20BooksofSummer – What Cathy Read Next…

Last year Cathy at 746 Books handed over the baton of the 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge to two new hosts: Annabel at AnnaBookBel and Emma at Words and Peace. This year Annabel has taken on sole hosting duties producing brand new graphics and a new hashtag #20BOS26.

The 20 Books of Summer 2026 challenge runs from 1st June to 31st August. You can find all the information you need about the challenge here where you can also sign up to participate.

Every year I approach the challenge high on ambition and usually low on likelihood of success. I’m aiming for the full 20 books again but this year with a healthy dose of realism. Therefore the majority of books on my list are from my NetGalley shelf, prioritising those with publication dates between June and September that I should theoretically be reading during that period anyway. I’ve added a couple from my current Classics Club list, my book club’s June pick and a couple of nonfiction books. Finally the remaining books longlisted for this year’s Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction that I haven’t yet read.

Being a stubborn old so-and-so, I like to stick to my original list and not take advantage of the option to swap books in and out. However, I do give myself more freedom to abandon books during the challenge if they’re not working for me. Links from the titles will take you to the book description on Goodreads. I’ll update them with links to my reviews when I’ve read them.

Country People by Daniel Mason
Carrion Crow by Heather Parry
Prey by Graham Hurley
Invitation from a Dictator by Rory Clements
The Eagle and the Wolf (Age of Attila #1) by Gordon Doherty
The Knife Maker of Venice by David Gilman
A Fatal Love by Louisa Treger
Where are the Kings by Donal Ryan
The Millionaire Waltz by Anthony Quinn
Daughters of Naples by Diana Giovinazzo
Throw Away the Key by Jason M. Hough
Call Me Ishmaelle by Xiaolu Guo
Murder at the End of the World by Akane Araki, translated by Jesse Kirkwood
Victoria Four-Thirty by Cecil Roberts
Creatures of Circumstance by W. Somerset Maugham
Miss Veal and Miss Ham by Vikki Heywood
Edenglassie by Melissa Lucashenko
The Draw of the Sea by Wyl Menmuir
Under a Metal Sky: A Journey Through Minerals, Greed and Wonder by Philip Marsden
Boundary Waters by Tristan Hughes

Wish me luck! If you’re taking part too, enjoy your summer of reading.

This year Cathy at 746 Books handed over the baton of hosting the 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge to Annabel at AnnaBookBel and Emma at Words and Peace.

Every year I approach the challenge high on ambition and usually low on likelihood of success. This year my list was made up of the oldest physical books in my TBR pile.

Emma and Anna have helpfully compiled a list of questions to help us recap our experience of taking part in the challenge.

Q. Did you manage to finish all 10/15/20 books? If not, what kept you from completing the challenge?

A. No, I only managed to read seven of the books on my list. As usual I was over-ambitious, aiming for the full 20 books and, being a stubborn old so-and-so, sticking to my original list and not taking advantage of the option to swap books in and out. I had ARCs I needed to read (which I didn’t put on my list) and included two very long books on my list.

Q. Of all the books you read this summer, which one was your favorite and why? Did you DNF any? Why?

A. I enjoyed all the books I read but my favourite was The Mirror & The Light by Hilary Mantel because it was so well-written and was a fitting end to the trilogy that started with Wolf Hall. Also the narrator of the audiobook was superb. I didn’t DNF any books. To be fair, I very rarely do.

Q. Which book surprised you the most, either by being better or worse than you expected?

A. Exit West by Mohsin Hamid. I hadn’t expected to enjoy it as much as I did because of the element of magical realism which I often don’t get on with.

Q. Did you notice any patterns in the genres you chose or enjoyed this summer?

A. Not really. Historical fiction, my favourite genre, made up the majority of the books I read.

Q. Which one had the best cover?

A. The Summer House Party by Caro Fraser.

Q. Which one was the longest? And the shortest?

A. The longest was The Mirror & The Light by Hilary Mantel (912 pages). The shortest was Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (229 pages).

Q. Did you read them mostly in print? ebook? audio?

A. They were all print copies although I listened to one on audio (The Mirror & The Light) because it was too big to hold comfortably.

Q. Imagine you’re hosting a “20 Books of Summer” book club wrap party. Which book would you nominate as the guest of honour, and what kind of toast or speech would you give celebrating it?

A. It would have to be The Mirror & The Light because it’s the end of an epic trilogy by an author, Hilary Mantel, who is sadly no longer with us. The book is set during the reign of King Henry VIII so he would probably insist on making the speech. Ideally the party would not end with a beheading.

Q. Looking back at all the characters you met over the summer, which one would you want as a summer buddy for a weekend getaway, and what activity would you do together?

A. I’d go with Sam Coyle from The Dark Isle and spend a week on Orkney, the setting of the book. We’d explore the island’s ancient ruins (she’s into archaeology) and drink whisky.

Q. Any other comments you want to add.

A. To quote from my list of books, the challenge is the bookish equivalent of The Summer House Party, you are both a Force of Nature and I hope you have the Appetite to host it again next year!