17 Hand-Picked Novels You Need to Add to Your Summer Reading List, ASAP
Fiction
1. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
Mother of four, Elena Richardson, is a successful journalist who plays by the rules of her cookie-cutter suburban town, Shaker Heights. When Mia Warren and her daughter move in, her children are immediately drawn to the unusual pair.
Which is fine, until a custody battle between a friend of Mia's and a family friend of the Richardsons erupts, bringing forth issues of race, identity and motherhood. Some rules are meant to be broken, and in "Little Fires Everywhere," maybe some bonds, too.
2. Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
Cameroonian immigrant, Jende Jonga, feels one step closer to his American Dream when he lands a job as the chauffeur for Clark Edwards, the senior executive of Lehman Brothers.
His wife, Neni, is also offered a temporary housekeeping gig at the Edwardses summer home in the Hamptons, which puts even more food on the table for the two and their six-year-old son.
But when the global financial firm goes bankrupt shortly after, Jende is forced to compromise his American Dream or lose it altogether.
3. The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
4. Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
In a lot of ways, thirteen-year-old Jojo is forced to grow up early — his Black mother, Leonie, is an emotionally-stunted drug addict, his White father was incarcerated for most of his early life, and he's basically raising his younger sister, Kayla, since his grandmother's fallen too sickly to do so.
Jojo's life is nothing short of gifted, though, as he follows the footsteps of his role model grandfather and inherits his mom's clairvoyance allowing him to see the ghost of a dead inmate who follows him throughout the novel.
"Sing, Unburied, Sing" chronicles the powerful journey of a young boy who questions father and son relationships, family history and love — and learns about each in eyeopening ways.
5. The Suicide Club by Rachel Heng
6. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
"Americanah" follows the story of Nigerian lovebirds, Ifemelu and Obinze, as they head for the West toward their American Dream.
Ifemelu flees first, and is forced to relearn and articulate her black identity when she arrives. Obinze faces a different challenge when he tries to join her, but is hopelessly trapped in London, undocumented and unable to immigrate.
Fast-forward to fifteen years later, when the two are reunited in their homeland. Will they be able to rekindle their love for one another or will they stand face to face, worlds apart?
Mystery/Thriller
7. Miracle Creek by Angie Kim
"Miracle Creek" is a courthouse drama told from multiple perspectives starting with Young Yoo, a Korean immigrant and the wife of Pak Yoo, who runs the Miracle Submarine.
The Miracle Submarine is a pressurized oxygen tank with the intention to cure disorders and disabilities — like autism and infertility — and the eventual promise to kill two patients and split the small Virginian town apart.
On the stand, you'll hear firsthand accounts from Mary, the daughter of the Yoos who fell into a coma after the explosion, Matt, a victim who was deformed by the incident and Elizabeth, the accused mother of eight-year-old Henry who dies in the tank.
Follow this whodunit novel as family secrets unravel and questions get answered, including those that aren't asked.
8. The Winter Sister by Megan Collins
Sylvie's sister, Persephone, went missing over a decade ago after enjoying a late-night out with a boyfriend she wasn't supposed to be seeing. Three days later, the mystery begins when her body is found by a jogger's path buried in snow.
It's been sixteen years since the incident, and Sylvie's no closer to solving her sister's murder mystery — until she returns home to care for her sickly mother who happens to also be under the care of Ben, Persephone's forbidden then-boyfriend.
This time machine-like turn of events forces Sylvie back into the mystery, but this time, through reintroductions of people she thought she knew well and reckonings that could threaten her life as she's come to know it.
9. The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
10. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Silence speaks volumes in this thrilling novel, as we follow the silent patient, Alicia Berenson, who's accused of killing her famous photographer husband, adding notoriety to her already artistic fame.
Forensic psychotherapist, Theo Faber, tries to crack the code, in this novel written from both perspectives, but blank stares and sealed lips threaten him into a downward spiral that he must protect himself from.
Will Faber have what it takes to make her budge? And if he does, will he be ready to hear what comes out?
11. The French Girl by Lexie Elliott
Romance
12. The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
13. The Bride Test by Helen Hoang
14. Tell Me Lies by Carola Lovering
Sci-Fi & Fantasy
15. Circe by Madeline Miller
16. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Nonfiction
17. You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
"You Are a Badass," which includes inspiring true stories and simple exercises with an err of hilarity, is just the pep talk you need to step into your greatness this season. In 27 page-turning chapters, Sincero teaches readers how to truly seize the moment and shift their mindset from self-doubt and excuse to optimism and gratitude.
Open up a new chapter every day or binge-read from the first page to the last. Regardless of how you flip, you'll be sure to get the motivation you need at the close of each read.
We hope there's room in your beach tote for one — or all — of these Fairygodboss-approved page-turners. Let us know which ones you're tempted to add to cart below!
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