I just LOVE sitting pool side, at the beach or on the patio on a warm and sunny day and getting completely lost in a great book. It is one of the most delicious way to spend a summer day. Here are 8 books I have read recently that make for really great summer reads…
What She Left Behind by Ellen Marie Wiseman… This historical fiction set in a mental institution is a real page turner as the story line bounces between the present and the past. With themes of love, family and redemption with a touch of mystery thrown in, this story line will suck you in quickly.
Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal… You will get lost in the South with this civil-rights era story set in New Orleans. One part The Help and one part Secret Life of Bees you will soon wish Fannie and Queenie were your family too.
Primates of Park Avenue by Wednesday Martin… An honest look at motherhood on the Upper East Side of New York City. This pages practically turn themselves in this book. I equally loved the peek into the lives of New York City mothers and could also find many parallels to motherhood regardless of location in this book.
Bittersweet by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore… Set in an idyllic family summer compound in Vermont… one minute you think you are reading a book about a girl from the "wrong side of the tracks" trying to become an insider in this new world. The next minute you realize there is way more mystery beneath the surface. This is absolute favorite read in a while! I highly recommend.
Paris, He Said by Christine Sneed… When a wealthy art dealer offers a young beautiful starving artist a chance to live and create art in Paris, she says yes. Through the eyes of Jayne, Paris is beautiful and full of opportunity but is it what she really wanted? This book asks the question, what happens when our dreams come true?
Charleston by Margaret Bradham Thornton… A writer returns to her roots in Charleston and the city is brought alive on the page with fancy parties, old lovers and Southern charm. This is one of my favorite reads about Charleston to date. Truly a great book to get lost in.
The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber… This book is so mind-blowing and just plain strange. That said, I adored every moment of it. A young pastor is offered to travel to space to live on a planet that is being colonized. His experiences and daily interactions with the natives in nothing short of bizarre. This book still haunts my thoughts.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins… If you haven't already - read this. It's creepy and addicting and the ultimate summer read. I am desperately hoping they make this into a movie, like probably everyone else that has read it.
Have you read any of these? What other summer "get lost in" books do you recommend?
… An epic love story that takes place in Italy and LA over the span of 50 years. Even if you don't have sunny plans this weekend you will feel the sun on your shoulders as the author plops you on the picturesque Italian coastline.
… this is one of my all time favorite books. It's a glitzy and glamorous story that takes place in New York City among high society in the 1930's. Grab a gin and tonic and settle in with this gem of a book.
… wear your darkest sunglasses and grab a tissue (or ten) as you settle in to this moving and deliciously tragic story of love and hardship. You won't be able to put it down.
… this book begins with the characters at summer camp (serious summer nostalgia included!) and takes us through the lives of the six campers as they grow up and change. This is a sweeping story of life and love and the decisions we make. 
… mystery, love and inspiration abound in this unique love story. This is a story that will move and amaze you. This author just released a sequel too, which I can't wait to read, called 
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… a hilarious story of Bernadette Fox, opinionated and quirky mom living in Seattle. There are crazy private school mothers, virtual assistants in India, email trails and trips to Antarctica in this adventure of a book.