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One thing I’m not very proud of when it comes to my reading this year is that I haven’t really read a lot of fiction books; that I’d, contemporary, literary, or historical fiction.

But I’ve been compiling a list of new releases since the beginning of this year, and I plan to read more now that we’re heading into the second half of the year.

So if you want to stay up to date with the best new fiction book releases in July 2025, this is the post for you.

I’ve included books I’m particularly curious about, along with their publication dates, so you can stay ready and grab your copy once they hit the shelves.

Let me know which ones you’ve loved, if you’ve gotten an ARC and enjoyed it, or which ones you’re looking forward to in the comments below!

Upcoming July 2025 Historical Fiction Book Releases

The Entirely True Story of the Fantastical Mesmerist Nora Grey by Kathleen Kaufman – July 29th, 2025

I’m really looking forward to this one because I love books with a mystical, eerie feeling and this sounds like the perfect combo of historical fiction and spiritual wonder.

Set in early 1900s Scotland, this is the story of young Nairna Liath, who travels the countryside with her scheming father, pretending to connect with spirits.

But unlike her father, Nairna has a true gift – she really can speak to the other side.

Her life changes forever when she’s swept into Edinburgh’s grand spiritualist circles and later finds herself in America, living under the name Nora Grey.

There’s a dark asylum, lost family secrets, a dangerous séance, and whispers from her grandmother’s tragic past that call to her across time.

I can’t wait to see how her journey of breaking free from manipulation and finding her own power unfolds. This promises to be such an atmospheric and hauntingly beautiful read.

Wayward Girls by Susan Wiggs – July 15th, 2025

This book really tugs at my heart. I have always enjoyed reading stories about friendship and survival, and this one feels extra special because it’s based on true events.

Set in 1960s Buffalo, New York, six girls from very different lives end up in a Catholic reform school where strict nuns control everything.

There’s Mairin, Angela, Helen, Odessa, Denise, and Janice – each with their own heartbreak, secrets, and dreams for freedom.

These girls are labeled wayward simply for being themselves: some for being gay, others for being rebellious, or just unlucky.

I have a feeling this will break my heart and mend it at the same time as they fight for justice, friendship, and redemption.

I can’t wait to meet these brave girls and root for them as they find their way toward hope.

Typewriter Beach by Meg Waite Clayton – July 1st, 2025

This upcoming historical fiction book is set in the golden days of Hollywood, and it switches between 1957 and 2018 – two timelines I know I’ll enjoy.

In the past, we meet Isabella, a young actress hoping to impress Alfred Hitchcock but hiding out in a cottage in Carmel-by-the-Sea, where she meets a struggling, blacklisted screenwriter named Léon.

Decades later, his granddaughter Gemma finds hidden secrets in that same cottage. I’m so curious to see how their lives are connected and what truths will unfold.

A book about chasing dreams and the magic of storytelling – how can I not look forward to this?

A Bomb Placed Close to the Heart by Nishant Batsha – July 1st, 2025

This sounds like such a rich and moving historical love story – one that feels big and meaningful, but also very human.

Set during World War I, it follows Cora, a writer and idealist, and Indra, an Indian revolutionary in California.

They fall deeply in love, but the world around them – spies, politics, war – threatens to tear them apart.

They then flee to New York City, hoping to stay safe, but their dreams and fears collide in ways they didn’t expect.

I can’t wait to read how they manage such a dangerous and passionate life together. It feels like the kind of story that will stay with me long after I finish it.

Our Last Vineyard Summer by Brooke Lea Foster – July 1st, 2025

There’s something about summer books set by the sea that just makes my heart happy and this one feels extra nostalgic and emotional.

Betsy returns to her family’s Martha’s Vineyard house with her sisters, hoping for rest after a hard year but instead, old secrets and family tensions bubble to the surface.

I really like dual-timeline stories, and this shifts between 1965 and 1978, and it shows two generations of women grappling with love, feminism, and family choices.

I can already tell this book will capture that bittersweet feeling of returning home and realizing everything has changed.

I’m excited to sink into this story of sisterhood and letting go.

The Original by Nell Stevens – July 1st, 2025

I already know I’ll enjoy this book because it is stories set in an old English house with secrets tucked away in every corner.

In 1899, Grace lives on the edge of her wealthy family’s life, hiding her love of forgery and her attraction to other women.

