Reviewed New book releases · May 2025
Every new book out in May 2025
111 books published for the first time this month. Here they all are, day by day, with our verdict on the ones we’ve read.
111new releases
111reviewed by us
30out on Tue 6, the busiest day
Romancetop genre
Our verdicts
Reviewed by The Bookish Elf
111 of this month’s new books, already read, rated and reviewed. Our two highest-rated first.
Out Tuesday 6 May
My Friends
by Fredrik Backman
Literary · Atria
Read our review →Out Tuesday 6 May
My Name Is Emilia del Valle
by Isabel Allende
Historical · Ballantine Books
Read our review →Is a River Alive?Robert MacfarlaneOut 1 May
One Golden SummerCarley FortuneOut 6 May
The TenantFreida McFaddenOut 6 May
The Survivor Wants to Die at the EndAdam SilveraOut 6 May
Little Bosses EverywhereBridget ReadOut 6 May
Mark TwainRon ChernowOut 13 May
The Emperor of GladnessOcean VuongOut 13 May
Speak to Me of HomeJeanine CumminsOut 13 May
Problematic Summer RomanceAli HazelwoodOut 27 May
Never FlinchStephen KingOut 27 May
Rewind It BackLiz TomfordeOut 1 May
Three MothersHannah BeckermanOut 1 May
The One That Got AwayMike GayleOut 1 May
The BoomerangRobert BaileyOut 1 May
The Things We WaterMariana ZapataOut 2 May
OvergrowthMira GrantOut 6 May
His Face Is the SunMichelle Jabès CorporaOut 6 May
Big Dumb Eyes: Stories from a Simpler MindNate BargatzeOut 6 May
Audre & Bash Are Just FriendsTia WilliamsOut 6 May
JiltedVi KeelandOut 6 May
Up in SmokeNick BrooksOut 6 May
Time Loops & Meet CutesJackie LauOut 6 May
Other People’s SummersSarah MorganOut 6 May
Kiss Me, MaybeGabriella GamezOut 6 May
Brighter than Scale, Swifter than FlameNeon YangOut 6 May
Home of the American CircusAllison LarkinOut 6 May
All We Lost Was EverythingSloan HarlowOut 6 May
The Manor of DreamsChristina LiOut 6 May
The ThrashersJulie SotoOut 6 May
The Original DaughterJemimah WeiOut 6 May
What Happens in AmsterdamRachel Lynn SolomonOut 6 May
Shield of SparrowsDevney PerryOut 6 May
Silver EliteDani FrancisOut 6 May
The DevilsJoe AbercrombieOut 6 May
The NamesFlorence KnappOut 6 May
The Missing HalfAshley FlowersOut 6 May
Parents WeekendAlex FinlayOut 6 May
Disco Witches of Fire IslandBlair FellOut 6 May
Hidden NatureNora RobertsOut 7 May
The Last SunriseAnna ToddOut 7 May
It Should Have Been YouAndrea MaraOut 8 May
Cover StoryMhairi McFarlaneOut 8 May
Where the Rivers MergeMary Alice MonroeOut 13 May
The Devil Three TimesRickey FayneOut 13 May
The Bookstore FamilyAlice HoffmanOut 13 May
SleepHonor JonesOut 13 May
Run for the HillsKevin WilsonOut 13 May
Out of AirRachel ReissOut 13 May
One in FourLucinda BerryOut 13 May
Dream On, Ramona RileyAshley Herring BlakeOut 13 May
Awake in the Floating CitySusanna KwanOut 13 May
Anima RisingChristopher MooreOut 13 May
A Simple Twist of FateApril AsherOut 13 May
32 Days in MayBetty CorrelloOut 13 May
No One Was Supposed to Die at This WeddingCatherine MackOut 13 May
Fever BeachCarl HiaasenOut 13 May
Immaculate ConceptionLing Ling HuangOut 13 May
The IncandescentEmily TeshOut 13 May
Maine CharactersHannah OrensteinOut 13 May
Dying to Meet YouSarina BowenOut 13 May
What Sleeps Within the CoveHarper L. WoodsOut 13 May
A Sharp Endless NeedMarisa CraneOut 13 May
A Curse Carved in BoneDanielle L. JensenOut 13 May
The Man Made of SmokeAlex NorthOut 13 May
Marble Hall MurdersAnthony HorowitzOut 13 May
The New Age of SexismLaura BatesOut 15 May
The Girls of Good FortuneKristina McMorrisOut 20 May
Food PersonAdam D. RobertsOut 20 May
WhistleLinwood BarclayOut 20 May
What Will People ThinkSara HamdanOut 20 May
We Live Here NowSarah PinboroughOut 20 May
The DoormanChris PavoneOut 20 May
NightshadeMichael ConnellyOut 20 May
The Book of RecordsMadeleine ThienOut 20 May
Heart of the SunMia SheridanOut 20 May
Going Home in the DarkDean KoontzOut 20 May
The Starving SaintsCaitlin StarlingOut 20 May
Wandering WildLynette NoniOut 20 May
Rules for RuinMimi MatthewsOut 20 May
Not Safe for WorkNisha J. TuliOut 20 May
Left of ForeverTarah DeWittOut 20 May
The Memory CollectorsDete MeserveOut 20 May
Fallen CourtGeneva LeeOut 20 May
BehoovedM. StevensonOut 20 May
AftertasteDaria LavelleOut 20 May
The Love HatersKatherine CenterOut 20 May
The Knight and the MothRachel GilligOut 20 May
Bad PublicityBianca GillamOut 20 May
Storybook EndingMoira MacdonaldOut 24 May
You, Me, and ForeverLaura PavlovOut 27 May
Written on the DarkGuy Gavriel KayOut 27 May
Mansion BeachMeg Mitchell MooreOut 27 May
Along Came AmorAlexis DariaOut 27 May
The BombshellDarrow FarrOut 27 May
Tell Them You LiedLaura LefflerOut 27 May
The Busybody Book ClubFreya SampsonOut 27 May
The Guest CottageLori FosterOut 27 May
