It’s my favorite time of the year — the time where I share all my favorite beach reads recommendations focusing in on new beach reads for 2025 and the books that were the highlights of my beach reading from last summer.
We’ve got an exciting summer already shaping up that starts with a family trip to Germany for two weeks plus many poolside reading sessions and day trips to the Jersey Shore.
I just know that, regardless of where I’m at – whether it is lounging on the beach or just enjoying the sunshine from my backyard – I have a rotation of frothy summer reads to suit whatever mood I’m in.
Summer is my favorite season for reading since I love to be outside and I love making my summer reading lists & guides every year — definitely feels like a throwback to all the years in school when I’d excitedly dive into the school summer reading list. Though I feel like my list is a bit more fun!
If you’ve poured over my beach reading lists before you know that, while I think ANYTHING can be a summer read/beach read and it’s super subjective based on what you like to read, there are certain types of books I personally gravitate to during beach reads season.
For me it is those light & easy reads of all genres, romance novels, books set in a summery destination, fast-paced thrillers that I can’t put down and just anything super juicy and unputdownable.
I know I’m not the only one that gravitates to those type of books when they are looking for good books to read on the beach. So just know that my lists tend to revolve around those particular vibes — from the frothiest of frothy reads to books that fit the vibe but pack a little more substance and everything in between.
Wanna catch up on my past beach reads posts? Check out 2023’s post, 2022’s post, 2021’s post, 2020’s post, 2019’s post, 2018, 2017’s list, 2016’s list (if you search hard enough you can find some REALLY old ones but the posts are really ugly haha)
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links which means that if you click on a link and purchase something I’ve talked about or recommended, I’ll receive a very small percentage of the sale. Please see my disclosure policy for more info
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If you want a romance or rom-com for your beach bag, try:
First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison
Out Now
At A Glance:
💑 rom-com
💡 inspired by Sleepless in Seattle (one of my faves of all time!!)
💕 he’s jaded x she’s a hopeless romantic
📞 romance hotline radio show setting
🤝 viral meetcute
If you are looking for a just delightful rom-com that ACTUALLY understands the art of the rom-com, escape into this one — I BEG YOU!
A jaded host of a romance hotline gets a call from a young girl, on behalf of her mother’s lackluster dating life, and when the conversation goes viral everyone’s lives change as the public becomes invested in helping Lucie love.
One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
Out Now
At A Glance:
💑😂 romance with humor and good banter
📍 very vivid lake setting during the summertime
😊 summertime nostalgia
👫 friends-to-lovers & forced proximity
✍️ bucket list-esque element
Carley Fortune is an author who is synonymous with summertime reading for me and I’m excited that we get to return to Barry’s Bay and spend some time with Charlie.
I’d imagine you CAN read this one without having read Every Summer After but 1) that book is too good not to read it and 2) you’ll understand Charlie more having read that and I think you’d do yourself a disservice.
Anyways, looking forward to my most anticipated beach read for this summer and to see Charlie’s HEA with Alice – a photographer who is taking a break from her life/career with her grandmother at the lake – and to just be transported back to Barry’s Bay in the summer.
Back After This by Linda Holmes
Out Now
At A Glance:
💑 romance/romantic comedy
🎙️set in the world of podcasting
🤝 meet cute
💕 dating in the modern age
I can always count on Linda Holmes for a light and easy summer read that is romantic, smart and has lots of heart!
This one is about a podcast producer who reluctantly agrees to host a podcast centered around her dating life as she follows the advice of a relationship coach/influencer and goes on blind dates — something she’s only doing to basically save a friend’s job especially since she’s sworn off love after last relationship.
But just as she’s ready to embark on this journey of 20 blind dates for public consumption, she has a chance encounter with a man that she can’t stop thinking about.
Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
Out Now
At A Glance:
💑 the essence of a Emily Henry romance but more
🌊 coastal setting
💰 famous/wealthy family drama with tons of secrets
✍️ romance between writers vying for the same job
☀️ sunshine/grump vibes
If in beach reading seasons past your beach bag was filled with Emily Henry’s latest release or The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, I think Emily Henry’s latest should be on your list again.
