To read or not to read…well, that has never been the question, has it? More like, what to read? Never fear, your fellow author and avid reader is here, with a list of fifteen novels not to miss in 2025!
Confession: I don’t know about you, but I’m a genre hopper. I love reading all sorts of novels, usually depending on my mood or current season of life. I can easily hop from a Christmas novel to a historical regency and straight into a high-stakes romantic suspense. Nothing like going straight from hot cocoa and Christmas trees to running for your life! ::wink::
Stories are powerful, aren’t they? They help us escape, entertain, and teach us how to see life through other perspectives. And when the books are Christian fiction, that’s even better. They draw us deeper into our walk with Christ, encourage us, and remind us that good wins over evil even on the darkest days.
This list is no exception. From romantic comedy to suspense to fantasy to women’s fiction, there’s a new/upcoming release for everyone to take with them as they head into the final quarter of 2025. (And don’t worry, every recommendation is a clean read from trusted publishers, safe for your mature teen and grandmother to enjoy!)
Nearly Beloved - Kendra Broekhuis
Genre: Women’s fiction
Publisher: Waterbrook & Multnomah.
Release date: November 2025
I’m so excited for this upcoming release from Kendra Broekhuis. Her first novel, Between You and Us, was so thought-provoking and moving. This book, Nearly Beloved, promises to deliver again with a story of a young woman who discovers via a DNA test that her father was not her father…and her journey to find answers to the looming question—is a comfortable lie better than the pain of knowing the truth?
First Love, Second Draft – Becca Kinzer
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Tyndale Fiction
Release date: April 2025
Becca Kinzer writes with lighthearted wit and memorable banter. Her romances are equal parts comedy and swoon, and this novel was one to remember! With tropes like second chance romance, baseball star hero, and rom-com author heroine, this is a fun read you don’t want to miss. After an injury, will Gracie Parker meet her novel deadline and find a second chance with her ex-husband and pro ball player, Noah? Or will life continue to throw curveballs neither of them anticipate?
Tempest at Annabel’s Lighthouse - Jaime Jo Wright
Genre: Dual timeline mystery
Publisher: Bethany House
Release date: April 2025
If you love reading spooky books but don’t like being truly scared, Jaime Jo Wright is the author for you. She has essentially created her own genre of novels that always include dual timelines, suspense, mystery, and just enough eerie to keep you reading with your back against the wall. She markets her books as “Scooby Doo” where everything is explained, and good wins over evil. Her newest release, Tempest at Annabel’s Lighthouse, is yet another just-the-right-amount-of creepy read featuring a battered woman in 1874, a lighthouse keeper, and a present-day researcher seeking clarity about her failing marriage. The perfect read for fall!
The Collector of Burned Books – Roseanna M. White
Genre: Historical
Publisher: Tyndale Fiction
Release date: July 2025
Christy award-winning author Roseanna White writes historical novels that make you feel like you’ve time traveled. The Collector of Burned Books is no exception, taking the reader on a journey to Paris in World War II, where avid reader and book protector Corinne Bastien is on a mission of her own—which might just include falling for a certain heroic professor, forced into a uniform he doesn’t want.
The Susa Chronicles: Protector – Megan Schaulis
The Susa Chronicles: Proclaimer – Megan Schaulis
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: WhiteCrown Publishing
Release date: April 2024 & April 2025
This duology gets two slots, because the books must be read together. Megan Schaulis, winner of the 2025 Carol Award for Protector, is a debut novelist who dared to ask the question: What if the story of Esther was loosely retold in a dystopian future, but instead of a beauty pageant, women competed for the role of head bodyguard to the King? This two-part adventure is full of intriguing characters with real problems, futuristic nano tech, tattooed superhero female guards, family loyalty, action, and just enough romance to tie it all together into one of your favorite series of the year.
The Second Story Bookshop – Denise Hunter
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: October 2025
Denise Hunter has always been one of my auto-buy authors. I adore every book she’s ever written, and I’m really looking forward to The Second Story Bookshop. Being marketed as “perfect for lovers of Debbie Macomber and Gilmore Girls”, The Second Story Bookshop features a woman inheriting her grandmother’s beloved bookstore…but only half. The other half goes to the very man who broke her heart years ago. This enemies to lovers, second chance story is sure to complement your favorite cozy blanket and soup this fall season!
