Must-Read Books for Summer

For some people summer has already begun, even though it does not technically start until June 21st, the summer solstice. Whether you are traveling to exotic lands or just going to the local pool for some time in the sun, there's always a chance to read. Of course, you're going to need some good reading material, right? So here are a few suggestions:

*Books are marked by a (YA) meaning Young Adult, or a (NA) meaning New Adult. Young Adult is generally read by 13-18 year olds, but can be read by anyone. New Adult books are generally meant for college kids, 17-30, but can also be read by almost anyone. Note that NA books usually contain sexual situations and are not appropriate for all readers. Usual recommendation is 17+

Greek Gods & Mythology

 

I had to include Greek gods and mythology in my list of summer reads because I always think about the Greek legends in summer. It helps this year that I am going to Greece, for my second time. I loved it the last time I went for summer, cannot wait again this time round!

 

The Covenant Series by Jennifer Armentrout (YA)

Most people will know Jennifer Armentrout by her Lux series, and maybe her Wait For You NA series. I've got to admit, I wasn't convinced when I first heard about the Covenant series. All of her other works were just so good, how could she have anything else turn out amazing? I have read a good chunk of JLA's books, and I have yet to be disappointed. The covenant series is by far her best to date.

 

Deer in Headlights by Staci Hart (NA)

A newly discovered author for me, and I just recently finished her first book (which I was skeptical about reading)! But so far I have fallen in love with it. There are two major things going on in the book. One, is in the mortal realm where two unlikely people are fighting to fall in love, and two, is in Olympus where the gods are playing a game of puppet master. I cannot wait to see what happens next! Book two, Snake in the Grass, is already out, and sometime in July the third book will be coming out.

Starcrossed Trilogy by Josephine Angelini (YA)

I do really like these books. All three books are already out, so no painstakingly long waiting. There are plenty of gods, myths, and demigods in these books. Mostly demigods and family feuds (think Romeo and Juliet Greek mythology style).

Rocker Romance

 

If you're anything like me, then bad boy rock stars are a must read no matter the time of the year. But they're especially good in summer, when you want the bad boys the most. Shirtless, of course. That's what makes summer so great, right? Shirtless bad boys with tattoos and guitars. Or drums. Or bass. They're all pretty badass and sexy, if you think about it.

 

More than Music by Elizabeth Briggs (NA)

Another new author for me. I recently received an ARC for her book and I freaking LOVE it! The book just recently came out, and it's one of my favorite rocker romance books. It involves geeky rockers (genius!) and a TV show that the band (Villain Complex) competes one to win a record deal and a chance to tour the country.

Runaway Train Series by Katie Ashley (NA)

So I think I discovered this series, hmm, maybe... a year ago? I'm not entirely sure. But since then two full novels and one novella have been published. I still need to read the latest book, Strings of the Heart, and the novella (book 2.5) Music of the Soul. The two books I have read in this series, however, have been AMAZING. I can't wait to read the next ones.

Stage Dive Series by Kylie Scott (NA)

I fell in love with this series when reading Lick, the first book. I loved Mal in the second book, Play. And soon we'll be able to meet Jimmy in Lead (out July 29th) and then Ben in Deep (out December 23rd). It's a great series. The first book is my favorite. Waking up in Vegas married to a sexy rock star? Hell to the yeah!

Royal Rebels

Okay, so I know what you're thinking. Royals? Like Cinderella? I want something a little more... fun for my summer. Yeah, I thought the same thing when I started reading the first book. And yes, I did a whole category for only one trilogy, but whatever. These books kick booty.

 

Suddenly Trilogy by Nichole Chase (NA)

The first book (Suddenly Royal) is so far my favorite. Sam finds out she's a duchess, and everything is like a roller-coaster from there on. Lots of people have compared it to the Princess Diaries. I suppose it is very similar, and that can be positive or negative depending on your view of the Princess Diaries. I thought it was positive, and this book is a lot more mature. The second book (Recklessly Royal), has more sexual content in it than the first. The first is almost upper YA. The third book is Reluctantly Royal, and that comes out August 26th.

Tattooed Bad Boys

Please tell me I don't have to explain this one to you.

