Today’s post covers the second half of the books I read in June 2026. I shared what I read in the first half of the month here. I shared my five star reads here. It’s also time for the Share Your Shelf Link Up! I hope you will join Joanne and I to share what you read this month. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. If you’ve read any of these books or are interested in them, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Title: Forty Love
Author: Jane Costello
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Zibby Publishing, 5/19/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Forty Love by Jane Costello is about Jules, who is the exact same age as me and whose daughter is headed out traveling. As a young widow, this leaves Jules on her own. She lives next to a tennis club and though she used to play, she is reluctant to do so again. She then re meets her teenage crush Sam and starts to begin her life again.
“Jules has lived next door to the local tennis club for years without picking up a racket. As a full-time buyer for a chain of lifestyle stores and a single, widowed mother of a teenager, she doesn’t have time for a hobby–or for a potential run-in with her old school crush, Sam, whose killer forehand is now in direct view of her bedroom window. In a surge of boldness and facing the anxiety of an empty nest, Jules decides to stop playing it safe and accepts an invitation to join the amateur tennis team. They are desperate for players, and the fact that she doesn’t really play doesn’t seem to matter. As rallies are hit and friendships are formed, Jules is astonished to find herself in the grip of a passionate, all-consuming relationship . . . and not only with the tennis. Now Jules is facing a whole new kind of match with her insecurities, her desires, and maybe—just maybe—a second shot at love. And boy, does it have some spin on it.”
I enjoyed that this book is a coming of age for a midlife woman. The story made me want to play tennis. The women who Jules becomes friends with are just as important to her story as Sam. I also appreciated the story line about Jules’s job.
Title: The Cheat Sheet
Author: Sarah Adams
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Dreamscape Media, 8/17/21
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
From my 26 in ’26 list, I listened to The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams. I have collected her books although I have only read a few – my daughter has read them for me! So I was excited to get to this one. It is about best friends Bree and Nathan who actually each have feelings for the other but haven’t been brave enough to admit it. This leads to them lying to each other about their actual feelings! As a famous football player, Nathan and Bree attract attention and are asked to fake date. While doing so, they each separately decide to move past friendship.
“The friend zone is not the end zone for Bree Camden, who is helplessly in love with her longtime best friend and extremely hot NFL legend, Nathan Donelson. The only problem is that she can’t admit her true feelings, because he clearly sees her as a best friend with no romantic potential, and the last thing Bree wants is to ruin their relationship. But those abs . . .Nope! Nothing but good old-fashioned, no-touching-the-sexiest-man-alive, platonic friendship for Bree. In any case, she has other things to worry about. After a car accident ended her chance at becoming a professional ballerina, Bree changed paths and now owns her own dance studio, with big dreams to expand it. But one more rent increase could mean the end of the studio entirely. Then, as usual, Nathan comes to the rescue and buys the entire building. A stubborn Bree is not happy about it and decides to rebel with a couple—okay, maybe more than a couple—of tequila shots. Then her plan backfires as she spills her deepest, darkest secret to a TMZ reporter. One viral video later, the world thinks Nathan and Bree are the perfect couple. Before they can really talk about her confession, Nathan’s publicist proposes a big opportunity that could mean financial security for Bree. The catch? They have to pretend to be in love. For three whole weeks.”
I thought this was pretty cheesy but cozy. I didn’t really feel attached to Bree and Nathan as more than friends although it is said they were attracted to each other. I thought they were both pretty immature! I liked the football vibes and Bree was a former ballerina who taught dance and I liked that as well.
Title: Rolls and Rivalry
Author: Kristy Boyce
Genre: YA Rom Com
Publisher: Delacorte Romance, 5/5/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Rolls and Rivalry by Kristy Boyce is the third book in the Gaming and Romance series, but they don’t need to be read as a series, as they each feature different characters. This is about Hazel, a rising senior band member who is the head of her color guard section. Her former best friend and crush Max returns to her school and joins the band as a drummer. Percussion has a long term rivalry with color guard, so this puts Hazel and Max on the outs from the start. When Hazel decides to start her own D&D game, she invites Max to join and their rivalry begins to dissipate.
