I returned from our annual summer vacation in Rhode Island last week – the best time of the year when I do the most reading! Although I did not spend quite as much time there as I have in previous years, I still was able to finish five books (and start a sixth) because they were all so good. I’m excited to share these excellent reads with you!
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
“It’s not about the time. It’s about how you spend it.” What a beautiful novel by Emma Straub. Alice Stern is turning 40 and trying to cope with her father Leonard’s illness. Leonard is the author of the famous book, Time Brothers, and raised his only daughter. When Alice mysteriously goes back in time to her sixteenth birthday, she finds herself stunned by her father’s youth, and considers whether she can or should change what’s to come. This book explores the relationship between a parent and child, coping with life’s challenges, considering and questioning one’s decisions, appreciating and savoring moments, and making the time to love others. It is a moving journey to read, and had me thinking about my own life, the decisions I make, and the little moments of love throughout. I highly recommend it.
The Lost Summers of Newport by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White
I always loved Beatriz Williams’s historical fiction (I had not read the other two authors), so I was prepared to enjoy this one and – yes! I did. Another wonderful book. This was especially perfect to read while in Rhode Island. The story spans three time periods and alternates between the narration of Andie Figuero, host of a reality show that restores historical homes – their latest project, Newport’s crumbling Sprague Hall – in 2019; Ellen Daniels, a woman running away from her past who is hired by John Sprague to give music lessons to his sister and heiress Maybelle, with the purpose of preparing her to marry an Italian prince, in 1899; and Lucky Sprague, granddaughter of the Principessa Di Conti, married not-so-happily to Stuyvesant Sprague in 1957. I loved reading the perspective of all three women. As each story unveils, we learn about the Sprague family’s secrets and why they have wanted them hidden for so long. There’s family drama, romance, tragedy, mystery, and surprises. Read this on the beach, or anywhere this summer; you’ll love it!
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
I absolutely loved this one! Nora Stephens, a literary agent in New York City, somewhat reluctantly travels to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina with Libby for a sisters’ getaway. Libby has high hopes for this trip, complete with a list of small-town activities for the work- and city-obsessed Nora. While there, Nora unexpectedly runs into Charlie Lastra, an NYC editor she does not favor. But as they continue bumping into each other, their relationship begins to shift during Nora’s stay. I have honestly never enjoyed a romance as much as this one and was so pleasantly surprised by its relatability and originality. I loved Nora and Charlie as characters – both intelligent, kind, loyal, and misunderstood – and reading the story from Nora’s perspective. The bucolic setting and shops in town added charm and humor to the story as well. And all the book talk was a plus! It had me feeling all the feels. Read this one!
Unlikely Animals by Annie Hartnett
I loved this charming, quirky read! The story takes place in the small town of Everton, New Hampshire. Emma Starling is returning home to her parents and brother after dropping out of medical school in California. Her father, Clive, has a mysterious brain disease in which he hallucinates animals and receives visits from the ghost of Ernest Harold Baynes, a naturalist and lover of wild animals. Meanwhile, Clive has become obsessed with finding the missing Crystal Nash, Emma’s former best friend. This book is different for sure; the narrators are, in fact, souls in the town’s graveyard who care for and keep watch over the living residents. There is so much humor and charm, and the characters are funny and lovable. I definitely recommend it!
We Run the Tides by Vendela Vida
This was such an engaging, fascinating story. Thirteen-year-old Eulabee lives in the Sea Cliff neighborhood of San Francisco and walks to school each day with her best friend Maria Fabiola and their friends Julia and Faith. These girls feel like they own the streets – there’s a sense of entitlement, that they could get away with anything. Eulabee and her friends have a falling out after seeing something potentially disturbing on the way to school and disagree about what really happened, causing Eulabee to be completely ostracized. Their community and lives are then unsettled when Maria Fabiola suddenly disappears in what could be a kidnapping. The book explores friendships, loneliness, honesty, communities, all the feelings of being young, and is a gripping read though the very end.
Austenland by Shannon Hale
My mom discovered this short, silly read in the bookcase of our Rhode Island house (neither of us knows how it got there)! After finishing the other books I’d brought with me on vacation, I decided to start reading it for fun on our last day and the plane ride home, and finished it last week. This book is about Jane Hayes, a graphic designer living in New York City who is obsessed with Jane Austen, and in particular, the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth (and really, who doesn’t love it?). Jane has always secretly dreamed of finding her very own Mr. Darcy. When her Aunt Carolyn passes away and leaves Jane a three-week stay in Pembrook Park – a theatrical immersive resort set in Regency-era England, where one must play and act the part – Jane has the chance to either finally find Darcy or to cure herself of this obsession for good. As mentioned, this book is short and very silly, but good light entertainment. It’s a bit outlandish, and Jane is kind of a chaotic narrator, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
What books have you enjoyed reading this summer?
P.S. Last year’s beach reads.
