I’ve been reading the best books lately! And today, I’m going to share my thoughts on the ones I read in May and June. There’s a little bit of everything, from chick lit and beach reads to historical fiction and suspense. Hopefully I’ll inspire you to pick up a new book to read by the pool, at the beach, or just lounging on your deck at home. Here are my latest reads, in no particular order.
Emily Henry’s latest release, Book Lovers, is absolutely adorable. Of all of her books, this one is my favorite. Here’s the premise. A high-powered literary agent, Nora, and her pregnant sister, Libby, go on vacation to a small, North Carolina town where Libby attempts to convince Nora to become the heroine of her own small-town love story. She even creates a bucket list for the two of them to complete while there. When they arrive, Nora runs into her nemesis, Charlie, a brooding book editor. Like any good Hallmark movie, life keeps throwing Charlie and Nora together in a variety of circumstances that leads to, well, read the book and you’ll find out 😉 This one is a quick, fun read that I couldn’t put down.
I love Sally Hepworth’s books! They have the right amount of suspense to keep you on your toes without being too predictable. In The Younger Wife, Heather is engaged to Stephen, a successful heart surgeon with two adult daughters and a wife who he needs to divorce. Tully and Rachel, the daughters, think Heather is an interloper. Their mother is suffering from dementia and keeps making odd, harsh claims about her husband. Heather begins questioning if she really knows Stephen at all. And everyone in the book has a secret they are keeping from everyone else. It’s full of suspense and family secrets that will keep you up late to see how it all ends.
I’m not really a James Patterson fan, but when I heard that he co-wrote Run Rose Run with Dolly Parton, I knew I had to pick it up. And I’m so glad I did! It’s a story about Annie Lee Keyes, a girl with a dream of becoming a country star. Annie Lee heads to Nashville to escape a terrible situation. A famous country star takes Annie Lee under the wing, opening doors and giving her the chance to become a star. But throughout the book, you know Annie Lee is running from something – you just don’t know what that something is. As she becomes more famous, the situation becomes more dangerous for her. I flew through this story, staying up late to see how it ended. A definite must-read in my book!
This little novelette was a quick, fun read. It’s a follow-up to 28 Summers and features some of the same characters, including Mallory’s “same time next year” Jake and Mallory’s brother Cooper. After his girlfriend dumps him, Cooper convinces Jake to return to Nantucket in 2023 to relive the Labor Day weekend when Cooper felt everything started to go wrong. If you need a short beach read, grab this one.
The Diamond Eye is the most serious, intense book I read recently. It’s historical fiction, but it’s based on a true story of a Ukrainian female sniper during World War II. Lyudmila Pavlichenko (Mila) joins the Red Army when Germany attacks Russia and becomes renowned for her sharpshooting skills, killing over 300 Nazi soldiers. When her tally makes her a national heroine, Russian leaders send her to Washington, DC on a goodwill mission. She befriends First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, but even far from the Russian battlefields, she isn’t safe. Mila is a mother, a national hero, and a woman who suffers great loss and heartache. Read it. It’s worth it.
The Paris Apartment is my book club’s pick for our next meeting. It’s a suspenseful thriller and I loved every twist and turn and I can’t wait to hear what everyone else thinks. Jess shows up at her half-brother’s apartment in Paris only to find him missing. Jess senses that something is very wrong and sets out to find Ben. His neighbors claim they haven’t seen him, but Jess knows each one of them is hiding something that will lead her to her brother. The story twists and turns, with some twists I didn’t see coming (just like Lucy Foley’s last book, The Guest List).
That was a lot of great books! July is starting out strong as well, so be sure to come back next month to see what I read. And if you have any suggestions, drop them in the comments!