This one is classic Emily Henry but it has an added Evelyn Hugo-esque layer that unravels parallel which brings the two romance leads into each other’s orbits. I was satisfied with this blend even though it wasn’t fully a romance nor fully a more literary, Evelyn Hugo-esque drama.
The basics of it: Two writers end up in competition with one another for the chance to tell the story of a reclusive heiress, who hasn’t been seen in years, but was at one time on the front page of every newspaper and tabloid thanks to her famous, scandal-filled family and her own love story.
It’s A Love Story by Annabel Monaghan
Out May 27th, 2025
At A Glance:
💼 💑 workplace enemies to lovers romance
🎥 film industry
🏖️ summer in Long Island
👪 delightful family element
Annabel Monaghan has become another go-to favorite to read in the summer in the past couple years! Seriously, go check out This Time Next Summer and Summer Romance which bring the vibes for sure.
A former child actress, trying to expand her career and shed the awkward teen sitcom role she’s known for, has been faking-it-until-she-makes-it and flies a little to close to the sun with her mantra when she tells a lie to get her project greenlit.
Now, working with a difficult cinematographer that doesn’t always see her vision, she must get a famous pop star (who was her first kiss!) to agree to write the original song for her project that she lied about having on board already — even though they haven’t spoken in decades.
To try and make her lie a reality, she’ll have to spend a week with her frustrating co-worker in his hometown to gain access to his “in” for the pop star’s festival performance.
Total Dreamboat by Katelyn Doyle
Out June 24, 2025
At A Glance:
💑 rom-com
🚢 set on a Caribbean cruise
🤝 meet cute
😅 forced proximity
This is the ultimate type of vacation read for me when I’m craving romance — a bantery rom-com with a sun-drenched setting that is delightful and beyond bingeable.
Felix and Hope both find themselves reluctantly on a luxury cruise and a meet cute leads to a vacation fling to make the trip more bearable for both of them. But as real feelings beyond the trip start to arise, drama arises and the two finds themselves stranded on land and forced to work together to get back home.
Friends to Lovers by Sally Blakely
Out July 22, 2025
At A Glance:
💑 rom-com
👫 childhood friends to lovers
☀️ summertime Oregon coast setting
👰 wedding season
🤩 for fans of Christina Lauren, Emily Henry and Annabel Monaghan
🖊️ dual narrative of past wedding seasons & present day
I have a feeling this is going to be THE beach read romance of the year!
It’s about childhood best friends who get creative to keep in touch, after their friendship becomes long-distance, and plan to be each other’s platonic wedding date every summer. But this summer’s wedding is different as the friendship is ruined – after a line is crossed during one wedding season – and they’ll have to fake their friendship for her sister’s wedding at their shared family summer house.
It’s told in the present and past as it takes readers through the wedding seasons they spent together – including the one that broke everything – leading up to the summer that could be the last one spent together.
If you want a family drama for your beach bag, try:
The California Dreamers by Amy Mason Doan
Out Now
At A Glance:
👪 dysfunctional family drama/secrets
🌊 California beachy setting
⏱️ 1980s + present day storylines
🚙 character-driven
If you enjoy settling in with a good family drama on the beach, check out this story of siblings who had an unconventional upbringing as a family of surfers and have been reunited after their father passes away where they must reckon with their childhood and a long-buried secret.
I also recommend this author’s book Summer Hours which I was recommending a lot a few years ago for people looking for a good beach read!
These Summer Storms by Sarah Maclean
Out July 8, 2025
At A Glance:
👩👩👧👦 contemporary family drama with some whiffs of a Succession-esque vibe meets The Inheritance Game
🏖️ private island off Rhode Island in the summertime
💑 romance sub-plot (contains some steam)
🤐 juicy family secrets
💰 1% type family full of dysfunction
Sarah MacLean is one of my all-time favorite authors of historical romances and I’m so excited for this departure into a contemporary story that leans into a family story with romance and a idyllic summertime setting. I’ve read many a Sarah MacLean on the beach but I have a feeling this is going to be the ultimate beach read for 2025.
