Summer is officially here! And whether you have a trip to the beach planned or you just want to feel transported there, these books will give you all the vibes. From a warm breeze in your hair to sand in your toes, get swept away by these seaside reads. This list includes some of the queens of beach reads as well some lesser known picks. Travel to Nantucket, Barbados, California, Florida and beyond with everything ranging from romance, to murder mysteries, to a look back in history.
Beach Read by Emily Henry
January and Augustus couldn’t be more different, one writes happily-ever-after romances, and the other writes serious and gritty literary fiction. They do have one thing in common, a serious case of writer’s block that can only be cured by a three-month trip to neighboring beach houses. To overcome their writer’s block, January helps August try his hand at writing romance novels and whisks him off to scenic escapes for inspiration, and he repays her by helping her conduct interviews for a fiction novel. Hopefully, they will both be done writing by the end of the summer, but the story of January and Augustus doesn’t end with their novels.
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The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren
Anna and Liam got married so Anna could afford UCLA, how romantic. After graduation, she signed divorce papers and she hasn’t seen Liam since. Liam is the heir to a fortune, until he discovers a clause in his grandfather’s will that says he cannot have a penny of the inheritance until he has been married for at least five years. Now he must convince Anna to stay married to him and pretend to be his wife. But, when he learns more about Anna, he worries the world of wealth and his toxic family will hurt her almost as much as her leaving will hurt him.
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Best Men by Sidney Karger
Max and Paige have been best friends since they were young, always being each other’s go-to person for laughs and splunch (or, as other people know it, brunch). When Max finds out his best friend is getting married, he is seriously thrown, he never thought wild Paige would settle down before he did. On top of this, Paige wants him to be her man of honor to which he agrees, even if it makes his romantic heart ache. Following his man of honor duties, he will work with the best man, Chasten, the annoyingly handsome, charming, and fun gay younger brother of the groom, Austin. As the wedding draws nearer, it is clear Max and Chasten are as different as they are stubborn. Will they find a way to work together to give Paige and Austin the wedding of their dreams and find their own happy ending?
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The Perfect Sister by Stephanie DeCarolis
Alex Walker has always admired her seemingly perfect older sister Maddie, who managed to escape their troubled hometown. When Maddie unexpectedly cancels their annual reunion and then stops answering calls, Alex follows clues to the Hamptons, uncovering the mysterious and deceptive world of the wealthy Blackwell family, the last to see Maddie before she vanished.
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Serendipity by Becky Chalsen
After a failed stay in L.A. trying to become a screenwriter, Maggie returns home to New York where she is met with more side-eye glares than she can count, especially from her ex-best friend, Liz, and her ex-boyfriend. Hoping to patch up past mistakes, Liz invites her to spend time with old friends at their summer house, Serendipity. Maggie’s arrival at the house shakes up the formerly stable friend group, but once the dust settles, they may all be able to find common ground and heal old wounds.
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The Getaway Girls by Dee MacDonald
A fast friendship forms between Maggie, Connie, and Gill, women who all meet at a bleak flower-arranging lesson. They decide to take life by the reins and pack up everything for a summer trip along the shores of France and Italy, each in search of something to change their now repetitive days back home. Gill is on a mission to find a summer fling, Connie has a substantial inheritance waiting for her in Italy, and Maggie has a secret that could change everything.
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How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones
This fast-paced fiction is set in the booming resort town Baxter’s Beach, Barbados. However, it is not as restful a place for residents as it is for visitors. Lala grew up in Barbados with her grandmother, Wilma, who used to tell her scary stories about the one-armed sister to warn her about what happens when children act out. Lala, however, saw this story as an inspiration to explore the world. She has returned to the island and lives on the beach with her husband, though it is difficult for her to rejoin the life she desperately tried to leave behind years before. As she spends more time there, she is further immersed in the danger of living in Barbados and what it takes to survive. The book looks at the difficult life of people living in Barbados with poverty and gangs, hidden behind a thin veil of resort buildings and wealthy tourist traps.
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The Last Resort by Marissa Stapley
Set in a Mayan Riveria resort, couples come to The Harmony Resort to heal their relationship and rebuild their marriages. But when Miles Markell, owner and marriage counselor of Harmony, goes missing, guests start to question what the resort could be hiding. As a tropical storm traps all the guests at the resort, secrets come out about the resort, its owners, and the guests, putting all their stormy relationships at stake.
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The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
After being orphaned, Florian sets sail on the pirate ship, Dove, as a marauder and thief to survive. The high Imperial daughter Lady Evelyn Hasegawa is also aboard the ship on her way to the Floating Islands for her arranged marriage ceremony to save her kingdom. However, any plans for a peaceful trip go overboard when the captain and crew enslave Evelyn and other wealthy passengers. The more time they spend together in the Dove, Florian and Evelyn realize their feelings for one another, they must find a way to be together without being found out. Luckily, a little magical help is within their reach.