Marked Men Series by Jay Crownover (NA)

I love this series. The first book is still my favorite (they generally are). The first book is Rule, and it's the classic story of a sweet girl going for her friend's bad-boy brother. Even if the friend in this book is dead, and even if he's a guy, it's still the same classic story. Then of course there's Jet, which is okay. It's not my favorite, but its not terrible. After Jet is Rome, and that book is pretty sweet. I LOVE Rome and Cora. Next Nash, which was also a pretty badass book. Rowdy is next in the series, and that book comes out October 21st. All of the books are about bad boys who just happen to be tattoo artists (except Rome, he was a soldier and Cora was the body modification expert. A nice twist).

Perfect Chemistry Trilogy by Simone Elkeles (YA)

Gosh, it's been YEARS since I've actually sat down and read this series. Every now and then I'll grab the books from my bookshelf and skim them for my favorite parts, but I haven't actually read them in ages. My favorite book in this series was Rules of Attraction which was actually the second book, not the first, for a change. The first book is called Perfect Chemistry, and is about a bad boy and the clichéd cheerleader falling for him. It's cute. I like Rules of Attraction because Carlos is just... he's got a mouth on him, for one thing. He's one cocky sonofabitch, that's for sure. Kiara is just so perfect with Carlos. And then the third book is about the little brother, Luis (my least favorite of the books), called Chain Reaction. It's a good series.

Ross Siblings Series by Cherrie Lynn (NA)

Not ALL of the books in this series are about tattooed bad boys. But most are. For instance, the first book (Unleashed) is not. I've never read that one. I wonder why... But Rock Me, the second book and probably my favorite is about a yummy tattooed bad boy. As is the novella that comes after it, Light Me up, featuring the same protagonists as in the second book. Leave Me Breathless, the third book, was my second favorite, all because of Ghost. Who isn't technically a Ross. He may as well be. And the last one (I haven't heard of any more being written) is Take Me On, featuring the sister of the Ross family. Getting tattooed isn't her usual MO, but she had a REALLY bad break up. And there ar a ton of novellas in this series. So you won't be bored.

Tortured Souls

Don't ask me why this is appealing. I really don't know. Maybe us girls are just maternal or something. I don't know. But these books are good.

Breakable by Tammara Webber (NA)

The first New Adult book I ever read was Easy. And here is it's sequel, told from Lucas' point of view. It gives you a whole new insight to Lucas. It's kind of amazing, really. You would never know how amazing Lucas really is unless you read this book.

Unfixable by Tessa Bailey (NA)

Not my normal MO for reading. A messed up Willa and an aggressive Shane. It's kind of amazing they don't implode from their chemistry. A really good book. And the broken comes from both sides.

Favorite Summer Series

And to finish this list of recommended summer reading, here is one of the best series' for summer:

Sea Breeze Series by Abbi Glines (Mostly NA)

I have loved this series over the past few years. Starts with Breathe, which is YA. From then on it's closer to NA. And the order goes: Because of Low, While it Lasts, Just for Now, Sometimes it Lasts, Misbehaving, Bad for You, and Hold on Tight. My favorites are While it Lasts and Bad for You. They feature probably the two best bad boys. Don't get me wrong, Preston and Dwayne are most definitely bad boys, but Cage and Krit are all kinds of hot. I have not read Sometimes it Lasts or Misbehaving. It's on my list, but Abby Glines is kind of expensive. I normally don't buy books above $2.99 on my Kindle. The good news is that you technically can read any of the books as a standalone. I would recommend reading all of them, but you are free to choose and pick.

I hope you check some of these books out! What do you recommend for reading during summer? Tell me in the comments below :)





Kacii

Summer Must-Reads

Bad-Boys:

First off, summer is the time for boys, no matter what your age. If you’re like my younger brother, then you’ll probably get into a fight with a girl over a toy. The girl would win, of course. Because we girls rule. If you’re a teen, you’ll probably be hanging out at the movie theater flirting with the guy making popcorn. If you’re a college girl, you’ll be partying and having a good time. And there is one thing no girl of any age can resist; a bad boy. So I’ve selected some of my favorite books with bad boys in them.