An estranged daughter heads to her family’s private island after the shocking death of her father with intentions of paying her respects and leaving — only to find out that her father’s will has forced her dysfunctional family into a week-long game of tasks to follow in order to receive their inheritances.
If you want a page-turning thriller or mystery, try:
Salt Water by Katy Hays
Out Now
At A Glance:
🔍 slow burn murder mystery meets twisty family drama
🤐 long-buried family secrets
🇮🇹 atmospheric Italian setting
💰 wealthy family
I read this one during a cold, dreary weekend but it totally transported me to Capri and is exactly the type of book I’d pack for the beach or vacation when I want something that isn’t TOO light and frothy but that will still be absorbing and bring the drama, the atmosphere and the intrigue to keep those pages turning.
A wealthy woman’s death below the cliffs of Capri, ruled accidental despite the suspicion on the family, brings the family together to Capri every year on the anniversary of her death.
When the family comes together for the 30th anniversary of that tragedy, they are shocked at a surprise that awaits them that will turn this family reunion upside down and unearth long-kept secrets.
Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister
Out Now
At A Glance:
🔍 suspense & mystery with plenty of domestic drama
🪢 twisty
💕 a “how well do you truly know the ones you love?” vibe
I was hooked from the beginning of this one with the hostage situation unfolding, entangled in the mystery and unanswered questions of it all which fueled the middle and the ending brought breakneck action had me in a chokehold and stressing in the end.
It’s my favorite kind of suspense/thriller to read on the beach — well-paced and kept me moving even when we weren’t in the throes of the thrilling parts because of the lingering mystery and well-placed twists/revelations. Not an earth-shattering read but a perfect one to escape with when you want that type of read.
I don’t want to say too much but a woman’s life changes when a hostage situation unfolds in the city and her husband turns out to be the suspected gun man but only she knows about the cryptic note that he had left for her that morning.
Killer Potential by Hannah Deitch
Out Now
At A Glance:
🔪 thriller on the more literary side but still compulsively readable
☠️😆 dark comedy
🚗 outlaws on the run (very Thelma and Louise) for murder
🏳️🌈 queer
💬 social commentary
This one will be a read that you fly through poolside and will be shocked at just how fast you devoured it. Smart, thrilling and darkly comedic!
An overqualified SAT tutor who hasn’t lived up to her potential finds herself on the run and wanted for murder when she shows up at a client’s house to a scene of dead bodies and a woman being held captive in the house.
She makes a split second decision to help the woman which catapults the two women together on a road trip to evade the police and survive until she can prove her innocence and find out what happened in that house before she showed up.
Sunburned by Katherine Wood
Out July 1, 2025
At A Glance:
😬 juicy suspense thriller
🔒 locked room with plenty of suspects
🏖️ splashy St. Barth’s & yacht setting
🤐 lots of long-buried secrets & betrayals
📖 page-turner that starts out a bit slow burner but then heats things up
When I first saw this cover and read the synopsis I was like “god, this is giving me vibes of Katherine St. John’s books.”
Her books have been some of my favorites to read AND recommend for beach reading season and after a little digging I found that indeed Katherine Wood IS indeed Katherine St. John (and she did have a new book out last summer that I missed as KW!).
This one is another juicy suspense novel with a setting to match about a woman who is forced to help her ex find out who is trying to extort him – who is probably amongst them at his estate – or he will release some skeleton’s in her closet that could be very damaging for her.
Everyone Is Lying To You by Jo Piazza
Out July 15, 2025
At A Glance:
📖 can’t-put-down thriller
📱 dark side of social media influencing
👩 the world of tradwives
🔪 murder & dark secrets
Last summer I was devouring Jo Piazza’s The Sicilian Inheritance and this summer I’m excited to be captivated by this juicy murder mystery/thriller about the dark world of social media and tradwives.
