Top 5 Tuesday: Best Books I Read in 2025

Welcome back to Top 5 Tuesday, now following the list from That Artsy Reader Girl! As always, I do a top 5 instead of a top 10 because I tend to struggle to find 10 books for prompts.

This week's prompt is..... best books I read in 2025

These are in no particular order

1. One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
2. Bunny Season by Bindi Kennedy
3. The Trouble with Love and Coaches by Harriet Ashford
4. The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera
5. We All Fall Down by Erin FitzGerald

I took a break from these in December for my Indie Author Advent, which I really enjoyed. That said, I am very happy to be back to this fun little challenge. I had a lot of trouble picking my top 5 our of my 5-star reads so this is a smidge of a random pull from them. Just know there are a ton of honorable mentions I wish I could've included (which I could if I did top 10, but shhhhh, I do not normally have 10 picks for a prompt).

Here it all is in a pretty lil' graphic as always

Again so happy to be back to this. What were some of your top reads you think I should give a try? Here's to many fun lists in 2026!

Top 5 Tuesday: Books I Enjoyed Outside of My Comfort Zone

Welcome back to Top 5 Tuesday, now following the list from That Artsy Reader Girl! As always, I do a top 5 instead of a top 10 because I tend to struggle to find 10 books for prompts.

This week's prompt is..... books I enjoyed outside of my comfort zone

These are in order with most recently read first

1. My Roommate From Hell by Cale Dietrich
2. Meant to Burn by Shae Ruby
3. You Too?: 25 Voices Share Their #MeToo Stories by Janet Gurtler
4. The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera
5. Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: Big Questions from Tiny Mortals about Death by Caitlin Doughty

For the most part, all of these are in one genre I am comfortable in, and one (or more) that I am just starting to dip into. This blend makes them less intimidating to pick up an give a chance. I'm proud of myself so far this year with how much I have given various genres a try. Hopefully I can keep it going in 2026! What genres are outside of your comfort zone?

Here it all is in a pretty lil' graphic as always

This past week has been so relaxing and healing. Being able to actually get a decent night's sleep definitely helps. I've been bale to read a lot more and am becoming a content machine due to my upcoming Indie Author Advent. I'll see you again tomorrow for some gushing!

Top 5 Tuesday: Books with a High Page Count

Welcome back to Top 5 Tuesday, now following the list from That Artsy Reader Girl! As always, I do a top 5 instead of a top 10 because I tend to struggle to find 10 books for prompts.

This week's prompt is..... books with a high page count

These are in no particular order

1. The Charlie Method by Elle Kennedy
2. The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera
3. Destructively Mine by Krista and Becca Ritchie
4. The Girlfriend Zone by Lauren Blakely
5. Ice Breaker by Ariel Dawn

I am the first to admit I tend to avoid books with over 500 pages. It takes a lot of a book to hold my attention for that long and to make me feel that the high number of pages is necessary to the narrative. Each one of these books was able to hold my attention with no issues! Some are even 5-star reads! Do you tend to like chunky reads?

Here it all is in a pretty lil' graphic 😁

I've got a lot on my plate lately, but I wouldn't have it any other way. As long as I keep a schedule, I should do just fine! Hopefully, next week I will be able to talk about books that are more in my normal page range. See you then!

Free for All Friday: Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag 2025

 Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag

Intro

Is it still close enough to mid-year to do this, right? Given how little I've read in July, I totally think it is. If anyone would still like to do this at the end of July, consider yourself tagged. 

This tag originated on the Earl Grey Books YouTube channel. I found it from the bookchestirecat blog. Thank you to them for the inspiration.

Now it is time to reflect on my reading so far and hope that the second half of the year lives up to it!  Let's get into the prompts and my picks!

The Prompts

• Best book you've read so far
• Best sequel you've read so far 
• New release you haven't read yet, but want to 
• Most anticipated release for the second half of 2025 
• Biggest disappointment 
• Biggest surprise 
• Favorite new (to you) author
• Newest favorite character
• Book that made you cry
• Book that made you happy
• Favorite book-to-screen adaptation
• Favorite review
• Books you need to read by the end of the year

My Picks and Discussions

Best book I've read so far

The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera

I unsurprisingly totally loved this one! It really made me think and provided a lot more information about the world and the start of Death Cast. I enjoyed tandem reading it. This story will stick with me for a long time which is why it is currently my number one.

Best sequel I've read so far

Destructively Mine by Krista and Becca Ritchie

I have tremendously adored both of the books in this series so far. I am truly obsesessed with the characters in particular. Having a whole cast of morally grey individuals is fascinating and creates a lot of wonderful tension. I ate up every additional tidbit this sequel provided. 

