How’s your summer reading going so far? We’ve seen so many great book releases this year, so I’ve decided to round up some of the most popular and most read titles that readers have been loving on Goodreads. Whether you’re looking for a page-turner or something easy to get lost in, these titles are being talked about everywhere and will be a great addition to your summer reading list.
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Summer 2026’s Most Popular Reads
1) Kin by Tayari Jones
Goodreads Rating: 4.23
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From the publisher: Vernice and Annie, two motherless daughters raised in Honeysuckle, Louisiana, have been best friends and neighbors since earliest childhood, but are fated to live starkly different lives. Raised by a fierce aunt determined to give her a stable home in the wake of her mother’s death, Vernice leaves Atlanta at eighteen for Spelman College, where she joins a sisterhood of powerfully connected Black women and marries into an affluent family.
2) Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
Goodreads Rating: 3.91
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From the publisher: A traditional American woman, a beautiful wife and mother who sells her pioneer lifestyle of raw milk and farm-fresh eggs to her millions of social media followers, suddenly awakens cold, filthy, and terrified in the brutal reality of 1855-where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister in this sensational debut novel.
3) Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden
Goodreads Rating: 3.94
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From the publisher: Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction. Or at least, she did.
4) My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney
Goodreads Rating: 3.98
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From the publisher: Eden Fox, an artist on the brink of her big break, sets off for a run before her first exhibition. When she returns to the home she recently moved into, Spyglass, an enchanting old house in Hope Falls, nothing is as it should be. Her key doesn’t fit. A woman, eerily similar to her, answers the door. And her husband insists that the stranger is his wife. One house. One husband. Two women. Someone is lying.
5) Our Perfect Storm by Carley Fortune
Goodreads Rating: 4.03
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From the publisher: Frankie and George have been best friends since they were eight years old. Both passionate, impulsive, and headstrong—they’ve always clashed and come back together. Until now. It’s the eve of Frankie’s wedding weekend, and she doesn’t know where they stand or even if George will show up as her best man. But it all comes crashing down when her fiancé dumps her the next morning, leaving only a note as an explanation.
6) Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker
Goodreads Rating: 3.91
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From the publisher: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. The details are blurred and bloody. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge—his father’s new home in Japan, a house hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. But something is terribly wrong with the house: no animals will come near it, the bedroom window isn’t always a window, and a woman with a sword appears in the yard when night falls.
7) Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage by Belle Burden
Goodreads Rating: 4.13
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From the publisher: In March 2020, Belle Burden was safe and secure with her family at their house on Martha’s Vineyard, navigating the early days of the pandemic together—building fires in the late afternoons, drinking whisky sours, making roast chicken. Then, with no warning or explanation, her husband of twenty years announced that he was leaving her. Overnight, her caring, steady partner became a man she hardly recognized. He exited his life with her like an actor shrugging off a costume.
8) The Midnight Train by Matt Haig
Goodreads Rating: 4.01
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From the publisher: When your life flashes before your eyes, where would you stop? No one can change the past, but the Midnight Train can take you there. The chance to re-live the moments that meant most. To see what kind of person you really were. For Wilbur his best days were with Maggie, the love of his life. On his honeymoon in Venice. Before he gave it all away. He wishes he could go back and live differently. But to do so risks everything.
When thousands of readers around the world are talking about the same releases, it’s usually a good sign you’re in for something special. I hope this list has given you some more reading options for summer. Have you read any books on this list? Did it live up to the hype? I’d love to know!
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Great list of books publishing this summer Winnie! I’ve read Dear Debbie, My Husband’s Wife and Our Perfect Storm and high recommend each of these. My favourite read in July was a debut novel that may not be on your radar called The Good Parts by Evann Normandin. I hope you’re having a great summer!
I’m so glad that you enjoyed them, Jodie! That makes me look forward to them that much more. And thanks for the recommendation!
I’ve read Yesteryear = interesting.
The Midnight Train= excellent
My Husband’s Wife = twisty.
There’s a few more on your list that have caught my eye too.
Ooo thanks for sharing your thoughts, Sarah! I’m excited to start “My Husband’s Wife” soon.