Welcome to my October 2025 Favorite Books post! This monthly post is where I share the 5 star books I’ve read so far each month. You can see the first half of my October reading here and I will share the rest of my October reads next week. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission.
Title: Finding Lost
Author: Holly Goldberg Sloan
Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary
Publisher: Rocky Pond Books, 10/7/25
Source: Storygram Book Tours
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I loved this middle grade book about Cordy, who lives with her mom and her brother while grieving the loss of her father. Cordy finds a lost dog, who she names Lost, and who leads to a new beginning for her family.
“Cordy Jenkins is searching for something that will change her life, and for the safety that vanished when her father died. She is convinced that if she just tries hard enough, she will find part of what her family lost, which will stop her mom from wanting to leave the small town she and her little brother have always called home. What Cordy finds instead is a muddy, hungry little dog with bad breath. And he’s the start of her family’s new beginning. You’ll fall in love with Cordy and her family as they fall in love with the stray pup named Lost. Full of unforgettable moments, family, and warmhearted humor, Finding Lost is a tender story of making peace with the inevitable truth: that change is a constant, and that after profound loss there is still always the possibility of unexpected joy.”
This book shows the difficult process of dealing with change but how change doesn’t always have to be a bad thing.
Title: Refugee: The Graphic Novel
Author: Alan Gratz, illustrated by Syd Fini
Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
Publisher: Graphix, 10/7/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
Refugee is the graphic version of the original book by Alan Gratz, which I have not read. However, I couldn’t put this down, and Simon even picked it up and gave it a look, which he hasn’t done in so long! It is about three kids who, along with their families, need to leave their homes, becoming refugees. The settings are 1939 Germany, 1994 Cuba, and 2015 Syria.
“JOSEF is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world…ISABEL is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America…MAHMOUD is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe…All three kids must endure harrowing journeys. All face unimaginable dangers. But there is always the hope of tomorrow. And although Josef, Isabel, and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections will tie their stories together in the end.”
The families take dangerous measures to reach safe places. I loved how the stories were connected to one another in surprising ways.
Title: Backslide
Author: Nora Dahlia
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Gallery, 10/21/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
While I’m not usually a fan of high school messiness brought into the present time, somehow this book worked for me. It is about Nellie and Noah, who dated in high school and ended their relationship, but are now reunited for a week at a resort with other friends from high school. Through flashbacks to the 90s (including a John Starks reference!), we find out what happened in the past, while the couple gets to know each other again in the present.
“Nellie Hurwitz doesn’t have a first love. She has a first hate: Noah-who-may-not-be-named. And she has refused to talk about what imploded their relationship since it ended abruptly near the end of high school. For two decades, Nellie and Noah have managed to avoid seeing each other—but the gig is up when their respective best friends, Ben and Cara, plan an intimate vow renewal at a vineyard compound in Sonoma, California. Nellie is determined to keep ancient history from ruining the trip Cara has worked so hard to plan—but dangerously close quarters bring up feelings both Nellie and Noah have carefully locked away for years. Even amidst the eye rolls, snipes and awkwardness of their forced proximity, the two can’t shake the heady attraction they’ve always shared. Written in alternating timelines, teenage Nellie and Noah fall together and apart in 1990s New York, while, in the present day, they grapple with whether—despite the baggage of the past—there is still something real and unfinished brewing between them. Ultimately, can they find a way to move forward? Or will they backslide and blow things up for good?”
Although there are many reasons I may not have ended up loving this one, I do think the author’s writing helped win me over!
Title: Love in Plane Sight
Author: Lauren Connolly
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Berkley, 12/16/25
Source: Traveling ARC
Why I Read It: Anticipated read
My Rating: 5 Stars
I was so happy to get to take part in the traveling ARC for Love in Plane Sight by Lauren Connolly. This was high on my list of books to read because I loved her previous book PS I Hate You. I’m happy to say I loved this one as well! This is about Beth, who wants to be a pilot, even after an emergency landing with her brother’s grumpy best friend George. George agrees to give her flying lessons, which generally cost more than Beth can afford. Beth and her brother Shawn share a toxic father, although Shawn is closer to him than Beth is.
“When flying with George Bunsen, the last thing Beth Lundberg wants is to be horny in the cockpit. But when her first ride-along dives toward disaster, the perpetually stoic George is forced to execute a skillful emergency landing, and Beth is horrified to find herself with an adrenaline-fueled crush on the pilot. She’s even more shocked when her brother’s best friend offers her discounted flight lessons—possibly out of guilt for almost killing them. And despite George’s annoying habit of departing any room the moment Beth enters, she really wants to accept. No matter that it’s an egregiously expensive hobby, or that her waitressing wages go right toward her mother’s medical bills, or that she’s already in debt up to her eyebrows. Flying is Beth’s dream, and she could use her private license to earn real money. The more time they spend navigating the sky, the more the turbulence between George and Beth dissipates. But Beth has seen the burning wreckage that comes from mixing business with pleasure—plus, she’s been keeping a secret that, once revealed, will send all her relationships into a tailspin. Can she really take a risk on romance when her pilot career isn’t even off the ground?”
