Books I Aspire to Read in Spring 2025

Penned byHannah
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My last TBR list in summer 2024 wasn’t bad now that I look back on it. I actually read half??? But that list was relatively small, and I think I intentionally kept it small. I’m not sure I’ll do the same for this one as I’m writing this, but maybe the final version will differ.

Maybe there’s some hope for me after all…

I’m also going to be linking this up for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader.

What I Hope to Read this Spring

I think this might be the first time I might create this list solely for fun* and not really thinking too much into detail over it? I mean, I do have 2 ARCs upcoming that are releasing in the summer that I’ll add to the list…

*I think it’s because I know Spring/Summer this year for me is likely to be hectic, so I’m lowering expectations for myself. Not that I had much expectation…

Fateless by Julie Kagawa

fateless julie kagawa

Deep in the forgotten city of the Deathless Kings, an ancient relic of untold power waitsβ€”for one bold enough to steal it.

When seventeen-year-old Sparrow joined the Thieves Guild she made a vow of binding loyalty to their cause. So when a mission comes along from The Circle, a group of mysterious, dangerous beings who control the Thieves Guild from the shadows, Sparrow is determined to cement her place in the guild.

What ensues is a death-defying adventure that has Sparrow and her band of thieves venturing into the heart of the forgotten city of the Deathless King. The fate of Sparrow, her companions, and Raithe, the enigmatic yet alluring assassin Sparrow is forced to join forces with during their quest, all hang in the balance as they find themselves battling ancient forces within the tombs and facing the unwavering hold of fate.

Perfect for fans of Alexandra Bracken and Sabaa Tahir, this new fantasy trilogy from New York Times bestselling author Julie Kagawa will sweep readers into a bold and exciting new world, where a twisted game of destiny has far-reaching consequences.

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
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Amazon

I see Julie Kagawa has a new book, I’m going to read it. Which is funny of me to say because I still haven’t read the last book in The Iron Fey: Evenfall trilogy, and I definitely have not read her latest middle-grade series. Perhaps one day I’ll get around to those, but in the meantime, I’m really excited to dive into my ARC of her newest series!

RELATED: Fateless review

A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim

a forgery of fate elizabeth lim

Beauty and the Beast meets The Little Mermaid in an East Asian-inspired world in this romantic fantasy standalone from Elizabeth Lim, the New York Times bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes.

A gifted art forger, Truyan Saigas has the unique ability to paint the future. But when her father is lost at sea, not even magic can heal her family, or save her two younger sisters from the dangerous consequences of her mother’s gambling debts.

Then Elang, a mysterious dragon lord, offers her a deal: in exchange for a fresh start for her mother and sisters, Tru must enter a marriage contract and join him in his desolate undersea palace.

Once there, Tru will embark on her most dangerous forgery yet. To infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King’s inner circle and paint a future so treasonous, it could upend both the mortal and immortal realms…

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

Elizabeth Lim has become one of my favorite authors since I first came across Reflection from Disney’s Twisted Tales and then her debut with Spin the Dawn. She just writes beautifully with the perfect amount of prose and imagery; I’m thrilled to continue reading more of Lim’s works! This is another ARC that I have I’m planning on getting to.

Suns Will Rise by Jessica Brody and Joanne Rendell

suns-will-rise-jessica-brody-joanne-rendell

AN HEIR. A RENEGADE
A CONVICT. A CYBORG
A DÉFECTEUR

FIVE REBELS. ONE REVOLUTION.

It’s been three months since the Patriarche was beheaded, leaving behind no heir. From the outside, Laterre seems to be flourishing. General BonnefaΓ§on has cleaned up the streets, fed the hungry, and restored peace while the next leader is decided upon. But dangerous rifts threaten to shatter the planet from within.

The Red Scar is killing anyone with a legitimate claim to the Regime, while the Vangarde and their freed leader are preparing to overthrow it.

Then, it’s revealed that the Patriarche had a child in secret. A missing heir…

Alouette is the general’s prisoner, interrogated on the whereabouts of his renegade grandson. Marcellus is desperately searching for her, knowing she’s the key to the Vangarde’s plan, but unaware that he’s being hunted by a determined new cyborg. Meanwhile Chatine grows restless, living with a rebel group she doesn’t fit into. Until an old friend solicits her help to save his DΓ©fecteur community from a mysterious, new threat. A threat that will tie them all together.

When the general makes an explosive play for power, allegiances will shift, rebels will become leaders, barricades will rise, and the tinderbox of Laterre will finally ignite, launching a revolution five hundred years in the making.

