Hi all, and welcome back to rumblewrites. I read 72 books in 2025, 1 of which was a draft of my friend’s novel, so my recorded total was 71. This is far more than I’ve read in previous years, maybe ever. I’m very proud of myself and I just wanted to share some stats, as well as some of my favourites, with you.
Statistics
In 2024, I only read 7 books. I really wanted to get back into reading as a hobby but it had been so long since I last tried, I just didn’t know how / where to start. I kept picking up books I thought I ought to read - either ones which had been sat on my shelf for a long time, ones I’d recently bought, or big names that I knew I wanted to read in my lifetime. But, aside from those lucky 7, I felt pretty uninspired.
This lasted into 2025, too, and it took me the best part of 2 months to read my first book of the year: The Haunting of Hill House. This had been a gift from my boyfriend, so I really wanted to get through it, but I think this is exactly why I couldn’t. This method of reading (dictated by perceived “necessity”) just wasn’t for me.
I’ve since discovered that I’m a mood reader. I.e. I need to read whatever I fancy on any given day, and not be influenced by social media, book awards, ease, or anything else. But this wasn’t all: I also love sharing my passion for books with other people! I joined a book club at the tail end of 2024 and reset up my profile on Bookstagram, and honestly these, alongside many a casual discussion with my boyfriend about what I’m reading, have been massive sources of inspiration for me. They’ve pushed me to integrate reading into my daily routine, to pick up books outside my usual tastes, and to talk about books with confidence. As much as I enjoy immersing myself in different worlds, it was involving myself in a reading community that helped get this hobby back off the ground.
After I’d made these discoveries, I found it relatively easy to get back into it, as you can see:
And I (mostly) enjoyed it too! My average rating was 3.65 stars, which I think is pretty good considering I mostly go for books I think I’ll enjoy. I didn’t DNF anything, either - it’s just not my style.
Highlights
Dark Matter: A Ghost Story, Michelle Paver
Dark Matter was the first book in a long while that I truly devoured. It is quiet, chilling, and beautifully written. But honestly my rating system was all over the place last year as I only gave this 4 stars, but I can’t for the life of me figure out why. The more I think about it, the more I’m inclined to up it to a 5. (And to write short reviews so I can actually remember everything I’ve read!)
Hangover Square, Patrick Hamilton
Recommended by my mum, Hangover Square is a portrait of society on the edge of collapse. Set during the inter-war years, it focuses on a motley crew of ne’er-do-wells on the fringes of London life. Through them, Hamilton paints a rather bleak portrait of humanity, but one which I was strangely sympathetic to. Full of cruel characters, odd behaviour, emotion, and intrigue, this was a truly unique novel which I can safely say was my favourite read of the year.
Drive Your Plow Over The Bones of the Dead, Olga Tokarczuk
This was recommended at my book club, and oh am I glad I picked it up! Haunting, desolate, gorgeous, and quite unlike anything I’ve read before… I just loved it. This is why you should always go for something different, at least every once in a while. Drive Your Plow Over The Bones of the Dead was deeply affecting, and I can’t wait to check out more of Tokarczuk’s works. It seems quietly devastating fiction is the way to my heart…
A Wild Sheep Chase, Haruki Murakami
I picked this off a shelf in Edinburgh and from the very first page, a joy for strange and unsettling fiction was unleashed. I simply loved this. Murakami’s writing is wonderfully quirky, thoughtful, and funny. I felt myself pulled into this absurdist narrative in a surprisingly emotive way, and I’m off to stick my head into every magical realism book I can find over the coming year.
The Hill in the Dark Grove
I also started requesting ARCs of upcoming releases via NetGalley towards the end of the year, and this dark, quiet tale caught me eye. The Hill in the Dark Grove is a highly accomplished debut which gives a wholly disquieting reflection on aging and isolation through the lens of family politics, folklore, and obsession. I’m sure NetGalley will prove to be yet another great avenue to widening my reading tastes!
Follow me on Goodreads or Storygraph if you’d like to keep up with my reading this year!
How about you? What did you read in 2025? What were your highlights?
Every book I read in 2025
And, in case you were interested, here’s every book I read in 2025:
I'm not the only one who makes graphs about the books I've read? Love it!
Well done @~Lucy.
This detailed analysis had something for different types of readers.
And if your brain lights up when it interfaces with stories and data, you’d like the graphs and click-to-reveal mosaic👏🏼