Blog Feed

Hello and happy Thursday!

Well, I don’t love that June is wrapping up, but I do always love sharing the books I read.

This month, I listened to two books and read one on my Kindle:

{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}

All the Summers in Between:

Summary:

When wealthy, impulsive summer girl Margot meets hardworking and steady local girl Thea in the summer of 1967, the unlikely pair become fast friends, working alongside one another in a record store and spending every spare moment together. But after an unspeakable incident on one devastating August night, they don’t see one another for ten years…until Margot suddenly reappears in Thea’s life, begging for help and harboring more than one dangerous secret. Thea can’t bring herself to refuse her beloved friend—but she also knows she can’t fully trust her either.

Unfulfilled as a housewife, Thea enjoys the dazzling sense of adventure Margot brings to her life, but will the truth of what happened to them that fateful summer ruin everything? Testing the boundaries of how far she’ll go for a friend, Thea is forced to reckon with her uncertain future while trying to decide if some friends are meant to remain in the past.

Quick Thoughts:

This was one of the two books that I listened to, and I loved this one. The two main characters, Thea and Margot, are very different which I think hooked me from the beginning. I also like when books bounce back and forth between time periods. The time span was only ten years in between 1967 and 1977, and that actually took me a second to pick up on since I was listening to it. Lots of life happened in those ten years, but I’m used to reading books that bounce between bigger periods of time.

This book was filled with friendship, summer, and mystery. The Hamptons setting was also a bonus point for me.

Rating:

One Golden Summer:

Summary:

Good things happen at the lake. That’s what Alice’s grandmother says, and it’s true. Alice spent just one summer there at a cottage with Nan when she was seventeen—it’s where she took that photo, the one of three grinning teenagers in a yellow speedboat, the image that changed her life.

Now Alice lives behind a lens. As a photographer, she’s most comfortable on the sidelines, letting other people shine. Lately though, she’s been itching for something more, and when Nan falls and breaks her hip, Alice comes up with a plan for them both: another summer in that magical place, Barry’s Bay. But as soon as they settle in, their peace is disrupted by the roar of a familiar yellow boat, and the man driving it.

Charlie Florek was nineteen when Alice took his photo from afar. Now he’s all grown up—a shameless flirt, who manages to make Nan laugh and Alice long to be seventeen again, when life was simpler, when taking pictures was just for fun. Sun-slanted days and warm nights out on the lake with Charlie are a balm for Alice’s soul, but when she looks up and sees his piercing green gaze directly on her, she begins to worry for her heart.

Because Alice sees people—that’s why she is so good at what she does—but she’s never met someone who looks and sees her right back.

Quick Thoughts:

This is the fourth Carley Fortune book that I’ve read. I looked back and I’ve read each of her books every summer since 2022.

One thing I liked about this book is that there were minimal characters to keep up with. The lake setting, like all her books, is perfect for summer. Charlie and Alice both seem similar, but they have their differences too…those tend to develop as the plot goes on. I thought it was sweet that Alice headed to the lake with her grandma and that she was a minor, but sweet character. There’s lots of romance with some R rated parts, but this was a great summer read.

Rating:

Bad Summer People:

Summary:

None of them would claim to be a particularly good person. But who among them is actually capable of murder?

Jen Weinstein and Lauren Parker rule the town of Salcombe, Fire Island every summer. They hold sway on the beach and the tennis court, and are adept at manipulating people to get what they want. Their husbands, Sam and Jason, have summered together on the island since childhood, despite lifelong grudges and numerous secrets. Their one single friend, Rachel Woolf, is looking to meet her match, whether he’s the tennis pro-or someone else’s husband. But even with plenty to gossip about, this season starts out as quietly as any other.
Until a body is discovered, face down off the side of the boardwalk.

Quick Thoughts:

This was the other book that I listened to. My first thoughts were: these people are bad…privileged and bad. haha

There were quite a few characters to keep up with, but since I was listening to it, I think that’s why it was a bit of a pet peeve. The plot had a little bit of mystery and quite a few tennis references.

Rating:

I give it 4 stars for a summer book, but I’d probably rate it lower for just average reading.

Summer Reading Update:

Well, I’ve read one third of the books on my list! That’s pretty good…

• Read: All the Summers in Between, One Golden Summer, Bad Summer People
• Just started: Maine Characters and The Summer Book Club are on my Kindle, and I have The Comeback Summer downloaded to listen to on Libby.
• Library wait-list: Summer Light on Nantucket, Seven Summers and Beach House Rules* (*I love KWH books, so I might buy this one is July)

This time last year, I’d read way more in June…but we’d also gone on our vacation to the PNW. Maybe July will be a bigger reading month for me.

Happy reading,