Summer is the best time for a beach read – even if you don’t visit a beach – because summer usually invites relaxation. The days are longer and the pace is often slower. Maybe you’ll just dip your feet in a plastic kiddie pool or stretch out on a hammock. Or perhaps your summer beach reading will be when you are curled up in a chair with the AC running full blast. The settings are different, and so are the books.
How do you pick the right book? And what exactly makes a book a good beach read? Well, like every book we choose, it’s a matter of personal taste.
It helps to consider what you like in any reading experience and where you’ll be enjoying your “beach read.”
If you normally love a serious nonfiction book (like these inspiring Christian reads) where you take notes and look up new words in a dictionary? Sitting by the pool or on a sandy beach might not be the best place to enjoy that.
If you love reading classics where the description of the manor house is four pages long? It might be harder to focus when you’re surrounded by bright sunshine and splashing.
No matter the genre or the cozy corner you choose to curl up, beach reads usually have eight characteristics in common. But only one of them is really important–and it’s important for any book you choose.
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What a beach read (usually) isn’t.
Before we dive into the characteristics of a beach read, let’s look at common assumptions.
A beach read doesn’t have to be …
- Fluff.
- Fiction.
- R-rated.
- Romance.
- Beachy settings.
- Just for women. Well, that’s probably not true. I’ve never heard a guy say he’s got a beach read in his hands, but many guys will tear through thrillers or action-packed mysteries or adventures. We could dive into the cultural significance of this, but I’m just going to say that women are women and our summer reading is often lumped into this category.
Eight (optional) characteristics of a beach read.
- Water somewhere. Beach, lake, cabin by the river.
- Light and laugh-out-loud.
- No long vocabulary words.
- Short chapters. Or chapters with frequent scene breaks. You need to hop in the lake or the pool every so often, right?
- Straightforward structure. Beginning, middle, end. (Don’t all books have this? Nope. Lots of books play with structure in creative and complex ways. Sometimes these are challenging reads like James Joyce’s Ulysses. Uh, don’t pick that up for your beach read this summer.
- A great opening hook. You know, the back cover copy that gives you a premise you can’t resist? You want the kind of book that sits in your beach bag tempting you, inviting you. “Read me!”
- Pretty colorful cover that looks fun on top of your beach towel and makes people say, “Oooh! What are you reading? Looks fun!”
And, finally, the Most Important Quality of a Beach Read…
#8. Unputdownable. This is the magic.
What makes a book unputdownable?
As a reader and a writer, I’m fascinated by what makes a story unputdownable. This is true of any story-telling, not just novels. Movies, streaming shows, drama, and even your next door neighbor telling the story of how they found their new puppy. You know what I mean. It’s either edge-of-your-seat stuff or snooze or somewhere in between.
You want your beach read to be edge-of-your-seat stuff. And that’s not necessarily high action either.
Narrative Drive: Curiosity and Concern
I’m a writer, so I love learning about this stuff and trying to put it into practice. From a writer’s perspective, making a book unputdownable is the greatest challenge.
Understanding the mechanics of the narrative/story helps us examine what we read and then find other books that do this well.
An unputdownable book is one that has forward momentum, also known as narrative drive. Something hooks you at the start and then carries you through to the end. Robert McKee, a well-known lecturer and story-consultant describes it this way. “Narrative Drive is created and sustained when a story plays on two primary “needs” of the reader—one intellectual: curiosity, and one emotional: concern.”
Two needs. Two ingredients to a great story. Curiosity. Concern. It’s pretty basic. What’s going to happen and do I care?
One writing coach I follow explains that “stories will have both a ‘curiosity’ dial and a ‘concern’ dial–depending on the genre, you will turn one up and one down, or vice versa. For example, in a murder mystery, the ‘curiosity’ dial would be turned all the way up. The reader wants to follow the master detective as he or she uncovers clues and solves the intellectual puzzle of ‘whodunnit.’ The ‘concern’ dial would be turned down (almost or all the way) because the reader doesn’t necessarily need (or want) to empathize with the master detective. They just want to solve the puzzle.” (Savannah Gilbo)
I’m definitely drawn to stories where the concern dial is high, but I also love a good mystery where the curiosity dial is highest. If both are low, then it’s a snoozer. If both are high, then it’s a winner for me which means it’s the perfect beach read.
Because ultimately, when I sit down to read a beach-read book, I want it to be fun.
Where to find a good beach read?
If you are a reader, you already know what kind of books will be fun unputdownable reads. But how do you find them? Just in case you need a nudge, here are some ideas.
- Talk to your local librarians. They are like book ninjas. Not only do they read a lot, they also talk to patrons all the time about what books they’re reading. Tell them what you like, and they will find it for you. And use the Libby App to borrow ebooks, if you like those.
- Visit your local independent bookstore. If you don’t know one in your area, check out this handy tool. These bookstore people are amazing too. Browse their tables and displays for new books. Ask questions.
- Join Goodreads for ideas, book lists, and reviews from regular people.
