Matching Your Summer Reads To Your Holidays (Or The Holidays You Want To Have)

You know sometimes, when you get an idea and just won’t quit until you made it happen? That’s me with this blog post. Since holidays are approaching here in my corner of the world and for me, I thought about matching some books with the type of vacation you’re looking forward to… or the one you kind of want to go on, as well.

It turns out I ended up with this very long list of over 20 YA books to read, because apparently I just can’t stop, aerm. Oops.

If you’re looking for the perfect YA book to read this summer, one that fits with the holiday you’ve planned or dream or planning, or if you’re just looking to get away, I have all of these recommendations for you. I hope you’ll find in here some books you love!

Match Your YA Book To Your Summer Holiday

YA Books For a Beach Holiday

If you’re spending some time at the beach, chances are you’re looking for a soft and sweet kind of read. That’s the road I went down with these three recommendations, three YA contemporary reads that will transport you.

Summer of Salt is more on the atmospheric side of it all, with a little bit of magic, a lot of strange things happening and lovely sisters relationship, all set on a small island where you can almost smell the salt of the sea. ☂️ Read my review

Between You, Me and the Honeybees transports you in California, with Josie spending her summer in California, afraid to tell her mother she’d rather take over the beekeeping family business than go to college. It’s heartwarming and wonderfully lovely, I adore it. ☂️ Read my review

Don’t Date Rosa Santos takes you to the other side of the United States, in Florida, where Rosa will discover more about her family, her roots, herself in a summer filled with swoony romance and adventures by the sea.

YA Books For Family Holidays

There’s nothing I enjoy more than a good YA Book with a focus on family. Whether it’s a big, close, loud, heartwarming family or one that’s just getting to know each other, my heart just soar at this, okay.

For a family vacation, I have a couple recommendations focusing on family discovery (and EMOTIONS) and another one with one of these loud, happy, complicated family vacations.

Told between past and present, with the mother and daughter’s POV, In Search of Us is telling the story of Angie’s search for her father, and her mother’s story the summer she fell in love with him. It’s a beautiful multi-generational story I adore. ☂️ Read my review

If you’re looking for a fun summer read, The Summer of Broken Rules is perfect. It has this big, heartwarming family, this Assassins game, this summery setting and soft romance and it’s absolutely wonderful. ☂️ Read my review

Far From the Tree is about Grace, looking for her own biological family after giving up her baby for adoption. This book, oh god it made me cry and sob and warmed my heart, as well. It’s about finding out who you are, where you belong and it’s so, so, sos wonderful okay. ☂️ Read my review

YA Books Set on a Lake

There’s something peaceful and lovely about spending a summer at the lake. I also realized that there’s something deeply emotional about this setting, because two of my three recommendations here are books that chugged my heart and made me sob, so. Aerm.

If you’re looking for a fun YA contemporary read filled with pranks, a childhood-friends-enemies-to-lovers-to-partners-in-crime romance (wow, that was long), definitely try Meet Me At Midnight. Such a fun, entertaining read! ☂️ Read my review

Second Chance Summer made me sob for so long I couldn’t see straight. If you’re looking for a deeply emotional read about family, one last summer at a lake house, getting second chances. It’s beautiful and heartbreaking.

The Last Thing You Said is about Lucy and Ben, finding each other again at the lake for the summer after a tragic accident. It’s a story about grief, hope, finding each other again and while it’s emotional, it’s also heartwarming.

YA Books Perfect for a City Getaway

Don’t you just love a little city getaway? For a weekend or a couple of days, exploring a new place, bustling with animation, life, history and delicious food. Yum. Whether you’re doing this kind of escape this summer, or just want to escape to cities around the world, here are some recommendations!

If you want to get lost in the streets of New York, Now That I’ve Found You is perfect for you. It’s about Evie, looking for her grandmother (and America’s most beloved actress) who disappeared. Filled with Hollywood scandal, thrilling New York adventures and heartwarming characters, this is a perfect summer read! ☂️ Read my review

Wicked Fox is an action-packed YA fantasy read set in modern-day Seoul, a perfect getaway! It’s about Gu Miyoung, who is secretly a gumiho, a nine-tailed fox who must devour the energy of men in order to survive. When she saves a human boy, she loses her gumiho soul and will have to get it back.. Filled with action, excitement and Korean mythology, this is a super entertaining read. ☂️ Read my review

Taking you into the streets of Prague next with Daughter of Smoke and Bone, a YA fantasy about a human raised by monsters, with a vivid setting and a whole lot of magical adventures.

