Happy Thursday, friends! I'm checking in from sunny California, where we're having an amazing time exploring a few national parks. I can't wait to share all the details with you soon!
But today is Thinking Out Loud Thursday—my weekly spot to chat about what’s on my mind and invite you to do the same by linking up. Since it’s the first Thursday of the month, I’m sharing everything I read in July. Let’s dive in!
Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead (Book 2 of Series) by Elle Cosimano
This is such a fun series! Immediately following the first book, I loaded Book 2 and started reading. I loved it as much as the first one! Can't wait to move on to the next one.
Finlay Donovan is—once again—struggling to finish her next novel and keep her head above water as a single mother of two. On the bright side, she has her live-in nanny and confidant Vero to rely on, and the only dead body she's dealt with lately is that of her daughter's pet goldfish.
On the not-so-bright side, someone out there wants her ex-husband, Steven, out of the picture. Permanently. Whatever else Steven may be, he's a good father, but saving him will send her down a rabbit hole of hit-women disguised as soccer moms, and a little bit more involvement with the Russian mob than she'd like.
Meanwhile, Vero's keeping secrets, and Detective Nick Anthony seems determined to get back into her life. He may be a hot cop, but Finlay's first priority is preventing her family from sleeping with the fishes... and if that means bending a few laws then so be it.
With her next book's deadline looming and an ex-husband to keep alive, Finlay is quickly coming to the end of her rope. She can only hope there isn't a noose at the end of it...
The Nightingale by Kristen Hannah
I might be the last person on the planet to read this book—but I finally did! And wow, it was absolutely wonderful. I could even see myself picking it up again for a re-read down the road.
With courage, grace, and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah captures the epic panorama of World War II and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women's war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France—a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
What a great read! I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. Just a heads-up: the book does touch on the topic of suicide, so if that’s a sensitive subject for you, you might want to skip this one. That said, I found it heartfelt and endearing—and I truly loved it.
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.
The Ark and the Dove by Jill Eileen Smith
One of my book clubs chose this book for July, and while I usually enjoy historical fiction, I realized biblical fiction isn’t really my thing. It wasn’t a favorite of mine, but I will say it challenged me—I found myself double-checking facts and diving into my Bible more than once to refresh my memory about Noah and his family.
Zara and Noah have walked together with the Creator for their entire lives, and they have done their best in an increasingly wicked and defiant world to raise their three sons to follow in their footsteps. It has been a challenge--and it's about to get much, much harder.
When the Creator tells her husband to build an ark to escape the coming wrath against the sins of humankind, Zara steps out with him in faith. But the derision and sabotage directed their way from both friends and extended family are difficult to bear, as is knowing that everyone she interacts with beyond her husband, her sons, and their wives is doomed to destruction. And when the ark is finally finished and the animals have been shut up inside, Zara and her family embark on an adventure that will test their patience and their faith as they await deliverance and dry ground.
Experience the story of Noah and the flood like you never have before. With bestselling and award-winning author Jill Eileen Smith as your guide, you'll never look at a rainbow the same way again.
Now it's your turn. What are you thinking about today? Link up and share!
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