Your summer reading list is here.
Whether you're seeking a light beach read, a staple of literary fiction or an adventurous detective series, we've got you covered with our ultimate guide to essential novels set in Northeast Ohio.
The list, which we put together with help from Literary Cleveland executive director Matt Weinkam and local bookstores, spans more than 150 years' worth of writing and features books of all genres and for all ages. Here, you'll find a thriller series from Stephen King, a bestselling novel from Celeste Ng, and a new romance novel from Layne Fargo.
One thing they all have in common: all of these stories are spun in familiar places along Lake Erie, taking place within local neighborhoods, cities and suburbs.
What are you waiting for? Get reading!
Bart Ridgeley: A Story of Northern Ohio by Albert Riddle (1873)
The Bread Winners by John Milton Hay (1883)
The Ice Queen by Ernest Ingersoll (1885): In this 19th-century story, three siblings go on a daring, icy adventure in the middle of a Midwest winter: skating across a frozen Lake Erie to reach an uncle’s home in Cleveland.
Dance Night by Dawn Powell (1930)
Industrial Valley by Ruth McKenney (1939)
He, the Father by Frank Mlakar (1950): This powerful portrait of Slovenian immigrant life in the mid-century explores themes of fatherhood, tradition and generational tension, drawing from Mlakar’s own roots in Cleveland’s Slovenian American community.
The Changelings by Jo Sinclair (1955): Set in a working-class Jewish and Sicilian neighborhood in Cleveland, two young girls form a friendship as they grapple with racism and antisemitism in their communities.
The Coming of Fabrizze by Raymond DeCapite (1960): Set in 1920s Cleveland is a lyrical, heroic tale of an Italian immigrant whose charm, hard work and honesty succeeds. More myth than realism, it reads like a modern folk tale, celebrating working-class joy.
The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread by Don Robertson (1965)
Fathers by Herbert Gold (1966)
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison (1970)
RELATED: Toni Morrison’s Literary Legacy Lives On in Northeast Ohio
The Toothpaste Millionaire by Jean Merrill (1972): Tangible lessons in math and entrepreneurship take the form of two sixth-graders’ gallon-sized toothpaste business in Cleveland. Rufus Mayflower and Kate MacKinstrey make a living off shiny teeth in their teen years in this funny and informative children’s book.
Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen by Alix Kates Shulman (1972)
The Cracker Factory by Joyce Rebeta-Burditt (1977): A Cleveland housewife spirals into alcoholism amid a loveless marriage, motherhood and an affair, until a breakdown lands her in a psych ward where she begins her recovery journey and confronts her demons.
Detour by Michael Brodsky (1977)
The Headmaster’s Papers by Richard Hawley (1983)
The Dark City by Max Allan Collins (1987)
The Broom of the System by David Foster Wallace (1987): Postmodernist author David Foster Wallace’s first novel follows a strange story in Cleveland about missing nursing home residents, a communicative cockatiel and relationships.
Milan Jacovich series by Les Roberts (1988-2016)
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Millionaire’s Row by Peggy Murphy Petkus (1989): During Cleveland’s Gilded Age, the city’s wealthy elite navigates shifting social tides, personal ambition and the cost of status. Against the backdrop of real events like the opening of the Arcade, the rise of the Terminal Tower and the development of Shaker Heights, the novel captures a city in transition — and is followed up with 1991’s Millionaire’s Hill.
Sheltered Lives by Charles Oberndorf (1992)
Left To Themselves by Mary Grimm (1993)
Deviant Way by Richard Montanari (1995): Detective John Paris chases down a serial killer duo in Cleveland’s singles bars and continues to investigate murders and killings in Kiss of Evil (2001).
Raven by S.A. Swiniarski (1996)
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (1996): Taking place in Cleveland Heights, Puerto Rico and faraway planets, this philosophical sci-fi book (Russell’s first) explores religious ideas after aliens are discovered and met on a faraway planet.
Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman (1997)
Through the Windshield by Michael DeCapite (1998)
Hippies by Peter Jedick (1998)
Dark Lady by Richard North Patterson (1999)
Whiskey Island by Emilie Richards (2000)
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In the Blind by Eugene Marten (2000): Haunted by his past in Cleveland, a man gets a job at a locksmith and finds clarity in his life.
The Dragons of the Cuyahoga by S. Andrew Swann (2001): Cleveland Press reporter Kline Maxwell goes on a fantastical adventure as he reports on a dragon that crashes into the Cuyahoga River. The series continues with The Dwarves of Whiskey Island (2005).
Crooked River Burning by Mark Winegardner (2001): A pair of star-crossed lovers from different social classes grow up in a period of major shifts in Cleveland: political corruption, rock ‘n’ roll and river fires. The novel incorporates many real-life Clevelanders, including Carl Stokes, Alan Freed and Eliot Ness.
House Under Snow by Jill Bialosky (2002)
The Full Cleveland by Terry Reed (2005)
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Tonight I Said Goodbye by Michael Koryta (2005)
Mouth to Mouth by Erin McCarthy (2005)
Trace Evidence by Elizabeth Becka (2005)
The Sound Of Us by Sarah Willis (2005)
Crooked River by Shelley Pearsall (2005)
Pepper Martin series by Casey Daniels (2006-ongoing): Connie Laux has authored dozens of novels in the past few decades under a variety of pen names. Her popular Pepper Martin series, published as Casey Daniels, follows a cemetery tour guide after she hits her head and gets the ability to communicate with the dead — whether she’d like to or not.
