10 best under-the-radar books to read this winter

by Adam Cohen

🎧 Audiobook

Not to peak too early, but this was my favorite nonfiction read of 2025. 

The year is 1884, and four men find themselves shipwrecked in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. After two weeks with almost no food or water, the decision is made to enact the custom of the sea—an ancient mariners’ tradition that says in order to save lives, one person may be sacrificed as food. But when the three survivors are rescued and return to England, they suddenly find themselves on trial for murder. Cohen, a lawyer, makes the legal ramifications of the case as fascinating as the shipwreck. 

by Michael DC Drout

🎧 Audiobook

Calling all fellow Tolkien geeks! Have you always longed for Tolkien to be taken as seriously as Shakespeare and Dickens? Well, here you go. 

Drout shows how Tolkien drew on sources like Beowulf and the Kalevala to fashion Middle-earth, a new and unique creation that, nonetheless, feels as ancient as those inspirational works. Genuinely academic, the books also features some excellent footnote humor. 

by Miguel Bonnefoy

Translated by Ruth Diver

I jumped into this book with Venezuela in the news, and it proved a smart choice. Starting with a mute beggar who finds a child on the steps of a church, this novel unfolds through the generations, showing the rapid growth and change that has made Venezuela the country it is today, while always remembering the compelling characters at the heart of the story. 

Inspired by the author’s own family, this is a dreamy, magnificent book.

by Maria Popova

Introverts of all ages will very much appreciate this lovely picture book. 

Longing for quiet and solitude, Re sets off for the dark side of the moon in the hopes of finding a nice spot to be alone. Re succeeds… and doesn’t succeed. Mi has also discovered a cozy hole on the moon, but the two find a happy and musical way to be alone, but not entirely solitary.

by Levi Homstad

Another utterly charming picture book, How the Husky Got Its Mask is the perfect read for winter. 

Have you ever noticed that distinctive white mask on the faces of huskies? Well, in this bit of fanciful mythology, huskies did not always have beautiful white fur on their faces, but instead, were blessed with it after a great feat of heroism by a dog named Sitka.

by Mindy Hung

🎧 Audiobook

The women in Leeann Wu’s family for three generations have helped bring babies into the world, either as ob-gyns or midwives. But she shares more with her female ancestors than just a calling. The Wu women also just might have a little magic, and as much as Leeann would like to, she can’t blame her burgeoning powers on perimenopause. As disasters and insomnia begin to plague her town, Leeann will need to use all her gifts if she is to help.

by Janet Rich Edwards

🎧 Audiobook

In medieval Bruges, Aleys wants to make her own life choices, and that does not include acquiescing to an arranged marriage when she would rather serve God. She finds refuge with a group of religious women—not nuns, but beguines, women who, for various reasons, have chosen to live together and serve their community by running a school and hospital. But Aleys has landed in the midst of vicious church politic fights, and a quiet life of servitude may always elude her.

by William Boyd

🎧 Audiobook

Ah! I just love William Boyd. I mentioned the first book in his Gabriel Dax series around this time last year, and now, Book 2 is out. 

Once again, our simple Cold War-era travel writer finds himself entangled in MI6 schemes, this time with a mafia assassin in Guatemala who just might now be headed to Berlin ahead of President Kennedy’s visit. Can Gabriel and his handlers head off the murder of the American President? 

As with the first book, the audio here is read by George Blagden, who is just superb. 

by Graeme Macrae Burnet

🎧 Audiobook

This dark and moody literary thriller is a quick, tense read based on an actual murder case in 19th-century Scotland. 

The MacPhees live on the island of Benbecula, and Angus MacPhee seems to be losing his mind and showing violent tendencies. Years later, his brother, still living in the family’s house, remains haunted by Angus’ deeds, and just might be struggling himself with madness.

by Tatiana Țîbuleac

🎧 Audiobook

Translated by Monica Cure

Another novel revolving around mental illness, The Summer My Mother Had Green Eyes is a compelling and heartbreaking read. 

Aleksy, with the encouragement of his therapist, recalls in detail the final summer he spent with his mother in the French countryside when he was a teen. The two are plagued by pain from the past and dreams for the future, and their uncertainty about life (and questionable narrative honesty) make the novel unsettling in the best way.