YA Books for Holidays Between Friends

Spending some time with friends during the holidays is a lot of fun, but… just like love, friendship isn’t all unicorns and rainbows. Since apparently I’m very cruel, I wanted to share some books highlighting complicated friendships. Books that you can relate to, books that will captivate you, put friendships into perspective and more.

Most Likely is about 4 best friends, facing their last months together before leaving off to college. It’s about the strength of friendship, growing up and growing apart and it’s such a great story. This also is by the creator of the Bold Type! ☂️ Read my review

Darker, The Falling Girls is about two inseparable best friends and what happens when one of them slowly changes and joins another crowd. It’s a captivating mystery I couldn’t stop reading and loved loved loved how it explored female and toxic friendships. ☂️ Read my review

Goodbye, Perfect is about realizing that no one’s perfect, not even your best friends. In this story, Eden always knew she could count on her best friend, Bonnie, until she runs away with a guy Eden doesn’t even know. This has great, yet complex friendship and I really, really recommend it.

☂️ More recommendations: 10 YA Books About Friendships (The Strong Ones and The Breakups, Too)

YA Books To Make You Travel Around the World

Whether you’re planning to go away and to visit unknown, new, exciting places or just want to get away from the comfort of your own home, here are three books I really enjoyed that made me travel around the world!

Aubree didn’t plan to spend her summer around Europe leading a bus of senior citizens instead of her sister, yet this is what happens in Wanderlost. This is a super fun YA contemporary read that takes you all around Europe and certainly will make you want to travel, if you can’t this summer.

If you’re looking for something a bit different, The Lady Rogue will take you on a treasure hunt around Eastern Europe… in 1937, as Theo searches for her father and a magical ring. It’s highly entertaining, filled with adventures and romance! ☂️ Read my review

Friendships AND travel meet in Points of Departure, a multi-POV story about 5 girls traveling overseas after high school. I loved following each of them on their journey of self-discovery and their friendship was lovely to follow, as well!

YA Books With Small Town Vibes

There’s something about small towns that just gets me. I love these vibes where everyone knows each other, where you can easily walk around and meet some old-new-friends, where mysteries just feel more dense, as well.

I adore Jenn Bennett’s work and Chasing Lucky has these summery, small town vibes you’ll adore, whatever your holiday is, I think. It’s about Josie, getting back with her mother to her hometown to care for the bookshop there and running into her former best friend, now very much a bad boy. It’s such a great contemporary with complex family ties and slow burning romance! ☂️ Read my review

If you’d rather read a cosy mystery, I’d recommend trying The Agathas. Set in the small town of Castle Cove, this story is about a disappearance and two unlikely friends trying to figure it all out. It has Scooby Doo vibes, a mystery that kept me guessing and a lovely friendship, too. ☂️ Read my review

Small Town Hearts is one of my favorite books to recommend, like, ever. It’s about Babe, trying not to freak out as her two best friends will leave for college after the summer. This has ALL the food, complex friendships, an ADORABLE romance and ugh, I just adore this book.

YA Books For a Holiday At Camp

Confession time: I never spend holidays at camp, so I honestly have no idea what it’s like. Yet, if you do, did or just want to get away with this kind of read in small, summery quarters and make unlikely friends, these reads are for you!

In You Have a Match, Abby doesn’t expect to find out she has a secret sister. Her plan? Meet her at summer camp and figure out why her sister was up for adoption. This is a highly entertaining read! If you’re a fan of The Parent Trap kind of schemes and summer camp settings, you’ll love this one. ☂️ Read my review

I’m recommending a little something different with Are We All Lemmings & Snowflakes. This is a summer camp story set in a particular place, made especially to help people with mental illnesses. It’s rough and tough to read, at times, but it’s an important exploration of mental health as a whole.

Peaches isn’t set in summer camp, exactly, it’s at a peach orchard in Georgia, but it has all the summer feels and small quarters and unlikely friendship between characters forming, exactly like in a summer camp story. It’s heartwarming and perfect if you love a good Sisterhood of the traveling pants kind of story!

