PEOPLE’s Best Books of February 2025: New Fiction from Linda Holmes, Karen Thompson Walker and More

Mar. 15, 2025

A wonderfully odd missing-person case, a gasp-inducing hostage thriller and a cadre of cats — See PEOPLE’s picks for the best books of February 2025, so far.

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Discovered unconscious in a Brooklyn park, single mom Jane O. has no memory of how she got there. Dr. Byrd, her new psychiatrist, believes she suffers from dissociative fugue states; the police think she’s faking. As the therapeutic relationship progresses, Byrd begins to suspect Jane may in fact be channeling alternate realities and finds himself captivated. A mesmerizing tale about the mysteries of the brain, the limits of rationality and the magic of love. —Kim Hubbard

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ThisSleepless in Seattle-inspired love story revolves around a romance-hotline host, a viral interview and a mismatched pair. It will thaw even the hardest hearts.

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When a jaded podcaster hosts a show about her own dating life, she doesn’t expect to find love after the credits roll. You won’t be able to read fast enough.

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Crank up the tunes for this music-centric novel about the power of partnership built on a shared passion — and how it ignites and impedes those involved.

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Doubleday

When we first arrive at the Montana lake house at the center of this epic, it’s a bucolic family enclave. But when a shocking confession disrupts a wedding, families and friends splinter. As the years pass, they take their toll on both the characters and setting. Spanning 50 years against the backdrop of a rapidly warming planet, this story of relationships built and broken, mistakes inherited and repeated and the beauty of trying again is already one of the year’s best.

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In 1980s Melbourne, the narrator discovers Virginia Woolf’s moral flaws while working on a master’s thesis on her literary hero. A complex, lyrical story of relationships, feminism and academic pressure told through interwoven diary entries, letters and prose. —Wadzanai Mhute

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Step into the seedy world of Manhattan high society as a young journalist tries to unravel the truth behind her sister’s untimely death. Twisty, thrilling and absolutely addictive.

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When Tilda realizes she’s slowly, literally disappearing, she brings us along on a quietly revelatory journey as she learns how to live in a new reality. It might just change yours too.

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In this historical novel’s dual timeline, a mother and daughter must balance dreams of justice with their own ambitions. An evocative story of love and sacrifice.

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As an African American student law intern working in South Africa, Prudence witnesses the 1996 Truth and Reconciliation hearings and finds her fate intertwined with that of Matshediso, one of the victims. Decades later, he resurfaces in the United States, seeking her help to bring an exiled apartheid perpetrator to justice. Her life upended, Prudence must finally confront her father’s brutal death. A gripping tale of restitution and lingering trauma. —Wadzanai Mhute

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Lila’s work is in disarray, her ex’s mistress is expecting and her stepdad and estranged father are living in her house — along with her wary daughters. When stunning secrets emerge, the family must grapple with their bonds, the nature of forgiveness and what truth really means. Funny and irresistible. —Caroline Leavitt

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Emma Lewis takes over her parents’ estate-sale business and lands a huge mansion — which houses the town’s bordello. Quirky and fun, with bawdy wit. —Robin Micheli

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A “bottled up” Baltimore woman and her affable ex-husband navigate their daughter’s wedding together. Not much happens, but everything changes. —Kim Hubbard

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Penguin Random House

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When writer Abe met painter Jane in Central Park, they fell hard. Now, as Jane is dying, the couple savor their decades-long devotion — to art and each other — even as they reckon with what it has cost them. A touching romance that’s also an ode to the urban oasis where it began. —Kim Hubbard

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The Dial Press

Sixteenth-century French noblewoman Marguerite got stuck with a lousy guardian. He steals her fortune, brings her to the New World, then abandons her on an island. Marguerite’s grit and (slightly improbable) feminist instincts will keep you cheering for her. —Kim Hubbard

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MacMillan

What happens when oldest-daughter syndrome takes a dark turn? This twisted love letter to family uses humor to look at race, trauma and parentification. ThinkGet Outin book form. —McKenzie Jean-Philippe

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Kim and Grant swap winter in Wisconsin for Palm Springs to heal their stale marriage — but things go very wrong when Grant doesn’t return from a hike. A riveting exploration of midlife yearning. —Robin Micheli

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HarperCollins

Not for readers with weak stomachs, this gleefully gruesome tale follows a mother-daughter pair who prey on lost tourists until one of them decides she’s sick of their lifestyle. Femgore at its finest.

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Courtesy of Harper Select, an imprint of HarperCollins Focus

source: people.com