Eight anti-beach reads

For readers who prefer their summer reading steeped in nuance and emotional precision, this is a novel that cuts deep. A quiet summer in rural Italy becomes the fulcrum of a life unmoored in Sarah Moss’s masterfully written Ripeness. Edith, tasked with caring for her sister through a fraught pregnancy, finds herself the reluctant custodian of a secret whose reverberations echo across decades and borders. In present-day Ireland, the past resurfaces through an unexpected phone call, drawing Edith into a reckoning she thought she'd long outlived.

There’s nothing escapist about Anyone’s Ghost – and that’s precisely its power. August Thompson’s searing debut traces the wreckage of a queer love story across years and state lines, from the wild rush of teenage obsession to the haunting aftermath of irreversible choices. As Theron pieces together his connection to the elusive, magnetic Jake, Anyone’s Ghost becomes a portrait of longing so vivid, making this tender novel the perfect anti-beach read.

Colette’s fin-de-siècle Paris shimmers with decadence, but beneath the surface lies a poignant exploration of ageing, power, and the illusions of romantic fulfilment. At its heart is the illicit bond between Chéri, a spoiled young man adrift in his own desires, and Léa, the older courtesan who knows too well the cost of love measured in years. Daring in its time and still radical today, this is a classic that has stood the test of time. Not to mention this pocket-sized edition is perfect for squeezing in your suitcase.

The Burial Plot is a gothic tale that offers chills rather than sunshine – a perfect antidote to breezy summer reads. Set against the gaslit gloom of Victorian England, Elizabeth Macneal’s taut thriller follows Bonnie, a woman on the run, entangled in a con that spirals into something far more sinister. As she hides in the shadowed corridors of a grief-stricken household, the past presses in and danger tightens its grip. A must-read from the Sunday Times Bestselling author of The Doll Factory.

Don’t let the sun-drenched setting fool you – Jennifer Trevelyan’s striking debut peels back the veneer of an idyllic coastal holiday to reveal something far murkier beneath. Told through the eyes of ten-year-old Alix, whose innocence sharpens rather than softens the suspense, the novel deftly captures the unsettling tension of a family unraveling in slow motion. As a childhood mystery collides with adult secrets, what emerges is a portrait of vulnerability, betrayal, and the fragile fictions we build around those we love.

Gruesome, tender, and darkly funny, One Yellow Eye is a gloriously offbeat anti-beach read – perfect for those who prefer their love stories laced with zombies. Leigh Radford reinvents the zombie narrative as a claustrophobic domestic drama, following scientist Kesta as she hides her undead husband in the spare room while racing to find a cure. Between the clinical precision of her lab work and the grotesque intimacy of caring for what her partner has become, Kesta confronts a grief so consuming it borders on delusion. 

Martyr! offers a gloriously unorthodox alternative to the beach read. Kaveh Akbar’s kaleidoscopic debut follows Cyrus Shams – a grieving, restless, newly sober poet – on a quest that’s part pilgrimage, part collapse. Haunted by the loss of his mother, this is a novel that wrestles with martyrdom in its many forms – personal, spiritual, cultural – without ever losing sight of beauty. A heady, soul-searching odyssey for readers who want more than sand between the pages.

Lily King’s luminous stories traverse love, loss, and the ache of unspoken longing with an elegance that never softens their emotional force. Each story is a window into lives suspended between yearning and disappointment – whether it’s a bookseller thawing in the face of unexpected affection or a grieving mother desperate to shield her child from sorrow. With prose as precise as it is profound, this collection is a reminder that the deepest tides run beneath the calmest surfaces.