10 fiction titles that deserve your downtime
Summer is one of my favorite times of year to read because I love reading outside, by the pool, and on trips. Bonus: The more my kids see me sit down with a book, the more they do too. And we all know it’s a relief when they find something to do during summer break other than fight with siblings, say, “I’m bored,” or beg for more screen time. Here are eight of my favorite books to read this summer (and beyond)!
Here’s the segment I did on Good Things Utah reviewing most of these books!
NOTE: I slipped up and attributed A Man Called Ove to Mike Gayle though the author is Fredrik Backman. Also, the author Jenny Han’s last name is pronounced “Hon.”
Happy Place by Emily Henry
Her fourth romance, Happy Place is classic Emily Henry. I read her books when I want a light read but deep characters. This is the story of a couple who broke off their engagement but didn’t tell their friend group because it would throw off their dynamic. They’ve been going to a cottage in Maine every summer for years so they still go, and everyone thinks they’re still together. They get put in the master suite, and they’re forced to face each other. I love the way she masters witty dialogue and shows the shadows of her characters. EH always makes me smile.
The Museum of Ordinary People by Mike Gayle
This is a feel-good story set in London from the author of All the Lonely People, which I also loved. The main character’s mom died and Jess (the MC) is going through her things. She finds the set of encyclopedias her mom gifted to her at 11, and she doesn’t have room for them but can’t part with them because they represent everything her mom hoped for her. She happens upon a quirky museum, The Museum of Ordinary People, where the original owner started collecting people’s discarded mementos. Jess convinces the current owner to restore and organize the museum so they start learning the stories of all these people, including some secrets from her own family.
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
This is a sweet YA romance. Every summer, Belly goes to Cousins Beach with her mom, her mom’s friend and, her mom’s friend’s sons. She’s always loved one of the sons, Conrad. But this summer, there’s a new guy in town and Conrad’s brother is taking notice of her. An innocent romance, you’ll feel like you’re at a beach house and 16 again. It’s a Netflix series, like To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
You’ve probably heard of the Court of Thorns and Roses series (ACOTAR) by Sarah J. Mass. Some are saying they like this just as much (or more). It’s a fantasy novel with some steamy scenes. A young, bookish girl named Violet who thought she was going to live a life among books and history, is ordered by her mother, the general, to become an elite dragon rider. You either graduate from this war college for dragon riders, or you die. The stakes are high. The competition is tough. The fiercest wing leader, Xaden, wants Violet dead, not those affections begin to change into something else. This one is a totally immersive and escapist read. A slow burn Enemies-to-Lovers romance.
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
If you like multigenerational tales of mystery and family secrets, this one is for you. An estranged brother and sister who with their mom are immigrants from Jamaica, are left with a strange inheritance from their mom when she dies—a traditional Caribbean black cake and a voice recording where she reveals her story and some pretty big family secrets and they have to pick up the pieces and make sense of who they are and who their mother was.
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
This one follows Carley Fortune’s first novel, Every Summer After. Meet Me At the Lake is set at a lakeside resort in Canada with Dirty Dancing vibes. Fern inherited her mother’s resort, the one she grew up in, and has to run it with her boyfriend. A guy shows up who she had an unforgettable one-day encounter with years before then stood her up on their second date. But now she needs to find out what he’s hiding and if there’s still a spark between them. It lightly explores some mental health issues and is a fun but also complex love story.
Homecoming by Kate Morton
A mystery set in 1959 Australia. A local makes a horrible discovery of a family who is found dead on their estate during a picnic. As always with Kate Morton, the book has a setting that feels like a character and is written thoughtfully. You think you have the end figured out but there’s always a twist. If you like Liane Moriarty, I think you’ll like Kate Morton.
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
I read these last two books for my master’s program (in creative writing) and really enjoyed them. They’re more literary than a light summer read, so they’re more character-driven than plot-driven and there’s more to contemplate there. Barbara Kingsolver is one of my longtime favorite authors and this is unlike anything I’ve read by her before. It’s a loose adaptation of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens, but in modern-day Appalachia. (Also, you don’t need to read that to read this.) I recommend listening to this one because the reader really makes the main character, Demon, come alive. I learned things I never knew before about poverty in southern Appalachia and the opioid epidemic. Demon was such a fully-developed, realistic character and I loved hearing his story, even though it was heartbreaking at times.
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
A Pulitzer Prize winner, like Demon Copperhead. Gilead is basically a monologue from a reverend who is nearing the end of his life and is addressing his young son, assuming he’ll read his letters when he’s grown up. I know it sounds potentially boring, but Marilynne Robinson so fully embodies the character and writes in such a way that compels you to slow down and pay attention not only to the story but the story unfolding around you. There’s something humbling and comforting about a reverend, who “should” have all the answers of life and God, asking the same questions we all have about our existence.
