Pages As Planes: Lake House Edition

We’ve all heard of the Beach Read, haven’t we? It’s the summery read that’s perfect to take on vacation or sit by the water and read for hours and hours and finish in a single sitting. It’s a book that transports you and emerces you in another story. In that way, we all have a different definition of what a “Beach Read” because we all find different genres to give us that level of escape.

But it seems that the Beach Read is a standard summer staple in the literary world. Places like North Carolina and New England (Nantucket, Cape Cod, etc) and Florida take center stage. I am a New England girl at heart so I love the Atlantic ocean and salt water, but I have a confession.

In my adulthood, I have become a lake girl. If you know me or have been following me for a while, this does not come as a shock in the slightest. But there’s just such a different vibe to a lake summer. I love both but I can never find enough “lake reads” when I’m craving a lake day in the middle of winter. Here are some I’ve found if you’re like me!

Meet Me at Midnight by Jessica Pennington

Probably my favorite “lake read” I’ve read! I recommend it all the time and want to reread it this summer. It’s about two recently graduated high school seniors the summer before they’re off to college. They spend the summer at their families’ lake houses and prank each other but this summer it goes too far. They’re forced to share a home and find themselves drawn to each other, even though they’ve always hated each other.

Beach Read by Emily Henry

The title is deceptive. Beach Read takes place in a lake town in Michigan! If you’re one of the few who hasn’t read this book yet, it’s about two writers who were rivals in college. They challenge each other to write the other’s genre that summer as an exercise and grow to enjoy spending time together.

The Romantic Agenda by Claire Kann

I read this recently! Here’s my review. It’s about two sets of best friends on a weekend lake trip. Two of the friends are brought as buffers as their is a budding couple. It’s fun, introspective, has great Ace representation and is on the closed door side of Romance novels.

The Lake Effect by Erin McCahan

This is one on my TBR! It’s a YA romance that sounds so good.

“It’s the summer after senior year, and Briggs Henry is out the door. He's leaving behind his ex-girlfriend and his parents’ money troubles for Lake Michigan and its miles of sandy beaches, working a summer job as a personal assistant, and living in a gorgeous Victorian on the shore. It's the kind of house Briggs plans to buy his parents one day when he’s a multi-millionaire. But then he gets there. And his eighty-four-year-old boss tells him to put on a suit for her funeral.

So begins a summer of social gaffes, stomach cramps, fraught beach volleyball games, moonlit epiphanies, and a drawer full of funeral programs. Add to this Abigail, the mystifying girl next door on whom Briggs's charms just won’t work, and “the lake effect” is taking on a whole new meaning.

Smart, funny, and honest, The Lake Effect is about realizing that playing along is playing it safe, and that you can only become who you truly are if you’re willing to take the risk.” —Amazon

Love Next Door by Helena Hunting

This has been on my TBR since last summer and I am going to read it this summer! It’s also on KU.

“When Dillion Stitch left her hometown, she had no intention of going back. But when her brother gets into trouble, Dillion reluctantly agrees to return home to take her place at the family business.

Being back in Pearl Lake after all these years feels familiar but also brings a few surprises. She’s quick to notice that someone new has shown up at the cottage next door. Dillion gets more than an eyeful when she goes to check out the newcomer and meets Donovan “Van” Firestone—her beloved neighbor’s grandson—in all his unclothed glory.

Having gotten off to a rocky start, it’s not long before they begin bickering with each other all over town. All that back-and-forth inevitably sparks an undeniable attraction. But Dillion’s family has issues, Van’s family resents him, and neither Dillion nor Van feels truly at ease in the small town. For these Pearl Lake exiles, home isn’t just where the heart is—it’s where things get complicated.” —Amazon

Love on the Lake by Helena Hunting

This is the sequel to Love on the Lake!

The Lake of Dead Languages by Carol Goodman

I bought this book in high school when I started studying Latin! It’s more for the mystery and thriller folks out there, especially if you like dark academia vibes. Set at an elite prep school with decade long murder mystery!

The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen

If you know me, you know I love a good storm story and this book delivers on that! It’s about a young girl who goes back to the town where her mother was from. Her mother passed away and her father moved the family to handle his grief. When she returns, she discovers cousins and friends in a whole new community she’s been looking for her whole life.

Lake Bluff 1825 to 2020 by Kathleen O’Hara

For our history buffs! A nonfiction book looking at how a lakeside resort in Michigan rose and fell in popularity.

Sputnik Summer by Paul Castellani

Some historical fiction set in the Adirondacks!

“A teenager's testimony about a homicide rips apart an Adirondack resort town.

It's only a month into the summer of 1958, and 17-year-old Kevin Boyle is already in trouble with an older girl. And a priest who's zeroing in on Communists and degenerate books in the library is way too interested in his sex life. When he thinks nothing else can go wrong, he sees his best friend's brother shove a tourist to his death at a lakeside hangout. Or did he? By the time the coroner's inquest comes around, half the town thinks he's caused the drop in tourism. The other half think he's mixed up with the suspect librarian, and his friends are sure he's sold out to the lawyer who's dangling a college scholarship and loan to his financially-strapped parents for the right testimony. Whatever Kevin says at the inquest will change his life.” —Amazon

Are you team beach or team lake? I love both but there’s just not enough “lake reads” out there!