Summer Reading Wrapup: A Mix of Magic, Fantasy, Poetry, and Romance
As the summer days fade into the crisp cool breeze of autumn, I’m looking back on the books that filled my summer. It’s been a season of discovery and emotions, ranging from magical realms to heartfelt poetry, with some romance sprinkled in. Here’s a wrap-up of the books I dove into this summer!
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
The Midnight Library is my first read by the renowned author Matt Haig. I might give his other books my attention someday, but after reading the story about Nora Seed, it might take a while. Nora Seed finds herself in a magical library between life and death after a series of unfortunate events that have left her feeling hopeless and in despair. The Midnight Library is the home of books containing thousands of alternate lives Nora could have lived had she made “better choices”. Mrs. Elm, her childhood school librarian, introduces Nora to the thickest volume on the shelves that holds all her regrets in her current life. Nora decides what regret she wishes to undo and chooses a book that will help her live that life without that regret. When she reads the book, she is transported into that alternate life and begins living it. Nora chooses book after book, living countless lives experiencing, fame, success, fortune, and love but also sadness, loss, addiction, and more regret.
Looking at the cover alone, I thought this book would be light and fun, but it was quite sad. I kept reading though because Nora’s story highlights themes of regret, purpose, control, and possibility in one’s life and how one should live life to the fullest. Despite the intriguing premise and relatable themes, I felt the execution of this story was underwhelming, and the story had uneven pacing at times. Nevertheless, it had a hopeful ending that I was satisfied with but the book as a whole didn’t wow me like I had hoped.
If discussions of suicide, death, mental illness, and thoughts of self-harm upset you, I would skip this read.
Rating: 3 stars
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
Crown of Midnight is the next book in the Throne of Glass series. Celeana Sardothien won the contest and is now the King’s Champion. As the personal executioner to the King of Adarlan, Celaena is far from loyal to his crown. She struggles to grasp her sense of justice, especially when she is ordered to kill an old friend from her past. She buys time to figure out what her friend has gotten himself into, but in doing so she uncovers dark and dangerous secrets that are so much bigger than herself. There are unexpected plot twists, uncovered secrets, questioned friendships, hurtful loss, and some romance sprinkled in between, and a lot more action that will leave you wanting more.
Although this book was more exciting for me than Throne of Glass, it took me a long time to finish as well. I was a bit bored during some moments in the book. The repeated use of multiple points of view in the story made it feel like I was reading the same things over and over again from different angles. While I understand that some points of view were necessary to move the story along, it often felt like a repetition of things I had already read. Lastly, Chaol and Celana’s romance? It’s a big no for me. And I just hated how Celaena and Chaol threw Dorian to the side! He was so lonely and he deserved better. So did Princess Nehemia! Ugh! I think I was more frustrated with this book, to say the least. I was going to DNF this series, but I was told it would get better with the next book. So I am holding out.
Rating: 3 stars
Watering the Soul by Courtney Peppernell
Poetry feels like a breath of fresh air between novels and Watering the Soul was exactly that. This collection of poems offers comfort, healing, and personal growth for those who feel hurt and lost in life. The poems take the reader on a journey to plant and cultivate the soul, helping the reader understand that life is not a destination one makes it to but a journey of discovering our true selves, through pain, hardship, joy, and all the in-between. Peppernell reminds us to nurture all the different parts of ourselves that need attention, patience, and nurturing.
Though the poems are easy to read and provide an engaging poetic cadence, I found the book as a whole was a bit repetitive. It did take me the whole of summer to finish, as I would pick this book up to read it when I wanted a break from my other reads. It had beautiful stories to share nonetheless and I recommend it for those who are seeking comfort and healing, self-care enthusiasts, and poetry lovers (of course). Even if you are looking to get into poetry and want to dip your toes in, these poems are short while offering inspiration.
Rating: 4 stars
Happy Place by Emily Henry
Emily Henry is currently hailed as the queen of romance by book enthusiasts. I'm generally not a fan of contemporary romance as I find it rather boring. However, in order to understand the hype surrounding her work, I decided to give Happy Place a read. The book follows the story of Harriet, an aspiring neurosurgery resident. The book begins with her scary but exciting flight on a week-long vacation to her happy place, the Maine cottage. There she will spend her time with her closest friends from college, Cleo and Sabrina, and their significant others. She will forget all about her demanding and miserable life as a resident back in San Fransisco, and most importantly, about her break up with then-fiance Wyn that happened five months ago. She’ll be ready to spill the beans to her besties and finally move on from this depressing and life-altering situation in her life. That is until she discovers him there at the cottage with the rest of her friends. Her week-long trip has become anything but her happy place when Harriet and Wyn come up with a plan to pretend to still be together so as not to mess up their friendship dynamic as well as ruin their last time together in the cottage before it is sold to someone else.
I’ll admit, at first, I was overwhelmed with the overuse of metaphors that constantly showed itself in every other sentence. But once I got used to the writing style, I really got into the book. I found myself wanting to pick it up to continue reading any chance I got. This book transports back and forth in time from the present week-long cottage to the past experiences of “happy places” Harriet has experienced with her friends. This story was frustrating but in a good way! I was rooting for Harriet and Wyn to be together and I was left wondering why they broke up in the first place, seeming as all their friends thought they were a perfect match and their past shows that they were good to each other. I also really appreciated the friendship group and the changing dynamics. Henry highlights this idea of best friends growing up into their futures and growing apart. How do friends overcome these challenges of not always being there like they used to in their college days? Can friendships survive with just their love and closeness with each other while their lives are pulling them in separate directions? There is a plot twist near the end might I add and there was a happy ending, to say the least. I love happy endings. This was hands down my favorite read of the summer! If you want a story that beautifully weaves together romance, nostalgia, personal growth, and the power of friendships and love, this book is for you.
Rating: 5 stars
Final Thoughts
As I close this chapter with existential musings, fantastical worlds, healing poetry, and a story of love that stole my heart, I can’t help but look forward to what my fall TBR will bring. I hope the stories just get better from here. What did you read this summer? Let me know in the comments—I’d love to hear your recommendations!
