The Bookstop: Six romance books to read this summer

Ansley Puckett, Reporter

Long days at the beach, warm afternoons after a day of work and cool summer sunsets, mean the official start of summer and time to relax and rest. This summer, whether you’re spending time in the sand, traveling to new locations or spending time at home with a summer job, take some time to catch up on these popular books perfect for the hot summer weather. 

 

Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert 

This super cute romance follows Eve Brown and the situation she finds herself in after quitting job after job. Her parents are disappointed, and in order to get her life back on track, she needs a job to prove she can be an adult. Eve finds herself at the bed and breakfast of Jacob Wayne, a control freak that is the opposite of her fun-loving self in every way. But Jacob needs a chef desperately, and these enemies find themselves working closer to each other than Jacob would have liked … and growing closer along the way. 

 

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

Putting a spin on the classic opposites attract trope, this book will make you believe that maybe blind dating isn’t so bad, even if it went terribly wrong for Darcy Lowell, whose well-intentioned brother set her up on a blind date with Elle Jones. The date is a disaster, and both women leave planning on never seeing each other again, which is why Elle is so surprised when Darcy’s brother tells her he’s happy the date went well. Desperate to stop her brother from setting her up on any more blind dates, Darcy lies about how her date went with Elle, and now she needs Elle’s help to keep the ruse going. However, it isn’t long before the women realize that maybe their feelings might be real even if their relationship is not.

 

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams 

When teenage Eva Mercy and Shane Hall spent one week madly in love 20 years ago, they never expected to rekindle their relationship. However, as bestselling writers, the two had been unknowingly writing about each other in their books for years. So, when Shane shows up in New York for a literary event, the writers meet unexpectedly and reconnect over the next seven days. But Eva wants Shane out of New York and her life back to normal, and the only way to do that is to answer some lingering questions from their past. 

 

Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon

After witnessing a couple kiss and getting a strange vision of how their romance began and how it will end, Evie Thomas doesn’t believe in love anymore. As Evie tries to understand what’s happening, she ends up learning to dance at La Brea Dance studio with a guy named X, where she finds herself falling for her adventurous and daring dance partner. However, as she begins to question her stance on love, she also must ask herself if it’s worth the risk of heartbreak. 

 

History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera

Griffin always knew his first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, would come back to him when the time was right, even though Theo moved away and started dating someone else. But when Theo drowns, Griffin’s life is turned upside down, and the only person he can find comfort in is Theo’s boyfriend Jackson. However, no matter how much they confide in each other, Griffin continues to lose himself to the sadness and the secrets he’s been keeping. If he’s ever going to piece his life back together, he must confront these secrets and his past. 

 

The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim

This touching book follows the story of Anna Chiu as she watches over her younger brother and sister while her dad works late at their family restaurant and her mother spends days in bed. After finally convincing her dad to let her help at the restaurant, Anna finds a distraction from family and school in the new delivery boy, Roy. However, when Anna’s mom finally gets out of bed, her condition worsens, and Anna and her family find themselves navigating a world they don’t understand.