Let’s check out some of the best books for summer reading!
As the temperatures rise and the days get longer, there’s nothing quite like settling down with a good book to spend away the warm, sunny hours.
Whether you’re lounging on the beach or curling up in the shade, summer is the perfect time to catch up on your reading list.
But with so many books to choose from, it can be overwhelming to decide where to start.
That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the best books for summer reading, guaranteed to transport you to new worlds, introduce you to unforgettable characters, and leave you with plenty to think about long after the season has ended.
So grab a cold drink, find a comfortable spot, and get ready to dive into the pages of some truly amazing books for summer reading.
List of Best Books for Summer Reading
These are the best books for summer reading:
- Happy Place by Emily Henry
- The Summer of Broken Rules by K. L. Wather
- One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
- The Stand-In by Lily Chu
- Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
- Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
- The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent
- The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
- Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Happy Place by Emily Henry
Get ready to soak up the sun with Emily Henry’s latest novel, Happy Place! This highly anticipated book was just released in April of 2023, and is perfect for your summer reading list.
Happy Place tells the story of Harriet and Wyn, the ultimate power couple. However, their relationship came to an unexpected end five months ago and they haven’t told their friends yet.
The timing couldn’t be worse, as their annual getaway with friends is happening this year at a cottage in Maine. And guess what? Harriet and Wyn will be sharing a room!
Instead of relaxing and enjoying each other’s company, they must pretend everything is great to keep their breakup a secret. With the added pressure of it being their last week together at the cottage, they are determined not to ruin their friends’ fun.
Join Harriet and Wyn on their journey in Happy Place and see how they navigate this tricky situation.
This signature 400-page book by Emily Henry promises to be a fascinating and entertaining read that will make your summer even more enjoyable!
The Summer of Broken Rules by K. L. Walther
If you’re looking for one of the best books for summer reading, look no further than The Summer of Broken Rules by K. L. Walther. This book, published in 2021, is a perfect escape with its 384 pages of sun-soaked drama and romance.
Follow the story of Meredith Fox, who’s struggling to find herself after the loss of her sister. But this summer, she’s determined to break out of her shell during her family’s annual vacation to Martha’s Vineyard.
With a big family wedding on the horizon and the chance to play a game called assassin, Meredith sees an opportunity to honor her sister’s legacy and maybe even find love.
Sure, she’s recently been through a breakup and doesn’t have a date to the wedding, but that’s not stopping her. And when she teams up with a cute groomsman to take on the game, things get even more interesting.
Get ready for a heartwarming story full of twists and turns as Meredith navigates both the game and her own feelings. The Summer of Broken Rules is a must-read for anyone looking for a fun and romantic escape this summer.
Fun fact: Parts of this novel were inspired by a couple of Taylor Swift songs. See if you can guess which ones!
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
One Italian Summer is another one of the best books for summer reading by Rebecca Serle. This novel was published in 2022, and contains 272 pages, one of the shortest books on this list.
One Italian Summer follows Katy, who is not having a good time in her life at the moment. Her mother, Carol, just passed away. Not only was Carol Katy’s mother, but also her best friend.
This is all happening just weeks before they had a mother-daughter trip planned to Positano, the town where her mother met her father. Now, Katy will make the trip alone.
When she gets to Positano, she almost can feel her mother’s spirit in her heart. She is stunned by the magical views, amazing people, and delicious food. Katy can feel herself coming out of her depression.
Impossibly, she sees Carol in the flesh and blood. But this can’t be real right? Her mother is tan, healthy looking, and only thirty years old. Over the course of the summer, on her trip, she gets to know the young woman that her mother once was.
One Italian Summer is a mother-daughter love story that teaches us how to move on after loss. It’s sad, lovely, and a great book to pick up on a warm summer morning.
The Stand-In by Lily Chu
The Stand-In was written by Lily Chu. She published the book in 2022, and it is 384 pages long. It is considered one of the best romances for summer reading.
The Stand-In follows Gracie Reed, who is living a very stressful life at the moment. She just got fired from her job, that made her uncomfortable anyway. Though, it comes at a terrible time because she was already trying to save every penny to help her mother.
She’s barely holding it together when a paparazzi mistakes her for a famous Chinese actress while she’s minding her own business at a coffee shop, and the photos go viral.
Then one day, a random SUV pulls up beside her and changes her life forever. They ask her to be a stand-in for the actress that she has an uncanny resemblance to. She gets to spend time with Sam Yao, the co-star of the famous actress. He’s super hot, but mildly infuriating.
But she can’t deny the pay, especially since it will help her mother tremendously. Gracie gets to experience luxury like she’s never experienced before. She just can’t get her mind off of Sam. It’s supposed to be fake, so why does she find herself thinking about him all the time?
Will Gracie be able to keep herself together? It’s only for three months, so why is it so hard for her to stop her heart from being attracted to Sam like a magnet?
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid was published in 2021, and is the perfect book for summer reading.
Nina Riva is an amazing surfer and gorgeous supermodel. Her brother, Jay, is a champion surfer, her other brother, Hud, is a world renowned photographer, and her little sister, Kit, that everyone loves. Oh, their father, Mick Riva, is a legendary singer.
Needless to say, the Riva family is pretty famous. They are the fascination of Malibu.
In August of 1983, Nina is having her annual end of the summer party that everyone is excited for. Everyone except Nina herself. She doesn’t want the attention, especially after her husband, a tennis pro, just left her.
