Although every New Yorker knows that summer begins with the Memorial Day weekend and ends with Labor Day, the calendar, paying no attention whatsoever to the Weather Channel (nor should it, since its accuracy rate is a fugitive from the law of averages) informs us that everybody’s favorite season begins tomorrow. With visions of warm languorous days on the beach with a cold drink and a hot book, here are some recommendations about what you should consider stuffing in the bag with the sunscreen.

“Silence” by Thomas Perry (Harcourt, 448 pages, $25)

One of America’s greatest writers of mystery fiction (Mr. Perry’s previous book, “Nightlife,” was a national best-seller and his first book, “The Butcher’s Boy,” won an Edgar) has produced his most suspenseful novel yet with this big, gripping page-turner. After Wendy Harper is attacked and nearly killed with a baseball bat because of what she witnessed, she goes to former Los Angeles policeman Jack Till and asks him to help her disappear. Six years later, her one-time best friend has been framed for Wendy’s murder. The only way to prove his innocence is for Till to find Wendy. If you can get through this book without your heart pounding, you should consider a career as a mortician.

“Lean Mean Thirteen” by Janet Evanovich (St. Martin’s, 320 pages, $27.95).

The hot, if klutzy, New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum and her entourage of weird and dysfunctional friends and family are caught in another whirlwind adventure when she is suspected of murdering her two-timing ex-husband, Dickie Orr. Who could blame her? He got himself involved with some really bad people who launder large amounts of money and sell drugs, but they look to poor Stephanie when $40 million of their cash goes missing: The chase is on. If you can get through this book without laughing out loud, you have the sense of humor of a Doberman pinscher.

“The Unquiet” by John Connolly (Atria, 432 pages, $25.95)

On the rare day when dark clouds instead of sunshine dominate the sky, this disturbing, macabre thriller is the way to go. A character unique in contemporary detective fiction, Maine private eye Charlie Parker is haunted by images of his murdered wife and child, as well as a specter that personifies Death. Daniel Clay, a psychiatrist believed to have been involved with a cult of child molesters, has mysteriously disappeared. His grown daughter, Rebecca, comes to Parker for help when she is stalked by Frank Merrick, a former professional hit man whose daughter disappeared while he was in jail. Convinced that Rebecca knows the whereabouts of her father, Merrick wants to find him, either to find his lost daughter or to avenge her. If the terrifying images of Mr. Connolly’s book don’t stay with you long after you finish reading it, you have the sensitivity of an orca.

“Bad Luck and Trouble” by Lee Child (Delacorte, 377 pages, $26).

Jack Reacher, the amalgam of John Wayne and James Bond, is reunited with his old team of special investigators when one of their team is thrown from a helicopter high above the California desert and others have gone missing. Reacher and his fearless crew find themselves hunting a terrible, powerful foe while being hunted themselves. Confronting worse odds than a lottery ticket holder, will this loyal coterie of honorable and courageous warriors prevail? If you can get through this book without wanting to cheer out loud for the good guys, you might want to consider membership in Al Qaeda.

“Keep It Real” by Bill Bryan (Bleak House, 310 pages, $13.95)

I’m not an aficionado of most satire, as I think it’s the easiest and cheapest form of humor. After all, does anything exist that can’t be made fun of? (Including that sentence, which I can’t figure how to write without ending with a preposition.) This hilarious, politically incorrect book takes on such targets — reality TV shows, Hollywood, rap culture, Donald Trump, race relations — that I was ready to give it a D minus for effort until I saw a cover blurb from Dave Barry, the funniest writer in the world. As a mystery, it has a plot line thinner than a stick insect, but it is a painfully funny novel. If you can get through this without your sides hurting, you probably have the personality of an office plant.

Mr. Penzler is the proprietor of the Mysterious Bookshop in Manhattan and the series editor of the annual “Best American Mystery Stories.” He can be reached at ottopenzler@mysteriousbookshop.com.