July was a pretty good reading month for me. Last month I didn’t get a ton read, so I was glad to get more books done this month. What books did you read this month? Comment down below.
Summer Girls by Hailey Abbott
In SUMMER BOYS, Beth, Ella, and Kelsi ruled Pebble Beach. Now it’s time for 3 new girls to rock the summer. JESSICA: Liam is the cutest guy I’ve ever seen and he loves the beach as much as I do. So how do I show him I’d make a better girlfriend than friend? GREER: I could be tanning on glam French beaches, but instead I’m “family-bonding” in Maine. At least the boys are hot – especially Brady. So what if he has a clingy ex-girlfriend? LARA: Just my luck. I’ve fallen hard for the one boy who’s totally off limits. If only I could stop kissing him…
This was a good summer read. It is very young adult, but I still really enjoyed it.
The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler
The youngest of six talented sisters, Elyse d’Abreau was destined for stardom – until a boating accident took everything from her. Now, the most beautiful singer in Tobago can’t sing. She can’t even speak. Seeking quiet solitude, Elyse accepts a friend’s invitation to Atargatis Cove. Named for the mythical first mermaid, the Oregon seaside town is everything Elyse’s home in the Caribbean isn’t: an ocean too cold for swimming, parties too tame for singing, and people too polite to pry – except for one. Christian Kane is a notorious playboy – insolent, arrogant, and completely charming. He’s also the only person in Atargatis Cove who doesn’t treat Elyse like a glass statue. He challenges her to express herself, and he admires the way she treats his younger brother, Sebastian, who believes Elyse is the legendary mermaid come to life. When Christian needs a first mate for the Cove’s high-stakes Pirate Regatta, Elyse reluctantly stows her fear of the sea and climbs aboard. The ocean isn’t the only thing making waves, though – swept up in Christian’s seductive tide and entranced by the Cove’s charms, Elyse begins to wonder if a life of solitude isn’t what she needs. But changing course again means facing her past. It means finding her inner voice. And scariest of all, it means opening her heart to a boy who’s best known for breaking them…
This was such a good book. It is very emotional. While this is supposed to be younger adult, it does read older to me. I really liked this book and really want to read more by this author.
Two-Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt
There are two sides to every breakup. This is Jordan and Courtney, totally in love. Sure, they were an unlikely high school couple. But they clicked; it worked. They’re even going to the same college, and driving cross-country together for orientation. Then Jordan dumps Courtney — for a girl he met on the Internet. It’s too late to change plans, so the road trip is on. Courtney’s heartbroken, but figures she can tough it out for a few days. La la la — this is Courtney pretending not to care. But in a strange twist, Jordan cares. A lot. Turns out, he’s got a secret or two that he’s not telling Courtney. And it has everything to do with why they broke up, why they can’t get back together, and how, in spite of it all, this couple is destined for each other.
While I had read this book before (I owned it in another book), I still loved reading this again. There are some crazy twists and a happy ending.
Summer of Yesterday by Gaby Triana
Summer officially sucks. Thanks to a stupid seizure she had a few months earlier, Haley’s stuck going on vacation with her dad and his new family to Disney’s Fort Wilderness instead of enjoying the last session of summer camp back home with her friends. Fort Wilderness holds lots of childhood memories for her father, but surely nothing for Haley. But then a new seizure triggers something she’s never before experienced—time travel—and she ends up in River Country, the campground’s long-abandoned water park, during its heyday. The year? 1982. And there—with its amusing fashion, “oldies” music, and primitive technology—she runs into familiar faces: teenage Dad and Mom before they’d even met. Somehow, Haley must find her way back to the twenty-first century before her present-day parents anguish over her disappearance, a difficult feat now that she’s met Jason, one of the park’s summer residents and employees, who takes the strangely dressed stowaway under his wing. Seizures aside, Haley’s used to controlling her life, and she has no idea how to deal with this dilemma. How can she be falling for a boy whose future she can’t share?
I did like this book a lot. I’m not a huge fan of time travel, mostly because the love interests don’t get to be together. I will say, I cried a ton in this book. While it ended good, I still wish it would have ended a bit different. This was a bittersweet book for me.
California Girls by Susan Mallery
The California sunshine’s not quite so bright for three sisters who get dumped in the same week… Finola, a popular LA morning show host, is famously upbeat until she’s blindsided on live TV by news that her husband is sleeping with a young pop sensation who has set their affair to music. While avoiding the tabloids and pretending she’s just fine, she’s crumbling inside, desperate for him to come to his senses and for life to go back to normal. Zennie’s breakup is no big loss. Although the world insists she pair up, she’d rather be surfing. So agreeing to be the surrogate for her best friend is a no-brainer—after all, she has an available womb and no other attachments to worry about. Except…when everyone else, including her big sister, thinks she’s making a huge mistake, being pregnant is a lot lonelier—and more complicated—than she imagined. Never the tallest, thinnest or prettiest sister, Ali is used to being overlooked, but when her fiancé sends his disapproving brother to call off the wedding, it’s a new low. And yet Daniel continues to turn up “for support,” making Ali wonder if maybe—for once—someone sees her in a way no one ever has. But side by side by side, these sisters will start over and rebuild their lives with all the affection, charm and laugh-out-loud humor that is classic Susan Mallery.
