New Books Released in December 2025
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December is here, bringing crisp, glowing light, rich winter tones, and the perfect opportunity to refresh your reading list with some of the season’s most captivating new releases. As winter settles in across the United States, there’s no better way to embrace the colder days than by diving into stories filled with magic, warmth, and heartfelt moments. Whether you’re enjoying brisk winter walks, sipping a cozy cup of cocoa by the fire, or curling up for a peaceful indoor escape, these December book picks will keep you enchanted throughout the month.
A Diverse Selection of Must-Reads Awaits this September
The Book Guide’ editorial team creates a monthly list of popular new books, based on several ratings. The monthly curated preview of new books covers various genres, including contemporary fiction, historical fiction, mysteries, thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy, romance, horror, young adult, and nonfiction. This month, three standout titles demand your attention.
December delivers a captivating blend of fantasy, resilience, and myth, fitting for the season’s reflective mood. One notable new release, Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards, draws readers into an enchanting world where magic and mystery collide, weaving a powerful story filled with vivid emotions and memorable characters.
In In Your Dreams (When in Rome, #4) by Sarah Adams, romance and adventure intertwine in a captivating tale perfect for December escapism. Adams invites readers into a charming world of second chances and heartfelt connections, where dreams hold the key to unexpected love and personal discovery.
For fans of thrilling fantasy with dark undertones, Crowntide (Lightlark, #4) by Alex Aster delivers a gripping finale packed with tension, magic, and fierce loyalty. Aster’s atmospheric storytelling and complex characters explore themes of trust, sacrifice, and the relentless fight for power, echoing the transformative energy so fitting for the end of the year.
What to Read This December 2025: Best Book Releases.
December’s standout titles offer a captivating mix of warmth, magic, and excitement—perfect for curling up as the year winds down or soaking in the festive spirit. Make sure to add these to your reading list for a memorable winter filled with enchantment and inspiration.
In Your Dreams by Sarah Adams
In Your Dreams by Sarah Adams is the fourth installment in the When in Rome series, a heartwarming friends-to-lovers romance set in the small town of Rome, Kentucky. The story follows Madison Walker, a talented chef who returns home after struggling in New York, where she takes a job at a new farm-to-table restaurant proposed by James Huxley, her brother’s longtime best friend who has quietly harbored feelings for her. As they collaborate amid family tensions, including rivalry with James’s charming brother Tommy, Madison confronts her insecurities while their professional partnership blossoms into undeniable romance, culminating in a high-stakes opening night that tests their dreams and devotion.
We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark
We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark is the first book in the Empire of Blood series, a slow-burn romantasy set in a Roman-inspired world dominated by ruthless vampires. The story centers on Arvelle, a fierce fighter from the dangerous Thorn district, who protects her younger brothers amid constant peril. When a vampire arrives at her door with a dire ultimatum—kill the ancient emperor created by the god Umbros or lose her brother—she swears a magical vow, thrusting her into the deadly Sundering arena to prove her worth for the emperor’s guard. There, she clashes with the enigmatic Primus, uncovers hidden powers, and forms uneasy alliances with a past love and the emperor’s cunning son, Rorrik, amid a web of conspiracy and betrayal.
The Mating Game by Lana Ferguson
The Mating Game by Lana Ferguson is a steamy paranormal romance featuring wolf shifters. Contractor Tess Covington discovers she is a late-presenting omega wolf shifter while facing family financial pressures and a potential HGTV show contract. She must renovate a lodge owned by grumpy alpha Hunter Barrett, who avoids omegas after past heartbreak, but their forced proximity amid her impending heat ignites undeniable attraction despite their efforts to resist. The story explores themes of grief, vulnerability, and choice beyond fated mates tropes, blending spicy tension with emotional growth in a snowy Colorado setting.
