HAPPY NEW YEAR! Here’s a sneak preview of ten books that will be published in 2025 during the first six months! Thousands of books will be published this year, and it’s always hard to decide which books to read. Here are my picks for the top selections for 2025, and many are by your favorite authors! ENJOY!
Homeseeking by Karissa Chen | Literary Saga
Homeseeking is an epic tale of one couple across sixty years of exploring what it means to find that home is far from your country. Chinese history of war, famine, and opportunity takes the couple separately through time. This is a story of family, sacrifice, and the power of love to endure beyond distance and time. (Publishes January 7)
Let’s Call Her Barbie by Renee Rosen | Historical Fiction
Barbie is born in this novel as an eleven-and-a-half-inch doll that would change the world. In 1956, this doll was shaped like a grown woman and outfitted in a wardrobe to let everyone see that they could be anything they dreamed of. (Publishes January 21)
3 Days in June by Anne Tyler | Literary Fiction
3 Days in June is told with wisdom and humor, observing the days before and after an only daughter’s wedding that stirs up uncomfortable memories for a divorced couple. It is a funny, touching, hopeful gem that creates a rich tapestry of family history and present-day drama. (Publishes February 11)
We All Live Here by JoJo Moyes | Family Fiction
We All Live Here is hilarious, believable, and funny, creating a story that will provoke tears and laughter. It is a moving, realistic look at one woman’s post-divorce family life that involves a light touch of romance, a lot of forgiveness, and a celebration of friendships and unconventional family dynamics. (Publishes February 11)
Fagin the Thief by Allison Epstein | Historical Fiction
Fagin The Thief is colorfully written and wickedly funny as it reimagines Dickensian London’s most notorious villain in an unforgettable new adventure. It takes Jacob Fagin and gives him a back story as a gifted pickpocket, liar, and rogue. (Publishes February 25)
Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | Literary Fiction
Dream Count is a story of four women and their love, longings, and desires. It is set in Nigeria and America. It explores the nature of love, our choices, and those made for us, our daughters and mothers, in our interconnected world. (Publishes March 3)
The Next Day: Transition by Melinda French Gates | Growth/Self-Help
Next Day: Transitions illuminates universal lessons about loosening the bonds of perfectionism, helping friends navigate times of crisis, and embracing uncertainty. The book offers guidance on how to make the most of time between an ending and a new beginning and how to move forward into the next day when the ground beneath you is shifting. (Publishes April 5)
Safari by Jaclyn Goldis | Suspense
In Safari, a wealthy family goes on a South African safari as part of a wedding celebration. A series of shocking murders rocks their exclusive compound. As the heat roils, ferocious animals lurk and dark motives fester, it becomes clear that the killing isn’t quite finished yet, and the rest of the family is their prey. (Publishes May 20)
Ghostwriter by Julie Clark | Mystery Thriller
The Taylor family shatters in a single night when two teenage siblings are found dead in their own home. The only surviving sibling, Vincent, never shakes the whispers and accusations that he was the one who killed them. Decades later, the legend only grows as his career as a Ghostwriter skyrockets. (Publishes June 3)
Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell | Psychological Thriller
Don’t Let Him In is the tale of three women connected by one man in this kaleidoscopic thriller. They don’t know why or how there is a connection until something happens which puts them all in danger. The tension builds from page one, gripping you until the shocking conclusion! (Publishes June 24)
In Case You Missed It: Here are Sandy’s 10 Most Anticipated Books from 2024!
2024 is shaping up to be a brilliant year for new books! There are fabulous releases from authors who have become reliable hit-makers, like Kristin Hannah (The Nightingale), Mary Kubrica (Local Woman Missing), and Kate Quinn (The Rose Code). No matter what you like to read, from comedies to suspenseful thrillers and everything in between — there’s a new favorite waiting for you on this list. Enjoy!
The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins | Thriller
The Heiress is a twisted gothic suspense about an infamous heiress and the complicated inheritance she left behind. Relatives realize the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave.
