Let’s just jump straight into my summer reads recommendations. Which I will add to in the coming months as I make my way through ARCs and see what shows up on the shelves.

I’ve already read a few of this summer’s releases and there are four that I am going to recommend.

My most emphatic recommendation is for The Geographer’s Map to Romance by Indian Holton, which is number two in the Love’s Academic series, but officially you don’t have to read them in order or read more than the one, at all. I loved the over-the-top The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love too, but Geographer is new and—I thought—even better. Now, if you are not in to writing that is purposefully exaggerated and brimming with Victorian British, steamy romance, fantastical earth science, literary references, steam punk (mildly), then maybe take a pass. But… come on!

I am also recommending A Family Matter by Claire Lynch. It will be published in June in England and America and is a very tightly written story about a man who is gravely ill and a married woman who falls in love with a woman in the 80s and how their stories weave together across the decades. I thought it was beautifully written, even though it takes time to warm up.

Julie Chan Is Dead by Liann Zhang is an unhinged read that I believe will hit just right with Gen Z (or Zoomers. Whatever). It starts out as a mistaken-identity social influencer book and ends up pretty much in cult horror. It ramps up over and over until you feel out of control. I enjoyed it. I think younger people will appreciate it even more. It makes a great pairing with Apple Cider Vinegar, the new Netflix streaming series.

I have read this summer’s hottest title, and that would be Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry. Already, the reviews are polarized. Henry incorporated more women’s fiction, one of the two story-lines not being a steamy romance. Some people don’t like that, at all. You couldn’t have sold me on that ahead of time, but I actually thought this was Henry’s best so far. And it’s not because of the two story lines; it’s because I think her writing is improving. If you want paperback, pick up Funny Story from last summer.

I happened to set up the Summer Reading Ideas display at the bookshop the other day, too. It’s a small space, so I didn’t want to overwhelm anyone with the classic reads, but I did throw Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen up there. I hear people say “I always meant to read Jane Austen” all the time, and this is perhaps her most classic (though I actually like Emma best). This, too, makes a great pairing with the 1995 or 2005 TV and movie versions, Austenland (2013), and of course Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001). My favorite book adaptation so far is Eligible (Curtis Sittenfeld, and, obviously, Bridget Jones’ Diary, Helen Fielding, which someone has pointed out to me recently is quite out of date).

I would also throw in there Miss Iceland by Audur Ava Olafsdottir, Martyr!, Kaveh Akbar, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, and Universal Love by Alexander Weinstein, three of my fave reads from summer 2024. (Okay, one wasn’t summertime. Whatever.)

Things I might point you to for summer reading even though I have not read them.

The Dream Hotel, Laila LalamiFrog and Toad Are Doing Their Best, Jennie EgerdieThe Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le GuinSwordheart, T. KingfisherParable of the Sower, Octavia ButlerFourth Wing, Rebecca Yarros (or Onyx Storm if you have read that far already)Want, Gillian AndersonThe God of the Woods, Liz MooreHow to Solve Your Own Murder, Kristen PerrinGood Material, Dolly AldertonThe Wedding People, Alison EspachMonk and Robot, Becky ChambersTilt, Emma PatteeBandit Queens, Parini SchroffChildren of Solitude, Michael G. WilliamsThe Cemetery of Untold Stories, Julia AlvarezLady Tan’s Circle of Women, Lisa SeeOlympus, Texas, Stacey SwanGood Dirt, Charmaine WilkersonWater Moon, Samantha Sotto YambaoThe Harder I Fight, the More I Love You, Neko Chase

Or if you’ve fallen behind on your must-reads (like, if you missed it, maybe you should read it this summer):