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The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams
In 1951, young Miranda’s life is turned upside-down when her mother remarries Hugh Fischer, a high society man, and moves to Winthrop Island. She is thrust into the cold world of cocktail parties and social etiquette, with only the guidance of her new stepsister Isobel. Miranda spends her time learning about the people who live in the fishing village in Winthrop and seeks company from the famous lighthouse owner’s son, Joseph Vargas. After a catastrophe that shames her new family, Miranda is thrown out of her house and must leave Winthrop and does not return for two decades. Only after the mysterious death of Hugh does she return to the island looking for answers.
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Summer of ’69 by Elin Hilderbrand
The Levin Family travels to Nantucket every summer for vacation and stays at their grandmother’s beach house. This summer, however, all this changes when siblings Jessie, Blair, Kirby, and Tiger, are all spread across the world. With only Jessie able to visit the summer house, she uncovers some interesting family history and watches the world change during one of the most impactful years in American history, 1969.
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Summer at Firefly Beach by Jenny Hale
Hallie returns to the beach house where she spent every summer growing up, but with the passing of her Aunt Clara, this will be the last time she visits her beloved escape. While there, she finds a letter her aunt left for her including a bucket list they had made when Hallie was younger. In the letter, it is her aunt’s final wish that she completes it, so Hallie dives headfirst into the challenge with her childhood friend Ben Murray to help her. But when a suave and handsome Gavin rolls into town, Hallie begins to question her priorities, the list, and her future.
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Beach House Summer by Sarah Morgan
Joanna Whitman had finally gotten her life back in order after she separated from her famous ex-husband, Cliff. But when Cliff is in a fatal car accident, it is up to Joanna to provide support for Ashley, Cliff’s mysterious friend who was in the crash with him. Knowing the media will start coming after her and Ashley, Joanna suggests they hide away in her beach house until everything calms down. An unlikely friendship emerges between the women, but could fall apart after Joanna learns why Ashley was in the car, how she knows Cliff, and who the father of Ashley’s unborn baby is.
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Murder on Hollywood Beach by Carol Finizza
After her short-lived marriage to a Hollywood wellness guru, Amanda moves to Hollywood Beach in pursuit of a fresh start and meaningful future. After a rough start, she finds work as a professional organizer and journalist for a local paper. When her ex-husband’s new wife is found dead in Amanda’s backyard, she goes from writer to murderer in the blink of an eye. Desperate to clear her name, she searches for clues and evidence to find out what happened. The more she uncovers the truth, the more danger she puts herself in, shifting from the number one suspect to the killer’s next victim.
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Palm Beach by Mary Adkins
A down-on-their-luck New York couple, Rebecca and Mickey, look for a change of pace in Palm Beach, Florida. While there, Mickey picks up a job managing the household of venture capitalist billionaire, Cecil Stone. Stone also hires Rebecca to be a ghostwriter for his wife, and while Rebecca abhors men like Stone who only seem to be about making money, she does the job and grows closer with his family. Rebecca and Mickey find themselves falling deeper in with the Stone family and, after a medical crisis that Stone solves, the couple finds themself increasingly reliant on him. Then, Rebecca uncovers a secret about the Stone family, and debates how many deals one couple can make for their survival.
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Just by Looking at Him by Ryan O’Connell
Anyone could see that Elliot was living the dream, a successful screenwriter, a loving boyfriend, and a lavish lifestyle full of parties, what more could anyone ask for? However, no part of Elliot’s life is what it seems. As he struggles with cerebral palsy, alcohol addiction, Hollywood scandals, and infidelity, his life slowly slips out of control. Elliot realizes it is time for a change and decides to face his problems head-on, which is much easier in the stories he writes than it is in real life.
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Island Time by Georgia Clark
From two different worlds, the brood that makes up the Kelly family must live in peace with the posh Lee’s when their daughters get married. Now, on a family trip to an island off the coast of Queensland, a volcano erupts trapping them in the resort together for six weeks. All this togetherness has each family questioning what they want from their lives and who they want to be with.
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Attached at the Hip by Christine Riccio
Unsatisfied with her post-grad life, Orie signs up to be on a reality TV show on a remote island for a chance to win 1 million dollars. However, once she gets to the island, the show turns out to be an experimental version of what she signed up for, only this one includes speed-dating. As if this weren’t enough to tie her stomach in knots, another contestant is her high school heartthrob, Remy. She must overcome physical challenges, tricky alliances, and her undeniable feelings for Remy to win it all. But is the money really what she is after, or could this be her chance to win over her first love?
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The Summer Swap by Sarah Morgan
An unlikely friendship is born between Cecilia, a 75-year-old owner of Dune Cottage, and Lily, a 23-year-old college dropout and the cottage’s secret resident. Or at least it was a secret until Celcila made a surprise return. After their awkward meeting, Celcila invites Lily to stay for the rest of the summer to give her time to figure out what she wants. This is a fine plan, until Todd, Cecilia’s grandson, comes to visit, Lily has a choice, pursue the life she wants even if it is more of a risk, or play it safe.
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The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Now a popular show on Hulu, The Summer I Turned Pretty is a young adult novel following Belly and her time spent at a beach house with a family friend named Susannah, and her sons, Jeremiah and Conrad. Every year they come to the beach house to spend time together to make up for what they miss during the rest of the year. But this year feels different. Belly starts to realize how complicated her relationship and feelings for Conrad and Jeremiah are and how the wrong decision could ruin them.
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