64 of the Best Books to Read This Summer
Today, we’re excited to share our summer reading list with 64 of the best books to read this summer!
This list is comprised of all sorts of books covering everything from novels to personal development to home décor!
As I’ve shared so many times before, spending a lazy afternoon flipping through the glossy pages of a decorating book is one of my all-time favorite activities.
I love the smell of the coffee brewing in the café, the cupcakes in the bakery, and the feel of the book pages too.
Taking the time to read a novel, implement new strategies or study the pages of a home décor book feels like the biggest luxury.
Especially, when our calendars get busy.
This summer we’ve vowed to be even more intentional with our time, so we can enjoy our summer reading list even more.
Some of the books on our summer reading list have been suggested by friends, family members, or fellow bloggers.
Others have been chosen because I’ve read the author’s books before and have really enjoyed them.
A few others have recently been released and sound so good, that I can’t wait to dive in!
I tried to keep a wide range of topics from heavy to beach read light. So, I hope you find something you enjoy.
Whether you’re reading in a comfy chair on your lanai, at the beach, at the lake house, or at the cabin our summer reading list is a fun way to celebrate the season.
If you’re not into reading novels, no worries!
I’ve included lots of our favorite decorating books to give you plenty of inspiration.
In addition, if you’re using this summer to grow your business or for personal development, we have you covered too.
Here’s a Look at Our Summer Reading List…
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Summer Reading List: Novels to Explore…
On Rotation
On Rotation by Shirlene Obuobi…Ghanaian-American Angela Appiah has checked off all the boxes for the “Perfect Immigrant Daughter.” But it quickly all falls apart when her boyfriend dumps her, she bombs the most important exam of her medical career, and her best friend pulls away. And her parents, whose approval seems to hinge on how closely she follows the path they chose, are a lot less proud of their daughter. It’s a quarter-life crisis of epic proportions!
Part of Your World
Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez…After a wild bet, gourmet grilled cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down. The cause: Daniel Grant, a ridiculously hot carpenter who’s ten years younger than her and as casual as they come—the complete opposite of sophisticated city-girl Alexis. And yet their chemistry is undeniable.
Book Lovers
Book Lovers by Emily Henry...Nora agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August. But instead of picnics in meadows or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute. What they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves. One summer. Two rivals. And a plot twist they didn’t see coming…
The Lifeguards
The Lifeguards by Amanda Eyre Ward…Combining three mothers’ points of view in a powerful narrative tale with commentary from entertaining neighborhood listservs, secret text messages, and police reports, The Lifeguards is both a story about the secrets we tell to protect the ones we love and a riveting novel of suspense filled with half-truths and betrayals, fierce love and complicated friendships and the loss of innocence on one hot summer night.
The Home Wreckers
The Home Wreckers by Mary Kay Andrews…When a slick Hollywood producer shows up in Hattie Kavanaugh’s hometown of Savannah, Georgia, she gets a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: star in a beach house renovation reality show called The Homewreckers, cast against a male lead who may be a love interest or maybe the ultimate antagonist. Soon, there’s more at stake than bad pipes and dry rot. During the demolition, evidence comes to light that points to the mysterious disappearance of a young wife and mother years before.
Golden Girl
Golden Girl On by Elin Hilderbrand…a perfect June day, Vivian Howe, author of thirteen beach novels and mother of three nearly-grown children, is killed in a hit-and-run car accident while jogging near her home on Nantucket. She ascends to the Beyond where she’s assigned to a Person named Martha, who allows Vivi to watch what happens below for one last summer. Vivi also is granted three “nudges” to change the outcome of events on earth, and with her daughter Willa on her third miscarriage, Carson partying until all hours, and Leo currently “off again” with his high-maintenance girlfriend, she’ll have to think carefully where to use them.
30 Things I Love About Myself
30 Things I Love About Myself by Radhika Sanghani…Nina didn’t plan to spend her thirtieth birthday in jail, yet here she is in her pajamas, locked in a holding cell. There’s no wi-fi, no wine, no carbs—and no one to celebrate with. Just as Nina falls into despair, a book lands in her cell: How to Fix Your Shitty Life by Loving Yourself. It must be destiny. With literally nothing left to lose, Nina makes a life-changing decision to embark on a self-love journey. By her next birthday, she’s going to find thirty things she loves about herself.
