My Summer 2019 Reading Picks

My summer 2019 reading list is all of the books that I would definitely recommend for summer– or anytime– reading.  This post contains affiliate links.  

First, let me say that I purposely stayed away from a “summer beach reading” title.  Because if you are beach bound, that’s awesome, but what if you live in a landlocked state with no vacations in sight?  You don’t still need a reading list?  I’d argue that you need a reading list more, lol.  But somehow “summer lawn reading list” wasn’t quite as catchy, so this is a summer reading list for if you read on your lawn, in one-minute increments in between cleaning up crackers/cereal/snacks that somehow look like they’ve gone through a wood chipper instead of being eaten by a child.  So, wherever you read, hopefully you’ll find some good books to read this summer. Here’s the  list is in no particular order …

Book of the Month

So if you follow along you know that I’m a sucker for a subscription box.  Like if it comes in a box every month, I’ll probably go for it (coffee, lip products, fashion) and it turns out that books are no exception.  Book of the Month has absolutely changed the way I read.  I would get stuck in a rut on Kindle and not really know what to pick, never branch out and just read a Kindle free book to read something.  I read some good books, but not too many that I was on fire to give someone a recommendation and tell them to read it too.

With Book of the Month, every month they select five books for you.  You can choose one to make it your Book of the Month for just $15 for a beautiful hardcover book, plus add on other titles for just $10 (again a beautiful hardcover).  If none of the books appeal to you, you can pick from a previous month or just skip the month and your credit will roll over for another month.  Now I do love a subscription box but this service seriously changed my reading game.  It lead me to discover new authors and I’ve read books I probably never would have come across in the amazing, but overwhelming, selection that is Amazon.  If you’re interested in Book of the Month, my referral code is here but I’m also including the Amazon link to each of my picks below in case you’re just looking for one book, or are a Kindle only reader, etc.  Also, full disclosure, I LOVE reading, but I am not the best book synopsis writer out there, lol.  I’m not even in the top 500 of book synopsis writers.   I can feel what I want to say, but then I come across like a five-year-old telling a super long story at the end of which no one even knows what we’re talking about.   So as a favor to everyone reading,  I’m going to keep it super pared down.  Here are 10 of my last reads with a brief synopsis and score (in spoons, hehe) out of 10!

My Reading Picks

#1 The Woman in the Window

My rating: 

Very brief synopsis: A thriller with a slow build, but one of the twistiest endings ever.  I told my sister to call/text/tweet at me/@ my on Instagram — literally anything– the second she finished it so we could discuss it.  I’m still reeling to be honest.   Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#2 Nine Perfect Strangers

My rating: 

Very brief synopsis:  Let me just say that I’m a huge Liane Moriarty fan — What Alice Forgot is one of the best books I have ever read,  I loved Big Little Lies – it deserves any and all of the hype around it–and The Husband’s Secret was un-put-downable.    So suffice it to say that I couldn’t pick this  book fast enough when I saw it in my monthly book picks and expectations were high and it didn’t in any way disappoint.  It’s about nine strangers who come to a retreat and a mystery that ensues.  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#3 The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

My rating:

Very brief synopsis:  It’s an historical fiction following a Liz Taylor-esque protagonist through her seven marriages in old Hollywood.  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#4 Little Fires Everywhere

My rating:

Very brief synopsis:  It’s about a mother and daughter that move to a new town a befriend a family.  But that sounds like the snooziest tale in the world, and this was SO incredibly good — it’s not really a mystery or a drama or a thriller, per se, it was just amazingly compelling literature.   Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#5 Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance

My rating:

Very brief synopsis: This was a magical realism book — it’s not Harry Potter flashy and action-filled but it’s beautifully written, pulls you in and I didn’t want it to end.  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#6 The Clockmaker’s Daughter

My rating:

Very brief synopsis:  This is a hybrid of modern and historical fiction. It’s set in present day, but often jumps back into time.  A slow start to the action, but I enjoyed the world this author wrote about and towards the end I started ignoring chores in order to read just a few more pages!  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

 #7 The Dinner List

My rating:

Very brief synopsis:  This was my first ever book of the month pick!  It’s about what if you made a list of the five people, living or dead, that you would have dinner with and it actually came true.  Not a book I tore through, but I enjoyed it and thought about it quite a bit after.  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#8 Winter in Paradise

My rating:

Very brief synopsis:  This was my first Elin Hildebrand book, but I’m excited to have found this author.  Irene Steele’s life is seemingly perfect, until her husband dies in an accident and she uncovers an entire life he’s been living in secret.  Only drawback: this is the first in a trilogy, and the second book doesn’t come out to October 2019.  And it ends with a heck of a cliffhanger.  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#9 The Proposal

My rating:

Very brief synopsis: An easy romantic comedy read.  Not super deep, just a no-thinking needed romcom in book form.   Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

#10 The Last Time I Lied

My rating:

Very brief synopsis: Emma watches as her three other camp bunk mates sneak out of their cabin at summer camp and then none of the girls are ever seen again.  She returns to the camp 15 years later to attempt to finally solve the mystery.  This was an edge of your seat book and I immediately read the author’s other book Final Girls and put their July 2019 release on my wish list stat!  Link to Book of the Month’s way better synopsis or find it on Amazon.

On my reading list:

• The Flight Portfolio – historical WWII fiction
• The Wife Between Us – thriller!
• Ghosted – kind of a romance/thriller hybrid?  
• Before She Knew Him – thriller!
• Daisy Jones and the Six (same author as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo) – historical fiction
• The Golden Hours really hitting the historical fiction hard this time, lol
• Lock Every Door from the author of The Last Time I Lied and Final Girls –thriller!

Any books I missed that I should put on my reading list?  I’d love to hear about them in the comments!