New release I haven't read yet, but want to

Caught Up by Navessa Allen

The audiobook for the first one was truly fantastic! I am excited to see what I think of the second, and yes, I will absolutely be consuming the audiobook for it too!

Most anticipated release for the second half of 2025

Red Card by Maren Moore

Maren Moore is quickly becoming my favorite sports romance author to date. The way she writes swoony chemistry moments is incredible. This is her first trad published book, so I am so happy for her! I have the ARC for it, which I will be starting very soon!

Biggest disappointment

Never Been Shipped by Alicia Thompson

The publisher actually reached out to me to offer me the ARC for this one. I was totally ecstatic to be working with a major publisher. Unfortunately, this book was a huge DNF for me. I could not tolerate the utter lack of development of the characters over time. Needless to say, I probably won't be working with the publisher again for a while.

Biggest surprise

Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: Big Questions from Tiny Mortals about Death by Caitlin Doughty

To clarify, I am not sure that I enjoyed this book. I have loved her YouTube channel for years and the way she tells stories. What surprised me was how much value I think this book has. Yes, it is a bit morbid; any book about death will be. The way that death is discussed feels so natural (as it should). I would totally recommend this book to anyone with any kind of questions about death. It discusses everything in a very approachable way.

Favorite new (to you) author

Courtney Peppernell

I will be discussing the book of hers I read further below for another prompt, so here I will simply discuss her writing. Her approach to poetry is beautiful and eye-opening. Her poetry made me feel not only seen but understood. I am not usually one to pick up a poetry book, but I happened to find the book below in a little free library and decided to give it a shot. I am so glad I did and hope to read more of her poetry in the future. 

Newest favorite character

Donna from the Colson Creek series by Erin FitzGerald

This is a character that very quickly wormed her way into my heart. While she is not a main character in the books, she is absolutely a prominent one. She is the caring mother figure we all need in life. Her spunk, wit, and caring nature made her rise quickly to the top of my list. I am usually pretty terrible at remembering character names, so it is saying a lot that I will never forget hers. 

Book that made you cry

Pillow Thoughts by Courtney Peppernell

I told you I would be discussing Peppernell's book more, well, here I am. This book covers a lot of very relatable subjects pertaining to love. Some happy and some sad. It made me think thoughtfully about loved ones I have lost, which brought about a few tears. I am very happy I read it, and the tears honestly just let me feel even more connected to the poems. If you think there is even a slight chance you would enjoy a bit of poetry, this book is worth picking up. 

Book that made you happy

One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune

This book gave me that stereotypical summer read feeling I was craving so bad. Yes, her books are all pretty similar, and I'm happy about that because I adore her writing style and would love more of it. It gave me all of the warm fuzzies and hope for life. I listened to this one on a road trip and spent most of the time just envisioning being on the lake with the characters, which was glorious. 

Favorite book-to-screen adaptation

The Hunting Wives (by May Cobb)

I'll be honest, I do not watch a lot of book-to-screen adaptations, especially if I read the book. They often are totally ruined because they are not like what I pictured in my head. The Hunting Wives on Netflix is not that loyal to the book by the time the season is over. It reminded me of the Riverdale series in that it seemed to mostly borrow all of the existing characters and what their relationships would be, and add a ton to it. If I were solely wanting it to be a loyal adaptation of a book I was obsessed with, I would be disappointed. That said, if I judge it as a series of its own, I quite liked it and plan to watch any future seasons. 

Favorite review

The Trouble with Love and Coaches by Harriet Ashford

This book was a delightful read that I gave 5 stars. I am one of Harriet's friends now, and honestly, my review totally showed that. It is definitely a lot of praise for her, but I love it for that very reason. You should check it out to witness me gush if nothing else. 

Books I need to read by the end of the year

The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff

The Autist's Guide to the Galaxy by Clara Törnvall

I could probably put my entire physical TBR here, and it would be a reasonable response to this prompt. I picked two books that I am in the middle of because I do not want them to further fall to the wayside to never be finished. They are both non-fiction because I made it a goal to read notably more non-fiction books this year than I did last year. I want to keep at least 10% non-fiction if not higher. I am loving both of these books a lot, but they do require me to think and truly process what they have to say, which is why they are currently unfinished. Help keep me accountable to finish these, y'all!

Final Thoughts

This was such a fun (though time-consuming) tag! I appreciated the chance to reflect on my reads so far this year and consider what I want to be part of my reading for the rest of the year. Do we have any in common? Now I am looking forward to further reflection at the end of the year. I wonder how many of my picks will be different. For now I bid you adieu and hope to see you next Friday for another fun tag!