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Tuesday, August 19, 2025
Top Ten Tuesday: The Longest Books I've Read in 2025 (So Far)
6:18 PM
Today's TTT prompt—Top Ten Books With a High Page Count—is all about lengthy books. Are you a fan of thick, detailed door stoppers or do you avoid them like the plague? For me, it just depends. If a book is keeping me engaged and entertained, then I'll continue reading it no matter how many pages it has. If a book isn't holding my attention, then it doesn't matter if it's 50 pages or 5000, I'm going to DNF that sucker! I always read a mix of adult and children's books, most of which are mysteries/thrillers, historical fiction novels, or historical mysteries. Depending on which authors you read, these genres don't tend to produce the kind of epic tomes you see in the sci-fi and fantasy genres. I'd guess the page count of the books I read in any given year is around 200-250. Most years, I do take on a few thicker tomes, which for me usually means around 500 pages. This year, I've picked up more of them than I usually do, so for my list today, I'm going to share the ten longest books I've read in 2025 so far.
As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl.
Top Ten Longest Books I've Read in 2025 (So Far)
- from longest to shortest (of the longest) -
1. The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7683524304
Genre: nonfiction/U.S. history/Black history
What it's about: the massive migration of Black people out of the American South to northern, western, and midwestern states, from about 1910 to the 1970s
Page count: 622
Read for: book club
Affect of page count on reading experience: This book is interesting, but it definitely feels overly long and tedious. Other than the woman who recommended it, I'm the only one in my book club who finished it. Everyone else got too bored with it to read to the end.
2. Shift by Hugh Howey (SILO trilogy #2)
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7362810129
Genre: Dystopian/sci-fi
What it's about: With the world on the brink of certain destruction, select groups of people are invited underground to live in protected silos. Generations later, it's forbidden to even talk of the outside world, but there are always those whose curiosity and desperation get the better of them. What do they find beyond the silos? No one knows because those who leave never come back...
Page count: 579
Read for: I've been wanting to finish this series, which I started in 2018.
Affect of page count on reading experience: Although I really like the SILO books, there's no doubt that they get REALLY long. Longer than necessary. They don't have much plot to them, really, so the stories do get tedious and dull in places.
3. It Happened On the Lake by Lisa Jackson
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7528355859
Genre: mystery/thriller
What it's about: Harper Reed Prescott owns a large Victorian home on a beautiful private island which is also hers. She has no interest in either. After the mysterious deaths and other happenings that have occured there, she just wants to sell the whole property and be done with it. Unfortunately, there is much in her past and that of her family that still needs to be reckoned with...
Page count: 586
Read for: NetGalley review
Affect of page count on reading experience: This book is overwritten in every possible way. It was a huge slog for me and I'm still not sure why I plowed through the whole thing!
4. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness (Chaos Walking series #2)
My original blog review (2011): http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/2011/01/i-mean-seriously-could-patrick-ness-get.html
My Goodreads review (2025): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7717949658
Genre: YA dystopian/sci-fi
What it's about: Todd Hewitt has grown up on a planet other than Earth. Viola has come to his planet because Earth is no longer habitable. Todd's world is at war. Can he and Viola stop the violence, save their civilization, and protect the refugees from Viola's spaceship who are hurtling toward them hoping for peace and safety?
Page count: 553
Read for: re-reading the series because I LOVE it
Affect of page count on reading experience: The tension and action in this book are so unrelenting that the pages fly by. You barely notice how long it is.
5. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness (Chaos Walking series #1)
My original blog review (2011): http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/2011/01/knife-of-never-letting-go-leaves-me.html
My Goodreads review (2025): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/874857816
Genre: YA dystopian/sci-fi
What it's about: Todd Hewitt's parents came to a new planet to find refuge away from a dying Earth. Now an orphan, Todd has become disillusioned with the rules of his town. He is running away when he encounters Viola, whose scouting ship has just crashed nearby. Together, the parentless teens flee toward a city where they've heard they can find safety. The mayor of Todd's town, who isn't about to let them go, is in hot pursuit, determined to catch them no matter the cost.
Page count: 528
Read for: re-reading the series because I LOVE it
Affect of page count on reading experience: Ditto what I said above about The Ask and the Answer.