Struggling magazine writer and mom Lizzie is surprised when her estranged best friend – who disappeared after graduation and later emerged as a popular influencer with a different name — calls her up with a life-changing business proposition for an exclusive interview and a chance to see her keynote a high profile influencer conference.
But things turn deadly, before she can even really reconnect and find out why she reached out, when Bex and her children are missing and her husband is found murdered at their ranch.
If you want a contemporary or general fiction read, try:
Other People’s Summers by Sarah Morgan
Out Now
At A Glance:
✍️ contemporary fiction/”women’s fiction”
☀️ lakeside summer setting
👭 story of female friendship
🫂 themes of forgiveness & healing
🔍 self-discovery & fresh starts
I will absolutely be throwing this book in my bag since Sarah Morgan’s The Book Club Hotel was a perfect winter read and I believe in her ability to transport me to an idyllic English lakeside resort in summertime based on that experience!
This one is about a famous actress who flees her life, in light of a scandal and things unraveling for her, and seeks sanctuary at the lakeside resort owned by her estranged best friend that she ghosted years ago.
Female friendship, forgiveness, fresh starts and more — sounds perfect to me especially with the setting!
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Beach House Rules by Kristy Woodson Harvey
Out May 27th, 2025
At A Glance:
👭 friendship & community/found family
🏖️ beachy setting (coastal NC)
🕵️ a dash of mystery
🤩 for fans of Elin Hilderbrand
Kristy Woodson Harvey has been a staple for me the past few years during beach reading season ever since I read Feels Like Falling and then made my way through The Summer of Songbirds (summer camp setting!) and last year’s A Happier Life (Stars Hollow vibes but beachy!!). This one is highly anticipated for me!
A husband’s alleged white collar crime flips a woman and her teen daughter’s lives upside down. Soon they find themselves being taken in by a community of moms – a group highly gossiped about in their small coastal town — and try to get back on their feet as the gossip mill churns and she tries to prove her husband’s innocence.
Salty by Kate Myers
Out June 24, 2025
At A Glance:
🤩 White Lotus meets Below Deck
🏖️ tropical setting aboard luxurious yachts
🔪 a dose of suspense & revenge
👭 sister antics
😂 a humorous and heartfelt romp that is the best kind of over-the-top
A fun and easy read (short chapters too!) to pack in your bag this summer for vacation! Sisterly antics, suspense, revenge that is deserved, humor all with a sun-drenched setting!
Two estranged sisters unite and plan to fully take down their new yacht clients — a family who just happen to be the shady developers who demolished their childhood home in favor of condos. The sisters will realize just how corrupt this family is and the lengths they will go to stay on top.
Far and Away by Amy Poeppel
Out June 10, 2025
At A Glance:
📖 humor-filled contemporary fiction
🏡 house swap gone awry
😏 light drama
🖊️ touches on theme like: friendship, family, motherhood and marriage
🔍 story of finding yourself
I joyfully look forward to a new Amy Poeppel novel every single time one is announced and this looks just delightful to read on vacation or any summer day when you just want to settle in with a good story!
It’s about two women – complete strangers and both dealing with things in their own life – who make a decision to do a house swap with one family heading to Texas and the other to Berlin, Germany.
Plenty of cultural mishaps and drama in this comedy of errors while also leaning into being heartfelt and smart as these two women navigate all that is being thrown at them and realizing they can’t run from what they left behind.
The View from Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani
Out July 8, 2025
At A Glance:
📖 contemporary fiction
🇮🇹 set in Italy
🔍 story of self-discovery
👪 family story with family secrets & a big chaotic family
If you love really excellent stories of self-discovery and rebuilding your life, this has GOT to be in your beach bag this year.
It’s about a recently divorced woman who has been feeling unfulfilled in life and in her role as dutiful but overlooked daughter in her big Italian-American family. When an unexpected loss unearths some revelations about her family, she decides to take a chance and make her way to her family’s ancestral home in Italy to figure out her own path.
