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The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Audiobooks of 2025, recommended by AudioFile Editors

The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Audiobooks of 2025, recommended by AudioFile Editors

If you're looking for audiobooks that will make a good book even better, AudioFile magazine's best of the year lists are a great place to start. Here's their list of best audiobooks for 2025 in the science fiction and fantasy genres—from retellings of mythical tales to the hell of dark academia.

New Book Recommendations

Beneath the United States by Lars Schoultz Beneath the United States by Lars Schoultz

US RELATIONS WITH LATIN AMERICA
Beneath the United States by Lars Schoultz

“This is a wonderful, sweeping history of U.S. relations with Latin America, from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823 to the late 20th century’—William LeoGrande, professor of government at the American University and Latin American specialist

The Mare: A Novel by Angharad Hampshire The Mare: A Novel by Angharad Hampshire

HISTORICAL FICTION
The Mare: A Novel by Angharad Hampshire

⭐ Shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction
“Hermine Braunsteiner is a New York suburban housewife whose past as an ambitious female Nazi concentration camp guard catches up with her. The reader watches Hermine’s post-war American life, and that of her faithful husband, unravel”—Katharine Grant, chair of the judging panel

The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective by Sara Lodge The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective by Sara Lodge

HISTORY BOOKS
The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective by Sara Lodge
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Wolfson History Prize
“This is a really interesting book, bringing together history and fiction…Sara Lodge explores fictional women detectives and the reality of what women were doing in the police force and beyond in the period from the 1840s onwards. She finds the overlap between the two”—Helen King, historian and Wolfson judge

A Little Trickerie by Rosanna Pike A Little Trickerie by Rosanna Pike

THE FUNNIEST BOOK OF 2025
A Little Trickerie by Rosanna Pike
šŸ†Ā Winner of the 2025 Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction
“The sensibility is very Chaucerian. There’s low humour, bawdiness, slapstick, and it is all set within this world where people want to believe in miracles”—Stephanie Merritt, judge, Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction

Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare by Edward Fishman Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare by Edward Fishman

NONFICTION BOOKS
Chokepoints by Eddie Fishman
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Financial Times Business Book of the Year
“Fishman has really captured the zeitgeist of the moment”—Andrew Hill, Financial Times

The Melancholy of Untold History by Minsoo Kang The Melancholy of Untold History by Minsoo Kang

FANTASY
The Melancholy of Untold History by Minsoo Kang
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Mythoepic Fantasy Award
“Kang is a historian who teaches a course called ‘Historical Myth’…This is a really intelligent novel – as well as being a lot of fun.”—Sylvia Bishop fantasy editor, Five Books

Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age by Eleanor Barraclough Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age by Eleanor Barraclough

HISTORY BOOKS
Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking AgeĀ by Eleanor Barraclough
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Wolfson History Prize
“She uses material culture, the archaeology of individual objects, and goes into the individual lives reflected in those objects, but then comes out to revisit the big picture. It’s very cleverly done. It’s beautifully written.”—Helen King,Ā historian and Wolfson judge

The Last One at the Wedding: A Novel by Jason Rekulak The Last One at the Wedding: A Novel by Jason Rekulak

THRILLERS
The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak
šŸ† Winner ITW Award for Best Standalone Thriller
“It follows Frank Szatowski, a widowed war veteran and UPS delivery guy who discovers that his estranged daughter is shortly to marry the son of a famous tech billionaire.”—Cal Flyn, deputy editor, Five Books

Flashlight: A Novel by Susan Choi Flashlight: A Novel by Susan Choi

FICTION
Flashlight by Susan Choi
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize
Flashlight opens with the mysterious disappearance of a young academic from a beach…It is a sweeping and profound novel, rendered with exquisite attention to detail”—Ayį»Ģ€bĆ”mi AdĆ©bĆ”yį»Ģ€, Booker judge

Flesh: A Novel by David Szalay Flesh: A Novel by David Szalay

FICTION BOOKS
Flesh by David Szalay
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Booker Prize
FleshĀ explores the ways power, money, and desire intertwine, and how loneliness can endure even amid apparent success… One of the things that I find remarkable is its subtle exploration of how the marks left by youth can echo through an entire life.”—Ayį»Ģ€bĆ”mi AdĆ©bĆ”yį»Ģ€, chair of the judges

Our Brains, Our Selves: What a Neurologist’s Patients Taught Him About the Brain by Masud Husain Our Brains, Our Selves: What a Neurologist’s Patients Taught Him About the Brain by Masud Husain

SCIENCE BOOKS
Our Brains, Our Selves: What a Neurologist’s Patients Taught Him About the Brain by Masud Husain
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Royal Society Science Book Prize
“The book in its entirety is a beautiful exploration of how problems in our brains can cause us to change. Its about the concept of ā€˜self’ and how pathological problems in the brain can cause people to become completely different”—Sandra Knapp, biologist and chair of the judges

James: A Novel by Percival Everett James: A Novel by Percival Everett

FICTION
James by Percival Everett

šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
“The magisterial craft of James by Percival Everett lies in its combination of biting humour and a page-turning plot, with ruminations on sovereignty and Voltaire along the way”—The judges of the Orwell Prize for Fiction

