Skip to main content Skip to header navigation

More books for a hot summer

Summer is in full swing and from the lighthearted to the serious and everything in between, SheKnows has your books covered!

The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint
by Brady Udall

The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint is an apt title for a book whose main character — Edgar Mint, as you might have guessed — manages to survive a multitude of calamities that are limited only by Brady Udall’s wonderful imagination.

Edgar’s claim to fame is his assertion that a mailman ran over his head when he was seven. If that was not enough, the half-Apache sort-of orphaned boy is subjected to a horrid school for Native-American orphans, a dysfunctional Mormon foster family and other equally interesting disasters. Readers will both laugh and cry at Edgar’s misadventures, but ultimately root for him to persist and succeed despite his lot in life.


The Other Woman’s House
by Sophie HannahOther Womans house

The bestselling UK crime fiction writer Sophie Hannah is back with her latest — The Other Woman’s House, featuring fan favorites, detectives Charlie Zailer and Simon Waterhouse.

On a sleepless night, Connie Bowskill decides to search a real estate website for a specific house. But clicking on the virtual tour gives Connie much more than she bargained for — in one of the rooms, she sees a woman face down in a pool of blood. When she rushes to show her husband what she has just seen, the body is gone and the room is clean. Was the body a figment of Connie’s imagination or is there something more sinister at play?


And Laughter Fell from the Sky
by Jyotsna Sreenivasan

Rasika is beautiful and independent with a good career under her belt, but with her 26th birthday quickly approaching, she agrees to an arranged marriage.

Abhay is the complete opposite of the perfect Indian-American son. He spent his post-college years in a commune and in one dead end job after another, and he still has no idea what he’s really looking for.

Rasika and Abhay’s families are old friends, and when the two reconnect, sparks fly. But with Rasika’s impending marriage and Abhay’s less than stellar past, can the two overcome the odds to be together?


Runaway Girl
by Carissa Phelps

In her brutally honest memoir, Carissa Phelps opens up her life to the readers. As a teenager, Carissa ran away from an abusive home and lived on the streets, eventually falling prey to a pimp who forced her into prostitution. At 14, with the threat of jail looming, Carissa escaped the sex industry with the help of a social worker and a teacher who risked their jobs to help her. With their guidance, Carissa thrived, and by age 30, she graduated from UCLA with both a law degree and an MBA.

Runaway Girl is both a cautionary tale about the realities of sex-trafficking in the U.S. and an inspirational story of the change that is possible with the help of others. A very important read for both parents and teenagers.


Gold
by Chris Cleave

I absolutely loved Chris Cleave’s Little Bee and his newest novel, Gold, does not disappoint.

Kate and Zoe, both track cyclists, met when they were 19. Now 32, the women are up against their biggest, and last, challenge — the 2012 Olympics. Kate has the natural talent, but the demands of her everyday life overshadow everything else. Her 8-year-old daughter is battling a recurrence of leukemia. Zoe, on the other hand, is single minded in her determination to win the gold, often at the expense of her long friendship with Kate. As the games draw closer and the training grows more intense, both women find out just how much they are willing to give up in the pursuit of perfection.


The Reluctant Matchmaker
by Shobhan Bantwalreluctant matchmaker

Thirty-one-year-old Indian-American Meena Shenoy has a successful IT career, but her mother and aunts determine success by one thing and one thing alone — marriage. It’s not like Meena doesn’t try, but her dates never lead to anything more serious. And the one man who has all the qualities she’s looking for is unfortunately also her boss, Prajay Nayak.

While Meena’s thoughts are all about Prajay, Prajay’s thoughts are on placing a personal ad for a suitable wife — and he asks Meena for help. He offers to pay her for her “matchmaking” services and despite her feelings, she cannot refuse. Amidst Meena’s personal turmoil, her family is also thrown into disarray at the news of her brother’s relationship with a Muslim woman, leaving Meena to question the sacrifices she’s willing to make for the sake of love.


Keepsake
by Kristina Riggle

Divorced with two kids, Trish knows that her house isn’t exactly clean. When her youngest son gets hurt in the clutter and Child Protective Services shows up, Trish is forced to confront her worst fear — she is a compulsive hoarder, just like her mother.

In a race to clean up her house or risk losing her son, Trish accepts the help of her sister, Mary. Their mother’s hoarding also affected Mary, but in the opposite way — she’s meticulous and clean to the point of compulsion. As the two work together to uncover Trish’s home from piles of junk, they also uncover years of hurt and resentment long hidden.


The Next Best Thing
by Jennifer Weiner

At 23, Ruth Saunders was headed for Hollywood with her 70-year-old grandmother, hoping to make it as a screenwriter. After six years of hard work, Ruth finally gets a break when the sitcom she wrote, The Next Best Thing, is picked up and Ruth is asked to head up the production. But her dream job quickly turns sour when bratty actors and cash-hungry executives come calling. And that’s not to mention Ruth unfortunate crush on her boss and her grandmother’s upcoming wedding.

The Next Best Thing is a rollicking story of big Hollywood dreams, bad Hollywood behaviors and a young woman trying to make it on her own.


On the Island
by Tracey Garvis Graves

Thirty-year-old English teacher Anna Emerson has the perfect summer ahead of her — she will be tutoring 17-year-old T.J. Callahan in Maldives at his family’s summer rental. To T.J., the planned summer is a nightmare. He is finally in remission from cancer and has to spend his first healthy summer with his family.

On the way to Maldives, Anna’s and T.J.’s plane crash lands in the Indian Ocean. The two survive and make it ashore the nearest island, but must work together to make it through each day. They endure days, weeks and then months of isolation against many dangers, both on land and at sea, and the possibility that T.J.’s cancer could return. But Anna must face another dilemma when she realizes that the boy she was to tutor is quickly becoming a man…


The After Wife
by Gigi Levangie Grazer

With the unfortunate passing of her husband, John, 44-year-old Hannah Bernal quickly finds that Hollywood is not very kind to widows. Amidst the beautiful faces and bodies, all people see are Hannah’s tear-stained eyes. But life goes on, and Hannah’s 3-year-old daughter’s needs draw her out of seclusion.

Hannah feels fortunate to have her “Grief Team” — animal lover and avid blogger Chloe, aspiring actress and plastic-surgery addict Aimee, and Jay, Hannah’s TV producing partner. But when Hannah winds up in a Santa Monica jail cell, even the “Grief Team” is left speechless. Adding to the disaster is the fact that John, the wonderful husband, was not so wonderful when it came to their financial affairs. When Hannah also loses her producing gig, she has to face the fact that she may also lose her house and her daughter in the process.


More to read

Lounging Around with Jennifer Weiner
Red Hot Book of the Week: The After Wife by Gigi Levangie Grazer
SheKnows Book Review: Ocean Beach by Wendy Wax

Leave a Comment

Comments are closed.