2020 Summer Reading Recommendations

Today is all about my 2020 Summer reading recommendations. Some of you may have already started your summer reading, some are about to start, or maybe you’re considering starting your summer reading. Wherever you are in this process, hopefully this list of books to read this summer will be helpful.

Most of the books I recommend have somewhat of a theme. They’re either in the Summer season, in a warm weather climate, or it is a quick read. I love quick reads during the summer because they’re the perfect beach read, poolside reading, or to some out on the balcony/ patio. Lately, I’ve been taking my books with me and reading in the park!

Overall, I feel like these books capture the essence of Summer and are page-turners. I own 9 of these books and already started reading some or completed them. If I have completed reading them, I’ll share the blog post where I gave my full review.

2020 Summer Reading Recommendations

1 Girls Of Summer by Nancy Thayer

Lisa is a single mother of two. When her kids went off to college, she called for a friend, Mack, to do some repairs around the house. Mack is also a single parent. Throughout the summer, they get really close. But Mack is ten years younger. Lisa’s kids are worried that their mother’s heart will get broken.

2 Big Summer by Jennifer Weiner

Read this book in June. Daphne Berg is a plus-size influencer and six years ago she ended her friendship with her best friend Drue Cavanaugh. One day, Drue comes back into her life with a big favor – to be a maid of honor. Daphne knew letting Drue back into her life could be toxic, but eventually caved to Drue’s request. Daphne starts to unravel what is actually happening to Drue’s life since their friendship ended and finds out why she was asked to be back into her ex-best friend’s life.

3 Beach Read by Emily Henry

I just finished this book early this month. Therefore, I will share my thoughts on it in August.

January Andrews writes bestselling romances and Augustus Everette writes bestselling thrillers. The only thing they have in common is that they both are spending their summer in Michigan broke and having writer’s block. They decided to make a pact – Augustus will write a romance book and January will write a thriller/suspense book. It turns out each of their style of writing happens to have a more deep-rooted reason behind it.

4 The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward

Read this book in April. Charlotte Perkins won the Become a Jetsetter contest and goes on a Mediterranean cruise with her estranged, adult children. She’s hoping that this trip will reunite the family. Lee, the oldest, is a semi-famous actress. Cord is a stressed out NYC venture capitalist. Regan is married and a mother of two who struggles with her weight. As a family, they explore Greece, France, Italy, and Spain, but every single one of them struggled to be around one another. They all have buried secrets and old wounds reopen.

5 Happy & You Know It by Laura Hankin

Read this book in June. As soon as Claire was kicked out of a band she’d been a part of, the band became famous. Claire is trying to figure out what to do with her life and agreed to be a playgroup’s musician to a bunch of wealthy moms and their infants. Claire was surprised how welcoming this mom group was. All these moms are into wellness, skincare, barre, and juice cleanses. As Claire gets closer to these women, she discovers their secret. But this secret will ruin all these women. And Claire is contemplating if she should betray them to reveal this awful secret.

6 Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland

Takes place in Atlantic City, 1934 and based on a true story. Florence returned from college and determined to spend the summer training to swim the English Channel. Fannie is pregnant again after recently losing a baby and is on bedrest for the rest of her pregnancy. Their father insists they take in a mysterious young woman whom he recently helped emigrate from Nazi Germany. Then tragedy strikes, and their mother makes a shocking decision to hide the truth.

7 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand

Just bought this book. Link receives instructions from his mother’s, Mallory, deathbed to call a number from a slip of paper. He did not expect Jake McCloud to answer – husband of the presidential election frontrunner, Ursula DeGournsey. Then it flashes back to 1993 when Mallory and Jake formed a bond that lasted throughout their life, from marriage, children, to Jake’s wife’s political uprise.

8 One to Watch by Kate Stayman London

Another book I just bought. The world is obsessed with this reality show, Main Squeeze. It’s about one guy finding love and goes on several dates to find his wife. This show happens to be Bea’s favorite but she is annoyed by the lack of diversity and inclusion. Bea is a plus size fashion blogger and one day gets a call to be casted as Main Squeeze’s next star. Next thing she knows, she is surrounded by men who are asking for her affection.

9 The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Read this book in June. The Vignes sisters are twin sisters and they do everything together. They grew up in a small, deep southern black community in the 1950’s and ran away when they were 16 for a better life for themselves. As they became adults, they each lived a different life that shaped who they are and were divided by racial identities. One sister moved back to the town she grew up in. The other sister lives in California and secretly passes as white and tries to pretend her past never existed. While they are living separate lives, somehow their lives are intertwined. Even their daughters’ lives intersect.

10 In Five Years by Rebecca Serle

I read this book in March. Dannie Kohan lives her life by numbers and there’s no such thing as unpredictability. When asked ‘Where do you see yourself in five years?’, she has the perfect answer. Dannie carefully planned everything in life from dream job to getting engaged to the man that fits perfectly in her life. One evening, she fell asleep and woke up in a different apartment with a different ring on her finger and a different guy. She soon realizes she’s 5 years in the future. She experiences the future for about an hour and wakes up to the present time. That moment shook her. Nothing was what she planned for.

11 The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan

This is book 2 of The Royal We. After Bex and Prince Nicholas had their fairytale wedding, they did a self-imposed exile that made the Queen and public very angry. They decided to cut themselves off from friends & families. Then a crisis happened that brought the Duke and Duchess back to London. And all the problems they masked start to unravel. Now Bex and Nick have to make a tough decision.

12 The Last Train To Key West by Chanel Cleeton

I loved the book Next Year In Havana (read in May) and this book builds on it. After the Cuban Revolution of 1933, it  leaves Mirta Perez’s family in a precarious position. So she agrees to an arranged marriage with a notorious American. After her wedding, Mirta arrives in the Keys on her honeymoon. Her husband’s illicit business interests may threaten not only her relationship, but her life.

13 The Island Affair by Priscilla Oliveras

Sara Vance is a successful influencer yet her family still has a way of making her feel the odd one out. Then her unreliable boyfriend was a no-show for a Florida family vacation. So she recruits Luis Navarro to play her smitten fiancé. Luis is the type who is willing to help others and before they know it he and Sara memorized their “how they met” story. By the time Sara’s vacation ended, it left them wondering if their fake relationship will fade or blossom into a new one.

14 Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan

This is the same author as the Crazy Rich Asians series. Lucie Churchill sets eyes on George Zao and she instantly can’t stand him. She really can’t stand it when he kissed her, and they are caught by her snobbish cousin Charlotte. “Your mother is Chinese so it’s no surprise you’d be attracted to someone like him,” Charlotte teases. Lucie is the daughter of an American-born Chinese mother and a blue-blooded New York father. Lucie has always favored her white side of the family and denies having feelings for George. Several years later, George unexpectedly appears in East Hampton, where Lucie is a fiancé and finds herself drawn to George again. Soon, Lucie is spinning a web of deceit.

15 With The Fire On High by Elizabeth Acevedo

I’m currently reading this book and will share my thoughts in August. Ever since Emoni got pregnant her freshman year, her life has been all about making tough decisions and taking care of her daughter and abuela. The one place she can let everything go is in the kitchen. She likes to add something magical to everything she cooks. Her dream is to become a chef but she knows it’s not worth her time to pursue something impossible. However, once she starts cooking she feels like her only choice is to let her talent break free.

How’s your summer reading? What books did you enjoy reading so far? Any recommendations to add to this list? Any of these books sound interesting to you?

xo RD