Books are small universes—affordable and easily carried, filled with mind-expanding possibilities. Through their pages, I explore new experiences and worlds, meet unforgettable characters, and deepen my understanding of…everything.
These are the books I read in October 2025, listed chronologically, and graded by recommendation (highly recommend, recommend, and do not recommend).
>rekt
You know how online gambling, A1/deep fakes, the incel community and, uh, corn/shmiolence, is a problem? What if all those things were combined and monetized?
Sammy finds out just how horrific those can be at an already-dark period of his young(ish) life: after the fatal motor vehicle accident of his long-term (high school sweetheart) girlfriend.
Grappling with loss, prone to depression, he’s easily tipped into an obsessive spiral when anonymously sent a horrific video.
Come for the (eventually) likable and compelling character’s vigilante quest, stay for the social commentary; highly recommend.
Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age
This is more than a collection of essays, but I lack the kind of art historian words to describe it.
These words persuade and portray narratives, but they’re also visual (multi-media?) and electronic/technological art.
One piece is basically written three times, once in European Spanish, then ran through Google translate, tweaked, and ran through again. Or something. And it was still beautiful!
That’s a small example, don’t get me started on the essay that’s just a list of lifetime searches, but somehow compelling; highly, highly recommend.
All The Way To The River
Who knew a book about death and love/sex addiction would be so spiritually shoring? Not this reader.
I’d like to dedicate a whole post or article to this book, so I’m hesitant to say more. In the meantime: highly, highly recommend.
Grand Finales
Nervous about aging? Not me. Which is why I got this book about women artists and their surprising and awesome late-life career arcs. For no reason.
This collection provided relief I absolutely did not need. O’Keefe, Eliot, Moore, etc are visionaries whose work and lives prove that aging doesn’t equal stagnation; highly recommend.
Three women
Lisa Taddeo gives a new meaning to in-depth reporting in her chronicles in the sexual lives of three American women. Think “In Cold Blood,” meets “The Feminine Mystique,” meets “This American Life.”
Follow these ladies push through panic attacks and affairs, sexual assault trials/inequalities and deviations; highly recommend.
The Broken Road
I was strangely pleased/inspired to learn that this nonfiction travel trilogy (ending with Road) is as famous for its’ inter-war descriptions of Eastern Europe as it is for its’ representation of Writer’s Block.
Writing and publishing of the trilogy stretched over 70 years, with the third memoir released unfinished (and posthumously, to boot).
Plodding at times (all the ditch sleeping), but worth the better understanding of pre-WWII/Iron Curtain Europe, recommend.
Men Have Called Her Crazy
Another memoir about love and sex addiction! With more personality disorder, perhaps.
And Anna had less resources and time, so her impulsive decisions were not as life-altering, maybe, and she got herself into treatment much earlier than Gilbert.
But the arc is similar, recommend.
Devil’s Day
This novel about a young family moving back to the Northern England version of the Rust Belt after the death of the family patriarch is straight up UNSETTLING.
It’s not the supernatural incidents listed, it’s the casual way they’re described. I’ve never seen the moors as a place for the devil, but I do now; highly recommend.
The Immortal King Rao
This…alternative history? The Social Network satire? Dystopian novel? Science fiction projection? Was so good it made me want to cry.
The emotion came from reading about this novel in the author’s essay collection (mentioned above, “Seaches…”). She describes how even a well-received fiction didn’t guarantee financial security and cultural cachet in the 21st century (the same way it might have in the 20th).
I probably wouldn’t have sought this out otherwise, which is sad. Make sure you do; highly recommend.
Conclusion
In the quiet company of these October 2025 reads, I found stories and echoes of the human experience: resilience in the face of despair, the enduring power of connection, and the timeless wisdom woven into words.
I hope this bite size book reviews open up new literary adventures for you. What literary landscapes are you currently exploring? I’d love to hear!
Want More?
Check out more bookish content here:
- June 2025 Bite Size Book Review
- How Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) Taught Me To Protect, Enhance, and Monetize My Own Lore
Happy reading!
Love,