6. Wool by Hugh Howey (SILO trilogy #1)
My original blog review: http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/2018/01/subterranean-dystopian-trilogy-starts.html
Genre: Dystopian/sci-fi
What it's about: See summary for Shift above.
Page count: 509
Read for: I want to finish the SILO trilogy, which I started in 2018.
Affect of page count on reading experience: Wool moves at a faster pace than Shift, so it doesn't feel as long, but it does get slow in places.
7. The Burning Library by Gilly Macmillan (available November 25, 2025)
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7573787746
Genre: Mystery/thriller
What it's about: When Dr. Anya Brown publishes a translation of an ancient folio, she receives the attention of a secret women's organization that has been hunting for a certain book of power for over a century. A rival group also wants the tome. Caught in the middle of a deadly fight she doesn't understand, Anya has to figure out how to get herself out of it—before she's the next person to be mysteriously murdered.
Page count: 496
Read for: pleasure - Macmillan is one of my go-to mystery/thriller authors
Affect of page count on reading experience: Macmillan usually writes contemporary mysteries and thrillers that are quick-paced and engrossing. This book is a big departure from her norm. Unfortunately, I found The Burning Library overly long, tedious, confusing, and boring.
8. The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7843112501
Genre: historical fiction
What it's about: When her father cuts her off, insisting she become financially independent, Layla Beck is forced to take a job with the Federal Writers' Project. Tasked with writing a history of backwards Macedonia, West Virginia, she is unenthusiastic to say the least. As Layla gets to know the Romeyns, the quirky family with which she's boarding, her attitude slowly changes. She changes their lives as well, bringing unwanted tension, unwelcome questions, and unasked for observations that force the Romeyns to acknowledge some painful truths.
Page count: 486
Read for: pleasure and for the Literary Escapes Reading Challenge
Affect of page count on reading experience: Overall, this novel is quite charming and engaging. It is excessively long, though, and definitely would have benefitted from some serious trimming.
9. The Women by Kristin Hannah
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5736912487
Genre: historical fiction
What it's about: The life of a privileged young nurse is changed irrevocably when she volunteers to serve in the Vietnam War. When she returns home to California after two tours expecting a hero's welcome, she's dismayed to find her family dismissive of her experiences and her countrymen critical. Dealing with PTSD and these issues takes her to the very edge of her sanity. Can anything bring her back?
Page count: 471
Read for: pleasure
Affect of page count on reading experience: This is another book that is way longer than it needs to be. There's no real plot, so it feels episodic, repetitious, and dull, especially in the latter half when the main character is back in the U.S.
10. The Boxcar Librarian by Brianna Labuskes
My Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7136265693
Genre: historical fiction
What it's about: After being involved in a political scandal, a young writer is shipped off to Montana to work with a Works Progress Administration team to write a guide for the state. There, she encounters the intriguing mystery of a long-missing boxcar librarian. She's determined to find out what really happened.
Page count: 446
Read for: Goodreads review
Affect of page count on reading experience: This book kept my attention through all of its many pages. I enjoyed it.
I'd like to complete the Chaos Walking and SILO trilogies before the end of the year as well as a few more chunksters, so I've still got some hefty reading in front of me. What about you? What lengthy tomes have you read this year? Which door stoppers are your favorite? What's the longest book you've ever read? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.
Happy TTT!
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So many of these sound good, Susan. The Warmth of Other Suns and The Truth According to Us caught my eye. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeletehttps://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2025/08/top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-books-with-high.html
I hope you enjoy them if you read them!
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Cheryl!
Oh! I forgot about Warmth of Other Suns! ~Carol @ ReadingLadies
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting read, but it definitely starts to feel long and tedious. The tone is conversational, though, not like a textbook or anything. I hope you enjoy it when you get to it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Carol!
Nice list. I'm not a fan of big books but I do like Kristin Hannah and Lisa Jackson. They are always good.
ReplyDeleteI normally really like Hannah's books and I did learn a lot from THE WOMEN. It just felt really long and repetitive without enough happening to justify prolonging the plot. IT HAPPENED ON THE LAKE is the first book I've read by Jackson. Unfortunately, it will also be the last. I'm glad you enjoy her, though.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Yvonne!
