What I’ve Been Reading: August 2023

Hello!

I can’t believe that August is almost over…and with that, “summer reading” is just about over for me. Today, I’m sharing the books I read this month.

I started off strong with reading while I was in California. I finished one book on the plane, read another book in 24 hours while there, started a book, and then read a novella while on the plane. Then, I finished a book right around the time school started. Since school has started, I just haven’t had as much time…and can barely keep my eyes open at night.

I had a really good month of reading though…poolside, oceanside, and in the car!

Here are the books I read this month:

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

Five-Star Weekend:

Summary:

After tragedy strikes, Hollis Shaw gathers four friends from different stages in her life to spend an unforgettable weekend on Nantucket.

Hollis Shaw’s life seems picture-perfect. She’s the creator of the popular food blog Hungry with Hollis and is married to Matthew, a dreamy heart surgeon. But after she and Matthew get into a heated argument one snowy morning, he leaves for the airport and is killed in a car accident. The cracks in Hollis’s perfect life—her strained marriage and her complicated relationship with her daughter, Caroline—grow deeper.

So when Hollis hears about something called a “Five-Star Weekend”—one woman organizes a trip for her best friend from each phase of her life: her teenage years, her twenties, her thirties, and midlife—she decides to host her own Five-Star Weekend on Nantucket. But the weekend doesn’t turn out to be a joyful Hallmark movie.

The husband of Hollis’s childhood friend Tatum arranges for Hollis’s first love, Jack Finigan, to spend time with them, stirring up old feelings. Meanwhile, Tatum is forced to play nice with abrasive and elitist Dru-Ann, Hollis’s best friend from UNC Chapel Hill. Dru-Ann’s career as a prominent Chicago sports agent is on the line after her comments about a client’s mental health issues are misconstrued online. Brooke, Hollis’s friend from their thirties, has just discovered that her husband is having an inappropriate relationship with a woman at work. Again! And then there’s Gigi, a stranger to everyone (including Hollis) who reached out to Hollis through her blog. Gigi embodies an unusual grace and, as it hap- pens, has many secrets.

Quick Thoughts:

I think this is my fave EH book to date. This was the book I read in Cali in 24 hours! I loved the premise, the different friendships and of course the Nantucket setting. It was the perfect summer book to read.

Rating:

FIVE stars for the Five-Star Weekend.

Hello Beautiful:

Summary:

An emotionally layered and engrossing story of a family that asks: Can love make a broken person whole?

William Waters grew up in a house silenced by tragedy, where his parents could hardly bear to look at him, much less love him. So it’s a relief when his skill on the basketball court earns him a scholarship to college, far away from his childhood home. He soon meets Julia Padavano, a spirited and ambitious young woman who surprises William with her appreciation of his quiet steadiness. With Julia comes her family; she is inseparable from her three younger sisters: Sylvie, the dreamer, is happiest with her nose in a book and imagines a future different from the expected path of wife and mother; Cecelia, the family’s artist; and Emeline, who patiently takes care of all of them. Happily, the Padavanos fold Julia’s new boyfriend into their loving, chaotic household.

But then darkness from William’s past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia’s carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters’ unshakeable loyalty to one another. The result is a catastrophic family rift that changes their lives for generations. Will the loyalty that once rooted them be strong enough to draw them back together when it matters most?

Quick Thoughts:

Wow! This book hooked me from the first page. It might be a top contender for the books I read this year. There are complicated relationships with many layers – sisters and marriage, love, death and everything in between. This is a story I think that I will always remember.

Rating:

The Sixth Wedding:

Summary:

A sequel to 28 Summers – Jake McCloud returns to Nantucket for Labor Day weekend 2023, this time without Mallory.

Quick Thoughts:

This short novella is a postscript to 28 Summers which is one of my favorite EH books. As I read it, I realized that it was in Endless Summer that I read in July. Now, I’m not sure if it was all in Endless Summer, but I knew that major parts of it sounded familiar. That being said, it was the perfect quick read on the plane, and I loved reading about these friends being reunited for Labor Day weekend.

Rating:

Hotel Laguna:

Summary:

In 1942, Hazel Francis left Wichita, Kansas for California, determined to do her part for the war effort. At Douglas Aircraft, she became one of many “Rosie the Riveters,” helping construct bombers for the U. S. military. But now the war is over, men have returned to their factory jobs, and women like Hazel have been dismissed, expected to return home to become wives and mothers.

Unwilling to be forced into a traditional woman’s role in the Midwest, Hazel remains on the west coast, and finds herself in the bohemian town of Laguna Beach. Desperate for work, she accepts a job as an assistant to famous artist Hanson Radcliff. Beloved by the locals for his contributions to the art scene and respected by the critics, Radcliff lives under the shadow of a decades old scandal that haunts him.

Working hard to stay on her cantankerous employer’s good side, Hazel becomes a valued member of the community. She never expected to fall in love with the rhythms of life in Laguna, nor did she expect to find a kindred spirit in Jimmy, the hotel bartender whose friendship promises something more. But Hazel still wants to work with airplanes—maybe even learn to fly one someday. Torn between pursuing her dream and the dream life she has been granted, she is unsure if giving herself over to Laguna is what her heart truly wants.

Quick Thoughts:

While we weren’t in Laguna Beach, I still thought it would be fun to start this book while in California. I love historical fiction, and this one didn’t disappoint! Hazel was such an amazing central character, and I loved the beach town setting. This is another favorite book of thesummer.

Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 stars

Summer Reading Update:

I had such a great summer of reading.

• Read: All the Days of Summer, Endless Summer, Meet Me at the Lake, Summer Stage, The Five-Star Weekend, Hotel Laguna
• Currently Reading: The Block Party
• Picked up from the library: The Summer of Songbirds

I’m enjoying The Block Party, and I will definitely finish it. I just haven’t had tons of time to do much of anything lately besides school and shuttling the kids everywhere they need to go. I’m not sure if I will go ahead and read The Summer of Songbirds or not. I definitely wan to, but I might save it for next summer?

What’s the best book you read this summer?