If you are looking for a historical beach read, try:
A Map To Paradise by Susan Meissner
Out Now
At A Glance:
📜 light historical fiction meets “women’s fiction” type read
🤐 secrets that give this book a mystery plot
📍 1960s Malibu beach setting
👭 friendship/found family
📖 multi-POV
As I read this one this Spring, I kept thinking it would make a nice beach read for people who are looking for something page-turning and easy but that isn’t a romance. This is a historical but it’s more a book about friendship/found family and healing from the past with an edge of mystery and a Malibu setting.
Set in the 1960s, this story brings together three unlikely women: a young actress in hiding who has been blacklisted due to her proximity to an accused Communist, her housekeeper who has her own secrets/past and the woman who lives next door and takes care of her reclusive brother-in-law and screenwriter.
When it seems the man next door has disappeared and his sister-in-law’s behavior has become strange, things take a turn for the three women and secrets are exposed that will tie them together.
My favorites from last year
These are the beach reads that will most definitely be going into my beach bag/are part of my summer reading plans this year!
Funny Story by Emily Henry
Perfect for readers who: love faking dating hijinx, want that perfect blend of lightness & substance
Two people find themselves dumped by their partners who have been childhood friends and realized they want to be together. When an interesting housing situation turns this broken-hearted pair into new roomies, the two find friendship as they both try to heal from their mutual breakups as well as a bit of fun in a little faux dating situation for the summer to save face in front of their exes.
So, so fun if you didn’t get to this one last summer!
Just For The Summer by Abby Jimenez
Perfect for readers who: don’t mind a little emotional heft that is well-balanced within the pages of their rom-com
Few do it as well as Abby Jimenez in my book — she so effortlessly blends heavier things with the airy lightness of a good rom-com. It makes for a perfect read to pack for the beach — it reads with ease and emotional brilliance.
An online meet-cute between two people feeling cursed in the dating department, as their exes always go on to meet “the one” after they break up, who hatch a plan to spend the summer together to reverse the curse by dating and then breaking up with hopes they’ll both now go on to find their soulmate.
Colton Gentry’s Third Act by Jeff Zentner
Perfect for readers who: love a good story about second chances and redemption
Jeff Zentner is one of my favorite authors ever and this is the type of summer reading for people who want a book they won’t be able to put down but also still want something GORGEOUSLY poetic writing-wise.
Country singer Colton Gentry was enjoying a soaring career in music and everything falls apart when, unmoored in grief after losing his best friend to gun violence, he speaks a bit of his mind on stage and it is not well received.
With his marriage and career taking a major hit, he heads back to his Kentucky hometown where he finds a chance at starting over and a second chance with his first love.
This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune
Perfect for readers who: love a good forbidden romance; summer romances that span years
I loved this so much after only kind of liking Meet Me At The Lake! This one really hit all the right notes for me and I really enjoyed this secret romance spanning during different summers until what has been brewing cannot be ignored anymore.
Set mostly in Prince Edward Island, it’s about a girl who hooks up with a local while on vacation only to find out it is her bff’s younger brother. They both vow to never let it happen but that is easier said than done every summer when she returns to the island.
When her bff flees to the island unexpectedly before her wedding, she makes a trip to the island where she tries to figure out what’s going on while also trying to keep the temptation at bay with the brother which is proving to be even harder this time around.
The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza
Perfect for readers who: are looking for a page-turning family saga with a mystery
I was so absorbed into this Sicilian-set family saga that had a super compelling mystery that uncovers shocking secrets and turns some family history on its head as a woman, instructed by her beloved aunt as her dying wish, goes to inherit a plot of land and things turn a bit tricky.
I loved the storyline in the present and I REALLY loved finding out what happened to their family matriarch in some alternating chapters. Such an absorbing beach read that isn’t super light nor super heavy!
Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan
Perfect for readers who: love heartfelt stories of self discovery with a hearty & sweet dose of romance
If you’ve followed my beach read recommendations lists before, you know Annabel Monaghan is always on it and for good reason!
This one is about a single mom whose life has been in a big rut after loss and divorce and the flirty meet cute that leads to a summer romance and the spark she needed to claw her way back to rediscovering who she is after feeling so lost.
