Summer is the season of catching up on reading, which makes it all the harder to pick the right books for your preferences in the season of the sun. That’s why I read as many books set in Summer as I could, and I am sharing the best Summer books for your Summer reading list below, with lots of personal thoughts and comparisons for you to make the right decisions for your own Summer self-care.
Note: I decided to include ONLY books with Summer in the title to pare down this list to a manageable size. I want to focus on those books which have Summer at their core.
Happy beach reading!
Top 3 Best Summer Books for Your Summer Reading List
best for fans of modern romance
best for fans of Gilmore Girls
best for fans of historical fiction
Details on All the Best Summer Books for Your Summer Reading List
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28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand
#1 New York Times bestseller
28 Summers lived up to all my expectations of a classic Elin Hilderbrand book — preppy Nantucket setting, light but still has substance, well-drawn-out characters, realistic but still clever dialogue, compulsively readable … I feel like I can go on forever! It just may be the best of these books with Summer in the title, in my humble opinion.
It’s about two people who decide to have a “same time next year” meeting that lasts each Labor Day weekend over the course of … you guessed it … 28 Summers. Naturally, this becomes more complicated with age, marriage, and kids.
And I would be remiss not to mention my favorite part — each “year” came with a rundown of all the pop culture items we were talking about at the time. It was just a really fun addition to a book taking place over a few decades.
This was a 5 STAR read for me.
Related Posts: Best Elin Hilderbrand Books | Elin Hilderbrand Books in Order
Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner
Instant New York Times bestseller
Big Summer is a Cape Cod wedding turned murder mystery, yet it still maintains a pretty light tone and reads like a YA.
It has a couple of aspects you may either like or dislike: the main characters are influencers and the young main characters take solving the murder mystery into their own hands. I think college-age people will like it, as it reads really well for that age group particularly.
I thought Big Summer was an enjoyable Summer read from an author like Elin Hilderbrand.
The Comeback Summer by Ali Brady
Ali Brady is back again with another satisfying Summer romance novel. What I loved about The Comeback Summer is that it wasn’t just your average steamy romance novel — besides second chance romance and finding real love, it also tackled everything from self-actualization in your career to sister drama.
Hannah and Libby are running their grandmother’s PR agency, and it’s about to close when a self-help guru and potential client challenges them to complete a challenge to crush their comfort zones.
This means Hannah must go out on dates, and Libby must compete in a race. Things get much more complicated, however, when Hannah’s first love shows up, and Libby pretends to be Hannah on a dating app.
And, believe it or not, there’s even more drama and romance to uncover in this witty and charming, multi-layered Summer romance novel.
The Edge of Summer by Viola Shipman
In The Edge of Summer, Sutton is grieving the loss of her mother, Miss Mabel, when she sets out to uncover her secretive past in a Michigan resort town.
She brings along her mother’s trinkets and a collection of buttons from a matriarch of the local community, she grows intrigued by the possibility that this may be her grandmother, and she learns of her own role in the family’s history.
It’s a family mystery about self-discovery from an author whose work I love!
Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
- New York Times bestseller
- Named one of the Hottest Reads of Summer 2022 by Today, Parade, PopSugar, USA Today, SheReads, BuzzFeed, BookBub, Bustle, and more
Every Summer After has become one of the most popular books for Summer — and deservedly so. It taps into the nostalgia of first love and second chances with characters you want to root for. I even heard that bestselling author Colleen Hoover said she wished she wrote it!
Over the course of six Summers in Barry’s Bay, teenagers Persephone and Sam fall in love. Then, one Thanksgiving tears them apart. Years later, Persephone returns to Barry’s Bay for the funeral of Sam’s mother, and she must face how she feels about him after all this time.
This Summer romance novel balances a lot of things just right: friendship, love, angst, conflict, family, and more. And I think you will love it as much as everyone else does!
Related Post: Guide to Carley Fortune’s Books in Order
Hello, Summer by Mary Kay Andrews
Hello, Summer is a highly rated beach read by popular author Mary Kay Andrews, and I can totally see readers getting wrapped into this light mystery on a long day or two on the sand.
Conley is about to take a fancy new position in Washington, D.C., but when her new job goes up in smoke, Conley ends up working for her sister, who is trying to keep The Silver Bay Beacon afloat in small-town Florida.
She is given the unenviable task of overseeing the local gossip column, “Hello, Summer.” But after witnessing an accident that ends in the death of a beloved local congressman, she starts digging into his past and uncovering his secrets, all while her own love life heats up.
