The best BookTok books to read in 2025

Carissa Broadbent's Crowns of Nyaxia series opens with a human-vampire survival game akin to The Hunger Games. Oraya, the adopted human daughter of the Nightborn vampire king, battles for more than mere survival in the Kejari, a legendary contest run by the goddess of death. To win, she must ally with Raihn, a deadly vampire, fierce competitor and an enemy to her father's reign, who is also somewhat irresistible. But in the merciless Kejari, compassion is scarce, and love could prove fatal.

Such was the excitement around YouTube star Lucy Jane Wood's cosy fantasy when it was announced, that it flew to number one on the Amazon book chart on pre-orders alone. And it didn't let up, with Rewitched becoming a Sunday Times bestseller on publication. Balancing work at her beloved Lunar Books and concealing her witchcraft from the non-witches around her has left Belle burnt out. But when her thirtieth birthday brings a summons from her coven, and a trial that tests her worthiness as a witch, Belle risks losing her magic forever. With the month of October to fix things, and signs that dark forces may be working against her, Belle will need all the help she can get – from the women in her life, from an unlikely mentor figure, and even an (infuriating) watchman who’s sworn to protect her . . .

Hafsah Faizal has already established herself as a BookTok favourite with We Hunt the Flame and its sequel We Free the Stars. Now comes A Tempest of Tea, an intoxicating brew of vampires, secrets and romance. We meet Arthie Casimir, a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets in the city of White Roaring. By day she runs a tearoom, but by night this transforms into an illegal bloodhouse for the city's vampires. When her establishment is threatened she is forced to call on society's outcasts. But as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy.

With 750 pages of trauma, reading A Little Life has become a rite of passage on TikTok. The story follows four friends as they move to New York to make their way. There is kind, handsome Willem, an aspiring actor; JB, a quick-witted, sometimes cruel painter seeking entry to the art world; Malcolm, a frustrated architect at a prominent firm; and withdrawn, brilliant, enigmatic Jude. It is Jude who becomes the centre of the story as the pages gradually reveal his unspeakable childhood. In case you've somehow missed the hype, a quick TikTok search will soon reveal quite how much this book makes people cry. 

On the completely opposite side of the BookTok spectrum is Red, White & Royal Blue, the charming sexy romance from Casey McQuiston. The story follows Alex Claremont-Diaz, son of the President of the United States, and Prince Henry, a member of the British royal family. After the tabloids get hold of a photo of an altercation between them both, a plan is made for damage control: a staged truce. But this fake, Instagrammable friendship soon grows deeper, and more complicated, than anyone could have imagined. Having already captured hearts across BookTok, Red, White & Royal Blue is now also a major Amazon Prime film. 

This adorable time travel story set in a Japanese cafe does just what the BookTok community loves most – it will warm your heart and make you sob at the same time. In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a cafe which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time. In the first book of the series, we meet four visitors, each of whom is hoping to make use of the cafe’s time-travelling offer. For those of you who have already read Before the Coffee Gets Cold, don't fret as there are four more books to enjoy. 

The bestselling YA romantasy series begins here, in the kingdom of Ilya, where the Elites shun the Ordinary, and an Ordinary has just accidentally got herself a place in the Purging Trials to showcase the 'Elite' powers she does not actually possess. . . If the Trials and the opponents don’t kill her, the prince she’s fighting feelings for will if he discovers her true identity.

BookTok loves a bit of fantasy and is also made up of readers interested in broadening their horizons and reading books from all over the world. Introducing She Who Became the Sun, a reimagining of Chinese mythology, specifically the rise to power of Zhu Yuanzhang. When a seer shows two siblings their fate – for the brother greatness, but for the sister, Zhu, nothing – Zhu resolves to overcome her destiny. Can she claim her brother’s greatness and rise, ruthlessly, to take the dragon throne? She Who Became the Sun has got BookTok talking both for its masterful blend of historical fiction and fantasy and because of that scene (IYKYK). 

Another big BookTok genre is dark academia, and Olivie Blake’s unique brand of drama and chaos has made her one of the biggest names on the platform. The Atlas Six is the first book of a series and introduces us to The Alexandrian Society, an exclusive club for magicians where members enjoy a lifetime of power and prestige. Yet each decade, only six practitioners are invited – to fill five places. If you've already read The Atlas Six series, Olivie Blake has also published several other standalone novels including Masters of Death and One For My Enemy.

BookTok also loves a cosy tale – one that feels like a warm hug in a book – and that's just what The House in the Cerulean Sea provides. Linus Baker leads a quiet life. At forty, he has a tiny house with a devious cat and his beloved records for company. And at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, he’s spent many dull years monitoring their orphanages. Then one day, Linus is summoned by Extremely Upper Management and given a highly classified assignment. He must travel to an orphanage where six dangerous children reside – including the Antichrist. This is a book about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place.

Greek myths like you’ve never seen them before – The Song of Achilles combines BookTok’s love for queer romance with high-stakes historical fiction, and will leave you weeping like you’ve just read A Little Life (see above). Achilles is strong, beautiful and irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland. Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods' wrath. This is the story of the fall of Troy, or rather part of it – a part full of war and sacrifice but ultimately, love. 

If you thought dark academia was a massive trend, try dark academia plus dragons! Welcome to the brutal and elite world of Basgiath War College, where everyone has an agenda, and every night could be your last. Now the commanding general – who also happens to be her mother – has ordered Violet to join those striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders. But Violet is small and fragile, which doesn't mix well with dragons. As she spends every day and night simply trying to survive, darker secrets are uncovered: once you enter Basgiath War College there are only two ways out – survive, or die.