The 20 Best Beach Reads of All Time

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

May 2021 Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick

I raved about this book when I read it earlier this month! Well-chosen, Reese! The story of a stepmother and her daughter as they try to find the girl’s father after his abrupt departure. This is a powerful book about motherhood.

Why I Like It: This mystery has so much heart as you see Hannah bond with and try to protect her new stepdaughter, Bailey. I did not see the ending of this book coming, but absolutely adored it. This is one of the mystery books that will keep you turning the page.

Find this book in Domestic Noir / Books About Mothers / Ultimate Mysteries / Best Beach Reads

The Resort by Sara Ochs

Set on a secluded resort island in Thailand, the story is told by Cass, an ex-pat who is outrunning her former life, and Brooke, a travel influencer who isn’t quite what she seems.

When Cass discovers the body of a murdered resort guest while teaching her scuba diving class, their sleepy resort is thrown into chaos. Cass and her fellow ex-pats, known as The Permanents, will do anything to avoid media exposure, but as bodies pile up, Cass and Brooke begin to explore what dark secrets lie at the heart of the island.

Why I Loved It: This novel was a thrill ride from the opening murder scene. I was left completely unprepared for the conclusion and the final chapter had me gasping out loud! I can’t imagine a more fun tropical thriller.

Find this book in Hotel Novels / Full Cast Audiobooks / Best Beach Reads / Best New Thriller Books

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

June 2020 Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick

I’ve just read THE thriller of Summer 2020 and it’s soooooo good.⁣ A murder at a wedding. On an isolated island. In the middle of a power outage.⁣ Yaaaaaaaaas. ⁣This is an unputdownable psychological thriller book and a vacation I would NOT want to be on.

The murder sets the scene and then we get the story in flashbacks without knowing who is murdered until the end. ⁣

Why I Love it: I’ve become very picky about thrillers recently and this one is hands down my favorite of the year so far.⁣ It also made our Best of 2020 list!

Find this book in Locked Room Mysteries / Books Like People We Meet on Vacation / Best British Mysteries / Books Becoming Movies in 2024 / Hulu Book Adaptations / Best Beach Reads / British Books

Dial A for Aunties by Jessie Q Sutano

Meddelin Chen has an amazing, meddling Chinese-Indonesian family. Meddelin and her four Aunts run a wedding business together. When Meddelin accidentally kills her date and he ends up in a cooler at a wedding with two thousand people, what can go wrong? Did I mention that the wedding also happens to be at a hotel where her ex-boyfriend and love works?

Netflix is adapting this comedy of errors and if it is anything like the book, it will be amazing too.

Why I Like It: I heard great things about this romantic comedy/ murder mystery mashup. It sounds like the weirdest combo, right? This book had me laughing out loud. The characters are flawed which makes them even more loveable, and the absolute chaos is hilarious.

Find This Book In family drama books / Best Beach Reads

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

Fredrik Backman is a master storyteller and he does it again with this book. ⁣He somehow manages to tackle difficult subjects without trivializing them but still allowing them to be humorous.

This book is a story of a bank robbery gone very wrong and the idiots in the story (his word, not mine) who are taken hostage after the failed robbery. While the police are interviewing each of the hostages to find the robbers, they become more confused after each interview. ⁣It is also a story about compassion, human relationships, and the daily struggles that we all have. ⁣

Why I Love It: I love how Fredrik Backman’s books show the good in people despite the flaws that make them human. Backman writes so many different kinds of books but they all have so much heart. Backman weaves themes of love, friendship, and compassion throughout all his books.

Find This Book in Books Like A Man Called Ove / New Year’s Eve Books / Best Beach Reads / Locked Room Mysteries

Beach Read by Emily Henry

This is one of the best romance books I have read in a long time.  What could be better than a romance about writers?  January is a romance writer who no longer believes in love.  Until she was 28, she led an idyllic life filled with the ideas of perfect love. 

Augustus Everett is a literary fiction writer who has never believed in love.  They could not be more different.  When they find themselves living next door to each other they decide to help each other overcome their writer’s block by challenging each other to a writer’s duel. This might be my favorite pick from our list of enemies-to-lovers books.

Find this book in Enemies-to-Lovers Romance Books / Grumpy Sunshine Romance / Emily Henry Books / Books About Books / Best Beach Reads

Haven Point by Virginia Hume

What a wonderful read. I truly can’t explain how much this book swept me away to Haven Point as I learned about four generations of the Demarest family.

This story focuses on the great-grandmother, grandmother (Maren), mother, and daughter (Skye) as they spend their summers in the waspy coastal town. Secrets unfold, loves bloom and fade, and the ties that bond are explored.

Why I Love It: This is a wonderful beach read with heart, I hope you take a chance and get swept away too. It’s one of the best family saga books I’ve ever read.

Find this Book in Family Saga Books / Best Beach Reads

Patron Saint of Second Chances by Christine Simon

The mayor of the Italian town needs money to repair the town’s pipes, so he hatches a plot to drum up business in town by saying a famous movie star is coming to make a movie.

The next thing he knows, he’s having to make an actual movie starring the locals with no experience and the craziest script while keeping up the ruse that the celebrity is coming.

Why I Love It: I laughed so hard at scenes in this comedic book that I woke up my sleeping husband. This was a charming book and the perfect vacation read. It is a five-star contemporary fiction book.