James , Percival Everett (I have read it. Liked it.)All Fours, Miranda July North Woods , Daniel Mason (I have read. Love it.) Hamnet , Maggie O’Farrell (I have read. Love it.)Intermezzo, Sally RooneyThe Bee Sting, Paul MurrayCreation Lake, Rachel KushnerNight Watch, Jayne Anne PhillipsThornhedge, T. KingfisherThe Imperial Radch Trilogy, Ann LeckieOrbital, Samantha Harvey (I have read. Liked it.) The Vegetarian , Han Kang (I have read. Liked it.)I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home, Lorrie MooreSome Desperate Glory, Emily TeshThe Saint of Bright Doors, Vajra Chandrasekera

As for Mothers Day reads, I will be reading these:

Mother-Daughter Murder Night, Nina SimonThe School for Good Mothers, Jessamine Chan

Do you have any other Mothers Day book? Mom-themed? All I can think of is Prophet Song, a book about motherhood that I adore, but is quite heavy.

For my graduation recommendations, you are going to have to wait a second. I am appearing on Kate Bowler’s Bookstagram for the Regulator with my recommendation and a baby-sized tour of the shop. I’ll mention it when it happens.

As for the new publications in May…

Broken Souls and Bones (Stonegate #1), L. J. AndrewsThe Tenant, Frieda McFaddenOne Golden Summer, Carley FortuneMy Friends, Frederik BackmanThe Knight and the Moth (Stonewater Kingdom #1), Rachel GilligRewind It Back, Liz TomfordeThe Emperor of Gladness, Ocean VuongIt’s a Love Story, Annabel MonaghanThe Love Haters, Katherine CarterA Curse Carved in Bone (Saga of the Unfated #2), Danielle L. JensenThe Missing Half, Ashley FlowersThe Names, Florence KnappThe Raven Scholar, Antonia HodgsonThe Man Made of Smoke, Alex NorthRun for the Hills, Kevin WilsonThe River Is Waiting, Wally LambThe Incandescent, Emily TeshThe Martha’s Vineyard BEach and Book Club, Martha Hall Kelly

New to paperback:

All Fours, Miranda JulyThe Book of Doors, Gareth BrownRemarkably Bright Creatures, Shelby Van PeltWelcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop, Hwang Bo-Reum

I had a great reading month in April (making up for March, maybe). Most of what I read was at least good, and I discovered a few new authors/series that I am a little crazy about. I was especially happy with the self-pubbed sensation (which is now Hachette), the Books of Babel. And then I had this ARC for the most recent Love’s Academic book. I am so into this series and will be reading Holton’s other stuff before this series has a chance to continue. It is just so. much. fun!

Murder by Memory, Olivia WaiteThe Slighty Spooky Tale of Fox and Mole, Cecelia HeikkelaLovebirds, Hananah Zaheer Hot Dog , Doug SalatiSenlin Ascends (Books of Babel #1), Josiah Bancroft The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love (Love’s Academic #1), India Holton The Geographer’s Map to Romance (Love’s Academic #2), India Holton Modern Poetry , Diane Seuss A Family Matter , Claire Lynch

This month I will be reading:

To Shape a Dragon’s Breath, Monoquill BlackgooseParadise, Abdulrazak Gurnah (with Theft)Godkiller, Hannah KanerThe Rigor of Angels, William Egginton (possibly with Anima Rising, Christopher Moore)Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver (with David Copperfield, Charles Dickens)

Other books that I am adding to my more immediate TBR are:

Alice Chen’s Reality Check, Loo and Young (ARC)Hemlock & Silver, T. Kingfisher (ARC)The Magicians (The Magicians #1), Lev GrossmanNothing More to Tell, Karen M. McManusYellowface, R. F. KuangIron Flame and Onyx Storm (Empyrean #2 and #3), Rebecca Yarros (new)The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels (Dangerous Damsels #1), India HoltonThe Cemetery of Untold Stories, Julia AlvarezLady Tan’s Circle of Women, Lisa SeeThornhedge, T. KingfisherArm of the Sphinx (Books of Babel #2), Josiah BancroftMy Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Vol. 1, Emil FerrisThe Raven Scholar (Eternal Path Trilogy #1), Antonia Hodgson (new)