- Check out the popular book clubs like Oprah’s, Reese’s, and Read with Jenna. But remember, just because Reese liked a book doesn’t mean you will. Still, it’s one place to start.
- Find a book on the bestseller list like the New York Times. Again, just because it sold a bazillion copies doesn’t mean you’ll like it.
- Hop onto Bookstagram and get lost in all the recommendations. It’s sometimes overwhelming but can be helpful.
- Find a book friend – like me! – whose taste is similar to yours. Someone you trust. I’m blessed with several of these friends and a daughter who like the same kind of books and authors I do. When they recommend something, I add it to my ever-growing to-be-read list.
What’s on my summer reading list?
Once you find some books, keep a list so you always have a new book waiting.
My summer list includes lots of new-to-me authors. A few romances–not usually my go-to. I also threw in some mysteries and suspense-thrillers which I love to sprinkle into my reading life. The good ones are often unputdownable. I know lots of readers don’t do suspense-thrillers, but summer seems like a good time to read these because when you close the book, you have blue skies and sunshine and grilled burgers.
Enjoy the huge variety of genres on this list!
Romantic Beach Reads
The Blue Bistro
Elin Hilderbrand
Hilderbrand is the “Queen of the Beach Read” with 28+ books to her name. I’ve read a couple in previous summers, just because, and this one comes up as a favorite in lots of places. One writer said it’s Hilderbrand’s favorite. When you browse her book covers, you’ll see why she’s a great summer read. (Not sure if it’s a clean read, though. So check out reviews first.)
Summer Romance
Annabel Monaghan
The blurb drew me in: “Ali Morris is a professional organizer whose own life is a mess. Her mom died two years ago, then her husband left, and she hasn’t worn pants with a zipper in longer than she cares to remember.” Laugh out loud! And I understand the spice level in this is 0/5 which is always a bonus.
Everything’s Coming Up Rosie
Courtney Walsh
Last year I read her Summer of Yes and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a good beach read. She’s a Christian romance author who delivers clean stories. I’m adding her newest book to my summer list, Everything’s Coming Up Rosie.
Beach House Rules
Kristy Woodson Harvey
She’s a new-to-me author who writes Southern romances. This is her brand new novel about mother-daughter relationships and what she calls the “mommune,” the group of women who support each other when life gets rough. Sounds like a good one.
The Sands of Sea Blue Beach
Rachel Hauk
I’ve read a number of Hauk’s books, and they are a delight. Clean Christian romance with depth. This one isn’t coming out until mid-July, so be patient or preorder.
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald
I like to pop in a classic and a reread every so often, and it’s time for this one. The roaring twenties, one hot summer on Long Island, lavish parties, and broken hearts. And so much more. The writing is exquisite. “By seven o’clock the orchestra has arrived. The bar is in full swing, and floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside, until the air is alive with chatter and laughter, and casual innuendo and introductions forgotten on the spot, and enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each other’s names.”
Contemporary Fiction
The Atlas of Untold Stories
Sara Brunsvold
This is a favorite author’s brand new release, and I love the road-trip plus literature plus family plus Midwest.
My Friends
Fredrik Backman
I have enjoyed many of Backman’s books, especially A Man Called Ove, so I’m expecting good things from his newest one. The story centers on a painting of three figures at the end of a pier which I thought sounded quite right for summertime. I understand this one may evoke laughter as well as tears.
Nail-Biting Beach Reads
Home is Where the Bodies Are
Jeneva Rose
Oh my goodness. This title alone has me turning the first page. Sometimes I’m in the mood for a thrill – on paper only – and this one seems like it will give me just that.
All the Missing Girls
Megan Miranda
The title makes me think of a 1975 book that I read and then couldn’t sleep without a nightlight–Mary Higgins Clark’s Where Are the Children? Told backwards–Day 15 to Day 1–All the Missing Girls tells the story of two girls that go missing ten years apart in the same quiet town. The protagonist, Nic, tries to unravel the truth about the most-recent disappearance, and in the process, learns more about the first missing girl and her family’s involvement in both.
The Guest List
Lucy Foley
One more. Foley tells the story of a wedding celebration on a remote Irish island from the perspective of different key characters. I’m all in for Agatha Christie-type stories, and this one has that vibe.
What has been in my summer beach bag?
Here are a few more widely varied beach-read books I’ve read and can recommend!
- Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
- Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
- Just for the Summer by Abby Jiminez
- Beach Read by Emily Henry
- The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware
- The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal. One review said, “The perfect pick-me-up on a hot summer day.”
- Elizabeth George’s Inspector Lynley books. I love mysteries, and anytime I’m drawn into a well-crafted whodunit, I keep turning the pages. Now, that’s a perfect beach read. I devoured the first five of Elizabeth George’s mystery series years ago, and I’m not sure why I quit. She has more than 20 books in this series now. It’s time for me to return to Lynley and Havers.
I hope my quick exploration of beach reads helps you find another good book for a fun reading experience no matter what the season!
If any of these books caught your eye, add them to your reading list! I created a free, printable Reading List Tracker so you can keep track of friends recommendations, books you read and loved, and watch your list of books grow! Click below to download.
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