Today I wanted to compile a list of beach reads because the beach has been on my mind a lot lately.
Fun (sad) fact: I haven’t been to the beach yet this summer. Haven’t been in a long time. There just hasn’t been the right time to go. But I’m still hoping to make it there this summer, especially since it’s been a hotter than usual season.
Books are a must have for any trip to the beach (in my humble, bookish opinion). So I tried to come up with a list of beach-read worthy books that I think others may enjoy while they soak up some of that bright summer sun to the background music of crashing waves.
Graphic Novels
Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea by Ben Clanton
Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
Middle Grade
Unplugged by Gordon Korman
Mustaches for Maddie by Chad Morris & Shelly Brown
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
Romances
Float Plan by Trish Doller
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Be Dazzled by Ryan La Sala
Breath Like Water by Anna Jarzab
Paintbrush by Hannah Bucchin
Once and for All by Sarah Dessen
Adorkable by Cookie O’Gorman
A Dance Through Time by Lynn Kurland
The Very Thought of You by Lynn Kurland
Fantasy
Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce
Sandry’s Book by Tamora Pierce
The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
Midnight Pearls by Debbie Viguié
The Bright and Breaking Sea by Chloe Neill
Crown of Coral and Pearl by Mara Rutherford
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
For a beach trip, I’d likely bring whatever I’m currently reading or something short and fun. A graphic novel, manga, middle grade, a contemporary romance, or a book under 250 pages seem ideal reads for me for the occasion.
Let me know if you have any recommendations for books to take to the beach.
Have a great day and enjoy the rest of your summer!
Good day, Bookworms! What summer releases are you most excited for?
I really wish it was summer already. I really really wish it was.
As I’m sure with many who work in a school, I’ve been daydreaming about summer for a while now. It’s been a long, hectic school year with September feeling like it was another lifetime. We could all use a much needed break to rest, relax and recharge.
Beside needing a break from work, there are some great upcoming summer releases. The premise for all of these are super appealing. I also love the wording of the titles and I’m rather fond of each book’s lovely cover art. If only I could read these books now!
With summer (and summer reading) on the brain, I thought I’d spotlight 5 books that make me wish it was the season of sun already.
For Hayley Mills, these changes aren’t exactly welcome. All she wants is for everyone to forget about her very public breakdown and remember her as the overachiever she once was—and who she’s determined to be again. But it’s difficult to be seen as a go-getter when she’s forced into TV Production class with all the slackers like Lewis Holbrook.
For Lewis, though, this is going to be his year. After a summer spent binging 80s movies, he’s ready to upgrade from the role of self-described fat, funny sidekick to leading man of his own life—including getting the girl. The only thing standing in his way is, well, himself.
When the two are partnered up in class, neither is particularly thrilled. But then they start making mini documentaries about their classmates’ hidden talents, and suddenly Hayley is getting attention for something other than her breakdown, and Lewis isn’t just a background character anymore. It seems like they’re both finally getting what they want—except what happens when who you’ve become isn’t who you really are?
Jake Wind is trying to stay under the radar. Whose radar? Anyone who might be too interested in the fact that he has shapeshifting abilities he can’t control. Or that his parents found him as a ball of goo when he was a baby.
Keeping his powers in check is crucial, though, if he wants to live a normal life and go to middle school instead of being homeschooled (and if he wants to avoid being kidnapped and experimented on, of course).
Things feel like they’re going his way when he survives his first day of school without transforming and makes a new friend. But when mysterious sinkholes start popping up around town—sinkholes filled with the same extraterrestrial substance as Jake—and his neighbors, classmates, and even his family start acting a little, well, weird, Jake will have to learn to use his powers in order to save his town.
Radha is on the verge of becoming one of the greatest Kathak dancers in the world . . . until a family betrayal costs her the biggest competition of her life. Now, she has left her Chicago home behind to follow her stage mom to New Jersey. At the Princeton Academy of the Arts, Radha is determined to leave performing in her past, and reinvent herself from scratch.
Jai is captain of the Bollywood Beats dance team, ranked first in his class, and an overachiever with no college plans. Tight family funds means medical school is a pipe dream, which is why he wants to make the most out of high school. When Radha enters his life, he realizes she’s the exact ingredient he needs for a show-stopping senior year.
With careful choreography, both Radha and Jai will need to face their fears (and their families) if they want a taste of a happily ever after.
Ben Stephens has never bothered with serious relationships. He has plenty of casual dates to keep him busy, family drama he’s trying to ignore and his advertising job to focus on. When Ben lands a huge ad campaign featuring movie star Anna Gardiner, however, it’s hard to keep it purely professional. Anna is not just gorgeous and sexy, she’s also down to earth and considerate, and he can’t help flirting a little…
Anna Gardiner is on a mission: to make herself a household name, and this ad campaign will be a great distraction while she waits to hear if she’s booked her next movie. However, she didn’t expect Ben Stephens to be her biggest distraction. She knows mixing business with pleasure never works out, but why not indulge in a harmless flirtation?