Find This Book In: Feel-Good Book / Book set in Italy / Best Beach Reads of All Time

Island of Sea Women by Lisa See

This historical fiction tells the story of a friendship between two women on the Korean Island of Jeju. There, women work as a diving collective to provide for their families while men look after the children.  It was interesting to read a story where some gender norms are reversed and others, like feeding women and children last, were still perpetuated.

Beyond the incredible history of this small island is the story of a remarkable friendship between Mi-ja and Young-sook over the decades.

Why I Loved It:  Lisa See has done it again with this remarkable story. I was captivated from the first page, as I am with anything See writes.

Find this book in Best Books 2019 / Family Saga Books / Friendship Books / Best Beach Reads of all Time

Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton

July 2018 Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick

I picked up Next Year in Havana after Reese Witherspoon recommended it in July – I wasn’t disappointed! This historical fiction tale is about a young Cuban American woman, Marisol, who visits Cuba for the first time.

She’s arrived to spread her grandmother’s ashes but what Marisol thought would be a simple quest turns her world upside down as she uncovers secrets from her grandmother’s past.

Why I Loved it: Cuba becomes a character in this novel and it’s truly spectacular. I was so sad when my time with Perez Family ended, but I’m delighted that Chanel Cleeton decided to return to the family.

Find this book in Best Books of 2018 / Best Beach Reads Ever / Chanel Cleeton Books / Best Beach Reads

One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle

Rebecca Serle has done it again with this book set in Italy. Katy’s mother, Carol, has died and left Katy to take their trip to Positano alone. When Katy leaves she is uncertain about everything and whether she will return to her marriage.

Then, the impossible happens, and Carol appears at Katy’s hotel. She is in perfect health and thirty years old. She is not the woman Katy thought she knew. As she gets to know her mother, she realizes more about herself.

Why I Love It: This is a beautiful, well-written book with a touch of magic. I loved how Katy and Carol are able to develop a relationship in Italy after Carol died. It is unique and wonderful.

Find This Book In: Contemporary Fiction / Book Set in Italy / Book About Grief / Best Magical Realism Books / Books About Mothers/ Books Set on a Beach

Under the Southern Sky by Kristy Woodson Harvey

This book starts with a woman whose marriage is ending and a widower dealing trying to move on. They are childhood friends and she discovers that the embryos he froze with his deceased wife are deemed abandoned. ⁣

He’s determined to find a surrogate and she’s determined to support him. Their mothers, on the other hand, are determined to get them together.⁣
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The story is set in Palm Beach and Cape Carolina, with a touch of NYC. Some of the scenes gave me such Dawson’s Creek vibes too!!⁣

Why I Love It: This southern beach read is a total summer must-read. It’s uplifting and poignant and had me laughing and crying, sometimes at the same time.⁣

Find This Book In: Best Books of 2021 / Best Beach Reads of All Time

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

Ready for some over-the-top wedding shenanigans? Kevin Kwan delivers in this wedding book! When a young man decides to bring his girlfriend home to Singapore for a wedding, she has no idea what to expect.

She didn’t know he was crazy rich, that his family was crazy, and that everything in Singapore is more, more, more. The details within these pages were so vivid, I could picture everything in this one-of-a-kind contemporary fiction!

This one makes it onto our list of the best books about weddings, too!

The Guncle by Steven Rowley

Steven Rowley is a writer who has mastered the art of storytelling. With his signature wit and humor, this book tackles love, loss, and growth.

When Patrick’s sister-in-law dies and Patrick’s brother needs to go to rehab, Patrick takes custody of his niece and nephew for 90 days. Patrick is basically David from Schitt’s Creek with snark and sass. He treats the kids like mini-adults in the most delightful way.

Why I Love It: I am such a fan of Steven Rowley and each book provides depth and insight into people at their best and worst. While this is a book about grief, you will find yourself laughing out loud multiple times throughout. It’s a poignant reminder of the importance of family.

Find This Book In: Books About Grief / Best Beach Reads of All Time / Poolside Novels / Popular LGBTQ Novels

Last Summer at the Golden Hotel by Elyssa Friedland

Last Summer at the Golden Hotel is all about 2 families who own a resort in the Catskills and are thinking of selling or overhauling the Golden. This is the ultimate in family drama books.

Three generations of the Goldmans and Weismann clans have gathered to make the decision and family secrets are unspooling left and right in the midst of goat yoga, comedy shows, and salon catastrophes.

It was a pleasure to read it while staying at the Hyatt on the Chesapeake and experiencing some resort life of my own. 

Find this book in Best Books for Book Clubs / Summer Camp Books / Books With Colors in the Title

Castle of Water by Dane Huckelridge

When Sophie and Barry find themselves on an Island as the sole survivors of a plane crash, they learn to depend on each other.  The book moves seamlessly from the past to the present, weaving an intricate tale.

Why I Love It: This is a wonderful contemporary fiction book about love and survival.  It is so much more than it appears on the surface. I cried during the ending and have been singing it’s praises ever since. Everyone I’ve ever recommended this one too has had the same response.

Find this book in Kirsten’s Favorite Books / Feel-Good Books / Plane Crash Novels / Books Like People We Meet on Vacation / Books Set at the Beach