Picasso’s Lovers by Jeanne Mackin | Historical Fiction
Picasso’s Lovers paints a bold, richly detailed portrait of a great artist and the women who inspired, frustrated, and loved him. Art comes alive in this intimate glimpse into the women behind Picasso’s masterpieces.
The Women by Kristin Hannah | Family Life
The Women is the story of a woman who follows her brother to war in Vietnam. This shines a light on the story of all women who put themselves in harm’s way to help others.
The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang | Historical Fiction
The Phoenix Crown takes place in 1906 during the San Francisco earthquake and the subsequent fires with its eccentric cast of characters, themes of friendship, and self-discovery.
End of Story by A.J. Finn | Mystery
End of Story is about a reclusive mystery novelist who invites his longtime personal secretary to help draft his life story. “I’ll be dead in three months. Come tell my story.”
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle | Contemporary Fiction
Expiration Dates is an emotional and passionate novel about what it means to be single, finding love, and, ultimately, how we define each of them for ourselves.
She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica | Mystery
She’s Not Sorry is a dark, suspenseful thriller with twists, turns, and compelling characters. This multilayered story will hook you from the start, tapping into every parent’s darkest fears.
Funny Story by Emily Henry | Comedy
Funny Story is about someone falling in love with her ex-fiancee’s new fiancee’s ex-boyfriend. The new lovers plot together and send photos of their summer adventures to their past loves.
Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan
A hot mic exposes a secret tryst in Lies and Weddings. This accident unfurls a juicy, hilarious, and thrillingly plotted story of love, money, murder, sex, and the lies we tell about them all.
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig | Contemporary Fiction
The Life Impossible is a story of wild adventure, deep transformation, and gloriously heart-warming characters. It shows how a new outlook can burst into a life and change everything.
In Case You Missed It: Here are Sandy’s 10 Most Anticipated Books from 2023!
The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
The Villa is a slow-burn thriller/drama about a crime from the past that intertwines with the present. Two best friends since their childhood come here to spend six weeks to take a break from everything they’re dealing with! As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge. It begins to look like the villa will claim another victim!
Good for a Girl by Lauren Fleshman
Good for a Girl is simultaneously a moving memoir and a call to action in how we think about—and train—girls and women in elite sports. This is a must-read for anyone who loves running, has a daughter, and cares about creating a better future for all young women in sports today.
Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes
Someone Else’s Shoes, a spin on Trading Places, follows two 40-something women who end up with each other’s shoes. Samantha Kemp accidentally grabs the wrong bag at her London gym and finds a pair of red ostrich 6-inch heeled Louboutins instead of her shabby shoes.
The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz
The Writing Retreat is a dark and suspenseful psychological thriller with bold feminist overtones. Though not completely unpredictable, there are enough surprises along the way to keep you hooked. If you can suspend disbelief and don’t mind OTT, this a very entertaining read!
How to Think Like a Woman by Regan Penaluna
How to Think Like a Woman blends memoir and biography to tell the stories of four women philosophers: Damaris Masham, Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Astell, and Catharine Cockburn from the 17th and 18th centuries. Funny, honest, and wickedly intelligent, this is a moving meditation on what philosophy could look like if women were treated equally.
American Mermaid by Julia Langbein
In American Mermaid, an author travels to Los Angeles to adapt her feminist mermaid novel into a big-budget action film. It is the gripping story of a woman trying to find her way in our chaotic world. She comes to believe her mermaid heroine has come to life to take revenge for Hollywood’s violations. The book is brilliantly sharp, funny, and thought-provoking.
Homecoming by Kate Morton
Homecoming is an epic novel centered around a grandmother, her daughter, and her granddaughter. Homecoming asks what we would do for those we love and how we protect the lies we tell. It explores the power of motherhood, the corrosive effects of tightly held secrets, and the healing nature of truth. We learn why being part of a family is complicated.