But their lighthearted banter takes a turn for the serious when Ben helps Anna in a family emergency, and they reveal truths about themselves to each other, truths they’ve barely shared with those closest to them.
When the opportunity comes to turn their real-life fling into something more for the Hollywood spotlight, will Ben be content to play the background role in Anna’s life and leave when the cameras stop rolling? Or could he be the leading man she needs to craft their own Hollywood ending?
AUGUST 10
Rise Up From the Embers by Sara Raasch & Kristen Simmons
Two gods are dead. The Mother Goddess has returned. War is rising.
Fleeing the ruins of Deimos, Ash and Madoc sail across the ocean toward their only possible allies: the water and plant gods. But when Anathrasa attacks on the way, Ash leaps to the defense—by using a power she didn’t know she had.
When Madoc made the fire and earth gods mortal, he inadvertently transferred their magic to Ash. Now, if Ash can get energeias from the other four gods, she will be powerful enough to end Anathrasa once and for all.
But not all the gods want the Mother Goddess defeated. To stop her, Madoc will have to become the obedient son his mother always wanted, and Ash will have to take a merciless place among the gods.
To defeat an immortal, Ash and Madoc must fight like gods—even if it means sacrificing their humanity.
I’m in need of a change of scenery both for this blog and in real life. It’s a need that’s been building since March likely due to being out of work and home so much.
I’m thinking of changing the theme appearance of the blog, which is not unheard of as I tend to change its appearance to fit the season. I have been tweaking the site to make it more user friendly. I will for sure be rearranging my bookshelves (for the thousandth time!) and/or all of the furniture in the room that they’re in. Who knows.
More Summer Reading Adventures…
With only less than two months of summer left, I need speed up my reading or make an executive decision to remove books. I’m still reading Set Fire to the Gods and mostly likely won’t finish reading and post my review until later this week.
But I do have some exciting reading adventures planned for August. Next up, I’ll be reading:
Rose Petal Graves by Olivia Wildenstein & Entangled by J. S. Scott
Smash It! by Francina Simone (ARC) & Trial By Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Damsel by Elana K. Arnold & Tristan Strong Punches A Hole In The Sky by Kwame Mbalia
The Last Second Chance by Lucy Score & Knight of the Silver Circle by Duncan M. Hamilton
I wish everyone a wonderful reading month and continued good health. Have a great day!
I returned my last haul on Monday and picked up some gems I didn’t think I’d get to read so soon! Maybe later this week I’ll get to start them or earlier as I’m almost done Boyfriend Material (see many feels!). The beautiful books I checked out are:
Rick by Alex Gino
Haikyu!!by Haruichi Furudate (vol. 1-3)
Kiss Him, Not Meby Junko (vol. 1-2)
I’ve been looking forward to reading RICK all year, so of course I bumped it up the tbr list. I adored George and I anticipate another excellent read by Gino.
I absolutely positively love HAIKYU!! It’s one of my all-time favorite anime shows. Haikyu!! is so funny and heart-warming and action-packed with tons of lovable characters. The story follows a high school volleyball team, Karasuno, and their journey to the top. I could endlessly rewatch the anime over and over again! I’m beyond thrilled to have this small glimpse into the manga.
KISS HIM, NOT ME is an adorkable rom-com anime. My local library only has a few random volumes and I was going to wait until I could buy the manga. But I figured it’d be ok to read the first two.
I’m a little over halfway through Legendborn by Tracy Deonn (ARC). It’s 500+ pages and a lot to take in, so progress has been slow. However, it’s a really great read – I predict a 5 star rating.
After I finish that I can start on my summer reading list. I possibly will do double reads this month because I am eager to read all of the stories on my list. Here’s the starting lineup:
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall (ARC)
The Last Second Chance by Lucy Score & Protecting What’s Mine by Lucy Score
Scala by Christina Bauer & Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Smash It! by Francina Simone (ARC) & Rose Petal Graves by Olivia Wildenstein
And that’s what’s happening this month for the blog. I wish everyone a wonderful reading month!
🔴🔴🔴Stay safe. Wear a mask. Social distance. Wash your hands.🔴🔴🔴
Do you have any ARCs you’re looking forward to reading?
I was recently approved for three anticipated reads: Legendborn by Tracy Deonn (currently reading), Ten Rules for Faking It by Sophie Sullivan, and Smash It! by Francina Simone. Thank you to the publishers for these e-ARCs to read and review! I’m happy to add all these books to my summer reading list.
