Check out the books below that I personally recommend to help you ignite your passion for travel. All of these books have place at the center of the story… so you can mentally take a vacation, even if you’re currently stuck in armchair-traveler mode. We’ve got them organized by region (and after the title we put the genre). All of these books make for great beach reads or couch snuggling. I’m also happy to give you other book recs set in these places but have setting as a less-prominent plot feature or tell you more about these books. (Yes, I read a LOT!!) Just ask in the comments below.
Italy
The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza (mystery + romance + historical fiction)
Saltwater: A Novel by Katy Hays (mystery)
Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood (romance)
Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch (YA romance)
The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner (mystery + romance + historical fiction)
Inferno by Dan Brown – Part of the Robert Langdon series, but you don’t need to read those to enjoy this one. (mystery/thriller)
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle (chick-lit)
Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack (mystery)
Ciao For Now by Kate Bromley (romance)
A Sea of Troubles by Donna Leon (mystery)
In Other Words: A Memoir by Jhumpa Lahiri (nonfiction)
Read more about these books set in Italy…
Armchair Travel to Italy
I’ve only been to the northern Italy – the lakes district and Milan. But I dream of going back to visit the rest of this gorgeous (and…
Keep readingFrance
The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl (fiction)
Mastering the Art of French Murder & A Murder Most French by Colleen Cambridge (There’s a new 3rd one in this series too but I haven’t read it yet) (mystery)
The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (mystery)
The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle (mystery)
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah (historical fiction)
The Only Street in Paris: Life on the Rue des Martyrs by Elaine Sciolino (nonfiction)
Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World’s Greatest Museum by Elaine Sciolino (nonfiction)
I’m Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself: One Woman’s Pursuit of Pleasure in Paris by Glynnis MacNicol (memoir, nonfiction, humor)
The Seine: The River that Made Paris by Elaine Sciolino (nonfiction)
Paris is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay (romance)
Read more Bookish France…
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Portugal
Two Nights in Lisbon: A Novel by Chris Pavone (mystery)
The Wilds by Sarah Pearse (mystery)
The U.K. & Ireland
Girl Abroad by Elle Kennedy – London (romance)
Love & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch – Ireland (YA romance)
The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley – Scotland (mystery)
A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey -England (romance)
Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory – England (romance)
Knots and Crosses: An Inspector Rebus Novel by Ian Rankin (the first of his Rebus detective series)
Greece
Love & Olives by Jenna Evans Welch (YA romance)
The Fury by Alex Michaelides (mystery) – but I have to say the end of this book disappointed me to the point I wouldn’t rec, but other people I know really liked this one, so I’m putting it here in case you’re wanting to travel to Greece.
The Netherlands
What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon (romance) – Went looking for books set in Amsterdam when I booked our next family vacation there and came across this one. It has a 20+ week wait for all versions on all three of my libraries on Libby. Loved it! 5 stars
The Invention of Amsterdam: A History of Europe’s Greatest City in Ten Walks by Ben Coates (nonfiction)
Why The Dutch Are Different: A Journey into the Hidden Heart of the Netherlands by Ben Coates (nonfiction)
The Czech Republic
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown (the newest in his Professor Robert Langdon series takes us on an adventure to Prague)
The Last Palace: Europe’s Turbulent Century in Five Lives and One Legendary House by Norman Eisen, Czech U.S. Ambassador (nonfiction) This was mentioned by Dan Brown in his The Secret of Secrets novel. It sounded so good, I went and immediately bought it.
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera (literary fiction)
Spain
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (Translated by Lucia Graves) (mystery)
The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas (Romance)
Multi-European Destinations
The Rhine by Ben Coates (nonfiction) – Starts in The Netherlands, follows the path of the Rhine river into Germany, France, Switzerland. A fascinating read! Recommend for others who also loved Elaine Sciolino’s The Seine.
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown – France and U.K. (mystery/thriller)
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston – France, Spain, Italy (romance)
The Guncle Abroad by Steven Rowley – mostly Italy (general fiction with a bit of romance too) Charming is the word to describe this read!
The Woman in Suite 11 by Ruth Ware (mystery)- a travel writer gets an out of the blue invite to a lux hotel on Lake Geneva at the borders of Switzerland and France. Also goes to England.
Canada
Last Night in Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel (mystery)
One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune (romance)
Every Summer After by Carley Fortune (romance)
This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune (romance)
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune (romance)
All of the mystery books in Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series. There’s 18 and counting! All but one are set in and around Montreal and Quebec… the one set in Paris is All the Devils Are Here. These are also great as audiobooks. I love the narrator (Robert Bathurst)!
Across the U.S.A
Nevada Barr has a whole series set in different U.S. national parks! Setting is always key to the plot. There’s more than a dozen to pick from and you don’t need to read them in order, though you definitely can. They all star Anna Pigeon, a strong ranger who investigates the mysteries in these books.
The August Snow series by Stephen Mack Jones -Detroit (thriller/mystery)
Summer Reading by Jenn McKinlay – Martha’s Vineyard (romance)
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley – Upper Michigan (YA mystery)
Travel in General
The Art of Travel by Alain De Botton (nonfiction)
More travel-inspo books on my TBR list…
Your Steps on the Stairs: A Novel by Antonio Muñoz Molina, Curtis Bauer-Translator – (mystery) This one just came out in English in 2025. It was originally written in Spanish… but it is set in Lisbon, Portugal!
The Club: Where American Women Artists Found Refuge in Belle Époque Paris
by Jennifer Dasal (nonfiction) – The NY Times had an interesting write-up about this one that made me want to read it.
~
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If you’ve got a rec for me to read (and maybe include here), let us know by leaving a comment below! You can also read my thoughts on these books and others on Goodreads.
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