Ten new book releases to add to your summer reading list

Across varying genres, these new releases will keep you hooked throughout the season

A ghostly rom-com, a writer turned detective and a reimagining of the legend of Arthur are among this year's summer releases

Whether you are travelling abroad, planning a staycation or simply have some extra downtime, summer is the perfect time to pick up a new novel. What other way can you escape the heat than through a compelling narrative?

Romcoms, dramedies, thrillers, fantasy, and the very literary, the summer's newest releases have something for everyone, from a talking magpie learning about the human world, a secret pact between four best friends, and a Palestinian woman unravelling as she chases after her dreams.

Here are The National’s picks of the 10 new releases to dive into.

The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava

After her 37th job rejection, Ember Lee Cardinal has had enough.

She gets “creative” and answers the ethnicity question not entirely truthfully – a half-lie. No one wanted Native American Ember, but white Ember just landed her dream job in accounting.

And to make things even better, Danuwoa Colson, the IT guy and fellow Native, reciprocates her interest in him. They start to see each other secretly in spite of the no-dating policy at work. But when they're caught, a scheming colleague blackmails Ember and in an effort to save herself her lies only get bigger and deeper.

Ember must now decide whether to stay silent or finally tell the truth.

Release date: August 6

The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman

In this Arthurian novel, a young knight named Collum arrives in Camelot to compete for a spot on the legendary Round Table. But he’s too late.

King Arthur is dead leaving no heir, and only a handful of knights remain at the Round Table, each a little eccentric. They’re joined by Nimue, the apprentice of the famed wizard Merlin and together this group of misfits set out to rebuild Camelot.

However, King Arthur’s death has left the kingdom in disarray. Morgan le Fay, Arthur’s half-sister, is leading an army of fairies and monsters in a bid to return the old gods to Britain. Now, it’s up to Collum and his companions to bring balance to the world once again.

The Summer Pact by Emily Giffin

Four freshmen meet at university and become fast friends despite originating from very different worlds. Lainey is a drama-queen party-girl, Tyson a scholarly law student, Summer a determined athlete and Hannah a soft-spoken southerner who doesn’t like the spotlight.

After four years of a close bond, their lives are changed when an act of desperation leads to shocking consequences. Ten years later, Hannah’s world is turning upside down, and she reaches out to her closest friends. The group decides to take time out from their routines and embark on a journey of self-discovery, forgiveness, and acceptance.

The Coin by Yasmin Zaher

A Palestinian woman's life unravels as she tries to chase her dream in The Coin by Yasmin Zaher. Photo: Penguin Random House

The unnamed narrator of this novel is a Palestinian woman with a dream – to live and thrive in America when her family couldn’t.

She moves to New York and teaches at a school for underprivileged boys where she pushes the boundaries of education through her eccentric methods. But when she connects with a homeless swindler, she’s sucked into a moneymaking scheme, reselling luxury Birkin bags.

While conning her way bag after bag, the past comes back to haunt her and she begins to slowly unravel.

The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood

Delphie is dead. And now she’s in her nightgown, in the afterlife waiting room, where she meets the most attractive man she’s ever seen. As they start talking, someone interrupts them about a huge mistake and sends the man of Delphie’s dreams back to Earth.

She is then offered a deal where she can return to the world of the living and reconnect with the handsome stranger and live the rest of her life with her potential soulmate – as long as she does so within 10 days.

Delphie will have to change, block out the noise, and be vulnerable to reclaim her life. But will she be able to find her soulmate in a city of millions of people?

A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Switching between the present day and 1976, two women who never meet are connected through time by a family home and the challenges they must face.

In the present day, Keaton Smith heads to her mother’s abandoned childhood family home in Beaufort, North Carolina, for a new start. But as soon as she arrives, she’s confronted with her grandparents' secrets, meets her charming next-door neighbour, and finds herself riddled with more questions about her family’s past.

In 1976, Rebecca ‘Becks’ Saint James made a name for herself as the best hostess in North Carolina. However, despite appearances, she’s struggling behind the facade of her perfect family home.

While separated by time, both Keaton and Becks must face the obstacles of their present lives within the confines of this historic home that has protected the dreams of the women in their family for generations.

The Villain Edit by Laurie Devore

Romance and reality TV meet in Laurie Devore's The Villain Edit. Photo: Harper Collins

What does it mean to be a villain? That’s what cynical romance novelist Jacqueline Matthis is about to find out.

After a massive lull in her career, Jacqueline hatches a comeback plan – she’s going to be a contestant on the most obsessively watched reality dating show in the world.

As she establishes herself as the front-runner on the show and is winning the heart of the star, bachelor Marcus, Jacqueline finds out that her last fling, Henry Foster, is the show's producer. They soon reconnect. Things get even more complicated when Jacqueline discovers that she’s getting the villain edit on the reality show.

While she attempts to convince herself that there’s no such thing as bad publicity, Jacqueline is worried that while trying to save her career, she may be ruining her life instead.

What Fire Brings by Rachel Howzell Hall

Bailey Meadows is a writer who just moved into the remote Topanga Canyon home of famed thriller author, Jack Beckham.

She is his writer-in-residence and is supposed to help him reach the bestseller list – but she’s not there to write a thriller. Bailey is on a mission to find Sam Morris, a community leader dedicated to finding missing people, who has disappeared herself in the canyon surrounding Beckham’s home.

Bailey quickly learns just how dangerous these canyons are, as many women have visited but never returned. She now must race to unravel the truth before the fire season in the canyons begins, and before she is next on the missing list.

Caledonian Road by Andrew O'Hagan

Art historian Campbell Flynn’s life is falling apart. Very publicly. And as he struggles to protect his family and friends from his own entanglement, all his very separate worlds collide – the hip art scene with the world of academia, the stylish fashion crowd and the English aristocracy, journalism and the internet.

A story of social life and manners, contemporary London life is examined through the lives of the communities who live around Caledonian Road.

The Axeman’s Carnival by Catherine Chidgey

When Marnie, a farmer’s wife, saves Tama a helpless magpie chick, her life takes a strange turn. Tama can speak and Marnie begins confiding to him about her violent marriage. Part trickster, part surrogate child, Tama is witnessing the pressures of Marnie's as the annual Axeman's Carnival approaches, an event where her husband’s future as a farmer is dependent on winning a coveted trophy.

While Tama is exposed more to this new world, his father’s warning about humans comes to surface, and the animal and human worlds bleed into each other with all their darkness and hope.