Jack Susan May Warren
Genre: Contemporary romantic suspense
Publisher: SDG Publishing
Release date: January 2025
Jack is the first book in the Minnesota Kingstons series by Susan May Warren, who might just deserve a crown for being the Queen of contemporary romance/suspense. Jack kicks off this series of five siblings (Jack, Conrad, Doyle, Austen, and Steinbeck) with tropes of second chance romance, grumpy/sunshine, and boy/girl next door. Not to mention the suspense that will have you adding Book 2 to your cart before you get to the last chapter. Jack is a professional tracker, a finder of people—so of course when one of his sisters’ bridesmaids goes missing right before the wedding, he takes the case…along with his sister’s best friend, who crushed on him for years and is now a journalist. Together, will they find the missing murder podcaster, and maybe a fresh start at love? Or will the only thing that Jack finds this time be trouble?
The Perfect Rom-Com - Melissa Ferguson
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: February 2025
I should have expected that famous rom-com author Melissa Ferguson would eventually write a book about a rom-com author. This is my favorite of Melissa’s books so far, which I seem to say after reading each new one. When aspiring author Bryony Page gets her own manuscript rejected but becomes a ghost writing success behind the scenes for someone else, she learns the hard way about secrets, what it means to succeed…and accidentally falling for her agent.
Wes and Addie Had Their Chance – Bethany Turner
Genre: Romantic comedy
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: July 2025
Bethany Turner is another auto-buy author for me. Her novels are hilarious, with deep characterization that makes you forget the character aren’t real. (I still don’t like to admit it) Wes and Addie Had Their Chance is a left-at-the-altar, second chance rom-com that completes the loosely connected series set in Adelaide Springs, Colorado. (You absolutely want to go back and read the others!) In this newest release, Addie returns home with a lot of secrets as a high-ranking CIA analyst who lost her job, trying to lay low and pick up the broken pieces of her life, when Wes, the man who left her at the altar when they were eighteen years old, appears back in town, now a beloved senator and presidential-elect…who, oops, doesn’t want to stay in politics anymore. Will these two get another chance at life…and love?
The Keeper – Charles Martin
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: April 2025
This is a surprise addition to the beloved Murphy Shepherd series that no one saw coming. The Keeper is technically Book 4, so if you haven’t read the first three novels in this set, I highly recommend…but only when you’re ready to have your world rocked. Charles Martin has done it again with this fantastic addition featuring human trafficking rescue worker Murphy Shepherd, who is attempting to take up the mantle his mentor, Bones, started. When the vice president’s three daughters are abducted from their home without a trace, Murph might be the only one who can find them—and continue the legacy of searching for the lost that Bones left behind.
The French Kitchen – Kristy Cambron
Genre: Dual timeline
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: August 2025
Kristy Cambron is another historical author who effortlessly brings the past to life. Her newest offering, The French Kitchen, is a World War II novel that alternates between Paris, 1952 and Rue, 1943, taking the reader on a journey into the delicious and intriguing culinary world of Julia Child, the shady underbelly of a spy team, and the collision of two women looking to make a difference and find a future in a war torn world.
Glass Across the Sea – Sara Ella
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy
Publisher: Enclave Publishing
Release date: October 2025
Sara Ella creates fantastical worlds you can’t help but immerse yourself in. Her upcoming release, Glass Across the Sea, looks to be equally intriguing as it follows Noelle, the daughter of a glassmaker, and the tale her father told her growing up of the four Firefly artisans. She realizes the stories are more than stories when her father embarks on a mission for a miracle, and Noelle must fight battles at home to protect all she loves. With a prince searching for legend, a curse that must be broken, and a mysterious enemy sabotaging them all, Glass Across the Sea is sure to be an adventure for all ages.
Some Like it Scot – Pepper Basham
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release date: April 2025
Pepper Basham has done it again, created a fun and funny romance with the perfect mash of comedy. Podcaster Katie has built a career as “Miss Adventure”, known for always saying yes to new foods, countries, and experiences (even though they typically go wrong and create all sorts of havoc). When she’s offered the chance to take a three-week Edwardian adventure, she eagerly agrees—much to the dismay of stoic Scotsman, Graeme, who hates people tromping around his ancestral home in costume when he’s busy trying to save it. Will these two opposites find home in unexpected places? With tropes of grumpy/sunshine and opposites attract, this is a fun romp through Scotland that will leave you smiling big.
Holly and Nick Hate Christmas – Betsy St. Amant
Genre: Romantic comedy
Publisher: Waterbrook & Multnomah
Release date: September 2025
Okay, admittedly this is a shameless plug because I’m the author, but really—this is a fun book! Think of this Christmas rom-com as How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days meets The Family Stone, full of chaos, family secrets, and plenty of holiday hijinks. When a Christmas-hating woman’s brother sets her up with a fellow Grinch and it backfires, she decides to out-Christmas her date by kicking off a festive battle of wills…commence, Operation: Naughty List, where Holly makes Buddy the Elf look like he hates Christmas. Will Holly’s vengeful plan work, or, like in all her favorite movies, will it back-fire in an epic explosion of red-and-green sprinkles and disappointment?
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