We have officially entered 2026 and I figure I might just want to provide an overview of my reading for the last year. I know many people wonder just how many books I actually read so I thought I would share the actual numbers with you guys before diving into some of the best books, in different categories, that I read throughout last year. The exact number all together is a grand total of 281 books which I must say actually surprised me quite a bit as it means my average is between 5 and 6 books a week. If you want to know the breakdown by month check out the graph I have below.
Best New Release
One of the most important categories for me to go over was the new releases and the book that really stood out for me from that particular category is unfortunately a book that I am slightly biased towards as I have long been a fan of the author. That being said I still think this book deserves to be highlighted because it was just plain awesome and an incredible read. I am talking about Circle of Days by Ken Follett which is this breathtaking and expansive piece of historical fiction that chronicles the hypothetical building of Stonehenge. By far it was the best new release that I read in the last year, even if I am biased because I already liked the author due to his previous works. Let’s move on to the next category though.
Best Series I Had Never Read
This one was a bit of a tough one as there were actually quite a few different series that fit the bill but I ended up picking The Mars Trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson. The main reason that I liked this particular series so much is that it focused heavily on character development, which is not always something that you see in science fiction, while also actually incorporating massive amounts of science. Mind you I have no idea if the science is even remotely accurate as I never studied it in depth. Much like with Follett’s book though I was rather blown away and seriously impressed by how expansive each volume was in this series and I greatly enjoyed reading about how a colonization of Mars might actually work.
Book Most Likely to Make You Cry
This category I really debated about including but I figured I should include at least one unusual category every year and this was the one for 2025. I know many people are sceptical about children’s literature, especially the idea that adults should read it but this book is one that I would honestly recommend to everyone who is capable of handling the contents. Once you have read and are familiar with it you will definitely understand why I chose Petey by Ben Mikaelsen as the book most likely to make a reader cry. I think I actually know some people who did cry while reading it, got me in trouble with my book club once because of that. The book is about cerebral palsy and the lack of understanding for it in the early and mid-twentieth century and how that affects the people who had it, in this case a man named Petey who ended up growing up in a mental asylum because of that lack of understanding. This is probably one of my favorite books of all time despite how sad it is.
Most Unusual Book
My next category is the most unusual book that I have read this year and I ended up with The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley. This one won the pick for this category because it was just plain unusual even if it was a really good read. It included clockwork creations, terrorism and bombing, precognition, samurais and the caste system in Japan, arranged marriage and the marriage market in Victorian England, and finally hints of a gay relationship. That was all in one book and it had some pretty interesting characters and a fairly cohesive plot, all things considered, even if it didn’t always feel like it during the early or middle stages. I have come across very few books that cover such a wide array of themes so I was rather impressed by how well they were all integrated.
I think this is a pretty good overview of some of the books that have really stood out this last year so now I am looking forward to my next year’s reading. My only real goal for this year is to read about the same amount of books as last year and maybe finish some of the series that I am currently in the middle of. If you have any suggestions for things to read this next year make sure to share them in the comments. I am open to reading almost anything, except romance. Please no romance.