Summer is here, and with it comes long days lounging by the pool and tanning at the beach. Long days in the sun are the perfect time to start that book you’ve been meaning to read or get to tackling that fantasy series collecting dust on your shelves. Whether you’re looking to get through a pile of books you haven’t had time to read or you want something fresh this summer, we’ve got you covered. Read on for our 10 Beach Reads According to TikTok.
1. Beach Read by Emily Henry
@cherrycokefanatic beach read was so good but i fear emily henry ate everyone up with this one line
We have to start our list with the most iconic of the beach reads – Beach Read by Emily Henry. With all her books set in whimsical coastal towns featuring memorable characters and expertly crafted love stories, Emily Henry is certainly the queen of the beach read.
See why Winetok is the happy hour corner of the Internet here.
Beach Read follows rival authors, romance author January Andrews and literary fiction author Gus Everett, as they find themselves neighbors for the summer in their Lake Michigan beach houses. Faced with writer’s block, January and Gus challenge each other by switching genres: January will write a tragedy, and Gus will write a romance novel. With submission deadlines on the rise, January and Gus must lean on and inspire one another lest writer’s block – and loneliness – get the better of them.
2. Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
@edensarchives SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE! I WILL TALK ABOUT IT FOREVER! #booktok #bookish #booktokrecommendations
Seven Days in June is another steamy, summery recommendation for your list of beach reads. Many years ago, our two main characters, Eva and Shane, spent seven days together in a mad love affair before tragedy forced them apart. Years later, as adults and best-selling authors, each in their own right, Eva and Shane connect in the literary scene of New York City. Their romantic relationship rekindles, but not without consequence, as Eva and Shane relearn what it means to fall in love.
3. Flirting Lessons by Jasmine Guillory
@booksdogsandcoffee #romancebooks #wlw #booktok #bookrecommendations #flirtinglessons #jasmineguillory @berkleypub #Inverted
♬ Hot to Go! (Originally Performed by Chappell Roan) [Instrumental Version] – Hit The Button Karaoke
This summery sapphic romance is a beach reads must-read. It follows uptight Avery Jenson, who, after a brutal breakup, yearns for a fun, easy summer fling. Enter: Taylor Cameron. To distract herself from a bet that involves not hooking up with anyone practically all summer, Taylor instead makes Avery’s dating life her personal summer project. By offering her flirting lessons. The two women have more in common than they realize… and Taylor pretty quickly realizes she might lose that aforementioned bet. Flirting Lessons is the perfect novel to kick off Pride Month!
Be sure to check out Why Your Pride Marketing Has to be Flawless This Year!
4. Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
@edensarchives it’s book review time! this was such a solid romance i had a TIMEEEE with this one #booktok #bookish #abbyjimenez
Justin and Emma experience the same curse: every person they date immediately finds their soulmate… after breaking up with them. Brought together by this niche, shared experience, Justin and Emma decide to date each other just for the summer, in hopes that they will find their soulmates after breaking up.
5. Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
@literaryfling loved this, so eerie and sad #literaryfiction #literarytok #litfic #fiction #bookrecs #juliaarmfield #ourwivesunderthesea #sapphicbooks #sapphic
For those looking for an ocean-adjacent horror romance, look no further than Our Wives Under the Sea. The novel follows Leah as she returns from a catastrophic deep-sea mission. Nobody knows exactly what happened. All Leah’s wife knows is that Leah is not the same person she was before disappearing under the waves. If you want a haunting beach read, this book is for you!
Be sure to take a look at How BookTokers are Editing the Publishing Industry!
6. Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
@blackloreuk I love it though 😭😂😂 #booktok #bookrecommendations #openwater #calebazumahnelson #poetrytok #blackafbooktok #booktoker #bookhumor
If you’re looking for a beautifully poetic read, look no further than Open Water. Two gifted artists meet in a pub in South East London. A photographer and a dancer, the two are looking to share their art with the city around them, yet their status as Black artists finds them rejected at every turn. Still, our characters work together to make a documentary, exploring their art and relationship all in one beautiful novel.
7. Disappoint Me by Nicola Dinan
@bigbooklady What I’m reading during Pride month #booktok #bookrecommendations #literaryfiction #pridemonth
Disappoint Me follows Max, a published poet and legal counsel for a tech company. Despite her fancy job, aspects of her life are crumbling around her. So she decides to try something new: dating a man. As a trans woman with no previous interest in heteronormativity, Max finds herself settling for a lawyer, Vincent. They meet over a sushi date and continue their relationship, both looking for mutual satisfaction.
Take a look at how Pinterest is Finally Combating AI Slop.
8. Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth
@aroareads forever will be crying about this book #sunburnbook #sunburn #sunburnchloemichellehowarth #sapphicbooks #sapphicbooktok #wlwbooktok #booktok #books
Sunburn follows two girls living in the 1990s in the Irish village of Crossmore. Marriage and motherhood are of no interest to Lucy, who would prefer to nurture and explore her deep friendship with Susannah. Susannah and Lucy quickly become infatuated with one another. They fall in love, just as the end of school – and the opportunity to get out of Crossmore – is on the horizon.
9. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
@mehrinreads this is such a narrowed down list to all the ones i own 🥲. always up for more recs pls xx #fyp #fypシ゚viral #fypage #foryou #foryoupage #book #booktok #books #bookish #bookrecommendations #bookrecs #summerreads #newbooks #historicalfiction #diversereads #diversebooks #booksbypoc
This magical realism novel follows two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet on a lush island, engaging in a forbidden love affair witnessed only by a fig tree on the island. When war breaks out, the teenagers vanish. Years later, one of the former teenagers returns to the island, and far away in London, a fig tree begins to grow in a garden.
10. Luster: A Novel by Raven Leilani
@boywhowillbeok boywhowillbeok tackles #booktok let me in
♬ Bossa nova that makes you want to drink coffee(1173491) – Linokia
Edie, a young Black woman, is struggling to navigate her twenties in New York City. She joins an open marriage with a white couple, Erica and Rebecca. Edie grows close to their adopted daughter, Akila, and moves in with the family. Described as sardonic, emotional, and funny, Luster is the perfect thought-provoking beach read.
This article was written by Ava Fischer
