Happy Tuesday! It’s almost the end of the month, so I am sharing the books I read this month and what I am currently reading. I am linking up with the Share Your Shelf ladies – Joanne, Marilyn, Tanya, and Jenn – so be sure to check them out on Thursday for other great bookish posts.
Under the Stars by Beatriz Williams ☀️☀️☀️☀️
**2025 Sunshine and Books Summer Beach Read**
You know I always read Beatriz Williams books because I enjoy them and I almost hit her with my car when I was going to an author visit a few years ago. It feels like good driver points. Ha! Luckily I didn’t hit her and we were able to chat about it at the bookstore. I really enjoyed this book. Told in two timelines on one small island, Audrey solves a hundred year old mystery through the lives of three women – her mother, Providence Dare, and herself. Providence Dare was a passenger on a the wrecked Atlantic and is running away from troubles in Boston. Aubrey and her mother Meredith are seeking a break from Hollywood to regroup and get Meredith sober. Aubrey reconnects with her father on Winthrop Island, discovers an old trunk full of secrets, and might be falling in love with Sedge, a Winthrop resident. I enjoyed watching the three women’s stories unravel and weave together.
Tyrannosaurus Wrecks by Stuart Gibbs (kids audio)
In the next installment of the FunJungle series, Teddy and Summer are helping their friend Sage’s family solve a GIANT crime. A dinosaur skeleton, Minerva, has been discovered on Sage’s family ranch and goes missing one rainy night. How can you steal a skull that weighs 500 lbs? While trying to figure out the hijinks of their usual rivals, the Barksdale twins, and an exotic reptile trade, Summer and Teddy must also find out what happened to Minerva. It is funny and full of action, just like the rest of the series. Luke and I loved listening to it!
The Sherlock Society by James Ponti (kids)
James Ponti is a master writer for middle grades! This is one of our Battle of the Books books this year and I was excited to read it. In fact, the kids at my school are also pretty excited to read it and I had a hard time getting my hands on a copy! The four kids in this book – Alex and Zoe Sherlock and friends – decide they are going to start a detective agency in South Florida to make some money this summer. They end up in the middle of a decades long investigation into Al Capone’s fortune and have a wild time trying to solve the case. Accompanied by their eccentric grandfather, The Sherlock Society, took us on quite the adventure full of suspense and fun.
10 Rules for Raising Kids in a High-Tech World: How Parents Can Stop Smartphones, Social Media, and Gaming from Taking Over Their Children’s Lives by Jean M. Twenge ☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️
I loved this book and recommend it to every single parent around. At first, I was a little worried I was reading it too late because both of my kids have phones and social media already. It is not too late! I am hoping to dedicate a post just to this book soon because I thought there were so many valuable things in here. Highly recommend this book!!!
The Battle of the Bookshops by Poppy Alexander ☀️☀️☀️☀️
This book has been on my kindle for a while and I am so glad I read it this month. I thought this would be similar to You’ve Got Mail, but it wasn’t! It is a modern day Romeo and Juliet set in the world of bookstores. In the small town of Portneath, Capelthorne’s Books has been the only bookstore for 100 years. Jules Capelthorne came home from London to help her great aunt run the bookstore when she loses her job. It’s going well until Roman Montbeau comes home. He opens a giant, new, flashy bookstore directly acrosse the street and it can only lead to disaster for small Capelthorne’s Books. While the book was slightly predictable because I knew how it would end, I enjoyed watching Jules and Roman turn from enemies in work and life to friends to more than friends.
The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore ☀️☀️☀️☀️
This book has been on my radar for a while but I wanted to wait until it was really fall to read it. Jeannie leaves Boston and moves to Dream Harbor to run her aunt’s cafe. Logan is the local farmer that scares her one early morning when delivering fresh produce. I bet you can’t guess what happens to Jeannie and Logan… This is a cozy, romance that was perfect for an easy fall read. I want to read the second one because I love a series, but it is set in the summer so I’m not sure when I’ll get to it.
The Wild Robot by Peter Brown (kids)
Luke’s second grade teacher read this to him and he loved it! The Wild Robot has a big following in our school library and I decided it was time for me to read it. I loved it! I thought it had a great message of working together and communicating. I haven’t seen the movie and, truthfully, I probably won’t. I will be recommending it to more readers though!
Currently Reading: Witchful Thinking by Celestine Martin
Currently Reading: No One Was Supposed to Die at this Wedding by Catherine Mack
Currently Listening: Spy School Blackout by Stuart Gibbs (kids audio)
You can always checkout what I’ve been reading on my Books 2025 page. (Oops, I still need to update that page!) I have all of my yearly reading pages linked here if you want to see what I’ve been reading for the last 7 years.
I had a good reading month! I am hoping to share my annual list of Christmas books with you soon. I like to read fall-ish books for part of November and then switch over to read as many Christmas books as possible each year. What have you been reading? Anything exciting? Have a great day full of sunshine and books!
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