I think so many people will find Hello, Summer to be a really satisfying Summer beach read that is quick but holds your intrigue.
A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams
New York Times bestseller
A Hundred Summers is a quick, historical book about Summer. I love how Beatriz Williams connects historical events, like the hurricane of 1938 that decimated a shore town in Rhode Island, with fictional stories. This one is the story of glamorous Lily Dane and her old college Football playing flame, who shows up for a Summer at Seaview, Rhode Island, married to her old college friend — or one may say, “frenemy.”
As with many of Williams’ novels, that’s just the beginning of the drama and interconnected lives of the characters, and a passive-aggressive summer amongst them all comes to a head by the end of Summer when the great hurricane hits. If you are a historical fiction lover but don’t want anything too heavy for Summer, you may like this one.
It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey
As seen on E!Online, PopSugar, CNN, EliteDaily, Vulture, Buzzfeed, Bustle, the Nerd Daily, PARADE, LA Magazine, Country Living, USA Today, and more
It Happened One Summer is one hot and steamy BookTok sensation! It was too steamy for me (I’m more a fan of closed-door romances), but I think fans of spicy, open-door modern romance authors like Lucy Score and Mia Sheridan will gravitate to this one on a hot Summer day since it’s so popular with those types of readers.
Piper is a wild socialite, who lands in jail after a night of partying. Fed up, her stepfather cuts her off and sends her and her sister to manage their late father’s dive bar in Washington. There she meets a small-town sea captain named Brendan, who’s grieving his wife’s death.
Despite their differences, their attraction grows, particularly because he needs to be away at sea for long stretches, which leaves her worried and wanting him all the more.
She’s left to decide between the glitz and glamour of Los Angeles or her small-town romance.
Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
Just For the Summer proves that Abby Jimenez can continue to deliver everything her readers love.
Justin feels cursed. Every woman he dates finds her soulmate just after breaking up with him. In a twist of fate, he meets, Emma, who is similarly “cursed.” Together, they create a plan to date each other and break up, so they can go on to live happily ever after with someone else.
A traveling nurse with her friend, Emma gets a nursing job and rents an adorable cottage on Lake Minnetonka near Justin to bring this plan to life.
Emma and Justin connect deeper than expected over their “mommy” issues. (trigger warning) They just may be the perfect pair. But, the chaos left by Emma’s mom just may be too complicated to make the plan work.
This summer novel features my favorite couple in Abby Jimenez’s books. They are quirky, loveable, have great chemistry, and support each other through difficult life issues. There is also one spicy scene for steamy romance lovers!
The supporting cast, including some characters you’ll recognize and a dog (of course), round out this “slightly more complicated than normal” romance. It’s great for those who like a little bit of realistic drama in their escape reads.
It’s one quick and very enjoyable read.
Last Summer at the Golden Hotel by Elyssa Friedland
Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is one of the best light novels to read that just happens to be the perfect mix of Dirty Dancing and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
The Golden Hotel was the hottest resort in the Catskills for more than sixty years, owned by the Goldman and Weingold families. But the Catskills have lost their luster, and so has the relationship between the Goldmans and the Weingolds.
As everything begins to fall apart, both figuratively and literally, an offer to purchase the property brings these two families together to decide the fate of the Golden Hotel.
In the process, old secrets and new drama emerge, and everyone from the traditional grandparents to the millennial grandchildren have something to say about it.
Business and pleasure converge in this light, nostalgia-filled story filled with memorable characters.
The Lost Summers of Newport by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White
The Lost Summers of Newport brings together a group of bestselling authors to tell a story about money and secrets spanning over a century beginning in the Gilded Age in the impressive mansions of Newport, Rhode Island.
In 2019, Andie has landed her dream job on a popular reality show about restoring luxurious historic houses. Her latest project is Sprague Hall in Newport, but the reclusive heiress who still lives in the mansion, Lucia, demands that no one speak to her or touch the mansion’s ruined boathouse.
In 1899, Ellen Daniels was hired to give singing lessons to Miss Maybelle Sprague, a naive mining heiress whose stepbrother poured their new money into a Newport mansion. He’s determined to see Maybelle marry an Italian prince, and Ellen will help her launch into high society.
In 1958: Lucia Sprague and her grandmother—the American-born Princess di Conti—fled Mussolini’s Italy for her former Newport home, where Lucia marries Stuyvesant Sprague, the alcoholic scion of her Sprague stepfamily.
But one fateful night in the boathouse uncovers devastating truths and, as the cameras roll on the present-day reality show, these dark secrets rise to the surface.