“Hazel Buchanan has her senior year mapped out: Win respect as color guard captain, kick off her first D&D campaign, and steer clear of distractions. But her plan takes a critical hit when Max—her former best friend and longtime crush—returns to town with drumsticks in hand and an unexplained chip on his shoulder. Hazel and Max can’t help bickering every time they’re together, and thanks to meddling parents, he’s invading her D&D game too. As Dungeon Master, she’s ready to shut him down, but D&D has a way of bringing people together like nothing else. Is this rivalry masking something more? With dice rolling and emotions spinning, Hazel might be in for more than she planned . . .”
This was a cute and light read which I enjoyed. I liked the band and color guard theme as my daughter was part of the color guard in high school. I also liked the cameos from the previous couples in this series! I was rooting for Hazel to tell her mom that she was putting too much pressure on her – her mom was trying to relive her own high school experience through Hazel.
Title: Change of Plans
Author: Sarah Dessen
Genre: YA Rom Com
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 5/5/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Change of Plans by Sarah Dessen is about Finley, who is expected to spend time exploring NYC with her mom when there is a change of plans and they instead head to a small town home on a lake that belongs to Finley’s mom’s family. Finley barely knows her aunts and cousins and now has to spend all of her time with them as well as some local teens who work at her aunt’s restaurant. Finley’s boyfriend breaks up with her and she falls for someone new.
“Finley has always felt most comfortable in someone else’s shadow. Fortunately, she’s got Colin, her magnetic boyfriend, who sweeps her along for activities, friendships, and future plans. Then she goes on a last-minute trip with her distant mom to a family vacation house that Finley didn’t know existed and is now about to be sold. Her mom was estranged from her own parents and siblings since leaving home for college, and it’s a novelty for Finley to see her aunts and cousins. There’s also the handful of teens who work at the Egg, her aunt’s diner, and make up a found family of their own—including undeniably handsome guitarist Ben. Then her relationship with Colin goes into freefall, and Finley’s roadmap for life after high school is gone. She has no choice but to live, for the first time, without plans. The longer Finley stays, the closer she gets to the truth about why her mother stayed away—and why she’s brought Finley here now. And the closer she grows to new friends at the Egg, the more she starts to fall for charmingly awkward, soulful Ben and to realize how much of herself she’s been missing. By the end of the summer, nothing will be the same—for this community or for Finley herself.”
I liked that Finley learned to stand up for herself and be someone apart from her high school boyfriend, but I didn’t think this needed to be a rom com, immediately having Finley fall for Ben. I found it strange that the author seemed to go out of her way to avoid placing this book in a named state! There was also a plot line that was left unaddressed that I would have liked to see resolved. I enjoyed the way Finley bonded with her cousin Anne as the group united to plan Anne’s wedding.
Title: Stars, Stripes, and Summer Nights
Author: Celeste Dador
Genre: YA Rom Com
Publisher: Delacorte Romance, 5/12/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Stars, Stripes, and Summer Nights by Celeste Dador is about the daughter of a Filipino woman president of the USA! Abby expects to start a relationship with the son of the vice president, but instead meets Gabriel, her aunt’s godson, ends up causing some trouble and is sent to spend the summer at Gabriel’s family’s inn. Gabriel decides to help Abby complete her summer bucket list, as she’s trying to be more than the first daughter of the USA for the summer.
“Abigail Cary-Alzona, eldest daughter of President Constance Alzona, just wanted one normal night as a teenager. But after an impulsive pizza order later makes her front-page news, Abby is officially exiled to a Wi-Fi-free country inn for the summer, along with her little sister, Elle. The inn belongs to Gabriel Calabrese’s family. Gabriel is sarcastic, camera-obsessed, and definitely not dazzled by presidential perks (also, kind of the reason for the whole pizza fiasco). But Abby’s determined to make the most of her time away from the White House—with a summer bucket list full of things real teens get to do. Pool parties. Picnics. Maybe even a first kiss. As she and Elle dive into small-town life, Abby starts to see what makes Gabriel tick. And maybe, just maybe, she’s falling for him. . . .”
This was a cute summer read. Abby makes new friends and hops in to help plan a small town event. I could see a follow up book coming out about Abby’s sister Elle!
Title: Summer’s Never Over
Author: Darby Bozeman
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Berkley, 6/9/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Summer’s Never Over by Darby Bozeman is about Greer, who returns to her family’s summer camp after her mother dies. Greer has been away for five years after a fire killed a fellow counselor and friend Steph. Another former friend wants Greer to help her find out if Steph’s death was actually an accident. The mysteries didn’t end that summer, as suspicious things start to happen once again.
