9 Books for When It's Way Too Hot

It is officially that time of the year in Arizona where it is over 100 degrees Fahrenheit everyday and the humidity is sitting around 30% while cicadas are constantly humming. For my midwestern boyfriend this is totally fine. For me I am hiding from the sun like a vampire and watching my hair get puffier by the day.

In this time of misery I turn to the great past time of escapism: reading. Some people like reading about the season they are actually in...I definitely am not that way. When summer rolls around each year I want something totally different. Usually that involves a whole lot of snow, winter, and Eastern European inspired tales with the occasional space odyssey thrown in for variety.

Check out 9 of my favorites to turn to when it's just too dang hot out. I have each book linked to its Amazon page. Definitely not sponsored and it is just for your reference. Happy reading!

1) Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

Some people really love Naomi Novik's whimsical and meandering prose that often leave you completely enchanted or beyond confused. I was initially in the latter camp but this icy wonderland eventually had be ensnared.

This fairytale of ice and storms will definitely cool you down as you follow three very different girls
fighting an evil they never expected in this Rumpelstiltskin retelling. Our main character is Miryem the daughter of a moneylender that is quite honestly terrible at his job. When she takes over the collecting so that her family doesn't lose everything, she catches the eye of the Staryk. These fae creatures of ice and wonder are greedy and demand a price, the control of her gift to create gold. When the fate of the kingdoms is drawn into the mix, the stakes are raised and three girls come together to fight off the lurking evil no one suspected. This is a fun fantasy retelling of an old fairytale that throws in some unique twists.

Now this one is a bit difficult to get into initially because it is told from multiple perspectives, but it is not explicitly stated which one you are reading from or that there are different people. Each chapter starts and you have to use context clues to figure out who/where you are. It takes less than a hundred pages to figure it out, but it is still a commitment. So if you are looking for a quick and easy book to get into maybe skip to #4 on this list. Also, if you did not like Novik's Uprooted I would skip this one.

2) The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons

This definitely is not the poem by Pushkin. Simons creates a sweeping historical romance set in World War II era Soviet Union, current day Russia. While the broader setting is WWII, this novel heavily leans into its romance roots with shenanigans and lust in abundance. Mix that dramatism with a heavy historical fiction novel and you get The Bronze Horseman about a Russian girl struggling to survive during World War II in Leningrad and fighting feelings for her sister's more than willing boyfriend. You can check out the review I wrote for this one when I first read it in 2014 here.

Drama, Russian history, and some freezing winters make this one a summer winner. I remember instantly being engrossed in the sheer insanity of this book as it spans Tatiana's growth from a girl searching for her future to a young woman struggling to make it a reality as war tears apart her home. Is it grim? At times. Did I cry? Absolutely. Was I completely addicted? For sure.

Check this one out if you're looking for a longer escape. Bonus, it is the start to a trilogy.

3) The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

I picked this one up on a whim a couple of years ago, the cover drawing me in. Years of taking Russian as my second language and taking every Russian culture class I could find while in college made me extra giddy to find this gem full of the folklore I'd only every experienced in a classroom. You can check out my review from 2017 where I try not to geek out about it too hard here.


Similar to Spinning Silver, this is a whimsical historical fantasy involving the wintery setting of a Russian village. While I would say that the settings are similar between the two, I would say the writing styles are different. Novik is more of a meandering prose while Arden's reminds me more of a lush, immersive style. I devoured this book so quickly and fervently that there were times I forgot I was even reading.

Naomi Novik from #1 on this list actually blurbed it saying "A beautiful deep-winter story, full of magic and monsters and the sharp edges of growing up." Now this book is absolutely gorgeous. As an added bonus, if you are at all interested in rural Russian culture and folklore this book does an amazing job of including it. I squealed with excitement at seeing all of the various spirits included and even learned a few new ones that weren't covered in my classes. Check this one out to enter a world of ice demons, a rebellious little girl that grows into a headstrong woman, and a domovoi of course. You won't regret it.

4) An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena

Shari Lapena is not my all-time favorite author, but I know when I pick up one of her books I am going to be able to read it quickly and be immediately drawn into whatever dramas are wreaking
havoc in her characters' lives. Her pacing and way of writing in the present tense draws you in right away and keeps you leaping ahead until suddenly you have finished half of the book. No joke, I finish her books in a single sitting usually.

This particular novel takes place at a secluded bed and breakfast where our cast of characters all meet, each experiencing some personal problem or issue that is plaguing their pleasant vacation. Before long everyone is snowed in with no way of getting out or of help getting to them. Then the guests begin to die one by one.

There is the fun of a locked in mystery with everyone wandering around as if they are in a game of Clue attempting to figure out whodunnit before they're done in that reminds me of Payment in Blood by Elizabeth George or The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton. No one can leave and everyone is in danger. It's a fun getaway with a fairly satisfying ending. A great choice if you're looking for a short commitment but a quick getaway.

