There’s still a month left of summer (only a month?!?) and I wanted to do one last entry in my Summer Book Series. There’s not much of a theme for this summer list, but I did try to not feature books that I’ve previously posted about on here before. Honestly, most of my favorites are in my first summer book post highlighting Sarah Dessen, Emery Lord, and Morgan Matson, but here are a few of my other favorites.
The Summer I Turned Pretty Series by Jenny Han
This Jenny Han’s series is everything you want in a summer romance. The books—The Summer I Turned Pretty, It’s Not Summer Without You, and We’ll Always Have Summer—follows two families who spend their summers at the beach. Our main character Belly juggles between her feelings between two brothers, Conrad and Jeremiah as she grows older and becomes more independent. Going back and looking at this series really makes me have the urge to reread it.
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
I may have talked about this book before, but that’s just because it’s one of my all-time favorites. Talk about a punch in the gut! This was one of those reading experiences where I got to the big twist, and full-on threw my book across the room. The Sinclairs own an Island near Martha’s Vineyard that they visit every summer. When our main character Cadence suffers an accident when she’s 15, she’s no longer allowed to go back to the island and see her cousins. She finally returns a few years later and as the summer carries on, she starts to remember what really happened during that accident.
My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
This book is a quintessential summer romance. Boy with a crazy hectic family lives next door to a girl who’s family is the complete opposite. Sparks fly, and they fall in love. It’s fun and fluffy, but still holds a lot of heart. Fitzpatrick’s other book, What I Thought Was True, is another great summer read.
Fireworks by Katie Cotugno
Katie Cotugno writes great summer novels—I’ve covered both 99 Days and 9 Days and 9 Nights on this blog before—and Fireworks is no exception. Set in ’90s Orlando, we follow two best friends as they compete to become the new IT girl pop star. As a child of the 90’s, I loved the nostalgia feel. I also really loved the focus on the friendship, especially the competition and jealousy that can make or break a relationship.
Summer Days and Summer Nights by Stephanie Perkins
A short story collection filled with summer love stories ranging from fantasy to contemporary. Stories brought to you by: Leigh Bardugo, Francesca Lia Block, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Brandy Colbert, Tim Federle, Lev Grossman, Nina LaCour, Stephanie Perkins, Veronica Roth, Jon Skovron, and Jennifer E. Smith.
How to Make a Wish by Ashley Herring Blake
I continually talk about how great this book—and this author—is and I will never stop. This beautiful story about a girl with an unstable home life is pulled into an extremely emotionally charged relationship with a new girl in town. It’s beautiful and you will most likely cry.
Alex, Approximately by Jen Bennett
Internet dating? Film geeks? Hate-to-love trope a la You’ve Got Mail? I love it! Bailey moves to a California beach town that happens to be the same town where her internet crush lives. She starts working at a local tourist attraction, where she meets Porter—the security guard that drives her crazy. I think you know where this is going…
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
If you haven’t heard of this book then you’re obviously living under a rock. This is a really sweet book about a girl named Dimple attending a summer program for web programers. To her great surprise, her “future husband” is attending the same program and they both have very different opinions on this whole arranged marriage deal. They start to get to know each other as they are picked to be partners for a summer long project. This book is a wonderful rom-com that definitely lives up to the hype.
Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy
This is actually my favorite Julie Murphy book. I could not put it down, and yet I never wanted it to end. Ramona is a proud lesbian who is the glue of her family: handling a flighty mom, a well-intentioned father, and a pregnant sister. Everything gets more confusing when her childhood friend Freddie returns to town. As she starts to fall for her old best friend, Ramona begins to question the one thing she was sure of—her sexuality. This book is absolutely beautiful.
Other Fantastic Books:
Dress Codes for Small Towns by Courtney Stevens
Girl Out of Water by Laura Silverman
Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
The Way You Make Me Feel – Maurene Goo
Stay Sweet – Sioban Vivian
Basically anything by Kasie West
While I know I should be focused on reading books on my TBR, making this list made me really nostalgic and now I just want to reread all of these books!
Lindsay Glenne 