The sun is out and the weather is warm: Time to take your pick of the perfect summer reading spot (Blanket on the grass? Lounge chair at the pool? Personally, I’m partial to outdoor cafés . . .) and settle in. In celebration of the season, I’m sharing a few of my favorite picks for this time of year. It’s an odd assortment of old and new, but all of them have that certain something that make them ideal for lazy summer days.
And while everyone has their own criteria for what constitutes summer reading, for me it comes down to a few particular characteristics. First, it has to be compulsively readable in a way that makes even a lengthy page run feel like it’s over in a flash. (Number two on the list below clocks in at over four hundred pages, for example.)
I also look for utterly intriguing characters, far-flung locations, and a healthy dash of hope in humanity, although admittedly that last one isn’t a deal-breaker—see the final entry on the list. So whether you’ve read all of these before or are adding some to your own summer list, I wish you happy reading!
The House in the Cerulean Sea (2020) by TJ Klune
The novel centers on Linus Baker, a caseworker for children imbued with magical powers. He is temporarily assigned to a small island to report back to the Department in Charge of Magical Young (DICOMY) on the status of six children whose powers are considered dangerous. The children and Arthur Parnassus, their kind and free-spirited caretaker, slowly begin to grow on the uptight Linus as he comes to question his work’s true purpose.
This is a feel-good book if ever there was one! LGBTQIA+ romance, a breathtaking beach town, and the cutest little antichrist in all of literature (really!) combine for a sweet read that focuses on the ideas of love, acceptance, and following your heart.
Summer Sisters (1998) by Judy Blume
While Judy Blume may be better known for her YA coming-of-age stories, trust me: Her adult novels pack just as big of an emotional punch. This one traces the decades-long friendship of Victoria “Vix” Leonard and Caitlin Somers.
From their childhood summers spent together on Martha’s Vineyard to their increasingly complicated relationship—made all the more complicated when an adult Caitlin calls Vix to announce that she’s marrying Vix’s ex-boyfriend—the friends discover that childhood bonds don’t always transfer to adulthood. The whole thing is emotional, a bit campy, and utterly enthralling. And it’s hard to beat Martha’s Vineyard as a setting for a summer read!
The Great Gatsby (1925) by F. Scott Fitzgerald
This novel probably needs no introduction, but I’ll go ahead and take a crack at it anyway. It’s the heartbreaking and often infuriating tale of Jay Gatsby, a man who drops into Long Island high society wielding a mysterious fortune and one goal: to win the heart of Daisy Buchanan, a former love whose expensive taste drives Jay to extremes.
As he attempts to reel in the unhappily married Daisy, illicit affairs and split-second choices eventually converge to bring everything to a crashing finale. A scathing look at greed, obsession, and how the American dream can sometimes poison everything it touches, it is (in my humble opinion) Fitzgerald at his finest.
The Wedding People (2024) by Alison Espach
You may not think a novel that starts out with its protagonist wanting to kill herself would qualify as a summer read, but you’d be surprised. When readers first meet Phoebe Stone, she is determined to end her life at a Newport hotel. But after being mistaken for a wedding guest, she is unexpectedly taken under the wing of the bride, Lila.
As the two form a budding friendship, Phoebe slowly begins to see all the things that might just be worth living for. Darkly funny and often bittersweet, this novel combines the frivolity and franticness of an impending wedding with the serious musings of a life only half lived.
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955) by Patricia Highsmith
The first of five books to star the unsettling protagonist Tom Ripley, this novel centers on his trip to Italy to convince the very flighty (and very rich) Dickie Greenleaf to return home. Hired by Dickie’s father, Tom soon becomes swept up in the young man’s charmed life and goes to violent lengths to claim it as his own.
After Tom assumes Dickie’s identity, readers become tangled in a cat-and-mouse game as they are left to wonder if Tom will get away with his con man ways—or if Dickie’s friend and girlfriend will finally discover the truth. You can practically feel the Italian sun shining down as you read this wickedly fun and twisted mystery.
Andrea Moran lives outside of Nashville with her husband and two kids. She’s a professional copywriter and editor who loves all things books. Find her on LinkedIn.