But when a cousin long thought dead returns from the sea, claiming his rightful place in the family, Grace has to decide what’s real and what’s a lie.

I’m so curious to see how her skill at creating fakes might help her uncover the truth about him and maybe herself, too.

It feels like a story full of quiet danger and longing, which I love.

Last Stop Union Station by Sarah James – July 15th, 2025

A murder mystery set on a glamorous 1940s Hollywood train? Yes, please! This sounds like so much fun – a little old-school sparkle, a little danger, and lots of suspense.

Jackie Love is an aging star trying to save her career, but when a fellow actor dies on the train, she starts to wonder if it was murder.

I like that she teams up with Grace, a rare woman detective of the time, to solve the mystery. But soon they stumble into something bigger: a hidden Nazi plot.

I’m really looking forward to this twisty, exciting story about courage, patriotism, and the price of fame.

Angel Down by Daniel Kraus – July 29th, 2025

This book sounds so unusual and gripping. A fallen angel in the middle of World War I? I honestly can’t stop thinking about what this story could reveal.

Five soldiers are sent on what they think is a mercy mission, but instead, they find something otherworldly in No Man’s Land: an angel who might have the power to end the war.

But greed, fear, and jealousy could ruin everything.

I’m curious (and a little nervous) to see how these men’s flaws threaten their strange mission.

It promises to be dark, haunting, unforgettable, and a truly different kind of war story.

Give Me a Reason by Jayci Lee – July 29th, 2025

Anne left Frederick years ago to save her family, and she chose her career in Korea over the man she loved.

Now she’s back in Los Angeles, thrown together with him at a wedding. There’s anger, regret, and maybe hope?

I love when characters have a complicated past and a real reason to doubt if love can bloom again.

I’m really looking forward to watching them figure out if they can open their hearts one more time.

It feels like the perfect emotional, satisfying story to end the month.

A Bookseller in Madrid by Mario Escobar – July 1st, 2025

In 1934 Madrid, Bárbara escapes from Nazi Germany and opens a small bookstore, a place of dreams and safety in a world turning dark.

But when the Spanish Civil War begins, everything she’s built is threatened. Her bookstore, her love, and her life are all at risk again.

I really love stories about brave book lovers who believe in hope no matter what and I think this one will be very memorable.

I can’t wait to be moved by this gentle, brave tale.

New Contemporary Fiction Books Coming Out in July 2025

That Last Carolina Summer by Karen White – July 22nd, 2025

Karen White is back with a beautiful story that I’m really looking forward to because I always love stories about sisters and old family secrets.

In That Last Carolina Summer, we meet Phoebe, who’s spent years running from her past after being struck by lightning as a child and gaining strange dreams that have haunted her ever since.

But when her sister calls her home to care for their sick mother, Phoebe returns to the South Carolina Lowcountry, a place filled with old memories and hidden truths.

As she reconnects with her sister and befriends Celeste – a woman with her own painful past – Phoebe’s dreams grow darker, warning her of something shocking that’s about to change everything.

This feels like the perfect book for summer – gentle, full of mystery, and about the deep bonds of family.

I can’t wait to gently get lost in its quiet beauty and secrets.

These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean – July 8th, 2025

I’m especially excited about this one because it’s Sarah MacLean’s very first contemporary novel and it sounds like such a wild and emotional family story.

These Summer Storms follows Alice, the one sibling who left behind her wealthy, dramatic New England family.

But when her father dies, she’s forced to return to their private island for one impossible week filled with games, secrets, and chaos, just to claim her inheritance.

Every family member is hiding something, and the tension feels like it’s going to crack wide open.

I love stories like this that explore messy families, old feelings, and new chances for change.

And, there’s a mysterious, handsome man keeping a close eye on Alice, which makes me even more curious.

This book promises drama, romance, and healing and I’m definitely ready to settle in and enjoy this stormy summer escape.

The View from Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani – July 8th, 2025

This one feels like a quiet, heartfelt journey that I’m really looking forward to.

I love stories about women starting fresh in new places, and The View from Lake Como sounds like a gentle but brave adventure.

Jess is stuck living in her parents’ basement after her marriage falls apart, while feeling invisible in her big Italian-American family.

But when a family tragedy shakes her world, she finally dares to leave New Jersey behind and travel to Italy to rediscover herself.

From marble mountains to sparkling cities and peaceful lakes, Jess’s journey is filled with beauty, surprises, and the chance to start over.