That Summer
That Summer by Jennifer Weiner…Daisy Shoemaker can’t sleep. With a thriving cooking business, full schedule of volunteer work, and a beautiful home in the Philadelphia suburbs, she should be content. But her teenage daughter can be a handful, her husband can be distant, her work can feel trivial, and she has lots of acquaintances, but no real friends. Still, Daisy knows she’s got it good. So why is she up all night? While Daisy tries to identify the root of her dissatisfaction, she’s also receiving misdirected emails meant for a woman named Diana Starling, whose email address is just one punctuation mark away from her own. Who is this other woman, and what does she want with Daisy?
The Wedding Veil
The Wedding Veil by Kristy Woodson Harvey…Julia Baxter’s wedding veil, bequeathed to her great-grandmother by a mysterious woman on a train in the 1930s, has passed through generations of her family as a symbol of a happy marriage. But on the morning of her wedding day, something tells her that even the veil’s good luck isn’t enough to make her marriage last forever. Overwhelmed and panicked, she escapes to the Virgin Islands to clear her head. Meanwhile, her grandmother Babs is also feeling shaken. Still grieving the death of her beloved husband, she decides to move out of the house they once shared and into a retirement community. Though she hopes it’s a new beginning, she does not expect to run into an old flame, dredging up the same complicated emotions she felt a lifetime ago.
The Grand Design
The Grand Design by Joy Callaway is based on the true story of famed designer Dorothy Draper, The Grand Design is a moving tale of one woman’s quest to transform the walls that hold her captive.
A Lady’s Guide to Fortune-Hunting
A Lady’s Guide to Fortune-Hunting by Sophie Irwin…A whip-smart debut that follows the adventures of an entirely unconventional heroine who throws herself into the London Season to find a wealthy husband. But the last thing she expects is to find love…
This Time Tomorrow
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub… On the eve of her 40th birthday, Alice’s life isn’t terrible. She likes her job, even if it isn’t exactly the one, she expected. She’s happy with her apartment, her romantic status, and her independence, and she adores her lifelong best friend. But her father is ailing, and it feels to her as if something is missing. When she wakes up the next morning, she finds herself back in 1996, reliving her 16th birthday. But it isn’t just her adolescent body that shocks her or seeing her high school crush, it’s her dad: the vital, charming, 40-something version of her father with whom she is reunited. Now armed with a new perspective on her own life and his, some past events take on new meaning. Is there anything that she would change if she could?
Memphis
Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow is a spellbinding debut novel tracing three generations of a Southern Black family and one daughter’s discovery that she has the power to change her family’s legacy.
Horse
Horse by Geraldine Brooks…A discarded painting in a junk pile, a skeleton in an attic, and the greatest racehorse in American history: from these strands, a Pulitzer Prize winner braids a sweeping story of spirit, obsession, and injustice across American history
Something Wilder
Something Wilder by Christina Lauren…Leo Grady knew mirages were a thing in the desert, but they’d barely left civilization when the silhouette of his greatest regret comes into focus in the flickering light of the campfire. Ready to leave the past behind him, Leo wants nothing more than to reconnect with his first and only love. Unfortunately, Lily Wilder is all business, drawing a clear line in the sand: it’s never going to happen.
Keya Das’s Second Act
Keya Das’s Second Act by Sopan Deb is a poignant, heartwarming, and charmingly funny debut novel about how a discovered box in the attic leads one Bengali American family down a path toward understanding the importance of family, even when splintered.
Summer Reading List: Home Decor and Design Ideas…
Country Brocante Style * An Eye for Beauty * Patina Living * Country Farmhouse
A Life in Fabric * Beautifully Organized * Decorating with White * The World of Shabby Chic
Cozy White Cottage * Classic Cottages * Pale and Interesting * Homebody
My French Country Home * Beekman 1802 Style * A Place to Call Home * Nora Murphy’s Country House Style
Summer Reading List: Home Décor and Decorating New-ish Favorites
A Summer Place * The Gift of Home * Living Well by Design * Made for Living
Pacific Natural at Home * Feels Like Home * Cozy White Cottage Seasons * Shades of White
Home Stories * Feels Like Home * Natural Cozy Cottage * Hill House Living
A Cottage for All Seasons * Patina Homes * Inspired Gatherings * Provence Style
Summer Reading List: Self-Discovery Books to Explore…
Living the Simply Luxurious Life * The Power to Bless * The Magic of Thinking Big * Sacred Rest
The 5 AM Club * The Art of Showing Up * She Means Business * Beholding and Becoming
The Powerful Purpose of Introverts * On Purpose * Soundtracks * How to Keep House While Drowning
Fear Is Not the Boss of You * Eat That Frog * The Next Right Thing * The Best Yes
No matter if you choose to enjoy one or all of the books 64 from our summer reading list in a comfy chair, snuggled up in bed, relaxing in the bathtub, stretched out on the beach, at the lake, or in a quiet hammock, let this year be the year you actually reach your goal of reading more.
