3 Books to Read This Summer
Happy Saturday!
I hope you are having a great week so far!
Mine has been ok. Working from home is great until the technology stops working. Then it’s just extremely frustrating. Luckily I had my new meditation practice to fall back on when I was getting angry at my computer haha.
Today I am sharing three books you should read this summer.
It’s winter here, but I still associate the month of August with the summer, just like December will always be winter in my mind. And as the days start to get shorter, you’ll want to hang on to summer for just a little longer. These are the perfect summer books to read while lounging by the pool and sipping on an icy cocktail. They are all new this season and I rated them at least 4/5.
Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner
What it’s about:
Six years after the fight that ended their friendship, Daphne Berg is shocked when Drue Cavanaugh walks back into her life, looking as lovely and successful as ever, with a massive favor to ask. Daphne hasn’t spoken one word to Drue in all this time—she doesn’t even hate-follow her ex-best friend on social media—so when Drue asks if she will be her maid-of-honor at the society wedding of the summer, Daphne is rightfully speechless.
Drue was always the one who had everything—except the ability to hold onto friends. Meanwhile, Daphne’s no longer the same self-effacing sidekick she was back in high school. She’s built a life that she loves, including a growing career as a plus-size Instagram influencer. Letting glamorous, seductive Drue back into her life is risky, but it comes with an invitation to spend a weekend in a waterfront Cape Cod mansion. When Drue begs and pleads and dangles the prospect of cute single guys, Daphne finds herself powerless as ever to resist her friend’s siren song.
Why you should read it:
I listened to the audiobook and loved it! The synopsis doesn’t give away a major plot point but a bit of mystery comes into the story. It is a fun book with a bit of fashion, friendship, and of course some summer romance.
One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London
What it’s about:
Bea Schumacher is a devastatingly stylish plus-size fashion blogger who has amazing friends, a devoted family, legions of Insta followers—and a massively broken heart. Like the rest of America, Bea indulges in her weekly obsession: the hit reality show Main Squeeze. The fantasy dates! The kiss-off rejections! The surprising amount of guys named Chad! But Bea is sick and tired of the lack of body diversity on the show. Since when is being a size zero a prerequisite for getting engaged on television?
Just when Bea has sworn off dating altogether, she gets an intriguing call: Main Squeeze wants her to be its next star, surrounded by men vying for her affections. Bea agrees, on one condition—under no circumstances will she actually fall in love. She’s in this to supercharge her career, subvert harmful beauty standards, inspire women across America, and get a free hot air balloon ride. That’s it.
But when the cameras start rolling, Bea realizes things are more complicated than she anticipated. She’s in a whirlwind of sumptuous couture, Internet culture wars, sexy suitors, and an opportunity (or two, or five) to find messy, real-life love in the midst of a made-for-TV fairy tale. In this joyful, wickedly observant debut, Bea has to decide whether it might just be worth trusting these men—and herself—for a chance to live happily ever after.
Why you should read it:
I didn’t even realise it, but there are some similarities with the book above. Both main characters are plus-size influencers who love fashion. This book is a take on the Bachelor, which was highly entertaining. I am missing my reality tv shows lately, and this was the perfect fix.
Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan
What it’s about:
The iconic author of the bestselling phenomenon Crazy Rich Asians returns with a glittering tale of love and longing as a young woman finds herself torn between two worlds--the WASP establishment of her father's family and George Zao, a man she is desperately trying to avoid falling in love with.**
On her very first morning on the jewel-like island of Capri, Lucie Churchill sets eyes on George Zao and she instantly can't stand him. She can't stand it when he gallantly offers to trade hotel rooms with her so that she can have the view of the Tyrrhenian Sea, she can't stand that he knows more about Curzio Malaparte than she does, and she really can't stand it when he kisses her in the darkness of the ancient ruins of a Roman villa and they are caught by her snobbish, disapproving cousin, Charlotte. "Your mother is Chinese so it's no surprise you'd be attracted to someone like him," Charlotte teases. Daughter of an American-born-Chinese mother and blue-blooded New York father, Lucie has always sublimated the Asian side of herself in favor of the white side, and she adamantly denies having feelings for George. But several years later, when George unexpectedly appears in East Hampton where Lucie is weekending with her new fiancé, Lucie finds herself drawn to George again. Soon, Lucy is spinning a web of deceit that involves her family, her fiancé, the co-op board of her Fifth Avenue apartment, and ultimately herself as she tries mightily to deny George entry into her world--and her heart. Moving between summer playgrounds of privilege, peppered with decadent food and extravagant fashion, Sex and Vanity is a truly modern love story, a daring homage to A Room with a View, and a brilliantly funny comedy of manners set between two cultures.
Why you should read it:
If you liked the movie Crazy, Rich, Asians, this book was written by the same author. It’s a nice glimpse into the lives of the fabulously rich. This book is set in Capri and New York City. I swear, after the first few pages I was dying to travel back to Capri. It had me pulling out my own pictures to reminisce about how beautiful it is. The outrageous characters are so enjoyable and I hope they make a movie out of this book too.