Thriller set on the Osa Peninsula, COSTA RICA
Ten Great Books set on Cape Cod
5th July 2024
Ten great books set on Cape Cod. Cape Cod, a curved arm jutting into the Atlantic, beckons with its quintessential New England charm. Salty breezes whip across beaches dotted with colourful umbrellas. Quaint villages boast shingled houses and lobster shacks. Lighthouses stand sentinel, guiding boats through the mist. Visitors cycle along dunes, kayak calm inlets, or simply savour fresh seafood on a seaside patio. It offers a timeless escape, perfect for unwinding and embracing the coastal spirit. Here are ten of our favourite books set on Cape Cod.
The Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo
Jack and Joy Griffin are back on Cape Cod – where they spent their hope-filled honeymoon – for a wedding. Cracks are begining to show in Jack’s peaceful family life and thirty-four year marriage. He’s driving round with his father’s ashes in an urn in the boot of his car, haunted by memories of bittersweet family holidays spent at the Cape, while his acerbic mother is very much alive and always on his mobile. He’s spent a lifetime trying to be happier than his parents, but has he succeeded?
A year later, at a second wedding, Jack has a second urn in the car, and his life is starting to unravel.
Cape Cod Noir edited by David L Ulin
An anthology of short stories under the editorship of David L Ulin.
Los Angeles Times book critic David L. Ulin has been holidaying in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, every summer since he was a boy. He knows the terrain inside out – enough to identify the squalid underbelly of this allegedly idyllic location. His editing prowess is a perfect match for this fine volume. Features brand-new stories by David L Ulin, Ben Greenman, Lizzie Skurnick, Dana Cameron, Jedidiah Berry, Paul Tremblay, Vincent McCaffery, Seth Greenland, Kaylie Jones, Adan Mansbach, Elyssa East, Fred Leebron, William Hastings and others.
The Narrow Land by Christine Dwyer Hickey
1950: late summer season on Cape Cod. Michael, a ten-year-old boy, is spending the summer with Richie and his glamorous but troubled mother. Left to their own devices, the boys meet a couple living nearby – the artists Jo and Edward Hopper – and an unlikely friendship is forged.
She, volatile, passionate and often irrational, suffers bouts of obsessive sexual jealousy. He, withdrawn and unwell, depressed by his inability to work, becomes besotted by Richie’s frail and beautiful Aunt Katherine who has not long to live – an infatuation he shares with young Michael.
A novel of loneliness and regret, the legacy of World War II and the ever-changing concept of the American Dream.
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller
Before anyone else is awake, on a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the glorious freshwater pond below ‘The Paper Palace’ — the gently decaying summer camp in the back woods of Cape Cod where her family has spent every summer for generations. As she passes the house, Elle glances through the screen porch at the uncleared table from the dinner the previous evening; empty wine glasses, candle wax on the tablecloth, echoes of laughter of family and friends. Then she dives beneath the surface of the freezing water to the shocking memory of the sudden passionate encounter she had the night before, up against the wall behind the house, as her husband and mother chatted to the guests inside.
So begins a story that unfolds over twenty-four hours and across fifty years, as decades of family legacies, love, lies, secrets, and one unspeakable incident in her childhood lead Elle to the precipice of a life-changing decision. Over the next twenty-four hours, Elle will have to decide between the world she has made with her much-loved husband, Peter, and the life she imagined would be hers with her childhood love, Jonas, if a tragic event hadn’t forever changed the course of their lives.
Tender yet devastating, The Paper Palace is a masterful novel that brilliantly illuminates the tensions between desire and safety; the legacy of tragedy, and the crimes and misdemeanours of families.
Sandwich by Catherine Newman
One week in Cape Cod. The perfect family holiday. What could possibly go wrong…?
For the past two decades, Rocky has looked forward to her family’s yearly escape to Cape Cod. Their rustic beach-town rental has been the site of sweet memories, its quirky furniture and mismatched pots and pans greeted like old friends.
Now, sandwiched between her children who are adult enough to be fun but still young enough to need her, and her parents who are alive and healthy, Rocky wants to preserve this golden moment forever. This one precious week when everything is in balance; everything is in flux.
But every family has its secrets and hers is no exception.
With her body in open revolt and surprises invading her peaceful haven, the perfectly balanced seesaw of Rocky’s life is tipping towards change…
Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner
The No. 1 New York Times bestselling author returns with an unforgettable novel about friendship set during a disastrous wedding on picturesque Cape Cod.
