I love looking ahead to the books coming out soon. The anticipation of a new book is (almost) as good as actually reading it! With so many books releasing every Tuesday, it’s hard to know what you should read. Hopefully the list below of my most anticipated historical fiction, history nonfiction, and contemporary fiction for the summer will help!
All links are Amazon affiliate links. You can also find these books listed in my Bookshop.org shop, which supports independent bookstores and creators.
All books are listed by their anticipated publication dates.
Historical Fiction Books
Horse by Geraldine Brooks (release date: June 14)
This multi-timeline book about a horse and caretaker in the 19th century, a NYC gallery owners in the 1950s, and a modern-day Smithsonian scientist looks like a literary must-read, especially since it is based on a real story. And I have the author’s Pulitzer prize-winning book, March, on my TBR shelf.
For Those Who Are Lost by Julia Bryan Thomas (release date: June 14)
I am a big fan of WWII fiction, especially an aspect I don’t know much about. This book tells the story of the children sent from the English island of Guernsey to the mainland in advance of the Nazi occupation. Since I loved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, I think this book will be one of my must-reads!
The Last Dress from Paris by Jade Beer (release date: June 21)
A dual timeline book about a modern-day woman delving into her family’s post-WWII life in Paris sounds intriguing. I’ve come to love books about the post-war years lately, a time still fraught with rationing and fear but also hope and growth.
Joan: A Novel of Joan of Arc by Katherine J. Chen (release date: July 5)
I’ve never read anything on Joan of Arc so I am looking forward to learning more about this girl warrior!
A Lady’s Guide to Fortune-Hunting by Sophie Irwin (release date: July 12)
A historical romance, this book about a penniless heiress who must find a good match in the London season to save her family’s fortunes looks delightful! Set in the popular Regency era, it seems like a perfect next read for all of us Bridgerton fans!
Switchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini (release date: July 19)
One of my favorite historical fiction authors, Chiaverini always explores women who defy the stereotypes of their time period. In her latest book, she looks at women in the US Army Signal Corps in WWI. I will read anything she writes, I love how deep into historical detail she gets!
The Woman with Two Shadows by Sarah James (release date: July 26)
There aren’t as many books about the US homefront in WWII as there are about the fronts in France and England. This book is about two sisters at the Oak Ridge facility where the US government formulated the Manhattan Project. I love stories about sisters and this one looks especially good!
The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin (release date: July 26)
I’ve already read this book thanks to the Thoughts from a Page Patreon group, and I can tell you, it’s fabulous! My review will come out on Instagram closer to pub date but this is a book any lover of WWII fiction should read. I didn’t know anything about Portugal in WWII and now I feel like I could walk the streets of Lisbon myself, looking for the rolling tiles and hidden nooks where Ava and James strolled. The story is heartfelt and while horrific at times, it paints a fuller picture of the sheer terror all of Europe felt during the war.
Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak (release date: August 2)
With its beginnings in the Haitian revolution, this book takes the protagonist from one revolution to another as she ends up in Paris caught up in the French Revolution.
Widowland by C.J. Carey (release date: August 9)
I love reading alternate history books and this one looks interesting. What if England had surrendered to the Nazis in WWII? This book imagines that and how it affects women and literature.
The Thread Collectors by Shaunna J. Edwards and Alyson Richman (release date: August 30)
Set during the Civil War, this book links a black woman in New Orleans with a Jewish woman in New York City. It looks stunning, and it’s based on the authors’ own ancestors! I can’t wait to get back to reading Civil War fiction this summer!
Historical Nonfiction Books
Mary Churchill’s War: The Wartime Diaries of Churchill’s Youngest Daughter edited by Emma Soames (Mary’s daughter) (release date: June 7)
I became fascinated with the Churchill daughters after reading The Churchill Sisters last year. This diary by Churchill’s youngest daughter who served in the British Army as an ack-ack gunner in the East of London looks fascinating. I’m hoping to buy it when I visit the Churchill War Rooms on its release date!
The Watermen: The Birth of American Swimming and One Young Man’s Fight to Capture Olympic Gold by Michael Loynd (release date: June 7)
Marketed for fans of The Boys in the Boat (a book I enjoyed!), this book is about the rise of swimming as an American sport in the fourth Olympics in 1908. Sounds like a good book for a teen’s summer reading!
Middle Grade/Young Adult Historical Fiction
Mummies in the Morning Graphic Novel (release date: June 28)
If your children love the Magic Treehouse series, they will love the graphic novels of their favorite Jack and Annie tales.
A Secret Princess by Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Cruz (release date: June 28)
A YA retelling of two favorites from childhood (A Secret Garden and A Little Princess), this book looks charming and full of references to the classics.
Contemporary Books
West Side Love Story by Priscilla Oliveras (release date: June 1)
Once again, my love of Romeo and Juliet retellings made me put this contemporary romance about competing mariachi bands in San Antonio on my list. I’ve read it already, and it’s fun and full of heart!
Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan (release date: June 7)
I first heard about this book from Cindy at Thoughts from a Page podcast. She raved about it so I immediately preordered it! It looks so cute, and I love a complicated love story about an older protagonist with kids. I can’t wait until it drops in my Kindle on release date!
Flying Solo: A Novel by Linda Holmes (release date: June 14)
One of my favorite books read in 2021 was Holmes’ Evvie Drake Starts Over so I preordered her new book as soon as I saw it. She writes great, mature characters with real life issues who find romance and a new lease on life. This one looks like it has a mystery element too which should be interesting!
For the Love of the Bard by Jessica Martin (release date: June 28)
A contemporary rom com set at a Shakespeare festival? Sign me up!
The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie by Rachel Linden (release date: August 2)
I am a sucker for any sort of book that imagines the “life not lived” – making different choices and how that affects your life. This book about a pie maker who is given the chance to live three single days in three different lives that might have been looks heartwarming and life-affirming much like my favorite book from 2021, The Midnight Library.
Just Another Love Song by Kerry Winfrey (release date: August 2)
I love second chance love, and this book is about high school sweethearts reconnecting fifteen years later. And bonus that it includes the country music scene!
Follow me on Instagram and Goodreads to learn more about what I’m reading throughout the year!
Let me know what you’re reading this summer in the comments!
The To-Read list just gets longer and longer!