2025 was a journey of a reading year for me. To my surprise, it ended up surpassing 2023 as my most prolific reading year to date. Out of the 112 books I read last year, twenty-four of those were five star reads. Out of those twenty-four five-star reads, seven of those were rereads. There was a decrease in five-star nonfiction reads from 2024’s reading results, with only five for 2025 as compared to the eight I read last year. The remaining books came from a variety of different genres but mostly included clean and Christian fiction.

Which books had me hooked in 2025? Check out the complete list below!

Note: These books are listed chronologically by month, not by preference. I’ll reveal my top three near the end of the post. For time’s sake, I am excluding rereads from this list.

Across the Ages (Timeless, #4) by Gabrielle Meyer

By now, y’all should expect to see books from the Timeless series up here every year. It’s currently my favorite Christian fiction series of all-time, and for a good reason. If you’re into time travel books, love pirates, and have a thing for the 1920s, Across the Ages may become your favorite in the series. This was my first read of 2025 and it was the perfect start to the reading year! Marcus stole my heart and I loved the powerful message of redemption that the author weaved in. This easily became my second favorite book in the series after book one, When the Day Comes. I recommend reading this series in numerical order because you’ll miss important information and Easter eggs if you don’t!

So This is Love (A Twisted Tale, #9) by Elizabeth Lim

If you’re not familiar with the A Twisted Tale series, it’s a multi-author series full of what-if retellings of Disney’s animated movies. So This is Love is Cinderella’s book, with the what-if scenario being what if Cinderella never got the chance to try on the glass slipper? Y’all, this was such a cute and cozy time! I won’t go into specific details as to not spoil it, since most of you are probably familiar with the plot from the movie, but I found it interesting that a character who is portrayed as good in the movie ended up being a second villain in this retelling. This book had several cute and funny moments, and I made a note in my reading log that I would love to read it to my future kids, Lord willing. My only regret about this book is that it sat unread on my Kindle for 4 years before I picked it up! Though this is the 9th book in the series, it can be read as a standalone, as it does not include spoilers nor characters from the other books.

Content Notes: While this book is clean for the most part, it does include one instance of the h-word used in the context of “going through h—“.

The Bait of Satan: Living Free from the Deadly Trap of Offense by John Bevere

A couple years ago when my husband and I were going through The Purple Book in our Sunday School class (check out this post to see my thoughts on The Purple Book), our teacher recommended The Bait of Satan and I immediately added it to my to-read list on Goodreads because she’s a solid Christian and I trust her recommendations. The Bait of Satan dives into the trap of offense that the devil snares us in, and how we can learn to recognize the attacks for what they are. The Lord WORKED ON ME through this book, y’all. It convinced me to forgive someone I held a 12-year grudge against. If you struggle with a victim mentality, offense, unforgiveness or holding grudges, run to pick this up. It will change your life! I plan to reread this in the future.

Falling for Your Fake Fiancé (Love Cliches, #3) by Emma St. Clair

As I’ve mentioned a few times last year, I lost someone very special to me in February of 2025. Grief hit me heavy throughout the year and affected my mood as well as my reading. Yet somehow, right after my loved one passed away and smiling was the last thing I wanted to do, this book made me grin. Laugh. Experience a little happiness when life was hard. It takes a mighty special book to do that, and Falling for Your Fake Fiancé succeeded big time.

I LOVED the couple in this book. Thayden and Delilah had the best chemistry and banter. I loved how the fake relationship trope played into this story, and it didn’t feel forced. The book also had depth, featuring a story line about dealing with narcissistic family members and how that affects how we act and perceive other relationships. Last year, I was on a mission to read the majority of the books that have been sitting unread on my Kindle for a while, and this is yet another gem that was buried there for 3 years. Thank you, Emma St. Clair, for writing this book. I read it at the time when I needed it most.

Sunrise on the Reaping (The Hunger Games, #0.5) by Suzanne Collins

Y’ALL. *SOBS*

Haymitch’s backstory was EVERYTHING I had wished for during my 11-year wait between its release and when I first read the original Hunger Games trilogy. Not only that, but Suzanne Collins packed in SO MUCH MORE depth, character development, Easter eggs, and emotional damage than I could have ever dreamed of for my favorite character. I kid you not, I SOBBED (not teared up, not had a couple teardrops trailing down my face, not got a little emotional) but literally SOBBED MY EYES OUT for the last twenty pages of this book. I have never experienced such an emotional reaction to a book in the 14 years I’ve been back into reading. This is a new top three all-time favorite, and I hope I can reread it again before the movie comes out this fall.

Content Notes: This book contains sparse language, including a few h-words and jack***.

Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

If you’ve hung out on Authoring Arrowheads for a while, you may remember me raving about the second and third books in Kemmerer’s Cursebreakers YA fantasy series a few years ago. Ever since I said goodbye to Commander Grey back then, I had been wanting to read more from this author, and I was excited to discover she had a few contemporary YA romance books out. Letters to the Lost did not disappoint! This book centers around grief and I read it right after losing my family member, so I was able to resonate deeply with it in that way. The author’s writing is phenomenal and according to Goodreads, I highlighted 20 quotes, which is a lot for me when reading fiction. One of my favorite quotes concerning grief at the time was:

I’m stuck in this rut of anger and pain and loss, but the more people try to drag me out of it, the more I feel determined to dig my heels in and cling to the grooves in the dirt.

–Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

But this wasn’t a sad book at its core. It had tons of funny moments as well. The overall plot of the story reminded me of a mix between You’ve Got Mail and A Cinderella Story, which are two of my all-time favorite movies. If you also love those, don’t hesitate to check this one out!

Content Notes: This book contains crude insults and sparse language, including the s-word, d-word, h-word and a-word.

Tired of Trying: How to Hold on to God When You’re Frustrated, Fed Up, and Feeling Forgotten by Ashley Morgan Jackson

God prompted me to read this book during the perfect time. When I picked it up a month after losing my family member, I was past tired of trying. On top of experiencing grief, I was dealing with other areas of stress in my life and God felt so far away. This book taught me that we need to wrestle with God, meaning lay out all our issues before Him, and tell Him how we’re really doing and feeling. While it didn’t snap me out of my grieving period immediately, this book helped me see that God wasn’t punishing me or my family by allowing us to walk through a harsh season, but that through it He was teaching us to completely rely on Him. I plan to go back and reread this book in the future when another life storm season hits to remind myself to hang on to God, because He’ll never leave me nor forsake me.

Stella (Best Friends Dog Tales, #1) by McCall Hoyle

Several years ago, I read and loved Hoyle’s contemporary YA romances, Meet the Sky and The Thing with Feathers, and I was excited to hear that she’s now writing middle grade books about dogs. Stella immediately caught my attention, because it’s told through the POV of a beagle, which is my favorite dog breed. Stella was once a security dog who sniffed for chemicals in airports until she missed a scent and the unimaginable happened. The story follows Stella as she has to retire from being a working dog due to anxiety and is sent to live with a little girl named Chloe who has epilepsy. Y’all, I did not expect to cry while reading this book, but it got me a few times in its sub-200 pages. It was absolutely precious! Stella reminded me so much of the beagle I had growing up, and I thought that the author did a phenomenal job writing from a dog’s (specifically a beagle’s) POV.

Every Hour Until Then (Timeless, #5) by Gabrielle Meyer

It turns out BOTH of the Timeless books I read in 2025 were slices of perfection. This book follows Kathryn, who lives in both 1888 and 1938. During her 1938 timeline, she’s invited to work at a museum in London on an exhibit about Jack the Ripper. Amid her research, she discovers that her sister in her other path is destined to become one of Jack the Ripper’s victims! So, how can she protect her sister without forfeiting her 1888 path, a result of trying to change history?

For the first time, Meyer introduced a full-blown mystery plot into the Timeless series and I Ate. It. Up. If you tend to get sucked into researching conspiracy theories, this will be right up your alley. The love interest in this one is also one of my favorites in the series, right along with the guys from books 1 and 4.

A Heart to Cherish (Tranquil Shores, #1) by Judith McNees

If you’re in search for Indie Contemporary Christian Romance, I’m begging you to give this book a shot! This was my first time reading one of Judith’s books, and it will not be my last. A Heart to Cherish follows Julia Price, a pregnant and homeless young woman who grew up in and out of foster homes and who has recently escaped an abusive relationship. During her struggle, she meets Alex Morgan, a young Christian man who makes it his mission to help Julia find Jesus and happens to fall in love with her along the way. If you like the themes in Redeeming Love, I think you’ll love this book. Judith’s writing style reminds me a lot of Melissa Tagg, Nicole Deese, and Tammy L. Gray, so if you’re a fan of those authors, make sure Judith stays on your radar!

Everything’s Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh

For my August TBR, one of my randomly chosen prompts was “read the most recent release on your TBR”, and I was so happy that this fit the prompt! Everything’s Coming Up Rosie follows Rosie Waterman, a struggling actress who has recently lost her big city job and apartment. In an effort to not look like the failure she assumes everyone thinks she is, she randomly applies for an out-of-state theatre job and takes it on a whim. The only problem? When she gets there, she realizes the “actors” are all elderly residents of a retirement village!

If you love elderly people in books, sweet romance subplots, and have ever wondered why it seems as if all your friends are well-rounded adults with stable careers, marriages, and babies and you can’t seem to get it together, this is the perfect book for you. I related to Rosie a lot throughout her journey, despite not being interested in theatre myself. Courtney Walsh knocked this one out of the park and I can’t wait to read The Summer of Yes in 2026!