Everyone else in her family is anxiously awaiting the party too. Her sister invites someone without asking, Hud has a secret he’s been keeping from his brother, and Jay is excitedly waiting for the girl he can’t stop thinking about to show up.
While the alcohol is flowing, the music is loud, secrets come out, and by the end of the night complete chaos ensues. In fact, the entire mansion has gone up in flames.
Will the family still be as close as they were after this unforgettable night?
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
The Unhoneymooners was written by Christina Lauren, and published in 2019. This book is 416 pages long.
The book follows Olive Torres, who believes she is probably the most unlucky twin in the world. She always has unexplainable mishaps and feels her life has been jinxed since she was born. And recently she lost her job.
Her twin, Ami, seems to have the opposite problem. She is the most lucky twin in the world. She somehow ended up winning multiple contests, which allowed her to raise enough money to pay for her own wedding.
Olive is happy for her twin sister but there’s something that she’s not happy about. That’s having to spend the entire wedding day with the best man, Ethan Thomas, her rival and nemesis.
The crazy thing is that during the wedding everyone except Olive and Ethan gets food poisoning. That means her sister’s honeymoon is not happening and that trip is non-refundable. The first lucky thing finally happens to Olive – she gets to go on the honeymoon instead of her sister. The unlucky part? She has to go with Ethan.
That’s ten days in Maui with her nemesis that annoys her more than anything. Though, they do agree on a truce so that they don’t ruin each other’s time, especially because they have to pretend to be newlyweds.
As the days go by Olive finds herself actually liking to pretend to be Ethan’s new wife. They get closer and closer until…
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Get ready to be swept away to the lush marshes of North Carolina with Where the Crawdads Sing, a captivating novel by Delia Owens published in 2018. This New York Times bestseller has spent over 150 weeks on the charts, and for good reason.
Meet Kya, the ‘Marsh Girl’, who learned to survive on her own after being abandoned by her family in the marsh.
With an insatiable curiosity for the creatures that call the marsh home, Kya’s life takes an unexpected turn when she befriends Tate. But just like everyone else in her life, Tate eventually leaves for college, leaving Kya feeling more alone than ever.
Enter Chase Andrews, a boy from town who shows Kya attention, but things quickly turn sour when he’s found dead and the townspeople start pointing fingers at Kya.
The novel is skillfully written from two perspectives: the present-day investigation into Chase’s death and the past, which delves into Kya’s journey of survival and self-discovery.
As you immerse yourself in this beautifully crafted novel, you’ll find yourself falling in love with Kya and rooting for her every step of the way.
So kick back and let Where the Crawdads Sing transport you to a world of adventure and intrigue.
The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent
The Summer Job was published in 2021 and written by Lizzy Dent. It has 384 pages, and was even recommended as the perfect book for summer reading by Emily Henry of Happy Place.
The Summer Job asks the question “What if, just for the summer, you could be someone else?” That’s exactly what Birdy has done. She has run away from her life, and managed to run right into her best friend Heather’s life.
Now, Birdy finds herself doing a summer job that Heather ditched, at a nice Scottish hotel. The problem is Heather is a world class wine expert, and Birdy hardly knows anything about wine, except that it tastes good and gets you drunk.
Then she meets the cutest guy she’s ever seen and the only man she has ever actually liked. The problem is, the guy thinks she is someone else entirely!
The new question gets asked, “Can Birdy survive a full summer pretending to be someone else?”
This hilarious love story is perfect for reading while lying in the grass with the sun on your back and birds chirping around you.
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han was published in 2009. It is 304 pages long, and is the first book in a trilogy, so if you like this one there is plenty more.
This book follows the life of Isabel ‘Belly’ Conklin during the summers that she spends with her mother, brother, her mother’s best friend, and her sons at Cousins Beach.
Belly really only enjoys the summer. She spends all winter just counting down the days that she will get to go to Cousins Beach again. Shelooks forward to the time away from her normal life, and especially the time she will spend with Jeremiah and Conrad.
These two boys have basically been like brothers to her, but also been her crushes. She’s known them all her life, but she can’t seem to wait to spend time with them again at the beach house.
As this summer progresses, she can’t help but notice that something has changed between her and the boys. She finds herself with weird and new feelings about them, and tries to navigate her way through these feelings.
With Jenny Han’s descriptive and immersive writing The Summer I Turned Pretty is a relatable coming-of-age story that is exciting, complex, and will be a page turner perfect for reading on the beach.
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Meet Me at the Lake was written by Carley Fortune. It was recently published in May of 2023, and is about 336 pages long. It was recommended by Today, Oprah, and BuzzFeed.
Meet Me at the Lake follows two people who once met on a random encounter, and spent the whole day adventuring, sharing their dreams and aspirations, and exploring the city together. The timing wasn’t quite right for them, but they definitely had a connection.
Fern Brookbanks and Will Baxter promised to meet one year later. Fern kept her promise, but Will stood her up. Now she spends most of her time thinking about what could have been with Will.
Fer is 32 years old, and she doesn’t think her life is where it should be. She wanted to live in the city but instead she’s in her hometown running her mother’s lakeside resort. She never wanted to do this, especially because her ex-boyfriend is the manager.
Then, nine years later, Will shows up on the doorstep of her lakeside resort with a suitcase, wanting to help Fern. She is extremely excited to see Will after all of these years, but it seems like there is something that she just can’t shake. He doesn’t seem like the guy she met all those years ago.
It definitely seems like Will is hiding something, but she can’t quite figure out what. Is it time for Fern to save Will just like he did for her when they first met?