Six years after the fight that ended their friendship, Daphne Berg is shocked when Drue Cavanaugh walks back into her life, looking as lovely and successful as ever, with a massive favour to ask. Daphne hasn’t spoken one word to Drue in all this time – she doesn’t even hate-follow her ex-best friend on social media – so when Drue asks if she will be her maid of honour at the society wedding of the summer, Daphne is rightfully speechless.
Drue was always the one who had everything – except the ability to hold onto friends. Meanwhile, Daphne’s no longer the same self-effacing sidekick she was back in high school. She’s built a life that she loves, including a growing career as a plus-size Instagram influencer. Letting glamorous, seductive Drue back into her life is risky, but it comes with an invitation to spend a weekend in a waterfront Cape Cod mansion. When Drue begs and pleads and dangles the prospect of cute single guys, Daphne finds herself powerless as ever to resist her friend’s siren song.
On the Broken Shore by James MacManus
Have you ever wanted to just leave everything and disappear?
Can the instinct for survival overcome almost anything…?
Leo Kemp’s life should be idyllic. He has a job that he loves at the Institute of Marine Biology and he lives in Cape Cod with his wife and daughter. But beneath the tranquil surface of their lives, heartbreak lingers; a few years ago their son was drowned in an accident at sea and the family cannot come to terms with his death.
When Leo loses his job thanks to his outspoken views, he decides to go on one last field trip with his students. But the outing turns to tragedy when the sea rises up and Leo is thrown overboard. Despite everyone’s best efforts, Leo is missing, presumed dead; lost at sea just like his son.
The aftermath of the tragedy hits the community hard. But, amidst the grief, rumours that a man has been sighted living on an uninhabited island a few miles off shore begin to circulate. Could there be hope yet…?
Summer Longing by Jamie Brenner
Ruth Cooperman arrives in beautiful beachside Provincetown for her retirement, renting the perfect waterfront cottage while she searches for her forever home.
After years of hard work and making peace with life’s disappointments, Ruth is looking forward to a carefree summer of solitude. But when she finds a baby girl abandoned on her doorstep, Ruth turns to her new neighbours for help and is drawn into the drama of the close-knit community.
The appearance of the mystery baby has an emotional ripple effect through the women in town, including Amelia Cabral, the matriarch who lost her own child decades earlier; Elise Douglas, owner of the tea shop who gave up her dream of becoming a mother; and teenage local Jaci Barros who feels trapped by her parents’ expectations.
Ruth, caring for a baby for the first time in thirty years, finally reaches out to her own estranged daughter, Olivia, summoning her to Provincetown in hopes of a reconciliation.
As summer unfolds and friends and family care for the infant, alliances are made, relationships are tested, and secrets are uncovered. But the unconditional love for a child in need just might bring Ruth and the women of Provincetown exactly what they have been longing for themselves.
With terrific, heartfelt plotting, SUMMER LONGING is Jamie Brenner’s triumphant return to Provincetown; another unforgettable story about motherhood, friendship, and finding your way home.
The Bookshop by the Bay by Pamela M Kelley
TWO LIFELONG FRIENDS.
Jess loves her work as a high-profile lawyer in Charleston. But when her marriage implodes, she retreats to her childhood home on Cape Cod with her thirty-year-old daughter, Caitlin, hoping to regroup with her longtime best friend, Alison.
ONE BOOKSHOP BY THE BAY.
Alison’s career has taken a hit after twenty years as an editor for the magazine Cape Cod Living. But when she learns her beloved bookstore on the Cape is looking for new ownership, a new dream starts to form.
AND THE SUMMER THAT COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.
As the two friends reopen the bookstore, they also open themselves up to the magic of second chances.
Crazy About You by Katie O’Sullivan
Climate scientist Chase Anderson races from one project to the next, unwilling to slow down in his quest to save the world’s oceans. He has no time for family or relationships until he crashes into an impetuous blonde with a quirky sense of humor. One sizzling kiss makes him seriously reevaluate his priorities. And his sanity.
Emma Maguire left her small Cape Cod hometown years ago, seeking the fast pace and anonymity of New York City. She’s not sure what she’s searching for, but when a family crisis brings her home to Provincetown she’s caught in a crazy tangle of half-truths and mistaken identity… and falls for the handsome stranger who broke her cell phone.
Will untangling the web of lies drive them crazy, or lead to something even crazier – like love?
Enjoy our selection of books set on Cape Cod. If we’ve missed any of your favourites, please add them in the Comments below…
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