Summer Book Recommendations

If you’re a bookworm like me, you look forward to reading by the pool or with your toes in the sand at the beach. You get excited about reading for fun, and you basically inhale any good story you can get your hands on.

But you may find yourself 1) Overwhelmed by all of the choices or 2) Not sure where to find a good book. So I thought I’d share a few of my favorites with you. These are books I’m constantly recommending. They’re all YA, which means the main characters are teens and the dialogue is quippy and honest.

So here’s five books/series I keep going back to whenever I want something fun to read.

After you browse this list, leave a comment with your own recommendations! I’m always  looking for the next good book!

1. The Lost Girl of Astor Street by Stephanie Morrill

I posted about this one a few months ago, so click here to read my thoughts on it! It’s a must-read if you’re into the 1920’s, mysteries, and a touch of romance.

2. There You’ll Find Me by Jenny B. Jones

I’ve read this one probably four or five times, and I’m about to read it again. It takes place in Ireland and is told from the perspective of Finley Sinclair – a flawed and funny narrator with some big-time heartache to work through. I love this one not only because of how Jones makes the beauty of Ireland come alive on the page, but also because of the realistic/relatable narrator, humor, and message of redemption.

3. The Selection series by Kiera Cass

I read the first three books awhile ago, and recently read the final two in the series. Now I’m reading my way through a novella collection that lets you peek into the lives of some of the supporting characters. Set in a world post-America, the series is like a teen version of The Bachelor with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. Plus, there’s nothing in them that’ll make you squirm or want to wash your eyeballs. Kiera Cass is a brilliant storyteller, and you’ll find yourself wishing there was a sixth book in the series.

4. The Christy Miller series by Robin Jones Gunn

Or, let’s be honest, anything by Robin Jones Gunn. The Christy Miller series began before I was born – back in the late 80’s – and they’re still going strong. Follow Christy from the summer she turns 15 into adulthood. The most recent book in the collection (pictured above) just released, and I inhaled it in one evening. Plus, a couple of Christy’s friends get their own series, and they’re all so good. This is one of my all-time favorites.

5. The Merciful Scar by Rebecca St. James and Nancy Rue 

 

For a more serious, yet deeply moving story, The Merciful Scar is a must-read. Heartbreak and pain are interwoven with messages of hope, redemption, and mercy. It’s beautifully written with a narrator whose story will grip you.

I reviewed this one when it released a few years ago, so click here to read more.