This was, admittedly, a quieter month for me reading-wise!
Elin Hilderbrand’s Nantucket novels remain a seasonal rite in my house — permitted only between May and August, as a little treat to get me through unbearable Atlanta summers — and this month I allowed myself two, bookending The Lauren Letter Book Club selection.
The Lauren Letter will always be free. But if this space has become something you look forward to—a small ritual in your week, a source of inspiration, a reminder to approach life with more intention—you now have the option to support it.
A Summer Affair by Elin Hilderbrand — ★★★☆☆
I’ll say it plainly: I struggled to connect with these characters, which is unusual for me and Elin. I typically relish her rich-people-behaving-badly plots — it’s half the appeal! But the decision-making here felt harder to root for than usual. For comparison, put this up against 28 Summers, which I adored top to bottom, also built around infidelity. Same(ish) premise, very different landing for me.
Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan — ★★★★☆
This month’s The Lauren Letter Book Club pick! I don’t typically reach for romance tropes, but this Rhode Island tale won me over completely — charming from the first chapter and impossible not to root for. Full review (and discussion questions) up on The Lauren Letter now!
The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand — ★★★★★
A friend group, a couple lost, and every remaining member carrying their own secret — told through shifting perspectives that make the grief feel fuller and more complicated with each chapter. What I loved most was how this book introduces so many pillar characters that are woven through the rest of Elin’s Nantucket world.
August Book Club: Whistler by Ann Patchett
August’s selection for The Lauren Letter Book Club has taken over book culture entirely (Obama is reading it, for heaven’s sake!): Whistler by Ann Patchett.
Her tenth novel follows a woman in her fifties who has a chance reunion at the Met with the stepfather she hasn’t seen in decades, and the two revisit the accident that once bonded — and separated — them. Gentle, literary, and already being called one of the best books of the year!
P.S. The hardcover is 50% off right now!
P.S. I promise to always keep The Lauren Letter free as my little exercise of trying to make the world a bit more beautiful. If, in return, you could considering giving this post a “like” or share with a friend, it would just mean the world to me.
