Hi, my bookish friend!
As I may have mentioned before (many, many times), I love using the Libby app, especially for loaning audiobooks. But for all the cost-saving, library supporting benefits, there unfortunately exist a few snafus in the book borrowing bliss.
Some, like the two-week lending time, which I turn into a personal challenge, are workable. But waiting on hold for what seems like years for the latest, hottest book everyone is reading usually means I’m out of luck unless I buy it (which I’ve been known to do!).
But, wait, all is not lost! Instead of turning into a skeleton with the obligatory cobwebs, you can select an available “read-alike” book to pass your time. Read-alikes tend to share the same themes, genre, writing styles … basically the general mood of a book! And often these lesser-known books wind up being hidden gems!
And read-alikes aren’t just for readers waiting on library holds. They also help with book hangovers. So, if you’re recovering from a five-star read and wishing for something with similar vibes to fill the gap, your solution just may be a read-alike.
Today, I’m pairing read-alikes with a few of the most popular books of this summer!
These book recs are perfect for completing Summer Reading mini-challenges #8 and #9. After a month of fun literary travel posts, it’s time to come back home, unpack, and veg out with a book on your couch with the AC cranked or at your local cafe with an iced coffee!
Happy Reading!
Your friend,
Audry
P.S. I’m thanking new or current Annual or Founding Members by giving away a $50 Bookshop.org gift card to celebrate the Bookish AF Summer of Reading!
My book suggestions for read-alikes for these latest hottest titles are a great place to start. And hopefully you find your next read, but you don’t have to just take my word for it:
Librarians and bookshop staff are always excellent sources for pointing you toward a book you’ll love.
And, if you prefer online, visit the read-alikes pages on Goodreads or BookBrowse for recs related to your book preferences.
📚 All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley, a memoir about a guard at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art mourning the loss of his brother.
📚 My Name Is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout, another great literary fiction choice, uncovers years of family history through conversations between a mother and daughter.
📚 John of John by Douglas Stuart, personally recommended by Ann Patchett, this atmospheric novel is set in a close-knit Scottish island where everyone carries hidden burdens.
📚 Kindred by Octavia Butler, another “time-slip” novel that throws a modern Black woman back to the antebellum South!
📚The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin is the classic that perfected the unsettling idea of picture-perfect domesticity hiding something much darker.
📚 Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates, Caro Claire Burke’s own recommendation, peels back the illusion of the perfect American marriage.
📚 Love & Saffron by Kim Fay tells the story of two women who build a lasting friendship through letters, recipes, and shared life experiences.
📚 Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout follows a sharp-witted, complicated woman whose tough exterior hides surprising depths. Fans of Sybil will feel right at home!
📚 Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson begins with a mother’s final message to her children and unfolds into a moving story.
📚 Bonus! I’ll also add my historical romance novel, Until Next Sunday based on a true story and over 100 love letters! Learn more about it here!
📚 This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger follows four orphaned children on an unforgettable journey down the Mississippi River during the Great Depression.
📚 Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell (surely you’ve heard of it!) is another breathtaking novel from the author, imagining the life and loss that shaped Shakespeare’s family. It’s also a movie!
📚 A Council of Dolls by Mona Susan Power is a multigenerational novel following three Yanktonai Dakota women as they preserve their family, culture, and identity across generations.
📚 The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin follows three lonely strangers who find healing, friendship, and a fresh start while caring for a struggling bee farm. (This one reminds me of The Secret Life of Bees. Wondering if the stories are similar? 🤔)
📚 A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman is for fans of Tova. If you enjoyed her quiet strength and dry humor, you’ll get a kick out of Ove! I did when I read it several years ago!
📚 The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune is a cozy fantasy filled with lovable characters, gentle humor, and a reminder that family is often the one we choose.
📚 The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes keeps the female friendship theme going as it follows a group of courageous women delivering books through Depression-era Kentucky on horseback.
📚 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (one of the best books I’ve ever read, despite the heaviness of the story) is also packed with memorable characters, and it’s got so much to discuss in it that your book club meeting won’t be a yawn-fest!
📚 The Help by Kathryn Stockett is the original hit novel by the author. So, consider revisiting it. Or if your book club somehow missed it, here’s your chance! Then, follow it up with the movie.
📚 The It Girl by Ruth Ware offers a similar set-up of dual timelines and page-turner suspense when the murder of a college student years after the case was supposedly solved forces old friends to question everything they thought they knew.
📚 Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica is also a story of a disappearance and a character’s unsettling return. But in this story, two women and a young girl vanish from a quiet neighborhood until one of them returns eleven years later! (Oops! Pictured above is It’s Not Her, also by Mary Kubica, and also a great choice for a read-alike!)
📚The Couple at No 9 by Claire Douglas is another suspenseful British thriller about a young couple renovating their new cottage and the grisly discovery of two bodies buried in the garden.
View the books I recommend in my shop on Bookshop.org! (Local independent bookstores benefit from your purchases!)
This summer, add whimsy to your reading habit! Follow along with the Bookish AF Summer of Reading 2026 here!
You don’t have to book a cabin or spend a fortune to enjoy a reading retreat. Pick one day (or even just one afternoon!) and make reading the only thing on your schedule.
Try this simple reading retreat:
Morning: Pick up coffee and breakfast from your favorite *café. (See mini-challenge #9!) Read at the café or get cozy back home!
After lunch: Take a short walk and enjoy an audiobook.
Late afternoon: Treat yourself to a sweet treat. Finish your book or journal about what you read.
Bonus Challenge: Put your phone on “Do Not Disturb” for one hour and see how many pages you can read. You might be surprised how immersive reading feels without constant notifications.
Sometimes all it takes to escape is a change of scenery. Grab your current read, order your favorite drink, and spend 30–60 minutes reading at a local café. You may discover your new favorite reading spot, and you’ll be supporting a local business while you’re at it.
Bookish AF Challenge: Snap a photo of your book and drink. Share it in the Bookish AF Chat!
The Odyssey sails into theaters on July 17th, with Christopher Nolan directing an all-star cast including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, and Tom Holland. It’s one of this year’s biggest, most-discussed literary adaptations! See the trailer here!
Little House on the Prairie gets a new life on Netflix. Read more about the true history behind the story on my bookish friend and librarian Kelly Mayfield’s post here!
Heartstopper Forever also premieres July 17th, bringing Alice Oseman’s beloved Nick and Charlie story to its heartfelt conclusion. Watch the trailer!
Sense and Sensibility, starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles as the Dashwood sisters, will have the screenplay written by bestselling novelist Diana Reid.
Verity is moving forward with Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson, and Josh Hartnett
And, finally, Netflix has dropped the first teaser for its limited series adaptation of East of Eden starring Florence Pugh.
Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are.
Mason Cooley
Shop for the books I recommend on Bookish AF at my Bookshop on Bookshop.org!
This content may contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission (just enough to grab a coffee) at no additional cost to you!
Thank you for reading! 🤓If you enjoyed this article, please show your support:
Like, comment, or restack! THANK YOU!
See The Bookish Shop to learn how I can help you connect with my 1,199+ readers!
Your paid support makes it possible for me to spend more time on all this Bookish AF fun! It also allows me to focus on writing my next novel.
As an additional thank you for your generosity of a paid subscription, I’ve recently added:
A new printable PDF of Book Club Discussion Questions for Any Book.
Your name in the acknowledgments of my next book (in progress) when it publishes (with your permission)!
Founding Members: The gift of my previously published Kindle e-books sent to your email.
Annual and Founding Members: Chance to win a $50 Bookshop.org gift card at the end of the Summer of Reading event!
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.