Escape to the Sand and Sun with These Summer Beach Reads by Elin Hilderbrand
For many of us, this summer might be a bit unconventional and most of us are eager for a nice beach escape. Even if you can’t get away from everyday life, never fear–author Elin Hilderbrand has got you covered with some excellent summer books to read! Elin Hilderbrand is the queen of the best beach reads of all time, and most of her books take place on Nantucket, where she makes her home! Unsure of which of her books to pick up? Here’s our guide to which Elin Hilderbrand book you should read this summer!
The Perfect Couple
by Elin Hilderbrand
If you like summer wedding stories and murder mysteries, this is the pick for you! A typical summer wedding on Nantucket is interrupted by the discovery of a dead body, and the police chief must investigate every member of the wedding party, including the bride, the groom, and the groom's mother, who is a mystery novelist. Along the way, the police chief learns that no couple is perfect and everyone has secrets, even in paradise.
Summer of '69
by Elin Hilderbrand
In this historical family novel, the summer of 1969 is as revolutionary for the Blair siblings as it is for the entire country. They usually spend each summer at their grandmother's home in downtown Nantucket, but this year Blair is in Boston, pregnant and unable to travel, Kirby takes a summer job on Martha's Vineyard, Tiger has just been deployed to Vietnam, and youngest sibling Jessie is left alone on Nantucket with her mother and grandmother, each of them keeping a big secret.
Here's to Us
by Elin Hilderbrand
The only thing that Laurel, Belinda, and Scarlett have in common is that each of them was at one point in time married to Deacon. They don't get along and they avoid each other, but when Deacon dies suddenly and his last wish is to have the three of them, all their children, and his best friend reunite in his beloved Nantucket cottage, the three women can't refuse. Over the course of a tumultuous weekend, the three women must figure out how to say goodbye to Deacon while harboring their own secrets.
Winter in Paradise
by Elin Hilderbrand
Elin Hilderbrand takes readers to a new beachside setting of St. John in this novel about Irene, who is blissfully happy with her husband until she learns of his death on a business trip in St. John. When she and her sons go to the island, she is shocked to learn that her husband had a secret double life, and Irene and her kids must investigate while also figuring out how to forgive and move forward.
The Matchmaker
by Elin Hilderbrand
Dabney is a matchmaker who is excellent at her unofficial calling. With nearly as many successful matches under her belt as years in her life, she's proud of her work...but she can't help but think about the boy who got away from her many years earlier. But when he returns to Nantucket, Dabney is given a second chance, even as she must confront some life-altering secrets.
The Island
by Elin Hilderbrand
Birdie is excited for her daughter Chess's wedding and has agonized over the details to make the day perfect--but the last thing she expects is for Chess to call off her engagement at the last minute. Recognizing that Chess is hurting, Birdie whisks her, her youngest daughter Tate, and her sister India away to a remote island off the coast of Nantucket for a summer of recuperation and relaxation, where the four women must confront their issues and each other head-on.
Beautiful Day
by Elin Hilderbrand
In this novel, two families meet on Nantucket to celebrate the nuptials of Jenna and Stuart, a couple head over heels in love. Jenna's mother, Beth, died a few years earlier, but before she passed she left a notebook of instructions for Jenna's wedding, to help her plan her dream wedding, and the family has done their best to follow her instructions...but so many of the family members are struggling to pull themselves together in time for the wedding–can Beth's notebook really help them execute the perfect wedding without her presence?
Silver Girl
by Elin Hilderbrand
Meredith is still reeling from the news that her husband scammed people out of their money, and lost everything they had, when she receives a call from her old friend Constance, and the two escape for a summer on Nantucket. But then Connie's brother–and Meredith's high school boyfriend–shows up, forcing Meredith to reconsider the direction her life has taken and re-evaluate her priorities.
Barefoot
by Elin Hilderbrand
Three women arrive on Nantucket for a summer of escape and reprieve after receiving bad news. Vicki has just learned she's seriously ill, Brenda has just been fired from her job, and Melanie has just learned she's pregnant after years of fertility treatment...and that her husband is cheating on her. There the three women are trying to heal, but their summer is turned upside down when twenty-two-year-old Josh Flynn shows up.
Which Elin Hilderbrand book will be your summer read?
What to Read Next
Tirzah Price is a writer and contributing editor at Book Riot. Find her on Twitter @TirzahPrice.