2025 Bookish Wrap Up

I think you’ll agree that 2025 has been the longest decade we’ve had in a while. But amid all rolling dumpster fire, good things did happen in the world, and as we begin the new year, I wanted to share some of those happy moments with you. Some big, some little, all books.

Great Reads | Authors vs AI | Books from My Friends

Let’s start with the books I enjoyed this year.

I find books through Reedsy Discovery, socials and author friends. Here are my top 5 for 2025 in no particular order:

Most authors are aware of the lawsuits filed against AI companies who not only pirated books but used those books to teach their LLMs without the knowledge or consent of the authors. Here are some interesting results:

Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle a class-action lawsuit by book authors who say the company took pirated copies of their works to train its chatbot. (NPR | link | search your books | submit claim for settlement)

A group of writers, including Theranos whistleblower and “Bad Blood” author John Carreyrou, filed a lawsuit against Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, Meta, xAI, and Perplexity, accusing them of training their models on pirated copies of their books. They were dissatisfied with the Anthropic settlement, as there was no accountability for the actual act of using stolen books to train their models, which generate billions of dollars in revenue. (TechCrunch | link)

It concludes that the outputs of generative AI can be protected by copyright only where a human author has determined sufficient expressive elements. TL:DR: Creative works created entirely by generative AI cannot be copyrighted. (US Copyright Office | source | reports)

I have many, many author friends, and I wanted to share the books they published in 2025. I haven’t personally read any of these yet, but click on the title to add them to your TBR, if they sound interesting!

by Alexandre Allouch-Micati
Genre: Mystery | Paperback
A calculated and brutal murder shatters the stillness of a late autumn night in Lancashire. A powerful black car, carrying the body of a murdered middle-aged man, explodes at an abandoned farm outside Preston.

by L. D’Arlin
Genre: Sci-fi Fantasy | ebook/audiobook/paperback/KU
In a galaxy where cyber‑telepathic beasts roam and sentient trees whisper forgotten truths, Amera is enslaved to hunt Imperium enemies until finding a hidden portal and an ancient prophecy. Then bound to an enemy, she must risk her memories, her heart, and the family she has only just found to rise against the empire that forged her chains.

by E.L. Rae
Genre: Romantic contemporary | ebook/paperback
Spend fall in Prairie, MI when Damian has to go back to where it started but it isn’t all bad because she is there. And even though he’s falling apart inside, she is keeping him together.

by D.M. Foyle
Genre: Thriller | ebook/paperback
A hacker must team up with an FBI agent to save her friend before her dubious past winds up claiming another victim.

By Matthew Siadak
Genre: Fantasy w/ Eldritch horror undertones | ebook/hardcover/paperback
A snarky knight, a stabby princess, and a farm boy marked by magic. What could go wrong.

by Angela Laverghetta
Genre: Modern & Historical Fantasy | Hardcover
This anthology holds all my short works to date, including my newsletter exclusive and my very first published novelette. It’s an exclusive special edition only available through me.

By Ashleigh Clayton
Genre: Hi-Lo/childrens | Hardcover/paperback
Frog goes on an adventure into the forest and meets some new friends.

Again, thanks for hanging out with me in 2025! I look forward to bringing you amazing content in 2026!

Did you get this far? Comment with the words ‘shrinky dink’, and I’ll contact you for an email to send you something special. First come, first serve!