20 Books of Summer: 2026

I really am going to try to do 20 books this summer, some of which will be "Big" Books for another challenge. 20 Books of Summer is hosted by Annabel @AnnaBookBel

The idea is to read 20 (or 15 or 10) books between June 1 and August 31. There are no real rules except to try to read from your TBR shelves. I have plenty there, and it would be great to get a bunch of them read.

Here are the "rules:"

• The #20BOS26 challenge runs from Monday June 1st to Monday August 31st
• The first rule of 20 Books is that there are no real rules, other than signing up for 10, 15, or 20 books and trying to read from your TBR. (If you think you’ll only manage 5, that’s fine too.)
• Pick your list in advance, or nominate a bookcase to read from, or pick just at whim from your TBR.
• If you do pick a list, you can change it at any time – swap books in/out.
• Don’t get panicked at not reaching your target; it’s not really a challenge as such.
• Just enjoy a summer of great reading and make a bit of space on your shelves!
• Don’t forget to add your posts to the monthly linkys. The final one will stay open for a week in September to catch the last reviews.

Here are the 16 books (plus my book group books that will emerge over the summer) from my TBR shelves that I will do my best to complete by August 31. 

Nonfiction

1. Murder and the Media by Alison Hope Weiner (I saw her speak at our local Literary Festival a couple weeks ago)
2. Nobody's Girl by Virginia Roberts Giuffre

Romance

1. Act Your Age Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert
2. The Celebrants by Steven Rowley (I met him at our local Literary Festival)
3. Annie Knows Everything by Rachel Wood (BOTM)
4. The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez
5. Love is an Algorithm by Laura Brooke Robson (BOTM)

Contemporary Literature

1. Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
2. Mask of the Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove (I heard her speak at our local Literary Festival)
3. Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

Thriller/Mystery

1. If Something Happens to Me by Alex Finlay
2. We Were Never Friends by Kaira Rouda (I heard her speak at the local Literary Festival)
3. Holly by Stephen King
4. All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker (I heard him speak at the local Literary Festival)
5. Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson
6. The Puzzle Box by Danielle Trussoni (I heard her speak at the local Literary Festival)

Still to be determined

1. Book Group book #1
2. Book Group book #2
3. Book Group book #3