The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

While Jennifer Lynn Barnes is known for The Inheritance Games and The Naturals series, The Lovely and the Lost is a standalone mystery novel that definitely holds its own! This book follows Kira, whose earliest memory is living alone and wild in the woods. A search and rescue worker found and adopted her, and now she works alongside her adoptive mother, Cady, in training search and rescue dogs. When Cady’s estranged father contacts her asking for help in finding a missing girl, Kira makes it her mission to find her. This book was full of family drama and secrets, which had me lost in its pages. If you love mysteries and outdoor adventures, I think you’ll love this. While other books by Jennifer Lynn Barnes contain some language and suggestive content, my content notes say that the worst word mentioned in this book was “crap”, so it’s the cleanest one of her books that I’ve picked up so far.

A Girl from Yamhill by Beverly Cleary

Beverly Cleary is the beloved author of several children’s books, including books about Beezus and Ramona Quimby, Henry Huggins, and a dog named Ribsy. While it’s been over 20 years since I’ve read one of her fiction works (something I need to fix, asap!), I had been dying to read her first memoir ever since I found out that she had written a couple. A Girl from Yamhill chronicles Cleary’s childhood and teenage years in Oregon during the Great Depression. If you’re wondering whether she behaved more like Ramona or Beezus, she was definitely a Ramona! I smiled nonstop while reading about her childhood shenanigans and gained so much more respect for Cleary than I already had due to what she walked through. I can’t wait to read her second memoir at some point.

The End of the Age: The Countdown Has Begun by John Hagee

During the time I was reading Left Behind (which, while I enjoyed it, was a 4-star read for me), I wanted to dive back into nonfiction about the end times and finally cracked open this book by Pastor John Hagee. I found his writing and explanation of the end times easy to understand, which can be hard to accomplish for such complex subject matter. While I don’t personally agree with every single thing Hagee believes, I felt this was a solid book about the end times and look forward to checking out more of Pastor Hagee’s books.

Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan

Once Upon a Wardrobe is a historical fiction novel set in the 1950s that follows a college student named Megs who is enlisted by her terminally ill brother, George who loves The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, to go talk to C.S. Lewis and find out where Narnia came from. This book came highly recommended by BookLoverAmanda on her YouTube channel, so it had been on my radar for a while before I finally picked it up in December. If you’re in search of a wholesome book that’ll bring you all the nostalgia for those days of voracious reading as a child, as well as one that demonstrates why God allows certain events to happen in our lives in specific ways, I highly recommend reading this book around Christmas. Don’t forget to have some tissues handy, because this one will wreck you, I promise.

Should We Tell Her? by Lillian Keith

Lillian Keith is an Indie author of clean middle grade fiction, and this was my first book by her. It will not be my last! Should We Tell Her? follows 12-year-old Aspen as she debates telling her 2-year-old sister, Piper, that their mother is currently in the hospital in a coma after an accident. Aspen and her middle sister, Wren, end up doing all they can to distract Piper from finding out the harsh truth about their mother’s condition by sending mail and packages from “Mommy” to Piper. I adored the bond between these sisters and the funny moments throughout the book (especially the chicken scene at the birthday party!). Naturally, due to the subject matter, this one also made me tear up. Lillian has a talent for writing middle grade stories, so if you haven’t already, check this one out!

When to Walk Away: Finding Freedom from Toxic People by Gary Thomas

Last but not least, the last nonfiction book I read this year tackled the topic of how walking away from toxic people is not only a biblical concept, but it’s something Jesus did during His time on earth. I decided to pick this up because the actions of a toxic person were affecting me and I kept dwelling on their behavior rather than dealing with it in a biblical way. This book showed me how to do that by teaching me that Jesus never chased down anyone, demanding they change. Instead, He shared the truth with them and let them decide whether or not they would submit to Him and change based on that. I loved the chapter where Thomas emphasizes that we have no time to dwell on the toxic actions of others if we are truly trying to stay kingdom-minded and fulfill our callings in spreading God’s love to others. That was a much-needed reminder for me! The chapter on dealing with our personal Judas was by far my favorite. Instead of consenting that we “out” whoever has harmed us, Thomas reminds Christians that we are not our Judas’s conscience and we have no control over how they think or act, so we don’t need to let our desire for justice to be brought control our lives. In a similar vein to The Bait of Satan, this book focuses on how we as Christians can combat our own toxic feelings/thoughts so that we don’t let offense become our master. If you have a toxic person in your life and find yourself struggling in the same way I have been, definitely give this book a chance!

My Top 3 Favorite Books of 2025:

Though I found a ton of five-star reads last year, these three hold very special places in my heart. That being said, these three were also incredibly hard to nail down. So, without further ado, let’s find out what they are in reverse order!

3. Everything’s Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh

2. Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

1. Which should be a surprise to absolutely no one… SUNRISE ON THE REAPING BY SUZANNE COLLINS!!!

Talk to Me, Arrowheads!

Have you read any of the books on my favorites list? If you have, which is your favorite? If you haven’t, which ones are you most interested in checking out, if any?

What were your top three favorite books of 2025? Let me know in the comments!

Aim high, stay strong, and always hit your mark.

-Allyson 😀