Book Bloggers’ Picks: One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year | Jo Linsdell

Book Bloggers’ Picks: One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year

 

Book Bloggers’ Picks One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year


Book Bloggers’ Picks: One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year


There’s something magical about discovering your next great read through a fellow book lover’s recommendation. Whether it’s a story that broke your heart, a novel that made you laugh out loud, or a book that reminded you why you love reading in the first place, those personal favourites always stay with us.

This year, I’ve invited a few wonderful book bloggers from across the community to share one must-read book that truly stood out for them. From heartwarming contemporary fiction to gripping thrillers, these are the stories that made a lasting impression.

So, put the kettle on, settle in, and get ready to add a few more titles to your reading list — because these are the books we couldn’t stop thinking about.


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Must-Read Books Recommended by Bloggers


My Pick: The Summer Dare by Joanna Dodd. 

About the book:

The Summer Dare by Joanna Dodd book cover
Six weeks of friendship. A lifetime paying for it.

They were the cool girls. Two years older, oozing glamour. She could prove herself worthy of their friendship. She could do the dare.

Twenty-five years later, Lucy has a perfect life. She is still friends with the cool girls. All except one. Maddie. The one they never saw again after the dare. They don't talk about her. They don’t think about her. It is as though she never existed until…

Lucy gets a text from an unknown number. Why didn't you tell them where I was?

The past hurtles into the present and secrets push their way to the surface.

Who is the message from? Is Maddie back? Or is someone else set on exposing the truth and seeking revenge?

A gripping domestic psych thriller perfect for fans of Shari Lapena, S.E. Lynes and Lisa Jewell.

Why You Should Read It:

"You know when a book catches you a bit off guard – in the best possible way? That was my experience with The Summer Dare by Joanna Dodd. I went in with no real expectations and came out with plenty to think about. It’s one of those stories that quietly gets under your skin – not loud or flashy, but full of little moments that stay with you."

Read my full review of The Summer Dare here.


Blogger: Sifa from Sifa Elizabeth Reads

Her Pick: That'll Teach Her by Maz Evans 

About the book:

That'll Teach Her by Maz Evans book cover
A headmistress is dead. The circumstances are suspicious.
And as every parent knows, being on the school group chat can be murder...

As educators go, Claudia Stitchwell makes Miss Hannigan look like Miss Honey.
But when the reviled headteacher drops dead in the school hall, a group of sceptical parents suspect the nut allergy explanation doesn't add up - they believe someone wanted to teach Miss Stitchwell a lesson.

Only four people could have killed Stitchwell: Hattie, the adored school cook; Kiera, the hard-working teaching assistant; Clive, the loathed school bursar and Ben, the popular deputy head. All of them are liars... but only one is the murderer.

Piecing together evidence from the daily drama and drudgery of the parents' group chat, local press, police reports, school newsletters, and good, old-fashioned gossip, the determined detective parents are doing their homework to crack the case.

Will you spot the clues? Can you deduce whodunnit? And for the love of all things holy, does anyone have this week's spellings?

Why You Should Read It:

“One of my favourite books this year that I don't hear enough people talking about! This is a murder mystery where the parents' group chat get sleuthing!”

Check out her full review of That'll Teach Her here.

Find Sifa online: @SifaPoulton


Blogger: Meshi from Twirling Book Princess

Her Pick:  I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com by Kimberly Lemming

About the book:

I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com by Kimberly Lemming book cover
A hilarious and sexy romance about a woman who gets dropped on a strange planet only to fall for not one, but two, aliens, from the author of I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf.

Dorothy Valentine is close to getting her PhD in wildlife biology when she’s attacked by a lion. On the bright side, she’s saved! On the not-so-bright side, it’s because they’re abducted by aliens. In her scramble to escape, Dory and the lion commandeer an escape pod and crash-land on an alien planet that has...dinosaurs?

Dory and her new lion bestie, Toto, are saved in the nick of time by a mysterious and sexy alien, Sol. On their new adventure, they team up with the equally hot, equally dangerous Lok, who may or may not be a war criminal. Whether it be trauma, fate, or intrigue, Dory can’t resist the attraction that’s developing in their trio....

As this ragtag group of misfits explore their new planet, Dory learns more about how and why they’ve all ended up together, battles more prehistoric creatures than she imagined (she imagined...zero), and questions if she even wants to go back home to Earth in this hilarious and steamy alien romance adventure comedy romp.

Why You Should Read It:

“Chaos. There is a lot of things going on and at times I was just running along laughing and giggling and wondering if things could get even more chaotic. And yes, yes that was possible. If you thought getting abducted by aliens, landing on a planet, getting mates, then a whole plot with aliens coming after you + evil (or are they) aliens trying to capture you and your mates, not to mention all the dinosaurs. Be prepared to get chaos-fied. But in a good way.”

Check out her full review of I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com here.

Find Mehsi online: @Mehsi_Hime


Blogger: Ester from Cozy with Books

Her Pick:  Hard Reset by Rachel E. Beck

About the book:

Hard Reset by Rachel E. Beck book cover
Glitch is out of options. The money has run out, her old enemy is closing in, and winter in Neosaka threatens her survival. When an old acquaintance calls to offer her a job that will solve all her problems, Glitch knows it's a trick to lure her out into the open. Unfortunately, she's going to have to take it anyway.

