Summer Smarty Reading: Best books I’ve read lately

Now, I know most of us don’t have TONS of free reading time in the summer because summer is a mom’s busy season – not always a time for R&R. But, maybe you get to sneak a few minutes alone on your beach trip; maybe your kids are avid swimmers now and allow you to read a page or two before looking up; maybe the extra daylight hours are enabling you to get a few more minutes of reading time; maybe you’re like me, and you’re totally obsessed with reading – even if it’s just one paragraph before you hear screams from another room. If you fall into one of these categories and are searching for a new book this summer, here are some I’ve read recently that I’ve really enjoyed (in no particular order!). Can you tell my favorite genre is historical fiction?!

And, if you haven’t joined Goodreads yet, do it! It’s the BEST social media site for book lovers. I can’t tell you how fun it is it pick books based on friends’ recommendations, and I love nothing more than seeing what friends think of their latest reads. Better than Facebook.

Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain – Set in a fictional county in North Carolina in the 1950s, this is historical fiction about the Eugenics program in North Carolina. It will shock you what was happening just one generation ago (for example women needed written permission from their husbands to get birth control pills – kinda unreal considering HIPAA today). Love this author – I’ve read several of her books, and they’re always good ones.

The Secret Life of Violet Grant by Beatriz Williams – Perfect beach read that flips between two time periods – the onset of WWI and the 1950s. Hope you love the two main characters as much as I did.

Calling Me Home by Julie Kibler – Toggles between the 1930s in Kentucky and present day in Texas, it’s about a forbidden romance between an inter-racial couple and an unlikely friendship between an elderly white woman and her young African American hairdresser. Partly heartbreaking (and frustrating!) and partly sweet, it’s another one of those that will amaze you that it happened in our grandparents’ generation.

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty – You’ll be searching for letters mysteriously marked with your name on the envelope. Just a delicious beach read by the same author as another good one, What Alice Forgot.

Glitter and Glue by Kelly Corrigan – A memoir by an author whose writing style I truly admire. If you’ve read The Middle Place and enjoyed it, you’ll love this one about Corrigan’s relationship with her mother. I related on just about every level with this one.

Murder in the Yoga Store by Peter Ross Range – A true story that will make your jaw drop. I listened to this one on Audible – it’s a super quick read that seems like a soap opera, but nope, it actually happened.

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd – If you liked The Kitchen House, read this. It’s better. Based on a real family from Charleston, it’s historical fiction about a white girl and her black house maid. It’s sad and uplifting at the same time.

The Aviator’s Wife by Melanie Benjamin – One of my all-time favorite books. Historical fiction about Charles Lindbergh’s wife. I learned so much and absolutely loved the writing.

Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottoline – Although you’ll want to strangle the main character through much of the book, I put this on my list because it’s just a perfect beach read. I really didn’t know what would happen until the very end. Check out more from this author if you like a page turner.

I would love to know what your latest favorites are – put them in the comment section below!