I love that you have a non-fiction book on your list. And quite a few historical fiction novels :) One of which you read ahead of publication, I like that. You gave The Boxcar Librarian a good recommendation, that's the one I'd pick. Great list.
ReplyDeleteI do love historical fiction! It's always been one of my favorite genres. I hope you enjoy THE BOXCAR LIBRARIAN.
DeleteThanks for coming by and commenting, Patricia!
Oh, sorry, that was me commenting earlier.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know :)
DeleteSome good choices here! I feel like i enjoyed The Women a lot more than you did though!
ReplyDeleteProbably. It just didn't work for me as well as her other books have. The subject matter was interesting, though. I didn't know anything about women serving in the Vietnam War.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Marg!
You've read a lot of big ones this year!
ReplyDeleteRight? More of them than I usually do, that's for sure.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Louise!
Ooh nice! These are new to me ones. I usually don't care about page count either, although I have been known to put off the ones that are like 600+ pages for the longest time as I read so slow, so one of these 800+ that are on my TBR pile are likely to take 2 weeks or more to finish! I hate when Goodreads tells me I am behind on my challenge because I chose these 800+ page books to read! Lol. Since I met that challenge already I need to start picking some of these up!
ReplyDeleteWanting to reach my Goodreads goal (which is always an ambitious number) is definitely a reason I shy away from chunksters, especially toward the end of the year. I don't know why I even care, but I do! Ha ha. Glad I'm not the only one.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Jessica!
I agree if the book captures your interest it doesn't really matter how long it is. The Boxcar Librarian caught my eye. I am currently reading The Air Raid Book Club and I felt a sliver of possible similarity between them.
ReplyDeletehttps://rosieamber.wordpress.com/2025/08/19/%f0%9f%93%9atoptentuesday-10-books-with-a-high-page-count-tuesdaybookblog-booktwitter-booktwt/
That one's on my TBR list. I'm sure there are some similarities between it and THE BOXCAR LIBRARIAN. I'm always interested in learning about bookish history!
DeleteThanks for stopping in, Rosie Amber!
Boxcar Librarian sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting! I liked it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Stephen!
I am not a fan of The Women, but I loved Warmth of Other Suns.
ReplyDeleteSame. THE WOMEN just didn't work for me for a number of reasons. THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS was interesting, but I'm not sure I would have finished it if it weren't for book club. No one else in my book club even got close to completing it! Ha ha.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Deb!
The Warmth of Other Suns sounds really good.
ReplyDeleteMost of the books I read these days are no longer than 200-ish pages as well. I liked the really long books more when I was a kid and had a long summer break with which to read.
THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS really is interesting. It's just long and it definitely gets tedious. I hope you enjoy it if you read it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Lydia!
Wow, you even went with the ones you read this year. Well done.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my post:
https://momobookblog.blogspot.com/2025/08/top-ten-tuesday-high-page-count.html
That seemed the easiest way to go! I'm not sure I could have remembered the ten longest ones I've read over a lifetime. My aging memory is not that good. Ha ha.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Marianne!
The Women was a chunky one! I just read it a couple weeks ago and it was SO good!! Bawled my eyes out. haha. Great list, Susan!!
ReplyDeleteI listened to half of THE WOMEN on audio and read the other half and the story just seemed to go on and on and on. I wish I had liked it better. It did make me cry at least once, though.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Leslie!
I've been meaning to read The Knife of Never Letting Go for sooo long! But somehow never got round to it, ahaha. It sounds so good though.
ReplyDeleteIt's excellent! Even though it's a chunkster, it reads really fast. There's so much action that I zipped through it because I couldn't put it down.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Nicky!
The Boxcar Librarian sounds excellent!
ReplyDeleteIt is a good one. I enjoyed it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Carrie!
Nice list!! I have The Truth According to Us in my 'TBR', maybe I should move it up on the list of books I want to read.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed. It's way longer than it needs to be, but at least it's charming and funny. I hope you like it when you get to it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Captivated Reader!