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
New York Times bestseller
Set on the Amalfi coast, One Italian Summer follows Katy’s solo “vacation” after the death of her beloved mother, who spent the Summer there just before she met Katy’s father.
Magical realism comes into play when Kary meets a woman who doesn’t just look like her mother but actually appears to BE her mother at age 30. It’s a meeting that changes the course of Katy’s grief and her life, with a twist you won’t see coming.
It’s one of my personal favorite books to read in the Summer. And the audiobook is so perfectly read by Gilmore Girls’ own charming mother, Lauren Graham.
Our Italian Summer by Jennifer Probst
Our Italian Summer is a Summer reading book of healing for three generations of American women in one family. Sophia is the eldest, mourning the death of her husband and wishing she had managed her time with him better. Her daughter, Francesca, is a workaholic drowning in anxiety. And Francesa’s daughter, Allegra, is a teen, angry at the lack of a father figure in her life, and engaging in youthful acts of rebellion.
Together, they take a breather and head on a whirlwind Summer in Italy, filled with tourism, food, and even some romance. This escape book is what I like to a great “palate cleanser.”
Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen
Park Avenue Summer is one of the more unique Summer books for your Summer reading list, but it’s still so on point. It’s about a glamorous Summer job in NYC in 1965.
It’s described as Mad Men meets The Devil Wears Prada, but I was personally getting vibes of The Female Persuasion, Rules of Civility and Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk while reading it.
Alice leaves her small Midwestern town and lands her dream job working for Helen Gurley Brown, the first female Editor-in-Chief of a failing Cosmopolitan Magazine. Alice comes of age as Brown shocks America by talking directly to women about “off-limits” topics and someone tries to pull Alice into a scheme to sabotage her boss.
If you liked the aforementioned tv shows and/or books, I think you will like Park Avenue Summer as well.
Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan
Named a Best Book of Summer by Real Simple, Reader’s Digest, Country Living, The Skimm
Same Time Next Summer is a buzzworthy novel about a woman whose seemingly perfect life is disrupted when she unexpectedly runs into her first love during a visit to her family’s Long Island beach house.
Despite being engaged to her doctor fiancé and having a career in Manhattan, her surprise encounter stirs up old feelings, memories, and even creativity, as she takes a closer look at why they parted ways and who she is now. She grapples with the undeniable connection and is forced to reassess her life, for better or worse.
It’s a second-chance romance book that feels standard in its trope, yet also unique and enjoyable, particularly because the characters are so quirky. There’s also a slight twist a then end that will make readers swoon across beaches everywhere this Summer.
Fans of Every Summer After will definitely want to pick this one up.
Summer by Ali Smith
Summer is the fourth novel in the Seasonal Quartet by the renowned Man Booker Prize Finalist.
In the present, Sacha knows all about trouble: Her brother Robert is in trouble. Their parents are having trouble. And the word is melting.
It’s a story about those who are on the brink of change and discovering the meaning of family.
Summer of ’69 by Elin Hilderbrand
#1 New York Times bestseller
Summer of ’69 is one of my favorite Elin Hilderbrand books to date and one of the best books set on Martha’s Vineyard. It’s easily one of the best books with Summer in the title, as it just perfectly marries a historically and culturally eventful Summer with the light Nantucket beach setting readers all love so much in her books.
It’s the story of the Levin family during a monumental Summer in Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. Although they usually spend the Summer in Nantucket with their grandmother, this year, Blair is pregnant with twins in Boston, Kirby is working in Martha’s Vineyard, Tiger is fighting in Vietnam and only young Jessie is vacationing in Nantucket.
While the Summer of ’69 heats up, Senator Teddy Kennedy’s car sinks in the water of Chappaquiddick, killing a woman, and an American man flies to the moon, all amidst a backdrop of civil rights and the Vietnam War.
Summer of ’69 will keep you immersed in the family’s lives and transports you to the 60s, all at the same time. I ADORED this book.
Summer on the Bluffs by Sunny Hostin
Summer on the Bluffs is one of the best Summer reading books that takes place in my favorite Summer hot spot — Martha’s Vineyard! It’s also filled with diverse characters each of whom brings unique viewpoints to the island.
A wealthy godmother of three twentysomething women invites them to spend one last Summer with her at the Martha’s Vineyard estate before she chooses one to whom she will give the home come Summer’s end.
Each of these goddaughters deals with life issues over the course of the Summer, and beyond that, their godmother reveals the secrets behind how and why she became part of their lives. These monumental secrets may forever change their relationships.
