Forget frozen margaritas and Aperol spritzes — the true hangovers this summer came from the books we couldn’t put down. From lakeside romances to gritty thrillers to sci-fi brain melters, these books hit harder than a heatwave and have us coming into fall still buzzed! If you’re looking for proof that the best summer flings are found between the pages (and won’t ghost you after Labor Day), here is a list of reads the staff here at BookTrib are still recovering from.
These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean
JeriAnn [Writer]
It was such a pleasure to talk to Sarah MacLean about These Summer Storms, her very first literary novel after so much success with historical romance. The book keeps luring me back into the heart of summer. This tasty, twisty, torturous tale of a family reckoning with the posthumous power play of its recently deceased patriarch is the kind of summer beach read that makes you forget to reapply sunblock. And the type of cold weather read that brings back the bite of the salt spray, the grit of sand between your toes and the bickering family drama that keeps you turning pages.
The Immortalites by Claire Robertson
Monique [Assistant Editor]
Well, we’re only heading into the summer season in the Southern Hemisphere, but The Immortalites still gave me that windswept, end-of-summer melancholy I can’t shake. Ellie’s fight for survival on the South African frontier is as harsh as it is beautiful, and her grit makes every page thrum with life. It’s the kind of story that lingers, like dust on your boots after a long, hard road.
Jade City by Fonda Lee
Cammy [Social Media Assistant]
While it’s a little too dense to lug to the beach, I’d argue that Fonda Lee’s Jade City is the perfect read for a humid summer night, especially one with a thunderstorm rolling in. This epic saga combines magic with martial arts in a story of family legacy and organized crime. The deeper into the story you delve, the more the tension grows — building like a cloud of sweltering humidity as characters reckon with the rumblings of a turf war between the two most powerful families in Kekon. The storm breaks in a single harrowing scene, and from that moment onwards, it’s impossible to put the book down, even if you have to pull an all-nighter to reach the final page.
One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
Caroline [Project ManagementAssistant]
Looking for a read that feels like summer? One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune is the quintessential romance read. The setting transports you to lakeside nostalgia and sun-kissed days. A faded love returns while both characters undergo self-discovery. This escapist story makes you reflect on your previous summers and past decisions.
Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age by Vauhini Vara
Camryn [Digital Marketing]
Summer 2025 = the summer of AI discourse, and this surprisingly tender book was a highlight of my reading season. Vara, an award-winning journalist and novelist, blends well-researched tech analysis with poignant personal reflections re: her own relationship with the internet. Equal parts personal essay, Silicon Valley exposé and moral reckoning, this is a must-read for anyone with internet access. Creative nonfiction connoisseurs and AI skeptics, you’re in for a treat!
Penance by Eliza Clark
Kelsey [Project Manager]
I’m still not over Brat summer 2024, and I think the books I read this summer reflect that! Penance by Eliza Clark is giving “girl, so confusing” in this provocative yet disturbing thriller where a group of girl friends murder one of their classmates. Told through the eyes of a journalist who is writing a book about this gruesome murder, a decade later, we are still trying to wrap our heads around how young girls could commit such a heinous act. Spoiler alert: they didn’t work it out on the remix.
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
Barb [Sales & Development]
I didn’t get to many “beach reads” this summer, but after finishing The Wedding People by Alison Espach, it definitely became my pick for that perfect “summer hangover” vibe. The story starts off a little dark, but it’s set in beautiful Newport, RI, right at the tail end of summer — which totally pulled me in. It brought back so many memories of being in Newport … walking along the Cliff Walk with the ocean on one side and those stunning mansions on the other, boating off Bowen’s Wharf, the sun warming your face.
The tone of the book really captures that late-summer feeling: the glow of the past, the slow fade of the present, and that quiet, lingering sense of what might come next.
Blindsight by Peter Watts
Sara [Social Media Assistant
Unless you consider a hard sci-fi novel about first contact with hostile, possibly non-conscious aliens to be relaxing, my summer reading hasn’t exactly been light. Both a space thriller and a thought experiment, Blindsight by Peter Watts follows a team of modified humans (and a vampire) sent to investigate an alien vessel in deep space, forcing them to question not only the idea of consciousness, but human nature itself.
So, not exactly a beach read, but nothing says summer fun quite like questioning your own self-awareness.
We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz
Natalie [Publicist]
I took my own recommendation from my “6 Books That Will Ruin Your Summer” listicle and read the summer thriller, We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz.
This thriller is a perfect read as we carefully ease ourselves into Fall, as one would into a freezing ocean. The summer vibes are apparent as the plot starts out in the hot and tropical climate of Chile. BUT the blood-spattered flashbacks add a spooky garnish to this otherwise summery beach read.
Talk about a perfect Summer hangover cure!
Eat the Ones You Love by Sarah Maria Griffin
Olivia [Social Media Assistant]
This summer, my poolside read transported me to a decaying shopping mall in the Irish countryside. This captivating and unusual novel centers a will they, won’t they sapphic romance and a human-eating demonic orchid plant. Griffin manages to provide a perceptive and ominous point of view, which never fully allows your nerves to settle. A light reminder that being perceived is, in fact, scary. This read is for freaks — take that as you will.