I have fond childhood memories of long summer afternoons spent reading. That is something I’d like to experience again this summer, especially since travel is off the agenda for awhile.
I’ve got an inflatable pool in my Amazon cart and I’m going to do my best to recreate the feeling of enjoying a good book on a beach. I might even play ocean sounds on our outdoor speaker.
At least once a week I’m going to take the afternoon off and immerse myself in a book. I’m also going to reinstitute something I used to do – Sundays Unplugged – and spend more time reading.
If extra reading is in the forecast for you this summer now is a good time to start filling up your Kindle. Here are some summer reads I’ve put on my reading list.
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10 Summer Reads
A young army vet, Michelle returns to the quaint Blackberry Island Inn to claim her inheritance and recover from the perils of war. Instead, she finds the owner’s suite occupied by the last person she wants to see.
Paris, 1940. With the city occupied by the Nazis, three young seamstresses go about their normal lives as best they can. But all three are hiding secrets.
The first in a three-book series.
When thirty-one-year-old Emmy Jamieson arrives at La Cour des Roses, a beautiful guesthouse in the French countryside, she can’t wait to spend two weeks relaxing with boyfriend Nathan. Their relationship needs a little TLC and Emmy is certain this holiday will do the trick. But they’ve barely unpacked before he scarpers with Gloria, the guesthouse owner’s cougar wife.
As three generations of women navigate the uncertain paths of their hearts and futures, one summer promises to bring change—whether they’re ready for it or not.
Moments after Lisbeth is born, she’s taken from her mother and handed over to an enslaved wet nurse, Mattie, a young mother separated from her own infant son in order to care for her tiny charge. Thus begins an intense relationship that will shape both of their lives for decades to come.
It has a sequel, too:
If this one is good it’s nice to know there are 5 more in the series.
Forced to take time off work, Reed Newman makes a spur-of-the-moment decision and books a trip to Belle Island, Florida. A surprising choice that goes against everything in the rigid, well-planned life he fills with constant activity to keep from dealing with his pain and guilt.
A memoir acclaimed as “reminiscent of The Best of Everything and Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (BookPage), Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart is the true story of two best friends experiencing the time of their lives in New York City during the summer of 1945.
First in a series of three.
Ivy Marin’s life implodes after discovering that her late husband had spent their life savings on a beach house. Strapped for cash as an art teacher and with nowhere to go, Ivy and her recently jilted sister head to Summer Beach to recreate their lives. If only renovating a historical home didn’t unveil a host of hidden secrets in the beachside community—and the mayor wasn’t her former high school crush.
This one is set in the French Quarter of New Orleans which is enough for me. AND at the time I’m writing this it’s FREE on Kindle.
Opening day of the Fleur-de-Lis Ladies Garden Club of the French Quarter gives fifty lucky women a chance to express their inner southern divas. As longtime member Stephanie Lewis steps into a luxurious condo to begin a new season of the garden club, she has no idea of the drama and life changes that await her.
It’s not a vacation for me without a Mary Kay Andrews book. I pick them up at our library used book sales and always bring one with me when we go to Belize. All of the rest of the books in this list are just a few dollars – most are $1.99. But I just might have to splurge on her newest one.
Conley Hawkins left her family’s small town newspaper, The Silver Bay Beacon, in the rearview mirror years ago. Now a star reporter for a big-city paper, Conley is exactly where she wants to be and is about to take a fancy new position in Washington, D.C. Or so she thinks.
Do any of those look good to you? Have you started a summer reading list yet? I’d love to know what you are reading. Let’s discuss good summer reads in the comments.
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Susan Mallory is a favorite of mine. I love romance, so I’m sure I’ll like them all. However, I also love fantasy. There is a series set in New Orleans, that plays on the vampire theme kind of in the Anne Rice genre. (That’s probably not a good comparison, because I don’t really like Anne Rice, but I LOVE these. They are by Faith Hunter. The first book in the series is called “Skinwalker”. The main character is a Native American woman named Jane Yellowrock. She comes to the French Quarter to work for the head vampire in the city. The woman that writes these (14, so far) May not be from NOLA, but she sure has spent some time there. Even in this crazy world she built, she manages to get the “flavor” of the city just right.
Ooh, I’ll have to check out that series. I’m really missing New Orleans so it would be good to at least experience in a book.
Think I will give Yellow Crocus a chance to make our book club list.
I’m really looking forward to reading it.
Sounds like a nice idea. Setting up a pool and playing ocean sounds so you can recreate the feeling of reading on the beach, I mean. Have fun!
I do sometimes create reading lists for certain times of the year, but right now I’m working my way through a few books I’ve been meaning to get to (currently reading the 7th “Outlander” book) so haven’t bothered to make a list beyond the one I made for books I want to read this year back at the end of December.
I really do want to read through the whole Outlander series start to finish but I think that will be my fall/winter project.