The most anticipated books of 2025

Han Kang won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2024, so it’s not surprising that we’re finally getting an English translation of her latest novel, which was originally published in 2021 in South Korea. In We Do Not Part, Kyungha sets off from Seoul to rescue her friend Inseon’s pet bird from her home on Jeju Island, which is about 50 miles off the Korean coast. When Kyungha arrives on Jeju, a severe snowstorm hits the island, making her journey much more perilous than expected as she reckons with a violent, nearly forgotten piece of Korea’s history.

Charmaine Wilkerson’s debut novel, Black Cake, was a minor publishing sensation upon its release in January 2022; by November 2023, it was the basis of a Hulu original series. Now, Wilkerson is back with her second novel, Good Dirt. The book follows Ebby Freeman as her high-profile relationship falls apart and she’s forced to confront the most traumatic event in her past: the unsolved murder of her brother, Baz.

The Harder I Fight The More I Love You is musician Neko Case’s first foray into the literary world. In her memoir, Case describes herself as a girl “raised by two dogs and a space heater,” running wild through the woods of rural Washington. Case eventually channeled that childhood loneliness into her music, which has earned her three Grammy nominations and international recognition.

Saul Goodman V. Jimmy McGill collects all of Rolling Stone chief TV critic Alan Sepinwall’s writings on Better Call Saul in one convenient package. The book includes recaps of every episode of the series and interviews with series co-creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and stars Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn. In chronicling the history of the series in minute detail, Sepinwall explores how Better Call Saul evolved from the underdog Breaking Bad spin-off about the criminal-lawyer to a prestige TV lightning rod whose success and acclaim eventually rivaled that of its predecessor.

Set against the backdrop of World War II, Jack Wang’s debut novel follows Josiah Chang, a Chinese Canadian man barred from enlisting in the Canadian military who begins working as a riveter in a shipyard instead. Josiah falls in love with Poppy, a white woman whose father doesn’t approve of their cross-cultural relationship. Josiah eventually manages to enlist in the army, fighting for both his country and the woman he loves. The Riveter is a literary and historic take on a classic romance novel that’s already garnered early raves.

With her new book, New Yorker editor Susan Morrison turns her eye on one of the most recognizable yet enigmatic figures in comedy: Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels. Michaels’ legend is one that has grown primarily from the stories people tell about him rather than stories he’s told about himself; he’s famously hard to pin down for interviews. That’s why Morrison’s extensive access to Michaels is so notable, and why Lorne is such an exciting read: A lot of biographies claim to have “unprecedented access” to their subjects, but this time, it’s actually true.

Two trans women come together in small-town South Dakota in Woodworking, cultural critic (and former A.V. Club TV Editor) Emily St. James’ first novel. Erica, a 35-year-old trans woman and teacher at the local high school, befriends Abigail, her 17-year-old student, a.k.a. the only openly trans person in town. Abigail begrudgingly guides her teacher through her transition as the community puts their friendship under a microscope.

Kristen Arnett excels at finding humor in dark situations. Her 2019 debut novel, Mostly Dead Things, followed a Florida woman struggling to keep a taxidermy business afloat and her eccentric family in check after her father’s death. With Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One, Arnett brings another uniquely funny, queer Florida story to life. Cherry Hendricks, a professional clown from Orlando, falls under the spell of Margot the Magnificent, a lesbian magician who’s older, more successful, and way too attractive for her own good. Together, they craft a new act for Cherry that makes her question just how much she’s willing to put on the line for love and art.

Even the notoriously stuffy Publishers Weekly is downright effusive about RuPaul’s Drag Race season eight winner Bob the Drag Queen’s first novel, calling it a “knockout.” In Harriet Tubman: Live In Concert, “America’s first Black superhero” magically comes back to life. Harriet wants to share her story in her own way: through a hip-hop album. She recruits a formerly successful producer whose career took a nosedive after being publicly outed to help her craft the record that will bring her story of hope to the masses.

The queen of modern romance is back with her latest novel, Great Big Beautiful Life. Alice is an up-and-coming writer who’s got a career-defining opportunity nearly within her grasp—she just has to prove to the reclusive socialite who’s called her to her remote island home for a one-month trial that she’s better suited for the job of writing her biography than Hayden, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. As Alice and Hayden compete for Margaret’s attention and the coveted contract, they can’t deny the spark that grows between them.

Film critic Jason Bailey’s new biography of actor James Gandolfini got a ringing endorsement from Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz, who literally wrote the book on The Sopranos, which is a pretty good sign. Through research and interviews, Bailey tracks Gandolfini’s history and examines how his life intersected with his most famous role: Tony Soprano.

Poet and writer Ocean Vuong shot to near-instant literary fame with his 2019 debut novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, with particular praise heaped on his uncommonly evocative prose. Vuong once again draws inspiration from his own life in The Emperor Of Gladness, which follows Hai, a 19-year-old from Connecticut who’s about to end his life. An elderly stranger with dementia saves him from jumping off a bridge, and soon, Hai becomes her caretaker and they form an unbreakable friendship.

Former Deadspin editor-in-chief Megan Greenwell’s first book is a doozy. Bad Company is a scathing indictment of the private equity industry told through extensive research and interviews with workers affected by constant corporate buyouts, consolidation, downsizing, and other corpo-speak designed to obfuscate what these companies are actually doing: getting rich by driving entire industries into the ground. Ask anyone who’s ever worked for a company that got bought out by a private equity monstrosity and they’ll tell you horror stories about budget cuts and maddening decisions; Greenwell explains why these things happen and how we’ve allowed an inherently predatory business model to take over how we work.

It’s hard to be optimistic about the future right now, something Lit Hub columnist Maris Kreizman knows all too well. In her essay collection I Want to Burn This Place Down, Kreizman tears into the myth of the “good Democrat” and explores her journey toward liberal political radicalization. Kreizman details all the insidious myths she believed about hard work, its promised payoff, and the inherent fairness of our society, pointing out how our political system is designed to benefit only a few lucky people.

Charlie Jane Anders is quickly making a name for herself as one of the brightest modern voices in science fiction. She continues her hot streak after All The Birds In The Sky, The City In The Middle Of The Night, and her young adult trilogy Unstoppable with Lessons In Magic And Disaster. The novel follows Jamie, a young academic and witch, as she teaches her mother how to use magic. But Jamie has no idea what her mom plans to do with that magic and just how much destruction she might cause, forcing Jamie to explore both of their pasts to uncover a long-buried secret.