The Heir Chronicles by Cinda Williams Chima (2006-2014): Cinda Williams Chima’s bestselling fantasy series is set in the fictional Trinity, Ohio, (modeled after Oberlin) and in Downtown Cleveland. There, a teenager named Jack learns he is a part of a secret magic society, becoming a powerful warrior, all while growing up near the shores of Lake Erie.
If Today Be Sweet by Thrity Umrigar (2007)
Playing for Pizza by John Grisham (2007): After a disastrous game in Cleveland ends his NFL career, quarterback Rick Dockery flees to Italy, finding redemption, culture shock and unexpected passion in small-town Parma, where football means everything — but not in the way he knew.
RELATED: 8 Northeast Ohio Books
The End by Salvatore Scibona (2008)
Theresa MacLean series by Lisa Black (2008-2014)
Nemesis: The Final Case of Eliot Ness by William Bernhardt (2009)
Vicious Circle by Linda Robertson (2009)
What Happened on Fox Street by Tricia Springstubb (2010): The Cleveland Heights native brings us to Fox Street, where Mo lives with her father, sister and the memory of her late mother. The place she calls home is in jeopardy as big changes arise during one memorable summer.
Force of Law by Jez Morrow (2010)
The Taste of Salt by Martha Southgate (2011)
Gilded Age by Claire McMillan (2012)
A Certain Octoberby Angela Johnson (2012)
The Butterfly Cluesby Kate Ellison (2012)
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The Family Hightower: A Novel by Brian Francis Slattery (2014)
Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix (2014): What if an IKEA-type place was haunted? This absurd premise makes up the plot of Grady Hendrix’s breakout horror-comedy novel, set in a fictional “Orsk” store in Cleveland.
Hope For Garbage by Alex Tully (2014)
Bill Hodges Trilogy by Stephen King (2014-2016): A retired police detective tracks a twisted killer across a gritty Rust Belt city in the Midwest. Blending crime, psychological drama and a touch of the supernatural, the series, by one of the most accomplished authors of all time, explores obsession and justice.
A Casey Cort Legal Thriller series by Aime Austin (2014-2021)
The Dead Key by D.M. Pulley (2015): When a young engineer stumbles upon the untouched safety deposit boxes inside the long-abandoned First Bank of Cleveland, she’s drawn into a decades-old mystery of corruption and cover-ups.
Throw Like a Woman by Susan Petrone (2015)
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (2017): The acclaimed author from Shaker Heights set her complex first two novels, Everything I Never Told You and Little Fires Everywhere, in her hometown. Little Fires went on to become a bestseller and was developed into a Hulu miniseries starring Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington.
RELATED: Cleveland Public Library’s Main Library Is a Place of Firsts
No One Can Pronounce My Name by Rakesh Satyal (2017): Harit and Ranjana are Indian immigrants experiencing different beats of loneliness and grief in the same divisive Cleveland suburb. When their creative outlets for connection lead them to one another, there’s more nuance than they’d expect.
Ill Will by Dan Chaon (2017): A top-ranked book of 2017 by The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly, this thrilling dark horror intertwines Satanism, murder and family challenges.
An Amish Candy Shop mystery series by Amanda Flower (2017-ongoing)
The Comedown by Rafael Frumkin (2018)
Cherry by Nico Walker (2018): Part-memoir, part-fiction, Walker’s Cherry tells a gritty story about a veteran’s trauma, drug addiction and crime. It was adapted into a 2021 film directed by Cleveland natives Joe and Anthony Russo.
Noodle Shop mystery series by Vivien Chien (2018-ongoing)
The Daughters of Erietown by Connie Schultz (2020)
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Cuyahogaby Pete Beatty (2020)
Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown (2020): The Cleveland author explores vignettes of her life through the lens of a young wizard in her debut novel, later followed up by The Chosen One (2022). Echo’s powers foster protection and discovery as she travels between home on Cleveland’s East Side and school on the West Side, uncovering issues related to class division, addiction and identity.
Most Likely by Sarah Watson (2020)
Ice Cream Parlor mystery series by Abby Collette (2020-2022)
Bride of the Sea by Eman Quotah (2021): A family must grapple with the differences of life and culture in Cleveland and in Saudi Arabia, after a divorce and parental abduction, in Quotah’s debut.
The Cleveland Heights LGBTQ Sci-Fi and Fantasy Role Playing Clubby Doug Henderson (2021)
Dream On by Angie Hockman (2022)
The Summoner’s Mark series by J.D. Blackrose (2022-2024): J.D. Blackrose (the pen name of local author Joelle Reizes) created an urban fantasy series of demons, faeries and powerful summoners, served up with a tinge of romance.
Michikusa House by Emily Grandy (2023)
A Place We Belong by Deanna R. Adams (2024)
The Favoritesby Layne Fargo (2025): The cutthroat world of competitive figure skating tests Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha’s limits — and their relationship. Competition, at one point, brings them to Cleveland as the childhood lovers escape complicated home lives to defy odds on the rink.
State Champ by Hilary Plum (2025): Ohio’s “heartbeat law” on abortion play a pivotal role in Plum’s latest novel, which follows a former high school runner who works at an abortion clinic and does a hunger strike to speak out about the issue.
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