Best Books of 2025

Here we are again at the end of the year and I’m listing my favorite books. It has been a good year for them. I finished 83 books. My top 5 genres were Historical Mystery, Fantasy/Sci-Fi, Urban Fantasy/PNR, Fantasy Romance, and Nonfiction. The majority of the books were purchased but I did also borrow from the library and from KU.  Fifty of the books were paper, which is not surprising since I love the look and feel of an actual book, and I do purchase more books that I borrow. 

My only real reading goal was to read 12 books purchased before the year started (and even better if they have been on my shelf for more than a year) and I divided it between 8 paper copies and 4 kindle copies. It was nice to finally read some of the older ones so I think I’ll do 12 more in 2026, but maybe mostly paper and not worry about the ebooks. 

The books I own paper copies of

Here they are in the order I read them: 

Agony in Amethyst - AM Stuart - The final book in the Harriet Gordon series did not disappoint. I’ll be re-reading my favorite parts of the whole series for sure.

How to Steal a Galaxy - Beth Revis -This was book 2 in the series and I loved it. Book 3 was good but not as good as the first 2, IMO.

Challenger - Adam Higginbotham - Really enjoyed this nonfiction. I want to read another of his books in 2026.

Any Way the Wind Blows - Rainbow Rowell - The 3 books series was wonderful, and I read the whole thing in a few days. So glad I finally picked these up off my shelf. 

Everything is Tuberculosis - John Green - Another nonfiction that was just so good.

The King’s Messenger - Susannah Kearsley - I re-read my favorite parts twice already, it really ticked all the boxes and is exactly the kind of historical fiction I like.

The Enchanted Greenhouse - Sarah Beth Durst - I dipped into “romantasy” this year, even though that name is dumb. This was a follow up to The Spellshop, which I read last year and loved as well.

Chained Knight - Lilith Saintcrow - The surprise of the year. I bought this on a whim and absolutely adored it. I’ve even re-read it a few times. 

Legends and Lattes - Travis Baldree - I had wanted to give this series a try and it was such a fantastic cozy read. I read the prequel Bookshops & Bonedust as well.

All of Us Murderers - KJ Charles - A wonderful gothic mystery with a gay romance. It was so good and has such a fantastic cover. 

Turns of Fate - Anne Bishop - I was excited to read this, even though it’s a new series and not part of The Others. It was really good. Definitely feels like The Others, but it’s own story too.

The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald - John Bacon - This one got in at the last second, but it was very good and I couldn't put it down at the end.

Honorable Mentions:

Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales - Heather Fawcett - Really wonderful ending to the series.

Into the Ice - Mark Synott - another nonfiction that was really interesting. I do love his books.

Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion Vol 8 - Beth Brower - This is one of my favorite series and it was a bit heart wrenching and I can’t wait to see what’s next.

A Woman in the Polar Night - Christianne Ritter - Another nonfiction! About living on Svalbard in the early 1900s. I had so many questions about all kinds of things she didn't include. 

Replaceable You - Mary Roach - I always laugh and learn from MR. I love her writing.

Night Shift - Charlaine Harris - Started this series on a whim because of something I saw on GoodReads and the library had all 3. I devoured them right before my trip and then borrowed them again after my trip. Book 3 was my favorite.

At the moment, I have a list of older books on my shelves that I want to read in 2026. We'll see what I'm in the mood for once the calendar actually turns over. Goodbye to 2025 and hello 2026! 

Holidays

It's that in-between time of Christmas and New Years. Lots of people off work, if they work in an office. I went into the office today and there are actually more people than I expected. But most of them are here because they are moving around offices so there's a lot of activity. And its weird to walk into the office when the plant isn't running. They are on a maintenance shutdown and you don't realize how much noise the production building generates until there isn't any. 

I spent the morning cleaning off my desk and rearranging a few things and getting out my new calendars. I'm not super busy, but I work this week because I feel like I have to. I can do some testing for others on my team though so that's what I will spend my afternoon on. It's not like I have anything to do at home. The reason I'm at work is so I can get out of my house. I'll be working from home on Wednesday and Friday anyway.

I'm trying to finish up one more book before the year closes out. For some reason, my brain doesn't like to be in the middle of a book when we change years, so I always finish and then start new. Usually, I'm finished before now and just re-reading, but this year I started a nonfiction book I'd like to finish up, even if it means 100 pages a night. I can do it. 

No real new year's eve plans. I never do anything and I'm happy that way. My nephew may come over for some anime watching and I'm happy with that idea. Ha ha... I might be trying to finish a book. 

Merry Christmas

Here we are at the end of the year. Hard to believe it’s another Christmas. I woke up this morning at 5:00 am with a lot of rain and wind. I didn’t mind it. I listened for a bit and went back to sleep for a few hours. It’s going to be a cloudy, but mild day. It’s ok. At least we are getting some rain. 

Spent yesterday evening at my brother’s house and we ate and played games and did presents. It was a really nice time. I was doing ok yesterday until I put on my mom’s apron to cook and then I really missed her. We are doing ok, but it’s a weird life with both parents gone. 

The rest of the day I’m taking it easy. Last year I did a movie marathon and so I decided to make it a tradition and continue this year. This year I’m doing unrelated musicals. I’m starting with White Christmas because I haven’t watched it yet this year. Then I’m moving to Thoroughly Modern Millie, Summer Stock, and Summer Magic. We’ll see how far that takes me. I have a few others picked out as well. 

I’m going to make soup a little later, do a puzzle, read some books. It will be a nice, relaxing day. I’ve been very blessed in my life with my family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. I’m truly grateful for my abundant life. 

Smells Cozy

I made up a simmer pot today and my house smells so delicious right now. 