This Summer book combined a lot of things I love: Martha’s Vineyard, light family drama, and diverse characters.
The Summer of Broken Rules by K.L. Walther
USA Today bestseller
The Summer of Broken Rules caught my attention because it was recommended for fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty, but with a Martha’s Vineyard wedding setting and endless nods to Taylor Swift songs.
Meredith is a teen coping with the loss of her beloved sister when she visits the family’s island farm for a week that will culminate in her cousin’s wedding.
In the days prior to the wedding, the family plays a competitive game of Assassin and, in an attempt to win it all in memory of her sister, Meredith forms an alliance with a cute groomsman named Wit.
But it’s not all fun and games when their adventures around the island stir up romantic feelings. The question is whether Meredith can still focus on the game… and what will become of this whirlwind romance when the week concludes.
It’s one of the best books for Summer reading for Young Adults, filled with all those warm and fuzzy feelings of lighthearted young Summer love. It left me with a huge smile on my face, and I couldn’t recommend it more highly to fans of YA and/or Taylor Swift!
Summer Darlings by Brooke Lea Foster
Summer Darlings is definitely not just one of the best Summer books because the author is a friend! It’s what I call “soap opera historical fiction” — both historic and dramatic. This one is great for fans of Mad Men and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as well.
In 1962, Brooklyn coed Heddy becomes a nanny for a wealthy family in Martha’s Vineyard. As she gets an insider’s look into the lives of the rich and famous and dates various island men of different classes, she comes of age as she ultimately questions whether a rich lifestyle will solve her problems or create more of them. There’s even some suspense!
The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent
Named a Best Beach Read by Cosmopolitan, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, Bustle, Country Living, Parade, Fortune, and more
The Summer Job is a fun and engaging story about a position that can go horribly wrong. Birdy takes the job (and namesake) of her sommelier friend Heather at a highland Scottish hotel.
And sure enough, she falls for the chef while pretending to be Heather.
This is a lighthearted story with Scottish charm that’s really delightful, as the reader waits to see if Birdy will be “found out” while attempting to be a world-class wine expert.
Summer Longing by Jamie Brenner
Set in the quirky and diverse location of Provincetown, Cape Cod, Summer Longing begins when a retired woman finds an abandoned baby girl on the doorstep of her beachfront cottage rental. This unexpected discovery unites an eclectic group of local women, each wrestling with their own personal struggles and histories around the topic of mothers and mothering, as they care for the child.
As the Summer progresses, secrets are uncovered, relationships are tested, and alliances are formed, and only their shared commitment to the child may bring resolution.
Summer Love by Nancy Thayer
Summer Love is for those who love a good Nantucket setting, as four friends gather for a life-changing reunion of self-discovery.
Twenty-six years after their first Summer as friends, Ariel, Sheila, Wyatt, and Nick reunite at the hotel where they met. Now it’s called The Lighthouse and Nick owns it with his wife and daughter. Ariel and Wyatt are married and bring their son. Sheila also arrives with her daughter.
Over the years, life hasn’t worked out as they hoped. Together again, they confront their pasts as the next generation discovers Nantucket. Add it to your Summer reading list if you love a good Nantucket setting!
The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner
Inspired by the coastal grandmother aesthetic, in The Summer Place, Sarah is shocked when her twenty-two-year-old stepdaughter Ruby announces her engagement to her pandemic boyfriend. What’s more is that Ruby wants the wedding to be held at the Cape Cod home of Sarah’s family before it’s sold.
As the big wedding day approaches, the generations of women encounter family problems along the way. And when the wedding day finally arrives, secrets that change everyone forever are revealed.
It’s a big-hearted story about family sacrifice.
Summer Reading by Jenn McKinlay
Besides having the absolute perfect title, Summer Reading is a romantic comedy in which a chef with dyslexia (who dislikes reading) has an unexpected summer on my favorite island, Martha’s Vineyard.
While overseeing her half-brother’s participation in a library-based robotics competition, she crosses paths with the library’s interim director, who’s searching for his unknown father. A surprising mutual attraction leads her to create her dream cookbook and help him find his father.
While I personally didn’t always love these characters or how their uniqueness was portrayed, I do think book lovers will appreciate how their relationship blossomed around books and reading. I’ll also note that it was fairly low on spice and light overall despite some heavier themes.
A Summer to Remember by Erika Montgomery
A Summer to Remember is a light mystery and romance book with Summer in the title that really keeps you intrigued, and has fun movie quotes at the beginning of each chapter.
