My October Reads 2025
Hello, and welcome to my October reads round-up. Can’t believe we’re almost in November already! Before we know it, I’ll be posting my books of 2025 and my favourite reads of the year again. Where did the time go?
Anyway, despite (or maybe because) of falling ill during October, I managed to read six books this month. It’s shocked me to discover that I haven’t read any contemporary romance, although I have plenty lined up. October saw the release of some much-anticipated books, and I had quite a few deliveries of some sumptuous hardbacks. I’ve not worked my way through them all yet though. I’m hoping to get on with those during November.
What I did read during October was a mixture of non-fiction, cosy crime, a witchy romcom, spooky thrillers and children’s books. Well, one spooky thriller and one children’s book. I enjoyed all six books, so that’s a good result.
I read this month’s Read Christie Challenge book, and I ticked off a huge three squares in my 2025 Book Bingo: A childhood favourite; a book I previously gave up on; and a film or tv tie-in. I should say that the book I previously gave up on wasn’t because I wasn’t enjoying it. It was - well - you know, life and stuff. Wrong time.
All I have to tick off now are: A book that everyone was talking about but I missed it; an autobiography or a biography; and a book that’s older than I am. I’ll have to have a think about those…
The Holly Village Murders by Benedict Brown
(Cosy Mystery)
The snow falls, carollers sing, and a killer plots his next move…
London, 1928. Marius Quin and Lady Bella Montague are ready for a quiet Christmas when they learn that Bella’s beloved Aunt Adele has met a shocking end in her picture-perfect cottage. Immediately heading for Holly Village, the enclave of retired aristocrats and eccentric pensioners where Adele lived, they discover that her death was far from natural.
The dead woman’s priceless Manet painting has vanished, and a cryptic note she left hints at scandalous goings-on among her neighbours. When another resident is murdered during the village Christmas party, it’s clear that a devious killer is preying on the sleepy community. Marius and Bella must navigate a web of village intrigue, false identities, and long-buried scandals to stop this from being a Christmas to remember for all the wrong reasons…
Click to buy
Towards Zero by Agatha Christie
(This month’s official choice for the Read Christie 2025 Challenge)
(Cosy Mystery)
An explosive love triangle, a formidable matriarch and a house party of enemies. All drawn inexorably … Towards Zero.
Confined to her bed, Lady Tressilian decides to summon her friends to her seaside home for a party.
The guests begin to gather. The handsome sports star. The beautiful new wife. The ex.
The atmosphere is tense. But little do the guests know, that the party is about to come to a chilling end.
When one of them is found brutally murdered, each one of them becomes a suspect.
But who among them is a killer?
Click to buy
When Gavin Met Stacey and Everything in Between by Ruth Jones and James Corden
(Behind-the-Scenes, Memoir)
(The eleventh square ticked in my 2025 Book Bingo - a film or tv tie-in)
For the first time, go behind the scenes of the beloved TV show Gavin and Stacey with the must-read memoir from the BAFTA award-winning writers Ruth Jones and James Corden.
THIS IS THE MUST-HAVE BOOK FOR EVERYONE WHO LOVES GAVIN AND STACEY
When Gavin Met Stacey and Everything in Between is the story of how Ruth and James turned their little show about ordinary life into a full-on cultural phenomenon.
As they recount the highs and lows they faced along the way, Ruth and James explore the journey of their real-life friendship, the making of the show and the relationship between Nessa and Smithy that had the nation glued to their screens.
Full of revelations and anecdotes to working scripts and never-before-seen photographs including:
•The story behind Nessa’s iconic look
•The original treatment for the show
•And maybe pictures from that fishing trip…
This one-of-a kind memoir takes you behind the scenes of one of the most iconic and beloved shows in British television history. Here are the details of what’s occurred every step of the way, from initial pitch to final day of filming, and all the love that followed.
When Gavin Met Stacey and Everything in Between is the perfect final chapter in this incredible story and is essential reading for all Gavin and Stacey fans.
Click to buy
Bubble Trouble by Abbie Hicks
(Cosy paranormal romance)
A Witchy Romantic Comedy
Heartbreak. Soap bubbles. Witchcraft gone wrong.
Jasmine Graham wasn’t planning on magical mayhem—but Spellwood has other ideas…
After a cheating fiancé, a backstabbing business partner, and one very unfortunate encounter with a desk, aromatherapist Jasmine escapes to the Cotswolds for a soap-making workshop. Instead, she stumbles into Spellwood: a quaint village that’s 10% charm, 90% supernatural weirdness.
Enter Noah Young—calm, kind, impossibly handsome… and secretly a witch. His one job? Keep Spellwood’s magic hidden. Which gets a lot harder when Jasmine’s first batch of soap creates glowing, gossiping bubbles that float around town dyeing hair, spilling secrets, and handing out unwanted life advice.
As Noah scrambles to keep Spellwood’s secrets and Jasmine tries to keep her sanity, sparks fly, bubbles burst, and magical hijinks ensue.
✨ Forbidden romance? Check.
✨ Magical identity crisis? Double check.
✨ Flying bubbles that ruin bake sales and marriages? Oh, absolutely.
When the truth finally comes out, Jasmine must decide if she’s brave enough to embrace the magic within—and the man who risked everything to protect her.
Bubble Trouble is a sparkling blend of romantic comedy, witchy mishaps, and small-town magic. Perfect for fans of Erin Sterling’s The Ex Hex, Sarah Hawley’s A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon, and anyone who loves cozy paranormal romcoms full of mischief, magic, and sweet first kisses.
Click to buy
A Crown of Lights by Phil Rickman
(Supernatural thriller)
(The twelfth square ticked on my 2025 Book Bingo - a book I previously gave up on)
Single mother and Diocesan Exorcist Merrily Watkins must keep the peace in rural Hereford, quelling a modern witch hunt, and a killer with an old tradition to guard...
Ancient history, violent deaths, feuds, intrigues and murder.
When a pagan couple buy a ruined church on the Welsh Border, there's an extreme reaction from the local fundamentalist priest. Is it a hate campaign or a nightmarish modern witch-hunt? Merrily Watkins is sent in to keep the lid on the cauldron and uncovers the sinister dynamics of the isolated village of Old Hindwell.
Click to buy
The First Rosette by Christine Pullein-Thompson
(Children’s pony book)
(The thirteenth square on my Book Bingo ticked - a childhood favourite.)
David's family don't like horses. They think he should concentrate on school, because there's no future with horses for someone like him. But David is determined, and horses are somehow in his blood. He meets Pat, the Master's daughter, and they get on well, despite coming from completely different backgrounds.
David gets a reward he never expected after he does a good deed, and he learns more and more about horses. Perhaps one day he'll win that first rosette.
Please be aware that this book was written in the 1950s, when hunting was legal.
Click to buy
I hope you found something there that you’d like to read for yourself. Until next month, happy reading!
