2021 Summer Reading Guide: Chick Lit
The hero of summer reading! Every single year, the Chick Lit category is far and away the most popular one on the whole Summer Reading Guide. And I’m right there with you.
Jo & Laurie by Margaret Stohl and Melissa de la Crúz
I was SO skeptical of this Little Women retelling (you can only read so many spins on a classic before you just want to give up forever). But then, Surprise! It was TERRIFIC and I blew through it in about 2 days. It takes place after Jo March publishes her first novel about her and her sisters. Now her fans are clamoring not only for a sequel (as is her publisher) but they all would VERY much like their new favorite heroine to end up with the charming boy next door. And in her real life, Jo is dealing with that boy next door who would also like nothing more. Even worse, Jo might also want to end up with Laurie. But will she be too stubborn to let it happen?
Now That I’ve Found You by Kristina Forest
Remember how you read Daisy Jones and the Six and wished it was real so you could listen to their music? This book is the same except for movies. Evie Jones is an up-and-coming actress and she’s thrilled to be following in the footsteps of her extraordinarily famous grandmother who starred in one of the most popular romantic movies of all-time (like I said – you’ll wish it was a real movie you could go watch). And then a betrayal by a supposed friend upends Evie’s career and it feels like the only way to get it back on track is by convincing her grandmother to attend the biggest award show of the year and accept an award. Except Evie’s famous grandmother is ALSO now famously reclusive and hasn’t been seen in public for 20 years. It’s going to take some pretty convincing negotiations on Evie’s part. And that’s before her grandmother disappears.
Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter
I haven’t enjoyed a teen romance this much since To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. I was utterly charmed by this story of high school senior Liz who loves romantic comedies and has a long-time rivalry with her neighbor and classmate Wes. But then Michael, the boy she loved since she was a little girl, moves back to town and it looks like Wes is her best chance to make her own movie ending come true. There was so much funny dialogue and I laughed out loud multiple times AND maybe cried a few tears. It was just everything I want in a summer beach read.
Float Plan by Trish Doller
I had very low expectations of this book and then accidentally read it in 24 hours, which is just the kind of book I love in the summer. Anna and her fiancé were supposed to sail the Caribbean together on a boat he’d meticulously restored. But after his suicide, Anna is sure that trip is just one more thing she’s lost along with her fiancé. And then, on an impulse, she decides she’s going to take the trip alone. That’s all well and good for one day until she realizes she just doesn’t have the skills to undertake this journey solo and she hires a professional sailor, Keane. Like her, Keane is adjusting to a life that looks different from what he was planning and their business relationships becomes a friendship that might have the possibility of more. (Warning that this one has a brief open-door scene).
Majesty by Katharine McGee
I quite liked the first book in this series (American Royals) but then I LOVED this one. So consider this two recommendations for the price of one. I wouldn’t consider myself a huge follower of royalty, but the concept of this book – that George Washington became king instead of president and there has been a royal family in the US ever since – is really fun (yes, I know he didn’t have any children of his own. If you can’t get past that fact, this is probably not the book for you).