With summer in full swing, I wanted to share my reading list for the holidays with you! If you’re stuck for ideas on what book to read, then take a look through my recommendations.

These books are sure to make you laugh out loud, cry (potentially), question motives and characters, provide you with a new career as chief detective and will make you want to pack a bag and go on an adventure!

I’ve also included in this list my new favourite non-fiction book, The Food Medic for Life, for nutrition advice and recipes from Dr Hazel Wallace.

9 must read books for 2018

This is going to hurt: secret diaries of a junior doctor, by Adam Kay
This is a seriously funny, shocking and occasionally upsetting account of what it takes to be a junior doctor in the NHS. I really enjoyed Adam’s writing style and the fact that he doesn’t miss a detail. At all. Ever. It’s crazy to think how much pressure the NHS is under to save lives on a daily basis, wow! This is a book everyone should read.

Everything I know about love, by Dolly Alderton
The UK has been going crazy over this book recently and I now completely understand why. I COULD NOT put it down! I finished it within a couple of days, reading at every free moment that I could find. It’s a tale of bad dates, friendship, a journey of self discovery and is relatable… especially taking it back to the days when MSN was everything. Perfect for reading by the pool, at the beach, in the garden (or pretty much anywhere)!

The lying game, by Ruth Ware
Four friends. One promise. But someone isn’t telling the truth…

The lying game is a gripping tale of secrets, lies and relationships. It follows four friends who are bound together by the biggest secret of their lives, but as events start to unravel so does their story and the secrets that lie within. There are plenty of unexpected plot twists in this story that are sure to keep you turning the pages.

My not so perfect life, by Sophie Kinsella
This book was actually published last year but I just had to include it in this list to make sure you hadn’t missed out. I am a big fan of Sophie Kinsella’s stories, they’re the perfect holiday read – relatable in every single way. Friendships, meet relationships meet personal struggles – everything you might touch on in life, Sophie uses as a basis for her books. Plus she’s a #1 New York Times Best Selling Author!

Surprise me, by Sophie Kinsella
In keeping with the Sophie Kinsella theme, Surprise Me is Sophie’s latest novel which I’ve yet to read but I love the sound of! When a couple realise they could be together for another sixty-eight years, they go into panic mode and attempt to keep things interesting with surprises. Sounds like a good tactic, no? Well not for this couple as the past starts to reveal itself and causes them to question whether they really knew each other properly at all.

The perfect couple, by Elin Hilderbrand
When one lavish wedding ends in disaster before it can even begin – with the maid of honour discovered dead in Nantucket Harbor just hours before the ceremony – everyone in the wedding party is suddenly a suspect.

Described as ‘the queen of the summer novel’, Elin Hilderbrand has released this novel just in time for the holidays and I can’t wait to get stuck in! If you’re looking for a summer crime/thriller, then this feels like a good choice…

The food medic for life, by Dr Hazel Wallace 
I’ve recently come across The Food Medic online and I really like the angle this takes. Hazel Wallace is a practicing doctor specialising in nutrition and is also a qualified personal trainer so you can be sure that you’re getting expert advice and tips in this book. As well as lots of easy to follow recipes, Hazel provides information on nutrition, an introduction to mindfulness and meditation and things such as her staple cupboard ingredients. Perhaps this isn’t one to take to the pool but definitely worth a read and keeping in the kitchen!

It’s on the meter – 1 taxi, 3 mates and 43000 miles of adventures around the world, by Paul Archer & Johnson Ellison
This book is a bit left field in comparison to some of the others above but I love to mix it up to keep things interesting. I’ve had my eye on this book since I met Paul Archer, one of the author’s, last year but haven’t got around to reading it. Now is the time. This book details the adventure that he and his friends embarked on a few years ago – a trip around the world in an old London taxi. It sounds like the best travel story out there with fun, friendship, obstacles and potential near misses!

Something in the water, by Catherine Steadman
A shocking discovery on a honeymoon in paradise changes the lives of a picture-perfect couple in this taut psychological thriller debut.

I follow Reese Witherspoon’s book club and this was one of her recommendations. I wanted to include this on the list as it’s clearly a hit over in the US and I’ve had my eye on it for a while. You will need to pre-order if you’re based in the UK, hardcover copy available from July 26 2018!

This list is by no means exhaustive, but you’ve got to start somewhere! Feel free to share your suggestions in the comments below to add to my list – I’d love to know what you’re reading!