I’m so eager to see how she finds her own dreams, her creativity, and maybe even love along the way.

A Summer for the Books by Michelle Lindo-Rice – July 15th, 2025

A Summer for the Books follows Jewel and Shelby, best friends who drifted apart years ago after painful secrets came between them.

Now Shelby wakes up from an accident with no memory of the past twelve years – including her daughter Lacey.

Only Jewel can help fill in the blanks, but she’s hiding troubles of her own.

As they gently reconnect, they find out that Lacey has gone looking for her birth parents, which pulls them into an unexpected search full of old feelings and new truths.

I love friendship stories like this, especially ones with second chances and forgiveness.

This one promises warmth, hope, and heartache in just the right balance. I’m truly looking forward to curling up with it on a quiet summer day.

Best New Literary Fiction Book Releases of July 2025

Necessary Fiction by Eloghosa Osunde – July 22nd, 2025

This new book by Eloghosa Osunde feels like something really special.

I’m truly looking forward to it because it promises such a rich, thoughtful look at queer life in Nigeria, which is something not often explored this deeply in fiction.

Necessary Fiction gently asks big questions: what truly makes a family? What does freedom mean, and who gets to have it?

Set in vibrant, bustling Lagos, the story follows more than two dozen unforgettable characters, all trying to shape their own lives, loves, and dreams – even when it means breaking the rules or risking relationships with family and friends.

They search for beauty, art, and connection while carrying secret hopes and quiet fears.

I’m excited to meet this cast of lively, flawed, and brave people. I just know this book will make me think deeply about love, survival, and the stories we tell ourselves to keep going.

My Train Leaves at Three by Natalie Guerrero – July 15th, 2025

I can’t wait to read this heartfelt story because I love books about chasing dreams while figuring out who you really are.

My Train Leaves at Three follows Xiomara, an Afro-Latina woman from Washington Heights, who’s still grieving the loss of her sister.

Nearly thirty and stuck in a cycle of unfulfilling jobs and disappointing relationships, Xiomara feels like life is slipping by – until a rare chance to audition for a famous Broadway director arrives. Could this be the fresh start she’s been waiting for?

And then there’s Santi, a kind coworker who might help her see life differently.

I’m looking forward to seeing how Xiomara balances her big dreams with staying true to herself.

I think this story will be moving and honest about what it costs to pursue your passions, and how grief, love, and hope can all change you when you least expect it.

Love Forms by Claire Adam – July 29th, 2025

This novel already feels close to my heart because I’ve always been drawn to stories about family, memory, and second chances.

Love Forms is about Dawn, a woman nearing sixty, who cannot stop thinking about the daughter she gave up for adoption as a teenager in Trinidad.

With her marriage over and her sons grown, Dawn longs to find the child she lost long ago. Her search takes her back to the Caribbean, which stirs old memories and raising new questions about the choices that shaped her life.

I can’t wait to follow Dawn’s journey – not just to find her daughter but to understand herself in a new way.

This sounds like such a moving story about the quiet power of a mother’s love, the secrets we carry, and the hope that it’s never too late to put the pieces of your life back together.

Pan by Michael Clune – July 22nd, 2025

I find this one so intriguing because it sounds strange in the best way – a coming-of-age story mixed with myth, panic, and mystery.

In Pan, Nicholas is fifteen when he suddenly forgets how to breathe, and his world starts falling apart.

The doctor calls it anxiety, but Nicholas suspects something much bigger: that the Greek god Pan might be living inside him.

As he searches for answers – with his best friend Ty and a possible new love interest, Sarah – Nicholas gets pulled into strange books, haunting music, and the dark secrets of an abandoned place called the Barn.

I’m really looking forward to seeing how this story balances humor, fear, and wonder.

It feels like a fresh take on growing up, anxiety, and trying to understand your mind when nothing makes sense. I think this book might surprise me in so many unexpected ways.

Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar by Katie Yee – July 22nd, 2025

This book already feels like it will be quietly powerful, with heartbreak wrapped in gentle humor. I love stories that can make something painful feel bearable, and Maggie sounds just like that.

It follows a woman whose life crumbles all at once – her husband cheats on her, and then she’s diagnosed with breast cancer.

She names the tumor Maggie, the same name as her husband’s mistress, and starts telling bedtime stories mixed with Chinese folklore to her children.

