1// Once And For All  I love ANYTHING sarah dessen & honestly, every one of her novels make for a lovely summer read. But since once & for all is her latest (& the book I'm currently diving into) it makes first round draft pick. 
"Is it really better to have loved and lost? Louna's summer job is to help brides plan their perfect day, even though she stopped believing in happily-ever-after when her first love ended tragically.  But charming girl-magnet Ambrose isn't about to be discouraged now that he's met the one he really wants. Maybe Louna's second chance is standing right in front of her."
2// Twenties Girl I read this book back in high school after a recommendation from my cousin, & now that I'm actually in my twenties I kinda wanna go back & re-read! I really like sophie's writing style & I remember this being an easy & cute read. 
"Lara Lington has always had an overactive imagination, but suddenly that imagination seems to be in overdrive. Normal professional twenty-something young women don’t get visited by ghosts. Or do they? When the spirit of Lara’s great-aunt Sadie—a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance—mysteriously appears, she has one request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie’s possession for more than seventy-five years, because Sadie cannot rest without it.  Lara and Sadie make a hilarious sparring duo, and at first it seems as though they have nothing in common. But as the mission to find Sadie’s necklace leads to intrigue and a new romance for Lara, these very different “twenties” girls learn some surprising truths from and about each other."
3// To All the Boys I've Loved Before trilogy Jenny Han just released the last title in the TATBILB trilogy, 'Forever & Always, Lara Jean.'  I haven't started it yet but I loved the other two in the series, & now is the perfect time to get caught up. Jenny gives her characters a unique voice & I think this series is a fun read that also gets touching at times. 
"What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them…all at once?
Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control."
4// The Heiresses I've talked about this one before as it was the first can't-put-down-til-I'm-finished book I'd had the pleasure of reading in quite awhile. If you like mysteries (especially murder mysteries) you'll EAT. THIS. UP. (please don't actually eat the book though) 
"The only thing more flawless than a Saybrook’s solitaire is the family behind the diamond empire. Beauties, entrepreneurs, debutantes, and mavens, the Saybrooks are the epitome of high society. Anyone would kill to be one of them. But be careful what you wish for, because if you were a Saybrook, you’d be haunted by secrets and plagued by a dark streak of luck.
Tragedy strikes the prominent family yet again on a beautiful morning in May when thirty-four-year-old Poppy, the most remarkable Saybrook of them all, flings herself from the window of her office. Everyone is shocked that someone so perfect would end her own life—until her cousins receive an ominous warning: One heiress down, four to go.
Was it suicide . . . or murder? And who will be next: Aster, the beautiful but reckless girl who’s never worked a day in her life—and who’s covering up her father’s darkest secret? Her older sister, Corrine, whose meticulously planned future is about to come crashing down around her? Perhaps it will be Natasha, the black sheep of the family who suddenly disinherited herself five years ago. Or maybe the perpetually single Rowan, who had the most to gain from her cousin’s death.
A gripping, edge-of-your-seat thriller about heiresses who must uncover a dark truth about their family before they lose the only thing money can’t buy: their lives."
5// Milk & Honey This one is a poetry book that's full of incredible words & inspiration. Rupi is kind of badass.
"The book is divided into four chapters, and each chapter serves a different purpose. Deals with a different pain. Heals a different heartache. Milk and Honey takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look."
Tell me what's on your reading list this summer!
xo,

Good Reads: Eleanor & Park

I can't even remember the last time I talked about a book, which means it's been way too long. I definitely have not been trying to get through the same one since January, NOPE.
It's not even that it wasn't a good book- it was really good. I just spend FOREVER on certain novels. Am I the only one?
Anyway, the goodreads synopsis goes like this:
Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.
I thought this was going to just be a light & fun summer-y read, but it turns out it was a lot more eventful & emotional. The ending wasn't particularly happy, which is kind of unusual in YA romance. It was kind of left open-ended, though, so you're still left with that semi-fuzzy feeling. If you're up for a bit of intense storylines, this is probably right up your alley. 
While it's not my total favorite of recent reads, it's still one I recommend, especially if you're very into YA romance. I'm not as much as I used to be (gettin old, I guess) but this was a pleasant break from the usual. 
NEXT UP ON MY LIST: The Bell Jar. Complete 360? YES. That's the way I roll. (I'll never say that again, promise)

xo,

Good reads | To all the Boys I've Loved Before

I was a little late to this party, but I've recently discovered the treasure that is To all the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han.

TATBILB follows Lara Jean, who keeps letters she's written to the five boys she's loved tucked away in her mother's old hatbox. Everything is fine until she discovers the letters have been sent..........

This was honestly the first so-good-can't-put-it-down-thinking-about-it-when-you're-not-reading-it book I've read in quite awhile. (Besides Sarah Dessen's latest)

It's humorous and realistic and unpredictable. I was always wondering about what was going to happen next and I fell in love with Lara Jean's character as she is sarcastic and witty and you want to root for her. 

It's all just a really good summer read.

Thank goodness there's a sequel that I delved into the moment this one was over! (and so far it's equally as good)

Have you read this one recently? Do you love it too? 

Good Reads | Saint Anything

FROM GOODREADS:

"Peyton, Sydney's charismatic older brother, has always been the star of the family, receiving the lion's share of their parents' attention and—lately—concern. When Peyton's increasingly reckless behavior culminates in an accident, a drunk driving conviction, and a jail sentence, Sydney is cast adrift, searching for her place in the family and the world. When everyone else is so worried about Peyton, is she the only one concerned about the victim of the accident?

Enter the Chathams, a warm, chaotic family who run a pizza parlor, play bluegrass on weekends, and pitch in to care for their mother, who has multiple sclerosis. Here Sydney experiences unquestioning acceptance. And here she meets Mac, gentle, watchful, and protective, who makes Sydney feel seen, really seen, for the first time."

It feels like I had been waiting forever for this book to be released because diving into a Sarah Dessen is the epitome of what summertime should feel like. Warm, light and oh so sweet. 

The thing about this one is it's not always as light as usual. I think the whole plot of it, with drunk driving backgrounds and the feeling of being invisible, is darker and that is what makes it so much more than just another Sarah Dessen novel. 

The story always had me wanting to know what happened next and it was predictable and surprising at the same time. I think that's how the best stories are.

Have you read Saint Anything? Lemme know what you thought! 

Happy to be Alive, Because

Chelsea writes one of my favorite blogs and when I heard she had also written a book, I was immediately intrigued. A blogger just like me???? Who published a book just like I want to???? Hello, new inspiration. 

I'm not super great at summaries, unless it's summarizing the plot of Gilmore Girls, so here's what the back of the book tells ya:

"Avery is a seventeen year old girl whose reality has just been shattered by the death of her mother. Feeling a desperate need to flee from what has become her life, she follows a travel plan meant for her mom and her that leads her to the little beach town where her mom grew up. It's there that she meets a group of three adventurous friends who adopt her into their circle, allowing her to experience a summer she never thought would be possible after suffering such a great loss. 

Unfortunately, her summer full of experiences threatens to end abruptly when she realizes that one of the three has a secret that causes her to question everything about the new life she has been building. Avery must learn to balance her grief and her desire for a future in order to achieve her mother's final wish for her: that she would be happy to be alive." 

You know those books that make you feel all warm and fuzzy and you can't put down but you also don't want to end? That's what happened to me with this one. It was like I was reading a Sarah Dessen book, but also unique and sad and happy and really really good. 

I'd tell you more but then you wouldn't be able to find it all out on your own...