13 Summer Reads Chosen by the Expert Readers at Denver’s Tattered Cover Book Store

Whether you pack the car and head to the mountains, hop a plane to Hawaii’s beaches, or simply hang at the neighborhood pool, Colorado’s most glorious season requires a good book. To help you—and your kiddos—find that can’t-put-it-down reading experience, we asked the pros at the world-renowned Tattered Cover for recommendations for your summer 2023 reading list.

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Sometimes dreams of a safe and sequestered life as a scribe must be set aside—forcefully so—in order to save a kingdom beset by enemies. Set in a world where riders-in-training learn to channel their dragons’ magic through magical tattoos (“relics”) at a war college as deadly as the war they are being prepared for, Fourth Wing plunges readers into a well-executed, enemies-to-lovers relationship spicy enough to satisfy readers of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout. Protagonist Violet Sorrengail is a weak-bodied general’s daughter and full-on history nerd who must survive dragons, other riders, her mother, and her own unslakable lust. All bets—and shirts—are off. —Kend Mullison, Tattered Cover bookseller

Game of Edges: The Analytics Revolution and the Future of Professional Sports by Bruce Schoenfeld

In Game of Edges: The Analytics Revolution and the Future of Professional Sports, Boulder author Bruce Schoenfeld examines how sports teams have evolved from hobbies for the wealthy to corporate entities that span ticket sales, hospitality, television revenue, digital products, retail, and real estate. Through decades of interviews with owners and managers, Schoenfeld looks at how the business has changed, what role data and analytics have played, and what may be next. As a fan, it’s interesting to peek under the hood of some of my favorite teams. —Kathy Baum, Tattered Cover buyer

George R.R. Martin Presents Wild Cards: Now and Then, a Graphic Novel by Carrie Vaughn

Carrie Vaughn, a longtime contributor to George R.R. Martin’s Wild Cards anthology, now explores that fictional post-World War II dystopia with an original graphic novel. In Wild Cards: Now and Then, a Graphic Novel, an alien virus has impacted the entire planet, either providing superpowers or unfavorable mutations to the infected. Heroes Ana Cortez and Kate Brandt are faced with a case in Brazil that doesn’t wrap cleanly and is far more nuanced than they originally believed. —Josh Clark, Tattered Cover buyer

The Last Ranger by Peter Heller

In The Last Ranger, Peter Heller has, again, written vividly of the American West—and its untamed wilderness—in a way that puts the reader smack in the landscape. Ranger Ren Hopper, an enforcement officer in Yellowstone National Park, spends his days corralling unruly campers and saving naive tourists from nature. He’s clearly more comfortable with animals than with the people he’s duty bound to protect every day. When Hopper happens upon poaching in the park, though, he realizes he might be protecting the wrong species. One might think savage behavior is more likely found in animals than people, but Ren learns otherwise. Heller’s book is a vacation on a page. —Mark Lehnertz, Tattered Cover bookseller

The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis

Connie Willis has created the ultimate genre mash-up with The Road to Roswell, and it’s a blast. Part romantic comedy, part road-trip adventure, and part alien abduction page-turner, this novel brings the reader along for a great romp through the Southwest. Francie, the main character, is kidnapped by a tentacled extraterrestrial, who then begins nabbing other Earthlings, one by one, for an unknown mission. This is a perfect feel-good read for the summer, written by a master of science fiction and fantasy. —Josh Clark, Tattered Cover buyer

Rocky Mountain High: A Tale of Boom and Bust in the New Wild West by Finn Murphy

Finn Murphy has had many careers—from entrepreneur to long-haul truck driver to author to…hemp farmer. When the hemp plant was legalized in 2018, Colorado became the epicenter of a hemp boom, and so Murphy decided to capitalize on the movement with the purchase of a hemp farm in Boulder County. His observations of culture and business in Rocky Mountain High: A Tale of Boom and Bust in the New Wild West are witty and wry. As with his previous book, The Long Haul, Murphy’s writing is comical and sharp as he details his fortune and misfortune in the world of hemp. —Kathy Baum, Tattered Cover buyer

Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden by Camille T. Dungy

As Colorado gardens begin to emerge, I cannot think of a better summer read than Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden. In this book, author and Colorado State University distinguished professor Camille T. Dungy writes of her time diversifying her garden in the early years after she moved to Fort Collins. Dungy has a poet’s gift for language, a gardener’s connection to nature, and the ability to portray environmental metaphors to our collective cultural experiences. —Kathy Baum, Tattered Cover buyer

A Spark in the Cinders by Jenny Elder Moke

Buckle up and forget all you know about the wicked stepsisters in Cinderella. This stepsister, Aralyn, has lost it all: the glass slipper, the prince’s hand in marriage, and her place in the household. But—but!—she has gained the respect of the current queen, who chooses Aralyn to battle the kingdom’s enemies and to rebuild its lands, which lie in ruin. With the help of a newly discovered fairy godmother and the company of a royal knight, Aralyn goes to find a healing weapon, which has been cut into thirds and scattered. In A Spark in the Cinders, there is magic, there is danger, there is romance, there is even an epic journey. Teenaged readers will enjoy going along for the ride. —Kate Brasch, Tattered Cover children’s book buyer

Daybreak on Raven Island by Fleur Bradley

If Bradley’s Midnight at the Barclay Hotel was the perfect introduction to mysteries for middle-grade readers, Daybreak on Raven Island eases them into horror. Three seventh-graders visit an island-based prison, inspired by the legendary Alcatraz, for a school field trip. The run-of-the-mill outing turns grisly when the kids find a dead body—and then miss the last ferry off the island. Bradley presents young readers with a great mystery, filled with the requisite twists and turns, that the easy-to-relate-to characters must solve before the morning comes. —Josh Clark, Tattered Cover buyer

Dust by Dusti Bowling

When she was a toddler, Dust protagonist Avalyn almost died from an asthma attack. Her parents moved her to Arizona, where the environment was better suited for her. Now, 10 years later, in this dry climate, she breathes happily until a newcomer comes to town, and his emotional state seems to stir up the dust in the town. There is fantasy woven into this realistic but fictional tale about friends and bullying and health and healing—and it is a true page-turner for young readers. —Kate Brasch, Tattered Cover children’s book buyer

Lei and the Fire Goddess by Malia Maunakea

Anna Leilani spends her summers with her grandmother in Hawaii, and she comes home with stories and legends of her native land. When she tells her school friends in Boulder, they tease her, saying none of the folklore is real. So this summer, Anna insists on a more touristy summer, only to accidentally anger the Fire God and set some scary stuff in motion. Although Anna struggles to respect her heritage and to keep her sense of humor and her friends, she experiences a rollicking adventure in Lei and the Fire Goddess that helps her learn about herself and her two-part culture. —Kate Brasch, Tattered Cover children’s book buyer

The Fairest in the Land by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Joshua Heinsz

In The Fairest in the Land, Benjamin and Annabelle are playing dress-up and conflict arises when each one wants to be the bride, the princess, the ballerina. Peace is made when Benjamin suggests that they can play as two brides, two princesses, and two ballerinas. This book is a pink-and-purple celebration of imagination and self-expression and helps us learn that we can all be whoever we want to be. —Kate Brasch, Tattered Cover children’s book buyer

Sometimes, a Tiger by Z.B. Asterplume

There is little food in the pantry at Dario’s house, which means he is often hungry. But Dario also has a very active imagination. He dreams up a tiger in the pantry, who follows him around all day and represents that one’s community can work to bring one nourishment. Other children and animals arrive to support the community, and Dario’s hunger is sated. The beautiful illustrations in Sometimes, a Tiger are inviting, and they normalize the issue of food scarcity. —Kate Brasch, Tattered Cover children’s book buyer