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn YA Contemporary Fantasy September 15, 2020 Margaret K. McElderry Books
After her mother dies in an accident, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill seems like the perfect escape—until Bree witnesses a magical attack her very first night on campus.
A flying demon feeding on human energies.
A secret society of so called “Legendborn” students that hunt the creatures down.
And a mysterious teenage mage who calls himself a “Merlin” and who attempts—and fails—to wipe Bree’s memory of everything she saw.
The mage’s failure unlocks Bree’s own unique magic and a buried memory with a hidden connection: the night her mother died, another Merlin was at the hospital. Now that Bree knows there’s more to her mother’s death than what’s on the police report, she’ll do whatever it takes to find out the truth, even if that means infiltrating the Legendborn as one of their initiates.
She recruits Nick, a self-exiled Legendborn with his own grudge against the group, and their reluctant partnership pulls them deeper into the society’s secrets—and closer to each other. But when the Legendborn reveal themselves as the descendants of King Arthur’s knights and explain that a magical war is coming, Bree has to decide how far she’ll go for the truth and whether she should use her magic to take the society down—or join the fight.
Smash It! by Francina Simone Own Voices / YA Contemporary September 22, 2020 Inkyard Press
Olivia “Liv” James is done with letting her insecurities get the best of her. So she does what any self-respecting hot mess of a girl who wants to SMASH junior year does…
After Liv shows up to a Halloween party in khaki shorts—why, God, why?—she decides to set aside her wack AF ways. She makes a list—a F*ck-It list.
1. Be bold—do the thing that scares me.
2. Learn to take a compliment.
3. Stand out instead of back.
She kicks it off by trying out for the school musical, saying yes to a date and making new friends. Life is great when you stop punking yourself! However, with change comes a lot of missteps, and being bold means following her heart. So what happens when Liv’s heart is interested in three different guys—and two of them are her best friends? What is she supposed to do when she gets dumped by a guy she’s not even dating? How does one Smash It! after the humiliation of being friend-zoned?
In Liv’s own words, “F*ck it. What’s the worst that can happen?”
A lot, apparently.
#SMASHIT
Ten Rules for Faking It by Sophie Sullivan Adult Contemporary Romance St. Martin’s Griffin January 5, 2020
What happens when your love life becomes the talk of the town?
As birthdays go, this year’s for radio producer Everly Dean hit rock-bottom.
Worse than the “tonsillectomy birthday.” Worse than the birthday her parents decided to split (the first time). But catching your boyfriend cheating on you with his assistant?
Even clichés sting.
But this is Everly’s year! She won’t let her anxiety hold her back. She’ll pitch her podcast idea to her boss.
There’s just one problem.
Her boss, Chris, is very cute. (Of course). Also, he’s extremely distant (which means he hates her, right? Or is that the anxiety talking)?
And, Stacey the DJ didn’t mute the mic during Everly’s rant about Simon the Snake (syn: Cheating Ex).
That’s three problems.
Suddenly, people are lining up to date her, Bachelorette-style, fans are voting (Reminder: never leave house again), and her interest in Chris might be a two-way street. It’s a lot for a woman who could gold medal in people-avoidance. She’s going to have to fake it ‘till she makes it to get through all of this.
Perhaps she’ll make a list: The Ten Rules for Faking It.
Because sometimes making the rules can find you happiness when you least expect it.
Who else is happy that it’s Friday?! I sure am! It’s been a long week.
Yesterday, I finished Entangled Secrets by Pat Esden (ARC), which I really liked. But I got busy with work so I there wasn’t much time left to start my current read, Legendbornby Tracy Deonn (ARC), but so far I am hooked! My weekend will be largely dedicated to reading that book. Monday I may started another book, likely Protecting What’s Mineby Lucy Score.
[ Pictured: We Rule The Night by Claire Eliza Barette, Roar by Cormack, and Knight of the Silver Circle by Duncan M. Hamilton ]
This is the time of year I love making a tbr for even if I don’t always get through. But there will be a lot of free time this summer so I added more books than usual to the list.
My summer reading includes:
About A Vampireby Lynsay Sands
Craveby Tracy Wolff
Damsel by Elana K. Arnold
Entangled by J. S. Scott
The Last Second Chance by Lucy Score
Legendbornby Tracy Deonn (ARC)
Protecting What’s Mine by Lucy Score
Red White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
Rose Petal Graves by Olivia Wildenstein
Scalaby Christina Bauer
The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler
Trial By Fireby Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia
Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce (2nd Read)
It’s a mix of books I own, new books discovered, books I’ve been meaning to read for forever, contemporary romances to adore, and recent book mail.
This list was actually way longer but last minute I decided to save several books for another time. I kept books that I knew for sure I wanted to read this summer.
Here’s hoping I don’t get distracted and buy more books (ahaha yeah right!).
The Bookshelf Corner 