25 in 2025 - Mid(ish) year check-in {08.07.25}

 

Hello friends! I hope you're having a wonderful day and have plans to enjoy your favorite book this evening. 

For today's post, I thought it would be fun to share an update to my 25 in 25 challenge. I have been making my way through the bingo board and I think I will be able to finish the board completely by the end of the year. 

Before we begin, I want to be sure to shout out the creator of this challenge: Four Paws and a Book.  Please be sure to check her video out on YouTube (plus some other videos - she's pretty awesome).  Also, I am sharing affiliate links below so if you make a purchase from my link, I can potentially make a small commission on your purchase. 

1. DONE. 2025 Release: For this prompt, I am to pick a book that was published in 2025. I had several books that will have good options for this, and had planned to use When I Come Back by Alise Monroe, but ended up reading Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry.  

2. DONE. One Word Title: For this one, I am to pick a book with ONE word in the title.  I had originally planned to read Bride by Ali Hazelwood; however, I ended up reading Penitence by Kristin Koval. 

3. DONE. Involves Travel: This is any type of travel whether the book is entirely about travel or the main characters travel. In this case, I picked Keep Me by Sara Cate. The main character travels to Ireland so I think that covers this category. 

4. DONE. Number in the title: It is a bit self-explanatory, but the title of the book must have a number of some sort in the title. For this one I ended up reading Fourth Wing so that I could try and catch up to the series when the newest one released in January. 

5. Cover buy: So many books I have purchased have been solely based on the cover because they're just so pretty. However, I fell in love with this one because the sleeve is reversible and the book itself is just SO pretty.  For this prompt, I have picked North Is the Night (Tuonela Duet Book 1) by Emily Rath. 

6. DONE. Seasonal Book: I have already read a seasonal book for this which was Beach House Rules by Kristy Woodson Harvey; however, I am still planning to do a Once Upon a Book Club holiday box for this category later this year. I received this bookish box as a gift from my husband and instead of spoiling the book for myself, I'm going to wait until I open the box to make it more fun. 

7. LGBTQ+ Representation: I've had this one on my list for a long time, but Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston.  I have watched the movie version of this book and really enjoyed it so I am excited to see how different the book is from the movie. 

8. DONE. Favorite author’s newest release: I do not have a favorite author because there are so many wonderful authors out there; however, Demi Winters released the second book in the Road of Bones series and I am so excited to read it. Be sure to check out Kingdom of Claw AND The Road of Bones. 

9. Hyped Book: I had originally picked Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix for this category, but I am thinking since I don't own the book it may be better to pick another one here... there's plenty options out there. 

10. Color of the Year: The color of the year for 2025 is called Mocha Mousse which is a very pretty light brown color (check it out here). Four Paws and a Book also recommended using the 2025 Reading Challenge color from Goodreads which is a teal/turquoise color.  For this book I can either do The Favorites by Layne Fargo to meet the Mocha color or Swordheart by T. Kingfisher for the teal/turquoise. I started listening to Swordheart by T. Kingfisher and have really enjoyed it so far - just need to wait until it's available again at the library so I can finish this prompt. 

11. POC Author: For my POC author, I have chosen Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan. I really loved his Crazy Rich Asians series, so I'm sure I will enjoy this one as well.  I have not read this book yet, but it is on my shelf ready to be read! 

12. DONE. Novella: A novella is defined as a book that is less than 200 pages, but more than a novelette.  In my world, I'm going to define it as a book with around 150 pages or so. I had planned to do All Systems Red by Martha Wells but ended up reading the latest novella from Demi Winters - Roots of Darkness. 

13. DONE. 5 Star Prediction: There are so many books coming out that I thought I would love for this but ended up picking Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry for this category. I've really loved her books and this one did not disappoint. 

14. “Comped”: This prompt is to read a book that was listed as "if you like this book... then you'll like this book".  For this pick, I am reading The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean.  This book was compared to All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker and since that was my number one book for 2024, it was a no brainer to pick it up and read it. 

15. Friend Recommendation: I borrowed The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune from a friend and I cannot wait to read it. It comes highly recommended. 

16. DONE. Over 400 pages: Since I have been reading the Crescent City Series, it was a no brainer to included House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas as my 400+ page book. In fact, it's double the length required for this prompt.  

17. Special Edition: I am sure throughout 2025, I will be purchasing several books that are special edition copies, but the one I was most excited for was Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros. I did end up purchasing the book but I have not finished it yet so I cannot give myself credit yet. 

18. DONE. Chapter Titles: This is a fun prompt because not many books have chapter titles in them anymore. I had originally planned to use Quicksilver by Callie Hart for this one but ended up using The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon 

19. DONE. Debut Author:  I have several books that will have good options for this, but I think I'm going to go with When I Come Back by Alise Monroe.  This is an ARC that I read and she released the book last month. If you have Kindle Unlimited, this is available there.  Be sure to check it out.   

20. DONE. Mental Health Representation: I feel like nowadays, a lot of authors do a good job of weaving mental health into their stories so I had a hard time choosing, but for this one I ended up reading My Friends by Fredrik Backman. This book dealt with a few different mental health situations so it 100% met the prompt. 

21. Snake on the Cover: For the snake on the cover, I have chosen House of Breath and Sky by Sarah J. Maas. 2025 is the year of the snake and the cover has a male character holding a snake twisting around his arm. 

22. Self-Published: I believe one or two of the ARCs that I am reviewing will be self-published so I will likely use one of those for this prompt.  However, I am not sure which one I will be using for this prompt. 

23. DONE. New-to-you Author: For this prompt, I ended up reading The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. I have not read any of his books before and this one definitely did not disappoint.  

24. TBR Vet: I almost don't even want to put this on the list because then I have to keep myself accountable, but I am adding Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. I started this series years ago and haven't finished the last one. My friend has given me endless amounts of crap for not finishing the books so here I am adding it to my list so that I finally finish it. 

25. From another challenge: I am participating in a readathon in June, so I will use one of the books I read that month to meet this category. 

So at the time of publishing this post, I am just over half way through the 25 books I need to read in 2025. I would gamble that some books that I have already read would meet some of these requirements, but I need to sit down and check it out. I'll be checking back in later this year to share an update with you all and to see if I'll actually hit my goal. 

Well that's all for today.  What books are you excited to read this year? 

Have a wonderful day,
Jackie
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Disclosure: Some of the links in the post above may be affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. Read my full disclosure policy here.