Hopefully July marks the start of some summer vacations. However, if you aren’t traveling this month, these books and shows are a great opportunity to travel through different worlds from regency England, 1940s Mexico, to modern California without leaving the comfort of your own home. Here’s what to read and watch in July 2026.

Must Re-Read

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

If you’re a fan of reading a book before seeing the movie, now is your time to read (or reread) Sense and Sensibility before the movie starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles is released this fall. In the book, Mr. Dashwood has died, leaving his wife and three daughters destitute. They move in with distant relatives after being cast out of their home. Logical Elinor discovers that the man she loves, Edward, is engaged but bears her heartbreak in secret. Her opposite, emotional and romantic, Marianne has fallen for Mr. Willoughby. When he is revealed to be disloyal, Marianne is distraught. Through love and loss, the Dashwood sisters learn how to balance sense and sensibility in the pursuit of happiness.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

New Must Reads

Love Wells Kept by Bailey Hannah

Jackson has been married to Kate for over ten years when he sustains a severe head injury that puts him into a coma. After regaining consciousness, Kate learns that he cannot remember years of their life together. Doctors believe that his memory will return in time, but Jackson is struggling to live a life with his wife and kids that he no longer recognizes. Kate is trying to be strong, but she’s secretly mourning the loss of the life that she once knew and trying to depend on their Wells Ranch family. It might be difficult, but Kate made a vow to stay in sickness and in health. As Jackson slowly remembers bits and pieces of their life and the two grow closer, they prove that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

The Masala Chai Mystery Club by MJ Soni

When the body of her childhood friend and neighbor is found, retired librarian Neeti Shah is determined to figure out what happened. The more she investigates, the more she discovers the murder is similar to Neeti’s most recent book club read. Rohit may not have exactly been the nicest neighbor, but is that enough to kill him? With the help of her book club, the Masala Chai Mystery Club, Neeti is determined to find the killer—but she must be careful or else she could be the next victim.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Helpless by Jessica Knoll

In college, Faye Heron broke Henry Spalding’s heart because she was at risk of losing herself and being entirely consumed by him. Twelve years later, their separate lives have gone according to plan. Faye is a Hollywood producer alongside her husband, and Henry is running the family business while raising his kids with his wife. When their beloved college professor passes away, both of them end up back on campus for the funeral. Faye and Henry catch up with a drink—one that has been spiked. When Faye wakes up at a remote cabin, she is questioning if Henry is punishing her. As her time in captivity stretches, their unhealthy dynamic returns and truths begin to come out.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Make Nice by Ryan Effgen

The Pickford family is gathering at a luxurious hotel, hoping to satisfy their own individual needs. Pete is in hunt of a rare Carthusian snail, Viv is coping with her husband’s revelation that he’s gay and putting on an act for her daughter, and Corey has five pounds of cocaine he’s hoping to sell the first rich kid he can find. But as the getaway goes on, the pressures each face, the secrets they carry and the truth they reveal about each other brings out the worst—and possibly the best—in all of them in this hilarious, heart-filled story.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Extracurricular by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Ramona Wild spent her entire childhood as a child actress turned pop star. Now, at twenty-six, she needs a break. She wants whatever semblance of normal she can have. For her that means college. Recently divorced professor Nick Navarro is focused on getting through life one day at a time. When he has a meeting about a celebrity student, Nick is planning on treating them like every other student. That is until Ramona walks in and it rattles him more than he’d care to admit. Ramona takes every chance she gets to push his buttons, loving when she flusters him. When a crisis outside of class ultimately pushes the two into friendship, they have to face the undeniable attraction between them. But if Nick and Ramona want something real, they’ll have to work for it.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Love You More by Emily Giffin

Billie has found happiness in New York City between her thriving medical practice and her partner Dean. She spent years trying to move on from her intense relationship with her high school sweetheart, Mick, and she finally feels like she has. That is, until shortly after getting engaged to Dean, Mick calls with news that sends her rushing back to their hometown in Wisconsin. As Billie boards the plane, she finds herself facing her past, her present, and what she wants for her future.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Handsome con artist Ulises has made his money from swindling lonely women by letter, but this is becoming a problem in 1940s Mexico, where money is becoming more scarce. Ulises decides he is going to take advantage of his looks before they fade and sets his sights on Perla, the owner of a small boardinghouse in Veracruz. When their correspondence results in meeting in person, Ulises isn’t expecting her to have a niece. Inés is both perceptive and longing to leave her aunt’s house. She quickly uncovers Ulises’ scheme and decides that she wants to be a part of it. They’ll convince Perla to marry Ulises and then run off with her money. Ulises was wrong about Perla, though–she’s not a lonely, desperate spinster. She’s hiding her own secrets. And although Ulises wants nothing to do with love, he finds Inés to be more magnetic than he was expecting. What was going to be a get rich quick plan becomes far more complicated than Ulises could have imagined.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Crash Into Me by Robinne Lee

