Reading Recommendations: Wanderlust Travel Destinations Vol.4
A new month means another batch of reading recommendations! June’s theme is Wanderlust Travel Destinations. Start off the Summertime with these novels that will take you places around the world and travel through the pages of a book! To see my previous recs from last year, click here.
Oh My Affogato!
Soraya is so close to getting the boy of her dreams to finally pay attention to her—she’s sure of it. She’s finally graduated from high school, glowed up, and is ready to show her on-again-off-again, secret situationship Wes what he’s missing out on. And when she learns that Wes is heading to Italy on a trip with his fraternity brothers, Sora decides that there’s no better place to reignite a romance than the Amalfi Coast!
Under the guise of a graduation Euro trip with her friends, Soraya’s plan is make memories with her besties during the day, make out with Wes at night, and make sure she comes out of this vacation with the title of Official Girlfriend and Grown College Girlie. But vacations can be messy, and romances messier—especially when you’re keeping secrets from your friends, discovering your dream boy may be a nightmare, and spending more and more time with the sweet, wholesome, and supremely cute Italian boy whose family runs the B&B.
This quote is the best way to sum up the story within Oh My Affogato! which not only takes readers on a vacation through Amalfi Coast, but also on a journey of self-discovery. Set among the backdrop of a European adventure to celebrate their graduation Soraya, Mari, and Anya end up getting more than they bargained for. Along the way through the first leg of their trip they will experience secrets that may threaten their relationship and the messiness that can come with vacations. This novel is perfect for a summer read or when you feel as if you want to be whisked away to a new destination. It’s immersive from the landscapes down to the culture the story is set in.
Puzzles and Premieres
This book club does more than read their books – they are absorbed right into the story to become the amateur sleuths! To exit the book and get back home, they need to solve the mystery and reach The End.
In this journey, they travel to a mountaintop ski town to experience the enchanting setting of a famous film festival. They’ll meet movie stars, producers, and directors. They’ll watch a film premiere, go skiing, and eat at fancy restaurants. It’s all very glamorous and exciting – until a famous actress disappears.
The book club is on the case! They discover clues in the most unusual way – by putting together enchanted jigsaw puzzles.
As usual, the club finds plenty of time to enjoy the unique setting of their journey, as they put together the mystery – one puzzle piece at a time.
Pantley’s writing is immersive and detailed which makes for a solid world-building in this novel (and is key to any book with lots of fantasy elements). I thought the idea of a cozy mystery book club that literally gets to solve the mystery by being transported into the story was so fun. The reading experience felt so whimsical as you are transported to a snowy small town hosting a film festival. You get to experience the glitz and glamour of film events while also enjoying snow-themed sports and activities. I loved the cozy moments where the book club huddles up to solve the jigsaw puzzles within the inn to gather clues and most of all, enjoy each other’s company.
The Noh Family
When her friends gift her a 23-and-Me test as a gag, high school senior Chloe Kang doesn’t think much of trying it out. She doesn’t believe anything will come of it–she’s an only child, her mother is an orphan, and her father died in Seoul before she was even born, and before her mother moved to Oklahoma. It’s been just Chloe and her mom her whole life. But the DNA test reveals something Chloe never expected–she’s got a whole extended family from her father’s side half a world away in Korea. Her father’s family are owners of a famous high-end department store, and are among the richest families in Seoul. When they learn she exists, they are excited to meet her. Her mother has huge reservations, she hasn’t had a great relationship with her husband’s family, which is why she’s kept them secret, but she can’t stop Chloe from traveling to Seoul to spend two weeks getting to know the Noh family.
Chloe is whisked into the lap of luxury, but something feels wrong. Chloe wants to shake it off–she’s busy enjoying the delights of Seoul with new friend Miso Dan, the daughter of one of her mother’s grade school friends. And as an aspiring fashion designer, she’s loving the couture clothes her department store owning family gives her access to. But soon Chloe will discover the reason why her mother never told her about her dad’s family, and why the Nohs wanted her in Seoul in the first place. Could joining the Noh family be worse than having no family at all?
Not only is this a story about family but this is a novel that will instantly appeal to K-Drama lovers too. Chloe is an avid K-Drama watcher and the author, Shim drops plenty of nods to popular shows and K-Drama clichés making it an overall fun reading experience. The travel aspect also makes it entertaining as we get to see Chloe experience Seoul through her eyes for the first time. I love how the story takes readers through the underground shopping malls, themed animal cafes, delicious food stands, and more.
Hurricane Summer
Tilla has spent her entire life trying to make her father love her. But every six months, he leaves their family and returns to his true home: the island of Jamaica.
When Tilla’s mother tells her she’ll be spending the summer on the island, Tilla dreads the idea of seeing him again, but longs to discover what life in Jamaica has always held for him.
In an unexpected turn of events, Tilla is forced to face the storm that unravels in her own life as she learns about the dark secrets that lie beyond the veil of paradise—all in the midst of an impending hurricane.
This novel is a difficult coming-of-age story following the main character Tilla as she and her younger sister, Mia spend a summer in Jamaica. This will be the first time the two sisters will spend a summer away from their mother and away from everything they know. Despite their Jamaican heritage, they feel foreign in their parents homeland and the result is a summer full of growth, culture shock, trauma, and grief. Navigating her complicated emotions, Tilla is forced to face a physical and mental storm that she has been reckoning with .I feel this novel is a very thought provoking story about the obstacles of growing up and a daughter who is wants to preserve her father’s love while healing the rift of her family.
Heiress of Nowhere
1918. Orcas Island, Washington.
Lucy Nowhere has spent her eighteen years working on the vast estate of the eccentric shipbuilder who took her in after she washed ashore in a green canoe as a baby. But she has long wished for a life off the island, and in a matter of days, she is set to leave for college—and, for the first time, choose her own future.
Then she finds her employer’s severed head on the beach. Rumors swirl that a mischievous spirit and its minions, the sea wolves, have struck again. Lucy doesn’t believe in myths. She knows that a human—a human murderer—killed him. And when she is unexpectedly named heiress to the estate, she understands the next target is her.
Her closest friend, the estate’s vigilant young guard, begs her to escape while she can. But Lucy knows the only way she can discover who she is, and free the island of its curse, is to find the real killer—before she becomes the next victim.
What made this novel so enjoyable to read was the heavy gothic atmosphere the reader is immersed in. Lucy takes through a world of a dark, moody house that looms over a island with more secrets than we can bear. The landscape though ominous at times is picturesque and the smallest details brought the story to life. Each character we come across has some information they withhold making you put on your amateur sleuth hat. The overall character development was smooth and readers will enjoy how Lucy becomes more confident as she grows into her role as heiress and navigates the complicated feelings surrounding her upbringing.
That concludes my reading recommendations for books that will take you around the globe! What books do you recommend or what are your favorites? Comment below!
