21 Authors Like Elin Hilderbrand To Make It Feel Like Summer 

This sweet, small town romance from bestselling author Kristan Higgins should delight any fan of Elin Hilderbrand.

After growing up with four boisterous brothers, journalist Chastity O'Neill is tired of constantly being seen as "one of the guys." This reputation is even more difficult to escape when she returns to her small hometown. After vowing to be more feminine, Chastity meets a very handsome local doctor while working on a story about local heroes. He seems like the perfect way to start over...but her firefighter ex-boyfriend has other ideas.

If Abbie had it her way, she’d avoid her hometown of Nantucket like the plague. But when one of her sisters is devastated by the ending of her engagement, Abbie forces herself to return to help her family. Abbie finds most of the members of her family unchanged—save for the sudden arrival of a tenant that seems to be wooing her widowed father. 

Though time has passed, Abbie and her sisters are still stinging from the sudden death of their mother. Seeing their father inching toward a relationship makes them all reevaluate their lives, their relationships, and their grief. 

A beach setting is a very Hilderbrand move, so welcome to the town of Barefoot William. Aidan Cates is a long-time resident who owns the construction company building the baseball team’s new training site. He has a girlfriend and a life that is pretty much laid out for him. Until he gets his fortune read.

Jillie has a brand-new gig in a new town: to rally the troops around the local baseball team as the community liaison. She’s got some baggage but often tries to fly by the seat of her pants. This spontaneity leads her to meeting Aidan under false pretenses when she offers to read his fortune.

While they start off on the wrong foot, Jillie and Aidan find that they might just be on the right path if Jillie can learn to trust that Aidan really is the man his dog, Sadie, thinks he is!

Related: Everything You Need for a Day Spent Reading at the Beach

Facing the loss of her job and the abrupt end of her marriage, Jill Strathern takes a temporary position, filling in for a lawyer that’s recently passed. Unfortunately, it necessitates that Jill return to the small town that she grew up in to rebuild her life. But it turns out that Jill isn’t the only person that’s returned to the little town of Los Lobos. Mac Kendreck has taken refuge from his tiring career as a cop for the Los Angeles Police Department. 

With the two reunited, Jill’s childhood crush on Mac rears its ugly head. The chemistry between the two is practically combustible—but their happy reunion is soured when their problems follow them home. 

Tempting Fate revolves around Gabby and Elliott, a seemingly perfect couple whose lives take an unexpected turn. Gabby, a devoted wife and mother, finds herself at a crossroads when she meets Matt, a charismatic younger man. 

The allure of a different life tempts her to embark on a passionate affair, challenging the stability of her marriage. As Gabby grapples with the intoxicating pull of temptation, she begins to turn her back on the only life that she’s ever known. 

When your father is a famous wine maker, it can’t be a surprise that you get named after a grape variety. Meet Chardonnay St. Pierre. In addition to eventually inheriting the Domaine St Pierre wine kingdom, she and her sisters have already inherited their father’s damaged reputation and its effects on their brand.

Char is interested in making her own name for herself through a charity she started for migrant workers. She just has to win The Challenge, a charity competition awarding a top prize of one million dollars. Sounds like a foolproof plan.

Except that movie star Ryan McBride also has a charity worthy of a million dollars. He is more than what the tabloids say about him. He is back home in Napa and wants to help the foundation that got him through the loss of his firefighter father. But will he be able to beat Char?

Related: The Best Wine Books for Every Kind of Drinker

Everyone struggles with work-life balance to some degree. But for Lizzie, her particular situation isn’t a struggle—it’s a choice. As a talented interior designer, her career goals are set high—high enough that she’s willing to ignore her blatant interest in Hudson, her new client. Lizzie is determined to ignore her growing attraction to the incredibly attractive CEO in favor of securing the promotion that she was previously passed over for. 

With a little globe trotting and a whole lot of romance, Danks’s Which Way to Happiness? hones in on the mental toll of high-risk, high-reward work cultures, and what happens when you ask yourself: Can I have it all? 

Never heard of the Poinciana? Google this word to see picture of the tree that inspires the name of this road. It is unforgettable, just like the setting of this story. 

Mallory is hesitantly returning to a part of Queensland that is a source of trauma, but she won’t turn her back on the uncle that nurtured her as she grew up. Childhood wasn’t the only difficult time for her as her heart was broken on the eve of her wedding day sending her to find a life away from her home until now.

This is a little mix of romance, mystery and supernatural. Mallory befriends the ill, young daughter of her former fiancée. She continues to battle with an old nemesis named Blaine despite her attraction to him. And she can’t help but feel that something is not quite right in the rainforest of Australia. Will she stick around to find out what or be driven away again?

Did you have to go home for the holidays? Was it to a small town? Did you dread going to the bar and seeing everyone that you went to high school with? Well, if you did, then you know exactly how Kinsley Bailey feels. She doesn’t travel to Staunton, Virginia for the holidays, per se, but she is forced to go back when she learns that her father has passed away. 

Staunton holds too much for Kinsley: pain, regret, fears of what was, and of what could have been. But when she returns, she finds that her disdain for the town isn’t shared by everyone. Bastien Harris, an army veteran, is looking to return to their peaceful home town. But he doesn’t expect Kinsley—or his dormant feelings for her—to interrupt his quiet existence. 

Blue Hollow Falls is tucked into the Blue Ridge Mountains and is the setting for a series that is all about the beloved found family theme. You’ll come for the romance and stay for the town. Sunny never expected to find herself hours away from her life in D.C., and yet here she is because of her previously estranged and now deceased father.