Shortly after reluctantly moving to Los Angeles with her French film director husband and children, Cecilia Chen gets into a car accident. The other car was driven by none other than Anouk Ferrand, a gorgeous model that Cecilia last saw when she was on a photo shoot twenty years ago. Their second meeting turns her life on its head. She has been struggling to fit in her new world of privilege and power that so deeply contrasts her Jamaican immigrant upbringing. An emotional and physical entanglement with Anouk might just be the thing that helps Cecilia find where she belongs.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves

In the modern world, Travis is death. Living with his cat in a small grey town, he comforts people in the final moments of their lives. He tries to be stoic and delicate, but perhaps might be a little naive. He recognizes the balance in what he does so he never tries to change anyone’s fate. Then, his perspective on life changes when he meets his neighbors Dalia, a midwife, and Layla, her eight year old daughter. He tries to keep his distance from them but, instead, ends up welcomed by other people for the first time. With this found family, Travis learns what it means to be truly alive and comes to understand what is truly lost in death.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders

Thirty-two-year-old Aubrey Lamb is underpaid, overworked, and grieving the end of a serious relationship and the passing of her father. After her dad passes, she learns that she has inherited his stake in a Tennessee farm. She sees this as a chance to get out of Washington D.C. and hopefully out of debt. Four ghosts—Aubrey’s ancestors—on the farm are watching Aubrey’s arrival and judging her every move. While Aubrey is reconnecting with her living family, in parallel, the original story of the farm unfolds, beginning with the purchasing of the farm by Aubrey’s great grandfather, one of the first Black landowners in the community. The land was originally meant to be a place for the Lamb family to flourish, but has become a burdensome inheritance throughout the years. As the countdown begins to the potential sale of the farm, the ghosts fear being cast from their homeland while Aubrey must weigh the hopes of her ancestors and the needs of her future.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

In case you missed it…

The Great Outdoors by Kayla Olson

Sadie is always prepared. She’s thought of every possible outcome and planned accordingly. What she doesn’t plan for, unfortunately, is her boyfriend labeling her “high maintenance” and dumping her. In an effort to prove him wrong, she decides to spend weeks in the High Sierras of California on a guided wilderness adventure. It’s the absolute last place she wants to be, but she’s determined to loosen up. Sadie is more of a hotel than a tent gal but her pretty-on-the-eyes tour guide, August, is making roughing it a little bit better. August considers himself to be a professional. He knows to keep his distance from all of the hikers in his care. That is until Sadie. As the two explore the wilderness together, Sadie realizes that maybe all it takes to enjoy the great outdoors is the right person.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Villa Coco by Andrew Sean Greer

Following a rather unimpressive undergraduate career, an aspiring archivist moves to the Italian countryside. Here, he becomes an assistant to the Baronessa, lovingly called Coco by her friends, with a youthfulness and flamboyance that defies her ninety-two years. While juggling thirsty princesses, perplexing handymen, wandering hunters, nuns, and the other eclectic residents of the area, the young man tries to catalog the vast collection of art and antiques that belong to the villa. Yet, things seem to keep going missing. Despite all of the chaos at home, he falls headfirst into an affair with a married man, entangling his future considerably. And, when the Baronessa suffers the loss of someone close to her, he becomes an accidental partner in Coco’s final plan to find the love of her life and reunite them before her time runs out.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon

Shows

Lucky (Apple TV, July 15)

Based on the novel by Marissa Stapley of the same name, the show follows con artist Lucky, portrayed by Anya Taylor-Joy, on the run following a multi-million dollar heist that’s gone awry. Being chased by both the FBI and a relentless crime boss, Lucky must find a way out that keeps her alive and hopefully out of cuffs.

The Five Star Weekend (Peacock, July 16)

Another Elin Hilderbrand adaptation is hitting a streaming platform, following her previous Netflix series, The Perfect Couple. The Five Star Weekend follows food blogger Hollis Shaw (Jennifer Garner) who is dealing with grief by hosting four of her best friends from different periods of her life for a weekend in Nantucket.

Ransom Canyon (Season 2, Netflix, July 23)

Ransom Canyon is back on Netflix for a second season, after its successful first season in 2025. The Texas-based romantic drama starring Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly follows three ranching families and dynasties fighting to protect their land and legacies amidst tragedy and growing tensions.