Frankie is a young woman who sells movie memorabilia in the shop she opened in Hollywood with her late mother. When she received a package containing a photograph of her mother and famous movie stars at a Cape Cod film festival the year before Frankie’s birth, she begins to question her past.
She travels to Cape Cod and uncovers buried secrets amongst friends and family, all while a New England romance heats up.
The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey
The Summer of Songbirds is a delightful story with all those nostalgic Summer camp vibes, mixing the depth of real-life drama and conflict with the lightheartedness of a beach read.
Three decades prior, June developed Camp Holly Springs into a summer retreat for girls, including her beloved niece, Daphne, but now its future is at stake. Meanwhile, Daphne and her old Summer camp friends Lanier and Mary Stuart are still in touch, navigating all of life’s “hard things” together as adults.
Lanier is engaged, but tempted by an old flame, all while Daphne is keen to a business secret about Lanier’s fiance that she can’t tell. At the same time, Daphne herself reignites the spark of an old flame — Lanier’s brother — which is a relationship Lanier has not been keen about.
These conflicts, along with the demons of addiction and the hardships of single parenthood, come to a head when the women unite to save the camp.
It’s not as dark as it may seem, however. The characters and their friendships feel both real and mature. These are women used to coping with “hard things” together, and they will do so as they work on their love lives at the same time.
Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart
Summer at Tiffany is another one of the best Summer books that’s about a Summer job in New York City — this time in 1945 and a memoir.
Marjorie and her best friend Marty Garrett arrive fresh from the University of Iowa hoping to find summer positions as shopgirls, and they become pages at Tiffany & Co. — the first women to ever work on the sales floor.
Summer at Tiffany is a fun tale of meeting the rich and famous (like Judy Garland), as well as some handsome suitors, and changing the course of their lives over one Summer in which the Second World War ended.
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
New York Times bestseller
The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy comes from the popular author of the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before series (a great love story). The story follows teenage “Belly” as she and her mom and her brother visit their shared Summer beach house with her mom’s friend and her two sons, who are both like brothers and crushes to her.
It’s about how a young teen starts to bloom from that awkward stage to that “getting noticed stage.” And as life in the beach house takes a difficult turn, the course of Belly’s teenage life changes.
If you like YA books and/or like To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, you are bound to enjoy it (along with the addictive adaptation!).
That Summer by Jennifer Weiner
Instant New York Times bestseller
That Summer is not your typical book amongst the best Summer reading books. It starts as a teenage Diana heads to Cape Cod to babysit for the Summer, and I envisioned a sweet, nostalgia-filled season. Then, it happened. She was raped.
Decades later, she’s still struggling to cope with the trauma of her rape, when she begins an online friendship with another woman named Diana. But, their acquaintance wasn’t by chance after all, and there’s a whole lot more to unpack in this unlikely friendship.
Despite the difficult subject matter, it was utterly captivating, and really beautifully told. It’s a book I’ll continue to think about for a long time, and I highly recommend it if the content isn’t a trigger for you.
That Summer Feeling by Bridget Morrissey
- InstanReal Simple’s Must-Reads of Summer 2023
- Book Riot’s Best Romance Books of Summer 2023
- Buzzfeed’s Romance Books To Look Out For In 2023
- Paste Magazine’s Most Anticipated Contemporary Romance Books of 2023
That Summer Feeling is about a divorced woman who embarks on a journey of self-discovery at a reopened adult sleepaway camp. She’s hopeful to find a fresh start, only to find herself unexpectedly drawn to a man from her past, and surprisingly, even more to his sister, a charismatic former park ranger.
Amidst the festivities of Summer and camp, she finds herself torn between her past and a potential new love with a woman. It’s about the unpredictability of the human heart.
The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams
New York Times bestseller
Sometimes a book just suits you. I really felt that way about The Summer Wives — my first, but definitely not last, Beatriz Williams book. What was I waiting for?! This “soap opera historical fiction” book (I made up that genre) reminded me of so many great books:
- The rich dialogue of Breakfast at Tiffany’s (one of my all-time faves)
- The nostalgic tone of Rules of Civility and Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
- The movie star dealing with complicated past relationships of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (an amazing escape read).
Need I say more?! As far as I am concerned, The Summer Wives doesn’t need a review or a summary. If you like the above books and/or need a great beach read, just do it!
Conclusion
Those are the best Summer books to add to your Summer reading list. To recap and help you decide what to read first or next, my top three picks are:
best for fans of modern romance
best for fans of Gilmore Girls
best for fans of historical fiction
