The best summer books to grab for 2023 beach reads

It may not be summer until the 21st of June, but with warmer temperatures and longer daylight hours you will have more time to spend outside reading a book.

What you consider to be a “beach read” or what you bring to the pool is totally up to you. A good summer read could be anything from a thrilling romance to a captivating thriller. The most important thing about a good summer read is that it should be a book you don’t want to put down (even if you really need to put on another layer of sunscreen).

Grab your pool floaties and SPF and check out the Polygon summer book below.

Image: Berkley Books

If Riley Sager is the king of summer thrillers, then it’s fair to say that Emily Henry, with titles like Beach ReadThe following are some examples of how to get started: Meetings with People on VacationAlready under her belt is the queen of summer romantic novels. The latest book is both sweet and spicy. Happy Place, is a second-chance romance with a plethora of classic tropes — fake dating, there’s only one bed, etc. — that will have you squealing in delight and sighing dreamily in equal measure.

You can alternate between the past and current timelines. Happy PlaceThe film explores the friendship of a group who spend each summer at a Maine cottage. The situation is a little different, however. Harriet, Wyn and their perfect-looking cottage are up for auction, but they haven’t told any of their friends about the breakup five months earlier. In order to have one last perfect week with their friends, Harriet and Wyn strike a deal: They’ll put aside their differences and share one of the cottage’s guest bedrooms. As their week together draws to a conclusion, the romantic sparks are reignited.

Dutton

Twenty-five years ago, in the middle of the night, Maggie Holt’s family fled the rambling Victorian estate where they lived. After only three weeks, what made them leave? Is there any credibility to her father’s controversial memoir, House of Horrors? Why can’t Maggie seem to remember the events of that fateful evening? Now a restorer of old homes herself, Maggie has returned and is determined to find some answers in the wake of her father’s death.

Maggie’s homecoming is unfortunately (and somewhat unsurprisingly) a far from welcome one. Locals and reporters alike are not thrilled by her arrival. Something sinister is lurking in the halls of Maggie’s childhood home.

Riley Sager is the master of summer thrillers. They are great for sitting by the pool or beach. Or, you can read them at home, with your air conditioner on full blast. They’re fun, fast-paced, and full of twists that you won’t see coming. Before DarkIt is a must-see.

Image: Picador USA

The story is set during an incredibly hot summer on the marshes in rural Northumberland. Ghost WallThis story tells of the relationship between 17-year-old Silvie with her family, which is rapidly degrading. Her domineering father’s fascination with Iron Age Britons has brought them to a university-funded encampment run by an archaeologist who is a little too invested in the region’s dark history. As Silvie spends more time with the archaeologist’s students, and as her father becomes increasingly violent, she begins to catch glimpses of a future for herself that she didn’t know was possible.

Though it’s only 152 pages, don’t let the size of this book fool you. It’s a heavy read, and Sarah Moss expertly ratchets up the disquiet and encroaching sense of dread with each page as the past blends seamlessly with the present.

Dial Press

Lucky RedClaudia Cravens

Lucky RedClaudia Cravens’ book is one of the best books I have read this summer. It’s an action-packed story of desire, and a delightfully queer subversion of the Western genre that puts a charismatic and sharp-tongued harlot front and center. If you have watched WestworldThis book is perfect for Maeve fans.

What is best described as? True Grit Sarah Waters Lucky Red is set in the heart of the American West during the late 1800s and tells the story of Bridget, a young woman who finds herself penniless and alone after her father’s untimely death. Bridget isn’t one to wallow around in her own misery, so she makes it to Dodge City where she gets hired as a prostitute at the Buffalo Queen. She enjoys working there, as the pay is great, her clients are nice, even though they’re boring. But Bridget’s life is, once again, turned on its head when the notorious female gunslinger, Spartan Lee, comes to town.

You’ll feel grit in your teeth and smell gunsmoke in the air by the end of this book (although that might just be sand from the beach and someone setting off fireworks in the distance).

Tor Nightfire

If you’re anything like me, the middle of summer is your favorite time to read books that send a chill down your spine. There’s truly no better time to tell scary stories than when you’re up late, sitting around a bonfire on the beach with your friends or camping in the middle of the woods.

