Contributor: Allie
One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid – June 7, 2016. Emma and Jesse fell in love in high school. After graduation, they left their hometown, Acton, MA, for Los Angeles where they attended college and began a life together. Jesse and Emma loved adventure and traveled the world, she as a travel writer and he as a production assistant for nature documentaries. Their happiness was cut short when one year after their wedding, Jesse was involved in a helicopter crash in the North Pacific. His body was never found and he was declared dead. The death of Emma’s one true love crippled her with grief. She moved home with her parents and eventually ended up working at her family’s store, Blair Books, something she swore she’d never do. Slowly, Emma begins to adjust to her new life and is able to move on. Then one day after she’s newly engaged, her phone rings. It’s Jesse. After almost four years, he’s been rescued at sea and is coming home.
The Wedding Sisters by Jamie Brenner – June 7,2016. Meryl Becker is excited to plan the wedding of her eldest daughter, Meg. Meg is marrying into one of the country’s most prominent families, so the pressure is on. Then Meg’s younger sisters, Amy and Jo, announce they’re also engaged – to equally celebrated bachelors. Un-oh. Now Meg has three weddings to plan, but neither the time nor the money to do so. She decides to throw a triple wedding! Of course that means triple the stress and given that all three daughters are marrying well known men, the media becomes a part of the equation. Meryl’s mother moves in and it appears the woman may be losing her mind. Then Meryl’s husband loses his job. And of course, her future in-laws (times three) have their own ideas about the big event. Well, you can imagine it all leads up to one very unpredictable wedding.
Here’s to Us by Elin Hilderbrand – June 14, 2016. Three seems to be the magic number this month. Hilderbrand’s latest novel is about three women, Laurel, Belinda, and Scarlett. They were all married to the same man – Deacon Thorpe. Deacon is a celebrated chef who dies suddenly at his home on Nantucket. The three women, according to Deacon’s final wish, must come together on Nantucket to say their final goodbye. Not an easy task given that the three women detest one another. But they all did love Deacon. Along wither their children and Deacon’ best friend, the women try to put aside long held grievances to honor a man they all loved. Still – there’s bound to be accusations, lies, tears, and drama involved.
By the Numbers – Jen Lancaster – June 21, 2016. Penny Sinclair got a rough deal. Her marriage ended after her husband cheated on her with a much younger woman. Penny is a resourceful actuary and who understood the odds of a marriage surviving. She made sure she got everything in the divorce. Now that her youngest daughter is almost married, she makes plans to sell the family home and move to condo in the city. She’s up for a big promotion and thinking about dating again. As Penny’s making plans for her future, life gets in the way. All her children and her parents, for various reasons, move in with her. Then her ex-husband shows up on her doorstep. Penny finds herself emotionally and financially supporting everyone in her family. How did she become a poster child for the “sandwich generation?”
Sunshine Beach by Wendy Wax – June 21, 2016. This is the fourth installment in the Ten Beach Road Series. I’m eager to catch up with my girls, Maddie, Avery and Nikki – although I am still upset that Deidre died in the last book (The House on Mermaid Point). Avery is still struggling with her grief over her mother’s death. Maddie and Nicki think that a new renovation project is just what she needs. Actually, they all need a new project since they’ve once again fallen victims to a Ponzi scheme (which I cannot believe). T hey decide to fix up a historical hotel and film the renovation as their own independent television show. Their past experiences have made them distrustful of network executive. Maddie’s romance with an aging rock star attracts media attention and makes filming complicated. And Nikki is having trouble committing to the man that she loves. Oh ladies, it seems as though the more things change, the more they stay the same. I see cocktails in their future! Especially since their project leads to the discovery of an unsolved decades-old murder case.
All Access by Liberty Kontranowski – June 22, 2016.
What’s the best way to get your celeb crush’s attention? Write a book about him, of course. Kallie Reagan did, and now she’s living every fangirl’s fantasy come true … except the reality of being in love with a rock star is a lot harder than writing about it.
First Comes Love by Emily Giffin – June 28, 2016. Josie and Meredith are sister who were relatively close when they were growing up. But then a tragic accident splinters their relationship and forever changes their family. Fifteen years later, the sisters live very different lives. Josie is single, a teacher, and about to give up on love. But she wants to be a mother – badly. Meredith lives the seemingly perfect life. She’s an attorney, married to a nice man, and mother to a beautiful four-year old daughter. Yet, she’s feeling unfulfilled and questioning if she made the right choices for herself- or if she only did what was expected. As the anniversary of the accident approaches, the sisters and their parents ask questions that were never answered and try to come to terms with how the accident affected all their lives.
In Twenty Years by Allison Winn Scotch – July 1st, 2016. Twenty years ago, six friends who all attended Princeton University shared a house – a house and so much more. They thought they’d always be friends. Then their ringleader, Bea, died and the friends drifted part. Twenty years later, on what would have been Bea’s fortieth birthday, the friends reunite to celebrate her memory. They gather together in the house they shared twenty years ago. The reunion reveals secrets and truths and old grudges are brought to the surface. Will confronting the past help each them to face their futures?