YA Books For A Holiday in the Mountains

I’m not sure why, but in my head, holidays in the mountain means all the atmospheric, mysterious vibes, for some reason. Soooo… I guess I have three mysterious reads for you all in this category!

A Lesson in Vengeance is about Felicity, back at Dalloway School in the Catskill Mountains after her girlfriend’s tragic death. It’s a mysterious, thrilling, messing with your head kind of YA thriller with a spooky, atmospheric setting, rumors of witchkraft, facing the darkness within yourself. It’s addictive, really. ☂️ Read my review

I loved how We Speak in Storms has a focus on this very unlikely friendship. In this story, Brenna, Joshua and Callie’s paths keep on meeting and they slowly connect with each other in the wake of a tornado. It’s a bit eerie, atmospheric, a quiet YA read focusing on character growth I really enjoyed. ☂️ Read my review

In Before I Disappear, Rose wants is a fresh start with her mother and her brother, Charlie… until the entire town they settled in disappears, Charlie along with it. This sci-fi story with alternative dimensions is filled with suspense and characters you’ll care for. Definitely a captivating read.

YA Books With Awesome Road Trips

Don’t you love a good road trip? I know I do, it’s definitely one of my favorite kind of trip to do… and to read about when I need to escape, just as well.

I Wanna Be Where You Are is a favorite. It’s about Chloe, taking her neighbor/ex best friend on an unlikely road trip to audition for the dance conservatory of her dreams. Filled with soft, summer vibes, road trip fun and heartwarming romance, it’s a FANTASTIC summer read.

Time of Our Lives is such a lovely story about Fitz and Juniper, crossing paths on their college tour. It’s about finding yourself, growing up and figuring out your next step in life while past and present are still hovering over your head. This is one of my favorite YA contemporary stories ever. ☂️ Read my review

Let’s Get Lost is a road trip story divided in 5 different parts, each told by a character in a different city. Their common denominator: Leila, a drifter determined to go see the Northern Lights. It’s a fun book filled with adventures and heart.

☂️ More Recommendations: 10 Awesome YA Books About Road Trips To Feed Your Wanderlust

YA Books With Solo Traveling

Solo traveling might seem a bit daunting, but sometimes… you can learn a lot about yourself along the way. What I loved the most about these books is how they’re all about self-discovery in new settings!

A Cuban Girl’s Guide To Tea and Tomorrow is one of my favorite books of all times. It’s about Lila, having to spend a summer in England after her plans fall apart. Small English town discovery, a lot of tea and pastries, new friendships and soft romance: this book has it all, really. ☂️ Read my review

After spending so many years on her own, being bullied and then let down in the worst of ways, Peyton books a one way ticket across the world, to the west coast of Canada in Destination Anywhere. This is a story about finding yourself away from everything you’ve known, this is a story that celebrates friendships and will make you dream of visiting Canada, as well. ☂️ Read my review

Ever Wong’s parents send her from Ohio to Taiwan to study Mandarin for the summer in Loveboat, Taipei. This is a super fun YA contemporary about finding yourself and what you really want, outside of your parents’ expectations, about first love and the messiness of feelings overall, as well.

YA Books for The Summer Before College

Last but certainly not least on this list, I wanted to mention some excellent YA books set during the summer before college. There are more, but I focused on these three that I really, really enjoyed!

You Say It First is a favorite book of mine. It’s about Meg, volunteering at a voter registration call center in her Philadelphia suburb when she connects swith a stranger from a small-town in Ohio. I loved the long-distance connection between the characters, the focus on family struggles and how, despite this being a romance, also focuses wonderfully on character growth. 200% recommending this.

Just Visiting is about two best friends, polar opposites, setting off on a series of college visits together and realizing they don’t know what they want… or each other, as much as they thought. This is a wonderful story about friendship and leaving the life you’ve always known behind.

A little different, Admission is an EXCELLENT contemporary about the college admissions bribery scandal. I was sucked into this family drama from page one as it explores privilege, going off to college, sisters relationship and more. ☂️ Read my review

For more YA book recommendations, check out these blog posts:

• 26 Summer-Themed YA Books To Read This Summer

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Do you have any summer plans? Do you like to match your reads to the places you’re going to… or dream of going to?

Did you read any of these books? If you have more recs for me, I’d LOVE to hear them in comments!!

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