I don’t know about you guys, but my current TBR is absolutely massive. I’m also a mood reader, so that doesn’t necessarily help my odds of completing my TBR in my lifetime. But I have eleven amazing books to check out this summer to get you into the summer vibes! (And knock some books off your TBR at the same time!)
The Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
I know, I KNOW. This book series has been out for a while now. I have been meaning to read this book series for about two years now. Ever since I had an internship at a county jail and one of the officer’s recommended it to me. Yes, it’s stuck with me ever since. I mean, they even have a TV series! If you’re like me, and been dying to read this series, now is the perfect time!
Below is the description from Goodreads:
“The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of Our Lord…1743.
Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life and shatter her heart. For here James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire—and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.”
The Sunken City by Emma V. R. Noyes
Okay, PLEASE read this book. I am begging you virtually, read this book. I read an ARC of this book (and the second book) and it is PHENOMENAL. Pirates of the Caribbean meets Atlantis. I’m telling you, fantastic. (Plus, her third book comes out in December. Go, run, read it now!)
Below is the description on Goodreads:
“Amare Bellamy is not a witch. Orphaned as a child and raised on a ship by the most dangerous men in the Caribbean, Amare is one thing and one thing alone: a pirate. And pirates hate magic.
After a fateful storm plunges her to the depths of the ocean, Amare wakes to find herself in a strange new world: an underwater kingdom, where magic exists, but is strictly outlawed by the King—a man who claims to be her true father.
As Amare struggles to fit into her new role as Princess of the Sunken City, she finds herself tangled in a web of love between two brothers—one good, one not so good. And as strange powers manifest within her, she must question everything she was raised to believe—especially if she has any hope of stopping the evil brewing at the bottom of the ocean.”
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
An absolute classic, that can never be wrong to read again. If you somehow aren’t familiar with the series, I will post the description from Goodreads below: (The movies are also fantastic).
“Carmen got the jeans at a thrift shop. They didn’t look all that great: they were worn, dirty, and speckled with bleach. On the night before she and her friends part for the summer, Carmen decides to toss them.
But Tibby says they’re great. She’d love to have them. Lena and Bridget also think they’re fabulous. Lena decides that they should all try them on. Whoever they fit best will get them.
Nobody knows why, but the pants fit everyone perfectly. Even Carmen (who never thinks she looks good in anything) thinks she looks good in the pants. Over a few bags of cheese puffs, they decide to form a sisterhood and take the vow of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants . . . the next morning, they say good-bye.
And then the journey of the pants — and the most memorable summer of their lives — begins.”
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
If you are anything like me, an absolute thriller junkie, you can’t go all summer without reading one. Gone Girl, absolute masterpiece. You know the drill by now, here’s the description from Goodreads:
“Marriage can be a real killer.
On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy’s diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?
As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?”
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Another classic, that is a must read this summer. I also adore the movie, another thing to add to your summer to-do list.
Here is the Goodreads description:
“Set in South Carolina in 1964, The Secret Life of Bees tells the story of Lily Owens, whose life has been shaped around the blurred memory of the afternoon her mother was killed. When Lily’s fierce-hearted black “stand-in mother,” Rosaleen, insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. They escape to Tiburon, South Carolina–a town that holds the secret to her mother’s past. Taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters, Lily is introduced to their mesmerizing world of bees and honey, and the Black Madonna. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power, a story women will share and pass on to their daughters for years to come.”
Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy
Okay, I have to tell you. I’ve read this book twice, and it never gets old. I love anything Elle Kennedy writes, and I can’t wait for the sequel of this book to come out. It’s like Anna Todd’s After series with beachy vibes. Totally worth it. Here is the Goodreads description:
“She does everything right. So what could go wrong?
Mackenzie “Mac” Cabot is a people pleaser. Her demanding parents. Her prep school friends. Her long-time boyfriend. It’s exhausting, really, always following the rules. Unlike most twenty-year-olds, all she really wants to do is focus on growing her internet business, but first she must get a college degree at her parents’ insistence. That means moving to the beachside town of Avalon Bay, a community made up of locals and the wealthy students of Garnet College.
Mac’s had plenty of practice suppressing her wilder impulses, but when she meets local bad boy Cooper Hartley, that ability is suddenly tested. Cooper is rough around the edges. Raw. Candid. A threat to her ordered existence. Their friendship soon becomes the realest thing in her life.
Despite his disdain for the trust-fund kids he sees coming and going from his town, Cooper soon realizes Mac isn’t just another rich clone and falls for her. Hard. But as Mac finally starts feeling accepted by Cooper and his friends, the secret he’s been keeping from her threatens the only place she’s ever felt at home.”
Today, Tonight, Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
This book has been described as “The Hating Game meets Booksmart” according to Rachel Lynn Solomon’s own website and is a rom-com for all you rom-com junkies out there. (No judgement, I love you people).
Here is the Goodreads description:
“Today, she hates him.