A Happy Place by Emily Henry
A Happy Place is a second-chance love story that tugs on our heartstrings and gives us higher hopes for love. Knotts Harbour is that happy place where a group of close friends is getting together for a last annual vacation. But one of the couples broke up five months ago and still hasn’t told their best friends. How hard can it be to fake it for one week?
The Half Moon by Mary Beth Keane
The Half Moon is about the choices we make in who we love, how we love, and when we need to come to terms with the past. It tells with great tenderness how love goes wrong and how, with hope, it can be righted. The book explores marriage in crisis, what it takes to make a life with another person, and the true meaning of family.
Girls and Their Horses by Eliza Brazier
Girls and Their Horses is set in the cloistered world of the wealthy — among competitive show jumpers, where big wallets tend to outweigh talent. After coming into a fortune, Heather Parker wants her daughters to have the chances she didn’t to become horse-riding stars. Someone winds up dead in the barn — but who?
In Case You Missed It: Here are Sandy’s 10 Most Anticipated Books from 2021!
Nick by Michael Farris Smith (Prequel to The Great Gatsby) | Fiction
Nick Carraway is the narrator of The Great Gatsby, and this is his story before the events of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel. Suffering from World War I’s horrors and destruction, Nick embarks on a redemptive journey that takes him to Paris’s glamour and to the decadence of New Orleans in the 1920s. Nick is a very rich and imaginative new novel.
The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah | Historical Fiction
The Four Winds is a portrait of America during one of the darkest periods of the Great Depression, the Great Dust Bowl Era. This is an epic novel of love, heroism, and hope in the Texas Panhandle. A young mother must decide to stay and fight for her land or head west to California, which offers a better life for her family. This is a story of great courage and sacrifice.
The Survivors by Jane Harper | Murder Mystery
The mystery within The Survivors is two-fold. A new crime blows the dust and cobwebs off an old tragedy twelve years earlier during a fatal storm resulting in the death of two young men at sea and a young woman who went missing. As the new murder is investigated, questions from the unsolved disappearance come back to the small fishing village.
How To Avoid a Climate Disaster by Bill Gates | Environmental Research
How To Avoid A Climate Disaster provides a clear-eyed description of the challenges our world faces today. Bill Gates draws on his understanding of innovation to get new ideas to market. He lays out a concrete and practical plan for achieving a realistic goal to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.
Later by Stephen King | Supernatural Mystery
Later combines a young boy with the ability to see beyond our world and the strong elements of crime and suspense. Stephen King is the master of mystery writers with a terrifying story of innocence lost and the trials that test our sense of right and wrong. Powerful and haunting.
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro | Science Fiction
An artificial intelligence solar-powered robot, Klara, is developed to alleviate the loneliness of adolescence and is purchased by a terminally ill teenager. This is a story of friendship, love, ethics, technology, altruism, and being human. This novel is beautifully written and has an unforgettable story.
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn | Historical Fiction
The Rose Code tells the story of how three extraordinary heroines are enigma codebreakers and how they handled the secrecy of Bletchley Park. It is a story of friendship and love. After the war is over, they must crack one more code, the Rose Code. In breaking the code, they discover a spy who must be rooted out.
A Million Reasons Why by Jessica Strawser | Family Drama
Mail-in DNA tests bring two women together and change their lives forever when an emergency kidney transplant is needed. A Million Reasons Why examines what it means to be family, the depths of a mother’s love, and the limits and power of forgiveness.
Finding Napoleon by Margaret Rodenberg | Historical Fiction
After tragically losing everything in his world, an exiled Napoleon attempts to write a romantic novel. Finding Napoleon is a story of his last days on the island of St. Helena, about an ill-fated romance, intrigue, and betrayal. This is an adaptation of the original Napoleon manuscript from 200 years ago.
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir | Science Fiction
A lone survivor astronaut is the only person who can save Earth from disaster in a last-chance mission. Project Hail Mary is a basic “survival against impossible odds” story with the right amount of tension and drama, heartbreak and hope, and sacrifice without selfishness.
Read Next:
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