If you’re familiar with Connecticut beaches — great for lounging, but usually too cold for a non-torturous swim — you’re probably also familiar with a beach read. To pair well with a sunny day, readers often pick a breezy romance or a light fiction. Why not try something new?
Last summer, I packed in a rush for a beach vacation. I grabbed the first book on my nightstand, which meant I was going to the Caribbean with only Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie. Not necessarily ideal, but books from an airport shop cost more than the flight, so I stuck with what I packed.
And actually, I really enjoyed the murder mystery as a beach read. It wasn’t overly long, so I finished it before the trip ended. Anything by Christie is a page-turner packed with suspense, so I stayed invested whenever I picked it up. And strangely enough, the contrast between a sunny day at the ocean and a gloomy British murder worked very well. So, if you’re sick of the meet-cutes, try one of my favorite short, eerie thrillers as your next beach read.
The Long Walk by Stephen King
The Long Walk was Stephen King’s first novel, but it holds up well against his extensive collection. It falls somewhere between The Hunger Games and Lord of the Flies, but the page count is under 400 (if you’re unfamiliar, that’s basically a short story for King.) You’ll be pushed directly into the action as the novel opens, following 100 young men as they quite literally walk to the death. In a dystopian America, these young men have chosen to register for The Walk, as the winner is promised any wish they can dream up. The rules are simple: walkers must keep a steady pace of three miles per hour, and slowing down three times means execution. You won’t be able to tear your eyes away as King explores themes of masculinity, war, and patriotism against the dreary background of Route 1.
Sharp Objects By Gillian Flynn
Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl is her most popular novel by a long shot, but Sharp Objects may be my favorite of her catalogue. Coming in at under 300 pages, it fits the bill for a devourable thriller. Sharp Objects follows a disturbed crime reporter returning to her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri, to cover the brutal murder of a teenage girl. Staying with her estranged mother and half-sister, she begins to unravel a gruesome history hidden beneath the midwestern charm of her picture-perfect childhood. If you love complex protagonists and twisty plots, you’ll love Sharp Objects.
Salt Slow By Julia Armfield
I would be remiss to write a list of quick reads without including an anthology. Julia Armfield’s Salt Slow is a collection of strangely beautiful surrealist body-horror. Armfield’s short stories pack such depth of imagery and character into 20-page doses, and are sure to please any fan of female-centered horror. Stories range from werewolf transformations, to flooded planets full of sea monsters, to post-breakup Frankenstein-ing: there is quite literally something for everyone. Armfield has a great handle on literary emotions, and each story echoes with chasms of fear and longing. Salt Slow might be the ultimate beach read, if you don’t mind being scared of what lurks under the ocean’s surface.
And Then There Were None By Agatha Christie
Christie might be the most approachable of the twentieth-century greats, partially because of the way her influence seems to seep into every mystery story published or filmed since. You’ll recognize her signatures immediately: the locked-room mystery, the suspiciously intertwined cast of characters, and plainly, poison. And Then There Were None is a great introduction to Christie, and it’s a stand-alone, so you don’t have to worry about keeping track of characters. Eight guests are invited to a mysterious party on an island off the English coast, and as they’re picked off one by one, they must rush to discover why they’re being targeted before it’s too late. You’ll never guess the twist that concludes this short thriller.
The Guest List By Lucy Foley
Lucy Foley’s The Guest List is a novel along the lines of “Agatha Christie with Facebook.” Foley has emerged as a recent giant of the mystery genre, and I enjoy how her novels feel modern and realistic without being dated by their cultural references. If you liked A24’s Bodies Bodies Bodies, I’m sure you’ll like this similar mess of wealth and grandeur, spoiled by the despicable people who possess it. A high-profile wedding on a beautiful Irish island turns into a bloodbath and an exposé — and no guest is safe from their troubled past as the story unfolds. You’ll love to hate these characters, and Foley will keep you guessing until the last second about the truth behind their shared history.
Summertime for readers
Every year, without fail, I find that summer is my most productive reading period. The academic or work year can exhaust our brains past capacity, which usually sends me directly down into a reading slump. But nothing will shake you out of a slump like a fast-paced thriller, and these books fit the bill perfectly. So, if you’re feeling too burnt-out to read a romance, and too cynical for a comedy, take something eerie and haunting to the shoreline this summer. I never regret it.