books she loves BEACH READS

WORDS : MEGAN ELGIN

As soon as the sun appears, every slightly book-adjacent website and blog seems to post their version of this summer’s hottest “beach reads.” You’ve probably already seen a few this year. But what exactly quali es a book as good for reading on the beach? For some, it’s a fastpace, like a mystery or thriller. For others, the light-heartedness of a romance novel does the trick. And occasionally, historical or literary ction novels, with a little of both, make their way onto these lists.

At its heart, a beach read is an escape that keeps me captivated. It should be easy to get back into the story if I have to set it aside to build a sandcastle with the family or cool o in the water. And beach reads aren’t just for the beach. I nd myself grabbing them for summer camping trips, sunny weekends spent hanging out in the backyard, or rainy days stuck indoors.

I won’t list the hot new releases labeled as this year’s beach reads. A quick online search will give you plenty of those titles. Instead, I’m taking you back to books I’ve already read and loved that are perfect for summer reading. You can easily nd these titles at our local libraries or pick them up on your next trip to the bookstore.

by Emily Henry

First on the list has to be the aptly titled “Beach Read.” While this book is perfect for a hot summer day, don’t let the cover fool you. There is a lot more beneath the surface than a cheery rom-com. Romance writer January is trying to write her next novel, but she no longer believes in love. Augustus is a popular literary ction author stuck in a rut. They are polar opposites, college rivals, and now, next door neighbors for the summer. The two make a bet to get their writing back on track: January will write bleak literary ction and Gus will pen a happy romance novel. Everyone will nish a book and no one will fall in love. Really. Henry is a clever writer who pokes fun at typical tropes and cliches while making you think at the same time. Her characters and their struggles are real and nuanced. At the end I found this to be a delightful take on love, writing and second chances with a lot more depth than most romances.

My next beach read will be Henry’s newest novel, “People We Meet on Vacation.”

by Sujata Massey

Set in Bombay in 1921, this historical mystery series follows Perveen Mistry, the rst female lawyer in India who has just joined her father’s law rm. Mistry Law is handling the will of a wealthy Muslim mill owner who has le three widows behind. Looking at the paperwork, Perveen notices something strange and arranges a meeting with the Farid widows. They live in full purdah, meaning strict seclusion where they do not have contact with any men besides immediate relatives. As a woman, Perveen is able to meet face-to-face with these women where her male colleagues cannot. As she begins investigating further, tensions escalate to murder. It’s up to her to gure out what really happened on Malabar Hill, and to ensure these women aren’t in danger. Woven between the threads of this mystery are rich cultural details and glimpses of Perveen’s own tragic past.

Keep reading as Perveen solves her next mystery in book two, “The Satapur Moonstone,” and newly released book three, “The Bombay Prince.”

by N.K. Jemisin

If you haven’t picked up a book by N.K. Jemisin yet, you are missing out on one of the most powerful speculative ction authors of our time. Start here with her collection of short stories. Jemisin challenges and delights readers with thought-provoking narratives that examine modern society, drawing parallels between our world and the fantasy realms of her imagination. In the a ermath of Hurricane Katrina, dragons protect the people from hateful spirits. A Utopian society in a parallel universe watches our world to learn from our mistakes. A young street kid ghts to give birth to an old metropolis’s soul. Now, I don’t always like short story collections. O entimes there are several mediocre stories you have to slog through to get to one or two great ones. This is the exception. I was drawn into one amazing story a er another, all di erent from those before, wishing I could spend more time in all of these worlds with these characters. Finishing the last page, I was le in awe of Jemisin’s talent and originality.

Luckily, Jemisin has turned some of these s tories into full length novels and series, so you can stay in those worlds a little longer.

“The Broken Earth” trilogy is a good place to start. Book one is “The Fi h Season.”

by Allison Amend

I read this book a few summers ago on a camping trip and found it riveting. Amend was inspired by the mid-century memoirs of Frances Conway, our main character, and she imagines a dazzling story of an independent American woman. Born in Duluth, Minnesota, in 1882, Frances and her best friend Rosalie run away to Chicago at age een but soon part ways. Decades later they reconnect in San Francisco. Frances is working as a secretary for the O ce of Naval Intelligence while Rosalie is a housewife and mother. At the brink of World War II, Frances marries intelligence operator Ainslie Conway as part of a cover story to carry out a mission on the Galapagos Islands. The amazing descriptions of life and nature on the islands are perfect for summer reading, while the complexity of female friendship, the universal pursuit of a place to call home, and the multitude of secrets make it a novel you won’t soon forget.

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