Got some lazy days planned this summer? We hear you and are all for days spent lounging by the beach or the pool, cocktail in hand. But these days aren’t complete without a good book. We need to be transported around the world with a brilliant story, even when we’ve already been transported to our summer destination! If you’re at a loss for the words to read, these are the travel novels we’re loving, and you should be checking out.
#1 “Seven at Sea”
by Erik Orton and Emily Orton
A family of seven leaves behind their life in New York City and casts off on a 5,000-mile journey to the Caribbean via sailboat. The family has no sailing experience, and the wife has a fear of deep water, but they know they can not continue to live as they have – barely surviving and barely living.
#2 “The Salt Path“
by Raynor Winn
Soon after discovering that her husband of over three decades is terminally ill, Raynor and husband Moth lose their livelihood. Together, the pair, knowing they have little and little time left together decide to walk 630 miles from Somerset to Dorset via Devon and Cornwall.
#3 “I Love You So Mochi“
by Sarah Kuhn
Kimi Nakamura is all about fashion and bold outfits, but her future seems in tatters after an explosive fight with her mother who wants Kimi to go down a different path in life. Looking to escape, she seizes an opportunity to visit her estranged grandparents in Kyoto. As Kimi loses herself in this new city, she begins to understand her mother’s choices and learns more about what she really wants.
Read also: Nine cocktails and what they say about where you should travel this summer
#4 “The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters“
by Balli Kaur Jaswal
British-born Punjabi sisters, Rajni, Jezmeen and Shirnia are quite different and have never been close, but their mother’s last wish forces the three together. To fulfil their mother’s dying wish, the sisters must make a pilgrimage together to the Amritsar’s Golden Temple. The adventures they face along the way cause the three to discover themselves, the mother and reexamine their lives.
#5 “Rough Magic“
by Lara Prior-Palmer
Based on her experiences, in 2013, nineteen-year-old British woman, Lara decides to enter the Mongol Derby – the world’s toughest horse race. Underprepared for a journey that will set her across the Mongolian plains, she must ride 25 horses over 1000km in seven days. Battling her own stubbornness, illness, dehydration, exhaustion and falls from her horses, Lara achieves the unthinkable becoming the first woman and youngest-ever competitor to win the derby.
#6 “Off the Rails“
by Beppe Severgnini
As a train buff, Beppe Severgnini has spent his life travelling the world. In his hilarious book, he recounts some of his best trips through the world, transporting readers to Europe, Australia, Asia and the US. Beppe shows us what his journeys have taught him about culture and identity.
#7 “Monsieur Mediocre“
by John von Sothen
Vanity Fair and GQ writer John von Sothen is, like most Americans, obsessed with Paris. And after marrying a French woman, he moves to the city only to discover the reality behind the American-made myths of Parisian life. The book is an inciteful and hilarious ode the city many idolise.
Read also: 10 beautiful places you’ve never heard of
#8 “The Bride Test“
by Helen Hoang
A romantic novel about an autistic Vietnamese-American man who is convinced he can not love and the mixed-race Vietnamese woman his mother brings to America from Ho Chi Minh City to marry him.
#9 “The Last Resort“
by Marissa Stapley
Two couples looking to save their marriages head to The Harmony Resort – a place on the Mayan Riviera run by a celebrity power couple. But the resort is not what it seems, and when a deadly tropical storm descends on them, all are trapped, and secrets come out.
#10 “Turning“
by Jessica J Lee
Looking to cure a broken heart, Jessica decides to swim in 52 German lakes over 52 weeks. Jessica, through her journey, faces her fears, wins back her confidence and discovers the ghosts and history of the German landscape.
