THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY TRILOGY: JENNY HAN

For me the books that best encapsulate the feeling of summer is The Summer I turned Pretty series. When I read them for the first time last year they kept me up late and woke me up early. A lot of books keep me up late, but a very small few wake me up early.

I just spent the last couple of days reading them again to kick off the summer spirit. And one thing I realized is how much I love the first book. It wasn’t my favorite the first time, but after you know how the books end the first book gets much better. Also I wish that there were actually four books to this series, but I’ll take what I can get. 

BOOK BLURB FOR BOOK ONE:

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.

Even though I am older I still relate to the story, because the idea that my daughter might fall in love with one of my best friend's boys is one of my greatest dreams. (For now at four she says: I can't marry them, they are my boys!) I would love to share grand-babies with my best friend, so that is one of the reasons I love these books. But most of all I love all the love.

If you haven't read these yet, I tell you...you MUST. Seek them out for your ultimate fluffy summer romance, I doubt you will be disappointed.

Here is the first book on Goodreads.

SOMETHING LIKE NORMAL: TRISH DOLLER

Everywhere you look you will find praise for this book and it is certainly well earned. I, personally could not put it down, and that surprised me. I never would chose to read about a Marine coming home from Afghanistan, it just seems too somber for me. But even though this book deals with a heavy subject, it still has a lightness and hope throughout. In my opinion, hope in a book like this is always a mark of a well written story. On top of all that, I don’t think there is one serviceman who would not find truth is this book.

BOOK BLURB:

When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.

The language is a bit harsh at times, but I felt it was spot on boy/soldier talk. Read more about it HERE.

I received this read on NetGalley for a fair review.

FREE BOOK! THE VINCENT BOYS

I haven't read this, but plan to. I am just passing on the news that it is free today on Amazon. Go HERE and get it.

I'VE GOT YOUR NUMBER: SOPHIE KINSELLA

Sophie Kinsella is kind of hit and miss with me, so I wasn't super on the case to read this right away. Honestly, I am not sure what made me decide to pick this up, but I am so glad I did. I loved it. I found myself giggling my way through it, and from the beginning there were moments my daughter asked: "What is so funny mom?" This book a typical romantic comedy WITHOUT being a typical romantic comedy. How did Kinsella do that? 

The plot is unique and has twists and turns that keep you frantically turning the pages. You can kind of hope you know where the story is going, but you are not sure. Also, there are no trashy obligatory love scenes, and the book is better for it. The whole thing reads like a movie, and I won't be shocked to see a movie version of this in theaters in a few years.

This kept me up late (easy), and woke me up early (not easy).

BOOK BLURB:

I've lost it. The only thing in the world I wasn't supposed to lose. My engagement ring. It's been in Magnus's family for three generations. And now, the very same day his parents are coming, I've lost it. The very same day. Do not hyperventilate, Poppy. Stay positive!!

Poppy Wyatt has never felt luckier. She is about to marry the ideal man, Magnus Tavish, but in one afternoon her 'happy ever after' begins to fall apart. Not only has she lost her engagement ring but in the panic that followed, she has now lost her phone. As she paces shakily round the hotel foyer she spots an abandoned phone in a bin. Finders keepers! Now she can leave a number for the hotel to contact her when they find her ring. Perfect!

Well, perfect except the phone's owner, businessman Sam Roxton doesn't agree. He wants his phone back and doesn't appreciate Poppy reading all his messages and wading into his personal life.

What ensues is a hilarious and unpredictable turn of events as Poppy and Sam increasingly upend each other's lives through emails and text messages. As Poppy juggles wedding preparations, mysterious phone calls and hiding her left hand from Magnus and his parents... she soon realises that she is in for the biggest surprise of her life.

At first I was worried that I might find Poppy as exasperating as the heroine in the Shopoholic books, but that was not the case. Check out more about this book HERE.

UNBREAK MY HEART: MELISSA WALKER

Before I talk about Unbreak My Heart, I would like to take a second and tell you why I adore Melissa Walker. I have now read all of her books, and one thing I love about her is that her heroine is always so different. Walker’s signature voice is definitely there, but each girl is so well thought out and full of real-ness it is hard not to fall in love with each of them. (My personal favorite being Violet from Melissa’s Violet on the Runway series.) I definitely have a girl crush on Melissa. Why? Because some authors just feel like the get you. How can I not love an author who references one of my favorite songs of all time (Billy Bragg’s Must I Paint You A Picture), and one of my secret favorite songs of all time (Taylor Swifts You Belong With Me) in the same book? So you see, I obviously have a sweet spot in my heart for this author.

Naturally, Unbreak My Heart was my most anticipated summer read. Being greatly anticipated can be hard on a book. It is always so much harder to win over a reader who is too excited for her own good to finally get that book in her hands.

But of course Melissa won my heart again. This book isn’t sending out any strong important messages about the world (except of course forgiveness and love), mostly it is just a sweet story about a girl who doesn’t have the biggest problem in the world, but her problem is big to her. The voice is honest and sweet and just like many in the blog world are saying, it is the perfect summer read.

BOOK BLURB:

Sophomore year broke Clementine Williams’ heart. She fell for her best friend’s boyfriend and long story short: he’s excused, but Clem is vilified and she heads into summer with zero social life.

Enter her parents’ plan to spend the summer on their sailboat. Normally the idea of being stuck on a tiny boat with her parents and little sister would make Clem break out in hives, but floating away sounds pretty good right now.

Then she meets James at one of their first stops along the river. He and his dad are sailing for the summer and he’s just the distraction Clem needs. Can he break down Clem’s walls and heal her broken heart?

Read more about this book HERE. And be sure to check out more of Melissa Walker's books too. They are all great! 

DEBUT AUTHOR GIVEAWAY HOP: SIGNED COPY OF EVERNEATH

 

I absolutely loved my last giveaway hop. I asked blog readers to share with me their most recent favorite reads in the comments and I added a ton of books to my Goodreads list, it was awesome. So thank you for all of your favorites.

For this giveaway I am thrilled to offer my last signed copy of Brodi Aston's Everneath. This is by far my favorite debut author book of 2012. Everneath is an amazing read, plus Brodi is just plain awesome, hilarious, and nice. I worked really hard to get this book signed since I got it at her book release party and I was crazy crowded. (For my pictures from that night go HERE. See if you can spot authors Sara Zarr, Emily Wing Smith, and Bree Despain in the photos.)

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