We had a little rain last night, but the clouds have moved on and it’s a sunny, blue sky. Not even truly coat weather. I put my coat on to go to the grocery store and was way too warm. We will be having record warmth this week and it’s definitely not going to be a white Christmas. I’m kind of bummed about the mild winter, so I’m making up for it by making my house cozy. Spicy smells, lights, candles, fireplace on my tv…whatever it takes. I’m enjoying lighting up the dark as we get to the shortest day of the year. 

I did what is hopefully my last grocery shopping before the holidays and picked up some books from the library. I will be going to work on Monday and Tuesday and then I’m off for 2 days for Christmas. Then I’m working from home the last week of the year. I don’t know why I think I’m going to have time to read, but that’s kind of what I’m planning when I’m not with my family. A little readathon by myself. Plus, I have puzzles and plans to make soup. And I’d like to take some time on the 26th and 27th to clean out my closets and bookshelves. Just seems like a good thing to do at the end of the year. Ha ha ok, I may not get as much reading done as I tell myself I want to do. But that’s ok. 

Done!

I got up early this morning and went shopping. I was at Target at 7:11 am. I hate going to that section of town during the holidays, but there was very little traffic that early. I finished all my Christmas shopping and then picked up groceries on my way home. 

It’s now 11: 00 am and all the gifts are wrapped, the cards are filled out, and everything is under the tree. I am ready for Christmas. I also took a family name from Utah Kids Foundation this year and their presents are purchased (most of it was done before my trip) and I’ll be dropping them off to the mom tomorrow after church. I’m praying that they like the toys and the clothes and shoes fit. It was a fun thing to do this year. 

I’ve started my laundry and need to do some dishes and practice the hymns for church tomorrow. I’ve done a lot already today. LOL I feel a nap might be in my future. 

I’m still deciding what to do for neighbor gifts this year. I’ve been cutting out a lot of the sugar I was eating and so I haven’t bought any of the Christmas junk food from the grocery store. I’m not sure I want to make cookies this year. I guess if I give most or all of them away, it won’t be a big deal. I just didn’t want to stuff myself on them. Although, I’ve been doing pretty good with the sugar for the most part. I’ve got some treats and a Dr. Pepper planned for Christmas Day, but I’ve been trying not to go overboard. I suppose one other day of eating a few cookies won’t kill me in the long run, but still. So still deciding about that one. If the neighbors don’t get something from me this year, they just don’t. 

Europe Travels

So this year when I turned 50, I knew I wanted to do something to celebrate in a big way, but didn't know what that was. Then I saw this trip listed on the WTT website and decided this was it. I loved going to the Christmas markets in Germany and Austria with mom in 2018 so seeing them in 4 countries seemed like a good idea, and 3 of the countries were completely new to me. 

I left the day after Thanksgiving and flew to Switzerland to meet up with the group. I upgraded myself to premium with my miles on the flight from JFK to ZHR and I think I will be doing that in the future the next time I go on a long flight. It was nice to have more space. I actually fell asleep for a couple hours. 

Zurich was fun and I did enjoy our ferry boat ride on Lake Zurich. The Christmas markets were almost entirely food stalls. I did eat a good sausage and Nutella empanada though. 

Limmat river

The next stop was in Basel, Switzerland. I can't say that I had any strong impressions of Basel. Where the Christmas market was, looked like a European town. 

Rhine river

Then we journeyed into France. Our first stop was the Museum of Printed Fabrics in Mulhouse, and I must say that I would have never chosen that type of museum but it was absolutely fascinating and I loved it. We had a private tour, which is another thing I wouldn't have gotten on my own. I bought a Christmas ornament in their gift shop with is just a ball printed with a fabric pattern they have in the museum. 

Then we headed to the Christmas market at Colmar and this was by far my favorite market of the bunch we saw. Very old European, traditional looking. I bought a few more ornaments here. They are wooden circles with pictures of old fashioned Christmas scenes on them. 

After our stop at Colmar, we made it to Strasbourg, where we stayed for 2 nights. I did enjoy Strasbourg as well, but it was very crowded and a very popular place to be at Christmas. The church was beautiful and it was nice to see something besides a market. LOL  Strasbourg has a lot of the half timber houses that look like they are leaning a bit from old age, and it was fun to see them. 

Then we left France and went to Luxembourg. I was excited for this one because it's not a country (or city) I would have ever chosen to stop at on my own. I loved it. The city is beautiful. During our walking tour, I got to hear all about their history, which was great for my history loving self. 

Bock Casemates - WWII tunnels

Palace of the Duchy

And after Luxembourg, our final stop was in Brussels. It was a big city and while the markets were fun, I didn't have any strong impressions, other than construction and traffic, and by that time I was ready to sleep in my own bed. I did bring back a lot of chocolate and ended up with a great bowl of pho one night. 

Besides, all the different countries and Christmas markets, I also took a macaroon class to see how they were made. That class included tasting and taking home some delicious macaroons (which I ate along the way since they don’t stay good for that long). We did a chocolate class in Belgium, which I wouldn’t exactly call a class. We didn’t learn much about chocolate but we got to fill molds with chocolate to make our own to take home, which was fun. I have no idea what I’m going to do with all that chocolate, since I also bought so much. Terrible problem to have, and I’m sure the kids will eat it. 

All things considered, it was a pretty good trip. 

I'm Home

I've spent the last 10 days in Europe and now I'm home. I'll have to put some details here later, but for now this will do. 

I went to Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, and Belgium. The stops in France (Milhouse, Colmar and Strasbourg) and Luxembourg (Luxembourg City) were my favorite. 

Now I'm home again and sick. LOL at least it waited until I got home to feel actually sick. I've lost my voice and have a terrible cough. And a few sinus problems. I don't feel great, but not truly terrible either. 

Luxembourg on a misty morning.