Armed with her hacking expertise, her distrust, and a chronically cheerful AI, Glitch has one night to steal a computer program from the heart of Neosaka's largest gaming corporation and deliver it to the buyer by dawn. It's only after she's committed to the job that she realizes her own friendly-but-violent team may be as much a threat to her as the shadowy mercenaries hunting her across the city.

Why You Should Read It:

“It felt like I just started and already devoured the entire book… Every time The Glitch Log series makes it onto my upcoming TBR, it’s always amongst my most anticipated reads of the year and they never fail me either.”

Check out her full review of Hard Reset here.

Find Ester online: @BooksCozy


Blogger: Carol from Reading Ladies

Her Pick:  The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

About the book:

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans book cover
Throughout her life Sybil Van Antwerp has used letters to make sense of the world and her place in it. Most mornings around half past ten Sybil sits down to write letters—to her brother, to her best friend, to the president of the university who will not allow her to audit a class she desperately wants to take, to Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry to tell them what she thinks of their latest books, and to one person to whom she writes often yet never sends the letter.

Sybil expects her world to go on as it always has. A mother, grandmother, wife, divorcée, distinguished lawyer, she has lived a full life. But when letters from someone in her past force her to examine one of the most painful periods of her life, she realizes the letter she has been writing over the years needs to be read and that she cannot move forward until she finds it in her heart to offer forgiveness.

Why You Should Read It:

“The Correspondent is a compelling, character-driven story. I found it unputdownable and read it in two days. I love complicated, complex, and unique characters, and Sybil has secured a spot on my list of favorites.”

Check out her full review of The Correspondent here.

Find Carol online: @ReadingLadiesBC


Blogger: Cat from The Strawberry Post

Her Pick:  Bad Badger – A Love Story by Maryrose Wood & Giulia Ghigini

About the book:

Bad Badger – A Love Story by Maryrose Wood & Giulia Ghigini book cover
For fans of Odder and Skunk and Badger comes a heartwarming story of an unlikely friendship between a gull and a badger.

Septimus is not good at being a badger. He adores the sunset. He dreams of going to Venice. And he lives alone in a charming cottage by the sea. He’s not unhappy with his tidy, solitary life, but there are times when being so bad at badgerdom makes him wonder if he’s even a badger at all.

When a gull of very few words lands on the windowsill, Septimus leaps at the possibility of friendship. However, his new confidant soon goes missing and Septimus is bereft. Determined to find his best—and only—friend, he ventures into new territory and encounters a cast of surprising characters. Can Septimus be as brave and bighearted as he’ll need to be to find Gully? Or is he really a bad badger after all?

Bad Badger is a young middle-grade novel about badgers, gulls, and learning that staying true to yourself means knowing who you are to begin with.

Why You Should Read It:

“It’s a fun story with a beautiful message of acceptance and friendship. It’s also just a brilliant and slightly different story to anything I’ve ever read before, Septimus’s character will really grow on you, as will Gully’s, and it’s a delightfully illustrated book which I’m sure many children (and older) will enjoy reading and a favourite of mine I’ll certainly be reading again.”

Check out her full review of Bad Badger – A Love Story here.

Find Cat online: @TStrawberryPost


Blogger: Annie from Left on the Shelf

Her Pick:  The Self-Made Saint by Alexandra Addams

About the book:

The Self-Made Saint by Alexandra Addams book cover
Judith Drainger has always played life by her own rules. But these days life seems to be playing her right back.

Divorced, orphaned and forcibly retired, 59-year-old Judith is determined to seize the opportunity to leave her broken home in London and move across the world to Australia. Here she reunites with her estranged adult daughter Cassandra - only to land smack bang in the emotional quagmire of her daughter's anger and abandonment issues. To make matters worse, Judith can see her new granddaughter Emily has a serious health issue, but her offers of help are ignored and rejected.

When an accident knocks her off her feet, Judith is swamped by the kindly care of her nosy new neighbors. Yet, when given a chance to become a part of their community, Judith shocks even herself by making a series of unforgivable blunders. Realizing if she's to have any hope of reuniting her family, this well-meaning but stubborn curmudgeon must learn the power of saying 'sorry' - and what it actually means to be a good person.

A tender and uplifting novel championing the complex realities of family, solidarity and friendship.

Why You Should Read It:

“I enjoyed being immersed in the environment and the characters, both Judith and those around her. The Australian setting was perfect and well portrayed. This was a fabulous book to read.”

Check out her full review of The Self-Made Saint here.

Find Annie online: @leftontheshelf1


From heartwarming contemporary novels to thrilling mysteries and delightfully quirky stories, these must-read books of the year showcase the incredible range of fiction that captivated readers in 2025. Whether you’re looking for your next page-turner, a story that will make you laugh or cry, or a book that will stay with you long after the last page, these blogger picks are sure to inspire your TBR.

We’d love to know — what’s your must-read book of the year? Drop your recommendation in the comments with your pick! Let’s keep the bookish conversation going.


Book Bloggers’ Picks One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year


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