I love a good story about finding yourself again after a period of feeling lost — something I definitely can relate to more recently in my own life.
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle
Perfect for readers who: are looking for a generally lighthearted quick read
Rebecca’s books always make for a quick and interesting read every summer. It’s a women’s fiction read with a dash of magical realism and romance.
This one is another unique premise as we meet a woman whose dating life is a bit interesting. She receives (from the universe) a piece of paper with a name and the duration of the relationship she’ll have with that person. And then one day she receives just a name on a paper with no expiration date.
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Summers at the Saint by Mary Kay Andrews
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: are looking for a truly easy beach read full of a little bit of everything (drama, romance, mystery)
Fans of White Lotus (especially season 1), if you need a fix this summer — check this one out. You’ll be instantly transported to the family-owned tropical resort, the Saint, and all the drama to go with it. Gave me White Lotus x Dirty Dancing meets an Elin Hilderbrand novel.
It’s about a woman, widowed after a tragic accident, and now she must try to restore and keep afloat The Saint hotel that she inherited from her late husband. Not an easy task between her late husband’s family making trouble for her, financial woes, secrets from the past and a shocking murder in the present.
I listened to this one on audiobook last summer and honestly wished I had waited until vacation for this breezy read.
Margo’s Got Money Troubles
Perfect for readers who: are looking for something smart and funny
This is one of my favorite books overall of last year. I will say it does delve into some heavier things but I felt like it was really balanced in delivery.
This humorous and heart-warming book is about a young single mother (thanks to a brief affair with her college professor) whose life is a mess as she tries to manage adulthood, new motherhood and trying to scrape together money to support them.
With her estranged father – an ex pro-wrestler- showing up in her life when things are about to hit rock bottom, she uses this chance for free childcare and decides to experiment with making quick some quick money as an OF content creator where she finds unexpected success that could change her life.
If you loved complicated family relationships and messy characters, this needs to be in that bag!
A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey
Out June 25, 2024
Perfect for readers who: love small Southern seaside town settings and family mysteries
This was a sleeper surprise for me last year as I didn’t think it would end up being a favorite summer read for me. It had a great setting, compelling characters and a really interesting mystery threaded through the whole thing. Little bit of romance too!
Keaton, a woman with her own personal drama, has been sent to North Carolina to sell the 200 year old family home she just found out about. Nobody has lived in the home since the day her grandparents died and everything was left as it was on that day.
As she settles into her temporary home and meets the residents of the town, she gets to know a little more about the grandparents she never met and realizes there is a lot more to the day they allegedly died in a car accident as secrets unravel and people talk.
We also get the POV of her grandmother from years before — famous in town for her dinner parties — as Keaton unravels the mystery and real truth to their disappearance.
The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: a good marriage of convenience; the perfect beachy destination in their summer reading
In college, for housing reasons, Anna and Liam get married — a marriage that was supposed to dissolve after graduation. Fast forward years later, starving artist Anna finds out that legally they are still married and Liam needs her to play the part of wife (at his sister’s destination wedding) in order for him to get his massive inheritance.
Say You’ll Be Mine by Naina Kumar
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: love a great fake engagement/dating plot with a great slow burn romance
This was the perfect book for me to read whilst on vacation! It was an easy read with great characters, chemistry and internal conflicts the characters were dealing with. Plus I really loved that, through the characters, we experienced some Indian culture and traditions.
It’s about two people who reluctantly meet through their Indian parents matchmaking efforts and realize a limited-time fake engagement would suit them both for different reasons.
It’s got the beloved “one bed” trope and the best sort of slow burn romance and self-discovery to really make you root for these two.
First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
Perfect for readers who: love a good cat-and-mouse thriller that is well paced and fun
I absolutely raced through this book and the fact that it had short chapters definitely added to it what made it so bingeable — which for me is often so nice when I’m selecting a good summer beach book.
