Top 5 Tuesday || Summertime Reads

Since June is right around the corner, and summer is LOOMING, Shanah @ Bionic Bookworm Blog definitely had the right idea in setting today’s prompt as summertime reads! Here’s my personal set of recommendations for your next beach day.

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

So, I actually started The Wicked Deep last year on May 31st, which is the day things begin in this book. Naturally, this means it’s an aces recommendation for summer! Plus it has murder mystery, ephemeral connections, witchy excellence, and spooky summer vibes. It’s everything you need to beat the heat with just the slightest chill down your spine.

Keep This to Yourself by Tom Ryan

If you really want a chill, then Keep This to Yourself DELIVERS. With that summer fog chill and murder clinging to everything in the wake of high school graduation, it’s a great summer read for looking over your shoulder at what’s behind while you’re still not certain what’s ahead.

The Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie

Now, pirates are never out of season, but they’re especially in season during the summer, especially when they come with sea monsters. Naturally, this means The Abyss Surrounds Us belongs on this list through and through. Pirates? Check. Sea monsters? Big check. Queer enemies to lovers romance? VERY BIG CHECK.

See? Summer perfect.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire

All those ghost stories best told around a campfire better make way for Sparrow Hill Road, because this is story mean for nights beside a dying bonfire, with the dark closing in but still just barely at bay. It’s full of stories about the worst things going bump in the night, and of the things that hold the monsters back. It’s everything you could ever dream of, nightmares included, during the short summer nights.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Summer is the time for county fairs and carnivals, so of course Caraval makes the list! With a magical carnival underscored with a current of danger, and with a cover that looks like fireworks in a starry sky, it’s a nice balance against the ghosts and beasts that I’ve put on this list already. Not that it’s exactly safe, but it’s just less supernatural, and far more enchanting. Summer magic, right?

It’s starting to look like my idea of summer reading is books that aren’t very summery and are actually more chilly than anything. To be fair, I don’t really love the heat, so… I guess it works! But tell me, what are your top summer recs? Do you prefer to embrace the season, or totally avoid it? Let’s chat!