Pop Culture Princess

Pop Culture Princess
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Monday, May 27, 2013

A set of seasonal reads to warm up your beach blanket reading

I know that today is a holiday and that most folks are basking in the glow of this unofficial beginning of summer instead of prowling about for book recommendations online,however, I did come across a trio of upcoming titles that are perfectly suited to this season to share with you.

First up is Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O'Farrell, which is set during the scorching summer of 1976 in England. Gretta Riordan starts off one particularly hot July morning by finding her husband Robert has decided to leave for good,along with their bank account,and she calls in their three grown children for emotional(and perhaps financial)support.

Her kids happen to have plenty of troubles of their own,with elder son Michael's marriage being on the rocks, daughter Monica getting no respect from her stepdaughters and younger sister Aoife,who now lives in New York, appearing confident yet carrying around a secret that could easily shatter her new founded existence. O'Farrell is an award winning writer overseas and hopefully, this latest work coming to America in June will expand her growing audience of readers seeking engaging mature dramas to savor:


 Next up is Beatriz Williams' A Hundred Summers,where socialite Lily Dane hopes to enjoy her Memorial Day weekend of 1938 in the comfort zone that is Seaview,Rhode Island for her.

However, the two people she least wanted to run into have arrived into the neighborhood,Nick and Budgie Greenwald. Nick was her former fiance and Budgie her former best friend who ran off together and now eager to bring Lily back into their lives. Understandably, Lily is less than thrilled to reconnect but avoiding them all summer is not a realistic option.

 As they are thrown together,sparks do fly and unpleasant truths pop up that could change everything for all involved but the threat of a major storm may upend their social raft for them. If you're looking for an old fashioned story that is bewitched and bothered about the topsy turvy nature of love, this book(which is now on sale) could be your best bet:


Last and far from least is Beautiful Day by Elin Hilderbrand,set during modern times at a Nantucket wedding.  The Carmichael family is bound and determined to use "The Notebook" created by deceased mother Beth as the guide for youngest daughter Jenna's upcoming nuptials.

Despite the seemingly perfect plans,the arrangements for the ceremony and the people expected(or not expected) to be there appear to be going the way of Murphy's Law. Secret romances,complicated family ties and a tree named Alfie are speed bumps to this path of true love running as smooth as it should.

Weddings are always a mixed bag of emotional goodies but Hilderbrand's style of weaving a carefully crafted quilt of family love promises to make this late June release well worth the wait as you listen to the wedding bell blues of others this summer:


Hope you're having a good holiday weekend and a great start to your summer as well. Finding fresh books to read that are nicely tailored to your tastes can be tricky but with most of your favorite TV shows taking a break this season as well,combining those two pop culture pleasures can be as sweet as a triple scoop ice cream cone or as quirky as peanut butter coated popcorn(haven't tried that but it doesn't sound too bad there). So, don't let book shopping overwhelm you,folks,that's actually supposed to be fun!:




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