Matching your book to your holiday destination is a great way to get under the skin of a place - you'll undoubtedly learn more about its traditions, culture and history by reading about it.
Whatever your destination, we have a book set there - or simply do some armchair travel from the comfort of your own home!
South of France
The Cliffhanger by Emily Freud
A husband-and-wife crime-writing team escape to a house in the South of France to finish their latest thriller, only to find they’re writing their own deadly ending. Set in an isolated château on a cliff’s edge, this clever thriller is superbly tense, with twist after twist.
Bali
They Had It Coming by Nikki Smith
When their best friends join Nate and Layla at their Insta-perfect new villa in Bali, it should be the holiday of a lifetime for the two couples. But nothing is as it seems in this sun-soaked thriller, where revenge, rather than sunshine and cocktails, is on the agenda.
Cape Cod, USA
Sandwich by Catherine Newman
A holiday in the beach house on Cape Cod that her family has stayed in for years leaves fiftysomething Rocky grappling with a long-held secret. Set against a backdrop of golden beaches, boardwalks and clapboard houses, this thoughtful read explores the compromises of a long marriage and the bittersweetness of children leaving home.
Canada
Moon Road by Sarah Leipciger
This tender tale tells the story of divorced couple Kathleen and Yannick, who end up on a road trip across Canada together to Vancouver Island after a new discovery in the case of their missing daughter, who vanished 20 years before. Kathleen is a wonderful character – spiky and obstinate, but also vulnerable and big-hearted – and the portrait Leipciger paints of the Canadian landscape they travel through is stunning.
Mallorca
The Orange House by Isabelle Broom
A couple on the brink of divorce return to the house in Mallorca where they met 20 years before in this moving, bittersweet novel. It’s a bit of a departure for Broom, and although I love her escapist destination books, this sensitive exploration of marriage and mental health is her best yet.
Kenya
Homecoming by Luan Goldie
Set between London and Kenya, this moving novel follows Kiama, who has grown up without a mother and is desperate to know more. When he persuades his mum’s best friend to go with him to Kenya, secrets emerge from the past that neither of them are prepared for.
Sicily
Ever After by Kate Eberlen
This deliciously romantic story follows Gus and Tess as they navigate a new relationship amid the mess of their lives. Read it for the will-they-won’t-they love story and the beautiful Sicilian vistas.
Australia
The Wakes by Dianne Yarwood
Looking for a distraction after her marriage fails, Clare agrees to help her neighbour Louisa with her catering business and it takes her life inanew direction. There are funerals, friendships and people falling in love in this fab debut that carries a reminder to be grateful for what you have.
Spain
Hot Milk by Deborah Levy
A mother and daughter’s toxic relationship is pushed to the brink during a trip to a specialist clinic in an Andalucian coastal town. Sofia has accompanied her mother, Rose, there to find answers to Rose’s mysterious condition and finds herself in limbo as they wait for treatment. Despite the seaside location, the landscape is far from idyllic – the sea is infested with jellyfish, factories line the shore – but it’s all so evocatively rendered you get a real sense of place.
Spain
All My Mothers by Joanna Glen
From a young age, Eva has felt like she doesn’t belong in her family. Why do her parents refuse to talk about her early years? Eva moves to Cordoba in Spain, where she tries to find answers to all the questions that have long tormented her. The ancient city of Cordoba is so vividly painted, you’ll feel you’re there.
Canada
This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune
Set on Prince Edward Island (there are some lovely references in the book to Anne Of Green Gables, which also takes place there), this is a sizzling story of forbidden love. When Lucy goes to visit her friend Bridget’s family home, she makes a promise not to fall in love with Bridget’s brother Felix – but can she keep her promise?
France
Love In Provence by Jo Thomas
Escape to the lavender-filled fields of Provence, where Del is fighting to keep her dream of running a bistro alive – and her relationship with her French boyfriend going, despite thefact he’s hundreds of miles away touring with his band. This has everything you want from an escapist read: romance, food and beautiful descriptions of the French countryside.
Italy
Murder Under The Tuscan Sun by Rachel Rhys
An isolated castle in 1920s Italy is the setting for this engrossing historical mystery, which has shades of Daphne du Maurier about it. Recently widowed Connie starts a new life in Tuscany caring for an invalid – but strange goings-on soon make her begin to question her own sanity.
India
Minor Disturbances At Grand Life Apartments by Hema Sukumar
This charming debut is an absolute joy. When developers threaten to demolish their apartment block in the Indian coastal town of Chennai, neighbours Kamala, Reva and British expat Jason band together to fight for their beloved home.
Hong Kong
Ghost Girl, Banana by Wiz Wharton
This moving read jumps back and forth between 1960s and 90s and London and Hong Kong, as a woman tries to navigate a new life and her daughter receives a surprising inheritance. Their two stories run in parallel as they try to figure out their places in the world.
Australia
Thirst For Salt by Madeleine Lucas
This beautifully written story turns around a life-changing summer in the narrator’s 20s when she met an older man while on holiday with her mother. Years later she comes across him again by chance and sees through fresh eyes what their relationship really was. This atmospheric, nuanced love story is one to linger over and the descriptions of the small coastal town in Australia where the book is set will make you want to visit.
