Everything I Read in July 2025
1. My Friends
I wanted to love this book more than I did. I enjoyed it but it took me a while to finish because I kept losing interest. It was a beautiful story but fell flat at times. Louisa is a lost teenager, running from a horrible foster home and finding solace in an art gallery in front of one of her favorite paintings. It’s a painting of the sea but for those who look closer, they will find three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier seemingly enjoying a lazy summer day. The story of the three people in the painting has never been made known but Louisa knows it means something profound to the artist.
By complete accident, Louisa happens upon the artist himself outside the gallery in an alley. She doesn’t know it at the time, but he is there to buy back his own painting now that he is nearing the end of his life. This twist of fate between Louisa’s favorite painting and meeting the artist himself will forever change the trajectory of her life. Shortly after their meeting, Louisa will take a journey – both literally and figuratively that will bring her into a world she could never have imagined. Rating: 8
2. Pretty Little Wife
This was my least favorite book out of this entire group and it took me weeks to finish because I kept getting bored and putting it down. Lila’s husband is missing and she isn’t concerned. Authorities are actively searching and though Lila is cooperative, there is so much about Aaron that people don’t know. His status as a beloved teacher in the community is only part of his persona, but Lila knows so much more that others refuse to see. Lila may be have played a part in his disappearance but if he is dead, she does not know how it happened. But Aaron holds more secrets than even Lila knows about and his entire life has been more destructive than anyone knows. While the premise sounds exciting, the actual story drags on and was hard to follow at times. Rating: 5
3. We Used to Live Here
This book has been on my “to be read” list for almost 2 years and I finally decided to give it a go. One thing about me – I want to be SCARED when I read a mystery or thriller. And so many people said this was terrifying and kept them up at night. Sadly, that was not my experience with it and ended up not really loving it. It’s a mix of a mystery and the supernatural which is not always my thing but sometimes it works well. It does work well in this book. I just didn’t love the storyline and got confused at times trying to follow it.
Charlie and Eve move into an older home with the idea of fixing it up to flip it later. One night while Charlie is out, Eve gets a knock on the door from a man and his family who tells Eve he grew up in this home and wanted to see it one last time before moving out of the area. Against her better judgement, Eve allows them to come inside and take a quick look. She soon regrets this decision when the family comes up with excuse after excuse as to why they can’t leave. Things take a weird turn and I had a hard time following the present story with flashbacks. So I never really got a true sense of what the book was about. LOL Rating: 6
4. The Five Year Lie
A really simple and straightforward mystery but I loved the characters so much. Any type of business scandal or illegal corporate activities are always so hard for me to follow. So I mainly focused on the relationships of the characters and their search for the truth. Ariel is a single mom raising a fun-loving 4 year old boy and works for her family’s successful tech firm in Maine. She does it to pay the bills but her true passion is glass blowing and creating beautiful works of art. Ariel has never shared with her family who the father of her son is because he disappeared one day without a trace. When she looked into his whereabouts, she came across an obituary of his death in a motor vehicle accident. Without any closure, Ariel feels lost and longs for answers to all her questions.
After a citywide cellphone glitch that disrupted service 5 years prior, old text messages that were never sent are delivered to all phones 5 years later. A message from him appears one morning on her phone that indicated he may not have left willingly. Ariel feels like there is more to this story and asks a coworker to search through company files and records to see if anything could explain why he disappeared so quickly. The truth is more devastating than Ariel wants to admit and may put her and her son’s life in danger. Rating: 8.5
5. Love, Mom
I love when a twist in a book leaves me dumbfounded. Like when I don’t see it coming and then BAM! Smacked right in the face. This book did exactly that and it was great! LOL Mackenzie recently lost her mother, the incredibly accomplished and renowned author who goes by the pen name E.V. Renge. Her books are dark and twisted but beloved by millions around the world. Her death was a shock to the family after she slipped and fell during a morning walk near their home. After her mother’s memorial service, Mackenzie receives a note on her car that says it’s from her mother’s #1 fan. The note is a letter written from the perspective of her mother and sharing some details about her life that Mackenzie never knew.
While Mackenzie knew that her mother’s early years were difficult growing up in foster care, there is so much that no one seemed to know about E.V. childhood. More letters begin to turn up and Mackenzie realizes that she has to find the answers for herself because her father will never share them with her. What she uncovers is truly shocking and makes Mackenzie question everything about her own life and how she grew up. Rating: 8.5
6. Don’t Let Him In
This book took me a bit to get into and there are quite a few characters to keep straight but I ended up LOVING IT! I was so engrossed in the story that I was yelling at the characters throughout the book because I was so annoyed at their behaviors. Which honestly is the best because it means I am INVESTED!! Nina and her adult children are grieving the loss of her husband and their father when they receive a gift from an old coworker sending his condolences. Nina doesn’t know this man, Nick Radcliffe, but is grateful for the gesture and thoughtfulness.
Nick and Nina begin chatting after this and a casual romance develops. Nina’s daughter, Ash, while happy for her mother is wary of Nick and his intentions. Unbeknownst to her mother, Ash decides to dig into Nick’s past and find out exactly who he is and how he knew their father. The path of discovery that Ash stumbles down will unearth a decades long con that threatens to ruin so many people’s lives if they knew the truth. This isn’t a fast-paced page turner but it kept me on the edge of my seat nonetheless! Rating: 9
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