Every spring I get excited for long days by the pool with a great book – or two or three – in my pool bag. Although this is never my reality (real life gets in the way), it’s still so thrilling to think about what great books might be waiting for me. Here are 10 great reads that I’m very much looking forward to this summer:
1 & 2: This Summer Will Be Different and Summer Romance
One for now and one for later! These two are super similar in premise (gotta love an “I didn’t realize this was my BFF’s younger brother trope!) but there are some key differences. This Summer Will Be Different by Carly Fortune is out already. This one takes place on Prince Edward Island (so dreamy) and features Lucy’s best friend’s brother Felix (also v dreamy!). One of the biggest differences between this one and Summer Romance is that it’s an open-door romance (that’s romance lingo for super steamy: the bedroom door is OPEN for all the readers). Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan is a closed door romance – mostly meaning that while we, as readers, get to read about all of the romantic tension, all the lingering gazes and sizzling feelings, there are no graphic love scenes (they close the door!). Another thing that sets Summer Romance apart is that the main character, Ali, is a recently divorced professional organizer with a teenage daughter. There are a lot of elements in this one that elevate it from your typical romance novel. I loved it.
3. Coast Road by Alan Murrin
Coast Road is going to fill my “sad and complex but with an Irish dialect” bucket for the entire summer. I’m halfway through and it reminds me so much of Trespasses by Louise Kennedy (a favorite from last year) and Claire Keegan’s novellas. If you love an Irish novel, this needs to be on your TBR!
4. All The Colors Of The Dark by Chris Whittaker
All the Colors of the Dark comes out June 25 and it’s on my list of Must Reads. I loved Chris Whittaker’s first novel, We Begin at the End, and this new one is already getting some major bookstore buzz. He’s great for having highly developed characters, real issues, but also a little bit of intrigue. There are review quotes from everyone from Gillian Flynn to Kristen Hannah – all calling it the summer’s biggest blockbuster. Set in a small town shortly after the Vietnam War, young girls start disappearing. When unlikely hero Patch rescues one of the missing women, he sets off a chain of events that take years to unravel.
5. The God Of The Woods by Liz Moore
The God of the Woods is another highly anticipated novel that serves up some suspense. Liz Moore’s previous novel (Long Bright River) was one of my favorites because of the way she took a seemingly straight-forward mystery and turned it into a literary novel about sisters, the drug epidemic, and addiction. So much more than an average “who-dunnit.” The God of the Woods sounds much the same, this time set in the woods at a prestigious summer camp. When a camper goes missing – not just any camper but the camp owner’s daughter – all sorts of dark things start to surface. Out July 2nd.
6. The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman
July 16th is the release date for Lev Grossman’s new novel The Bright Sword. If you are an adult who grew up with Harry Potter, you’re likely familiar with Grossman’s last big novel The Magicians. Sort of a spin-off of HP involving a school for the magically-inclined. In The Bright Sword, Grossman moves away from the world of witches and goes all the way back to the Knights of the Round Table. A young, easy-to-root-for knight named Collum comes to Camelot to fight for a seat at the Round Table. Turns out when he gets there, he’s too late. King Arthur’s court has crumbled. Collum must work with the knights that remain (a rag tag group) to recover Excaliber and solve the issues of the fractured kingdom. Feels like fans of Mists of Avalon, and maybe even Game of Thrones, would love this epic saga.
7. The Wedding People by Alison Espach
The Wedding People by Alison Espach comes out July 23rd. It’s the perfect balance of serious and fun. Phoebe, an adjunct professor of Victorian literature, finds herself in a position where hope seems to be lost; after years of infertility, her husband (also a professor) left her for a younger woman. A series of other slights and misfortunes lead her to book a stay at a very expensive hotel on the east coast with the sole purpose of ending her life. When she arrives, however, she finds herself right in the middle of a massive, elaborate, week-long wedding celebration. The bonds she makes with the strangers she meets at the hotel will change (and lengthen!) her life.
8. Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell
Also out on July 23rd is Rainbow Rowell’s new novel, Slow Dance. This is her first book geared towards adults since her very first novel (Attachments, my personal fave). It’s still very much in her zone though – a really good friends-to-lovers story that deals with grief, PTSD, the trauma of growing up.
9. The Axeman's Carnival by Catherine Chidgey
If you loved Remarkably Bright Creatures, you won’t want to miss The Axeman’s Carnival (out on 08/13/24). The Axeman’s Carnival is narrated by a lovely, smart young magpie named Tama. When Tama chooses to live with the human woman (Marnie) and her not-so-pleasant husband (Rob), he has some struggles with his magpie-family. But the real meat of the story begins when Marnie discovers that Tama can speak. English. She starts filming him dressed up saying funny things and before you know it he’s an internet sensation. But Rob really struggles with Tama’s fame, and his not-so-pleasant-ness turns into something worse over time. Can Tama save the day? So good!
10. Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors
This title doesn’t release until Sept 3rd, so it might be the book that carries you into fall, but it’s so great that it’s worth being on your radar right now. Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors has major Hello Beautiful vibes - it’s about a family of four sisters, but before the novel starts one of them has passed away. The other three have to work hard to deal with their grief, apart and together. Each sister is so well developed, so entirely her own person – I loved reading about them. This feels like it has the potential to be a big fall blockbuster type book.
Enjoy the Sun!
Grab these books and more on our website or in our store in Downtown Overland Park, Kansas. New releases hit our shelves every Tuesday!