Top Books to Learn Microservices with Java and Spring Boot (2025 Edition)

Many older books (even excellent ones) use now-deprecated tech stacks like Zuul, Eureka, or Spring Cloud Netflix, which are no longer widely adopted in 2025. Below is a revised and modernized reading list that aligns with current best practices, cloud-native architecture, and widespread industry usage in 2025.

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✅ Modern, Future-Proof Book List for Learning Microservices with Java & Spring Boot (2025 Edition)

1. 🚀 "Mastering Spring Boot 3.0" by Dinesh Rajput (2023/2024)

• Why it's recommended:

  • Covers Spring Boot 3 and Spring Framework 6 (Jakarta EE-based).

  • Uses modern Spring practices, not outdated Netflix OSS stack.

  • Includes Spring Security 6, Spring WebFlux, Docker, Kubernetes, and Reactive Microservices.

• 🧠 Skill Level: Intermediate → Advanced

• ✅ Excellent for current Spring Boot version, aligned with 2025 usage.

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2. 📘 "Microservices Patterns" by Chris Richardson

• Still Relevant in 2025:

  • Focuses on architecture, not specific tools.

  • Covers event-driven microservices, saga patterns, reliability patterns, CQRS, etc.

  • Use this book to understand how to structure large systems, then apply modern tools.

• 🧠 Skill Level: Intermediate → Advanced

• ✅ Tech-agnostic, but examples in Java. Core principles are evergreen.

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3. ☁️ "Cloud Native Spring in Action" by Thomas Vitale (2022+)

• Why it's perfect:

  • Uses Spring Boot 3, Kubernetes, Buildpacks, Docker, and Cloud Native Build Tools.

  • Covers modern Spring Cloud, observability (Grafana/Prometheus/Zipkin), and service communication with gRPC, Kafka.

• 🧠 Skill Level: Intermediate

• ✅ Totally aligned with 2025 practices. Modern, real-world focused.

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4. 📙 "Kubernetes: Up & Running (3rd Edition)" by Burns, Beda, Hightower

• Why it's still top-tier:

  • Kubernetes is the standard for microservices deployment in 2025.

  • Teaches how to scale, observe, and manage microservices.

  • Book written by original K8s creators.

• 🧠 Skill Level: Beginner → Intermediate

• ✅ Essential for DevOps-aware microservice developers.

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5. 🔧 "Hands-On Kubernetes for Java Developers" by Arun Gupta (2021+, still relevant)

• Why include it:

  • Specific focus on deploying Java microservices to Kubernetes.

  • Covers Helm, Cloud-Native Java, Kubernetes Operators, CI/CD.

• 🧠 Skill Level: Intermediate

• ✅ Practical focus, useful for cloud-native Spring Boot + K8s deployment.

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❌ Technologies to Avoid in 2025

Avoid books or tutorials that rely heavily on:

• Zuul → use Spring Cloud Gateway or Kubernetes Ingress instead.

• Eureka → use Kubernetes Service Discovery or Consul.

• Ribbon → replaced by Spring Cloud LoadBalancer or native K8s.

• Netflix OSS Stack (except Hystrix, which is also deprecated).

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📚 Summary Table

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