Crowntide by Alex Aster
Crowntide by Alex Aster is the fourth installment in the #1 New York Times bestselling Lightlark Saga, a young adult fantasy romance series. In this book, protagonist Isla Crown portals to the ruined world of Skyshade to confront her malevolent ancestor Lark, only to find herself powerless amid devastation caused by the tyrant Cronan, while her allies Grim and Oro form a reluctant alliance back on Lightlark to rescue her. The story escalates the saga’s stakes with intense psychological battles, split-soul romances, and mythic elements like temporal threads and the Heartblade, blending high-tension action with explorations of fate, sacrifice, and love.
An Arcane Inheritance by Kamilah Cole
An Arcane Inheritance by Kamilah Cole is a modern dark academia fantasy novel set at the enigmatic Warren University, an elite Ivy League institution shrouded in occult rumors and sinister secrets. The story centers on Ellory Morgan, a determined freshman from Jamaica who experiences an overwhelming sense of déjà vu, convinced she has attended the school before despite it being her first year, hinting at time loops and buried memories manipulated by insidious magic. Teaming up with her brooding academic rival, Hudson Graves—a legacy student—Ellory uncovers a deadly conspiracy tied to the prestigious yet cursed Goodwin scholarship, where past recipients have mysteriously died, perpetuating a centuries-old cycle of sacrifice linked to the university’s founding victims. Praised for its atmospheric prose and mind-bending twists exploring power, race, and secret societies, the book builds from a slow pace to gasp-worthy revelations.
Sweet Venom by Rina Kent
Sweet Venom by Rina Kent is the second installment in the Vipers series, a dark hockey romance that delves into themes of trauma, revenge, and obsessive love. The story centers on Violet Winters, who witnesses a brutal murder but freezes in fear, unable to act; this draws the wrath of Jude Callahan, a ruthless hockey star and the victim’s son, who stalks her relentlessly to exact punishment. As their paths collide in a world of secrets and violence, their twisted connection evolves from enmity to addiction, exploring how shared pain might forge an unlikely bond amid psychological turmoil and explicit intensity.
Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards
Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards is a debut historical novel set in 13th-century Bruges, following spirited 16-year-old Aleys, who secretly studies Latin with her friend Finn amid visions and family strife. When promised in marriage to an unwanted suitor, she flees to join the independent Beguines, discovering camaraderie, song, and purpose in their community along the city’s canals and markets. Mystical events, forbidden scriptures, and political threats from an ambitious bishop soon endanger them all, propelling Aleys toward deeper insights on faith, love, and sacrifice.
Before I Forget by Tory Henwood Hoen
“Before I Forget” by Tory Henwood Hoen is a heartfelt, late coming-of-age novel that explores memory, family, and personal reinvention. It follows 26-year-old Cricket Campbell, who returns to her family’s Adirondack lake house at Catwood Pond to care for her father, Arthur, as his Alzheimer’s disease advances, causing him to lose recognition of her while mysteriously gaining the ability to predict the future. Through this caregiving journey, Cricket confronts her own past traumas—including guilt from a fatal New Year’s Eve accident—and navigates strained family dynamics, ultimately finding healing and direction amid grief and unexpected hope.
Dawn of the Firebird by Sarah Mughal Rana
Dawn of the Firebird by Sarah Mughal Rana is a gripping high fantasy novel centered on Khamilla Zahr-zad, the discarded daughter of an emperor raised in a nomadic tribe until violence shatters her world. Awakening her rare heavenly magic of nur—a cosmic light—she infiltrates the enemy’s military academy, training in jinn magic, martial arts, and strategy under ruthless mystic monks to exact revenge for her clan’s massacre and reclaim her throne. As Khamilla excels in brutal contests and grapples with her inner darkness, she uncovers histories challenging her father’s teachings amid brewing wars and a corrupting new magic, forcing her to choose between vengeance and salvation.
