Summer reading
Grab a book, hit the beach
Hi friends,
Remember summer reading lists? In high school, I remember picking up books like Beowulf, Macbeth, and Native Son. I’ve always been a bookworm, so never minded the assigned reading; usually I’d breeze through it at the start of the summer and spend the rest of the season crushing whatever new releases I could get my hands on at the local library.
Now in my adulthood, I still love a good summer reading list. Sometimes I crave a book I can incinerate in a day, other times I’m looking for something I can dip into night after night before bed. Sometimes I want to be transported to a different world, sometimes I want to feel all the feels. Always, I want a good story that keeps me up at night.
Below are some of what’s on my list this summer. I’ve tried to pull a mix of backlist titles (we love a good paperback for a day at the beach!), new and buzzy reads, and books that do particularly well on audio.
Have other recs? Hit me up in the comments.
Happy reading, and don’t forget the sunblock!
- Ximena
✨ Summer Reading 2026 ✨
Organized by ~vibe~, because that’s how I choose all my books. Books with an asterisk* are those I’ve read and recommend from experience. All other books are on my ever-growing TBR list.
⛈️ Moody and Atmospheric
*The Hacienda, Isabel Cañas (gothic horror with a feminist twist)
*Isola, Allegra Goodman (historical fiction with a feminist twist)
Habits of the Sea, Shea Ernshaw (gothic, lit fic)
⚔️ Complicated Friendships
*Loved One, Aisha Muharrar (literary fiction)
Hooked, Asako Yuzuki; translated by Polly Barton (lit fic)
Mayra, Nicky Gonzalez (gothic, lit fic)
💀 Chills and Thrills
Murder on Sex Island, Jo Firestone (mystery)
Little One, Olivia Meunter (lit fic x crime)
One Leg on Earth, Pemi Aguda (literary x horror)
*The Compound, Aisling Rawe (lit fic x vaguely dystopian)
❤️ Swoonworthy titles
*Just for the summer, Abby Jimenez (romance). Also great on audio
*Big Fan (romance, novella) - The first from 831 stories.
*Every Summer After, Carley Fortune’s debut (romance). (Read it before you binge the new Amazon Prime show); or try her latest, Our Perfect Storm, if you don’t mind slinging a hardback
Into the Blue, Emma Brodie (lit fic x romance)
Hungerstone, Kat Dunn (horror x sapphic romance)
They all fall in love at the end, Haili Blassingame (literary romance)
🫨 Unhealthy Obsessions and Unhinged Main Characters
A Good Person, Kirsten King
*Best Offer Wins, Marisa Kashino
☀️ Feel-Good
Storybook Ending, Moira Macdonald
🤩 Celebrity confessionals
You with the Sad Eyes, Christina Applegate (memoir)
Famesick, Lena Dunham (memoir)
🏢 Cities on the brink
London Falling, Patrick Radden Keefe (investigative nonfiction)
*Last Night in Brooklyn, Xochitl Gonzalez (lit fic)
🌀 Strange situations, Big feelings
Take me with you, Steven Rowley (speculative)
The Fountain, Casey Sciezka (literary x speculative)
👪 Lovingly dysfunctional families
Tehrangeles, Porochista Khakpour (satire)
*Nothing to See Here, Kevin Wilson (Wilson’s latest, Run for the Hills, also fits the bill)
That ought to get us through the summer, no?
✨ What’s bringing me joy
Michelle Williams’ powerhouse singing in Death Becomes Her on Broadway (closes at the end of the month, catch her while you can!)
Ice cream weather
Iceberg chats (all depth, no surface)
💌 Thanks as always for reading along and supporting my work. If you like what you see, hit the heart button, drop a comment, or share this with someone you think will love it, too. You can order my latest book or journal or book me for a speaking event here. 💌