Top Five Books of 2025

List of the Month
December 2025 (see all)
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Top Five Books of 2025
Description
The year is coming to an end, and our December List of the Month is dedicated to LibraryThing members' Top Five Books of 2025. Please note that books don't need to have been published in 2025, just read this year. You can see the LT Staff picks on the blog: https://blog.librarything.com/2025/12/top-five-books-of-2025/
3
3,559 members
151 reviews
½ 3.7
13 Members
Aquila, Stevil2001, kleo, SohoReader, wanderlustlover, Eat_Read_Knit, LDVoorberg, bnk, booknest, vwinsloe, Yrrol, judybon, lnoffke
Explanations
Aquila: Really effective approach to time travel as a woman "babysits" a man ripped from another time.
4
943 members
57 reviews
½ 4.4
5
7,346 members
263 reviews
½ 4.3
8
909 members
33 reviews
4
9
2,285 members
96 reviews
4.1
10
2,539 members
117 reviews
4.1
11
1,401 members
63 reviews
4
12
5,426 members
119 reviews
½ 4.4
13
3,882 members
116 reviews
4.2
7 Members
knerd.knitter, Karlstar, nightbyrd7, amanda4242, lyzrdpye, Yrrol, Brandy1411
Explanations
knerd.knitter: LitRPG! A genre I didn't realize existed! This book was a lot of fun to read for someone who's played a lot of video games. I also love Princess Donut; she's a riot.
amanda4242: I snagged the first three books in the series from NetGalley and blasted through them in a couple of days. I am currently climbing up the walls waiting for book 8 to come out.
14
1,335 members
39 reviews
4
15
8,406 members
487 reviews
4.1
16
25,143 members
644 reviews
4.1
6 Members
wyliem, booknest, booksbooks63, Rakketytam, shimmermarie, merbes00
Explanations
shimmermarie: I loved the writing style and depth and I was so drawn in by the academic setting! Truly engrossing!
17
2,145 members
76 reviews
4.2
19
1,375 members
59 reviews
4.1
20
1,942 members
91 reviews
4.2
21
10,469 members
285 reviews
½ 4.6
22
2,547 members
97 reviews
4.1
23
2,312 members
131 reviews
½ 4.3
24
556 members
28 reviews
3.9
5 Members
lyzrdpye, katemcangus, Tosta, GHA.Library, hey_judy
Explanations
hey_judy: Women are tough as hell even when their worlds are falling apart. A realistic portrayal of catastrophe and the state of things during one.
25
2,348 members
90 reviews
4.1
26
9,417 members
402 reviews
4.2
27
3,045 members
60 reviews
3.9
5 Members
g33kgrrl, ablachly, Kyler_Marie, tamste3935, frog2312
Explanations
ablachly: Toxic lesbian vampires, yes, without a doubt. But also delicious prose to get lost in. Humanity, and losing it. Life and rot.
28
5 Members
dchaikin, lauralkeet, Boand, hey_judy, BonneVivante
Explanations
dchaikin: Left me wanting to read everything
Boand: Fascinating history of Jane Austen’s contemporary female writers and their influence upon her writing.
hey_judy: Shows that Jane Austen was only the tip of the iceberg of her time and we never knew it
29
285 members
5 reviews
½ 4.3
30
10,044 members
436 reviews
4.1
5 Members
reading_fox, BonnieJune54, booksbooks63, Siobhan17, mkcshaw
Explanations
reading_fox: Social comment wrapped up in clever story telling.
31
356 members
19 reviews
4.2
32
6,534 members
284 reviews
½ 3.6
33
249 members
14 reviews
3.9
4 Members
tardis, Karlstar, jsburbidge, msjudy
Explanations
Karlstar: Another superbly well written in Kay's semi-historical fantasy series. The characters are wonderful.
34
3,204 members
143 reviews
4.2
35
515 members
30 reviews
4
36
876 members
47 reviews
4.1
37
1,377 members
59 reviews
4.1
38
1,385 members
67 reviews
3.9
39
1,090 members
36 reviews
4
40
1,349 members
27 reviews
3.8
4 Members
merrystar, lottpoet, pussreboots, shimmermarie
Explanations
shimmermarie: Great fantasy worldbuilding!
41
19,510 members
359 reviews
½ 4.3
42
639 members
27 reviews
4.1
3 Members
Aquila, annecm, ggnanadesikan
Explanations
Aquila: My favourite book of the year, and one I'm going to look forward to rereading.
