Nothing quite beats sitting on a sandy beach, listening to the sound of the ocean and reading a good book. But holiday reads can actually be more than just great literature, here is a collection of books set in some top holiday spots so that you can get to know your destination before you even step off the plane…
Undoubtedly the book to 
read before going to Barcelona, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón tells the gripping story of a young boy who discovers a mysterious novel in the Cemetry of Forgotten Books. Zafón describes Barcelona in vivid detail, referencing squares, buildings and streets that still line the city today.
If you’re heading to France this summer, then immerse yourself in the world of Joanne Harris’ Chocolat. Famously adapted into a film starring Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche, Chocolat is the story of a single mother who arrives in a small French village with her six-year-old daughter and opens a Chocolaterie which soon casts a spell over the local town. Although set in a fictional town, the atmosphere of a typical sleepy village in the heart of the French countryside prevails throughout.