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The Library of Legends by Janie Chang
Life and Other Near-Death Experiences  by Camille Pagán
Meet Me in Monaco  by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb
The Jetsetters  by Amanda Eyre Ward
Feels Like Falling  by Kristy Woodson Harvey
The Last Train to Key West  by Chanel Cleeton
The Last Bathing Beauty  by Amy Sue Nathan
The Simplicity of Cider  by Amy E. Reichert
The Fifth of July  by Kelly Simmons
Stranger in Paradise  by Eileen Goudge

Staycations may be relaxing, but they rarely satisfy wanderlust. Sometimes when your looking for adventure, you don’t have to travel any further than your own bookshelf. If you’re itching to explore destinations near and far while stuck at home, these reads are your ticket to new and exciting locales.

 

The Library of Legends by Janie Chang

The Library of Legends by Janie Chang

When Japanese bombs begin dropping on Nanking, China, in 1937, Hu Lian and her classmates at a nearby university are ordered to flee to China’s western provinces over a thousand miles away. Making the journey even more tumultuous is the fact that they’ve been entrusted with a 500-year-old collection known as the Library of Legends. Based on true events, rich in Chinese history and lore, this latest novel by Janie Chang is both an illuminating exploration of China’s recent past and an evocative tale of love, sacrifice and the extraordinary power of storytelling. (Read the full review here.)


Life and Other Near-Death Experiences  by Camille Pagán

Life and Other Near-Death Experiences  by Camille Pagán

Libby Miller has always been an unwavering optimist — but then her husband drops a bomb on their marriage the same day a doctor delivers devastating news. With nothing left to lose, she abandons her life in Chicago for the clear waters of the Caribbean. Despite her new sunny locale, every day of tropical bliss may be an invitation to disaster. From critically-acclaimed author Camille Pagán comes a hilarious and hopeful story about a woman choosing between a “perfect” life and actually living. (Watch BookTrib’s interview with Camille Pagán here.)


Meet Me in Monaco  by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

Meet Me in Monaco  by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

Set in the 1950s against the backdrop of Grace Kelly’s whirlwind romance and glamorous wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco, New York Times best-selling author Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb take the reader on an evocative, sun-drenched journey along the Côte d’Azur in this pause-resisting novel of passion, fate and second chances. Need we say more? (Read the full review here.)


The Jetsetters  by Amanda Eyre Ward

The Jetsetters  by Amanda Eyre Ward

70-year-old Charlotte Perkins packs her bags and boards a ship for a Mediterranean cruise — her estranged family in tow. For these ten days, secrets are brought to light and everyone must find a way to come to terms with the difficult decisions and circumstances that tore their family apart years ago. What’s not to love about this Reese’s Book Club x Hello Sunshine Book Pick by Amanda Eyre Ward?


Feels Like Falling  by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Feels Like Falling  by Kristy Woodson Harvey

It’s summertime on the North Carolina coast and the livin’ is easy. Unless, that is, you’ve just lost your mother to cancer, your sister to her extremist husband and your husband to his executive assistant. In her warmest, wisest novel yet, USA Today bestselling author Kristy Woodson Harvey delivers a discerning portrait of modern womanhood through two vastly different lenses, providing a beach bag essential for readers of any generation. (Read the full review here.)


The Last Train to Key West  by Chanel Cleeton

The Last Train to Key West  by Chanel Cleeton

In 1935, three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys. For the tourists traveling on Henry Flagler’s legendary Overseas Railroad, Labor Day weekend is an opportunity to forget the economic depression gripping the nation. But one person’s paradise can be another’s prison, and Key West-native Helen Berner yearns to escape. Readers will enjoy this lush novel by Chanel Cleeton, whose rich settings never disappoint.


The Last Bathing Beauty  by Amy Sue Nathan

The Last Bathing Beauty  by Amy Sue Nathan

Everything seemed possible in the summer of 1951 when Betty Stern was an eighteen-year-old knockout working at her grandparents’ resort on Lake Michigan. The Catskills of the Midwest was the perfect place for Betty to prepare for bigger things, but decades later, she’s reconciling the life she once imagined with the life she’s lived, discovering it’s never too late for a second chance. An emotionally rich novel about friends and family, Amy Sue Nathan has crafted a lovely escape with emotional depth. (Read the full review here.)


The Simplicity of Cider  by Amy E. Reichert

The Simplicity of Cider  by Amy E. Reichert

Focused and unassuming, fifth generation cider-maker Sanna Lund has one desire: to live a simple, quiet life on her family’s apple orchard in Door County, WI. Although her business is struggling, Sanna remains fiercely devoted to the orchard despite her brother’s attempts to convince their aging father to sell the land. From the warm and funny Amy E. Reichert, readers will delight in this charming love story. (Read the full review here.)


The Fifth of July  by Kelly Simmons

The Fifth of July  by Kelly Simmons

Having spent the past three decades’ worth of summers on Nantucket, the Warners are as much a part of the island as the crust of salt on the ferry. But this year is different: Tripp is no longer the father he was, and it becomes clear that nothing — not the beams that hold the house together, and not the values the family clings to — can survive the ravages of time. When tradition turns to tragedy, the creaky old house swirls with suspicion. Kelly Simmons delivers a gripping crime story and masters the craft of plot tension. (Read the full review here.)


Stranger in Paradise  by Eileen Goudge

Stranger in Paradise  by Eileen Goudge

This novel is Book One of the The Carson Springs Trilogy, an addictive series of romance and suspense by New York Times bestselling author Eileen Goudge who always knows how to keep us turning the pages. From star-crossed lovers to scandalous affairs to a mysterious dead body, this series hits every note and gives readers a captivating adventure set in Southern California.


Julie Cantrell

Julie Cantrell is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling, author, editor, and ghostwriter who has recently departed from penning award-winning novels to release a picture book that instills a love of reading in children. Learn more about Dog Saves Duck (March 21). Learn more on her website.

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