4 Fantasy Novels for Your Beach Bag

by MK French

Are you looking for some great fantasy novels to throw in your beach bag this summer? This roundup features cozy fantasy, romantic fantasy, a fairy tale, and young adult fantasy. So whatever you preference, there is something you will love.

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Nemesis Mine by Amy Archer

June 2026; Harper Voyager; 978-0063459403
audio, ebook, print (432 pages); cozy fantasy

Cyrus is no longer considered the worst villain in Athaca, likely because his power is actually growing flowers, and he spends time embroidering pillowcases. Maximilian is the hero of the realm, and Cyrus would have to take him down in order to be a villain again. But Maximilian isn't as perfect as his smile, and suggests that they fake a rivalry to increase their fame. In the middle of their staged battles and plans to share the rewards, the worst thing that could possibly happen is to fall in love.

This is billed as perfect for fans of Legends and Lattes, Shrek, and The Princess Bride. It's a cozy fantasy, with fan favorite tropes like fake hate, "touch him and die," and black cat/golden retriever energy. Cyrus wants to be seen as ferocious and evil, but really isn't the true villain he poses as. Not to say he's a nice guy, because he really isn't. With an upcoming election for hero of the realm, Maximilian isn't above faking the rivalry that Cyrus wants to create to help both of their reputations. Of course, there are the very public fights, but also meetings to plan for them. Maximilian has a personal secretary to handle his appointments and public appearances, who is in on the plan and provides a fun counterpart to the planning stages. 

It's an enemies/rivals story, so there's snark and the awkward fun of a developing romance. The two find things in common and influence each other, as most couples do, and the finale displays that. It's a cute romance, especially if you like hero and villain romance. 

Buy Nemesis Mine at Amazon

A Treason of Magic by Melissa Marr

June 2026; 47North; 978-1662536939
audio, ebook, print (315 pages); fantasy

As the first female Hunter, Gabrielle must kill the faery beasts hunting travelers in the Brimmind Wood. Isabeau is the first female Duke, and is under a curse that has her in a deep sleep during the darkest hours of the day, unable to protect her people. Isabeau needs Gabrielle's help, but there are new threats beginning to emerge. 

Gabrielle and Isabeau had a fling in the past, and Gabrielle isn't keen on repeating it. Both are heirs, and it's usually reserved for sons, but there are none to take up their fathers' mantles. In Gabrielle's case, she's nobility as well as the Hunter's daughter, assisting him with his search for clues about a faery creature hunting; the woods are the border between realms, and few creatures are allowed to stay in the mortal realms. This world doesn't begrudge same sex marriage, even in the nobility, but the Hunter bloodline transmits the powers to the next generation. 

Gabrielle and her father have some sense of forensics, so this is a mystery as well as a second-chance romance between the young women. The love they have for each other is a foregone conclusion, so the two actually dance around the secrets they have: the fact that Gabrielle becomes the Hunter after her father dies, and that Isabeau is cursed to appear dead when she sleeps. I had the same thought process as Gabrielle as she searched for clues, but there was a twist to it in the final quarter of the book. The magic in the world is generally limited to a few people, so most people aren't aware of what it can do. I liked the world-building here, and how faeries have their own secrets and needs. It's a fun story for fans of fantasy who enjoy some mystery and romance mixed together. 

Buy A Treason of Magic at Amazon

Witch Season by Julia Bianco

June 2026; St. Martin's Press; 978-1250384393
audio, ebook, print (320 pages); romantic fantasy

Katherine Barnes is an enforcer for the Los Angeles-based Aestas coven. Unsettled witches are people who aren’t aware they have magic until it explodes out of them, and Katherine brings them into the coven for safety and training; Aestas' founder, Sylvia Page, had done the same for her years ago. Noctis is the most powerful coven in the world, and its heir, Silas Khatri, plans to reprimand Aestas for their more unconventional practices. Katherine can't stand him and what he represents, but a powerful threat is developing, and it will take more than one coven to contain it before war breaks out.

This is the first book of the Broken Coven series. It sets up the world by showing us Katherine finding a witch using his magic to swindle the ordinary humans and sell magical drugs, then a teenager coming into unsettled magic. When a witch wants to use magic in a controlled way, it's through bloodletting. Katherine owes Sylvia a lot, and thinks of Silas as a rich idiot more invested in spending money on luxe items than the good of covens in the beginning. Of course, there are more concerns than what she was aware of, and the story picks up at that point.

The setup is slower going, but very necessary to understand the world Katherine lives in and what's at stake if she loses it all. Unsettled witches looked down on her, and she's spent thirteen years trying to guide other unsettled witches to atone for the disaster that came when her magic came in. Noctis is determined to control magic to prevent disaster and tries to control spellbooks and any coven not following their rules. Of course, Katherine and Silas are at odds from the start, pushed together for the duration of his coven evaluation. It's a common enough trope in romance novels, and for a while, the two connect and understand each other. But this is not a romance novel, and the issues involving magic are more important to the scope of the story. The ending is a neat one, so no need to fear a cliffhanger, with the expectation of many challenges in future books of the series. I couldn't put the book down, even when I had other things to do, because I wanted to know what happened next. The characters stay true to themselves, and it was an entertaining read. 

Buy Witch Season at Amazon

When Dealing with Dragons by Dana Swift

June 2026; Wednesday Books; 978-1250402431
audio, ebook, print (336 pages); young adult fantasy

Farren Walsh wants to be a dragon veterinarian like her father. She loves dragons and hates those who exploit them. That includes her classmate, an arrogant dragon racer named James Murphy. His silver-crafting family is greedy and abuses their dragons. Worse, he's the biggest competition for the college scholarship she desperately needs. James forces himself into an internship at Farren's family dragon sanctuary. She's hiding a secret that could upend society, and James was trying to escape a controlling father and hide his crush on Farren. She can't get too close when the fate of an endangered species is at stake.

In this world, dragons will develop a metallic cover to their scales when frightened. Gold-plated dragons were hunted to extinction, and there's a class system that developed based on people's ability to magically alter that metal, and jobs to extract the scales for their metals. The Murphy family is silver crafters, and James is hoping to escape his father and become a dragon veterinarian. His father is extremely controlling and abusive toward his family and the dragons bred on his property. Farren and her family harbor a secret on their sanctuary, and she believes that James hates her for the lesser Copper-crafting skills her family has. When his mother forces an internship with her father, James discovers her secrets, one by one.

The story has a rivals-to-romance trope; they're too young to really become lovers, but they had crushed on each other and currently have to hide their regard for one another. Part of it is classism, and part of it is to give no excuses to kick James off the reserve. We see exactly how far his father will go to force James to race dragons and extract silver scales for money, and immediately dread his discovery of what's actually happening with the dragons and metals. The story follows them getting closer to each other, sharing responsibility for the reserve's secrets, and working together to try saving the dragons from those who would extort them for profit. The finale involves some loss and a confrontation that doesn't quite go to plan; the mastermind wasn't who I thought it was at first, but it makes perfect sense as well. I was rooting for the kids through the entire book, and they've certainly earned their happily ever after. 

Buy When Dealing with Dragons at Amazon

Born and raised in New York City, M.K. French started writing stories when very young, dreaming of different worlds and places to visit. She always had an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and the macabre, which has definitely influenced her work. She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband, three young children, and a golden retriever.

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