Life has been crazy busy but somehow in the midst of it all I managed to get through two incredible books this month. One heavy and one light because we all know the importance of a good light read to get us through after a book that rips our heart out.

So whether you need the next great book that will make you think deeply about humanity and the world around us or just need a great one day read that you can throw into your beach bag one weekend, I’ve got you covered this month.

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

The first thing we learn about the Lee family is that their oldest daughter, Lydia, is dead. Lydia was the glue that held her family together and now that she is gone everything has begun to unravel. As this book unfolds, we learn about each member of the Lee family: Marilyn and James, Lydia’s parents and Nath and Hannah her siblings. And through know each of these characters we learn how their secrets, regrets, and fears have almost all contributed to Lydia’s death.

Told through both flashbacks of the Lee family and their present day, this novel makes you think deeply about the impact of asking your children, either explicitly or implicitly, to shoulder the burdens of your hopes and regrets. The story telling in this novel is done so well, developing each character beautifully. I was angry at and sympathetic towards almost every character in this book. It also opened my eyes to racism Asian Americans face and how isolating it can be to feel not enough of either race to which you belong. While I learned about Celeste Ng through everyone reading her book Little Fires Everywhere, I chose to start with Everything I Never Told You and was not disappointed. I am excited to get my hands on Little Fires Everywhere and read it soon.

The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory

We meet our main characters, Alexa Monroe and Drew Nichols in an elevator in a very swanky hotel right before the power in the entire hotel goes out and they are stuck together. Drew is a guest of the hotel for the weekend attending his ex’s wedding–penance for his past transgressions and is there without a date. Alexa and Drew hit it off in the elevator and Drew comes up with an idea that will put his plus one to good use at the wedding: he asks Alexa to be his date. What starts as a few “pretend dates” turns into something so much more–something which neither of them was ready for and we follow them through the book as they decide if this weekend whirlwind is worth turning into something more.

The only thing that would have made this book better was if I had read it poolside or in a hammock on the beach. It was a quick read, I finished it in a day and it was adorable. What I loved most about it was how relatable Alexa was. A smart black woman who wasn’t angry, who was concerned about whether her spanks were showing, and ready to love freely and openly. It was refreshing. The sex scenes were steamy without being trashy and I found myself saying “YES!” and “Yass!” on a few occasions. If you are looking for a cute beach read that touches on real issues from belly fat to interracial dating to systemic injustices–The Wedding Date one is for you. Jasmine is coming out with another book in September entitled The Proposal in which we find ourselves face to face with a character from The Wedding Date. I will be grabbing it for another light fun read.

There’s magic in our musings,
Nicole