Beach Reads for Adults

There's something special about reading on the beach. Here are some great recommended reads for your next water-adjacent reading session!

Updated June 18, 2025
Drag items up and down to your preferred order then select the "Save Order" button.
32 Days in May
Corrello, Betty
Paper Book
"[A] deeply emotional tour de force...Readers with chronic illnesses will feel especially seen--and anyone who values resilient heroines is sure to root for Nadia." -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (starred review) Return to the Jersey Shore with a new romance by ...
Hollywood high : a totally epic, way opinionated history of teen movies
Handy, Bruce
From a longtime Vanity Fair writer and editor, a delightfully entertaining, intelligent, and illuminating history and tribute to teen movies--from Rebel Without a Cause to Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and on to John Hughes, Mean Girls, The Hunger Games, and...
The red house : a novel
Morris, Mary
Paper Book
Award-winning novelist Mary Morris weaves together an unsolved family mystery, a poignant coming-of-age story, and a little-known corner of World War II history in this lyrical novel of family, loss and, ultimately, love. Thirty years ago, Laura's mother, Viola, went missing. She...
The Catch
Daley-Ward, Yrsa
Paper Book
Twin sisters Clara and Dempsey have always struggled to relate, their familial bond severed after their mother vanished into the Thames. As infants they were adopted into different families, Clara sent to live with a successful, upper-class couple, and Dempsey with a sullen, unaffectionate city...
So happy together : a novel
Worley, Olivia
Paper Book
A Most Anticipated Mystery/Thriller by Goodreads, People, SheReads, and more! Jane and Colin are soulmates. He just doesn't know it yet. For twenty-four-year-old Jane, finding love in New York City is even harder than making it...
Beach house rules : a novel
Harvey, Kristy Woodson
Paper Book
"Southern bestselling sensation" (Katie Couric Media) Kristy Woodson Harvey returns with a delightfully moving new novel about a mother-daughter duo learning to lean on their community of women--and each other--after their world is turned upside down. When Charlotte Sitterly's...
The doorman : a novel
Pavone, Chris
Paper Book
A pulse-pounding novel of class, privilege, sex, and murder, from the New York Times bestselling author of Two Nights in Lisbon and The Expats. Chicky Diaz is everyone's favorite doorman at the Bohemia, the most famous apartment house in the world, home of...
Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene That Transformed Rock
Gould, Jonathan
Paper Book
On the 50th anniversary of Talking Heads, acclaimed music biographer Jonathan Gould presents the long-overdue, definitive story of this singular band, capturing the gritty energy of 1970s New York City and showing how a group of art students brought fringe culture to rock's...
When Javi Dumped Mari
Sosa, Mia
On the eve of their college graduation, best friends Javier Baez and Marisol Campos swore never to date someone the other doesn't approve of. Now, almost a decade later, Javi has a problem. Mari, the woman he's secretly pined for since sophomore year, is engaged - and Javi didn't even get the chance...
A Far Better Thing
Parry, H. G.
Paper Book
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell meets A Tale of Two Cities in H. G. Parry's A Far Better Thing, a heart-rending fantasy of faery revenge set during the French Revolution. Most Anticipated SSF Books 2025--The Nerd Daily, BookPage
Sounds Like Love
Poston, Ashley
Paper Book
A hitmaking songwriter and a bitter musician share a startling and inexplicable connection that they'll do anything to shake, in the next sparkling, magical book from the New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Year Slip and A Novel Love Story. Named...
Yin yang love song
Jessen, Lauren Kung
Paper Book
In this charming rom-com filled with Chinese traditions and a family curse, an herbalist fake dates a star musician-perfect for fans of Helen Hoang and Jasmine Guillory. Chinese herbalist Chryssy Hua Williams never actually believed in the Hua family curse. But...
Consider Yourself Kissed
Stanley, Jessica
A NATALIE PORTMAN'S BOOK CLUB PICK One of The Boston Globes's "books to add to your summer reading list" One of Vogue's "Best Beach Reads" "Funny, smart and memorable...Delightful."-New York Times "Consider Yourself Kissed is your new...
The potting shed murder
Sutton, Paula
Paper Book
From the creator of Hill House Vintage and "Queen of Cottagecore" (Vogue), a fresh, witty, fun, and delightfully quirky cozy crime novel set in a seemingly sleepy English village for fans of Richard Osman, Parini Shroff, Benjamin Stevenson, and Anthony Horowitz. "Miss Marple...
A man & his cat. 1
Sakurai, Umi
Paper Book
The top manga launch in Japan in the first half of 2018, A Man and His Cat was also voted one of the top ten manga of 2018 by Japanese bookstore employees nationwide. Having won hearts and topped charts in Japan, this hotly anticipated series about an older gentleman and his unique, adorable cat is...
Eat the rich
Gailey, Sarah
Paper Book
When the rich and powerful are literal cannibals, how can regular people avoid being on the menu? WELCOME TO CRESTFALL BLUFFS! With law school and her whole life ahead of her, Joey plans to spend the summer with her boyfriend Astor at his seemingly perfect family home. But...
Beneath the trees where nobody sees
Horvath, Patrick (Filmmaker)
Paper Book
Live, laugh, shed blood. Dexter meets Richard Scarry's Busy, Busy Town in this twisted debut graphic novel! Don't. Murder. The locals. This is small-town serial killer, upstanding citizen, and adorable brown bear Samantha Strong's cardinal rule. After...
Lore Olympus. Volume one
Smythe, Rachel (Comics artist)
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Scandalous gossip, wild parties, and forbidden love--witness what the gods do after dark in this stylish and contemporary reimagining of one of the best-known stories in Greek mythology, featuring a brand-new, exclusive short story from creator Rachel...

Library staff! You can create and contribute to lists. Contact your catalog administrator or log in here.