The Man Who Saw Seconds by Alexander Boldizar The Man Who Saw Seconds by Alexander Boldizar

SCIENCE FICTION BOOKS
The Man Who Saw Seconds by Alexander Boldizar
šŸ† Winner 2025 Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel
“This is such a clever book. Our protagonist, Preble Jefferson, can see five seconds into the future. More specifically, he can see five seconds into an array of alternate futures, and if there’s an outcome he wants, he can start with that and work backwards”—Sylvia Biship, SFF editor, Five Books

Glasgow Boys by Margaret McDonald Glasgow Boys by Margaret McDonald

BOOKS FOR TEENS
Glasgow Boys by Margaret McDonald

šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Carnegie Medal
“It is a book that will stay in the mind of the reader long after finishing it.”—Ros Harding, chair of the judges, 2025 Carnegies

The Boundless Deep: Young Tennyson, Science and the Crisis of Belief by Richard Holmes The Boundless Deep: Young Tennyson, Science and the Crisis of Belief by Richard Holmes

BIOGRAPHY
The Boundless Deep by Richard Holmes
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction
“Tennyson had this death-stalked life. After you read it, you’re amazed that Tennyson got up in the morning to write his poetry… The humanizing of this Victorian monument drew all the judges in.”—Robbie Millen, literary editor and chair, 2025 BG Prize

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

CRIME NOVELS
Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
⭐ Shortlisted for the 2025 Edgar Allan Poe Awards
“It revolves around a main character who does not know whether or not she committed the crime of murdering her best friend. Everyone else, however, thinks she did it”—Sophie Roell, editor, Five Books.

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

FANTASY FICTION
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Hugo Award for Best Novel
“Grimdark Magazine describes it as a ‘whirlwind of a mystery novel,’ and that’s absolutely true. But somehow, that’s not at the expense of the world-building – this world feels fully realised and lived-inside, accomplished without shaving a moment off the pace.”—Sylvia Bishop, SFF editor, Five Books

World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson

WINE BOOKS
The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson

“Wine is nothing if not geography in a bottle.”—Jancis Robinson, FT wine critic

The Melancholy of Resistance by LÔszló Krasznahorkai & translated by George Szirtes The Melancholy of Resistance by LÔszló Krasznahorkai & translated by George Szirtes

NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE
The Melancholy of Resistance by LÔszló Krasznahorkai
šŸ†Ā  Winner of the 2025 Nobel Prize in LiteratureĀ 
“My absolute favourite among Krasznahorkai’s novels.”—Ellen Mattson, Nobel committee member and author

Patriot: A Memoir by Alexei Navalny, translated by Arch Tait with Stephen Dalziel Patriot: A Memoir by Alexei Navalny, translated by Arch Tait with Stephen Dalziel

MEMOIR
Patriot by Alexei Navalny
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 National Book Critics Circle Prize for Autobiography
“Alexei Navalny’s Patriot is the whole package: it tells a compelling story of a man whose life was important and impactful and it’s a very literary book. The writing is beautiful”—May-lee Chai, prize judgeĀ 

Kindle Paperwhite by Amazon Kindle Paperwhite by Amazon

THE BEST KINDLES IN 2025
Which Kindle to get?
“That’s an easy question for me, Kindle Paperwhite is the most popular Kindle by far…It has all the best features that you would want”—Maneetpaul Singh, Kindle reviewer and author of Kindle Bookworm

The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly

BOOKS FOR KIDS
The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly
šŸ† Winner of the 2025 Newbery Medal
“A warm-hearted speculative novel set in 1999 featuring a 12-year-old boy, his teenage babysitter, a time-traveller from the future, and complications to do with teleportation and growing up.”—Tuva Kahrs, children’s editor, Five Books

ChatGPT

AI BOOKS
ChatGPT-4 offers its own opinions on artificial intelligence
“These books offer valuable insights into the development, challenges, and future prospects of AI”—ChatGPT-4, AI chatbot

Katabasis by R. F. Kuang Katabasis by R. F. Kuang

NEW BOOKS/FANTASY
Katabasis by RF Kuang
“This is the perfect beach read for fans of Five Books, set at Cambridge University and full of jokes about the intellectual life. It’s 500+ pages, but I read it in two days (at home, as it’s too cold for the beach by now)”—Sophie Roell, editor, Five Books

The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler

SCIENCE FICTION
The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler
šŸ† Winner 2025 Hugo Award for Best Novella
ā€œThe premise of this book is very neat: mammoths have been recreated, but they are also being hunted for their ivory, in a future where elephants have already gone extinct”—Sylvia Bishop, author and sci-fi editor, Five Books

Buckeye: A Novel by Patrick Ryan Buckeye: A Novel by Patrick Ryan

AUDIOBOOKS
Buckeye: A Novel by Patrick Ryan
⭐ An AudioFile Best Audiobook of 2025
“While World War II still rages in the Pacific, a secret spanning generations begins in Bonhomie, Ohio. Cal Jenkins and Margaret Salt, who are married to other people, share a kiss in a hardware store upon the news of victory over Germany”—AudioFile editors

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