We are about three weeks into summer here and loving it! In my mind I told myself that I should read 20 books this summer. In reality I probably won’t get anywhere near that, but it would be fun right? There’s something so great about summer reading. Grab a good book, sit by the pool or in the backyard and be swept away by a story. And what’s a better summer read than a sweet love story? I love a good book that can sweep me off my feet and remind me what it is like to fall in love-you know, the early stages, the butterflies, the excitement, the sweetness. And it’s fun to read something like that during summertime, so today lets talk about fun love stories to read this summer!
So whether you are going to grab your phone and listen to a great book on Audible or grab a book and sit by the pool (both great options), let’s talk about books that will make you feel in love again. These ones will make you feel those butterflies and that excitement that falling in love and being in love can bring. Or remind you how much you love the one you are with.
Great Love Stories:
This month I really wanted to grab a book that I hadn’t read yet that fits with this month’s love story theme and read/listen to it and tell you about it. I chose Love and Gelato by Jenna Welch:
This is a sweet and easy to read story-perfect for summer. It’s a teenage love story and it’s something you can easily listen to or read on an airplane (I did) or by the pool or while the kids are running through the house. It’s predictable, but a sweet little love story (and a little bit of mystery and life lessons) that takes place in Florence, Italy. So if you want a fast and easy read, grab this!
And here are some other recommendations for great love stories!
And remember to grab your free one month trial on Audible. Almost all of these book are available there and you can listen while you enjoy your summer!
This book was actually written by a friend of mine and is the first book in a three part series. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. I loved the writing, I love the story (and yes, there’s love!), I loved the characters, I loved the whole series. You’ll feel that angst when the characters don’t do what you want, that excitement when the love takes off, all the great feelings of a good book. Be warned, this one will leave you hanging, so just grab all three from the get go and dig in for a really great reading experience!
Kate Morton is one of my favorite authors. I like to call her books “family history mysteries” because they always involve someone (or multiple someones) trying to discover something about a relative’s past. While they are all fantastic, this is the one that has the best love story woven through it. You’ll be drawn into this one and you’ll be lost in the story-for the mystery and the love story!
This is another author (Lynn Austin) who I read anything from! But this is my favorite as far as love stories go. You know those books that make you ache for the characters. You feel their pain, their emotions and you root for them all along the way as you get swept up in the story. This one really did that for me and I loved it. Or grab ANY book by Lynn Austin.
Get ready to be swept away and find yourself swooning! This one is sweet and fantastic in just the right way. You know when you want to just get lost in a love story and feel all the lovey dovey feelings? There’s not a better option out there-this is just a fun, cute love story that’s so easy to read you can listen to it or read it in a day probably. Perfect for summer reading! (It starts out cheesy, but that’s part of the charm.)
Everything I said about the last one can be said for this one too. It’s written by the same author and it’s the perfect escape book and a sweet love story. My book club read this one and every single one of us loved it. I read it in about a day and loved swooning my way through.
I’ve mentioned this one before, but it fits well in the love story category as well, though this one is different from the others I’ve mentioned so far. This story has depth, difficulty, real life trauma and little life beauties. But it definitely has a love story too. A love story that made me cry when I read it and I’ll tell you right now, that’s not something that happens often! This is a book that will leave you feeling something!
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet:
I was hooked two paragraphs in to this story-the writing is that good. It’s the story of a Chinese boy and a Japanese girl in Seattle during WWII when the Japanese were sent to internment camps. It’s shocking to realize and remember what was going on it our own country during that time, but it’s also a great love story. It flips back and forth between 1942 and 1986 which I loved and has some nice symbolism too. This book is one of my favorites.
By the third Bronte sister and when I read this one I didn’t know there WAS a third Bronte sister, but I was thrilled to find out! This was the most down to earth, well rounded, realistic love story I have ever read. I loved the religious view points all through it as well and I loved that it is just a simple and beautiful love story. It’s slower paced than some and not as passionate, but just a solid, good love story.
You’ve got to love Newberry books like this one. It’s Cinderella with a twist and it’s sweet and fun (and way better than the movie). This is a great one to listen to or read aloud with your kids!
If you love Jane Austen but haven’t read them all, pick this one up! I think it’s my very favorite one that she wrote. It’s of course got plenty of lover’s angst-I think all Jane Austen’s do? This one is just too good.
This book is a favorite among many of my friends! It’s written in diary form and takes place in the Arizona territory in the late 1800s. It will give you a sweet love story and also just a sweet life story. Not just the easy stuff, all the stuff that life brings (or brought in that time), so you’ll be learning as well as enjoying this book.
This was the main book that I talked about last month when we talked about the classics, but I can’t possibly write about love stories without mentioning this one because it’s probably my all time favorite love story. You’ll feel so much while you read this book-hope, disappointment, love, happiness, and more. If you haven’t read it, it’s time!
It’s the 1860s and a man’s wife dies. So he brings in a “mail order bride” of sorts, mostly to cook for him, I’ll let you guess what happens from there. It’s predictable but sweet and very worth reading!
OK, now the only question is, which will you grab first?! And remember to grab your free one month trial on Audible if you haven’t already.
I’d really love to hear YOUR favorite love stories too!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Audible. The opinions and text are all mine.
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Yay! I was so excited when I saw this in my inbox!! I have been loving the other book club posts, and I can’t wait to read some of these books! Thanks so much for the recommendations. :)
Thanks for the recommendations! I love some of the books you recommended especially Love and Gelato. Ella Enchanted is always good and an easy read and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is well written.