All the Books to Read ASAP Before They Become Your Next TV or Movie Obsession
We need a beach and a Kindle STAT!
Given the avalanche of successful book-to-screen adaptations that have descended upon Hollywood in recent years—think House of the Dragon, Daisy Jones and the Six and Bridgerton—it's the best time to be a reader who is also a couch potato because there is no end in sight when it comes to movies and TVs based on bestselling novels.
Blake Lively is set to star in the highly anticipated movie version of one of Colleen Hoover's most beloved novels, while the second season of The Summer I Turned Pretty is bringing Jenny Han's swoonworthy sequel to the small screen in July. Plus, rom-coms Red, White & Royal Blue and Lessons in Chemistry will be sure to heat things up when they premiere later this year.
To help you prepare, we've assembled a summer reading list of all the books you should check out ASAP before they become your next movie or TV obsession.
So, what are you waiting for? Get your bookworm on so you can be one of those really fun people who says, "Well, I actually read the source material," when the following book adaptations are released:
Based On: It's Not Summer Without You, the second book in Jenny Han's beloved young adult trilogy
Starring: Lola Tung, Christopher Briney, Gavin Casalegno, Sean Kaufman and Rain Spencer
Premieres: July 14 on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: Like Belly (Tung), we've been counting down the days 'til summer all year as we awaited our return to Cousins Beach to find out what happened between her and the Fisher brothers—our current favorite love triangle on TV!—as well as get a much-needed update on how Susannah (Rachel Blanchard) is handling her cancer battle.
Han teased that fans should expect major differences between the 2010 book and the upcoming season. "There's always gonna be changes here and there," the showrunner told E! News in December. "So I guess you'll just have to wait and see."
Based On: Colleen Hoover's 2016 bestselling novel of the same name
Starring: Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Brandon Sklenar, Jenny Slate and Hasan Minhaj
Premieres: TBD
Why We're Excited: Two words: Blake Lively. Two more words: Colleen Hoover. What more do we need to say? Alright fine: Prepare for pop culture's next great love triangle as the movie is bringing to life the romance drama centering on beautiful florist Lily (Lively), neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni, who is also directing) and Lily's high school love Atlas Corrigan (Sklenar).
Based On: Casey McQuiston's 2019 novel of the same name.
Starring: Nicholas Galitzine, Taylor Zakhar Perez, Uma Thurman, Sarah Shahi, Stephen Fry and Rachel Hilson
Premieres: Aug. 11 on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: Make sure you have your A.C. on full blast before reading or watching McQuiston's steamy secret romance between Alex Claremont-Diaz (Perez), the son of the President of the United States, and Britain's Prince Henry (Galitzine). Trust us, relations between the U.S. and the British have never been hotter.
Based On: Bonnie Garmus' 2022 novel of the same name.
Starring: Brie Larson, Lewis Pullman, Stephanie Koenig, Aja Naomi King, Thomas Mann and Beau Bridges
Premieres: Oct. 13 on Apple TV+
Why We're Excited: In the 1950s-set series, Larson plays Elizabeth Zott, an aspiring scientist whose ambitions are put on hold in a society that insists women belong in the domestic sphere. After she finds herself pregnant, a desperate Elizabeth accepts a job as a host on a TV cooking show, which she turns into an opportunity to inspire overlooked housewives to change the status quo. This revolution really will be televised.
Based On: Patricia Cornwell's mega-popular series of the same name that has 26 books in total
Starring: Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis
Premieres: TBD on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: If it's based on a book and Kidman stars in it, we will binge the s--t out of it. (See: Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers and The Undoing.) Add in the fact that the Oscar winner and Curtis—who bought the Kay Scarpetta book rights back in June 2021—will be playing crime-fighting sisters and it's already become our favorite new show of the year.
Based On: The Lightning Thief, the first book the beloved fantasy series written by Rick Riordan
Starring: Walker Scobell, Aryan Simhadri, Leah Sava Jeffries, Virginia Kull, Glynn Turman, Jason Mantzoukas, Megan Mullally and Timm Sharp
Premieres: Early 2024 on Disney+
Why We're Excited: Confession: While we loved the film franchise that starred Logan Lerman, we do think the source material is better suited for the TV treatment and we're so happy to be re-enrolling at Camp Half-Blood for more teen deity drama. Plus, Lin-Manuel Miranda is guest-starring as Hermes and we want to be in on the streaming service where that happens.
Based On: The non-fiction bestseller of the same name by Lisa Taddeo.
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Betty Gilpin, DeWanda Wise, Gabrielle Creevy, Blair Underwood and Sean Meehan
Premieres: TBA on Starz
Why We're Excited: One of the most relevant books of 2019, the series will explore female desire as it follows a trio of women who are on a crash course to radically overturn their lives. While Showtime initially canceled the show despite production already being completed, Starz swooped in, answering our literary battle cry.
