Walk into any big box store or small-town indie book shop from May to the last embers of August and you’ll find displays dedicated to the Beach Read. Those all-consuming, page-turners readers love to devour during their carefree days in the summer sun.
From cute and quirky RomComs, to Second-chance Romances, to even light Murder Mysteries, Beach Reads are never a dense slog. They require minimal mental effort to consume, making them ideal vacation reads. The sort of thing you could read while kids screech and splash in a pool, dogs bark on a scorching hot day, and fireworks explode in the near distance.
From trips to the beach to stories set at the seashore to tropical island adventures, if a vacation somewhere exciting isn’t on your itinerary, a Beach Read might be the perfect summer escape substitute. So I’ve gathered these 10 Queer Beach Reads to fill your seaside tote, Story Quester!
1) The Romantic Agenda
by Claire Kann
Queer Asexual Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Black Romance, Summer Romance, Seaside Romance, Multicultural Romance
Awards: NPR’s Books to Celebrate Pride Month, Parade’s Best Romance Books of All Time, Buzzfeed’s Most Anticipated LGBTQ Reads of 2022, Goodreads’ Most Anticipated April Romances 2022
READ IT
2) Hot Summer
by Elle Everhart
Queer Genre: Sapphic Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Beach Read, Summer Romance
Awards: Book Riot’s Best LGBTQ Beach Reads of 2024
READ IT
3) Out of the Blue
by Jason June
Queer Genre: Achillean Romance, Non-binary Romance
Genres: Young Adult Fantasy, Coming-of-Age Romance, Coming-of-age Fantasy, RomCom, Contemporary Fantasy, Mermaid Romance, Beach Read, Summer Romance
READ IT
4) Summer Girls
by Jennifer Dugan
Queer Genre: Sapphic Romance, Bisexual Romance
Genres: Young Adult Romance, Contemporary Romance, Coming-of-Age Romance, Summer Romance, Small-town Romance, Seaside Romance, Workplace Romance, Beach Read
READ IT
5) A Shore Thing
by Joanna Lowell
Queer Genre: Trans Romance
Genres: Historical Romance, Victorian Romance, Seaside Romance, Cozy Romance, Low-stakes Adventure, Beach Read
Awards: NPR Best Book of 2024, New York Times Best Romance of the Year 2024, Parade Best Romance of the Year 2024
READ IT
6) That Summer Feeling
by Bridget Morrissey
Queer Genre: Sapphic Romance, Bisexual Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Beach Read, Summer Romance, Slice-of-life Romance
Awards: Paste Magazine Most Anticipated Contemporary Romance Book of 2023, Book Riot’s Best Romance Books of Summer 2023, Amazon’s Best Romances 2023, Buzzfeed’s Romance Books To Look Out For In 2023
READ IT
7) Flirty Dancing
by Jennifer Moffatt
Queer Genre: Achillean Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Workplace Romance, Summer Romance, Small-town Romance, Dance Romance
READ IT
8) Lavash at First Sight
by Taleen Voskuni
Queer Genre: Sapphic Romance, Bisexual Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Workplace Romance, Food Industry Romance, Multicultural Romance, Forbidden Romance
READ IT
9) In the Case of Heartbreak
Fern Falls Book 2
by Courtney Kae
Queer Genre: Achillean Romance
Genres: Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Workplace Romance, Summer Romance, Food Shop Romance, Small-town Romance
READ IT
10) Going Bicoastal
by Dahlia Adler
Queer Genre: Bisexual Romance
Genres: Young Adult Romance, Contemporary Romance, RomCom, Coming-of-Age Romance
Awards: Sydney Taylor Book Award Silver Medalist, New York Public Library Best Book of the Year, YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Pick, Rainbow Book List Pick, Kids Indie Next Pick 2023
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