There are so many awesome books scheduled to come out in 2025! These are the books being released the 1st quarter of the year (January-March) that I’m the most excited about…
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, Grady Hendrix
Release Date: January 14
They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.
This horror/fantasy/historical fiction follows a group of ‘Wayward Girls’ (young, unwed, pregnant girls) who get sent to a home to be cared for until they have their babies. If you ask Fern, it feels more like being controlled. When she meets a librarian at the home who gives her a book on witchcraft, she finally feels like she can take some of the control back.
Deep End, Ali Hazelwood
Release Date: February 4
Scarlett Vandermeer, a Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself.
Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes.
So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water…
Ali Hazelwood writes some of the only romantic comedies that I’ve enjoyed. It’s not my usual genre but every now and then I like a light-hearted romance story and that’s when I turn to Ali’s books. This one sounds like a lot of fun.
Famous Last Words, Gillian McAllister
Release Date: February 25
It is June 21, the longest day of the year, and the life of new mother Camilla is about to change forever. After months of maternity leave, she will drop off her infant daughter at daycare for the first time and return to her job as a literary agent. Finally. But when she wakes, her husband Luke isn’t there, and in his place is a cryptic note. Then it starts. Breaking news: A hostage situation is developing in London. The police tell her Luke is involved—but he isn’t a hostage. Her husband—doting father, eternal optimist—is the gunman.
Now this is a new twist to a thriller! Talk about writing a synopsis that will sell books! I’m definitely curious to see how McAllister plays this story out.
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, Stephan Graham Jones
Release Date: March 18
A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story.
I read I Was A Teenage Slasher this past year and it blew me away. Stephan Graham Jones’ approach to the horror genre is so fascinating and unique. It’s also been awhile since I read a vampire novel so I’m excited about this one.
I’d love to hear what 2025 releases you’re most excited for!
