Last Updated on November 6, 2021 by ellen
Despite the rain and cooler temperatures, I know that summer is just about here in Vermont. I love how time slows down in the summer. There aren’t as many school related errands and work online slows down a bit. That means that I can take some time to hang out at the beach with a book and a glass of iced tea.
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10 Best Summer Beach Reads
These are all great summer time reads so even if your beach is a kiddie pool in the backyard, they’ll work for a bit of summertime relaxation.
- Beach Season by Lisa Jackson – Golden sand, pounding surf, a sense of endless possibility–and four unforgettable stories of love, friendship, and second chances. . .
- The Summer’s End by Mary Alice Monroe – It is summer’s end and Sea Breeze, the family’s beloved estate on Sullivan’s Island, must be sold. It is an emotional time of transition as Mamaw and the three sisters each must face loss and find a new place in the world.
- Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter – The acclaimed, award-winning author of the national bestseller The Financial Lives of the Poets returns with his funniest, most romantic, and most purely enjoyable novel yet. Hailed by critics and loved by readers of literary and historical fiction, Beautiful Ruins is the story of an almost-love affair that begins on the Italian coast in 1962…and is rekindled in Hollywood fifty years later.
- Crazy Little Thing by Tracy Brogan – If Sadie Turner is good at anything, it’s putting stuff in order. So when she finds her “perfect” life in disarray, she hopes a summer vacation at her aunt’s lake house will help her piece it back together. She wants to relax, reboot, and heal the wounds left by her cheating ex-husband. And that requires time away from men. All men.
- Low Tide Bikini by Lyla Dune -This sexy, funny, beach romance has plenty of sizzle and giggle. It will make you laugh and sigh, with its zany characters, ostrich farm, talented musicians, snarky down-on-her-luck heroine, and a hunky British hero who’s a gentleman on the streets and a freak in the sheets.
- Promise Cove by Vickie McKeehan – Reeling from the violent death of her husband in war-torn Iraq, Jordan Phillips is at her wit’s end, left to fend for herself and her baby. Alone and desperate in backwater Pelican Pointe, she faces an uphill battle against a judgmental and hostile town as she tries to rebuild her life. But when a mysterious and handsome stranger with a tragic secret appears, her fragile new world threatens to come crashing down around her. A heartbreaking story of love and romance, Promise Cove will hold you breathless until the very last page.
- Green Lake by S. K. Epperson – The suicide of Madeleine Heron’s husband leaves her at her sister’s lake house for the summer, until she can ‘sort things out’ for herself and find a new direction, but life in the lake community is anything but conducive to calm; right away a three year old girl goes missing from the dam, Madeleine is nearly assaulted when her truck breaks down, and she discovers her neighbors have an affinity for digging holes and burying things in their yard, usually things they find floating in the lake, like a hand, or an arm… Native American conservation officer Eris Renard appears to be the only sane person around, and without warning Madeleine finds herself falling for him, but he’s an adopted Indian who’s just found his birth mother, a famous artist who hates Madeleine.
- Shell Game by Chris Keniston – Tricked into taking a Caribbean cruise, former Navy SEAL Luke “Brooklyn” Chapman is expecting free-flowing booze, bikini-clad women, and an abundance of recreation. Hardworking Sharla Kramer has her hands full keeping her sticky-fingered grandmother out of trouble. Looking forward to a nice rest while on vacation, the last thing she needs in her life is a high risk Navy SEAL. Toss in a couple of swindlers, a retired cop, and a few fun-loving ladies in red hats, and a little high seas R&R quickly becomes a lot of high stakes shenanigans!
- Stolen in Paradise by Toby Neal – Marcella gets into sand way over her Manolos investigating the death of a prominent scientist washed up on a Waikiki beach with a bullet hole between the eyes. BioGreen, a genetically-engineered algae that could solve the world fuel crisis, has been stolen from the development lab—a hotbed of intrigue where everyone on the project has something to hide. Marcella also has a secret vice, more dangerous than expensive shoes—and it leads her into arms that are too close for comfort.
- A Week at the Beach by Virginia Jewel – Thanks to a scandalous affair, NYC girls Chrissy and Cami were banished from their usual beach vacation in the Hamptons. Needing to get away, Chrissy begged her stepfather for the keys to his family’s Outer Banks beach house. Darren needed to get out of LA, and his best friend Nick was delegated to keep an eye on him. Hoping to stay out of trouble, the boys flew off to the Outer Banks to spend a week at the family beach house. When the boys discover that the house is already occupied by two beautiful NYC girls, the fun begins.
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Ellen is a mom of a 25-year-old son and 30-year-old daughter. She is Grandma to one adorable toddler. In what little spare time she has, she loves to read, watch movies, and check out the latest toys and games.
A beach might just inspire me to read. I would love a beach book day.
Me too, Tara!