Currently Reading – Season 8, Episode 24

Mary and Roxanna’s Top Reads of 2025!
Release Date: January 19, 2026
Hosts: Mary Heim & Roxanna Kasamkara

Episode Overview

Mary and Roxanna, co-hosts and “bookish best friends,” dive deep into their personal Top 10 books of 2025 in this fan-favorite annual episode. Expect a heartfelt look back at a tumultuous reading year, honest reflections on shifting habits and life changes, genre and stat breakdowns, and of course, spoiler-free, highly specific book recommendations across literary fiction, fantasy, sci-fi, middle grade, and more. Both hosts highlight how their books sustained them through personal and global challenges, and encourage listeners to embrace their own imperfect reading lives.

Reflections on the Year in Reading

Life Changes Affecting Reading

• Roxanna: Experienced major upheaval—left her job to support ill parents, launched her own AI company, her kids entered new school phases, started a health journey, and managed perimenopause anxiety. (“Honestly, the fact that I’ve had more than four books was a shock to me, Mary. And I’m Happy to come here and talk about them.” – Roxanna, 02:12)
• Mary: Read 107 books (first time over 100 since becoming a mom). “Clearly reading became a really great coping mechanism for me this year and an escape for me. It was really joyful.” (04:25)
  She vulnerably shared why she stopped tracking her reads after receiving news that her son was terminally ill in utero, and gave listeners permission to accept however their own reading year unfolded:

  “If you enjoyed your reading, great job. That’s what matters the most.... If anything about your reading life did not go how you thought it would go at the beginning of the year. That’s okay. That’s totally okay.” (05:53)

Stats & Tracking

• Both hosts abandoned detailed reading spreadsheets partway—and are fine with it.
• Roxanna: 68 books, 19 five-star reads, doubled her percentage of books by authors of color from 10% to 20%. (“I want it to be higher. But I was happy to do that.” – 09:57)
• Both embrace the Currently Reading Tracker for high-level stats, and advise listeners: “Let your tracking meet you where you’re at, and that your reading should serve you.” (12:45)

Approach to Book Selection

• Both selected books not by strict “best” or “favorite,” but those that continued to linger in their thoughts (“books I’m still thinking about...these ten are the ones that really stayed with me.” – Roxanna, 02:56)
• Mary: “I pick my top 10 list on vibes.” (03:41)
• Many “buzzy” or popular books appear; both advise not to discount them:

  “Popular books are likely popular for a reason...if you need someone to do your picking for you, it is okay to grab something buzzy.” – Mary, 21:37

Book List Format

Each host takes turns counting down from #10 to #1, with superlatives and summaries—in original, conversational (often enthusiastic!) language. Middle grade, fantasy, and sequels earn pride of place, and books are discussed for the emotional or intellectual resonance they had, not just plot or execution.

Discussion Highlights & Notable Quotes

Opening Reflections – [01:00–14:21]

• Both hosts share how upheaval, stress, and shifting priorities shaped their reading lives.
• Roxanna: “The fact I’d had more than four books was a shock to me, Mary.” (01:33)
• Mary: “If you enjoyed your reading, great job. That’s what matters the most.” (05:53)
• Both promote reading log flexibility, and high-level tracking with the Currently Reading Tracker.

Book Countdown

#10 Picks – [14:35–19:31]

Roxanna: The Last Dragoners of Bulbasur by Indra Das

• “The best feat of literary magic.”
• Lyrical novella; metaphor for immigrant identity, memory, and forgetting.
• “Dreamy, haunting, gorgeous. The prose is lyrical and it lulls you into the strange rhythm.” (15:41)

Mary: Honorable Mention – Empty Cradle, Broken Heart by Deborah L. Davis

• “I didn’t want to need this year, but it served a really important purpose for me.” (16:37)
• Only baby loss book read after losing her son; “made me feel less alone.”