Her world breaks apart in funny and touching ways as she talks to the tumor, imagines helping her husband’s new lover, and tries to stay strong for her family.

I’m looking forward to this bittersweet, layered story that turns sadness into quiet strength. I think it will show me how laughter and love can soften even life’s hardest moments.

Lonely Crowds by Stephanie Wambugu – July 29th, 2025

I am so curious about this one because I love intense friendship stories, especially ones that stretch across years.

Thos lovely book follows Ruth and Maria, two very different girls who meet at a strict Catholic school and form a complicated, consuming friendship.

Their bond takes them from their lonely childhoods into the glittering but cutthroat art world of 1990s New York City.

While Maria rises as a brilliant artist, Ruth struggles, always standing on the edge of success and happiness.

I’m eager to see how their friendship changes as their dreams pull them apart and then together again in unexpected ways.

This story feels like it will explore ambition, longing, and what it means to find your place in the world.

I think this book will make me reflect on how friendships shape us, for better or worse, over the course of a lifetime.

Archive of Unknown Universes by Ruben Reyes Jr. – July 1st, 2025

This debut novel feels like something truly special. It’s a moving story about family, history, and the what ifs that shape our lives.

I’m really looking forward to it because I love books that make you wonder about different paths life could take.

The story follows two timelines: In 2018, Ana uses an experimental device to see other versions of her life and searches for answers about her family’s past in El Salvador.

Meanwhile, in 1978, Neto and Rafael are young revolutionaries falling in forbidden love while their country edges toward war.

These two worlds twist and connect in beautiful, heartbreaking ways. I think this will be such a thoughtful and emotional read about love, belonging, and history – things that always tug at my heart.

I can’t wait to see how fate, family, and choices collide in this genre-bending, time-shifting story that sounds both tender and daring.

An Oral History of Atlantis: Stories by Ed Park – July 29th, 2025

I absolutely love story collections that surprise me, and this one feels like a quiet little treasure chest full of odd, thoughtful gems. I’m so curious to see how Ed Park brings magic into everyday life.

These sixteen stories explore how strange and fragile modern life can be – like a student blurring the line between acting and real life, or a man facing his regrets while struggling to remember his phone passwords.

Each tale seems like it will gently peel away the layers of people’s thoughts, fears, and memories in ways that stay with you.

I think this will be perfect for slow, thoughtful reading – maybe with tea, while thinking about life’s small mysteries.

I love books that mix sadness, humor, and wonder, and this one promises exactly that. July can’t come soon enough for me to quietly enjoy these quirky, heartfelt pieces.

Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart – July 8th, 2025

This sounds like such a tender, bittersweet story, and I’m really looking forward to it because books told through a child’s eyes always touch me deeply.

Vera is only ten but she sees the cracks in her family’s life as they try to hold together in a chaotic world.

Her parents are pulling apart, America is changing fast, and Vera just wants to understand where she comes from – including meeting her birth mother someday.

I think this book will be full of quiet heartbreak and sharp humor that shows family love in all its messy beauty.

The way Vera carefully writes new words and watches the world feels so real and sweet. I can’t wait to gently walk through her world and feel all the joy, confusion, and longing she does.

This story promises to be honest, funny, and full of warmth and I love books like that.

Mendell Station by J.B. Hwang – July 22nd, 2025

There’s something so quietly beautiful about this story, and I’m especially excited for it because it touches on grief, work, and small acts of healing, which are things I think are so important in life.

Miriam’s life falls apart when her best friend dies, her faith crumbles, and she leaves her job teaching Scripture.

She takes a new path as a postal worker, right before the world shuts down in 2020. And soon her days become shaped by delivering mail and writing secret letters to Esther, the friend she misses so deeply.

I think this book will show me how everyday tasks – like delivering letters – can carry quiet meaning and bring comfort when everything else feels broken.

It feels like a soft, thoughtful read for anyone who has felt lost and slowly found small hope again.

I can’t wait to gently move through Miriam’s world and see her heal, one step at a time.

So tell me: which of these fiction books do you think you’re going to give a chance? Let’s chat in the comments section below.

And if you’ve been lucky enough to get an ARC of any of them, read it, and have some thoughts, make sure to share them in the comments too. I’d love to hear your recommendations.

If you want to stay up to date with more books coming out in July, don’t forget to check out these posts: