All I’ve gotta say is… summer. Ammiright?

We’ve been roadtripping and enjoying picnics at our favorite parks and staying up too late watching AppleTV. You too?

Great. Then you’ll forgive me for having to share TWO weeks of reading in one post.

My TBR list has not let me down yet this summer. I read some great books (truly GREAT books) these last few weeks.

Just a reminder, my rating scale is as follows:
Five-star: I LOVED this book and would highly recommend it to anyone that asked me for a recommendation. I believe the writing is quality, the characters are so loveable that you can’t help but love their story, and the plot has little or no gaps in my opinion. A five-star book often results in a re-read because I loved it so much.
Four-star: I really liked this book and would recommend it to most readers. The writing is good, the character development is great, and the plot has just a few areas that I think needed more development.
Three-star: I liked this book. I wouldn’t necessarily re-read it again, but I didn’t stop reading because I felt compelled to find out what happened. There might be errors or other editorial complaints.
Two-star: This book was not for me. I couldn’t get into it for whatever reason. There were likely many things that turned me off, including but not limited to: a poor choice in POV, character development, flow, energy, attention grabbing, etc. I would not recommend this book to my friends.
One-star: Likely, a one-star is a DNF book for me. There were too many problems. Would not recommend this book to anyone.

Started off by reading The Friend Zone series books, The Friend Zone (ALL THE STARS! a.k.a. 5), rereading The Happy Ever After Playlist (ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL THE STARS! 5 stars! Loved it more the second time!), and Life’s too Short (SURPRISE… 5 STARS). I’m glad I went back to read about Sloan’s origin through Kristen’s story in The Friend Zone. I also really loved knowing Josh and Kristen from The Friend Zone in The Happy Ever After Playlist. I love the way Abby Jimenez writes. She makes you feel all the feelings. There were parts of each story that made me ache for the characters, cry with the characters, laugh with the characters… basically I felt like the characters were real to me, and that’s something I put a lot of value in for the books I read!

Then, I read the next book in the Bromance Book Club series, Undercover Bromance, which I give 3.5 stars. I missed the way the first book inserted scenes from the romance book and felt like this book could have used some of that extra support. I actually grabbed Undercover Bromance when it was an ebook special a few weeks ago, THEN I grabbed The Bromance Book Club as a paperback during Prime Days, and NOW I’m torn about wanting to have physical copies of this series. I heard from a fellow Bookstagrammer that the third book is one of their top reads, so I’m debating buying these in physical copy. If you have thoughts, let me know!

I just read The Heartbreaker a few weeks ago, so my timing was perfect for The Rulebreaker release in late June. I liked Cruz and Rocky’s story, and I rate this one in at 3.5 stars. I liked it. It’s sweet. They’re best friends in college. They both love each other. If they’d just TALK ABOUT IT, we probably wouldn’t have a book about it 🙂 However, I did love how they finally couldn’t not talk about, and I loved that they’ve loved each other their whole lives, their families all knew, but they never saw the love in each other.

I read my first Kait Nolan book (hello, on brand for me, mid-series!), Those Sweet Words. I feel like I’ve read some similar tropes this year, and this book really reminded me of Roomies by Christina Lauren. With that being said, I really like this book and will give the rest of the series a chance! I love the unconventional family in this story, with siblings coming from foster care with some heavy childhood trauma. I love the small town in this book, the friends and loved ones that show up to support Pru. I love the fact that this adult who was raised in the foster care system is willing to take on a foster child. The love of family is the most important part of this book. 4 star read for sure!

Ahhh, my dearest Pippa. The Grumpy Player Next Door continues the story of the Copper Valley Fireballs with a solid 4 star read. Grant takes us back to the pirate-themed city Shipwreck with a lot of beloved character’s from her bookish universe, which I loved. The love of family and the pranks bring some lightness to a really heavy subject. Main man Max Cole struggles with his emotional health, trying to overcome some deeply rooted emotions stemming from his dad’s alcoholism. Living next door to Tillie Jean, more aptly nicknamed Trouble Jean, proves to be exactly what the Grumpy Bear next door needs to be pulled out of his dark and spiraling thoughts. For anyone that’s experienced not-so-happy holidays, the Rock family is the picture of perfect, which actually leads Max to feeling family envy. I appreciated the honesty in this book more than I could ever put into words.

I reread Riley Thorn and the Dead Guy Next Door in preparation for Riley Thorn and the Corpse in the Closet. These reads are both 5 stars from Lucy Score. These are more mystery/romance books, which deviates from Score’s normal genre, but I SERIOUSLY LOVE THEM. They’re fun, they’re funny, and they’re magical. You know how they end because Lucy literally begins there, but it’s so fun to be along for the ride. Both books take twists and turns, with an unbelievable (yet totally realistic) path to the end of the story. The supporting characters make these books magic – from Riley’s boyfriend, to family, to neighbors and friends. You won’t be disappointed.

Finally, I jumped into The Brown Sisters books with Get a Life, Chloe Brown and Take a Hint, Dani Brown. Both 5 star reads, in case you hadn’t heard from *allllllll* the other Bookstagrammers out there… I heard people LOVED Dani Brown, and don’t get me wrong, I loved her too, but I was entertained by grouchy Chloe Brown and Redford. I love that both stories focus on people finding themselves in relationships that challenge them, and then ADDRESSING the choice we have to make in order to commit to being with someone. We all bring demons, past failures, and pain to new relationships. These girls are able to take these old experiences, learn from them, and then (spoiler alert) enter into healthier relationships with people who see them and their flaws and still choose to love them. I’m excited to read the final Brown Sister book this week!

Phew. Okay. That’s all for now, folks. What are YOU reading?? Let me know in the comments!