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

I feel like I featured this book at some point, probably back in 2022, because why else would I have the cover just sitting in my blog files? That aside, recently I’ve been rereading the first two books in the System Divine trilogy, and I’ve just been wanting to finish it at long last.

(It’s funny, though, because you’d think with the current state of things I wouldn’t want to read the very series that’s based on a chonky book about a revolution, but here we are.)

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

onyx storm rebecca yarros

After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.

Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she lovesβ€”her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can findβ€”the truth. But a storm is coming…and not everyone can survive its wrath.

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

I haven’t been in the biggest rush picking up Onyx Storm since I didn’t like Iron Flame, but my curiosity got the better of me and I somehow lucked out with an available copy at the library. Here’s to hoping the third book is better than the second.

If We Ever Meet Again by Ana Huang

if we ever meet again ana huang

One year is all it takes for strangers to become lovers…

19-year-old Farrah Lin is going to fall in love for the first time during her year abroad in Shanghai. She’s sure of it.

The only problem? Her would-be leading man is her new friend’s boyfriend.

There’s nothing worse than being in love with someone you can’t have…or at least, she thinks it’s love.

But if that’s true, why can’t she stop fantasizing about someone else, specifically the cocky blond athlete with the world’s biggest ego (and greatest dimples)?

***
Blake Ryan isβ€”wasβ€”a college football star who shocked the sports world when he quit after his third national championship. Instead of dealing with the fallout, he escapes to Shanghai, where he vows to keep life simple.

No football. No commitments. No romance.

But no matter how hard he tries, he can’t keep a certain beautiful brunette off his mind…or out of his heart.

What starts as a physical attraction develops into something much deeper as Blake and Farrah get swept up in the magic of Shanghaiβ€”and each other. But they only have one year, and there are forces outside their control that threaten to rip them apart.

Can their relationship survive the test…or was it just not meant to be?

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

I tend to see Huang’s Twisted Love series way more often, which unfortunately doesn’t seem to be up my alley. But I recently came across a copy of If We Ever Meet Again, and honestly, I felt like reading it, and I felt like reading a romance. And sometimes that’s all you need to add a book to your TBR. Β―_(ツ)_/Β―

Love, Lies, Lunar New Year by Grace Tang

love lies lunar new year grace tang

Fake dates, real fireworks

Lily Wong is an animal activist whose main goal in life is to save reptiles from being turned into purses. Scarred by a broken engagement, she is resolutely single at thirty-five, which doesn’t sit well with her overbearing Chinese parents. The pressure to find a partner intensifies after her brother brings home a new girlfriend just before the Lunar New Year. So when Charles Chen–dashing heir to a multi-million dollar shark fin empire–asks to fake-date her while she’s protesting at the mall, she agrees on the condition that he fake-date her in return, to get her parents off her back for the holiday.

Charles is faking a relationship with Lily to solve his own his parents can’t stand his spoiled, social media-famous girlfriend, Margaux. After a bad fight with Margaux leaves him alone for the Lunar New Year, Charles convinces Lily to pose as his girlfriend. Charles hopes that by bringing the obstinately plain, shark fin-hating Lily home as a contrast, his parents will appreciate Margaux and accept her, helping him win Margaux back.

Charles’s plan backfires when his parents unexpectedly take a liking to Lily. The more they try to remedy the situation, the deeper their lie gets–and the more their real feelings for each other grow. As their families threaten to unravel their increasingly-less-fake relationship, Lily has to confront her fear of getting hurt again, and Charles has to decide between his family and his feelings. When Margaux reappears to reclaim her wealthy boyfriend, Lily and Charles are forced to make a decision between going back to the lives they knew before, or following their hearts into the new and unknown.

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

I came across this one on Reddit and thought the cover was cute, so I immediately downloaded it from Kindle Unlimited before I forgot. I also just love the fake dating trope.

The Divine Shallows by Alexandra M. Tran

the divine shallows alexandra m tran

In this enchanting epic fantasy romance debut, two fey sisters are bound by both blood and love, but separated by divine privilege. In the mythical realms of Neramyr, achieving divinity as a warlock or sorceress is to be differentiated as a god among gods where magic is the governing constant.

To possess the moon’s markings is to wield her divine power. Every seventh year, a new septet of divine warlocks and sorceresses is chosen by the Moon Goddess. To ascend from the mundane to the exceptional, two things must be achieved: bear the moon’s Mark and complete her divine trial.

Daughter to one of the fey’s strongest bloodlines, Elyria’s very existence has defied the tradition, pride, and faith that guided her folk for generations. Forsaken by the Moon Goddess upon her birth, Elyria is refused the divine marking. Condemned to a life of discrimination and hostility, Elyria longs to triumph over her tainted past.