“Five years ago, Greer left her family’s summer camp in the mountains of Georgia and vowed she’d never return. An idyllic season had turned into a nightmare after a mysterious Phantom began stalking the camp—and ended with Greer’s friend and fellow counselor dead. Losing Steph shattered everything, and Greer’s been fleeing from the grief ever since. But then Greer’s mother dies, and Greer finds herself back at Dread’s Cove, surrounded by the people she was closest to that intense summer. Two ex-boyfriends—one a childhood sweetheart, the other the guy she’s never gotten over—and old friends. Including Margo, Steph’s best friend. Greer and Margo didn’t leave things on the best of terms. But now, Margo needs her. Margo never believed that Steph’s death in that horrific fire was an accident—and she’s on the trail of an explosive secret Steph took to her grave. Greer has to make a choice: keep the Cove’s secrets and her own, or finally face the truth about that summer.”
I love a summer camp setting and this was a great summer thriller! There were a lot of characters in this story and I suspected all of them at various points. The story comes together in the end and some of the reveals were definitely surprises!
Title: The Summer of Lost Things
Author: Jenn Bennett
Genre: Romance / Suspense
Publisher: Avon A, 5/26/26
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 4 Stars
The Summer of Lost Things by Jenn Bennett was such a fun read about Paige and her high school best friends who reunite a year after graduation in their lake town in Michigan. As children, the group hunted for a real buried treasure which was never found. Paige’s family is descended from the source of the treasure and now that her Nana passed away, clues start showing up. While this was a suspenseful read with the search for the treasure, it was also a romance between Paige and her childhood best friend Seb.
“Star pupil Paige Malone just finished her first year at Harvard. Dropout Seb Jansen spent that time pumping gas for wealthy yacht owners at a Lake Michigan marina. They haven’t seen each other since high school. A shame, considering that they were once inseparable childhood friends who combed their coastal hometown’s sun-kissed beaches along with a couple of other middle-school pals—hunting the Golden Venus, a legendary local treasure that’s distantly connected to Paige’s family. A treasure rumored to be worth millions of dollars. If it even exists. These days, however, the former BFFs have traded adventure for reality. Paige is home for the summer and is spiraling after losing her college financial aid. While across town, Seb fell in with a bad crowd and now regrets his life choices, big time. Both feel colossally stuck. And alone. But when Paige stumbles upon a hidden secret in her grandmother’s beach cottage, she must get their old treasure-hunting gang back together to finally unravel the mystery that has eluded her family for generations. Who knows: the thrill of the hunt might help Paige and Seb find a path back to their lost friendship…or something more.”
I thought this read was a lot of fun. Because Paige and her friends are 19 years old, this technically falls in the new adult reading range, but I think it could be fun for younger and older readers. The clues, puzzles, and adventures of Paige and her friends kept me turning pages!
Title: Spinning Silver
Author: Naomi Novik
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Random House Audio, 7/10/18
Source: Publisher – Print, Library – Audio
Why I Read It: Backlist
My Rating: 4 Stars
It’s pretty well known that I don’t like fantasy books, but I had Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik waiting and I added it to my 26 in ’26 list in the fantasy bonus category. This is a fantasy inspired by Rumpelstiltskin and Jewish mythology which I listened to.
“Miryem is the daughter and granddaughter of moneylenders, but her father’s inability to collect his debts has left his family on the edge of poverty—until Miryem takes matters into her own hands. Hardening her heart, the young woman sets out to claim what is owed and soon gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold. When an ill-advised boast draws the attention of the king of the Staryk—grim fey creatures who seem more ice than flesh—Miryem’s fate, and that of two kingdoms, will be forever altered. She will face an impossible challenge and, along with two unlikely allies, uncover a secret that threatens to consume the lands of humans and Staryk alike.”
There are shifting viewpoints in this book and there is no indication on whose point of view is being told – each being in first person. The narrator did a pretty good job voicing each one, but it was still a little difficult. I also had my usual trouble following the story as I do with most fantasy books. I liked this one because it is about three women, Miryam, Irina, and Wanda, whose stories intertwine and who help each other to save themselves and others.
This post includes eight of the books I read this month. Six were print books and two were audio. Five of these were adult books and three were YA. Genres included contemporary, rom com, thriller, and fantasy.
If you wrote about books this month, you can link up with us here:
Have you read any of these books or do you want to? What have you been reading lately?
