The Most Anticipated Books of Summer 2025

Join B. Dylan Hollis, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Baking Yesteryear, on a cross-country culinary journey with 100 uniquely American recipes. From the deserts of the Southwest to the shining Atlantic Coast, the USA is as sweet as it gets. In this tour de food, B. Dylan Hollis takes you on a delicious road trip to taste everything from the coffee-crazed creations of the Pacific Northwest to the larger-than-life sheet cakes of Texas.

In seven days Jet Mason will be dead. The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder — now a hit Netflix series — returns with her first novel for adults: A twisty thriller about a young woman trying to solve her own murder.

A devoted mother outrunning a troubled childhood and adapting to an empty nest is tested in ways she never expected in this suspenseful novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Danielle Steel.

When a demonic presence awakens deep in a Mexican silver mine, the young woman it seizes must turn to the one man she shouldn’t trust … from bestselling author Isabel Cañas.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones & The Six comes an epic new novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program about the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Ron Chernow illuminates the full, fascinating, and complex life of the writer long celebrated as the father of American literature, Mark Twain. More than one hundred years after his death, Twain’s writing continues to be read, debated, and quoted. In this brilliant work of scholarship, a moving tribute to the writer’s talent and humanity, Chernow reveals the magnificent and often maddening life of one of the most original characters in American history.

In this spellbinding historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of A Long Petal of the Sea and The Wind Knows My Name, a young writer journeys to South America to uncover the truth about her father — and herself.

Maya Killgore is twenty-three and still in the process of figuring out her life. Conor Harkness is thirty-eight, and Maya cannot stop thinking about him … What is wrong meets what feels right in this romance set in Italy by the New York Times bestselling author of Deep End.

From two of America’s most respected journalists, an unflinching and explosive reckoning with one of the most fateful decisions in American political history: Joe Biden’s run for reelection despite evidence of his serious decline — amid desperate efforts to hide the extent of that deterioration.

One train. No stops. A deadly game of survival and revenge. In 1942, six people destroyed Anna Matheson’s family. Twelve years later, she’s ready for retribution. Under false pretenses, Anna has lured those responsible for her family’s downfall onto a luxury train from Philadelphia to Chicago, an overnight journey of thirteen hours. But Anna’s plan is quickly derailed by the murder of one of the passengers. With time running out before the train reaches its destination, Anna is forced to hunt the killer in their midst while protecting the people she hates the most. In order to destroy her enemies, she must first save them — even though it means putting her own life at risk.

Ocean Vuong returns with a bighearted novel about chosen family, unexpected friendship, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive. Hallmarks of Ocean Vuong’s writing are on full display in this story of loss, hope, and how far we would go to possess one of life’s most fleeting mercies: A second chance.

From the USA Today bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script, a novel about a former adolescent TV actress-turned-Hollywood producer whose “fake it till you make it” mantra sets her on a crash course with her past, forcing her to spend a week on Long Island with the last man she thinks might make her believe in love.

From the author of the acclaimed New York Times bestseller Lawrence in Arabia, a stunningly revelatory narrative history of one of the most momentous events in modern times, the jaw-dropping stupidity of the American government, and the dawn of the age of religious nationalism.

From the author of Oprah’s Book Club pick and New York Times bestseller Nightcrawling, here is an astonishing new novel about the joys and entanglements of a fierce group of teenage mothers in a small town on the Florida panhandle. Full of heart and life and hope, set against the shifting sands of these friends’ secrets and betrayals, The Girls Who Grew Big confirms Leila Mottley’s promise and offers an explosive new perspective on what it means to be a young woman.

The extraordinary novel that asks: Can a name change the course of a life? With exceptional sensitivity and depth, Knapp draws us into the story of one family, told through a prism of what-ifs, causing us to consider the “one, precious life” we are given. The book’s brilliantly imaginative structure, propulsive storytelling, and emotional, gut-wrenching power are certain to make The Names a modern classic.

A sweeping look back at the protest movements that changed America from activist and NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, with personal and historical insights into lessons they can teach us today. We All Want to Change the World will resonate with anyone who recognizes the need for social change and is willing to do the work to make it happen.

A twisty and prescient new thriller in the #1 New York Times bestselling Avery Keene series, by nationally renowned author and leader Stacey Abrams, Coded Justice follows Avery down a dark rabbit hole into the breathtaking — and dangerous — use of AI in the medical industry.

In 2024, award-winning reporters Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager, and Isaac Arnsdorf bring us the definitive, inside story of the most tumultuous and consequential presidential campaign in our history. Drawing on extraordinary access to the Trump, Biden, and Harris teams, 2024 takes readers beyond the speeches, rallies, and debates to reveal the innermost workings of the Republican and Democratic presidential campaigns.

