The Best Beach Reads For a Summer Getaway

Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures author Emma Straub writes about one family's two-week trip to the island of Mallorca in The Vacationers, a story about the complicated up-and-down dynamics among family and friends.

If you haven't picked up Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl yet, Summer is the perfect time to get lost in the can't-put-it-down thriller about a mysterious marriage.

Bestselling author Emily Giffin's latest novel, The One & Only, takes place in a small Texas town where football is everything. Shea, a 33-year-old woman, was born and raised in the college community, and when tragedy strikes, she's forced to face difficult questions about love and friendship.

Funny guy and former The Office writer B.J. Novak brings his musings to the page with One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories, a collection of witty, clever shorts that cover the trials of love, social media, and trying to succeed.

Transport yourself to the Mediterranean with Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter, a romantic read that tosses between Italy in the 1960s and modern-day Hollywood.

Terry Hayes's thriller I Am Pilgrim tells the story of a secret agent — with the code name Pilgrim — who is forced to face his greatest enemy after the murder of a wealthy American.

Marina Keegan's The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays and Stories is a posthumous collection written by a 2012 Yale student who had a play set to be produced and a job waiting at the New Yorker when she died tragically in a car crash days after graduation. Following the viral success of her final essay for the Yale Daily News, "The Opposite of Loneliness," her essays and stories have been gathered into a collection.

The Bees by Laline Paull is what Room author Emma Donoghue calls a "heart-pounding novel" and a "wild ride" about an ancient culture with a strong caste system in which only the queen can breed. Flora 717, a member of the lowest caste, is caught between personal dreams and society's demands when she dares to challenge the queen's wishes.

Unique and amusing, Rainbow Rowell's Attachments follows the back-and-forth emails between two female co-workers who like to dish on their relationships — and the company's Internet security officer who finds himself falling for one of the women based only on her private exchanges.

The Silver Linings Playbook author Matthew Quick returns with the story of the 38-year-old Bartholomew, who struggles to be on his own after his mother's death. In the witty book, titled The Good Luck of Right Now, Bartholomew finds a letter from Richard Gere among his mother's things, and he sets out to find himself as he writes letter after letter to the actor.

Marisa de los Santos's Love Walked In follows Cornelia, a coffee-shop manager, and Clare, a young girl, as their lives weave together.

Chelsea Handler's back with another book, Uganda Be Kidding Me, this time sharing her hilarious, outrageous stories from travelling the world.

The Fault in Our Stars author John Green calls We Were Liars by E. Lockhart "thrilling, beautiful, and blisteringly smart." In it, there's a group of four friends called The Liars, and one of them, a girl named Cady, is part of a distinguished, mysterious family.

It's sex, drugs, and New York City for the three show-business girls in Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls — a cult classic that's ideal for poolside reading.

Sharp and witty, Maria Semple's Where'd You Go, Bernadette follows a young girl, Bee, as she pieces together emails, documents, and secret correspondence to find her mother, Bernadette.

Charming and nostalgic, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows brings together letters and storylines from the 1940s to tell the tale of a quirky society against the backdrop of a dark war.

For a fun mix of nostalgia and romance, dive into The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty, which follows a 1922 It girl and her chaperone, Cora, as they leave Wichita, KS, and take on Manhattan, NY.

It's not always easy to find time to read the classics, so if you have a long stretch of hours over Summer break, consider cracking open One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez, the story of a fascinating family in a mythical Latin America town.

For a dose of sharp writing and juicy celebrity culture, dive into Christine Sneed's debut novel, Little Known Facts, told from several points of view. Set around an A-list Hollywood actor and his family, the book looks at the highs and lows of fame and how it affects relationships.

One of 2009's must reads, Jonathan Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You, will be getting the movie treatment soon, so now's the time to read the witty, raw novel about a family who comes together in the wake of a father's death.

Sarah Pekkanen's Skipping a Beat dives into the tangled web of a marriage between two high school sweethearts who aren't on the same page in their relationship.

In The Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown's page-turner Inferno: A Novel, professor Robert Langdon turns his fascination to Dante's Inferno.

The First Husband by Laura Dave tells the story of Annie, a woman who's shattered when her boyfriend decides he needs space — only to find herself married to someone else three months later.

Witty and charming as usual, humourist David Sedaris offers hilarious tales of learning French, embracing a new culture, and more in Me Talk Pretty One Day.

Just in time for wedding season, you can pick up a copy of Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close, a story about three 20-something friends who find themselves going to wedding after wedding, struggling to figure out their own lives.

If you fell in love with Khaled Hosseini's previous works, like The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, then you should definitely check out And the Mountains Echoed. It's a book about family and friendships that travels from Kabul to Paris to San Francisco to the Greek island of Tinos.

If you're a die-hard fan of the movie — and love a little romance — your beach holiday is the perfect time to read The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks.