5) The Shining by Stephen King

Stephen King is crazy talented, no question about it. Whether it is one of his classics or a newer release I love his writing style and know I am going to be entertained. I originally read this one in

junior high and still like to revisit the wintery setting every time the temperatures soar.

Most people know the premise of The Shining: Jack takes his wife and young son to the Overlook Hotel to be its wintertime caregiver and before long things begin to take a sinister twist. It's creepy, sometimes downright scary, and a great time. Why I really like reading this one in summer is because of the snowed in, trapped quality that we also see in An Unwanted Guest.

If you're looking to try out King's works this is a great start.  After having ready quite a few of his books this is still one of my top two from him (the second being Bag of Bones). Even if you have seen the classic movie, there is plenty in the book that did not make it to the screen. Some of my personal favorite scenes are included in that. It will drag you into its insanity and not let go until the last page. Addictive, chilly, and scary.

6) The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

I love mysteries, especially those that take place in London. While I was actually in London over Christmas several years ago the weather was pretty pleasant, chilly but not gloomy. Despite that I still always think of fog and rainy days when I think of London. Which makes the setting perfection for
the current heat and humidity.

Strike is a miserable character. He is working as a private investigator with barely any money, suffers from constant pain caused by his prosthetic leg (he served in Afghanistan and lost it after stepping on a mine), and recently had a messy breakup with his on again off again girlfriend. Things aren't looking up for him to say the least. That is until a lawyer hires him to look into the death of his supermodel sister and Strike hires Robin as a temp secretary. Luckily for him she has a knack for sleuthing and the two set out to figure out whether Lula Landry really killed herself.

This series as a whole is really addictive. Strike is the grumpy rumpled detective and is well balanced by the ambitious and generally speaking softer Robin. Together they get into truly unpredictable mysteries that always surprise me by the end.

7) The entire Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling

Something about the framework of each book taking place over a school year and the always present snow by Christmas holiday puts me in a state of mind far from the humid desert I actually am in.

Most people know about this series but just in case here is a quick recap: Harry Potter is a ten year
old orphan living with his mother's sister's family. They are not particularly pleasant to him. Some could argue downright awful. On his eleventh birthday he finds out that he is actually a wizard and has been accepted to the prestigious magical school called Hogwarts. There he gets into all manner of mischief and slowly unravels the mystery of what is being hidden in the castle. Each book follows a year at the school.

Whether you're a kid looking at starting this series for the first time, wanting to reread it, or an adult who's never read it I recommend this series for when you're looking for an escape. The structure is comforting enough to be truly escapism while the characters and plot are engaging enough to keep you interested.

8) It by Stephen King

Another King classic, It is massive. The Kindle version clocks in at over 1,000 pages. So be prepared for a commitment if you decide to pick this one up. While a lot of this book does actually take place in summer, the horror aspect and some of the settings are more chilling than expected. You can check out my full review in my Spooky Seasons Recommendations post here. It is the first book mentioned.


Derry, Maine is a small town like most small towns. Except it's plagued by an evil that lurks throughout its history and in its sewers. In 1957, seven misfit preteens come together to solve the mysterious disappearances of their peers and destroy the evil that has been stalking them all summer. In 1984 the evil reappears and the friends must come back together to try and end things once and for all.

I read this partially on my old Sony ereader, a floppy paperback, and in Audible. This is a great audiobook but be prepared to not listen to it in public, or at least wear headphones. There are a lot of racial and homophobic slurs in the sections of the book that take place between 1957 and 1958 and they are often spoken loudly. The racial slurs seem less in the sections between 1984 and 1985 but the homophobic ones still exist. Just be prepared for that.

9) Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey

Space operas are apparently my thing. I discovered this after picking up Leviathan Wakes as an audiobook last year and then immediately diving into Caliban's War and Abaddon's Gate. Now why are these on my summer list? Because space definitely is not warm and the tone of this book is darker and grittier. It is a space opera that mixes a detective investigation with international (intergalactic?) security, zombies, a love story, and fast paced action. It's got everything basically.

Humans have colonized the moon, Mars, and beyond in this novel. Jim Holden is the captain of an ice miner delivering ice to the outer reaches with his crew when they stumble upon a ship filled with secrets that governments are willing to kill for. In another part of the universe, Detective Miller is looking for a missing girl when his investigation leads him to Holden's crew. They must work together to save the world.

At over 500 pages this is another chunky book but it definitely does not feel long. The alternating chapters between Holden and Miller have the pace leaping ahead while the authors' humor keeps the story from being dragged down. Definitely check this out for an engrossing book with a good mystery and a hint of space horror that doesn't wander into cheesy territory. It is also a great audiobook.