It’s been a great summer of reading over here – I have been chomping at the bit to share all of these books with you! What are you reading?! Let me know your favorites this summer.
Most of these books are linked through bookshop (if available!) and I highly suggest shopping through there because it will support your local indie bookstore. You can choose the local bookstore to support! I support Penguin Books when I buy which is my fave here in Pittsburgh.
I have a book of the month membership – I love it so much. I read SO many books from this box. I get so many of my new releases and debut author books there. You can sign up for one here.
What I Read In July and August 2026The Calamity Club – 5 stars
The best best best book I’ve ready in so long! This was fabulous. I mourned this book when it was over and definitely had a reading hangover. This takes place in the 1930s and during the great depression. We meet many girls who come together and form a club of sorts, full of women who can support each other when they are down. It’s emotional and breaks your heart but also makes you laugh. I didn’t want it to end.
When She Was Ours – 5 stars
Oh my gosh. This story… heart wrenching and wonderful. I am still thinking about this one too. Normally, this would be a book I steer clear of because there is a terminal diagnosis in the story. I need my books to be mostly unrealistically happy. This was incredible. I love that it’s set in 1995. The character development is amazing. You will not want to put it down. It’s happy, sad and everything in between. I can’t recommend it more.
Helpless – 3.5 stars
Read this one on a whim and oh my gosh, it’s nuts! I needed a good thriller. In this book, our main character returns to her college town for a funeral – a funeral for a beloved teacher of hers. She runs into her ex – their relationship ended poorly and things spiraled when she wrote a TV episode about him. This is crazy and goes in so many wild directions. I didn’t love the ending, it felt somewhat incomplete, but I think it was meant to!
The Shampoo Effect – 4 stars
I loved this author’s first book so I was very excited about this one! This is about a messy group of people, haha. Our main characters falls for a guy, he introduces her to his friend group, they are wild and crazy. Then they discover one of the girls in the group is pregnant with his baby. Everything escalates from there. The characters are so flawed and kind of awful in this, but I couldn’t put it down. I had to know what happened here!!
It Could Have Been Her – 4.5 stars
Love a Lisa Jewell book! My SIL told me I had to read this one. This is so super twisty and dark. Our main characters finds a dog on her property and returns it to its home, only to realize it’s a home she has been at before. The story here is crazy and the character development is great. This is a page turner and the timeline is wild!
The Romance Revival – 3 stars
I LOVE Christina Lauren novels and was excited about this. It’s not really their usual – we are dealing with a couple who rediscover and learn each other after amnesia and the resurrection thing is kind of crazy. It still has that cutesy and fun flair of their usual books and the second chance romance is lovely – it’s just not the normal kind of second chance I’m used to reading!
Back Where We Started – 5 stars
Ohhh my gosh. I am so excited because Becca sent me an advance copy of her book. This one comes out in October and I am so excited about it. It has TWO of my favorite tropes – regular person + celeb and second chance romance. I absolutely loved it so so much. We follow Katie who is an actress but returns to her hometown for the holidays and runs into the previous love of her life. I couldn’t put it down and just loved it!
Return To Sender – 4 stars
This was another one in my book of the month box. Super cute and loved it. Our story has two sisters that are grieving the loss of their father, when they discover a love letter that was never delivered. They find the writer of said letter and convince him to deliver it to the woman he meant to send it to. But in the meantime, on this road trip to deliver it, some sparks fly. There is SO much in this story. The sister relationship is so real. I just loved the characters.
You’ll Love It Here – 4 stars
This one is so cute and funny. It starts out with our main character taking leave from her job and sort of falling into the role of super in her building. She’s used to a clear routine and is ambitious. Now she finds her managing these crazy people she lives with. The characters are hilarious and chaotic, I really ended up loving them. This is funny and lovely and very real all at the same time!
If Not For My Baby – 4 stars
I ended up loving this one!! I didn’t plan on loving it, but wow – I really did. Our main character has always been somewhat stuck in her hometown due to a bunch of circumstances. She gets the chance to go on tour as a backup singer for a new-ish Irish pop star and live on the tour bus for a few months. Sparks fly between them. I really liked the characters in this and loved our main couple! They were both so likable. I loved the ending too.
Love You More – 4.5 stars
Emily Giffin books always get me so excited, as I was a huuuuge Something Borrowed fan from the moment the book came out. This is a great read – our main characters gets stuck between current and old loves, which is also a trope I really like. I was so invested in these characters!! And I ended up very torn at the end. If you read it, you have to let me know what you think of the ending.
Married with Benefits – 3.5 stars
This was another fun one! A great romance trope of fake dating/marriage, our main characters agree to marry over health insurance when Lainey’s migraine medicine becomes way too pricey. This is all while fixing up the cabin that he owns… that she thought she owned! Of course, sparks fly and they have to decide if they want to stay in or out. Super cute, predictable and fun.
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