The 12 Books You’ll Be Desperate to Read This Summer

Astrid Strick is shaken after witnessing a school bus accident in her town. The tragedy also brings up memories from her parenting past and forces her to face the fact that she wasn’t a great parent when her three children were still growing up. Now, Astrid’s going to become a grandparent.

All Adults Here is a story about family and the things that follow us into adulthood.

Biochemical engineer Liya Thakkar is happy being single, but her parents decide to set her up with a lawyer named Jay Shah. The two clearly don’t hit it off at the Thakkars’ dinner party, so everything becomes awkward when Liya finds out that her company hired Jay to help with their legal trouble. But as they spend more time together in the office and continue chatting outside of work, sparks start to fly.

Every body is a bikini body. Comedian, actress, and Nailed It host Nicole Byer knows that and wants everyone else to too. Her book, #VeryFat #VeryBrave, is basically a bikini look book showing off her beautiful figure in a hundred different colorful swimmies. She also shares her body-acceptance journey and gives tips on how others can find their own bravery, handle haters, and embrace their bodies.

Single mom Lisa Hawley was able to successfully raise her kids Juliet and Theo after a nasty divorce 20 years ago. But while everything else is running smoothly, her old house needs to be fixed up. That brings her to local contractor Mack, who is 10 years younger. Lisa becomes smitten, but her children worry that Mack’s going to break her heart.

Girls of Summer is a romance book about a family finding summer loves and how going home can bring some unexpected surprises.

Twenty-seven-year-old Maggie Krause has never been comfortable with intimacy—that is, until she met Lucia. Her newfound queer love gives her happiness. But sadness and grief rain on her parade when her mom dies from a car crash and she’s forced to go back to her hometown. She finds her mom’s will as well as five letters addressed to mysterious men. She then decides to go on a road trip to deliver these sealed envelopes to their addressees and find the truth about her mother.

This anthology of essays explores everything about the living legend Alexandia Ocasio-Cortez—from her symbolic significance as a political figure to her contributions to a history of Puerto Rican activism. The book includes a preface written by actor and producer Keegan-Michael Key.

Through a series of viral live tweets about a horrific date, Samiah Brooks finds out that she’s been catfished by her three-timing boyfriend. She then forms a pact with her ex’s two other girlfriends, London and Taylor, to spend the next six months investing in themselves—no dating. Samiah then begins developing the app she’s always dreamed of. But this is exactly when she meets the seemingly perfect Daniel Collins.

This not-so-light book is nevertheless a summer read worth buying as soon as it’s out. New York Times best-selling author Imbolo Mbue writes about the people of the fictional African village of Kosawa who are struggling as they face environmental degradation at the hands of an American oil company. The story is told through the point of view of children and the family of a girl named Thula, who grows up to become a revolutionary.

Avery Abrams has been training to be an Olympic gymnast for as long as she can remember, but a disastrous performance ends her career for good. On top of that, her football star boyfriend breaks up with her. Meanwhile, her friend Jasmine winds up becoming a successful Olympian, then winds up marrying their emotionally abusive coach.

Avery goes back to her hometown in Massachusetts and takes a job coaching a young gymnast. Sparks begin to fly between her and co-coach Ryan, and all seems well. But a scandal in the world of gymnastics shakes up her life again—as well as her friend Jasmine’s.

Self Care looks at the lives of influencers and people in the wellness industry, explores their way of thinking, and exposes what “self-care” looks like (minus all the Instagram filters). This story follows employees of fictional company Richual, “the most inclusive online community platform for women to cultivate the practice of self-care and change the world by changing ourselves.”

COO Maren Gelb, CEO Devin Avery, and Richual board member Evan Wiley find themselves involved in several PR nightmares—involving a Twitter war, problematic “feminist” ideals, and a sexual misconduct scandal—that could destroy the company forever.

It’s 1983, and best friends Justine and Eve want out of their miserable lives at their Connecticut boarding school, Griswold Academy. They soon find escape as they spend the summer in New York City to join Eve’s childhood friend, India. All three then find themselves grappling with the power that adults, like their parents, have over them.

Overachiever Alex Vogel has accepted her dream job offer from a prestigious Manhattan law firm called Klasko & Fitch. She promises that working in the corporate world with a bunch of power-hungry bros won’t change her, but soon she’s seduced by the money and masculine energy. When she discovers the dark reality of her employers, though, she can’t stand by silently.

The Boys’ Club has already been optioned by Netflix, so read it before the spoilers hit the internet.