A groundbreaking look at how Black visionaries — from Wall Street to Lagos and beyond — are reimagining capitalism to benefit the needs of Black people and, ultimately, everyone.

Rikki Thunder, twenty-two-year-old drummer for the scorching new ‘80s metal band Whyte Python, is about to have it all: Absurd wealth, global fame, and a dream girlfriend. But an unwitting role as an international spy? That was definitely not part of the plan …

A spellbinding novel of literary and psychological suspense about the dark secrets that surface after the shocking disappearance of a charismatic, mercurial teacher at an elite boarding school — by the legendary author “who is surely on any shortlist of America’s greatest living writers” (The New York Times Magazine).

From Slate staff writer Aymann Ismail comes an exquisite memoir about fatherhood, religion, and the search for identity in an ever-shifting world. In lucid, confident prose, Aymann Ismail questions the sturdy frameworks of religion and family, the legacies of his childhood, and what will become his children’s ethical and intellectual inheritance. To reckon unflinchingly with these questions offers him a road map for his young Muslim children on how to navigate the singular journey into adulthood.

A page-turning, irresistible novel of class, ambition, and bisexuality, this is the breathtaking story of a woman risking everything for a second chance at her first love. A sweeping romance, it is the story of two people trying to forge a path toward hope, bound by a love they discovered when they were too young to understand its power.

From the founder of Money with Katie, a leveled-up finance guide for ambitious women everywhere — and a rallying cry for a new money movement. It’s time for women to unite in unapologetic financial autonomy with the net worths to show for it — and to change the playing field not just for ourselves but for the next generation of Rich Girls, too.

Virgil Abloh’s appointment as head of menswear for Louis Vuitton in 2018 shocked the fashion industry, as he became the first Black designer to serve as artistic director in the brand’s 164-year history. But as Pulitzer Prize-winning culture critic Robin Givhan reveals, Abloh’s story encompasses so much more than his own journey. Abloh’s iconic rise to the top of the fashion industry embodied a groundbreaking transformation of the relationship between who we are and what we wear.

A profoundly moving debut novel that follows an elderly man’s struggle to maintain autonomy over his own life: An emotional story of love, friendship, fatherhood, dogs, and atonement that is already an international sensation.

The USA Today bestselling author of The Worst Best Man is back with a fun and flirty rom-com about a pact between friends that goes awry when one of them suddenly decides to get married.

In his groundbreaking leadership book, John Wang, a top empowerment coach to Asian American professionals across Fortune 500 companies, offers research-backed guidance for Asian Americans to embody their most confident selves in business, relationships, and their everyday lives.

A sweeping history of one of the nation’s most important African American churches and a profound story of courage and grace amid the fight for racial justice. Through the microcosm of one congregation, Kevin Sack explores the development of a unique practice of Christianity, from its daring breakaway from white churches in 1817, through the traumas of the Civil War and Reconstruction, to its critical role in the Civil Rights Movement and beyond. At its core, Mother Emanuel is an epic account of perseverance, not just of a congregation but of a people who withstood enslavement, Jim Crow, and all manner of violence with an unbending faith.

In this poignant retelling of The Great Gatsby, set amongst L.A.’s Black elite, a young veteran finds his way post-war, pulled into a new world of tantalizing possibilities — and explosive tensions.

From the bestselling author of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat — and one of America’s most beloved chefs and teachers — 125 meticulously tested, flavor-forward, soul-nourishing recipes that bring joy and a sense of communion. Good Things captures, with Samin’s trademark blend of warmth, creativity, and precision, what has made cooking such an important source of delight and comfort in her life.

A spellbinding story of two young people whose fates intersect and diverge across continents and years — an epic of love and family, India and America, tradition and modernity, by the Booker Prize-winning author of The Inheritance of Loss.

A poignant, sharp-eyed, and bitterly funny tale of a family struggling to stay together in a country rapidly coming apart, told through the eyes of their wondrous ten-year-old daughter, by the bestselling author of Super Sad True Love Story and Our Country Friends.

A young woman who wields the unimaginable power of a dragon spirit must decide where her loyalties lie — and where her heart belongs — in this enthralling fantasy that reimagines the legend of Mulan. The explosive sequel to The Night Ends with Fire!

From the author of Just Keep Buying, a groundbreaking new framework for building wealth. Do you feel stuck financially? Are you working more, trying to spend less, yet still not seeing results? If so, the issue isn’t your effort — it’s your approach. Because building wealth isn’t just about hard work — it’s about applying the right strategy at the right time to focus on what matters most. Fortunately, you won’t need to guess on where to focus next because The Wealth Ladder has the answer. The only question left is: Are you ready to climb it?