SWBC Wrapped: Top posts, a reading recap, and Star Wars books of 2025
The year I, once again, surpassed my reading goal, celebrated the end of the beginning of The High Republic, and read and reviewed lots of Star Wars books.
What a year. To say 2025 was transformative would be an understatement. It was life-changing, personally and professionally, in many great and terrible ways. Still, I love doing these recaps — even if I perpetually wait until the last minute so I can squeeze in one more book during the hazy week between Christmas and New Year’s, where time means nothing and I forget what an email is.
I’m so proud that my nerdy newsletter is still going strong after more than three years. My Space Wizards Book Club has become a safe space for me to yell about Star Wars books and connect with other fans around the world. It is also, more recently, slowly becoming an outlet for my writing — something I hope to share more of in 2026.
I cannot thank you enough — all 972 of you! — for continuing to subscribe and read my work. It means the world to me. Let’s see if we can make it to 1,000 SWBC-ers in the new year.
✨SWBC Wrapped✨
By the numbers
Posts: 32
Star Wars book reviews: 10
Subscribers: 972 (up 169 since the beginning of the year!)
Top posts of the year
Master of Evil review — 1.49K
Star Wars canon book timeline — 1.43K
Trials of the Jedi review — 1.08K
Star Wars books and reviews of 2025
New Star Wars books: 27
Novels: 10
Essential Legends Collection: 8
Manga: 3
Art and reference books: 6
Did I miss any new Star Wars books that came out this year? Let me know!
Top posts of all time
Star Wars Insider recap
Issue 230: A feature on Star Wars video game books, featuring interviews with Christie Golden, Alexander Freed, Sam Maggs, and Mark Oshiro.
Issue 231: Two stories! One was a Charles Soule interview looking back on writing the first and last books in The High Republic. The other was Writing History — a feature on Star Wars nonfiction books with interviews with Chris Kempshall, Kristin Baver, Amy Richau, and Cole Horton.
Issue 232: A retrospective on The High Republic era, including interviews with Mike Siglain, Charles Soule, Cavan Scott, Daniel Jose Older, Tessa Gratton, George Mann, Zoraida Cordova, and Lydia Kang.
Coming in 2026: My last story for Star Wars Insider — a feature on the creation of the Tales from the Nightlands comic series, including interviews with Cavan Scott, Iain McCaig, Soo Lee, Robert Hack, and Vincenzo Riccardi. Check it out in issue 236, coming February 24, 2026.
Reading recap
Books read: 103
Star Wars books read: 15
Authors I read the most:
Brandon Sanderson (6 books)
Beth Revis (5 books)
Pierce Brown (4 books)
Suzanne Collins (4 books)
What’s coming in 2026?
For me, who knows! More writing and teaching, for sure. I’m back to teaching two classes in the spring semester, including a new writing job at another university. And maybe, finally, official announcements of exciting things I’ve been working on for the last year.
As for Star Wars books, we already have many to look forward to — and likely many more to be announced yet.
The first Star Wars book of 2026 will be Star Wars Outlaws: Low Red Moon by Mike Chen. His Brotherhood novel was one of my favorites a few years back, so I was thrilled to see him writing another Star Wars story.
Since I don’t play the games, I have to decide whether to watch a game movie before reading the book or go into the story blind. What do you suggest?
What are you most proud of doing in 2025? What do you want to read more of in 2026? (from me and in general). What are your reading resolutions and priorities? I’d love to hear your goals, aspirations, and manifestations for the new year.
Have you published any of your thoughts on the Sanderson books you've read?
Great work Chelsea! Love your timelines and would love some more stuff next year to compare/contrast between Legends and Canon as I try to reconcile my own head canon. Happy new year!