Summer means a time to relax, unwind and just all around have a good time.
It’s also one of the best reading times of the year.
If you’re looking for a novel you can dive into while sitting poolside or simply want a brilliant book to curl up with in the park on the weekends, there are plenty of new page-turners worth checking out this summer.
Whether you’re after a gripping tell-all or searching for some juicy fiction, here are 16 of the best beach reads of summer 2019.
The Wedding Party by Jasmine Guillory
Maddie and Theo have two things in common: their best friend, Alexa, and the fact that they totally hate each other.
However, after a one night stand, neither of them can stop thinking each other. And with Alexa’s wedding fast approaching, the pair soon find themselves sharing bridal party responsibilities that require more interaction with each other than they’re comfortable with.
And while they’ve agreed to an expiration date for their fling – Alexa’s wedding – the sparks continue to fly as the wedding date nears…
The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary
Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast. Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash.
Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time.
But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window…
Bunny by Mona Awad
Samantha Heather Mackey couldn’t be more of an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at New England’s Warren University.
A scholarship student who prefers the company of her dark imagination to that of most people, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort – a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other ‘Bunny’, and are often found entangled in a group hug so tight they become one.
But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies’ fabled ‘Smut Salon’, and finds herself inexplicably drawn to their front door. As Samantha plunges deeper and deeper into the sinister yet saccharine world of the Bunnies, the boundary between fiction and reality begins to blur.
Whisper Network by Chandler Baker
Sloane, Ardie, Grace and Rosalita have worked in the same legal office for years. But things change with the sudden death of the firm’s CEO – with their boss, Ames, seemingly likely to take over the whole company.
Each of the women has a different relationship with Ames, who has always been surrounded by whispers about how he treats women. Those whispers have been ignored, swept under the rug, hidden away by those in charge. But the world has changed, and the women are watching this latest promotion for Ames differently. And this time, they’ve decided enough is enough.
Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory by Raphael Bob-Waksberg
From the creator of Netflix’s Bojack Horseman, this collection of stories about modern love – the best and worst thing in the universe.
Like, Missed Connection–m4w tells the tragicomic tale of a pair of lonely commuters eternally failing to make that longed-for contact.
And in More of the You That You Already Are, a struggling employee at a theme park of dead presidents finds that love can’t be genetically modified.
Equally at home with the surreal and the painfully relatable (and both at once), Bob-Waksberg delivers a killer combination of humor, romance, whimsy, cultural commentary, and crushing emotional vulnerability.
The Gift of Friends by Emma Hannigan
Kingfisher Road – a leafy, peaceful street in the town of Vayhill. But there are whispers behind closed doors. Who is moving into Number 10?
Engaged to handsome, wealthy Justin Johnston, Danielle appears to her new neighbours to have the perfect, glossy life. But not everything is as it seems…
In fact, each of the other four women who live close by has a secret, and each is nursing their own private heartache.
But could a gift be waiting on their doorsteps? And, by opening their front doors, and their hearts, to each other, could the women of Kingfisher Road discover all the help they need?
Very Nice by Marcy Dermansky
Rachel Klein never meant to kiss her creative writing professor, but with his long eyelashes, silky hair and the sad, beautiful life he laid bare on Twitter…well, she does. And the kiss is very nice.
Zahid Azzam never planned to become a houseguest in his student’s sprawling Connecticut home, but with the sparkling swimming pool, the endless supply of strawberries and Rachel’s beautiful mother, he does, and the home is very nice.
Becca Klein never thought she’d have a love affair so soon after her husband leaves her for a younger woman. But when her daughter’s professor walks into her home, bringing with him a poodle named Princess, she does, and the affair turns out to be… a very bad idea.
Stay Sexy and Don’t Get Murdererd by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
In Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered, My Favourite Murder podcasters Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark share never-before-heard stories ranging from their sruggles with depression, eating disorders, and addiction.
The pair irreverently recount their biggest mistakes and deepest fears, reflecting on the formative life events that shaped them into two of the most followed voices in the podcasting world.
In Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered, Karen and Georgia focus on the importance of self-advocating and valuing personal safety over being ‘nice’ or ‘helpful.’ They delve into their own pasts, true crime stories, and beyond to discuss meaningful cultural and societal issues with fierce empathy and unapologetic frankness.
More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are (No Matter What They Say) by Elaine Welteroth
In this part-manifesto, part-memoir, the revolutionary editor who infused social consciousness into the pages of Teen Vogue explores what it means to come into your own – on your own terms.
Elaine Welteroth has climbed the ranks of media and fashion, shattering ceilings along the way. In her memoir, the groundbreaking editor unpacks lessons on race, identity, and success through her own journey – from navigating her way as the unstoppable child of a unlikely interracial marriage in small-town California to finding herself on the frontlines of a modern movement for the next generation of change makers.
Welteroth moves beyond the headlines and highlight reels to share the profound lessons and struggles of being a barrier-breaker across so many intersections. As a young boss and the only black woman in the room, she’s had enough of the world telling her – and all women – they’re not enough. As she learns to rely on herself by looking both inward and upward, we’re ultimately reminded that we’re more than enough.