Mary: God of the Woods by Liz Moore

• “It’s page-turning like a thriller, but with the writing of really well-done literary fiction.” (18:13)
• “This broke me out of a massive book slump and I found myself absolutely captivated and just could not put it down.”

#9 Picks – [19:35–24:12]

Roxanna: The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday by Saad Z. Hussain

• “Best book that defies description...short, weird and wonderful.”
• Jinn king wakes to find Kathmandu ruled by AI; “brilliant commentary on surveillance, freedom, and what it means to be human, but never preachy.”

Mary: Heart the Lover by Lily King

• Buzzy read, “I sobbed through the end of this book, not just because it was sad, but because it so beautifully portrayed what love and loss really look like.” (23:03)
• Advocates for picking popular books when emotionally exhausted: “If need someone to do your picking for you, it is okay to grab something buzzy.”

#8 Picks – [24:12–30:38]

Roxanna: The Hum and the Shiver by Alex Bledsoe

• “Best contemporary fiction book with subtle fantasy elements. Feels both mystical and deeply real.”
• About identity, healing power of music/community, and coming home.

Mary: The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer

• “My favorite reading experience of the year” because it was a buddy read.
• Examines the gift economy and reciprocity; recommends reading with a friend:

  “Our shared processing of this narrative absolutely also created deeper community for me on a daily basis and gave me such tangible, real insight into how I can adapt these concepts into my day to day life.” (28:07)

#7 Picks – [30:38–37:35]

Roxanna: To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers

• “Best book that lives rent-free in my head.”
• Immersive, philosophical sci-fi novella about exploration and isolation.
• Initially rated 3.75, now a five: “As I thought about it, I was like, wow, she’s doing some really incredible things here.” (32:48)

Mary: Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science: Secrets of the Purple Pearl by Kate McKinnon

• “Put me in cohost jail…I will shout my love for this series from the rooftops.”
• Middle grade, must-do on audio: “Her narration is, bar none, the absolute best audio narration for any book ever.” (34:17)
• “If you’re not reading this on audio, what are you doing?” (on her most-liked Goodreads review)

#6 Picks – [37:35–42:13]

Roxanna: The Unseen World by Liz Moore

• “Best book to keep you hooked all the way through.”
• “Just like God of the Woods, this book captivated me from beginning to end.”
• Multilayered mystery, nuanced character development, and coming-of-age.

Mary: The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff

• “Books that made me weep” subcategory.
• Family saga about grief, addiction, and hope for restoration.
• “The books I love the most are the ones that make me feel something about being human. That’s my main favorite made-up genre.” (41:18)

#5 Picks – [43:03–49:56]

Roxanna: The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest by Aubrey Hartman

• Middle grade, “warm and witty and funny but unexpectedly profound. It made me think I could have put this at number one. I loved it so much.” (45:12)
• Explores death and grief with gentle, cozy fantasy.

Mary: The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune

• Early, spicier Klune novel—“as much found family and heart and joy as you would expect,” plus action/adventure.
• “Even almost a whole year later, I can just remember distinctly hugging this book at the end.” (48:54)

#4 Picks – [49:56–56:04]

Roxanna: Silverborn: The Mystery of Morrigan Crow (Nevermoor #4) by Jessica Townsend

• “I am also bringing a sequel in a middle grade series, but it was so good, it was on my top 10, so I just had to do it.” (49:56)
• “What Jessica Townsend is doing is akin to what Louise Penny is doing for adult [fiction]. She is doing for middle grade.” (52:16)

Mary: The Women of Wild Hill by Kirsten Miller

• “Empowering, lighted on fire feminist rage fantasy” about a matrilineal family, set in the same universe as ‘The Change’.
• “Kirsten Miller can tell a story, and I am so excited to see what she continues to write after this one.” (55:36)

#3 Picks – [56:51–61:04]

Roxanna: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

• “Best unexpected gem of this year.”
• Novel in the form of letters from a septuagenarian woman; “all about Sybil writing out…not at all about people writing back.”
• “A tribute to a life past, but also a life that can be filled with abundance and surprises right up until the end.” (58:39)

