Best and Worst of 2025

 Best

                

First Place:            Time After Time
Mikki Daughtry
                                ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

In this dual-timeline romance, college student Libby spends her entire savings fund on an old Victorian fixer-upper and settles in to renovate as she connects with a love story that unfolded in this house one hundred years ago. A blending of historical and contemporary love stories, Mikki Daughtry mirrors two romances full of wit and longing and forbidden hopes and dreams. Though jumping between timelines means getting pulled from a favorite cozy love story a few times as readers bounce back and forth, this romance is the perfect sort of home-renovation escapism in which to lose yourself.


Runner-Up:         Leaving the Station                                  Jake Maia Arlow
                                ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

In this Thanksgiving break romance, Zoe finds herself escaping a disastrous first semester at college on a cross-country train journey where her annoying seatmate might just be growing on her. With a healthy serving of flirty banter (and some more serious debate), Jake Maia Arlow creates a nuanced discussion of sexuality and gender identity, a messy interpersonal journey (both past and present), and a debate-forward romantic tension in the span of just a few liminal-space days. Though the ideal audience here skews older than the general YA readership, the feeling of figuring-it-out that permeates this book will hit the right notes for readers of any age.


Runner-Up:         The Last Bookstore On Earth                       
Lily Braun-Arnold
                                ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

In this bookish apocalyptic novel, Liz Flannery shelters in the bookstore where she used to work in the aftermath of a devestating, ecology-wrecking Storm, but with another Storm on the horizon and human tensions rising, her bubble of security is ready to burst. A warm-and-cozy contrast to the usual bleak apocalyptic imagining, Lily Braun-Arnold builds an apocalypse worth living through (and a life worth fighting for) in this silver-lining sci-fi. Though Liz's lack of apocalypse-hardened exterior might be frustrating at times, the bookish warmth and belief in human goodness that permeates this should-be-bleak future world makes it well worth taking shelter in these pages.




Worst

                                     


First Place:             An Ocean Apart                
Jill Tew
                                    ⭐⭐

In this watery dystopia, Eden Lowell takes her chance to exact revenge on the resource-stealing upper class by infiltrating a dating show meant to find a CEO's son the perfect match for his water-rich cruise ship life. With off-the-walls twists and social commentary that lacks follow-through, Jill Tew creates a dystopian sci-fi that fails to critique the bad behaviors it presents. Though this book provides an interesting world of rising waters and glitzy cruise ships for the wealthiest to escape to, the bland cast of characters and well-tread plot won't be making any history books.



Runner-Up:           Woven From Clay                            
Jenny Birch
                                    ⭐⭐

In this Jewish mythology-inspired fantasy, Terra Slater's perfect senior year is ruined by the arrival of a new boy in town who just won't leave her alone (because he insists she's been created by some sort of dark magic). Though this golem fantasy brings a fresh type of mythical monster (or, in this cage, not-so-monster) to the page, Jenny Birch fails to create a compelling new voice in YA fantasy, relying instead on tropes and character archetypes that feel more 2000s than 2020s. Though the bones of this story are solid, the plot hinges on secrets kept for no reason and characters with motivations as complex as the mud they're made from to create a not-so-compelling read.



Runner-Up:             Red as Royal Blood
Elizabeth Hart
                                    ⭐⭐⭐

In this historical (?) royal mystery, palace maid Ruby finds herself suddenly thrust into a life of luxury (and deadly intrigue) when the old king dies and names her his sole heir, disinheriting his children in the process. Though the concept has the potential for a lot of fun and wit, Elizabeth Hart creates a book that is instead confusing and hard to place. Though it is a quick and easy read with a few nice murder-mystery-style twists, the lack of genre placement and slightly-too-mature content for the writing style make it a hard read in which to invest.


/meta>/meta>

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Best and Worst of 2024

Image
  Best                      First Place:             Every Time You Hear That Song Jenna Voris                                         ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this dual-timeline historical fiction, Darren Purchase spots her ticket out of town in the scavenger hunt left in country star Decklee Cassel's will, but there's a lot more to Decklee Cassel's legacy than the tabloids ever knew. A historical love story with strong women at the core, Jenna Voris presents a story of ambition, desperation, and the regret of a one-way ticket out of town. Though the payoff of the contemporary leg of this dual-timeline story feels a little lackluster, this piece of historical fiction is worth escaping into a world where small town girls dare to dream. Runner...
Read more

Sky's End / Marc J. Gregson / Book Review

Image
SKY'S END Sixteen-year-old Conrad wasn't born to be a Low. In fact, he was born to be the highest of the Highs, but he lost all that when his father died—was murdered—and his treacherous uncle took power. The Meritocracy is harsh. That's just the way of the world. Conrad was offered a place by his uncle's side, but he won't stand with a traitor—even if it means exile as a Low. But when Conrad's mother dies in a gorgantaun attack, he knows he has to get the last of his family back: his little sister. And getting his sister means working with his uncle... kind of. Conrad and his uncle strike a deal. Conrad can come back without bowing to the traitor, but only if he earns it. And earning it means entering the Selection. Earning it means joining the Hunters, the deadliest of the Trades. Earning it means rising to be captain, surviving the brutal Gauntlet, and killing the most gorgantauns in this Selection year. And in a w...
Read more

Don't Let the Forest In / CG Drews / Book Review

Image
DON'T LET THE FOREST IN Andrew Perrault would do anything for Thomas Rye. He lives and breathes for Thomas Rye. He would die for Thomas Rye. So when Andrew returns to Wickwood Academy for senior year and his twin sister decides to cut both Andrew and Thomas out of her life, Andrew knows he has to be there for Thomas more than ever before. Thomas needs him--and he needs Thomas. But something strange is happening at Wickwood. Something to do with Thomas. Something Thomas won't tell him. When the police arrive on campus with questions about Thomas's parents, rumors start flying that Thomas murdered them. Thomas won't say a word, not to anyone. Not even to Andrew. When Andrew catches Thomas sneaking out, he follows him into the off-limits forest on the edge of campus. Andrew expects to confront Thomas, to comfort him, to support him. Whatever happened, Andrew knows the truth: Thomas did what he had to do. But the forest isn't...
Read more