Best of 2025 and The Year in Review
Overall, 2025 was a good year, but like all years it had its ups and downs. I will say though, the changes to the blog I implemented this year has led to a happier and a less neurotic me (okay, maybe still very neurotic) due to a more casual posting schedule. Sometimes I still wish I was doing all the book tags, challenges, and weekly meme posts that I used to do, but then I remind myself that shifting to mainly reviews has allowed me more time to actually read. And we all know that TBR pile never gets smaller, only grows.
But of course, I will always make time for an end-of-year post where I look back at the last twelve months and do a roundup of my favorite reads! This is always one list I look forward to doing, as it lets me see all the reading I’ve accomplished in the past year and also relive the books that stood out the most. As usual, I’m going to highlight each genre category and all the titles in it that I loved.
Fantasy
Fantasy is always one of my favorite genres to read, and this year delivered no shortage of unforgettable stories from the epic and mythological to the paranormal and historical.
Romantasy
With the romantasy genre having exploded in popularity in 2025, I think it’s earned itself a brand new category on my list this year. As with any oversaturated market though, there were plenty of so-so entries, but these are the ones that stood out.
Science Fiction
Science fiction once again underperformed for me this year, and I can only hope we’ll see a bit of a genre renaissance soon. Until then, there’s still the Dungeon Crawler Carl series to satisfy my aliens and sci-fi fun fix.
Horror
Horror continues to be one of my most reliable genres, featuring diverse themes and stories that keep things interesting. These books are a reminder of why I keep coming back for more.
Mystery & Thriller
I’ve been exploring more mysteries and thrillers lately, though much of it tends to blur together with familiar formulas. These are the books that managed to break the mold.
Young Adult
My YA reading has dwindled to almost nothing this year, with only three titles on my “read” shelf. Still, one of them made the best-of list, which is always my favorite kind of surprise.
Nonfiction
This year, I also started picking up some nonfiction books purely for fun, interest, and learning. While I don’t usually review these, I’ve included these recommended titles for being particularly well researched and engagingly written.
And now, on to the Goodreads stats! First, I crushed my GR reading challenge, which I always set at 100 books a year. This also lines up perfectly with my current goal of averaging two reviews a week.
Last but not least, the pretty Year in Books collage! Happy new year, everyone!
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Best of 2014 and The Year in Review
Best of 2015 and The Year in Review
Best of 2016 and The Year in Review
Best of 2017 and The Year in Review
Best of 2018 and The Year in Review
Best of 2019 and The Year in Review
Best of 2020 and The Year in Review
Best of 2021 and The Year in Review
Best of 2022 and The Year in Review
Best of 2023 and The Year in Review
Best of 2024 and The Year in Review
The BiblioSanctum 
Ooh nice! Seeing quite a few that are still in my TBR pile. Like Kelley’s books! Lol. Need to read Valentine’s too and Hamilton! Glad to see some of my TBR books in this listing though!
Happy almost New Year!
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That’s fantastic! And you won’t disappointed by any of those books, I hope you get to them soon!
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This is a fantastic list, I’ve read 12 off here which makes me very happy and there are a few more that I’m still determined to get to.
Lynn 😀
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It’s always fun to compare books and I get a thrill too whenever I see books I loved on my fellow bloggers’ favorite lists!
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How many romantasy books did you read/review this year, can you easily find out?
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I just went to goodreads and filtered my shelves for romance and fantasy. 12! Which is a lot for me, lol.
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Thanks. I was just idly curious.
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Congrats on crushing your GR goal! I have a book I’m finishing today and I think I’ll also hit 114 books. Horror was the big winner for me too, and three of my top 5 are horror, no surprise there. Science fiction was overall disappointing with only a couple of standouts. (But they were excellent!)
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Fantasy and Sci-fi used to be the bulk of my reads but it seems like more and more I’m skewing towards horror and dark fantasy now! I need to get more recs from you on SF!
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I understand why some folks do all the memes and challenges, but I just can’t. Sometimes those posts feel like “noise” to me, rather than content, and I’m apt to skip reading them.As for a final year post, huzzah! I’m always amazed by what I and other people read in a year. Frequently, I stop to think, wait, I read that book this year?? lol
Greenteeth sounded interesting, so I looked it up. I have never heard of cozy fantasy before, but I’m guess it’s something soft and lovely, which seems to be the defining trait of anything “cozy.”
Criag DiLouie and Nat Cassidy were new to me this year, so I’m stoked to read more by them. However, SGJ is an author I just do NOT get on with—ever! It’s so frustrating because he’s beloved.
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Yeah, don’t get me wrong, I liked doing some of the memes especially the anticipated books and favorite lists, and I don’t mind seeing them on other blogs either. But it does take extra time to plan and write these posts, and I really need to do more to streamline my schedule. I do like how memes and challenge posts encourage discussion though, so that’s what I miss the most!
And cozy fantasy is a genre I’ve learned to enjoy more this year. Typically their stories are lower stakes and I like to fit them in between my heavier reads to decompress 🙂
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Oh, and I hear you about SGJ! Honestly, he’s hit or miss for me. Whenever I pick up one of his books, I either love it or hate it. But it’s enough for me to keep checking out his stuff.
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And he’s such a lovely human and fellow horror fan! I’ve met him in real life, and he’s just a kind person.
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Excellent job with the reading!
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Right away you mentioned one of the reasons I also enjoy doing and reading end of year sort of posts, how it lets you relive the books that stood out the most. That’s always a really enjoyable process. There are a number of books I’m glad to see here as I’m hoping to get to them. Happy New Year!
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I always look out for your best-of list. I always get recs from it. Happy New Year!
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I am listening to Hemlock and Silver right now, so good!
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I thoroughly enjoyed Hemlock and Silver and it so very nearly made my Outstanding list, but got crowded out at the last minute. But A Drop of Corruption made it and I’ve got the audiobook of The Knight and the Moth lined up to tuck into later this month. I’ve heard good things about the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, so I need to track it down – thank you for the recommendations!
I wish I could read horror, but I’m prone to nightmares so I tend to avoid them. Let’s hope 2026 is as good as 2025, though I’d like to see more enjoyable space opera, too!
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It looks like you had an incredible reading year and im glad you found so many new favourites across such a range of genres.
Im ashamed to say I’ve only read one of your fantasy favourites so far (Hemlock & Silver) but I did also really enjoy it. The Everlasting I will definitely be picking up very soon as a fan of the author. The Faerie Morgana and A Drop Of Corruption are also high priority reads for me.
I still havent read The Knight & The Moth despite it being one of my most highly anticipated releases of 2025. I keep holding out hope that I can get hold of the Fairyloot edition though as I really want an extra special copy.
Im not surprised to see DCC here as it seems universally loved. I hope Sci Fi picks up for you more generally this year though.
And I was very surprised to have one of your horror choices as my second favourite read of the entire year – The Buffalo Hunter Hunter. I still can’t get over how much that one blew me away.
Heres hoping 2026 brings even more future favourites your way 😊
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