The 8 Best Beach Reads Reese’s Book Club Has Ever Recommended

According to a person who likes nothing more than reading on a beach

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best-reeses-book-club-beach-reads: reese witherspoon as elle woods in 'legally blonde'
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The only criteria for a Reese’s Book Club selection is that it has to be a book with a woman at the center and is something that “sparks discussions, makes us laugh when we need it most and bond[s] us over something bigger than ourselves,” as says Ms. Witherspoon herself.

This has meant that, over the years, the club has picked everything from historical fiction to political calls to action to serviceable self-help. But amongst the more serious reads, there’s also a ton of easy, fast-paced stories that are just the type of thing you’d want to devour on vacation between sunscreen applications. In other words, when it’s time to load up your Kindle this summer, you might want to turn to RBC. From gripping mysteries to sexy romances, here are the absolute best Reese’s Book Club beach reads, vetted by me, a person who wants nothing more than to be on sunchair reading.

where-the-crawdads-sing-by-delia-owens
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1. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Murder mystery? Check. Compulsively readable prose? Check. Waterfront Setting? Check. This wildly popular 2018 novel tells the story of a young, abandoned girl from the marshes of North Carolina who, after a life navigating the natural world on her own, begins to open herself to others. You’ll zip through it, and likely come out the other side with a greater appreciation of nature. (The author is a zoologist after all.)

romantic-comedy-by-curtis-sittenfeld
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2. Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

Sittenfeld is a smart girl’s best friend when it comes to easy-reading, and I’ve long loved her intelligent takes on the female psyche and relationships. Romantic Comedy, about an SNL-style TV writer who takes up with a famous musician after his appearance on the show, is one of her frothier offerings (though don’t sleep on the poignancy of her tortured lovers’ email exchanges) making it the ideal beach-side binge.

la-weather-by-maria-amparo-escandon
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3. L.A. Weather by María Amparo Escandón

Though you may not be praying for rain on vacation, that’s exactly what Oscar the “weather-obsessed patriarch” of this bestselling novel is hoping for, after a particularly brutal dry spell in L.A. But he’s also got bigger problems, when his wife decides she’s leaving him and his three daughters—with just the right amount of humor an introspection—begin to reexamine the family dynamics they’ve taken for granted. L.A. Weather isa fun family romp with just the right amount of intrigue.

the-last-thing-he-told-me-by-laura-dave
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4. The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

Husbands-who-aren’t-who-you-think-they-are is a whole sub-genre of beach read, and this 2021 hit, which inspired the Jennifer Garner AppleTV+ series, fits the category to a tee. The story follows a woman who’s left with an angry step-daughter and a mysterious note—“Protect her”—after her husband disappears, prompting an investigation into who her spouse really was. You’ll read it all in one beach day…or, if you’re anything like me, on the plane before you arrive.

the-guest-list-by-lucy-foley
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5. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Another beach read trope? The wedding weekend gone awry…and murderous. This one is set on an island off the coast of Ireland, when a party guest turns up dead and everyone is a suspect. Come for the marriage-industrial-complex takedown. Stay for the Agatha Christie style who-dunnit that will keep you guessing until the end.

the-jetsetters-by-amanda-eyre-ward
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6. The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward

From summertime Rome to Athens to Barcelona, this globe-trotting novel follows seventy-year-old Charlotte and her adult children, who have just won a vacation-of-a-lifetime contest. But as secrets and long-held grudges are revealed (don’t get Regan started on the Weight Watchers gift certificate her mom got her), the family has to come to terms with the ways they’ve changed and the places they’re headed. Read this one on a beach vacay with your in-laws to put everything in perspective…

seven-days-in-june-by-tia-williams
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7. Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

Sometimes you just want a romantic, ok steamy, distraction and Seven Days in June is it. Billed by Reese as a “sexy, modern love story,” it follows an erotica writer and single mother who reconnects with a novelist she knew long ago…as the two decide whether they ought to give each other another go. A smart, often funny look at chemistry, connection and Black life in America, this is one of those books that’ll make you feel the heat.

tom-lake-by-ann-patchett
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8. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

Ok this isn’t a traditional beach read, but it’s one of my absolute favorite books of the past decade and it’s my list, damnit, so I’m putting it on here. Set in the Spring of 2020 (so peak pandemic) on a family’s cherry orchard, Tom Lake dips back in time to tell the story of how matriarch Lara gave up her acting career and eventually met and married her husband. With pitch-perfect specificity and, at times, evasion, Lara tells her story to her adult daughters in a way that makes you think about the lives your parents lived before you knew them, and how each of life’s decisions affects another. Save this one for a rainy beach day and you’ll never want to leave your porch swing.



jillian quint editor in chief purewow

Editor-in-Chief

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  • Studied English literature at Vassar College