I don’t want to say too much plot-wise but it’s about a woman who is a con artist who works for a mysterious boss. Her latest identity/persona and job has her playing girlfriend to man who she starts to feel a little too at-home with as she awaits her actual assignment.
That is until someone rolls into town — raising ALL the stakes — claiming her ACTUAL identity and threatening both this current job and the potential future of reclaiming her old identity one day.
Listen For The Lie by Amy Tintera
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: want to have the absolute best time while also reading about an unsolved murder
I would have gotten sunburned if I read this book on the beach because there would have been absolutely no way I could have stopped reading if I started it on vacation. Would have lost all sense of time and place as I was absolutely sucked into this mystery and the darkly humorous voice of the main character (and main suspect) in the midst of it.
Lucy has no idea if she killed her best friend or not on that fateful night of her murder 5 years ago. She has no memory of the night or the events that led to it but everyone believes she did it and being covered in Savvy’s blood didn’t help her claim innocence.
She left her small town and her past after all that and is now only back at her grandmother’s request for her birthday. As if being home wasn’t hard enough, now there is a true crime podcaster digging around for his podcast asking questions and digging things up.
But Lucy wants to know the truth about Savvy’s murder — for better or worse — so she agrees to talk to him and gets pulled into the investigation not knowing what it could uncover about her or her small town.
Every Time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies by Catherine Mack
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: love a humor-filled mystery on the cozy side (with a great setting!)
What says beach reading like a fun vacation mystery set in Italy??
It’s about an author who is on her book tour in Italy when things go awry when it starts to look like someone is trying to kill her and her ex (who also is inspiration for her book’s character and who she wants to kill off since he keeps blackmailing her). As she tries to survive her book tour, she also must work to solve these potential murders.
The Resort by Sarah Ochs
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: love a vacation thriller set in a sun-drenched place
This is the perfect juicy vacation thriller to indulge your sun-soaked brain cells in at the beach — full of dark secrets, an idyllic setting and a gripping plot that will have you seriously struggling to find a good chapter to take a break on to reapply that sunscreen.
Oh and did I mention — murder in paradise?
It’s set on a remote island in Thailand at a resort that is more off the beaten path where many expats live and adventurous travelers come to play.
It’s focused on two women — one an expat dive instructor, the other a guest who is a social media influencer — both who have secrets/pasts they’ve run from and would prefer them to stay hidden.
The darker side of paradise is revealed with a murder and everyone is a suspect — especially when so many are holding their own secrets tight to the chest.
It’s not entirely light and breezy as things are revealed (definitely check trigger warnings if you have any concerns) but this proved to be what I look for in a thriller beach read.
One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware
Out Soon
Perfect for readers who: love a suspenseful tale of survival
This one wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be (anticipated more psychological thriller-y and twisty) but I couldn’t put this survival thriller down on my flight to Denmark recently.
A Love Island Games-esque reality show that turns quickly into an unhinged & murder-y Survivor episode (with no Jeff Probst!) after a storm leaves the reality TV contestants stranded.
The ending fizzled out a little for me but ultimately this is a great pool-side companion if you love reality tv antics, survival of the elements and people on a remote island and something page-turning.
If a lighter historical fiction is your idea of a good beach read
The Beautiful People by Michelle Gable
Out Now
Perfect for readers who: are looking for a lighter historical read full of famous faces and posh settings
A failed debutante wanting to rebuild her life becomes the assistant to THE photographer of Palm Beach’s socialites/famous set and is swept up in the jet-setting, glamorous inner circle — notably in a friendship with popular socialite and fashion designer Lilly Pulitzer.
I don’t want to spoil all the famous faces you’ll see but it’s a fun romp in the 1960’s full of glitz & glamour, drama and scandal.
Husbands and Lovers by Beatriz Williams
Out June 25, 2024
Perfect for readers who: have devoured Taylor Jenkins Reid’s latest books as well as The Paper Palace (one of my favorite complicated summer love stories in recent memory)
If you haven’t read Beatriz William’s historical fiction books before or aren’t keen on historical in general, this is a great introduction as it contains both a timeline in the past (1950’s Cairo) and more present day timelines — all woven together around a mysterious family heirloom and a mother’s search for a donor to save her son.