Greece
Outline by Rachel Cusk
A novelist heads to Greece’s capital in the height of summer to teach a writing course. Through the conversations she has with the locals she meets and her students, she gets to know the city, and herself, better. Read it for the sharp observations and the descriptions of Athens’ street life, restaurants, and secret swimming spots on the Ionian coast.
Malaya
The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan
In this compelling drama, a Malayan mother becomes an unlikely spy for the invading Japanese forces during the Second World War – with catastrophic consequences for her community and family. With a strong sense of time and place, unforgettable characters and moving writing, this has everything you want from historical fiction.
Sri Lanka
Brotherless Night by V V Ganeshananthan
Set during the civil war in Sri Lanka that began in the early 1980s, this is the story of 16-year-old Sashi, who dreams of becoming a doctor just like her eldest brother. But as the war progresses, she finds herself plunged into a life-endangering situation that could affect the safety of her family. A real eye-opener of a book.
Scotland
The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry
In a creepy castle on an island in a Scottish loch, Emmy begins her new job of cataloguing a taxidermy collection. There she finds the diaries of a woman named Hester, who was in possession of a rare diamond that has since gone missing. An atmospheric and well paced read – add in a literary treasure hunt and this is irresistible.
Cape Cod
Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur
I loved this compelling family drama set on the beautiful Cape Cod. Siblings Abby and Ken lost their mother when they were young and, although close to their father, Adam, her absence has dictated much of their lives. Now, as they prepare to celebrate Adam’s 70th birthday, growing tensions and resentments in the family are coming to a head.
France
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
Be transported to the boulevards and bars of 1920s Jazz Age Paris by this gripping story that fictionalises the life of novelist Ernest Hemingway and his first wife Hadley Richardson. Following a whirlwind romance, the couple become the golden couple of a lively and volatile group of friends in the French capital. But they face the ultimate crisis of their marriage - a deception that will hugely impact on everything they’ve fought so hard for…
Cyprus
The Island Of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
The latest novel from the Booker Prize-shortlisted author tells the story of two star-crossed lovers – Kostas, who is Greek and Christian and Defne, who is Turkish and Muslim – who meet as teenagers. 30 years later, Kostas returns to look for his first love. The Cyprus setting is stunningly described in this rich story about identity, love and loss.
PENGUIN BOOKS LTD The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
USA
Happy Place by Emily Henry
For the last decade Harriet and her friends have escaped to a cottage in Maine every summer. Now the cottage is up for sale and the group are back together again for one last holiday - except Harriet and her boyfriend Wyn broke up six months ago but haven't told anyone yet... Can they fake it for one last week rather than spoil their friends' break? Set in the magical location of Knott's Harbour (fictional but based on a real town in Maine), which is so vividly described you can smell the salt-scented air, this is a gorgeous, escapist beach read.
Norway
The Hike by Lucy Clarke
Old friends Joni, Maggie, Liz and Helena have an annual girls trip which they take in turns to plan. This year it's Norway, where they'll lace up their hiking boots for a few days in the wilderness: forests, mountains and definitely no wi-fi. It's the perfect place to get away from it all - until a body is found at the bottom of a ravine. Then the stunning landscape becomes a menacing place as the women race to get back to civilisation and away from a potential murderer.
The Caribbean
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
Estranged siblings Benny and Byron are brought back together after their mother’s death to a reading of her will in California, which includes an audio recording in which their mother talks about a Caribbean island in the 60s and a girl called Covey…Thanks to the depictions of the lush landscape and secret coves, the island become a character in its own right.
Australia
The Dry by Jane Harper
You can feel the heat beating down on the parched landscape in this vivid, compelling thriller about a family murder in a small Australian town during the worst drought in a century.
Mallorca
The Vacationers by Emma Straub
The entire Post family descends on the island of Mallorca for a fortnight of rest and relaxation to celebrate Franny and Jim's 35th wedding anniversary. Instead, tensions that have been simmering back at home come to the boil. This funny, touching and sharply observed read is a gem of a smart beach read.
New Zealand
The Forrests by Emily Perkins
This sweeping literary saga follows Dorothy Forrest from her childhood in New York to Auckland in New Zealand where her family move, through motherhood and old age. A satisfyingly chunky doorstep of a book full of big skies and beautiful landscapes.
Singapore
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
Think Dynasty but set among the super-rich Chinese community of Singapore. When Singaporean native, Nick, takes his American Chinese girlfriend home, she struggles to fit in with his wealthy friends and family. This funny, frothy read is wildly entertaining and full of details of life in Singapore, from the cuisine to the cultural values.
Sri Lanka
The Sapphire Widow by Dinah Jefferies
Ceylon, 1935. After her husband’s sudden death, Louisa is left to solve the mystery he left behind. The sights, smells and atmosphere of Sri Lanka are beautifully depicted in this moving drama.
Italy
The Lying Life Of Adults by Elena Ferrante
Like Ferrante's bestselling My Brilliant Friend series, this gritty novel is set in Naples where teenage Giovanna is rebelling from her wealthy parents by forming a friendship with her mysterious aunt Vittoria who still lives in the poorer part of the city where her parents also grew up. This compelling coming-of-age tale perfectly captures the passions and volatility of adolescence.