Persephone’s Curse by Phoebe Strole
Persephone’s Curse by Katrina Leno is a captivating urban fantasy novel blending sisterhood, Greek mythology, and ghostly elements, narrated in audiobook form by Phoebe Strole. The story centers on the four Farthing sisters—Bernadette, Evelyn, Winnie, and Clara—who live in a Manhattan brownstone and believe they descend from Persephone, sharing their home with Henry, a gentle 17-year-old ghost. Tension escalates when Evelyn falls in love with Henry, prompting Winnie to banish him to the Underworld in a protective ritual, forcing the sisters to journey there themselves to confront Hades, break a family curse, and grapple with themes of love, betrayal, and agency. Evoking Little Women amid paranormal intrigue, the book delivers emotional depth through family bonds and myth-inspired twists, where Persephone aids in honoring Henry’s choice for true peace.
Duke by Jessica Peterson
Duke by Jessica Peterson is the fourth standalone novel in the steamy Lucky River Ranch series, a small-town cowboy romance blending intense chemistry, emotional depth, and themes of self-worth and found family. Wheeler Rankin arrives at the Texas ranch to seal a business deal and visit her best friend, but sparks fly when she meets restless cowboy Duke Rivers, whose dreams of adventure shift after their passionate, snowed-in encounter during a blizzard. What starts as a no-strings flirtation leads to an unexpected pregnancy, forcing the fiercely independent pair to confront family pressures, past traumas, and new dreams as Duke commits to building a future together. Praised for its “he falls first” dynamic and heartfelt healing, the book released in a deluxe edition in February 2025, appealing to fans of authors like Elsie Silver.
Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson
Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson is a captivating collection of ten short stories and novellas spanning science fiction and fantasy, set outside his Cosmere universe. It opens with the standout novella “Snapshot,” where two detectives investigate crimes by entering a simulated snapshot of a past day in a city of millions, blending noir thriller elements with time-bending twists. Standouts like “Perfect State,” “Firstborn,” and the lengthy closing piece “Moment Zero”—a time-loop zombie apocalypse tale involving partners across timelines—showcase Sanderson’s knack for clever concepts, high-stakes action, and unexpected endings, making it essential for fans of his experimental side. While some shorter tales feel like creative exercises, author postscripts add insight into their origins, turning the book into a rewarding scrapbook of non-Cosmere gems.
Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert
Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert is the ninth installment in the Dark Olympus series, offering a scorchingly hot modern retelling of the myth of Hera and Zeus. In a fictional city of Olympus where a protective barrier has fallen and enemies like Circe threaten the Thirteen ruling families, Hera (also known as Callisto) and Zeus (Perseus) navigate their loveless marriage of convenience, marked by mutual hatred and Hera’s plots to kill him. Forced to unite against the chaos, their enmity evolves into intense passion and unexpected tenderness, blending enemies-to-lovers tension with high-stakes drama and explicit spice.
Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher
Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher is a gripping contemporary fantasy-horror novel set in the remote desert town of Quartz Creek. Protagonist Selena, fleeing an abusive relationship after her mother’s death, arrives at her late aunt Amelia’s isolated home, only to inherit a perilous supernatural bond with Snake-Eater, a possessive roadrunner spirit who views her as his new mate through ominous gifts like dead rattlesnakes. As Selena grapples with this ancient entity’s escalating threats—targeting her dog Copper and newfound allies like Grandma Billy and Father Aguirre—she confronts both external magic and her internalized trauma, forging a “found family” amid the desert’s quirky gods and dangers. Kingfisher masterfully blends folk-horror tension, psychological depth, and themes of self-reclamation in this tightly plotted tale of survival and empowerment.
The Kill Clause by Lisa Unger
The Kill Clause is a riveting short thriller by New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger, released in late 2025. The story centers on Paige, a professional hit woman whose holiday assignment unravels when she discovers her target accompanied by his young daughter, prompting her to abort the mission due to personal boundaries she refuses to cross. Returning on Christmas Eve to complete the job, she faces escalating tension as past traumas resurface, ghosts from her history intervene, and she battles her organization’s lethal “kill clause” consequences while her ex-husband’s involvement adds layers of betrayal. This compact novella masterfully blends high-stakes action, moral dilemmas, and emotional depth in a holiday setting.
