Five Great Books with Surfing at the heart

15th April 2022

Surfing always seems such a glamorous sport, enjoyed by people who always look fit and honed. Most of us don’t have the opportunity to indulge in the sport, so we have brought together some top titles for a bit of vicarious pleasure. Five great books with surfing at the heart.

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reed (Malibu)

Malibu: August, 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together, the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over-especially as the offspring of the legendary singer, Mick Riva.

The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself, who never wanted to be the center of attention, and who has also just been very publicly abandoned by her pro tennis player husband. Oh, and maybe Hud-because it is long past time to confess something to the brother from whom he’s been inseparable since birth.

Jay, on the other hand, is counting the minutes until nightfall, when the girl he can’t stop thinking about promised she’ll be there.

And Kit has a couple secrets of her own-including a guest she invited without consulting anyone.

By midnight the party will be completely out of control. By morning, the Riva mansion will have gone up in flames. But before that first spark in the early hours before dawn, the alcohol will flow, the music will play, and the loves and secrets that shaped this family’s generations will all come bubbling to the surface.

Malibu Rising is a story about one unforgettable night in the life of a family: the night they each have to choose what they will keep from the people who made them . . . and what they will leave behind.

Summer Loving by Nicola Yeager (The Algarve)

Saskia Lucas is on yet another luxury holiday in an exotic location. This time it’s The Algarve, in the south of Portugal.

She’s with Franklin, an older man who in past times might have been called her Sugar Daddy.

Two years into the relationship, Saskia has expensive clothes, the latest handbags, lots of shoes, perfect blonde hair…and new boobs.

She has everything she ever wanted.

Except for love.

Franklin doesn’t know it, but Saskia is still nursing a broken heart from a relationship she had with a young, penniless surfer when she was only nineteen.

When Franklin abandons Saskia for a few days to go on a golfing trip with an old buddy, she decides to book some surfing lessons to alleviate the boredom and get away from some unwanted company.

But she’s in for a shock.

One that will change her life forever.

The Bay by Allie Reynolds (New South Wales) – coming 23 June 2022

There’s a darkness inside all of us and The Bay has a way of bringing it out. Everyone here has their secrets but we don’t go looking for them. Because sometimes it’s better not to know.

waves are to die for at The Bay. It’s a paradise they would kill to keep. The Beach meets Point Break in the thriller of the summer by Allie Reynolds.

Kenna arrives in Sydney to surprise her best friend, shocked to hear she’s going to marry a guy she’s only just met. But Mikki and her fiancé Jack are about to head away on a trip, so Kenna finds herself tagging along for the ride.

Sorrow Bay is beautiful, wild and dangerous. A remote surfing spot with waves to die for, cut off from the rest of the world. Here Kenna meets the mysterious group of people who will do anything to keep their paradise a secret. Sky, Ryan, Clemente and Victor have come to ride the waves and disappear from life. How will they feel about Kenna turning up unannounced?

As Kenna gets drawn into their world, she sees the extremes they are prepared to go to for the next thrill. And everyone seems to be hiding something. What has her best friend got involved in and how can she get her away? But one thing is rapidly becoming clear about The Bay: nobody ever leaves.

Surf Mama by Wilma Johnson (Biarritz)

Wilma Johnson was living on the west coast of Ireland with her family, balancing the challenges of being an artist, wife and mother, until, in her forties, she was gripped by a deep desire to seize the day, and moved to Biarritz to become a surfer. The plan hits troubled waters as she arrives in France with her marriage on the rocks and three children who speak no French. Her first attempts at surfing are disastrous; resulting in bruises, broken bones and a damaged ego, but when she experiences the euphoric feeling of catching her first wave and sets up the Mamas Surf Club, it’s all worth it.

Breath by Tim Winton (Western Australia)

Falling under the spell of an enigmatic extreme-sports surfer, a thrill-seeking pair of western Australian adolescents is initiated into a world of high-stakes adventures and dangerous boundary testing involving such activities as swimming in storm swells on remote and shark-infested reefs.

BONUS BOOKS

Mend The Living by Mayls de Kerangel (Normandy). TR Jessica Moore

A twenty-four-hour whirlwind of death and life.

In the depths of a winter’s night, the heart of Simon Limbeau is resting, readying itself for the day to come. In a few hours’ time, just before six, his alarm will go off and he will venture into the freezing dawn, drive down to the beach, and go surfing with his friends. A trip he has made a hundred times and yet, today, the heart of Simon Limbeau will encounter a very different course.

But for now, the black-box of his body is free to leap, swell, melt and sink, just as it has throughout the years of Simon’s young life.

5.50 a.m.

This is his heart.

And here is its story.

Ride the Wave by Katherine Reilly

In surfing, everyone’s chasing the perfect ride…

Twelve years ago, Leo Silva was a world champion surfer-until reckless partying and tabloid scandals ended his career. After a mysteriously sudden and early retirement, Leo retreated to a sleepy seaside village in Portugal, where he’s remained out of the spotlight ever since. But when he receives a surprise invitation to compete in Australia’s legendary Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach contest, the news of his comeback sends shockwaves through the surf world.

Enter Iris Gray, an ambitious sports journalist from London. Her editor wants her to make Leo and his comeback the topic of glossy Studio magazine’s next big feature, but there’s one small catch – he happens to be the son of TV star and media proprietor Michelle Martin, the owner of Studio. With a lot of pressure riding on this project and Iris’s career hanging in the balance, there’s simply no room for mistakes.

When Iris flies to Portugal, she expects to uncover the truth behind Leo’s infamous past, but she is unprepared for his stubbornness-or the undeniable chemistry that simmers between them. But as her interviewee and the boss’s son, Leo is strictly off-limits…

With a fierce rival threatening to derail Leo’s comeback and the competition fast approaching, can they stay focused on their goals, or will love pull them under?

Do you know of any good titles that can be added to this list. Do share books in the comments below and we can certainly add them!

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