Wow! You have read so many books this year! I agree if a book is keeping me engaged and entertained, then I'll continue reading it no matter how many pages it has, although these days I'd rather read shorter books. The books on your list are all new to me.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to read more books than I read last year, but I don't know if that's going to be possible as last year I read 230. We'll see.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Margaret!
An interesting list. I had to go back quite a long way to make a list of 10 books 😂
ReplyDeleteHave a great week!
For some reason, I've read a lot of big books this year (at least what I consider big ones).
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Emily!
The only one of these that I've read is The Women and I loved it. I used to read Lisa Jackson all the time, but as her books got longer and longer, I have shied away. The Truth According to Us is on my TBR shelf, so hopefully I will read it eventually. Nice list, Susan.
ReplyDeleteThat Lisa Jackson book was so disappointing! It sounded like a right-up-my-alley kind of read, but, man, it was a slog. THE TRUTH ACCORDING TO USE was much more enjoyable. I hope you enjoy it when you get to it.
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Carla!
I'm with you on books really needing to hold my interest--and to be well-written, too--or I'm quick to DNF. THere's just too many other books I want to read to spend time on one I'm not enjoying. Fun to see your list of longer reads from this year. :D
ReplyDeleteExactly! I'm pretty good about DNFing, but apparently, I still have some way to go. LOL
DeleteThanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Lark!
Ness' books are longer than I thought. My longest books were mostly fantasy. That is probably why I don't read a lot of fantasy.
ReplyDeleteThe Woman doesn't appeal to me at all, and by your review, not worth the time anyway! Great list, thanks for sharing your honest thoughts.
ReplyDeleteGreat list! The only one I read from this list was The Women, which seems like I enjoyed it a lot more than you did. The Burning Library sounded good, but after your mini-review I'm going to skip it. Sorry you had to take one for the team, but hopefully your next long book is a good one!
ReplyDeleteI feel like I've had that Patrick Ness trilogy on my TBR for like, 15 years at this point.
ReplyDeleteI've heard a lot of good things about Patrick Ness. I'll have to look more into his books to decide which one to try. Sounds like you love his series, so maybe I'll have to try it out. A mystery/thriller over 500 pages seems like a lot.
ReplyDeleteAlso, thank you for checking out my blog at A Fujoshi Reads!
I read the Silo series, and Chaos Walking series, and I really enjoyed them both! It's been a while since Chaos Walking though and I've been thinking about rereading the books. I hope you enjoy the rest of the books!
ReplyDeleteAll of these books sound great! I really want to read the Silo trilogy.
ReplyDeleteI don't normally read long books, but The Warmth of Other Suns is one that I own and intend to read sooner rather than later. It's really intimidating to look at how thick it is, though!
ReplyDeleteMy husband has read the SILO trilogy. I am totally addicted to the series on Apple TV. It’s one of my favorite shows.
ReplyDeleteInteresting books on your list! I've been wanting to read the Silo and Chaos Walking series, so glad to see them here!
ReplyDeleteI forgot until this week how long those Chaos Walking books are.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like you haven't had the best experiences with long books! I hope you come across some that grab you as much as the Chaos Walking books did.
ReplyDeletePatrick Ness is on my to read list. My reading hasn't been great lately and that's for shorter books. I can't even get my mind around longer books at the moment but maybe some day soon!
ReplyDeleteWool would make it onto my longest book list this year too! That reminds me, I need to read the sequel!
ReplyDeleteI think most of the time a long book does benefit from some trimming. It's a rare author (though I know there are some!) that has a 500+ page novel that truly needs all those pages to tell a compelling story. Most of the time, books that are that long would have been just as good with 100 or so pages less. :) Thanks so much for visiting my list on this week!
ReplyDeleteI can see a few here that are on my TBR, whenever I'll get round to reading longer books again.
ReplyDeleteGreat looking list. Some books do really need a trimming.
ReplyDeleteI am currently reading an 800+ book. Slowly, lol.
Love your list, Susan. I'm not a fan of long books or audiobooks either, but if it's really good the time passes quickly, and I barely notice it. I hope you have a happy holiday weekend!
ReplyDeleteThe Ask and the Answer sure sounds good.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting Long and Short Review’s post last week! Sorry about the delay in responding.