First Lie Wins- Ashley Elston

I really liked this one. It was just the right amount of thriller but not scary. I was invested and couldn’t tell where it was going. This would be a great road trip audio book.

The Good Part- Sophie Cousens

I’m a little torn about this one. It was an interesting concept. 13 going on 30 but 20 going on 40 instead. I liked the characters, the little boy was the best. I didn’t love how it ended though. I don’t want to say anything here because it would be a spoiler but it felt like it wasn’t fully fleshed out.

The Connellys of County Down- Tracey Lange

This one was a little surprising. The cover and the title made me think it was going to be a sweet country story but it starts in a prison 😆. I liked it though and was happy with the character and story development.

Going Solo- Roald Dahl

The kids and I listened to the first one (Boy) last month and followed with this one. It’s a little more violent (war) and sad but they still enjoyed it. There are a few opportunities to talk about how people talked about race back then as well.

All the Lonely People- Mike Gayle

LOVED this one. Wow. All the things that need to be talked about when it comes to loneliness. Sad and happy and heart warming. I immediately fan casted Juno Temple as the voice/character of Ashleigh. I wish I would have listened to the audiobook version. The main character is from Jamaica and I’m sure it would have flowed better listening to it. Super recommend for everyone!

Winter Garden – Kristin Hannah

I will admit that I was not into this one until the halfway mark. It was very slow and I wasn’t terribly invested. I really couldn’t tell where it was going. The second half picked up and I really liked how it ended. It’s not as good as her recent ones, but has some of the heart that they have.

Just for the Summer – Abby Jimenez

I really loved this. I actually didn’t realize it was in the same world as two of her others until I was almost done. I’m glad I didn’t read the Goodreads reviews until I was done because someone I usually agree with really didn’t like it. I typically struggle with books where the main character takes a lot of energy from her friends without giving much back, but I think this time it’s done pretty well and makes sense. I also don’t love the “perfect” love interest boyfriend with no flaws, but again it works here. I also think that mental health can be overdone in modern books. But again, it’s done really well here. I was totally invested in all of the characters. This is a great summer book with a little weight to it!