Beautiful VenomRina KentOut 27 May
And They Were RoommatesPage PowarsOut 27 May
Releasing 10Chloe WalshOut 27 May
Beach House RulesKristy Woodson HarveyOut 27 May
Whispers of Dead GirlsMarlee BushOut 27 May
When Devils SingXan KaurOut 27 May
A Fate Forged in FireHazel McBrideOut 27 May
Consider Yourself KissedJessica StanleyOut 27 May
A Family MatterClaire LynchOut 29 May
Friends with BenefitsMarisa KanterOut 6 May
The Last Ferry OutAndrea BartzOut 20 May
The Romance RivalrySusan LeeOut 13 May
Big names this month
Popular authors with a new book
The best-known authors publishing in May, from readers’ most-anticipated list and the authors we review most.
Liz Tomforde6 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfRewind It Back · out 1 May★ We reviewed it
Vi Keeland4 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfJilted · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Devney Perry5 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfShield of Sparrows · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Carley Fortune3 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfOne Golden Summer · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Alex Finlay3 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfParents Weekend · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Freida McFadden18 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfThe Tenant · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Adam Silvera3 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfThe Survivor Wants to Die at the End · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Fredrik Backman4 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfMy Friends · out 6 May★ We reviewed it
Nora Roberts5 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfHidden Nature · out 7 May★ We reviewed it
Alice Hoffman6 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfThe Bookstore Family · out 13 May★ We reviewed it
HWHarper L. Woods4 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfWhat Sleeps Within the Cove · out 13 May★ We reviewed it
Danielle L. Jensen7 books reviewed on The Bookish ElfA Curse Carved in Bone · out 13 May★ We reviewed it
Release calendar
May at a glance
Tap a day to jump to its books. Tuesdays (highlighted) are the main US release day; a star marks a day with a book we have reviewed.
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
15 books21 book3
4
5
630 books72 books82 books9
10
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12
1327 books14
151 book16
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2023 books21
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241 book25
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2718 books28
291 book30
31
Day by day
All 111 new releases
Showing all 111 books.
Thursday1 May 2025
5 releasesReviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Friday2 May 2025
1 releaseReviewed Tuesday6 May 2025
30 releasesBig release dayReviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Wednesday7 May 2025
2 releasesReviewed Reviewed Thursday8 May 2025
2 releasesReviewed Reviewed Tuesday13 May 2025
27 releasesBig release dayReviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Thursday15 May 2025
1 releaseReviewed Tuesday20 May 2025
23 releasesReviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Saturday24 May 2025
1 releaseReviewed Tuesday27 May 2025
18 releasesReviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Reviewed Thursday29 May 2025
1 releaseReviewed Questions
May 2025 releases, answered
What books come out in May 2025?
111 new books are listed for May 2025, led by My Friends by Fredrik Backman, My Name Is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende and Is a River Alive? by Robert Macfarlane. The full list on this page runs day by day and can be filtered by genre.
What is the biggest release day in May 2025?
Tuesday 6 May, with 30 new books. Most US books are published on a Tuesday.
Which May 2025 books has The Bookish Elf reviewed?
My Friends by Fredrik Backman, My Name Is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende, Is a River Alive? by Robert Macfarlane, One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune, The Tenant by Freida McFadden, The Survivor Wants to Die at the End by Adam Silvera, Little Bosses Everywhere by Bridget Read, Mark Twain by Ron Chernow, The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong, Speak to Me of Home by Jeanine Cummins, Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood and Never Flinch by Stephen King, and 99 more. Reviewed books carry our star rating.