It’s such a simple way to relax and unwind!
What’s on your summer reading list? We’d love to hear your favorites! Until next time, I’ll see you on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.
Other Summer Posts to Enjoy:
Many blessings,
CoCo
This is a fabulous compilation, CoCo. Many of these home decor books are on our shelves now. BTW – met Kristy Harvey at a book event – and she is a delight! Thanks for sharing your great suggestions! Much love!
That is so exciting to hear you guys! Everyone that has met her says she’s smart, gracious and talented. Talk about a triple threat, right? Hugs, CoCo
Thank you so much for pulling this extensive list together Coco. I love to read but would never have found the time to discover half of these.
You are more than welcome, Bonnie! Let us know if you find any favorites. We love to hear what you’re reading too. Hugs, CoCo
Oh, wow! What an amazing list. Thank you so much for including The Southern Side of Paradise! I hope you enjoy it!! Happy summer! xoxo Kristy Harvey
Gah – you totally made our day! Thank you for writing such great books, Kristy. We lose track of time reading them and they’re definitely the best thing in our beach bag next to sunscreen, of course 🙂 Hope you have a great summer! Big hugs, CoCo
Thank you for including The Southern Side of Paradise on this list!!!!!!
Coco, I am an avid reader ~ as in never without a book, so thank you so much for this wonderful list. Will be ordering from Amazon tomorrow.
That is so exciting to hear, Carol! It’s always fun to carve out time to read any time of the year but especially during the lazy days of summer. We can’t wait to hear which books are your favorites. Hugs, CoCo
Great selection, the wedding veils sounds great.
Love Nora Murphy and her book.
I have a few if the others too.
Enjoy!
It does, Cindy! Her books are always so much fun. I definitely can’t wait to dive into it too! On a side note, I miss Nora Murphy’s blog all the time. I was hoping once she moved she would share more of the new place but there hasn’t been too much so far. Maybe she’s saving it for another book. Hope you have a great week, CoCo
Holy Moly! 64 books! Ok – we definitely need a longer summer. We should have at least 64 weeks of summer. Thank you for such a comprehensive list of books. Some of the home decor books I already own – and can tell we like similar styles.
Also – just a note – I really like how you visually presented the books with their covers and in a grid format.
We definitely need a longer summer so we can dive into all these books, Anna. And while we’re dreaming we need a sleeping porch and a big glass of lemonade to snuggle up with too. Hope you find some fun ones and let me know if you have any recommendations. It seems like more home decor books will be coming out in the Fall which will be exciting as well. Big hugs, CoCo
Coco,
That is quite an interesting list of books!! I just have to find the time to read about 30 books that I bought last year when the library was having a book sale of $10 for 10 books….Thanks so much for stopping by!!
Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
Hugs,
Deb
That is such a great deal, Deb! We live almost 40 minutes from the bookstore or a library so it sounds like a dream to have created a library in your home. I love that idea! Hugs, CoCo
Thanks for such a great list! I tend to read the same books over and over! I need to make reading some new books a goal for the summer! Thanks for all of the suggestions!! Hugs, Donna
You are so welcome, Donna! Some of these books have recently come out and others have been out for a while. Everyone tells me I should give audiobooks or the kindle a chance but so far I’ve been keeping it old school because I love the smell and feel of book pages so much. There is just something really comforting about them both! Hope your summer is filled with relaxing days and great reads, CoCo
CoCo,
I love getting a good reading list. Thanks so much for sharing. I’d love to share your list on my Sunday, Dirt Road Adventures.
You are so sweet to share, Rachel, thank you! I’m always excited to dive into a new book. Especially, when I can carve out an entire day to read one cover to cover. It feels like the biggest luxury! Big hugs, CoCo