Midweek Musings is a cozy mix of book recs, library lists, and reading reflections. Thoughtful updates I’d share at a playdate or while browsing the shelves with a friend.
I always think I’m going to read more in summer, longer days, slower pace, the fantasy of lounging with a book while the kids run barefoot in the yard. And sometimes that happens.
But this year? Summer temps showed up late. California’s just now settling into a full-blown heat wave, and suddenly it feels like July. Sun-scorched afternoons, iced coffee on repeat, and the constant hum of the A/C. I’ve been sneaking in chapters wherever I can. Poolside while the kids swim, late at night with the fan blasting, or listening to audiobooks while folding yet another load of laundry.
Still, I managed to finish six books in July, some twisty, some tender, one delightfully unhinged. Here’s the full list, what I thought, and a few favorites I’d hand to a friend without hesitation.
My highly scientific star rating system. Okay, not really, but here’s how I sort it in my brain...
☆☆☆☆☆ — No notes. I’m emotionally attached. Might force you to read it.
☆☆☆☆ — Loved it! Would recommend, maybe even re-read, but didn’t rearrange my life for it.
☆☆☆ — It was fine! Not mad I read it, but probably won’t revisit or push it on my friends.
☆☆ — Meh. We didn’t click. I skimmed.
☆ — I finished it out of spite. Or DNF and didn’t finish at all.
Count My Lies by Sophie Stava
☆☆☆☆ — Unputdownable. This domestic suspense novel felt like a peek behind perfectly curated Instagram lives. Think picture-perfect family, hidden secrets, and slow-building dread. The pacing was excellent, and while I guessed some twists, the emotional payoff still hit.
Similar vibes: The Push | The Last Mrs. Parrish
The Art of Vanishing by Morgan Pager
☆☆☆☆☆ — A love story unlike anything I’ve read. When Claire, a lonely museum employee, begins to suspect the man in a Matisse painting is watching her, things take a surreal turn. Part time-slip romance, part magical realism, this is a story about art, longing, and the thin veil between the life we live and the life we imagine. Romantic, imaginative, and quietly aching.
Similar vibes: The Time Traveler’s Wife | Midnight at the Blackbird Café
Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro
☆☆☆☆ — Quietly profound. This novel weaves multiple timelines with such tenderness and clarity. It's about family, memory, and how one moment can ripple across generations. This one crept up on me emotionally. I finished it and just sat there. Still thinking about the final chapter.
Similar vibes: The Dutch House | The Most Fun We Ever Had
Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo
☆☆☆☆☆ — Claire Lombardo just gets the messy, beautiful contradictions of womanhood. I loved The Most Fun We Ever Had, and this one felt like an even more personal dive into midlife complexity. The writing is smart, wry, and emotionally layered. It felt like reading a friend’s diary in the best possible way.
Similar vibes: Writers & Lovers | Fleishman Is in Trouble
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
☆☆☆☆ — A little time-travel, a lot of heart. I loved the father-daughter relationship and the questions about aging, regret, and what we’d do differently if we could. I didn’t connect as deeply as I hoped (Straub’s tone is a little more detached than my usual taste), but the premise and ending were lovely.
Similar vibes: Oona Out of Order | The Midnight Library
Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood
☆☆☆☆ — This was just fun. A steamy, enemies-to-lovers romcom set at a summer camp for scientists, complete with petty pranks, academic rivalry, and some very satisfying chemistry. Hazelwood’s brand of chaotic-smart-girl energy always works for me when I’m in the mood for something flirty and fast.
Similar vibes: The Love Hypothesis | The Unhoneymooners
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Top 3 Picks from July
If you’re adding to your late-summer TBR, here are the three I keep thinking about:
✨ The Art of Vanishing — Lush, inventive, and surprisingly moving. A time-bending love story between a museum worker and the man in a painting? It reads like a dream, full of quiet yearning, magical realism, and the question of what it means to truly be seen.
✨ Same As It Ever Was — Lombardo nails the internal monologue of a woman in transition. Funny, flawed, and gorgeously written.
✨ Problematic Summer Romance — My romcom brain candy of the month. Zero notes for what it is: fun, fast, and full of chemistry.
Different vibes, all memorable in their own way.
Currently Reading…
Physical book: The Sicilian Inheritance
Audiobook: Everything Is Tuberculosis
Want to shop my shelves? I keep my Pango Bookshop stocked with gently loved reads from my shelves to yours. Take a peek here!
The Second Act is an entirely reader-supported publication written and created by Danielle Wraith. Click here to subscribe or gift a friend a subscription here (if a friend sent you this —tell them thanks!). Anything you want covered? Questions? Reply with a comment below! You can also find me on Instagram. Please come say hi!
I always expect to read more in the summer and my reading number stays about the same. I enjoyed reading about your books this month. All of them were new to me. Wishing you a fantastic August!
I just finished count my lies and loved it! Also really enjoyed PSR by Ali H