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Books

With Summer Officially Here, 10 Great Beach Reads

Books old and new that will keep you reading long after the sun goes down

Summer is synonymous with great beach reads—books perfect for a lazy afternoon at the ocean or lying in a hammock in the backyard. But where to start? With so many books being released ahead of the season, it can be a challenge to find the right book. So we’ve put together a list of 10 great reads—a mix of just-published books and old favorites—that capture the essence of summer. While none of them have the word “beach” in the title, these books bring to vivid life the atmosphere of languid summer days and humid summer nights and introduce you to characters you’ll love spending the heady days of summer with. 

New releases:

1. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soilby V. E. Schwab

V. E. Schwab has been known to dabble with immortality. She’s taken the stuff of legends and myths and brought them to vivid life between the pages countless times. Now, she brings queer vampires, centuries apart, to the stage with a supernatural mystery and a reckoning of identity. Published this month, the novel is the story of three women from different eras and different parts of the world: Maria is looking for a way to free herself from her life as a wife in 16th-century Spain. In the English countryside, Charlotte faces a future she doesn’t want when she’s found in an illicit moment of intimacy. Alice has left Scotland for Boston, but in her first days at Harvard she finds herself fundamentally changed after a one-night stand (she’s now a vampire). It’s not immediately clear how the three women are connected and that’s what propels the reader through the novel.

2. A Family Matterby Claire Lynch

In this just-published debut page-turner, author Claire Lynch explores how the prejudices of 1980s Britain shapes a family’s life. Lynch introduces readers to Dawn, a young mother who becomes enthralled with Hazel, a teacher she can’t stay away from. Some 40 years later, we meet Heron, who can’t figure out how to tell his daughter, Maggie, about his terminal medical diagnosis—and more that Maggie needs to know. Lynch weaves words from real-life court transcripts in telling about a devastating custody battle that shaped all four characters’ lives. A Family Matter is an empathetic exploration of the bigotry of ’80s homophobia, with enough drama to keep you reading long after the sun goes down. 

3. My Friendsby Frederik Backman

Known for his punchy, reflective writing, New York Times best-selling author Frederik Backman writes with so much compassion it’s a wonder his books aren’t cheesier, but instead are wholly original. His latest, and possibly last, novel, is no exception. In My Friends, Louisa is about to turn 18, when there will officially be no one left to care about her. Before that happens, she’s determined to see the painting she’s spent her whole life obsessed with. World-famous, it’s a painting of the sea. Except it’s not. An aspiring artist herself, Louisa recognizes it as a painting of three teenagers on the end of a pier, 20 years earlier, the summer their lives changed forever. Like Louisa, they are neglected, abused, and depressed. But every day, the three on the pier save one another’s lives. They dream for one another, love one another, and believe passionately in one another. Louisa, who’s never previously left her town, has just lost her best and only friend, and when she winds up with the painting in her care, she travels across the country to learn more about the painting and the three young people on the pier, praying for a happier ending than her life has taught her to expect. Beautiful, heart-wrenching, and funny, Backman’s My Friends is a tear-jerking pleasure. 

4. Problematic Summer Romanceby Ali Hazelwood

Ready for an Italian summer romance—and a problematic one at that? Author Ali Hazelwood dips her toe in the pool of May-December romance fiction in the just published Problematic Summer Romance, featuring 23-year-old Maya, a grad student attending her brother’s summer wedding in Italy, and 38-year-old Conor, a successful businessman—and her brother’s best friend. It’s the latest hit romance in a long line from Hazelwood, who grew up in Italy and was a neuroscience professor before turning her attention to writing. She’s quickly earned a reputation and a devoted following for her “STEMinist” books, about women in STEM falling in love—and lust. In this latest novel, Hazelwood moves beyond her typical lab setting. Romance and an exotic setting (the Ionian coast) make this a perfect hot summer’s day read. So kick back, follow Maya and Connor, and discover whether they’ll give in to their problematic crushes despite their age difference.