In the YA novel Heiress, P.I. by Amanda Mahan, the shy teenage heiress to a hotel chain finds herself thrust into the spotlight she prefers to avoid when she links up with her friend (and crush) to help a famous private investigator.

VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV's First Wave follows the glory days of MTV: 1981 to 1987. The original VJs give the inside scoop on the network and celebrities they encountered, as well as their own personal journeys.

Can't resist a lovable YA book? If you're looking for an entertaining series, check out Megan McCafferty's Sloppy Firsts, the first in her collection of novels about witty heroine Jessica Darling.

Toss Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand into your beach bag for a thoughtful story about how friends, family, and community can come together in the aftermath of a tragedy.

No one does friendship quite like Judy Blume, and Summer Sisters is the perfect pick to carry along when you're on holiday with your pals.

Flight Patterns tells the story of one woman who is forced to confront her past and the family she tried to leave behind.

The Weekenders is just one of the many books you'll want to keep in your beach bag this season. All seems normal with this group of island locals until someone's husband goes missing and the town's deeper secrets begin to unravel.

If you're a hopeless romantic, then All Summer Long is the perfect read for you. A young couple from New York finds themselves at odds when a move to South Carolina causes strife in their relationship.

As its title would suggest, Love & Gelato is a sweet love story about two people who have a romantic adventure in Italy.

The former Bachelorette star spills all about her quest to find love and infamously rejecting Juan Pablo Galavis in her memoir, It's Not Okay: Turning Heartbreak Into Happily Never After.

In The Island House, a college English professor returns to her Summer island house in hopes of reconciling with a past love.

If you're a fan of her widely popular Instagram account @CrazyJewishMom, then you will no doubt love Kate Siegel's book, Mother, Can You Not?, as she recollects all the hilarious stories of her overbearing mother.

If you're obsessed with Jane Austen, then Eligible: A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice is the book for you. Curtis Sittenfeld's book tells everything you love about the classic tale of the Bennet family and Mr. Darcy in an innovative and exciting new way.

If you're searching for that perfect beach read, then look no further than Raymie Nightingale. Two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo pens a sweet story about one unlikely Summer friendship between three girls competing against each other.

Get inspired with No. 1 New York Times bestselling author Robyn Carr's novel, What We Find, about new beginnings and one woman's quest to find true happiness.

This Danielle Steel novel tells the story of two people who are drawn together under the most unusual circumstances of events.

The Bachelorette star Emily Maynard Johnson takes fans through what it was really like having her love life broadcasted on TV.

In this sweet romance novel, Helen Simonson writes about two people who fall madly in love right before World War I reaches their small little town in England.

Into crime thrillers like Gone Girl? Give Find Her a shot. Author Lisa Gardner tells the story of a young woman still coping with her kidnapping, which occurred years earlier.

If you love young adult books but haven't yet dipped your toe into the Lunar Chronicles, get this collection of nine stories written by Marissa Meyer. Five out of the nine stories in Stars Above are brand new!

A family reunites at their country house for three weeks in The Past, a novel by Tessa Hadley.

Alexandra Bracken has finally released Passenger, a time-travelling romance that fans of Outlander might enjoy.

Looking for a steamy mystery? Look no further that Chris Bohjalian's The Guest Room, a novel full of romance . . . and murder!

Who doesn't love a good romantic mystery? Jayne Ann Krentz's Secret Sisters is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Famed author Dean Koontz presents her thriller Ashley Bell, starring a young heroine who has a year to find and save a mysterious stranger.

Get your romantic novel on with Danielle Steel's Precious Gifts.

In Here's to Us, three women must put their differences aside when a man they all loved suddenly dies.

From the author who brought you Something Borrowed, Emily Giffin writes First Comes Love, a story about two sisters who find themselves at a crossroads in life.

If you didn't get a chance to buy tickets, pick up a copy of J.K. Rowling's script Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Truly Madly Guilty gets real about learning to appreciate things in life when it's sometimes too late.

Travel to the City of Light this Summer with Danielle Steel's enchanting novel, Magic.

Let The Girls transport you back to the 1960s, as a group of friends go from girls to women.

The Pursuit will keep you on your toes during your beach trip with this intriguing game of cat and mouse.

In Rich and Pretty, two young women find their world and friendship completely changed when they start living adult lives.

If you're looking for a sappy love story this Summer, this is the perfect fit for you. Falling tells the sweet tale of a young woman who finds a family in the last place she expected.

As she plans her mother's wedding, one woman's dark secrets slowly start unravel in this novel, Daughters of the Bride.

The author behind The Devil Wears Prada writes about the scandalous life a young tennis player in The Singles Game.

Family Tree tells a compelling story about love, loss, and moving on from the past.

The simply hilarious Amy Schumer writes The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo; a witty collection of personal essays.

How to Ruin Everything has the perfect collection of essays for you to read on your lounge chair while soaking in some rays.