Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier!

This answer was surprisingly easy for me, despite having read so many great books this year. I am honestly so mad at myself for letting this sit on my TBR for as long as it did when it sounds like it was practically tailor-made for me!

If you know me, you know I adore coming-of-age stories, fierce female protagonists, slow-paced storytelling, and deep, ancient forest settings. Ever since finishing Robin Hobb, I’ve been chasing that specific, beautifully tragic and dramatic atmosphere and Juliet Marillier delivered exactly that. It’s a gorgeous, haunting book, and I cannot wait to dive deeper into her work. Read my Review.

The official answer is “far too many.”

However, I definitely want to catch up on the hype surrounding Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke to see if it actually lives up to the buzz (usually, hyped books aren’t quite my thing, but I’m curious). Beyond that, my TBR is overflowing with horror releases I’m dying to get to, specifically Odessa by Gabrielle Sher and Bone of My Bone by Johanna van Veen.

The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen: I was so let down by this. I adored the first book—and normally, cheesy rom-fantasy isn’t my vibe at all, but the writing in book one was laugh-out-loud perfection. How do you go from that success to something this messy? The plot felt disjointed, major plot points were completely forgotten along the way, and the main lead had zero chemistry with her love interests. Or maybe I’ve just changed as a reader? Either way, it fell completely flat.

Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor: This started out brilliantly! It gave me incredible insights into a new culture and really made me think. But around the halfway mark, the story took a massive shift. The main protagonist became so insufferably selfish, child-like, and abhorrent that it ruined the entire reading experience. I found myself wishing nothing but the absolute worst for this character (even if fictional!).

I can already hear the groans of some readers—how could I possibly include The Name of the Wind on this list? Kvothe and Denna’s relationship iAn endless, labyrinthine library filled with ancient secrets and strange, non-human, non-animal librarians? Count me completely in.

The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence easily takes the award for best setting and worldbuilding this year. Lawrence managed to craft a world that feels vast, dangerous, and endlessly fascinating. The concept of the Great Library itself—a sprawling, almost sentient maze of forgotten knowledge—is a dream for any book lover, but paired with its bizarre, terrifying caretakers and straight-up Elden Ring-style hound beasts, it becomes something truly unique.
The atmospheric tension in those grand, dusty halls is unmatched. It’s dark, mysterious, and deeply immersive—the kind of setting where you just want to linger in every shadow, even if every corner holds a new danger. It literally doesn’t get any better than that.