5. Flashlightby Susan Choi

When Louisa was 10, she and her dad went for a walk on the beach, but only Louisa returned. With a spotty memory and a mysteriously ill mother, she battles to come to terms with her disconnected identity as a Korean American and the ripple effects of a night she can’t recall. Choi’s previous novel, Trust Exercise, is gripping and at times uncomfortable. Flashlight promises to offer more of the same.

Older favorites:

1. My Brilliant Friend (and the whole Neapolitan Quartet)by Elena Ferrante

My Brilliant Friend may need no introduction—you might remember it as one of the New York Times “Best Book of the 21st Century.” Set in 1950s Naples, the novel, first published in 2011, follows studious Elena and her impossible friend Lila as they navigate life in their impoverished neighborhood. Against the backdrop of a changing country, the two are thrust into a landscape of political turmoil and violence before they’re quite old enough to fully comprehend the world they’ve been born into. Despite the differences in their personalities, the two spark something in each other and their relationship becomes a central force in their lives. Interspersed with gritty tragedy and a romantic intellectualism, My Brilliant Friend is a page-turner. And when you’re done, move on to the rest of the quartet: The Story of a New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, and The Story of the Lost Child. Together, they’re unforgettable.

2. Summer Sistersby Judy Blume

Famous for her iconic young adult novels, Judy Blume’s triumph of an adult novel, Summer Sisters, which came out in 2001, often flies under the radar. The book traces a female friendship over many years, beginning in the 1970s. Caitlin and Vix spend their summers on Martha’s Vineyard with Caitlin’s father. As the years move on, the two girls grow and change, letting their friendship guide them one way or another. But that’s not where the book starts. In its first pages, Caitlin calls Vix, telling her she’s marrying Vix’s childhood crush, and later first love, Bru. Readers then head back to the start to learn what’s changed and what hasn’t in their decades-long relationship. Atmospheric, love-drunk nights on the island punctuate this sprawling coming-of-age novel.

3. I Capture the Castleby Dodie Smith

This classic novel, published in 1948 and set in England, is the story of a family residing in a decaying castle. The year is 1934, and when we meet her, 17-year-old aspiring novelist Cassandra is sitting in the kitchen sink, starting a journal. As she attempts to capture the castle in her writing, she introduces readers to her father, a long-suffering novelist with writer’s block, and her stepmother, who is prone to wandering the grounds naked and fancies herself a muse. We also meet Cassandra’s sister, Rose, who sets her sights on the older of two American brothers who are the family’s new landlords, setting in motion a new adventure. As everyone falls in love, finds themselves, and suffers broken hearts, Cassandra’s whimsical, sharp voice carries us with her, and it’s a joy to be along for the ride. 

4. Evenings & Weekendsby Oisín McKenna

Set over one hot and sweaty weekend in London, Evenings & Weekends is the story of a group of millennial Londoners, all with some connection to one another, spending a heat wave navigating desperate financial situations, complex and stifling relationships, and queer nightlife in the city. You can feel the sweat and hear the music that drenches Maggie, who is 12 weeks pregnant and ready to move away from her wild life in the city. Her boyfriend Ed has kept a secret from her since they were teenagers. Meanwhile, Maggie’s best friend, Phil, is in love with his housemate, Phil’s brother Callum is barreling towards his wedding while trying to come to terms with his mother’s cancer diagnosis, and their mother, Rosaleen, is anxious that she still hasn’t told Phil about her terminal illness. Surprising and intimate, Evenings & Weekends is gripping.

5. Sweet Sorrowby David Nicholls

A story about young love has rarely been more wisely depicted than in David Nicholls’ Sweet Sorrow, published in 2019. In this funny, bittersweet coming-of-age summer romance, British writer Nicholls introduces us to Charlie, who has just finished high school. Caught between his old friends and an unknown future, he spends his days aimlessly, caring about things more than he’d ever admit to his friends, until he meets Fran Fisher. Charlie plunges enthusiastically into his first love, and follows Fran into a theater society, which is putting on a performance of Romeo and Juliet. Reckoning with his identity and his future, Charlie finds everything he’s looking for in Fran, at least for now. Sweet Sorrow captures the “last summer” feeling we all face at one time or another.