Born to the same bloodline, Elowyn bears the moon’s Mark and is fated to inherit the throneβ€”a title that was once Elyria’s birthright. For Elowyn, queendom is a burden she was appointed, but never desired. One day, fate shifts when the Moon Goddess unexpectedly offers Elyria a chance to face her divine trialβ€”an opportunity an unmarked fey has never been granted before.

As Elyria and Elowyn embark on their separate, but interwoven journeys, they uncover unsettling truths about the ancient realms of Neramyr. Secrets unravel, tradition is challenged, love is tested, and the course of destiny is rewritten.

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

It was actually Clo from Cuppa Clo who brought this book on my radar; I don’t think I would’ve noticed otherwise since I’m scarcely on social media lately. But the cover is beautiful, and there’s fae and dragons involved? Sign me up.

Druid Vices and a Vodka by Annette Marie

druid vices and a vodka annette marie

I’ve said it before, but sometimes I’m a bad person. I cheated on my twelfth grade math final, I’ve run countless yellow lights, and I gossip about how hot my kickass best friends are. (Good thing my job as a guild bartender doesn’t require moral perfection.)

But there’s bad, and then there’s bad. And I’m not sure which applies to a certain dark druid/wanted criminal/reluctant friend of mine. His transgressions include black-magic dealings, kidnapping, and murder, and he’s about to add β€œrevenge-fueled killing spree” to his resumeβ€”if I don’t stop him.

Should I stop him?

He and his nemesis are gearing up to tear each other apart, rogues and vultures are converging with their sights on the spoils, and the guilds that would normally stomp them into the ground are under attack. We’re on the brink of an all-out criminal turf war, and my time to decide is almost up.

Who’s the real bad guy … and do I dare stand in his way?

Goodreads
Left Bank Books
Bookshop
Amazon

I haven’t picked up an Annette Marie book in so long; I miss reading books from The Guild Codex universe. But knowing me, it’s been so long I remember nothing, so I might end up rereading the entire series at some point rather than just jumping into the sixth book.

Let’s talk!

It turns out I can’t choose random books even when I’m actually trying not to actively choose books. But anyway, tell me if any of these are on your spring TBR list, and if you’ve read any of these (let me know your thoughts so I’m not walking into a hot mess)?

spring 2025 tbr pin
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Hannah has a penchant for chaos, which is probably how she ended up blogging since 2012. That, and she was probably too expressive for her parents to handle, so it had to go somewhere. She can be found occasionally at The Arts STL. If you’d like to fuel her boba addiction or just enjoy her posts and want to support her, stop by her KoFi or Buy Me a Coffee!

20 Comments

  1. What cracks me up about others’ reading lists is I usually have never even heard of most of the books. There is obviously so many books and not enough time to read them all. My Spring List

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  7. I’m ridiculously excited for Lim’s upcoming release! I’ve loved all her books so far and I’m excited to get more stories from her πŸ™‚ That cover for The Divine Shallows is stunning and makes me want to add the book to my TBR immediately! The synopsis also sounds like something I’d enjoy immensely. I hope you enjoy all of these books whenever you get to them!

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  8. OMGGGG Elizabeth Lim’s new book is a stanadlone fantasy?! *adds to my tbr* always love finding more standalone fantasies. Also Love Lies Lunar New Year sounds really good, I will wait for your verdict before adding that one though. I am hopeful that The Divine Shallows will be really good! It has dragons on the cover ok I’m here for it. Yes you must get back to the Guild Codex universe, I need to resume reading the Warped books and Unveiled.

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  13. Onyx Storm is also on my TBR, but didn’t quite make it to my spring reading list. I hope you enjoy them!

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    1. Sorry to hear you had mixed feelings about Onyx Storm! I kind of have a feeling that I’ll fall under the mixed feelings since I felt that way with Iron Flame while a lot of folks did enjoy it.

      Reply

  15. I didn’t know Julie Kagawa had a new book!! I love her! Thanks for putting it on my radar. I have Onyx Storm but haven’t read it yet. I heard it ended on a cliffhanger and now I don’t wanna. 😭

    Reply

    1. I’ve been seeing a few people who had mixed feelings about Onyx Storm overall and I’m kind of scared to pick it up now. 😭

      I’m absolutely thrilled to have put Kagawa’s new book on your radar. My mission is accomplished for the day. 😌

      Reply

  16. I love a good to read list!!! It’s great to hear about some new books i would probably never have come across otherwise. The Divine Shallows sounds like my kind of book and I was instantly drawn to the cover, which is always a good sign! xxx

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