Memorial Day has come and gone, which means beach season is here! And this week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic is on point, asking for 10 of our favorite beach reads. Here are some of my recommendations for books that should be in your beach bag this summer:
1. Morgan Matson, Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour — I love books about road trips! This one has a bunch of awesome playlists, some photos of the various places described in the book, and a lovely romance between the titular characters.
2. Rainbow Rowell, Attachments — Obviously I am a huge Rainbow Rowell fan, along with the rest of the Internet. But I still think Attachments deserves more love! It’s a totally charming novel about a guy who falls in love with a girl through reading her emails (which is not creepy because it’s his job; he does email surveillance for the newspaper where she works).
3. M.M. Kaye, Death in Zanzibar — The basic plot of this one is: Girl travels to exotic location, becomes embroiled in murder and espionage, and falls in love. If that premise appeals to you, read this book!
4. Agatha Christie, Death on the Nile — You can’t go wrong with Agatha Christie, but this is one of my favorites by her. It’s a murder mystery set on a luxury cruise down the Nile, and there are subplots and intrigues and red herrings aplenty!
5. Nick Hornby, Funny Girl — I’m cheating a bit by putting this one on my list, since I am actually still reading it now. But it’s a very entertaining novel, set in the 1960s, about a girl who wants to be a TV comedienne and her lucky break as the star of a BBC sitcom. It’s a bit different from Hornby’s other novels (though I can’t quite put my finger on why), but it’s still funny and not too heavy, and I’m enjoying it a lot so far!
6. Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl — My guess is that if you haven’t read this book already, you’re not going to read it at all. But I just thought I’d mention that it’s a perfect beach book, in my opinion. It’s compulsively readable and very fast-paced, and it can definitely be devoured in an afternoon. Just don’t take it on a honeymoon vacation — it doesn’t exactly paint the rosiest picture of married life!
7. Rhys Bowen, Her Royal Spyness — If you’re into historical fiction but don’t want to think too hard about it, this series is the perfect choice! The main character is a young woman who’s distantly related to the British royal family, but she’s also broke, so she earns money by doing discreet investigative work for the queen. Implausible, yes, but also lots of fun!
8. Sophie Kinsella, I’ve Got Your Number — I’ve read a few of Kinsella’s books, including the first in her popular Shopaholic series, but this novel is her best work, for my money. Poppy’s phone gets stolen, and she finds Sam’s phone in a garbage can. When she starts using the phone, Sam tracks her down, and the two strike up an unconventional correspondence.
9. Maggie Stiefvater, The Scorpio Races — I’m sneaking this book onto the list because it’s one of my very favorite books of all time! But it IS set on a beach, so I figure it fits the topic. 🙂
10. Maria Semple, Where’d You Go, Bernadette — I was reluctant to read this book at first, but it turned out to be a lot warmer and funnier than I expected! There’s also a short trip to Antarctica in it, which should be a nice antidote to the summer heat!
So, what are some of your favorite beach/plane/vacation reads? What books should I add to my beach tote this summer?
You Book Me All Night Long 
You’re right, Gone Girl is a fantastic beach read 🙂 It’s definitely hard to put down! Great list!
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
I have the exact same thoughts about Gone Girl! When I was reading it last Christmas I just couldn’t put it down to my family’s annoyance haha. I really need to read it again though – it’s just so fantastic!
I wonder how it will hold up to a re-read…it would probably be really interesting to go back and find the early clues, now that I know how it ends!
AHHH MAGGIE STIEFVATER!! ❤ She is my absolute favourite and seriously I can't get enough of her books. Eep. I love The Scorpio Races! And I really want to read Amy & Roger. I loved Morgan Matson's Since You've Been Gone so I need moooore of her epic writing in my life. xD Here’s my TTT!
Haha yeah, Maggie Stiefvater is awesome! So far, all I’ve read are The Scorpio Races and the Raven Cycle books, but I love them as well! Now I need to go back and read her earlier books. And YES, Amy & Roger is totally adorable, and if you loved SYBG I think you will love it too!
Gone Girl is a great read, and it would be perfect for the beach (I had already finished it by summer last year, but if I hadn’t then it would have been great beach reading). I liked The Scorpio Races well enough, but as far as Maggie Stiefvater goes, The Raven Cycle is still my favourite.
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2015/05/26/top-ten-tuesday-6/
Fair enough — the Raven Cycle is great too! Can’t wait for the last book!
Me either! I can’t believe the release got pushed to February, but I’m willing to wait if it means we get an epic book!
Same here…although it will be hard to wait!
Yes, very hard! It’s worse that it’s the last book in the series, so much anticipation!
GAH YES TO THE SCORPIO RACES! Ahem. Sorry, I love that book… Plus Amy and Roger is the *perfect* summer read, as is anything by Sophie Kinsella! Love your choices!
My TTT
Haha ME TOO! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
Yay for Attachments and Gone Girl, both would make excellent beach reads. I was mentioning it on another blog but I realised that I never read any of Nick Hornby’s books even though I know of them and watched movie adaptations of them. Need to rectify that soon 😛 Great list!
My TTT
Oh, yeah, you totally should read Nick Hornby! My personal favorite is High Fidelity, but they’re all good!
I have read about half of those. Although I was afraid of being disappointed with all the hype, I loved Gone Girl when I finally read it. Have a wonderful summer of reading. I look forward to your reviews.
Thank you!
I loved your comment about not taking Gone Girl to your honeymoon lol! I have watched the movie adaptation, but have yet to read the book. I would love to eventually though.
Ooh, the book is fun! Although maybe not as much fun if you already know how it ends? Then again, I haven’t seen the movie, so I don’t know how much it differs from the book.
Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour is one of my favorite
beachreads of all time! It’s definitely light and extremely cute. 🙂 Haha to your thoughts on Gone Girl! I haven’t picked it up yet, but I really do want to read it. I also really want to get to The Scorpio Races soon! Awesome list, Christina!Aimee @ Deadly Darlings
Haha yeah, Amy & Roger is so adorable! I also loved Matson’s Since You’ve Been Gone, but I used that one on my last “top 10 beach reads” list! 🙂
Great list! I love that you have Agatha Christie she’s one of my favorites. I still haven’t gotten around to Gone Girl or Scorpion Races but they are both on my TBR list. I hope you enjoy your books this summer season. Thanks for sharing. Happy reading! My TT
Thanks! Agatha Christie is definitely one of my favorites as well. I love reading her books on vacation — they’re quick reads, and it’s so entertaining to try and solve the mystery before it’s revealed!
I was trying to think of what makes a good beach read, and you’ve really nailed it. Rowell and Hornby are perfect, as are Where’d You Go Bernadette and Gone Girl. Light (sort of) and easy to read but really entertaining.
Why thank you! For me, the perfect beach read is light and fast-paced, preferably with some romance! I don’t want anything too depressing or anything that’s going to require a lot of mental effort. 🙂