Hello again dear reader or listener, another year coming to an end, another list that becomes longer because those darned authors have the audacity of releasing good books all the time!
I couldn’t really pick a top five, nor a top ten this year. So you get the fun of a top 15! Like last year then, I’ll just be sharing all of their glorious covers and if I reviewed the book itself I’ll be linking the rambles in their titles so you can see if they are the books for you, at your leisure.
These are all books that kept me up till the very small hours of the night, some even made me see the first inklings of dawn and deprived me of even the little sleep I do get. But! I have no regrets whatsoever and neither would you, I believe, if you gave them a go!
In no particular order other than the one in which I read them throughout the year then, I present you a mix of high fantasy, historical fiction, thrillers, horror, and a couple different flavours of post-apocalypse, as a treat.
Grave Empire (The Great Silence #1) by Richard Swan
Swan brings together horror fantasy, flintlock, espionage, a sprinkling of steampunk, wolfmen, mer-men, necromancy and more. Also shark familiars. I feel it is very necessary to mention the shark familiars. I mean come on, how effing cool is that?! In short, Grave Empire is just one big, badass cocktail of awesome.
I loved seeing the character development throughout the whole book, I loved the plot itself and I’m intrigued to no end, if not even a little wary (in a good way), as to what is to come next.
The Feeding by Anthony Ryan
From one of my autobuy authors, with The Feeding, Ryan continues to prove he is an expert at rendering vivid and powerful ambiance even through the simplest and most straightforward of plots. His characters are all memorable even when not overburdened with details or backstories that would fill pages. Instead, we get right into a captivating story of survival, pervaded with riveting action that is made all the more thrilling by the high stakes, and interspersed with, at times, a certain pragmatic poignancy that drives the emotional impact in fully.
Blood on Her Tongue by Johanna van Veen
Not for the faint of heart, Blood on Her Tongue claws its way into you and doesn’t let go till the extremely satisfying ending, because I support women’s rights but boy do I support women’s wrongs in such contexts. If you enjoy Gothic horror, sharp social commentary, intelligent explorations of character and psychology and dynamics, or even if you just want an evening full of transporting storytelling, you will love Blood on Her Tongue. I can’t recommend it enough.
Just be wary gazing into the dark too long, it has teeth.
Once a Monster by Robert Dinsdale
This is arguably my favorite ever retelling of a Greek myth, and I say this when my feelings about the ways parts of my culture are used as a trope these days are actually very complex and so meandering that I’ve struggled to fully write them down. Suffice it to say that through this moving Victorian tale of finding oneself and relearning to trust in others, I feel like Dinsdale is one of the few authors, that I’ve read, conveing the spirits of our myths successfully, in a way that truly understood their core themes and avoids some of the modern clichès that frankly make my eye twitch.
The Ashfire King (The Sandsea Trilogy #2) by Chelsea Abdullah
One of my most anticipated sequels of the year, whose entire readthrough boiled down to Abdullah killing me softly. With more jinn, more intrigue, more magic, and infinetly more sand, this book packs more than an emotional punch as it delivers high stakes action and oodles of character development and growth. I spent so much time on the edge of my seat that it is a miracle I didn’t fall off with that cliffhanger that’s still got me practically eating my hands in anxiety. I’m fine really…
Blood Sugar by Sascha Rothchild
What if the murder you are accused of is the only one you didn’t commit? Told through the alternating of the present where Ruby is trying to clear her name and her memories of her past transgressions, Rothchild presents us with a clever and interesting psychological study, full of twists and turns you neither see coming nor expect to be entertained by as much as you are. Does innocence matter when all the public wants is a scandal for the ages? I simply could not put this down.
The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom #1) by Rachel Gillig
The start of another Gothic fantasy duology by queen Gillig that I was unable to stop just one more chapter-ing my way through. A group of memorable characters, a mystery whose answers bring something far darker to the surface, and a romance that builds organically and through truly high quality banter. Also a talking gargoyle that’ll latch onto your heart and not let go with his antics.
