Caroline's Book Club: Beach Day Favs

    July’s book club has the perfect picks for days spent under the sunshine! Some of the most popular books of the year combined with some hidden gems make this month’s top five a must-read!

#1: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
Colleen Hoover is everywhere! Her books are simply amazing and It Ends With Us carries on her spectacular storytelling. This novel deals with a heavy topic: spousal abuse. Both beautiful and heartbreaking, poignant and at some points, laugh out loud funny, It Ends With Us tells Lily’s story. Her past weaved with her present leads to her future as Lily and the reader learn that survival is possible when life seems bleak. That people are not shades of black and white. That the human spirit cannot be broken as long as we have the courage to just keep swimming. I’m telling you: this is a book that you don’t want to miss.

#2: A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross
You know those books that you put off for weeks, months, or possibly years? And then you pick it up to find that it’s easily one of the best things you’ve ever read? That’s this book. Rebecca Ross is truly a master with words as her fictional world comes alive around you. I found myself captivated within fifty pages and managed to finish the whole thing start to finish in five hours. After which, I was emotionally drained but you know, that’s just a minor side effect. Filled with magic, music, mystery, multi-dimensional characters, and a fabulously subtle romance subplot, A River Enchanted is a title that should be found on every bookshelf.

#3; One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
Rebecca Serle does the impossible once more! Following the bestselling success of In Five Years, one of my personal favorite authors writes the perfect summer beach read, set in the beautiful costal city of Positano. This book had me in all the feels. I was laughing, crying, yelling, annoyed, and amazed. Sometimes all at once. Try experiencing that. It is DRAINING. But so so worth it because this book is perfectly perfect. As readers are taken through the stunning streets of Positano and the breathtaking views of the Italian coast, Rebecca Serle shows us that happiness is possible in even the heaviest grief. That the people who leave us are never truly gone. After all, the human soul is eternal.

#4: Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
This novel was far from what I expected. Coming of age meets Native American culture meets epic undercover thriller. All in under four hundred pages. I. Loved. It. There were so many twists, some great one-liners, and wonderful characters (both good guys and bad guys). Fueled by grief and something more spiritual, Firekeeper’s Daughter will keep you wondering until the very last page. And that’s a literal promise. The end had me in a rollercoaster of thoughts. It’s so good and you need to read it because I need people to talk to.

#5: The Better Sister by Alafair Burke
Do not be fooled by the cover, This book is far from simple. The phrase, “Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead” never hit more true than with The Better Sister. A murder, an affair, a trial, a desperate last resort, and tons more drama, make this novel a true suspense story. I mean wait until you find out that the main character marries her sister’s ex-husband and is…..opps, maybe I should stop while I’m ahead. From start to finish, Alafaiir Burke weaves a truly twisted tale. Are the good ones actually evil? Have the evil ones only been painted that way? Read it and see!

I hope July’s book club gave you some refreshed ideas for what to put in your beach day tote! Let me know if you read any because some of these are truly awesome. Until next time!