I wasn't sure what reading would look like in July what with a newborn to take care of and all. But turns out all those late night feedings leave a lot of time for sitting around and reading a Kindle in the dark. So I got through plenty of books in July. 

I kept things mostly light. The book needed to have a fast moving plot and not make my completely sleep deprived brain think too hard. Most of the books I read seemed to meet that target. 

Four Stars

The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was another easy summer read from Elin Hilderbrand. Every time I read one of her books, I'm sad she's planning to retire next year. This book centered around Hollis Shaw after she loses her husband in a car accident. She decides to bring together four friends from different points in her life for a "five star weekend" on Nantucket. The women don't know each other well and so their weekend together has so of the highs and lows you might expect when a group of strangers get together. A fun and fast summer read.

What the Neighbors Saw by Melissa Adelman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Can't remember who recommended this to me, but I love a book set in/near DC, and this one delivered. Alexis and Sam are eager to move out of their DC row home to one of the more exclusive neighbors in the suburbs to make room for their growing family. But the 'burbs are expensive and they settle on a falling down home, still outside their price range, in an elusive neighborhood that they think will be safe. But soon after they move in a neighbor dies on a running trail and Alexis starts to learn that everything in their fancy neighborhood isn't all it appears.

The Only Survivors by Megan Miranda
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've enjoyed the last several of Megan Miranda's books, and while this one was good, I didn't love it quite as much as some of her others. In this book, a group of friends gets together each year to commemorate a tragic accident that happened when they were in high school that left them as the only survivors. But recently two of the survivors have died mysteriously and so when the group gets together this year things are tense as they strive to figure out what is happening to them.

The Senator's Wife by Liv Constantine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I tore through this twisty book that opens with two senators and their wives on vacation together. By chapter one of the senators and one of the wives are dead and the other two eventually marry. The remaining wife has major surgery planned and brings in in home care to help her recovery, but her condition gets worse instead of getting better. This was a fast and suspenseful read set in DC.

Three Stars

Bad Summer People by Emma Rosenblum
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was another fun summer book about a group of people that spends the summer on Fire Island every year. The book opens with a little kid finding a dead body that has fallen off the boardwalk, then you jump back in time to the start of the summer when all the families are just arriving. There's lots of gossip and backstabbing and a young good-looking tennis pro that draws lots of attention. The book is told from multiple character's perspectives and all of them could have a motive and all of them could be the one that ends up dead at the end. A light summer read.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was on the waitlist for this book for a really long time and had been looking forward to reading it, but it was a little bit slower than I expected. Emily and Chess head on a girl's trip to Italy. They've been friends for ages, but don't keep in super close touch anymore. Chess has become a famous self-help author/influencer, and Emily writes cozy mysteries. They both plan to use the time at the house to work on their writing. But the house has secrets waiting to be uncovered and Emily and Chess have secrets of their own. This book was interesting, I was just hoping for a slightly faster pace.

The Chateau by Jaclyn Goldis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book started a bit slowly, but picked up toward the end. Four friends are invited to one of their grandmother’s chateaus in France 20 years after they spent time studying abroad there. The grandmother claims she has to set the record straight on a few things, but is murdered before she can. The friends struggle to figure out who did it, unsure if they can trust each other at all anymore.

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