Set along the toothy coast of Maine in a quiet, picturesque coastal town, Catriona Ward’s latest psychological thriller, Looking Glass SoundWilder Harlow, a young boy named Wilder Harlow begins the story with his unpublished autobiography. Wilder’s attempts to recount his summer spent with friends in Whistler Bay and sharing stories of a serial murderer known as Dagger Man blur fact and fiction. Ward skillfully weaves an enigmatic narrative of young love, obsession and horror. Readers are sure to question Ward’s every word.

Grand Central Publishing

There’s truly no better way to spend a hot, hazy summer day than sitting by the pool reading a copy of Tia Williams’ steamy, contemporary romance novel, Seven Days of June.

In just 7 days. Seven Days of JuneThis story tells of Shane, who is an award winning literary author and enjoys being alone. Eva, on the other hand, is a successful erotica and single-mother writer. Their chemistry is undeniably electric — this book truly sizzles from start to finish — but what their friends and loved ones don’t know is that Shane and Eva share a past. Twenty years ago they spent a sultry week together, and the pair haven’t been able to move on from the time they spent together since. In fact, Eva and Shane are so hung up on each other that they’ve been secretly writing about each other in their books.

When a chance encounter reunites them and exposes their connection to New York’s literary scene, Eva and Shane will be forced to face past mistakes and what, if anything, the future holds for them.

Del Rey

Mexican GothicThe book by Silvia Garcia Moreno is an odd and lavish novel that follows the path of gothic stories that came before it, while managing to flip the genre in the most bizarre and mushroom-filled manner.

Drawing from scandalous stories full of madness, sex, and murder, as well as the dark side of Mexico’s history, Mexican Gothic begins when Noemí Taboada’s father receives an unsettling letter from her cousin. Despite Noemí’s reservations — she much prefers parties to detective work — she heads to High Place, the distant estate that her cousin and her cousin’s mysterious English family have been calling home. What she discovers waiting for her there is equal parts menacing and alluring, and it will take all of Noemí’s willpower to make it back home in one piece.

Image: Simon & Schuster

You can also contact us by clicking here. Shark Week has taught us anything, it’s that shark sightings are only natural during the summer. Although they look menacing to us, sharks play an essential role in the marine environment. What would happen, without a clear medical explanation? If a human being began to transform into a shark, what then? Emily Habek’s stunning debut novel poses this very strange question. Shark Heart.

Lewis, a newly-wed who is suffering from a carcharodon mutation carcharias in its early stages, faces his greatest challenge. Lewis undergoes a strange transformation, which is reminiscent of AnimorphsSlowly, slowly turns into a white great shark. Wren’s reaction to the news is understandable. She begins to worry about how she can stay with Lewis when he no longer is human.

Many ways Shark Heart feels like this summer’s answer to 2022’s runaway hit The Wives of the Sea. It’s as romantic as it is disquieting. Emily Habek clearly enjoys describing Lewis’ bones turning to cartilage in vivid detail and tugging at her reader’s heartstrings in equal measure.

Forge Books

Love ’em or hate ’em, for many people, hot dogs are a staple of summer. You can find them at picnics, beach barbecues, swimming pool parties and baseball matches. And now, thanks to Jamie Loftus, the history of hot dogs — ranging from Kayem to red snappers — is essential summer reading.

Hot Dogs – The Raw Truth About Hot DogsIt’s a delightfully cross-country exploration of the cultural significance behind hot dogs. Loftus, using her trademark humor and taste tests, creates a unique travelog which explores the bizarre (and often violent) past of hot dogs.

Image: Simon & Schuster

Summer is the time of year when people are wearing their shortest shorts and their smallest bathing suits, so what better way to celebrate everyone’s best assets than with a book about the relationship we have with our rear ends?

Heather Radke explores the obsession we have with one body part and its cultural significance through a mix of tongue-in cheek wit and in-depth investigative reporting. Butts The book takes the reader from the 19th century London gym scene to today’s modern day. It also critically examines larger topics such as race and desire.

Whether you think the subject matter is sexy or you’re just fascinated with their complicated history, The Backstory of ButtsThis is the perfect summer read for non-fiction fans.