Reading life highlights: 5 memorable books from 2025
I had another great reading year in 2025, especially with fiction.
Here I share my five most memorable reads in classics, science fiction, fantasy and a hint of historical fiction from the past year. Hope you find something to add to your TBR (to-be-read) list!
1. Odyssey: The Greek Myths Reimagined by Stephen Fry
If we humans, Prometheus's creations, controlled fire, Zeus feared we wouldn't need gods to worship and obey; we could abolish our own creators. Zeus was right. We did. And we are Zeus now. We fear the entities we have created...humanity could become a mythic memory, an origin story for the machines to tell themselves, while we crumble into broken statuary alongside Zeus and his pantheon before us. Yes, the Greeks got there before us. But that is because the Greeks were before us, and, after all, the Greeks were us.
I love stories of adventures and searching for home. Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, even Star Trek Voyager are tales of people going out on wonderful adventures but ultimately finding home again.
The Odyssey, the classic poem written by Homer (who may or may not have existed, likely a collection of storytellers), is one of the first known stories about a man overcoming obstacles and challenges to find his way home after more than twenty years away. It also describes a society that is transitioning away from gods, monsters and worship, and moving towards a focus on human affairs, human justice and the importance of civilization over the mythical world.
I've tried to read the original poem, but I'm not a lit major, so I always struggled with it.
Stephen Fry has been retelling Greek myths in a more accessible and modern way in a series of beautiful books. The Odyssey is his latest, focused on Odysseus finding his way back to Ithaca after the Trojan War. It's a wonderful book, and I love the design and art. Fry finds the humor and wit in these stories and brings out the complexity of these characters. Nothing is black and white, and the "heroes" and "gods" are often flawed.
I highly recommend this if you're fascinated by ancient myths and want to enjoy them for the wonderful stories they are, understand the characters and metaphors, and get a good introduction to the Greek wisdom that still echoes in our world today.
2. The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell
"You think the world is simple, that good is good and bad is bad, that up is up and down is down."
Another story of legends, this one focused on the exploits of King Arthur, Merlin, and more. But it's told through the eyes of an orphan and soldier, Derfel. I love that perspective because he's down to earth and insightful, even though he's somewhat biased toward his 'heroes.' Again, a story where you think you know who is good and who is evil, but it's more complex.
This is a fictional account of King Arthur, fantasy and historical fiction combined. It's well written and a great retelling of the early history of Britain with all the factions fighting and the religious changes from pagan beliefs as Christianity starts to take hold. I loved the "Merlin" character. Funny, witty, self-deprecating.
And if you enjoy it like I did, it’s Book 1 of a trilogy so you can keep the fantasy/historical fiction fun going!
3. Persuasion by Jane Austen
"But I hate to hear you talking so like a fine gentleman, and as if women were all fine ladies, instead of rational creatures. We none of us expect to be in smooth water all our days."
A 2025 list of books would not be complete without an Austen title—she’s on all the lists this year! And, rightly so. 2025 was a celebration of 250 years since she was born, and her insights into relationships, families and the challenges women face are still relevant today.
Persuasion was published posthumously in 1817, six months after Austen died at age 41.
Anne Elliot, the main protagonist, is an older single woman. She's 27. The horror! Still single and approaching thirty.
The themes of finding love "later in life," second chances with an early love, observations on wealth inequality and how easily 'persuaded' people can be by others because of societal expectations stuck with me. We still live with ideas of what society expects from us, especially as women. Even though the plot of Austen's books might seem "rom-com-y" and "chatty" on the surface, they were very subversive for the time. And the jokes! I love Austen’s humour and wit.
I also love how in real life Austen never married and fiercely held onto her independent identity as an author. I only wish she lived long enough to know how strong her legacy was and remains.
4. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
It's a weird feeling, scientific breakthroughs. There's no Eureka moment. Just a slow, steady progression toward a goal. But man, when you get to that goal it feels good.
This is science fiction with heart, friendship and fun.
The sun is collapsing because of a 'space algae' that is eating it and infecting it. The situation is so dire that the world rallies together and manages to put together an interstellar space mission in a few years with Ryland Grace (a high school teacher and ex-scientist) on board. It's hard to imagine countries coming together to achieve a common goal, but wonderful to read about in a novel!
The book is a tale of exploration and finding friendship no matter where you are, even in outer space with an alien who communicates through musical sounds.
The science and step-by-step problem solving spoke to my engineer's heart. I loved the various scientific ideas, the physics, the explanation of constraints while still making this a wonderful creative novel.
The movie with Ryan Gosling comes out in 2026 too. Can't wait!
5. Red Team Blues by Cory Doctorow
"That's the problem with blue teaming it—you need to be perfect, while—" "The red team only has to find a single error."
Complexity is the enemy of security, after all. The more moving parts and seams a system has, the more places there are for an attacker to find purchase and slip inside.
If you like tales of cybersecurity, the genius of spreadsheets, a gentle critique of Silicon Valley and a rebel with a cause, you'll enjoy this book.
Cory Doctorow, who is also the author of Enshittification, writes books that are somewhat scathing critiques of tech, but he has good points and questions about what we're doing with this industry.
In this novel, Marty Hench is a forensic accountant. He investigates financial crimes and realizes in the 1980s that spreadsheets could be a tool to steal a lot of money. He was one of the very few people who thought, "Boy, I'm going to find a lot of money stolen by people dumber than me using this thing."
I enjoyed the whole series of three novels, but this first one is my favourite. It was published first but takes place last in the story's timeline, which works perfectly as an entry point.
That’s a wrap on my reading life for 2025—here's to another year of getting lost in good stories!