The Arrangement by Robyn Harding
Nat, a young art student in New York City, is struggling to pay her bills when her friend makes a suggestion: why not date a wealthy, older man? He’ll pay her rent and give her a monthly allowance — and all thats required is being his arm candy when he’s in town. Sexual favors are optional.
Though more than thirty years her senior, Grant, a corporate finance attorney, seems like the perfect candidate, and within a month, they are madly in love. At least, Nat is. Grant already has a family, whom he has no intention of leaving.
When he ends everything, Nat begins to stalk him at work, tracking his phone, spying on his wife, even befriending his daughter, who’s not much younger than she is. But when Grant is found dead in his posh Upper East Side apartment and the police find the murder weapon in Nats apartment, she is sure she must have killed her lover; she just cant remember anything that happened that night.
Out July 30.
Is There Still Sex in the City? by Candace Bushnell
Candace Bushnell gets personal in her new memoir – an investigation into what happens when a woman of a certain age (ok, let’s call it ‘middle’ ) finds herself not-so-young, free and single in the city.
MILFs, cougars, love, sex, divorce – Candace’s brilliantly funny and honest first-person account lays bare the truth behind middle-aged romance.
Among other revelations we read her Modern Day Cougar Compendium , including guidance on such important matters as the Unexpected Cub Pounce (sometimes the cub does the pouncing); what to do when your age-appropriate date asks you to pay for his kitchen renovation, and the Pluses and Minuses of Being Older and Wiser.
Out August 8.
Waiting for Tom Hanks by Kerry Winfrey
Romantic-comedy-obsessed Annie Cassidy dreams of being the next Nora Ephron. She spends her days writing internet content, rewatching Sleepless in Seattle, and waiting for her movie-perfect meet cute.
If she could just find her own Tom Hanks – a man who’s sweet, sensitive, and possibly owns a houseboat – her problems would disappear and her life would be perfect. But Tom Hanks is nowhere in sight.
When a movie starts filming in her neighbourhood and Annie gets a job on set, it seems like a sign. Then Annie meets the lead actor, Drew Danforth, a cocky prankster who couldn’t be less like Tom Hanks if he tried.
Their meet-cute is more of a meet annoying, but soon Annie finds herself sharing some classic rom-com moments with Drew. Her Tom Hanks can’t be an actor who’s leaving town in a matter of days…can he?
The Castle on Sunset: Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood’s Chateau Marmont by Shawn Levy
For nearly ninety years, Hollywood’s brightest stars have favoured the Chateau Marmont as a home away from home. It is a place filled with deep secrets but is hidden in plain sight, and its evolution parallels the growth of Hollywood itself.
Perched above the Sunset Strip like a fairy-tale castle, the Chateau seems to come from another world entirely.
Much of what’s happened inside the Chateau’s walls has eluded the public eye – until now.
Shawn Levy recounts the wild parties and scandalous liaisons, creative breakthroughs and marital breakdowns, births and untimely deaths that the Chateau Marmont has given rise to.
Vivid, salacious and richly informed, the book is a glittering tribute to Hollywood as seen from the suites and bungalows of its most hallowed hotel.
Someone We Know by Shari Lapena
‘I’m so sorry. My son has been getting into people’s houses. He’s broken into yours.’
In a tranquil, leafy suburb of ordinary streets – one where everyone is polite and friendly – an anonymous note has been left at some of the houses.
It can be hard to keep secrets in a tight-knit neighbourhood, and as whispers of who the boy is – and what he may have found – circulate, the neighbours become more suspicious than ever.
But when a missing local woman is found murdered, the tensions real a breaking point. Who killed her? And just how far are they willing to go to protect their secrets?
Out July 25.
Expectation by Anna Hope
Hannah, Cate and Lissa are young, vibrant and totally inseparable.
Living on the edge of a common in East London, their shared world is ablaze with art and activism, romance and revelry – and the promise of everything to come. They are electric. They are the best of friends.
But ten years on, they are not where they hoped to be. Amidst flailing careers and faltering marriages, each hungers for what the others have.
And each wrestles with the same question: what does it take to lead a meaningful life?
Out July 11.
My Friend Anna by Rachel DeLoache Williams
Hailed as Catch Me If You Can with Insta filters, this is the true story of Anna Delvey – the faux ‘Russian heiress’ whose dizzying deceit and elaborate con-artistry deceived the Soho hipster scene before her ruse was finally and dramatically exposed.
After meeting through mutual friends, the ‘Russian heiress’ Anna Delvey and Rachel DeLoache Williams soon became inseparable. Theirs was an intoxicating world of endless excess: high dining, personal trainer sessions, a luxury holiday … and Anna footed almost every bill.
But after Anna’s debit card was declined in a Moroccan medina whilst on holiday in a five-star luxury resort, Rachel began to suspect that her increasingly mysterious friend was not all she seemed.
This is the incredible story of how Anna Sorokin conned the high-rollers of the NYC social scene and convinced her close friend of an entirely concocted fantasy, the product of falsified bank documents, bad cheques and carefully edited online photos.
Out July 23.
A good book can do just about anything; from taking you on a wild and fantastical adventure to making you feel like an all-knowing super sleuth (if you figure out the killer twist).
Every week at #Bookmarked, we will be taking you through some of our all-time favourite books – as well as the newest novels hitting shelves in Ireland.