Mary: Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross

• “This book both brought me out of and catapulted me back into the most massive reading slump.” (59:11)
• Fantastical prequel to Divine Rivals, Greek-God-esque—“gave to me the real magic of falling deeply and completely into a world and not really leaving it until I turned that last page.” (60:31)

#2 Picks – [61:04–67:37]

Roxanna: Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

• “The kind of historical fiction that doesn’t just transport you—it completely immerses you…wraps you in the world so completely you can feel the cold seep into your bones.” (61:09)
• Features a powerful, no-nonsense historic midwife, Martha Ballard.
• Heavy triggers (childbirth, sexual violence), but “this one will absolutely stay with me a long time.” (63:44)

Mary: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

• Echoes Roxanna’s praise. Found her way into it after first struggling with audio, credits print format.
• Adored protagonist Sybil’s growth and the intimacy of the letter format, “watched her transformation.” (66:13)

#1 Picks – [68:01–80:08]

Roxanna: The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion (Books 1-8) by Beth Brower

• “I loved this series so much that I devoured books one to eight, one after another on audio and then went back and re-listened to every single one.” (70:55)
• Epistolary historical fiction—quirky, witty lead, eccentric supporting cast; “Anne of Green Gables with her adventures mixed with Gilmore Girls for the community, mixed with 84 Charing Cross Road for the bookish warmth and the feminist anachronistic heroines of Veronica Speedwell and Lady Sherlock.” (70:37)
• Admits first two books seem “frothy,” but by book three, “there’s an arc that I want to follow.” (74:23)

Mary: Lightfall series (Graphic Novels) by Tim Probert

• “I am also cheating and bringing the full series and not yet completed series...”
• Graphic novels as reading lifeline in a year shaped by pregnancy loss and grief:

  “This beautiful tale really spoke to me this year and I adored how beautifully the story holds hope even when things feel really hopeless. It is rooted in community and love and perseverance of what you know to be right.” (75:38)

• Gave the series to her nephew and her 70-something mom, showing cross-generational and cross-genre appeal.

Memorable Quotes

• “Reading should serve you.” – Mary, 12:45
• “If you haven’t read a book, and you enjoyed reading—let’s give ourselves some handshakes for that.” – Roxanna, 02:53
• “What excellent books you can find in middle grade that even number four in the series is good enough to make it to...your top 10.” – Mary, 53:25
• “A good book can be for anyone, no matter the genre.” – Mary, 77:06
• “If you want those Harry Potter vibes from when you were young, but you want it to be more kind of complex, [Nevermoor] is the series to pick up.” – Roxanna, 54:03
• “The books I love the most are the ones that make me feel something about being human.” – Mary, 41:18
• “See, this is also why I love doing these episodes. I always leave with an exploding TBR and I’m so excited.” – Roxanna, 80:08

Noteworthy Segments & Timestamps

• Opening reflections & year-in-review: [01:00–14:21]
• Tracking and stats discussion: [06:19–14:21]
• Top Ten Countdown: [14:35–78:50]—(full lists, alternating, with detailed book talk)
• Discussion of reading experience, buzzy books, and personal growth: throughout

Closing Thoughts

Both hosts end by celebrating the way books and the bookish community supported them through a year full of personal and global uncertainty. The episode makes a case for compassionate, joy-focused reading—whether your year had ten books or a hundred, whether you stuck to your spreadsheet or abandoned it in March. Their picks span popular hits and under-the-radar gems, but each is presented as a unique path through darkness and toward connection.

As always, listeners leave with a renewed passion for reading—plus an overflowing TBR.

For full details on every title discussed (with timecodes!), visit currentlyreadingpodcast.com.

Hosts:

• Mary Heim: @harryreadsandmakes
• Roxanna Kasamkara: @roxannethereader
• Show: @currentlyreadingpodcast

Signoff:
“May your coffee be hot, and your book be unputdownable. Happy reading!”