an honorable mentioned, just for being iconic.
10. Caliban's War (The Expanse 2)
I read four books in The Expanse series this year, so one of them had to make the list. I was really close to choosing the third book, Abaddon's Gate, instead of Caliban's War, because I really liked the religious themes of that one, but Caliban's War had me the most engaged. I love a good mysterious plot, and this one had me eager to find out what would happen. The new characters were a ton of fun, and I liked seeing the evolution of the relationships between the crew of the Rocinante. All in all, a solid read in a solid series. I decided to take a break from these after Cibola Burn, which was my least favorite, but I plan to revisit these somewhere down the line.
9. Dark Age (Red Rising 5) by Pierce Brown
This book had a fitting title. Reading this book was my own personal dark age. It might be the darkest, most disturbing story I've ever read. One scene in particular. Those who've read it probably know what I'm talking about. I struggled a lot with Iron Gold, the fourth book in the series, since it was slower and I didn't feel as connected to the new character POVs, but Dark Age did a much better job of this. I was really invested in everything going on, except for some of the Ephraim stuff with the Obsidians. Even that ended up being wild, though. The Day of Red Doves was a crazy scene to read, and the end was fantastic. I'm really excited for Light Bringer, which I plan to read early in 2026.
8. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
This book was so much fun. I read three of these this year, and I think the first one was my favorite. The characters were hilarious, the plot was fresh and exciting, and it all felt so well thought-out. I recommended this series to my dad, and he read all seven books faster than I got through three. He loved them, so I'm excited to continue in 2026.
7. Jade City by Fonda Lee
I really enjoyed this one. The world-building, martial arts-inspired magic system, and characters were awesome. No one was particularly likable, but they were all really complex and interested. I loved how it subverted my expectations, and the part right before the second interlude absolutely shocked me. Anything you know an interlude in coming up in this book, prepare for something crazy to happen. It was pretty dark and messed up at times, which made it a bit of a difficult read, but I still thought the story was great. I read Jade War too, which had higher highs and lower lows. You can check out my review of that one here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8078992968
6. Anxious People by Fredrik Bachman
I loved this book. It was so full-circle, with everything coming together in the end. The characters were pretty insufferable at the beginning, but by the end, I liked them all. I'm a huge fan of Fredrik Backman's writing after this. He constantly subverted my expectations in a philosophical, ridiculous, hilarious, emotional way. Every character had so much depth. I'm excited to read more Backman in 2026. Hoping to try out A Man Called Ove, Beartown, and My Friends.
5. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
This was an extremely powerful book. I read this one in a single day on my flight from Honolulu back to Durham after being home for a couple weeks over the summer. I went into this one blind (no pun intended), knowing nothing other than it was a World War II period piece. My expectations were exceeded. It was heartbreaking seeing the parallel stories of the two main characters. It was so beautifully written, and the themes of hope and human connection had a profound impact on me. I hope to read more historical fiction in 2026.
4. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
I loved this one from start to finish. I had the audiobook too, so I listened to some of it on a road trip and even immersion read some of it. Hearing McConaughey's actual voice added so much depth and enjoyment to the read. It was inspiring, hilarious, and beautiful written. I was really impressed by McConaughey's prose; he's an actual genius. I was so inspired that I started writing down my own "notes to self." Going forward looking for greenlights in my own life.