The Collector by Victoria Scott – If anyone has checked out my blog over the past six months you’ll have seen the badges and countdown widgets for this book. Dante Walker is actually a bad guy, no phony here, and he is smokin’ while he’s at it. He has a sense of humor like no other, and come on, we all know that a guy who says pow! is classy in the most delicious way.

Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins – Kaidan is a British hottie with a demon for a dad. You can’t really get any more bad than that. Did I mention he plays the drums? And his dad is the duke of lust? You’ll be drooling all over this guy.

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout – The main guy in this book isn’t really a bad boy, per se, but he is extremely arrogant, and despite the light that comes with his species of alien, he has some pretty dark stuff going on. And of course he completely drool worth—we all know him; Daemon the demon (he’s not really a demon, but he can act like it sometimes).

 New Adult:

New adult is generally 17 or 18+ because the sex scenes are more graphic than what you get in YA. New adult is not, however, erotica. It usually is about an 18-30 year old person/people and it tends to have romance in it, though it’s not always about romance. You can get paranormal NA too. It’s a new genre to the reading world and it is a great genre for summer reads because most NA books are light reads and it goes with the season. I’m sure you could find some horror or suspense NA, but a lot of NA is just light and fun to read without all of the angst. It’s carefree.

My Favorite Mistake by Chelsea M. Cameron – For those of you who love new adult as much I do or for people looking to get a new roommate starting this year—you have to check out this book. Especially if you’re looking for a new roommate. It’ll make you think twice.

The Love Game by Emma Hart – Play the player? Classic story. And of course everything goes wrong when you try to play the master of the love game. But it’s oh so exciting and thrilling.

Suddenly Royal by Nichole Chase – I’ve never had the whole ‘princess fantasy’ before. But I tried this book out, and I fell in love with it. A great read for anyone—even people like me who don’t think very much about royalty.

Indie Authors:

Indie authors are independent authors that are either self-published or published by a small, independent publishing company. Despite what most people think, indie authors can be just as good if not better than big-wig published authors. One of my favorite things about indie books is that the authors tend to free write—that is they write without restrictions and guidelines that major publishers set. It can give you a whole other perspective to books and writing. Give them a chance. They might just surprise you.

Fate and Fury by Quinn Loftis – This is the sixth book in the series, so I’d start with the first (Prince of Wolves) if you haven’t read the first few yet. You really notice that these books are without boundaries by the characters and what they say. The characters are the best part of this series. They’ll make you laugh so hard you can’t breathe and you will fall in love with them.

Phoenix by K.K. Cook – I was brought up on mythology, so any books with mythology in them I will probably love. Phoenix is no exception. Based on Persian mythology about phoenixes turning into humans, K.K. Cook writes a fun, light novella on the phoenix and werewolves. And after seeing Taylor Laughtner shirtless and drooling at his abs, werewolves have become a personal favorite in books.

Deadly to Love by Mia Hoddell – Everyone’s heard of internet dating. What about meeting over a game site? This is a very new generation book with all of elements of a great story. It’s something different to mix it up a bit for your summer.

Books about Summer:

This list is kind of about summer. So it would make sense that I have a few books relating to summer in some way or another.

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson – A bit archaic the theme for this story. But a great story, nonetheless. Dystopia is always a favorite genre for me, and a dystopia novel with elements of the ancient Greeks in it? AWESOME! A bit chilling, too, some of the stuff they do in this story. And I’m not talking about the sacrifices. The technology being put in peoples bodies? A concept I don’t understand but am intrigued by.

The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan – We all know this book. And the movie based on the second book is coming out in August I believe! Exciting! Of course, the books were way better. They always are. And what does this have to do with summer, you may ask? It’s been a while since I’ve read the book, but I’m pretty sure Percy goes to camp Half-Blood during the summer. So summer camp would be how it’s relatable.

 Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter – Another summer camp story. I read this book recently and I think the first book was the best in the series. And how can anyone not like a camp full of vampires, werewolves, fairies, witches, and shape-shifters? It’s like paranormal heaven!

What do you guys think? Any other books to add?



Kacii