Summer reading has long been synonymous with simple pleasures. Lighthearted reads dominate the bestseller charts, holiday romances are tucked in every beach bag, a refreshing respite from drudgery.
But this summer is different. With lockdown restrictions and social distancing measures in place, “staycations” are, albeit reluctantly, back in vogue. That said, we have extra hours to dedicate to epics, brooding masterpieces, and intellectual classics. In my case, I plan on soaking up the words of authors I’ve long been meaning to get to or revisit.
Now, there are a couple of titles on here that featured on last year’s summer reading list. This only proves my last of self-control when it comes to being tempted by new books…
I could live to be 100 and still not finish all the books I already own, and yet I insist on buying more !!
— Evie Jayne 🌙 (@EvieBraithwaite) June 14, 2020
That is an amazing list. I hope you get to read them all this summer! 🙂 .. I don’t really do reading lists in the summer because I have less time compared to the rest of the year so I live through other people’s summer reading lists, haha!
I’m definitely going to check out Bring Up the Bodied. I am a sucker for any Tudor historical fiction and I have a TBR solely for Tudor books😂 great list!!! Xx
Haha omg! I think you’d love Hilary Mantel’s work then! Thank you 🥰 x
Haha, lists can be difficult to stick to sometimes too! Thank you 🥰
I need to read The Starless Sea too! I hope you get to all the books you want to read 🙂
The Bookish Life Of Tiffany
It’s been on my TBR for the longest time! Thank you 🥰
Such a varied list of books Evie! I really like the look of some of these! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thanks, Lucy! x
I like this list a lot. I love a good story about sisters making it through whatever so I think I might add The Nightingale to my reading list. Thanks for this! Xoxo
I’ve read nothing but glowing reviews for The Nightingale, I’m so excited to read it! I hope you enjoy it if you get around to it 🥰
I have read The Nightingale already. You will not be disappointed! Coming from someone who has read many of Kristin Hannah’s books, I can still say that this is one of her best novels!
Wow that’s one heck of a list! It puts my Summer Reads to shame 😂 I’ve heard of a couple of these but a lot of them are new to me but ones I’d like to try at some point. Good luck getting through them all. Thanks for sharing!
Haha fingers crossed I get to all of them! Thank you 🥰 x
What a great list! I love the look of so many of these titles, especially the contemporary fiction ones. And The Silent Patient was one of my favourite reads from last year – enjoy!
Oh that makes me so happy to hear! I’m even more excited to read that one now, thank you! x
That’s a lot of books, all good choices though! I’m also working my way through the woman’s prize shortlist and it’s been amazing so far! I hope you enjoy all the books you read this Summer x
Ah that’s so great to hear! I can’t wait to get to the rest of them! Thank you x
These are some great books that I will have to add to my kindle – thank you so much for sharing! I completely relate to having too many books – the only reason I bought myself a kindle is because I don’t have anymore room for physical copies…oops!
Paige // Paige Eades
Haha my books can be found literally all over the house, it’s becoming a problem 😂 thanks for reading! x
Oooh wow good luck getting through all of them! I want to read the normal people!
https://www.emilyclareskinner.com
Thank you! Ah I loved Normal People, enjoy! x
I don’t read nearly enough books but I love the layout of this post and it defo made me wanna pick up and read a book!
Thank you so much!
This is quite the list! Best of luck with all of these. I tried reading IT. Got like, 200 pages in and gave up haha. You’ve given me some fab recommendations here to try – thank you!
Hahaha I’ve heard mixed reviews for IT, but I really want to read it before I finally watch the films! Thanks, Jenny! x
I’ve only read The Starless Sea and I thought it was really beautiful! I’ll have to check out the other books listed here. 🙂
What a great list! I love IT by Stephen King – it’s such a great book. I could re-read it over and over. I am also currently reading Invisible Women. So far it’s so interesting and some of it is quite relatable. I’ve got the Starless Sea but haven’t read that yet, so that’s on my summer list.
Great post! Thank you for sharing.
I’m so excited to IT, then I plan on finally watching the films! Thank you x
There are so many good books on this list! I read The Starless Sea recently and absolutely loved it. It’s such a good book and I really hope you enjoy it when you read it. It’s such a good fantasy book! Thanks for sharing these. They’ll be quite a few from this list that I’ll be adding to my reading list!
I recently read The Night Circus by the same author and fell in love with her writing. So excited to pick up The Starless Sea! Thank you x
As a librarian and a fellow bookworm, I come across book lists all the time. This list not only caught my eye, but forced me to write down the titles of 4 more books on my To Be Read lists.Such a great eclectic list of books! I hope you meet your goal by the end of the summer!
Ah that makes me so happy to hear, thank you so much!
What a GREAT list!! I’ve been dipping in and out of Invisible Women for the past couple of weeks and it is so interesting and incredibly informative, but in a way that it doesn’t feel like reading a textbook. Hamnet has been on my list for a while now too, so maybe I’ll use the summer months to finally take the plunge with it!
Ah that’s so good to hear! I often struggle to read nonfiction unless it’s via audiobook, so I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying it. Yes! I’ve seen SO many glowing reviews for it now. Can’t wait to finally read it for myself! x
I love, love, love your list! and will be adding some to mine. East of Eden will have to be on top. I’m a sucker for a good classic novel.
Thank you! Ah I hope you enjoy it!
Great books. Excited for reading this summer.
You already know I’m hoping to read East of Eden and Anna Karenina this summer! I might get around to them late July or August. // I wanted to read Earthsea eventually, but the main fantasy series I want to hit this year are A Court of Thorns and Roses and the Lord of the Rings, so Earthsea might have to wait until next year for me haha // I forgot that Weather and Invisible Women have been on my TBR for awhile too! So many books, so little time!!! -Audrey | Brunch at Audrey’s
Haha I’m thinking of finally reading East of Eden v soon! Oo I’m interested in your thoughts on the LOTR. While I loved The Hobbit, I really struggled with The Fellowship of the Ring! Hahaha so true, my TBR is out of control 🤦
Omg, I can’t believe I’m SO BEHIND on your posts :’) Might have to keep catching up in the morning as it’s getting later here in California haha. So happy to be buddy reading East of Eden with you & Audrey! Allll of those historical fiction reads sound incredible; I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on them. Seeing as how I’m already attempting to tackle Les Mis, I think I’ll read Anna Karenina in 2021, if we live to see it :’)
Hahaha no worries, I have nothing else to do but write and read atm! Oo Les Mis is a big one, I hope you enjoy it! x