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Have you ever wished that there was a one-stop shop for all things book recommendations and book news? Well, wish no more because The Bookish Drop is here to satisfy all your bookish cravings (specific books and sweet treats are not included, sadly).
Journalists Catherine Shuttleworth, Danielle Kate Wroe, Talya Honebeek and Zoe Delaney will send you the latest book-related news straight to your inbox once a week.
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If you want to know the gossip about new releases months before they're available on shelves, or want exclusive interviews with authors, or to find your new favourite indie writer who you can tell all your friends about, The Bookish Drop is perfect for you.
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Daily Mirror
18 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
I read every day — these are 10 of the best books I would recommend to anyone
There's no feeling quite like sitting down after a long day and diving into a good book. But with countless reads to choose from, finishing one book and selecting another isn't always as easy as it sounds. While I do try to make time for the classics, as well as books published in previous years, I do always find myself gravitating towards the new releases, eager to find a new favourite I know I'll return to again and again in the future. If you're in need of some inspiration for your summer reading list, here are 10 of my absolute top reads of 2025 so far, with picks across all kinds of different genres. For more book recommendations, reviews and news, click here to subscribe to our free weekly newsletter, The Bookish Drop, on Substack. It's officially Love Island season, with both the UK and US versions airing right now. While I don't religiously watch dating shows anymore, I still gravitate towards any fiction inspired by or based on the world of reality TV. The Compound sees 20 contestants trapped in a remote desert compound and filmed 24/7 as they compete for luxury prizes and basic necessities - while also trying to find love. I don't want to give anything away, but this is a brilliant debut, with some unexpected twists, a simmering uneasiness and an ending I've thought about since I finished reading it. It's out on July 3, and I'd definitely recommend adding it to your summer reading list! Some books need to be read in one sitting, and Make Me Famous is one of them. The book revolves around Cléo, an aspiring singer who is obsessed with becoming famous. We see her rise to fame, as well as her present day, where she jets off on holiday to a remote island to focus on writing her fourth album in peace. Cléo is one of the most dislikeable protagonists I've ever read, which can sometimes be a recipe for disaster, but not in this case. The book is so immersive, so addictive and so twisted. Bonus points for an ending that literally made me gasp aloud. You know a book is good when it's over 500 pages long but you get through it in a matter of days. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil tells the story of María, Charlotte and Alice, three very different women from very different worlds. V. E. Schwab's signature atmospheric, lyrical writing style transports you across the centuries, with a perfect mixture of obsession, yearning and Sapphic love. It's another addictive read, and once it sinks its teeth into you, you won't be able to put it down. Park Avenue follows Jia Song, a junior partner at a prestigious law firm who takes on a hush-hush case working for one of the most famous Korean families in the world. As Jia travels the world finding answers, contending with feuding siblings and uncovering dark secrets, she finds herself starting to fall for the family. When I saw Park Avenue described as 'Crazy Rich Asians meets Succession', I knew it had the potential to be a five-star read for me. I was hooked all the way through; it's so messy and brings has elements of mystery, romance and thriller. It's also a perfect travel read. I read this while on a weekend away and felt like I was watching a (very entertaining) film in my head the whole time! Sometimes you know before reading that you're going to love a book. But other times, a book you weren't so sure about just blows you away. I am someone who tends to steer clear of anything even remotely scary, so Make a Home of Me by Vanessa Santos has been one of the biggest revelations of the year for me. This collection of short stories, all set in houses that should provide protection but instead turn on their inhabitants, is unsettling yet inviting. The collection opens with a dinner party with a gruesome twist and goes on to tales of people driven to despair by a neighbour's crying baby, a family torn apart by strange notes and a woman's relationship with her new partner's strangely shy daughter. I ate every single story up, and would recommend this book to anyone, horror fan or otherwise. If you'd told me last year that some of my favourite reads of 2025 would be young adult novels, I wouldn't have believed you. But after falling in love with Rebecca Ross' Divine Rivals duology, I went on to Immortal Consequences, the first book in a new YA dark academia series following students at a boarding school on the fringes of the afterlife. In Immortal Consequences, the students must compete in the Decennial - a series of magical trials held once a decade. We follow six different students, all with their own motivations and hidden agendas. With chapters from so many characters' perspectives, I was initially worried they wouldn't be fleshed out enough, but I needn't have worried. I was so invested in each and every one of the characters, and cannot wait to see where the series goes next. I clearly have a thing for books with chapters from lots of different points of view, because My Other Heart has been another favourite read of the year for me. In 1998, Mimi and her baby daughter Ngan are on the way home from Philadelphia to Vietnam when Ngan suddenly goes missing. Seventeen years later, best friends Kit and Sabrina plan trips to Tokyo and China respectively to find out more about who they are. This is a beautiful coming-of-age story, spanning decades and several different continents. And with universal themes of identity, friendship, love and motherhood, everyone will see a little part of themselves in the characters. 