It’s summer for me right now – and as a kid I had favorite books set in the summer that I loved to re-read every year. You can see some of them on my list of Top 10 Re-Read Fantasy Books – but meanwhile, whether you like to read books to match the current season or take you out of it, here are some more recent books set during the summer or in hot climates.

• Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston. Ebook and audiobook on Libby. “Thirteen-year-old Amari, a poor Black girl from the projects, gets an invitation from her missing brother to join the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs [with training for kids over summer vacations] and join in the fight against an evil magician.”
• Catalyst by Sarah Beth Durst. Ebook and audiobook on Libby. “Zoe must figure out how to keep a giant kitten safe in this magical adventure about change, expectation, and accepting all for who they truly are- regardless of shape or size.” This is now one of my daughter’s favorite books.
• Curse of the Night Witch by Alex Aster “After changing the fate he has known since birth, twelve-year-old Tor Luna, accompanied by his friends Engle and Melda, must visit the notorious Night Witch to break the curse he now faces.”
• The Girl and the Witch’s Garden by Erin Bowman. Ebook on Libby. “The Secret Garden meets Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children in this rich, charming middle grade adventure about a girl determined to infiltrate her grandmother’s enchanted garden with the help of some magically gifted friends.”
• Just South of Home by Karen Strong “Twelve-year-old Sarah, her Chicago cousin Janie, brainy brother Ellis, and his best friend, Jasper, investigate a tragic event in their small Southern town’s history.”
• Lalani of the Distant Sea by Erin Entrada Kelly Ebook and audiobook on Libby. “Twelve-year-old Lalani Sarita takes on the impossible task of traveling to the legendary Mount Isa, towering on an island to the north. Generations of men and boys have died on the same quest–how can a timid young girl in a tiny boat survive the epic tests of the archipelago?”
• The Last Last Day of Summer by Lamar Giles. Ebook and audiobook on Libby. “When adventurous cousins Otto and Sheed Alston accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets between the unmoving seconds are not as much fun as they expected.”
• Midsummer’s Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca. Audiobook on Libby and Hoopla.  “Loosely based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, eleven-year-old Mimi Mackson entangles herself and her family with mischievous fairies when she seeks to win a baking contest.” Be sure to catch the sequel, Much Ado about Baseball, out in 2021.
• The Thief Knot by Kate Milford. Ebook on Libby. “Marzana and her best friend, Nialla, are bored. In a city where normal rules don’t apply, it seems that adventure should be everywhere, yet nothing exciting ever happens to them. Nothing, that is, until Marzana’s parents are recruited to help solve a kidnapping that makes no sense. This could be the excitement Marzana and Nialla have been looking for-if they can crack the case without getting caught meddling.”
• A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat “All light in Chattana is created by one man – the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars.”

Do you like to match books to seasons? What books would you add to this list?