Stories that radiate sunshine, wanderlust, nostalgia, or laid-back leisure.
Sections
4
🏖️ Romance & Beach Reads
🌅 Soulful, Bittersweet, Wanderlust Reads
🌞 Cozy Escapes & Quirky Adventures
🧳 Travel, Escape, & Self-Discovery
🏖️ Romance & Beach Reads
This is the book I recommend when someone wants travel, tension, and characters that feel a little too real. It’s funny, warm, and makes you want to text your old best friend just because.
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Don’t let the title fool you. This isn’t fluff. It’s two writers trying to finish their books while navigating grief, sarcasm, and feelings they’re totally not supposed to catch. I couldn’t put it down.
Beach Read by Emily Henry
Like a postcard from a childhood summer you wish you had. First love, regrets, and a lake town that felt so vivid I swear I could smell the water and sunscreen.
Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
I was giggling out loud at 2 a.m. reading this. Enemies forced to go on a honeymoon together? Petty, chaotic, and so, so satisfying. 5. **Malibu Rising – Taylor Jenkins Reid**
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
Surf, scandal, and siblings trying to keep it together before everything goes up in flames, literally. The beach scenes? Chef’s kiss
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
🌅 Soulful, Bittersweet, Wanderlust Reads
This is a soft, quiet kind of book. It’s about a little girl and her grandmother on a remote island, and somehow it made me feel both peaceful and a little melancholic in the best way.
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
This one’s all about messy relationships and existential dread but make it artsy and set against European summer backdrops. Made me want to pack a bag and write bad poetry.
Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
I don’t think I’ve ever read a book that felt so much like summer. It’s hazy, languid, romantic, and aching. Italy, peaches, longing, pure atmosphere.
Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman
Dysfunctional family + sun-drenched Mallorca = the kind of book that feels like eavesdropping on your neighbors (in the best way).
The Vacationers by Emma Straub
Bit of a tearjerker but wrapped in stunning Amalfi coast vibes. It’s about grief and mothers and second chances. Slight magical twist, but somehow still felt very grounded.
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
🌞 Cozy Escapes & Quirky Adventures
It’s not a summer book per se, but something about Eleanor’s slow bloom into warmth feels perfect for lazy afternoons when you want something that hugs your heart.
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Super light, super charming. The main character is awkward in a way that made me want to root for him from page one. I finished it in one sitting on a sunny Sunday.
The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
Elizabeth Zott is a character I wish existed in real life. Smart, hilarious, and absolutely tired of the world’s nonsense. Surprisingly summery for a book set in the 60s.
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
A flamboyant, grieving uncle taking care of two kids in Palm Springs. It’s funny and emotional in equal parts, and I just wanted to crawl into the pages and hang out with them.
The Guncle by Steven Rowley
🧳 Travel, Escape, & Self-Discovery
Yes, it’s iconic. But it’s iconic for a reason. It made me want to eat carbs without guilt, meditate without falling asleep, and maybe even buy a plane ticket to Italy.
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Weird concept: a man slowly turns into a shark. But trust me, it’s poetic, whimsical, and strangely beautiful. It made me cry in public.
Shark Heart by Emily Habeck
This one reads like a VH1 documentary from a dream. Sunsets, music, drama—it's like taking a convertible ride through 1970s California.