Sunny’s dad was absent a lot but in the end leaves her property that includes the town’s old mill. While she could sell it and head back home, she feels called to transform it into something new that could help to heal her and bring the mill back to life. She’s not the only one interested in revitalizing the mill. A very cute veteran with a toolbelt wants to see the mill bring artists together in the town and make it a place for others to come from around the country. And he might like to get Sunny to stick around, too.

We’ve all faked an interest in something to talk to our crush, right?...Right? Well, if you have, you and Johnny Smith are in the same boat. With a chronic case of always the best man, never the groom, Johnny’s never found his one true love. 

When he meets Helen Troy, there are sparks, and Johnny is determined not to let her be the one that got away. He makes an effort to be the perfect man for her—even if it means leaving parts of himself behind. 

Second chances are a big theme in Hilderbrand’s books. This book choice is about a second chance for love discovered after a second chance for a property in Geneva Lake, Wisconsin. Alex has worked on houses before but her newest project will take the most creativity and elbow grease she’s ever used on a project.

And while she is peeling away the layers of old paint and discovering the house’s secrets, she reflects on her life. It’s hard not to think about her past while she is getting to know the very sweet elderly neighbor, Elsie, who has an intriguing love story of her own.

The second in the Sycamore Cove Games duology follows Sandra Kelly in her quest to achieve her career. As a stringent news anchor for a local station, Sandra has her sights set on the honorific to Townsperson of the year. There are two hurdles she has to overcome to achieve her goal: Cooper D. Hall, and their long-standing prank war. 

While there had been a pranking reprieve, Cooper and Sandra’s mutual interest in winning the Townsperson of the year award brings their pranking ways back to the forefront. Not only are the pranks back, but they are bigger and crazier than before. Sandra and Cooper both have their eyes set on their prizes—and, for better or for worse, on each other. 

Have you heard of the slow burn? Some of us like more of a build up to a romance then the love at first sight trope. Finz offers that to readers in this selection with complicated characters. Emily and Clay have experienced the ups and downs of life. Most recently, the downs. 

Emily isn’t looking for a partner. She is still struggling to start again in the small town of Nugget, California after her daughter goes missing and her own marriage crumbles. She just wants to write her cookbook and keep a low profile.

Clay has had family drama of his own and is mesmerized by the calm and quiet way of his new renter, Emily. This isn’t instant attraction, but rather a solid friendship that has the potential to blossom into something more.

Another highly called on plot is the romance that occurs between the couple comprised of two people from different walks of life. Take Liam, the boy who modestly lives on Nantucket all year round, and Cadie, who only “summers” there. Of course, these teens fall madly in love in a short amount of time. And her parents are not amused. She gets whisked back to New York never to make contact with Liam again.

Present day finds Liam still pining for Cadie though he has kept himself busy over the years with a predictable life. Until the weekend that Cadie returns to Nantucket. It’s a life changing reunion with heartache and regret, hope and potential. In other words, it’s another unforgettable summer in Nantucket.

You Me Everything revolves around Jess, a single mother, and her ten-year-old son, William, as they embark on a summer trip to the picturesque French countryside.

Jess is determined to give William the chance to build a relationship with his estranged father, Adam. As they navigate the challenges of co-parenting, old wounds resurface, and the characters confront the emotional baggage of their shared history. 

What’s a summer read without the classic plot of the reunion of old love? In this iteration, Lucius left the town of Miramar Bay and the broken heart of Jessica for reasons she never understood. And you guessed it, the prodigal son is coming home.

Jessica has been following in her father’s footsteps and working as a dentist. It wasn’t her dream but she has made the best of her situation and a life for herself without Lucius. But Lucius needs her and his hometown now more than ever. Lucius has only a limited amount of time to make up for his past to Jessica. Will she forgive him before it’s too late?

Related: 9 Uplifting Romance Books Like Virgin River

This family saga explores the intricate dynamics of three generations of the Kelleher women, spanning from the 1940s to the present day. Set against the idyllic backdrop of the Maine coast, this perspective-shifting unfolds as the Kellehers gather at their beach house in Maine for their annual summer vacation. 

Alice, the matriarch, struggles with memories of her past while navigating the challenges of her relationship with her daughters, Kathleen, Ann Marie, and Maggie. 

Let’s hear it for a couple who has stuck it out together. It hasn’t been easy, but Bailey and Brad have made it work. Bailey loves Brad and is always willing to follow him, even if their lives haven't been the most stable because of it. But recently, Bailey has finally found some routine and joy as a real estate agent and is loving living in NYC.

Enter the monkey wrench. Brad gets into a car accident and is left comatose. After he's revived, Brad is convinced that he needs to buy a lighthouse and run a B&B. Bailey is so happy to not have lost him that she gives up her dreams once again.

Will they survive Brad’s new lease on life and all the crazy guests and incidents that occur in their new venture? Is this what Bailey really wants, or is it finally time to go off on her own? 

Giffin’s novel weaves together the lives of two women, Tessa Russo and Valerie Anderson, when their worlds collide horrifically. Tessa, a pediatric surgeon, is devoted to her career and family, while Valerie is a single mother and attorney, focused on raising her son Charlie. When a tragic accident brings their lives together, the consequences become the catalyst for a riveting exploration of moral dilemmas and the boundaries of loyalty.

Don’t get fooled by the title—this is a very beachy read. The idea of what happens on vacation stays on vacation is played with in this novel set in the Caribbean.

Cal was finally up for some down time with a vacay in the tropics and a much-needed break from work. Just as his adventures were getting started, he gets sidelined by an accident. Since he can’t play, he might as well work.

He flies down Justine, an employee at his company who has had her own share of trouble, to assist him with getting his work done. They make a great team and this translates from the professional to the personal. But what will they be to one another when their vacation is over?

Related: 8 Vacation Romance Books That Are the Perfect Escape