Along with the slow burn romance between Beth and George, I enjoyed the sibling relationship between Beth and Shawn. Shawn also kept me laughing at his attempts to win over Beth’s best friend Dana, and I loved Beth’s dog Grumps as well as the rescue animal transport George and Beth did. This did have some spice once Beth and George got together!
Title: Till Death Do Us Part
Author: Laurie Elizabeth Flynn
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 8/13/24
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I really enjoyed this twisty family themed thriller about June, whose husband died 10 years ago – or did he? Because now she is seeing him everywhere. She is currently engaged to Kyle, but feels that she needs closure about what happened to Josh. Alternate chapters take place when Josh was a teenager from the point of view of his mother, Bev.
“Ten years ago, June’s beloved husband drowned on their honeymoon, his body never found. Now, a decade later, June is finally ready to move on. She owns a natural wine bar in Brooklyn and is engaged to a patient, supportive man. She’s excited to finally begin a new chapter in her life and start a family. But out of the blue, she sees him—Josh, her first husband. Is this just a hallucination from the guilt Jane carries about finally moving on, or is it possible that her husband never died in the first place? June tries to forget about this vision, chalking it up to grief and nerves, but soon enough, she stumbles across a website for a winery in Napa, and the owner in the photo is identical to her dead husband. With her upcoming wedding looming and a fiancé who’s already worried she hasn’t quite left her past behind, June secretly flies to Napa for answers. But she’s not prepared for all the secrets she’s about to unlock because everything she thought she knew about her first love is a lie.”
This being a story with twists, I can’t tell you much! It takes place in wine country and contains a good deal of wine talk. While I may have been left with a question about one thing that occurred, I still really liked this one and it kept me up late reading!
Title: The Heartbreak Hotel
Author: Ellen O’Clover
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Berkley, 9/23/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I loved this book about Louisa, whose boyfriend dumps her but what she really cares about is staying in the house that she can’t afford without him. She makes an agreement with the owner, Henry, to open the home as an inn for those dealing with heartbreaks. As a therapist, she can help those who come to stay.
“Louisa Walsh emerged from a tumultuous childhood with a degree in counseling, a wealthy boyfriend, and her sunny outlook on life mostly intact. But that optimism is tested when she’s dumped and left unable to afford rent on their gorgeous house in the mountains of Colorado. Even with her life in disarray, Lou knows losing the one stable place she’s ever called home is not an option. Her plan: ask her reclusive landlord, Henry Rhodes, to let her stay for free in exchange for renting out the house’s many rooms as a bed-and-breakfast. She’s shocked when he agrees to her terms, and even more surprised to discover Henry is a handsome thirtysomething veterinarian with silver at his temples and sadness in his eyes. One who does not take it well when Lou starts marketing her B and B as a retreat for the recently heartbroken. But as the Comeback Inn opens its doors to its weary, hopeful guests, Lou and Henry find themselves dancing around both their undeniable connection and the closely held secrets that threaten to topple this fragile new start. A chance at love, here, could be too close to home…or it could be exactly where their hearts finally heal.”
I enjoyed the grumpy / sunshine relationship between Lou and Henry – taking turns on which one was the grump! Henry is a veterinarian (who doesn’t have any pets!) and I loved the animals that were in the story. I also liked the story about Lou and her sister Goldie, as they attempted to deal with their toxic mother. Overall, I loved the sweet romance!
Title: It’s Different This Time
Author: Joss Richard
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Dell, 9/30/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
It’s Different This Time by Joss Richard is about June, who is an actress in L.A. when she gets news about the brownstone where she previously lived in NYC. The previous owner has left the property to her – and her former roommate Adam. Their story unfolds both in the present as the reunite and in the past, seeing what went wrong between them.
“Reeling from the cancellation of her hit TV show, June Wood has nothing left to lose when a mysterious email lures her back to the New York City brownstone she once called home before she moved to Los Angeles. Thanks to a clause in the former owner’s will, she and her old roommate, Adam Harper, now own the multimillion-dollar property—or at least they will in a month, once all the paperwork is signed. Four weeks, then June can return to her life in LA and forget about New York City and everything she left behind. Sure, the fact that June and Adam are estranged and haven’t even spoken in five years, and that their friendship didn’t exactly end on good terms might complicate matters, but this is an opportunity of a lifetime. As the autumn leaves fall around them, through shared meals and late-night conversations, old wounds and long-buried sparks resurface, and it becomes strikingly clear: June and Adam have unfinished business. Confronted with the consequences of their choices years before, they must now navigate the minefield of their past the best way they know how: together. Second chances are always a risk, but maybe, if they get it right and are finally honest with each other and with themselves, it could be different this time.”
I really enjoyed the slow burn romance x2 – both in the past and the present. I wasn’t sure I would buy into their reunion based on what happened in the past, but it did end up being believable. This story includes a toxic parent and the loss of a parent.
Come back next week for the rest of my October reads!
Do you have a favorite book you’ve read this month?