43
383 members
22 reviews
½ 4.5
44
51,569 members
574 reviews
4.2
45
20,662 members
749 reviews
4.1
46
919 members
57 reviews
3.8
47
18,525 members
482 reviews
½ 4.3
48
5,904 members
233 reviews
4.2
49
3,229 members
121 reviews
3.9
50
2,479 members
141 reviews
4
51
237 members
13 reviews
3.9
52
642 members
27 reviews
4
53
6,647 members
390 reviews
½ 4.3
54
905 members
46 reviews
4
55
778 members
53 reviews
½ 4.3
56
15,475 members
699 reviews
4
3 Members
sogamonk, kootibkiteer, Charon07
Explanations
Charon07: I also read Bring Up the Bodies this year, which would also have made my Top 5 list if space permitted.
57
12,669 members
557 reviews
½ 4.3
58
4,310 members
235 reviews
4.2
3 Members
Jim.Shine, elphie93, merbes00
Explanations
Jim.Shine: A beautiful and evocative novella that really took hold of me. Side note - you also need to see the film, with an achingly good performance by Cillian Murphy.
59
1,425 members
81 reviews
4.1
60
1,123 members
37 reviews
4.1
61
6,866 members
309 reviews
4.2
3 Members
booksbooks63, auldhouse, emfstreit
Explanations
auldhouse: A reread this year for a book club—such a beautiful story.
62
12,867 members
310 reviews
4.2
63
221 members
9 reviews
½ 4.4
3 Members
ablachly, Othemts, KeithChaffee
Explanations
ablachly: A coming of age story with two trans heroines, a teenager and a high school teacher. It’s wry and sharp and FUNNY and messy and fantastic.
64
9,664 members
335 reviews
4
65
11,429 members
378 reviews
4.2
66
2,873 members
162 reviews
½ 3.6
67
634 members
36 reviews
3.8
3 Members
tardis, pussreboots, hey_judy
Explanations
hey_judy: Fun and touching; robots face real world problems that we are all familiar with. Would make a good movie; in the right hands.
68
27,902 members
513 reviews
4.2
69
2,652 members
61 reviews
3.9
70
2,914 members
120 reviews
4
71
579 members
31 reviews
½ 4.3
72
4,493 members
374 reviews
½ 4.5
2 Members
Charon07, LiterallyAdele
Explanations
LiterallyAdele: Not a single written word but it still made me cry. Such a beautiful story which highlights the disorientation felt by immigrants in an entirely new culture, with the added complication of a disability. And the artwork is spectacular.
73
1,120 members
55 reviews
4
74
647 members
28 reviews
½ 4.4
2 Members
srdr, gypsysmom
76
208 members
11 reviews
4.2
2 Members
rarm, Kyler_Marie
77
44,291 members
578 reviews
4.1
2 Members
YoavCohen, mazecto
78
25,538 members
360 reviews
3.8
2 Members
tina1969, c728
79
3,618 members
112 reviews
½ 4.3
80
1,184 members
54 reviews
4.2
2 Members
BLBera, Boand
Explanations
Boand: Simply the very best book I’ve read this year. Heartbreakingly sad but explains how wars begin and the lasting damage they cause.
81
345 members
13 reviews
3.9
2 Members
oceancat, mistressofmuses
Explanations
oceancat: rip my heart out and stomp on it why don't you, martha wells
82
41,625 members
618 reviews
3.8
83
25,817 members
463 reviews
4.1
84
1,221 members
41 reviews
4
85
1,104 members
36 reviews
3.9
2 Members
mdexter, Boand
Explanations
Boand: A truly original piece set in the future but investigating the past writing and life of a poet. Shows how people mistakenly make assumptions which are simply untrue.
86
591 members
22 reviews
½ 3.7
87
589 members
15 reviews
½ 4.3
88
498 members
29 reviews
3.9
89
287 members
17 reviews
4.1
2 Members
iansales, Edward528
Explanations
Edward528: I always feel at home in Pulley’s style, so I enjoy her books even when the setting does not really appeal to me. She is also a very linguistically aware writer, and this would have been worth it for the mammoth language alone.
90
49,775 members
1,200 reviews
½ 4.4
2 Members
mazecto, c728
91
6,763 members
174 reviews
3.9
93
7,626 members
177 reviews
4.2
94
4,178 members
85 reviews
½ 4.3
2 Members
mbookshelf, KarlN
95
1,754 members
61 reviews
4
96
30,794 members
493 reviews
½ 4.3
2 Members
shaunie, msf59
97
11,497 members
212 reviews
4.1
2 Members
fulner, AuthorSSD
98
4,337 members
101 reviews
3.9
2 Members
stephanieann1983, hey_judy
Explanations
hey_judy: King knows how to tell a tale…especially when the premise sounds ridiculous.
99
2,982 members
43 reviews
½ 4.4
100
1,930 members
92 reviews
3.8