Summer Book Club 2022: Best Books to Read This Summer from Team SRH

OUR ANNUAL SUMMER READING LIST 2022 IS HERE!

Juicy page-turners. Ones that make you think. And ones that take you to a faraway place… that no screen could ever take you. 

Summer and reading just always go together so well. It’s the ultimate relaxation & self-care, imho (especially paired with an amazing natural  face mask + your favorite iced herbal tea, kombucha…. or ya know, your covers and a sleep mask on your head like me most nights (lol). 

I’ve been reading so much lately, and it brings me the most happiness in the simplest way. There’s something rejuvenating about leaving your phone in another room (or on airplane mode), finding a comfy chair/finally tucking into bed, and dipping into another world for a little while. (Even if a “little while” is 23 minutes while the stars align and your kids’ naps happen to overlap… just me? Lol)

Today, my team and I are sharing our TOP 21 favorite reads of the year and the best books to read this summer! I always love putting together these posts because, selfishly, I get to hear what my team’s been reading, and they alllllways have the best recs. We’ve got a little bit of everything, no matter your reading style: light beach reads, business books, mysteries and thrillers, parenting, non-fiction, heartwarming novels & more.

Tell us, what are you reading & loving this summer?! Drop your own rec(s) in a comment below so we can get a big list going!

(PS, check out last year’s summer book club round-up for even more great recs!)

Sarah’s summer reads:

• Book Lovers by Emily Henry: this is my current read, which is a fun lighter summer beach read but the writing is great and entertaining. This is at the top of every reading list right now and for good reason! A fun romantic story between two literary professionals who don’t get along… at first. Her descriptions are hilarious though. 
• This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub: I loved this one so much and it really made me think about moments with loved ones and the passing of time too. It’s kind of like the more sentimental book version of 13 going on 30… in reverse. So good. Highly reccomend. 
• The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi: started slow but then picked up. A woman escapes her abusive marriage, moves to Jaipur and becomes a renowned henna artist, but her husband eventually tracks her down. A Reese Witherspoon Hello Sunshine book club pick, and I read it for my book club. I was pleasantly surprised. 
• The Last Mrs Parrish by Liv Constantine: a book that will keep you on your toes. One woman is jealous of another’s lavish life and tries to figure out a way to steal it from her. 
• Free Time by Jenny Blake: a small business/entrepreneur rec on teams and building repeatable systems behind the scenes in your business to free up your creation time.
• Atomic Habits by James Clear: a personal development one on paying attention to where we spend our time and making the most of it. A must-read if you haven’t yet!
• Mothering From Your Center by Tami Lynn Kent: a little woo-woo for most probably but such a great read for postpartum phase or moms of young kids.
• How Are You, Really? by Jenna Kutcher: my dear friend just released this book and I couldn’t rave about it more! Such a good read for reconnecting with who you are, your version of success and finding a path back to you.

Jordyn’s summer reads (team SRH head of marketing):

• The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab: Hands down one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read! This story will forever haunt me and I can’t wait to tell everyone I know to pick this up. V.E. Schwab spins a heartbreaking tale with so much happiness, wonder, the imbalance between humans and Gods, loneliness, fear and love.
• It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey: Definitely pick up this book if you are craving something light-hearted and a bit steamy. 😉 There was juuuust enough humor/playfulness, romance, sadness, and steaminess! Plus we love a “city-gal falls for the brooding small town man” trope.
• Book Lovers or Beach Read by Emily Henry: Emily Henry is the queen of a summer romance read! Book Lovers is quite possibly her best book yet and hits on all the normal tropes we tend to love in romance books. Beach Read was also a sweet and feel-good read.
• Golden Girl by Elin Hilderbrand: By far my favorite from Elin Hilderbrand. If you, like me, never felt quite hooked by her previous books, this one is for you! It was such a beautiful look at what happens after death, before you are ready to let go and leave your life behind you. I loved the different ways the character storylines intertwined together!

Melissa’s summer reads (team SRH head of operations & customer experience):

Audrey’s summer reads (team SRH copywriter):

• Invisible Girl by Lisa Jewell: gosh, if you have Audible and like mysteries, I highly recommend any Lisa Jewell book! They’re dark and twisty, and usually set in London/Europe. This one is about a girl who goes missing after she’s been following her therapist for a while, who she found out was cheating on his wife. Lisa Jewell is the queen of unexpected endings, and listening to the character’s accents on Audible is so soothing to me (even if the stories are a bit edgy)!
• After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid: the seven year slump, aka when married couples often face trouble in paradise and feel a bit blah towards each other. This couple reaches that milestone with a bang, and decides that instead of calling quits or powering through, they’re going to take a year break, live separately, sleep with other people, and not talk to each other. For. A. Whole. Year. Not exactly what my approach would be (lol) but a very interesting read and surprisingly heartening ending!
• Every Summer After by Carley Fortune: THIS BOOK! Maybe my top summer read rec if you’re going on a vacation anytime soon! It follows a guy and girl who fell in love as teens when their parents had lake houses next to each other, and then had a big falling out (that you don’t know what caused until close to the end). They come together later in life for a funeral and sparks are reignited in the best way. Such a fun, romantic, but also heart-wrenching read.
• Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica: a juicy thriller that I finished in, like, 3 days. I couldn’t have guessed what the ending would be if I was paid a million dollars. Two women go missing within a couple weeks of each other in a safe, normal suburb and people are beyond terrified and perplexed. 
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett: this is such a beautiful, eye-opening, thought-provoking novel about twin sisters who separate early in life and lose touch and go on to lead VERY different (almost opposite) lives. 
• What Happened to the Bennetts by Lisa Scottoline: currently reading and not my normal mystery, but very good and captivating so far! Told from the perspective of a dad, a family gets blocked on an empty road by two drug dealers and then a huge tragedy happens (no spoilers but this all happens right in the beginning!). They have to go into protective custody and leave their lives behind to become a brand new family. 
• The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand: this was the MOST delightful, fun read! I’m new to Elin Hilderbrand but my mom told me all of her books are great beach reads. This one is about a dilapidated old hotel on Nantucket that gets remodeled by a British billionaire, and the story follows the interesting lives of the staffers working there. I LOVED this book and would recommend to anyone looking for a lighter read.

I hope this gives you lots of ideas to add to your bookshelf! Happy summer reading, friends!

_____

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