Best books of summer 2018

Summer 2018 book preview : 7 female-centric tomes to read with your girl gang

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Published on May 30, 2018 05:00PM EDT

01 of 08

The summer 2018 girl gang

summer-books-2 — Random House; HarperCollins; Penguin; Riverhead Books; Penguin

2018 is the year of the woman, and this summer's reading list falls right in step — whether it's #StrongFemaleLeads, tales that pass the literary Bechdel test, or powerhouse woman writers.

02 of 08

How to Be Famous by Caitlin Moran

famous_courtesy Harper Collins — HarperCollins

The sequel to the best-selling 2014 tome How to Be a Girl checks back in with music journalist Johanna Morrigan. She's now 18 and living in London — with all the fancy clubs and late nights that come along with the mid-'90s Brit-pop music scene. A one-night stand with a bad boy comedian turns into a sex tape with a side of public shaming, and it goes on to explore the darker side of bedroom politics. Out July 3.

03 of 08

The High Season by Judy Blundell

Ruthie Beamish is our hero here — she's a museum director in the North Fork (that's Long Island) village of our dreams. Every summer she and her family vacate their inherited beach house to make way for high-paying summer renters (it's how they afford it in the first place), and this year her temporary tenant brings along a whole lot of drama. Ruthie is forced to navigate a straying husband, a struggling teenage daughter, and a museum board full of socialites drunk on power. Out now.

04 of 08

Florida by Lauren Groff

9781594634512_Florida_JKF[2] — Riverhead Books

Florida is Groff's first title since her National Book Award-nominated Fates and Furies, and this time she's out with a collection of short stories. They're all inspired by motherhood and, of course, the Sunshine State. The book goes in-depth to explore the idea of loneliness. Out June 5.

05 of 08

Providence by Caroline Kepnes

This paranormal thriller (by a former EW staffer!) follows two friends who are separated after one is kidnapped, and then reappears years later with no memory of what happened. As the two friends struggle with the repercussions, Providence delves into what the author describes as "the supernatural power of love and the monsters we become when luck isn't on our side." Out June 19.

06 of 08

When Life Gives You Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger

when LifeGivesYouLemons — Simon & Schuster

Emily, the enterprising assistant from The Devil Wears Prada, is now an image consultant to the stars, and finds herself living in Greenwich, Conn. — despite the fact that she doesn't do the suburbs. She finds a neighbor desperately in need of some crisis PR (a former supermodel who is left by her senator husband after she is arrested for a DUI) and thus begins the next stage in Emily's life. Out June 5.

07 of 08

From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein

Corner-of-Oval-cover_courtesy penguin — Penguin

The author was working at a Lululemon store in Washington, D.C., when she applied to a mysterious Craigslist job posting. The next thing she knew she was hired as the newest White House stenographer for the Obama administration. She regales readers with hilarious insight into the Oval Office, the hot romance she begins with a high-level staffer, and the friendships that see her through all the drama. Out July 10.

08 of 08

The Lido by Libby Page

the lido_courtesy simon schuster — Simon & Schuster

This debut novel follows the most unlikely of female friendships: Between a 20-something and an 80-something. One is a longtime resident of her London neighborhood who has just lost a job at her beloved local library. The other just moved into the neighborhood and is feeling desperately lonely. They wind up bonding over an attempt to save a historical local pool — that would be the lido — and yes, it's all just as charming as it sounds. Out July 10.