Summer 2026 Circle Back with Catherine Gilmore | Ep. 233

Sarah and Catherine circle back to the 12 new releases they shared in the Summer 2026 Book Preview, now that they've read them — or at least tried to! Find out which books worked, which didn't, and whether their most anticipated summer reads lived up to expectations.

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CLICK HERE for the full episode Show Notes on the blog.

Want More Book Preview Picks?

• Paid members of our Patreon Community or our Substack Community (both $7/month with the same member benefits) get even more seasonal recommendations with Book Preview Extras! In each episode, Catherine and Sarah share at least 4 additional books they're excited about that didn't make the main Book Preview. Join on Patreon or Substack to listen — and get access to all our other bonus podcast episodes and paid-member content.

Highlights

• Catherine calls her summer Preview reading "upwardly mobile," while Sarah sees hers as "the downside of high-risk picks."
• Catherine liked 4 of her 6 picks, while Sarah's riskier summer ended with one 5-star read — and 3 DNFs.
• Catherine and Sarah each tried one of the other's Preview picks … and neither made it to the finish line.
• Some deep thoughts on books where you can "feel the writing device" — and why that rarely works for either of them.
• Plus, Sarah has a new label for those deeply immersive, cozy reads: "warm bath books."
• And, of course, their best and worst book picks of the summer!

Books Read Before the Preview

Sarah's Pick

• Whistler by Ann Patchett (June 2) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [3:17] 

Other Books Mentioned

• Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke (2026) [4:02] 

Summer 2026 Circle Back

June

Catherine's Picks

• A Year of Marvelous Ways by Sarah Winman (US Release June 16) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [4:37] 
• Leave and Come Back by Lavanya Lakshmi (June 16) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [12:41] 
• The Top of the World by Ethan Joella (June 30) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [18:26] 
• Keep Them Close by David Ellis (June 30) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:17]

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