Summer Reads 2022

*This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click on a link and make a purchase. You can visit my disclosure policy and privacy policy for more details.
  

I was in such a reading slump at the beginning of the year!

 

Thankfully, in the summer I found a book that got me back into reading again. Have you heard of Colleen Hoover? I know, she’s all the rage right now. From what I’ve read, it’s for good reason!

 

Funny enough, I put holds on various books some odd months ago from my local library and they literally all arrived at my turn at the same time! Within two weeks, I had five books at my house, haha! It was a bit stressful having all of these books at once, but I’m so glad I started off with Verity because it got me back in the groove of reading again. Plus, I wanted to read more of her books!

 

Here are the books that I read over the summer, and then you can preview some of the titles you’ll see in my Fall Reads blog post! I think I’ve decided to share my books in seasons for now here on the blog, but you can check out what I’m reading in real time over on my IG Stories!

 

Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen

 

I really enjoyed this book! When I first put a hold on this one, I actually had no idea that it was centered around God. I was pleasantly surprised! I have seen this book on tons of personal development book lists over many blogs and you don’t always see that when religion is involved. While I’m bias as a Christian, I think you could certainly gain so much insight from this book even if it’s not something you are interested in.

 

Jennie Allen has researched so much about the negative spirals that our minds take, and they sort of go into this domino-effect. Have you ever had one of those days, nothing seems to be going your way, and it’s one negative thought after another? That’s definitely a spiral! I’ve had my fair share of these spirals. For me, I’m more susceptible to negative spirals when it’s someone I love who is going through something difficult, or maybe just having their own negative spiral. I want to ‘fix it.’ One of my worst traits!

 

Over the course of the book, she lays out how to combat these negative spirals. While I won’t spoil it for you because you’ll want to keep reading to figure it out, I can tell you that it’s something I’ve implemented in my inner work ever since I read it. It’s incredibly simple, yet so helpful!

 

Verity by Colleen Hoover

 

I got the recommendation for this book from two of my SILs and it did not disappoint! This book took me on a wild and scary ride. It’s one of those where you’re constantly questioning what you’re reading, and if something is actually true or not. It’s a real thriller!

 

I do have to note, some of the parts are a little hard to take. I don’t want to spoil anything for you if you haven’t read it. There are some unsettling thoughts coming from a mother in the book regarding her children. I’m only a cat mom, but I cringed at some of the things I read. However, I still really enjoyed the book and it’s just all part of this twisted work of fiction from Colleen Hoover.

 

Layla by Colleen Hoover

 

I read this book after I got through Verity. You might call me a Hoover fanatic now!

 

 

I have to say, I did not enjoy this book as much as Verity, but it was a really high bar to hit. I am not much for supernatural thrillers and this book most definitely fits in that category. However, I thought it was well written and enjoyed parts of the story between the two main characters.

 

Similarly to Verity, it does keep you guessing as to what’s really happening – if the characters are actually going crazy, or if there’s something more to what they’re experiencing. It was definitely worth the read, and I liked how it ended a lot.

 

Fall Reads Preview!

 

Here are a couple of the books you can expect to see if my Fall Reads blog post. I am feeding into my obsession with habits right now, can you tell? Haha!

 

Tiny Habits by BJ Fogg

 

I added this to my hold list when I realized just how far off (or so I thought…) I was from being able to get Atomic Habits, which is by a different author. I’ve heard so many good things about this book, so I’m excited to read it! I should have already read this one and returned it, but I re-checked it out for another month because I didn’t get around to it. I am starting it now, though!

 

Atomic Habits by James Clear

 

Another book that’s on almost every blogger’s recommendation list for personal development! I’ve already read this one and truly, it is one of the best books I’ve ever read. So insightful, with a framework that is simple and effective. I borrowed this from my library (as I do with most of the ones I share here), but I’m definitely going to be buying this on Amazon soon! I will absolutely be going back to re-read portions of it.

 

 

I pushed through a ton of books this summer/early fall, and most in a very short amount of time! I’m glad I made it through these, and I can tell you that in the fiction section, Verity is definitely my favorite! I’d love to hear what books you’ve read recently, or if you’ve read any of these!

 

If you still need some inspiration for your TBR list, you can check out the books I read at the beginning of the year here and also here!

 

One Last Thing!

 

I have a question for those of you who enjoy when I share what books I’ve read and give a little info on what I think about them – would you like to see me add a star system for rating them? I know on Goodreads (you can follow me here!) they always have you rate a book with so many stars, and probably on other sites too. I haven’t done it yet, but thought I’d ask if that would be helpful! So you can let me know in the comments or send me a DM over on Instagram!