The books the Vogue Scandinavia editors loved in 2025

It is by no means a secret that the Vogue Scandinavia office is brimming with readers. Be that novels, magazines, substack or short stories, there is no end to the literary media we consume.

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But, alas, with the end of the year comes time for reflection, and in honour of that, each editor has taken a moment to look back at the texts they read this year and try to select a favourite. From re-reads to new discoveries, these are the books the Vogue Scandinavia editors loved in 2025

“Only released in August, 17 Juni quickly cemented its spot as my favourite book of the year. Following the protagonist Vidar as he finds an impossible avenue to communicate with his long-gone family kept me gripped from the first page till the last.”

"To be totally (embarrassingly?) honest I didn't read any new books this year (I don't think?! This year has felt like 10 years). Instead I made a greater commitment to reading more great long-form journalism by my peers and former editors (if I'm not reading it, who is?!). That said, I re-read Taipei by Tao Lin at some point over the summer and I'm happy to report that it really holds up. If you like meandering love stories about partying and the Internet, you'll probably like it too."

“Although I’m a big Amy Winehouse fan (and a sucker for biographies), I somehow hadn’t clocked the biography written about the iconic artist in 2022 until this year. My Amy: The Life We Shared is penned by her best friend, Tyler James, who met Amy when they were kids, and the two remained ride-or-dies all the way until her untimely passing in 2011. The book is raw, honest and heart-wrenching, while also shedding light on the incredibly strong, kind-hearted and singular woman behind the indelible music and fame. I’m not exaggerating when I say I was glued to this book, pulling it out any chance I got…”

"People say don't judge a book by its covers, but when I stumbled across this beauty (alongside the rest of Seicho Yokomizo's repertoire published by Pushkin press) it instantly spoke to me. But, while it may have been the pretty pulp-fiction reminiscent cover that first lured me to pick this up, it was the story that gripped me. Described as Japan's Agatha Christie, Yokomizo provides the cant-put-it-down engine you want in classic crime fiction, framed in a (to me) rather exotic locale of post-war Japan. Lucky for me, Yokomizo penned more than 200 novels so I'm already making room in the book case for more."

"I’m such a sucker for Jane Austen’s novels and can’t think of anything better than drifting away into a fictional costume drama."

"Elaine Castillo’s Moderation takes the cake for me this year. Described as a “bold and inventive novel about real romance in the virtual workplace”, it follows a content moderator renowned for her ability to sift through the internet’s most disturbing corners. When she’s promoted to a cushier title, she finds herself in a different – and somehow harder to stomach – scenario: slowly falling in love with a coworker. Not only does the book masterfully tie together speculative fiction and regency style romance, it’s got whip-smart prose, unexpected nods to the fashion world, and a riveting analysis of class and power dynamics. Not to be missed."

"Spending the few sunny days the UK offered stuck on the underground while working in London this summer felt unbearable. To combat this, I sought to bring some sunshine to my commute with a distinctly summery read: enter Bonjour Tristesse. In retrospect, I should have researched my choice a little more; though set on the French Riviera, it wasn't quite the light summer text I'd anticipated. Despite this, I absolutely adored Franćoise Sagán's vocabulary and literary style, elements I aspire to incorporate into my own writing in the coming year."

"I've been wanting to read Demon Copperhead for years, and this summer I finally got around to it. Described as a modern day Oliver Twist, the novel shines a light on the opioid crisis in a forgotten rural American town, while unfolding a powerful story of love, loss, and resilience through the eyes of Demon Copperhead himself."