The best books to read summer 2025: Fiona McIntosh, Bourne Vendetta, The Wedding Party, Dirty Diana and more

Whether you’re off on holiday or relaxing at home, stretching out on a beach or reclining in the air-conditioning in your comfiest chair, a good book (or three) is a summer essential.

From cosy crime to menacing mystery, from blockbuster follow-ups to a love story with a difference, here are nine new and recent releases to add to your summer reading list.

Darkenbloom

Eva Menasse

Scribe

In Darkenbloom, the walls have ears, the flowers in the gardens have eyes; they turn their heads this way and that so nothing escapes them, and the grass has whiskers that register every step. People here sense things. So begins this sweeping historical novel in which a small town on the Austria-Hungary border is haunted by the ghosts of war — which soon come knocking at its door.

Rural Dreams

Margaret Hickey

Penguin

This collection of short stories from award-winning Victorian crime writer, author and playwright Margaret Hickey celebrates life in the bush in all its forms, from a group of women stalked through the bush in the tense The Precipice, to a footy-mad dad reflecting on his life on and off the field in the moving Coach.

The Wedding Party

Rebecca Heath

Bloomsbury

The perfect beach-day read, this latest thriller from Rebecca Heath (The Summer Party, The Dinner Party) centres around childhood sweethearts Jason and Adele, who are set to marry on the coast surrounded by family and old friends. However some in the bridal party are keeping secrets, and a tragedy from years earlier still looms large over the celebrations.

The Paradise Heights Craft Store Stitch-up

Kate Solly

Affirm Press

Cosy crime was one of the biggest literary trends of 2024 and fans of the subgenre will love this entry from Aussie author Kate Solly (Tuesday Evenings with the Copeton Craft Resistance). It centres around neurodivergent mother-of-three Fleck, who winds up investigating after a fellow school mum is accused of stealing money from the local women’s charity.

Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Vendetta

Brian Freeman

Bloomsbury

Jason Bourne is back in the sixth novel from bestselling author Brian Freeman, who took over the late Robert Ludlum’s iconic book series in 2020. Vendetta sees Bourne reunited with a former lover whose new husband’s life is under threat.

Dirty Diana

Jen Besser and Shana Feste

Harper Collins

Based on the hit erotic fiction podcast of the same name starring Demi Moore, Dirty Diana is set to be the first book in a three-part series. Its protagonist is Diana Wood, who, struggling in a loving but stale marriage, sets out on a journey of sensuality, art, intimacy and desire.

The Last Illusion of Paige White

Vanessa McCausland

Harper Collins

Exploring the dark side of social media and influencer culture, Vanessa McCausland’s (The Beautiful Words) haunting murder-mystery follows journalist Jane Masters as she returns to her hometown to investigate the death of her childhood friend, social media star Paige White, who was found dead not long after posting an eerie Instagram picture.

The Cicada House

Ella Ward

Harper Collins

This charming novel follows Londoner Caitlin who, after receiving a significant inheritance on her 40th birthday, is blindsided when her husband reveals he’s in love with another woman — cue a move to the other side of the world. The ensuing tale follows Caitlin’s new life in Australia, with shades of Eat Pray Love and Under The Tuscan Sun, a dash of Dolly Alderton, and some time-travel to boot.

Blood Pact

Fiona McIntosh

Penguin

It wouldn’t be a summer reading list without a blockbuster crime thriller, and there are few names in the genre as big as Fiona McIntosh. In the sixth book in her Jack Hawksworth series the bestselling Australian author puts her DS on the trail of a brutal homegrown terrorist.