I love Susan Mallery’s books. While this one wasn’t a favorite, I did still really love it. All three sisters are very different and I found myself liking some more than the other.
Never After by Laurell K Hamilton, Yasmine Galenorn, Sharon Shinn, and Marjorie M. Liu
The bonds of love. The bonds of matrimony. The bonds between husband and wife. Let’s face it-some bonds are meant to be broken. Here, #1 New York Times bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton, New York Times bestselling authors Yasmine Galenorn and Marjorie M. Liu, and national bestselling author Sharon Shinn, spin four stories of dark powers and fiercely feminine heroes who aren’t going to wait for Prince Charming to show up and save them-especially when they can do it themselves.
I love anthologies. This one was pretty good, but I didn’t like about half of the stories in this one. The ones I did like were really good though.
Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas
He took me in when I had nowhere else to go. He doesn’t use me, hurt me, or forget about me. He listens to me, protects me, and sees me. I can feel his eyes on me over the breakfast table, and my heart pumps so hard when I hear him pull in the driveway after work. I have to stop this. It can’t happen. My sister once told me there are no good men, and if you find one, he’s probably unavailable. Only Pike Lawson isn’t the unavailable one. I am. PIKE: I took her in, because I thought I was helping. As the days go by, though, it’s becoming anything but easy. I have to stop my mind from drifting to her and stop holding my breath every time I bump into her in the house. I can’t touch her, and I shouldn’t want to. But we’re not free to give into this. She’s nineteen, and I’m thirty-eight. And her boyfriend’s father. nfortunately, they both just moved into my house.
While this is a taboo read and won’t be for everyone, I really liked it. This was a book I got for my birthday and a buddy read I did with a new friend. There are certain things I didn’t care for in this book, but the story was so good that I can overlook them.
Stolen Threadwitch Bride by Clare Sager
True names hold power. Fae cannot lie. And the women they steal become their brides. When threadwitch Ariadne is taken by a fae lord as part of a centuries-old bargain, she expects to marry him whether she likes it or not. But, desperate to return home, she won’t give in easily. Even if Lysander claims he doesn’t want her hand in marriage but for its skill with needle and the threads of magic, everyone knows the fae are not to be trusted. Plotting her escape, she sews spells into cloth and tries her hardest to ignore his charms as well as the fae realm’s equally alluring beauty. But she soon discovers his world is as dangerous as it is beautiful. With dark creatures in the forest and enemies who wear friendship as a mask, Ariadne must make every stitch perfect if she wants to not only escape but also keep Lysander alive. Which, it turns out, is something she wants far more than she ever expected.
This book was so good! I loved it so much and honestly want to read it again. This is my first book of Clares’ and I can’t wait to read more by her. I need to buy myself a paperback copy now 🙂
Gone With The Whisker by Laurie Cass
It’s the summer season in Chilson, Michigan, and the town is packed with tourists ready for a fabulous Fourth of July fireworks show. Minnie Hamilton and her rescue cat, Eddie, have spent a busy day on the bookmobile, delivering good cheer and great reads to even the library’s most far-flung patrons. But Minnie is still up for the nighttime festivities, eager to show off her little town to her visiting niece, Katrina. But then, during the grand finale of the fireworks display, Katrina discovers a body. Minnie recognizes the victim as one of the bookmobile’s most loyal patrons. And she knows she–and Eddie–will have to get to the bottom of this purr-fect crime.
When I read this, I don’t think I was in the mood for a mystery. I wasn’t in love with it, but I still think it is a good book. I’ll have to reread it again in the future.
The Hero of Hope Springs by Maisey Yates
For as long as brooding cowboy Ryder Daniels has known Sammy Marshall, she has been his sunshine. Her free spirit and bright smile saved him after the devastating loss of his parents and gave him the strength to care for his orphaned family. Only Ryder knows how vulnerable Sammy is, so he’s kept his attraction for his best friend under wraps for years. But what Sammy’s asking for now might be a step too far… Something has been missing from Sammy’s life, and she thinks she knows what it is. Deciding she wants a baby is easy; realizing she wants her best friend to be the father is…complicated. Especially when a new heat between them sparks to life! When Sammy discovers she’s pregnant, Ryder makes it clear he wants it all. But having suffered the fallout of her parents’ disastrous relationship, Sammy is wary of letting Ryder too close. This cowboy will have to prove he’s proposing out of more than just honor…
I love Maisey Yates’ books. This wasn’t my favorite but I still really loved it. I am a sucker for a friends to lovers trope and this one definitely had it.
Those are all the books I read this month! I’m participating in a readathon next month so I’m hoping to get all the books I chose for it read. Thank you so much for reading! Until next time.