You’ll get caught up in the incredible stories of two women who just jump off the page in Mallory and Hannah as well as the mystery bit that unravels and the stories of their lost loves.
What new releases are you packing on your trips this summer or for a lazy pool day?
Need some other summer reading ideas?
Check out this list of books like The Summer I Turned Pretty
Armchair vacation to Italy with these books set in Italy!
Get lost in the setting of one of these summer camp books!
Or maybe you are looking for new YA books written by Black Authors.
Need a bingeworthy YA book series?
Best Book Club Books: Ultimate Guide
My Favorite Audiobooks I Recommend The Most
PIN IT FOR LATER
Bev says
So many wonderful books! thanks for the list – will definitely be reading a few of them!
When I read your info and the first part of your post, I was struck by the similarity of you and my daughter. Bioth new mothers, both babies named Riley (your daughter)/ Riely (my dau’s son), and you both cooling off/summering in your backyard kid pools!
Hena Tayeb says
These all look great.. going to add some of these to my TBR.
Andrea C says
I had no idea Jennifer Weiner had a new book! I am so excited to check it out. I was so happy to come across this list! I think it’s a great idea to have books set aside as “beach reads.” My beach read recommendation is 100% “ENDLESS: A Less Than Zero Rockstar Romance” by Kaylene Winter (https://rockerromance.com). This was such an addictive fun & sexy read and I think you would really enjoy it. I love a contemporary romance novel with a “tortured/damaged” leading male with a heart of gold (lol… I can’t help it!). Ty comes from a rough childhood and is now the lead singer of a popular band. He meets Zoey, educated bookworm who comes from a totally different world from him and they have a fiery (but QUICK) romance before he goes on the road and she heads to school. She knows that she has to end things because she has to stay focused on her career in law but instead of talking to him about it she ghosts him… this is obviously super damaging for Ty and he goes on a bit of a bender (sex and access) on tour until they reconnect 8 years later. I don’t want to give away the whole plot but I am sure you can guess their reunion is a bit of a rollercoaster and there are a lot of dramatic twists and turns. This is book 1 of the series and I can’t wait to see what happens next. Happy summer reading everyone! Stay safe
booker talk says
I’m going no further than my garden either ! I don’t tend to change my reading interests according to the seasons but you’ve persuaded me that Last Train to Key West would be a good choice – I’ve twice booked a holiday in that part of Florida and had to cancel so at least if I read the book I can feel a bit closer to actually getting there
Hasini @ Bibliosini says
I love how long this list is! Such good options and an endless selection! Thanks, Jamie! 😀
Jamie says
You are welcome! I really had to narrow it down too because it was even longer lol
Deborah S says
I cannot get enough contemporary romance lately so “True Love Experiment” and “Book Lovers” have been added to my TBR pile (thank you!). I look forward to reading what you think about them. My book club was looking for something to shake things up a bit last month and we came across author Lisa Battalia and her Midlife Romance Series (only two books so far). We finished book 1 “Awake” and let me tell you I purchased book 2 “Second Chances” before I had even finished the first one. The leading lady Lori is witty, relatable and definitely not your typical “damsel in distress.” If I had to give it a quick elevator pitch, I would say it’s a sexy novel that celebrates women over 40! Recently divorced (husband UP and LEFT) leaving her with the kids and career on hold because of her growing family. Although her marriage had reached an obvious level of complacency and routine, she never expected that she would have to start over again. Luckily, an old friend (and old flame) Brandon is also divorced and their paths cross once again. This is such a fantastic story because it’s not easy or perfect, it’s messy, it’s life! Both Lori and Brandon have their own real-world problems they have to deal with while trying to make a long-distance relationship work. Lori has to think about her children and can’t just pick up and leave on a romantic trist. Did I mention the sex scenes are 10/10???
But really – You care about these characters, and you want it to work! If you end up giving it a chance, PLEASE let me know (or post about it!)
Happy Reading!