8 Stories of Secrets, Survival and Self-Discovery From The Top 100 2025

Every year, the Better Reading Top 100 celebrates the books Australians love most. From gripping thrillers to heartfelt dramas, this year’s list is packed with amazing reads. We’ve selected 8 standout titles that showcase the diversity and depth of the 2025 list. Whether you’re in the mood for suspense, emotion, or pure storytelling magic, there’s something here for every reader.

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

Brisbane, 1985: A lost father, a mute brother, a junkie mum, a heroin dealer for a stepfather and a notorious crim for a babysitter. It’s not as if Eli Bell’s life isn’t complicated enough already. He’s just trying to follow his heart and understand what it means to be a good man, but fate keeps throwing obstacles in his way – not the least of which is Tytus Broz, legendary Brisbane drug dealer. But now Eli’s life is going to get a whole lot more serious: he’s about to meet the father he doesn’t remember, break into Boggo Road Gaol on Christmas Day to rescue his mum, come face to face with the criminals who tore his world apart, and fall in love with the girl of his dreams.

#1 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of Boy Swallows Universe here.

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty

It all begins on a flight from Hobart to Sydney. The flight will be smooth. It will land safely. Everyone who gets on the plane will get off the plane. But almost all of them will be changed forever. Because on this ordinary flight, something extraordinary happens. ‘A lady’, unremarkable until she isn’t, predicts how and when many of the passengers are going to die. For some, death is far in the future; for others, it is very close. A brilliantly constructed story that looks at free will and destiny, grief and love, and the endless struggle to maintain certainty and control in an uncertain world.

#7 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of Here One Moment here.

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth

Gabe is alone at the cliff’s edge. His arms are outstretched, palms facing the empty air. He said she jumped. He wouldn’t lie. Before the woman went over the cliff, Pippa and Gabe were happy. They had the kind of marriage that everyone envies, as well as two sweet young daughters, a supportive family, and a picturesque cliff-side home – which would have been idyllic had the tall beachside cliffs not become so popular among those wishing to end their lives. Gabe has become somewhat of a local hero since they moved to the cliff house, talking seven people down from stepping off the edge. But when Gabe fails to save the eighth, a sordid web of secrets begins to unravel, pushing bonds of loyalty and love to the brink. What wouldn’t you do for your soulmate?

#14 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of The Soulmate here.

Head for the Hills by Tricia Stringer

Margot and her sister Roslyn have lived side by side in a little town in the Adelaide Hills most of their lives, supporting each other through thick and thin. Then their neighbour Gunter dies. Surprisingly, his will asks that his house and vineyard be sold and that Roslyn donate the money to a charity of her choice. When a developer wants to buy the land and create a hotel just over Margot’s fence, Margot is outraged and decides to stand for Mayor and fight the development. But Roslyn feels differently. Her awareness of family violence and homelessness is sparked by the arrival in town of a young pregnant woman, who is escaping abuse and sleeping in her car. Determined to do some good, Roslyn supports the sale – she has found her charitable cause and the money will go to the homeless. Suddenly the sisters are on opposite sides of the fence, literally and figuratively. As the row heats up, their local community is divided between those pro-development and those against, and battle lines are drawn, neighbours eyeing each other angrily either side. As vandalism erupts, bitter words are hurled and pots are stirred. Will the town – and the sisters – ever recover their community spirit? Will anything ever be the same again?

#16 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of Head for the Hills here.

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

Frederick Fife was born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car he’d return it washed and polished, with a full tank of petrol. The problem is, he has no one left to borrow from. At 82 he’s desperately lonely, broke and on the brink of homelessness. But Fred’s luck changes when, in a bizarre case of mistaken identity, he takes the place of cranky Bernard Greer at Wattle River Nursing Home. Suddenly he has a roof over his head, warm meals in his belly and, most importantly, the chance to be part of a family again. Fingers crossed his poker face is in better nick than his prostate, or the jig is up. As Fred walks in Bernard’s shoes (and underpants), he discovers more about the man’s past – and what it would take to return a broken life to mint condition.

#21 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife here.

The Other Bridget by Rachael Johns

Named after a famous fictional character, librarian Bridget Jones was raised on a remote cattle station, with only her mother’s romance novels for company. Now living alone in Fremantle, Bridget is a hopeless romantic. She also believes that anyone who doesn’t like reading just hasn’t met the right book yet, and that connecting books to their readers is her superpower. If only her love life was that easy. When handsome Italian barista Fabio progresses from flirting with love hearts on her coffee foam to joining the book club she runs at her library, Bridget prays her romance ‘curse’ won’t ruin things. But it’s the attention of her cranky neighbour Sully that seems to be the major obstacle in her life. Why is he going to so much effort to get under her skin? With the help of her close friends and the colourful characters who frequent her library, Bridget decides to put both men to the test by finding just the right books to capture their very different hearts. She soon discovers that not all romances start with a meet-cute, but they might just end in happily ever after…

#22 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of The Other Bridget here.

What Happened to Nina? by Dervla McTiernan

Nina and Simon are the perfect couple. Young, fun and deeply in love. Until they leave for a weekend at his family’s cabin in Vermont, and only Simon comes home. WHAT HAPPENED TO NINA? Nobody knows. Simon’s explanation about what happened in their last hours together doesn’t add up. Nina’s parents push the police for answers, and Simon’s parents rush to protect him. They hire expensive lawyers and a PR firm that quickly ramps up a vicious, nothing-is-off-limits media campaign. HOW FAR WILL HIS FAMILY GO TO KEEP HIM SAFE? Soon, facts are lost in a swirl of accusation and counter-accusation. Everyone chooses a side, and the story goes viral, fuelled by armchair investigators and wild conspiracy theories and illustrated with pretty pictures taken from Nina’s social media accounts. Journalists descend on their small Vermont town, followed by a few obsessive ‘fans.’ HOW FAR WILL HER FAMILY GO TO GET TO THE TRUTH? Nina’s family is under siege, but they never lose sight of the only thing that really matters – finding their daughter. Out-gunned by Simon’s wealthy, powerful family, Nina’s parents recognize that if playing by the rules won’t get them anywhere, it’s time to break them.

#28 on Better Reading’s Top 100 2025

Buy a copy of What Happened to Nina? here.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, she would be the first to point out that there is no such thing. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute take a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans, the lonely, brilliant, Nobel-Prize-nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with – of all things – her mind. Like science, life is unpredictable. Forced to leave her job at the institute, Elizabeth Zott soon finds herself the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show, Supper at Six. Elizabeth’s unusual approach to cooking (‘Combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride’) proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn’t just teaching women to cook. She’s daring them to change the status quo. One molecule at a time.