It’s the last day of senior year. Rowan Roth and Neil McNair have been bitter rivals for all of high school, clashing on test scores, student council elections, and even gym class pull-up contests. While Rowan, who secretly wants to write romance novels, is anxious about the future, she’d love to beat her infuriating nemesis one last time.
Tonight, she puts up with him.
When Neil is named valedictorian, Rowan has only one chance at victory: Howl, a senior class game that takes them all over Seattle, a farewell tour of the city she loves. But after learning a group of seniors is out to get them, she and Neil reluctantly decide to team up until they’re the last players left—and then they’ll destroy each other.
As Rowan spends more time with Neil, she realizes he’s much more than the awkward linguistics nerd she’s sparred with for the past four years. And, perhaps, this boy she claims to despise might actually be the boy of her dreams.
Tomorrow … maybe she’s already fallen for him.”
It Happened One Summer & Hook, Line, and Sinker
by Tessa Bailey
These next two go hand and hand, and it would be wrong of me to separate them since they’re apart of the same universe. Spicy books with discreet covers for the win! They have also just announced that It Happened One Summer will be hitting the big screen! Check out the descriptions for both books below!
It Happened One Summer:
“Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels. When too much champagne and an out-of-control rooftop party lands Piper in the slammer, her stepfather decides enough is enough. So he cuts her off, and sends Piper and her sister to learn some responsibility running their late father’s dive bar… in Washington.
Piper hasn’t even been in Westport for five minutes when she meets big, bearded sea captain Brendan, who thinks she won’t last a week outside of Beverly Hills. So what if Piper can’t do math, and the idea of sleeping in a shabby apartment with bunk beds gives her hives. How bad could it really be? She’s determined to show her stepfather—and the hot, grumpy local—that she’s more than a pretty face.
Except it’s a small town and everywhere she turns, she bumps into Brendan. The fun-loving socialite and the gruff fisherman are polar opposites, but there’s an undeniable attraction simmering between them. Piper doesn’t want any distractions, especially feelings for a man who sails off into the sunset for weeks at a time. Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants. LA is calling her name, but Brendan—and this town full of memories—may have already caught her heart.”
Hook, Line, and Sinker:
“King crab fisherman Fox Thornton has a reputation as a sexy, carefree flirt. Everyone knows he’s a guaranteed good time–in bed and out–and that’s exactly how he prefers it. Until he meets Hannah Bellinger. She’s immune to his charm and looks, but she seems to enjoy his… personality? And wants to be friends? Bizarre. But he likes her too much to risk a fling, so platonic pals it is.
Now, Hannah’s in town for work, crashing in Fox’s spare bedroom. She knows he’s a notorious ladies’ man, but they’re definitely just friends. In fact, she’s nursing a hopeless crush on a colleague and Fox is just the person to help with her lackluster love life. Armed with a few tips from Westport’s resident Casanova, Hannah sets out to catch her coworker’s eye… yet the more time she spends with Fox, the more she wants him instead. As the line between friendship and flirtation begins to blur, Hannah can’t deny she loves everything about Fox, but she refuses to be another notch on his bedpost.
Living with his best friend should have been easy. Except now she’s walking around in a towel, sleeping right across the hall, and Fox is fantasizing about waking up next to her for the rest of his life and… and… man overboard! He’s fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. Helping her flirt with another guy is pure torture, but maybe if Fox can tackle his inner demons and show Hannah, he’s all in, she’ll choose him instead?”
Watermarked by Danielle Butler
A book I have not seen too much of, that I believe it underrated, which means you definitely need to read it. The cover is enough to pull you in, but just wait until I post the description off Goodreads:
“Eyes like a storm…
Surrounded by ocean, terrified of water, Cam’s new life on a tiny island is her version of hell. But at 16, abandoned by her father and with a mother struck by a devastating illness, Cam is forced to live with the reclusive grandmother she’s never met.
But it’s nothing to cry about—not for the girl who never sheds a tear.
Isolated off the coast of Maine, Cam is drawn to Macon, the boy from the other side of the island. But his mother—and most others in the tight-knit community—looks upon her with suspicion.
When she learns about her family’s unsettling history, Cam is plunged into ancestral mystery and the magic of the sea.
And what she discovers could be the key to changing everything.”
The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks
Last but not least, an absolute classic summer vibe book. I think about this book, and the amazing, heartbreaking movie at least once a day. Nicholas Sparks never fails to disappoint me.
Here is the description from Goodreads (also check out the movie!):
“Seventeen-year-old Veronica ‘Ronnie’ Miller’s life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alienated from her parents, especially her father . . . until her mother decides it would be in everyone’s best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie’s father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church.
The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story about love in its myriad forms – first love, the love between parents and children – that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that deeply felt relationships can break our hearts . . . and heal them.”
If you’ve ever read any of these books, or you end up reading these books, make sure you comment below and let me know! If you have any other summer vibey recommendations, also comment them down below! If you haven’t already, definitely checkout BookTok for several good book recommendations! I will always thank BookTok for getting me back into reading!
