This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
I was born and bred in the middle of England. The nearest beach was always a very long drive away, and not something you did as a day trip. So when I met my husband-to-be I was delighted that his parents lived by the seaside. It was always the first thing I would want to go and see and even though it wasn't a lovely soft sand type of beach, I would want to walk down there as soon as pssible to gaze out at the horizon, clamber rocks and skim stones. The best bit though is the salty, fresh smell. It's no wonder I love books with a beach setting.
1. The Beach House by Jane Green – I'd never heard of Nantucket before reading this novel but before I'd finished it I was already planning a visit there. Eccentric Nan has a large, old American beach house in Sconset, which is on the eastern end of the island, and starts to rent it out to various people. It is a lovely story but for me the descriptions of the house, the ocean, even the grocery store, along with the crabcake, lobster and the chowder are the clincher.
2. The Beach by Alex Garland – I only have to think of this book and I'm singing the All Saints song that accompnaied the film. It was the book to read and the film to watch when I was a mere student. The story is about Richard who is travelling. He arrives in Thailand and is given a map to paradise. He finds it, the secluded beach, the community and it's breathtaking. But what lengths will he go to to save it?
3. The Beach Hut by Veronica Henry – I would love a beach hut and I'm very jealous of Lucy Clarke's writing room. But with this one recently commanding a price of £180,000 I don't think this is a dream that will turn into reality anytime soon. Instead I'll make do with this novel by Veronica Henry. Jane Milton has a beach hut, it has been in her family for fifty years. But now she's being forced to sell it. This novel focuses on the families who visit their huts along this stretch of sand in Everdene, one hot summer.
4. Beach Babylon by Anonymous and Imogen Edwards-Jones – Continuing the behind the scenes books of the Babylon series, this novel explores the comings, goings and whims of the rich and famous. What with my curiosity as to what the famous get up to, and with a beach setting, it is a perfect book for reading on the beach.
5. Beachcombing by Maggie Dana – set in Connecticut where Jillian has raised two sons, set up a business and rennovated a beach cottage, Jill ends up risking it all for an old flame. In the Novelicious review (from 2009) Kirsty writes, 'subtle writing of sounds, smells, people had me visualising myself right there on Jill's beach in Connecticut – bliss!' Now that sounds like a book for me. Especially if the closest thing to a beach for me at the moment is my daughter's sandpit.