Red Tempest Brother (The Winter Sea #3) by H.M. Long
A fiery end to the he world of the Winter Sea with mesmerizing magic, high stakes, unforgiving elements, and badass action. Its cadre of characters do not leave you wanting, avoiding clichés and presenting archetypes in a way that is fresh and rich. There truly is something for everyone, be it camaraderie to die for, a romantic plot that will have you clutching your chest from the feels, political intrigue and conspiracies whose threads you seek to unravel along with the protagonists, wisecracks and humor that hit the spot every time, or moral frustrations that will have you pulling your hair as the characters learn priorities and which way their loyalties lie.
The Possession of Alba Dìaz by Isabel Cañas
While pairing themes of female autonomy, struggle, and agency, with plots of possession and ensuing exorcisms is not in any way novel, Isabel Cañas offers a truly powerful entry in that literary niche that hits right to the core, with lines that are deceptively simple. The difference between what is imposed onto a person and what is wanted is stark, and the way that the author shows this by giving the reader two opposites who seem to work toward the same goal but only the one that is rooted in consent is the one that can work to solve the issue, is downright poetic if not brilliant.
The White Octopus Hotel by Alexandra Bell
Alexandra Bell masterfully weaves a story about love, both romantic and familiar, that cannot be contained by time. The Hotel brings souls together for a reason and that can sometimes be so that one will remind the other to just keep moving forward, however much time they need to take to do so. It encapsulates the bittersweetness of life, in a manner that recognizes that perfect Happily Ever Afters only exist in fairy tales, but a life fully lived is one of immeasurable joy and immense pain all bound together. One does not negate the other and neither should it.
Shitshow by Chris Panatier
Not shying from considerable gore and ickiness, sections of this book will have you shuddering at the imagined feel of something slimy making its unwanted and slow way down your naked back. While others will enthral you so much you’ll be swearing you can hear the faraway sounds of a carnival or fairground. One where the closer you get though, the more you realize how wrong the sounds coming from it actually are. It’s an enthralling few hours that’ll have you cringing as much as chuckling and awing. Food for thought but in a light and delicious appetizer way.
The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow
Weaving together homages to our own tales of knightly valor of old with conversations on trauma, war, manipulated history, propaganda, colonialism, love, duty, honor, and destiny – to only name a few – Harrow does not present the reader with a lighthearted and simple read. We are given food for thought wrapped in a passionate and lyrically written fantasy package. Not only is the narrative voice beautiful and engaging, but it is downright heartbreaking at times. Harrow’s narrators don’t merely talk to the reader but they transport us into this account of impossible choices and we can only follow along hoping for the best but emotionally preparing for the worst.
The Second Death of Locke (The Hand and the Heart #1) by V.L. Bovalino
This is a deeply romantic and epic tale of what it means to be loyal and love so much you’d be willing to sacrifice anything, but also a cautionary one of when to recognise that a life built on a cycle of sacrifices is perhaps one of too high a cost. What if instead of dying for love, you live for it, and fiercely so? It works perfectly as a standalone even though I have some ideas as to what Bovalino might have in store for us next, there is after all one resolution that leans on the bittersweet, but I cannot wait to meet these characters again
The Blackfire Blade (The Last Legacy #2) by James Logan
Book two of The Last Legacy series comes in as a strong sequel, better from its predecessor in every way – a bar that was pretty high to begin with – bringing us one step closer to solving the wider mystery that haunts our protagonists, while also giving us the time to get to know them better throughout an action-packed narrative that allows them to grow into some of the most well rounded characters in modern fantasy.
Voices in the Snow (Black Winter #1) by Darcy Coates
I’ve been slumping in my reading so I turned to my trusted popcorn author Darcy Coates, for yet another surefire to round out the year. Having read five of her standalones in 2025, I chose this because I wanted some winter spookies and My Word™️ did she once again deliver!
Unsettling cover✔️
Eerie build up & atmosphere✔️
Post apocalyptic monsters✔️
Budding romance that killed me soflty✔️
This book is what happens if you take The Mist, The Haunting of Hill House,
Anthony Ryan‘s The Feeding, and the winter episodes of The Last of Us, throw them in a bag and shake vigorously. Serve with a light sprinkling of 28 Days Later & a dash of A Quiet Place. I finished this in two sittings and immediately started the sequel!
If you got to the end of this list dear reader, I am proud of you and you have such treats ahead if you give any of these books a go!
Until next time,
Eleni A.E.
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