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Gurnaik Johal's debut novel sees the lives of seven individuals changed as an ancient sacred river springs back to life. Part political satire, part ecological parable, this is a great novel to sink your teeth into if you want something that will both entertain and make you think. As a lover of short stories, I really appreciated the format and pacing of Saraswati; each chapter introduces us to a new character, with each of the seven strangers getting their own moment in the spotlight before everything comes together. I was enthralled, and will definitely be reading We Move, the author's collection of short stories, soon. Atmosphere is a love story set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program. It follows Joan Goodwin, an astrophysics professor who finds love, friendship and rivalry while training to become an astronaut. But then, on a mission in December 1984, everything changes in an instant. 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Daily Mirror
18 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Five romantasy book series' to get your heart racing if you loved ACOTAR
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Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Popular crime writer calls on Goodreads to 'protect authors from online abuse'
Authors have called out Goodreads for failing to remove negative reviews of their novels before they've been released yet - with claims that it constitutes "online abuse" Don't judge a book by a cover – or before it even has a cover. Writers are being reportedly bombarded with negative reviews on Goodreads before proof copies have even been circulated yet. Worse still, the site is allegedly failing to remove them. Crime author Jo Furniss recently called out Goodreads for not doing more to prevent this kind of negative 'review bombing' before their novels have even been released. As a popular book review site, Goodreads, which is owned by Amazon, is a go-to for many deciding on their next read. But Jo claims they aren't doing enough to "protect authors from online abuse '. Jo told The Bookseller: 'A lot of authors share the soul-destroying experience of seeing their books trashed before they are even available to genuine readers. Worse, like me, they feel they are given no protection by one of the biggest platforms in the industry.' In a comment piece written for The Bookseller, Jo claimed that her upcoming thriller, Guilt Trip, had a two-star rating on Goodreads – despite not being published yet. She added that no advance copies had been sent out either. After feeling compelled to respond to the anonymous reviewer, Jo claimed that they then complained about the comment. This prompted an email from Goodreads advising authors to "refrain from confronting users who give their books a low rating". Her own comment was subsequently removed. While she emphasised that she 'doesn't care about one petty review', she expressed frustration over the fact that a 'troll' was being given more protection by Goodreads, and claimed their actions constituted a form of 'online abuse'. Jo told The Mirror that she attempted to follow up her complaint over their behaviour. In her email, she informed Goodreads: "I replied to this rating because I believe the reviewer to be fraudulent — this particular book (Guilt Trip) is not yet published or available to be read. It is not possible that this is a genuine review." She claimed that the user had targeted all of her novels with poor reviews, while posting no other reviews of works by other authors. She received a reply from Goodreads saying that they would investigate the issue, but claimed that no further action was taken. However, the review has since been removed after The Bookseller contacted Goodreads, as reported by The Bookseller. For more stories like this visit The Gulp or subscribe to our weekly newsletter for a curated roundup of top stories, interviews, and lifestyle picks from The Mirror's Audience U35 team delivered straight to your inbox. Romance author Milly Johnson also revealed to The Bookseller that she had a one-star rating for a book that hadn't even been looked over by her copy editor yet. But when she complained to Goodreads, they allegedly responded saying that the reviewer had 'a perfect right to predict if they'd enjoy it or not.' The Mirror reached out to Milly for comment. Goodreads has been associated with the phenomenon of 'review bombing' in the past. In 2023, The Guardian reported that some authors were avoiding using the site due to "mean-spirited" reviews. One of the most notable scandals emerged when writer Cait Corrain was dropped by her publisher after admitting to writing negative reviews about rival authors with a fake account, as reported by The Guardian. That same year, Goodreads pledged to counteract issues like review bombing, such as the ability to 'temporarily limit submission of ratings and reviews on a book during times of unusual activity' that go against their guidelines. The Mirror has reached out to Goodreads for comment. Help us improve our content by completing the survey below. We'd love to hear from you!
