I can’t believe it’s already June! May really flew by—and because I was traveling a little bit more in May than I have in previous months, I wasn’t able to read as many books as some other months. That being said, the books I did read were great across the board, so I am excited to share them with you today. Later this month, I’m heading to the beach and I am so excited to work through the stack of books I’ve been collecting for that trip!
As is custom on these posts, I wanted to call out that I’m part of a program where Random House will send me some of their new titles each month. I’m under no obligation to post about any titles I receive, so I really can tell you my own opinion (good or bad!) about them. I’ve starred the books Random House sent me for free below. I’m so lucky to be sent books and that’s not lost on me.
Without further ado—here’s a recap of the eight books I read last month:
TROUBLES IN PARADISE // ELIN HILDERBRAND
This was the third book in Elin’s ‘Paradise’ series, which is set on St. John. I accidentally read this series out of order and would not recommend that approach, hah! Here’s book one, book two, and book three.
This book picks up where the second book left off—Irene’s husband was killed in a helicopter crash and after his death, the FBI uncovers that he’s been laundering money. Irene and her two grown sons are shocked, but then begin to realize his death might not have been an accident after all. While their lives are in turmoil, an even bigger storm is brewing—a hurricane.
Would I recommend it? Elin Hilderbrand will always be one of my favorite authors, but I think overall, this series wasn’t my favorite. I am a much bigger fan of 28 Summers or her Winter Street series. That being said, if you’re looking for a beach read set on the beach, this series would be a good one to pick up!
THE SWEET TASTE OF MUSCADINES // PAMELA TERRY*
Lila has been living in Maine for 20+ years when she gets the call to come home to small town Georgia because her mother has died. Not only that, her death was suddenly and mysteriously in the muscadine arbor behind the family estate. Her mother died with a spoon in her hand, and Lila recognizes it instantly from her childhood—it’s the spoon her mother used to give Lila to dig in the garden. When Lila and her siblings use the spoon to dig near where their mother’s body was found, they discover an old tin full of letters and photographs that overturn their family history as they knew it—and send them on the journey of a lifetime.
Would I recommend it? I absolutely loved this book; it’s beautifully written and I couldn’t wait to see how the story would unfold.
MANIFEST YOUR DESTINY // WAYNE DYER
This year, one of the things I’ve been spending a lot of my time on is putting in the work to change some of the narratives I have about my life in my head. I have come to realize in some areas of my life, I do such a good job of putting out into the universe what I want and trusting it will happen for me, and in other areas, I really struggle. That’s why I picked up this book—it builds on The Secret and shows how like attracts like, while giving you the principals to really act in that manner.
Would I recommend it? I am a big fan of this book—it really shows how you can use your thoughts to bring good into your life, and how you’re deserving of the good things that come your way.
THE HUNTRESS // KATE QUINN
After WWII ends, a trio of Nazi hunters goes on a quest to bring “The Huntress” to justice for killing six Jewish children in cold blood. On the other side of the ocean, 17-year-old Jordan McBride is thrilled when her dad, a widower, brings home his new fiancée, Anna. But Jordan quickly becomes skeptical of her soft-spoken German stepmother, and begins snooping around to find out what Anna’s hiding.
Would I recommend it? I loved this book—and highly recommend it if you love WWII historical fiction, too. I wasn’t a huge fan of The Alice Network, but I was glad I gave Kate Quinn another shot. This book was long, but it was a page-turner and engaging from start to finish.
OUTLIERS // MALCOLM GLADWELL
The thesis of this book is that we have focused too much on successful people’s intelligence, ambition, and personality traits instead of looking at the world that surrounds the successful—their culture, their family, their generation, their upbringing. Along the way, Gladwell highlights why almost no star hockey players are born in the fall, why, when it comes to plane crashes, where pilots are born as much as it matters how well they are trained, and what Bill Gates and the Beatles have in common.
Would I recommend it? This book is AMAZING and I would recommend it to anyone—I know I will be thinking about this book for years to come.
