Well reader friends, we survived April and many of us at Frolic were lucky enough to find our #HEAatHome in a good book! My favorite read for April was actually the pick for my virtual book club, After the Climb by Kristen Ashley. The ladies in my book club hardly ever agree on anything but we all decided Ashley’s latest release was exactly the comfort food type of read we’ve been looking for since our stay at home orders were enacted. Did you have a favorite read in April? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
Aurora Dominguez | The Best Laid Plans by Cameron Lund
The Best Laid Plans by Cameron Lund truly made me LOL! This cute rom com dives deep into themes of love, relationships, and what it means to be a virgin navigating high school. With some truly hilarious and heartfelt moments, Lund has created some lovable characters and some really relatable ones in this unique contemporary read which the Frolic YA expert devoured in 2 days! Pick it up…you will not be disappointed when you do, especially during these times.
Bree Hill| The Anti-Honeymoon by Bethany Michaels
My favorite April read was The Anti-Honeymoon by Bethany Michaels. Runaway bride who ditches the groom who she should’ve left a long time ago anyway, and beads straight for her honeymoon with her fiancé’s ex business partner, Zach. I have heard anyone talking about this book and it was so good! Jenna has this to-do list for her and her fiancé, and Zach comes up with the idea to tackle the list but do the opposite of everything she’d planned: instead of couples yoga replace it with kick boxing, instead of romantic dinner, let’s do pizza on the beach. It was a lot of fun and had one of the best “heroine sticks up for herself” moments I’ve read in a long time!
Jess Moro | Where the Lost Wander by Amy Harmon
I didn’t get my reading mojo back until I dove into a book that wasn’t romance heavy. I went for something different and I loved it. Even though these quarantine vibes have me searching for happy things, it was this story about traveling out west that got me hooked. Where the Lost Wander is a tragic yet wonderful book about traversing new lands and fighting against societal norms. This is a historical fiction set on the Oregon Trail that depicts the hardships and tragedy that was experienced by the travelers, particularly the May family with an amazingly spunky heroine, Naomi. This book is so well-written you are swept away and while yes, it was hard, they persevered and a blossoming love story teaches us about finding love in the most unlikeliest of places. I read this a couple of weeks ago and it still haunts me.
Donna Soluri| After the Climb by Kristen Ashley
I read this for my virtual Houseparty book club and found myself caught up in it from page one. The ladies in my book club found each other through a love of Kristen Ashley so it only seemed natural to read this together! Kristen Ashley tapped into her fan base to plot out specific details of the book via polls and questions in her Facebook author group. Three childhood friends, Duncan Halloway, Imogen Swan and Corey Szabo have to confront a huge, life altering, incredibly manipulative deception that leaves their life paths altered in a way they could never have imagined. This is a second chance romance with older, seasoned characters who have the life experience that demand they talk things out, instead of dragging out the angst and brushing things under the rug to fester. Merging families when (newly) adult kids involved can be an overwhelming and trying time, especially families in the very public eye.
This is a fabulous beginning to Ashley’s River Rain series. She definitely set the stage for more great things. The main secondary characters are the adult children of Duncan, Imogen and Corey. Their lives are forever entwined and I for one, can not wait to see where Ashely takes them. Imogen’s daughter Chloe is up next and I do believe her romantic interest can best be described as Ryan Reynolds-esque.
Frolic Coordinator Samantha Martin | Sleeping Together by Kitty Cook
I’ve always been fascinated by dreams and what we dream about, so this book drew me in right away! When two coworkers start sharing dreams accidentally, mischief, danger and romance ensue. I read this one all in one night. Don’t miss it!
