Top Ten Tuesday – books to read by the pool or at the beach

ttt-2

It’s TTT time! I haven’t been able to post the last couple of Tuesdays but I am back! I have an extremely soft spot for beach/poolside reads. Summers do really call for those. So, I am super stoked about this TTT prompt. As usual, Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl hosts these weekly challenges (so, see her blog for more info).

You’ll notice a theme here. When I think of reading on the beach or by the pool, I imagine myself holding a book with a scandalous cover or intriguing title. I imagine it to be a page-turner, so much so, that I might get sunburn because I can’t even bother to refresh my sunscreen. Fear not, I take sunburns seriously but a pasty girl can dream, right?!

Thus, lazy summer reads are “fluff” reads to me. That doesn’t mean they’re bad or trivial. Au contraire! They’re often really good but tend to feature romances and murders or some form of danger making them less language-heavy and more plot-heavy! And y’all know that my deep impact books are generally because of their prose rather than their plot. Narrowing down my guilty pleasure reads to 10 books seemed impossible but I managed. I will list a few honorable mentions at the end as well. Like I always do, I am linking to my Goodreads reviews if they exist.

TTT sun on your skin, sitting by some water, enjoying a beverage with an umbrella in it reads

 

  1. Divine Evil was, if I remember correctly, my first Nora Roberts book. I read it in middle or high school in Germany (German edition: Dunkle Herzen) and thus started a lifelong love for anything Nora Roberts. She is my true guilty-pleasure-writer. I particularly love when she combines romance and suspense and that combination has got to be my favorite genre for being lazy in the sun.
  2. Scandalous Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence should be a mandatory read for everyone. It’s like reading the People Magazine of the early 1920s. And we all know how perfect gossip magazines are for the summer.
  3. This one was one of those surprise books I didn’t expect to like quite as much as I did. Big Little Lies had everything: suspense, intrigue, gossip, friendship, strong women, and characters we all can relate to. This story is great as a group read to discuss with your friends on the beach afterward.
  4. Somebody’s Daughter by David Bell is slated to come out July 19th. I quite enjoyed this fast-paced thriller. Everyone is a suspect and you will want to keep reading to find out whodunnit! When I read it I definitely thought this would be a perfect summer read and thus it had to be on this list.
  5. YA fantasy and romance are some of the best fluff reads there are! Both The Selection series by Kiera Cass and Elementals series by Brigid Kemmerer would be wonderful with margaritas and your feet in the sand.
  6. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn was so darn messed up but also so darn good. I wish I could read it again for the first time. Preferably poolside with lots and lots of ice cream.
  7. Um, yea, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark was magnificent. Michelle McNamara’s writing on top of the suspense and the realness of the story is excellent. I was frightened at times and I cannot think of anything more fun than reading something scary while lounging by the pool.
  8. I am quite obsessed with Krysten Ritter and so her debut novel cannot be missing on this list: Bonfire. Read it. It’s definitely perfect for laying in the sun.
  9. While I generally prefer dark and creepy retellings of old classics (for example The Alice Chronicles by Christina Henry), modernizing Jane Austen’s work, for example, sound like great summer reads. I highly recommend Curtis Sittenfeld’s reimaginings of Pride and Prejudice, entitled Eligible, while you sip on a cool beverage and bask in the sun.
  10. I recently reviewed The Pisces by Melissa Broder and I did not know that I needed mermaid erotica in my life. Where better to read this than near water. Seriously though, grab a copy and settle in.

 

Honorable mentions

 

 

  1. Friday Night Knitting Club series by Kate Jacobs
  2. The Woman in Cabin Ten by Ruth Ware
  3. Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham
  4. Anything by Agatha Christie
  5. Matchmaking for Beginners by Maddie Dawson
  6. #Girlboss by Sophia Amoruso

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