Vacation-themed reads

Curated by: Kayla Thompson, Adult Services, Cape Girardeau Public Library

The month of August signals a lot of things, but mostly it reminds me of back-to-school fever. The feeling can be bittersweet, so here are a few vacation-themed reads to get the most out of that summer feeling vibe.

One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle: Katy’s mother was her everything but now that she is gone, Katy is kind of lost. Especially when it comes to the mother-daughter trip of a lifetime to Italy that the two had planned. She goes. And her mother appears. And it’s kind of sort of magical until everything Katy thought she knew about who her mother was is turned on its head.

Happy Place by Emily Henry: A college super couple has called it quits and told absolutely no one in their friend group. For this reason, Harriet and Wynn decide to call a truce for one week where they will lie through their teeth, pretend nothing is amiss, and fake it till they make it to their friends. Except that it’s much harder than it sounds when there are still feelings involved.

Meet Me At the Lake by Carley Fortune: For fans of Josie Silver’s One Day in December. A chance meeting with artist Will Baxter leads to the best 24 hours of Fern’s life. The two hit it off, talk for hours, and promise to meet one year later…except Fern shows and Will doesn’t. Nine years later, he is back but is it nine years too late?

Hula by Jasmin Iolani Hakes: Wanting to heal the damage done to her family when her mother left suddenly, Hi’i dances the Hula. She wants to take control of her destiny and become the leader of her family as she was meant to be. But there are secrets that Hi’i doesn’t know. Secrets that threaten everything she holds dear including the place in her life that she thought she belonged to.