Hi friends – it’s been a hot sec since we hung out here! ICYMI, we packed up our beach bags and the fam to head down to DA BEACH for the week. It’s J, Olivia, myself, and then my parents and brother, and we rented a beach house together to get some R&R and vitamin D. We all reaaaaally needed a vacay, so it’s been glorious – and I’ve obviously been a bit more relaxed with posting everywhere across the board this week, to be intentional about as much quality family time as possible! One of my personal favorite things to do at the beach is get through some good books, which inspired today’s CURowd roundup: Best Books for the Beach! I figured I couldn’t be the only one looking for the best beach reads for summer, so we took to Instagram to chat about it. 😉 I loveloveLOVE doing these reader roundups of recommendations for you all since you all know best, so hopefully you find a new favorite book from a fellow CURowd member’s insight! (Friendly reminder: CURowd = the CUR crowd. AKA YOU). I’ll get the party started with four of the best beach reads on my own list…

First up, Own Your Everyday by my friend Jordan Dooley. Jordan and I connected on Instagram, and I’m just so inspired by her brilliance in this book. And so dang happy for her that it’s blowing up – she hit a bestseller list! I blazed through this bad boy REAL quick – it’s an easy read so full of wisdom that makes you laugh AND cry, which is telltale to me of a quality read. Definitely recommend!

Next, my current read: The French Girl. I’m maybe a third of the way through it since I just started, but so far so good. I’m a big big fan of a good psychological thriller, especially when it comes to best beach reads since I need to really dive headfirst into a good mystery. The premise is that an elusive French girl, Severine, was found murdered at the bottom of a well, so the paths of the narrator and her friend group from years ago are crossing once again as investigations ensue to find out what happened.

My personal third pick: Girl, Stop Apologizing. I’m a big Rachel Hollis fan and think this is a 10/10 worthwhile read if you want practical, tactical advice for nixing excuses in your life and stepping into who you were made to be.

Lastly, Big Little Lies. I have actually no idea if it’s any good or not since I’ve yet to start it, but I picked it up in the airport on the way home from Rachel’s RISE conference in July and am looking forward to diving into it, especially since the TV show is so bingeworthy (or so social media says).

AIIIIGHT. Let’s dive into the best beach reads according to YOU.

Cut-out one-piece swimsuit (Less than $25 from Amazon + looks juuuuust like from J. Crew – I loveloveLOVE. Considering also buying in another color for next season already – torn between the blue and the black/white. Thoughts??? // Beach hat (another Amazon find – woo! Under $15 on Prime One-Day!) // Book: “The French Girl” // (Also available in more colors )

“About to start Outlander once I get to the beach tomorrow. I love the TV series! It’s a drama/romance about a woman who accidentally time travels and falls in love with this Scottish rebel. First two seasons are also on Netflix, and all four seasons are on STARZ.” – Priscilla

“Boys in the Boat (my favorite book!) and Before we Were Yours.” – Jen

“Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. I love how she talks about vulnerability as a positive thing and how in order to live wholeheartedly, we have to ve vulnerable. And she talks about the effect it has on the way we live, raise our kids, etc., and how much impact we have on how our kids turn out. It’s soooo good! ” – Amra

“I’ll be your Blue Sky” was probably my favorite. I couldn’t sum it up any better than the actual summary, so – On the weekend of her wedding, Clare Hobbes meets an elderly woman named Edith Herron. During the course of a single conversation, Edith gives Clare the courage to do what she should have done months earlier: break off her engagement to her charming, yet overly possessive fiance. Three weeks later, Clare learns that Edith has died…and has given her Blue Sky house.” – Jacqui

“Restart by Gordan Korman. It’s a YA book for middle school, but the lessons are so valuable. A boy falls off his roof and comes away with amnesia. As he is working through it, he begins to find out that even though he’s the most popular boy in school, he is actually feared and hated. It’s a fresh start that he battles with.” – Cassie

“Recently finished Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult – best recent read, and she’s my fave author EVER. Started A Spark of Light by her this week! Both such great reads, especially for beach days!” – Sheel

“Educated. It’s a memoir of her childhood growing up (and beyond) in a Mormon family where there was mentall illness, abuse, manipulation, and craziness. The battle she des physically and mentally…she was unschooled, but brilliant and ends up getting into college and beyond. The hold her family has on her and her own struggles to let go or come back. Amazing! I want to read it again!” – Pamela

“Where the Crawdads Sing.” – Marge

“City of Girls and Where the Crawdads Sing. They’re both so good!! Where the Crawdads Sing is a Reese Witherspoon book club pick. It’s SO beautifully written. Set in early 70’s, there’s a murder in a very rural North Carolina town and a girl who lives in the marsh is blamed for it. It’s so interesting and not what you expect. Highly recommend. City of Girls follows a teenage college drop out to 1940’s NYC where she lives with her eccentric aunt who owns a theater company. It’s an easy, fun read about that time period and show girls and the quirky theater community. So very different, but both great!” – Kasia

“Little Fires Everywhere. About family drama – it’s really good. A fantastic look at what motherhood really means.” – Chelsie

“The Unhoneymooners! Such a fun summer read. Identical twin sisters – one gets food poisoning at her wedding so the other takes her honeymoon and ends up going with the best man who she hates. It’s a super cute romantic comedy and an easy summer read for sure!” – Bekah

“Summer Sisters – it looks at the life of two women over their life, how they grow, and their relationship. So, so good!” – Taslima

“The Last Time I Lied. Emma attended a posh summer camp as a teen and her three cabin mates went missing. Now, 15 years later, she’s an artist. She starts each painting by drawing her missing cabin mates and painting over them. So when she’s approached by the cap owner to be an art teacher as they reopen the camp for the first tie sine, she decides to go to see if it’ll hep her get over her guilt about some things from that summer. It’s really good – I read it and immediately handed it to my mom, who was up late reading it, and now my niece and sister want to read it!” – Crystal

“All of the Crazy Rich Asian books and City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert! Re: Crazy Rich Asians, I read the first one before I saw the movie. And could not put the second one down after the movie ame out! City of Girls is written by the author of Eat Pray Love. It’s a fiction novel that takes place in 1940’s NYC. 10 of my girlfriends and I chose it for our book club book! Definitely worth checking out.” – Monica

“One of my fave books is definitely A Man Called Ove! Worth checking out if you haven’t read it yet.” – Silvia

“I just read a book called Winter Cottage. Loved it! It’s about a girl who has had not the best home life, but she is left an old, historic house in Norfolk. It’s a twofer because it tells her story and the story of the woman that she inherited the house from.” – Karen

“Favorite series I’ve started reading lately is the Queen of the Tearling trilogy! It’s a cross between a dystopia post-America story and a pure fantasy, with a badass queen ascending the throne and ruling a failing kingdom.” – Chantelle

“I am just finishing up the Caracal Series by Stephanie Garber and LOVE IT. It you like romance with a fantasy twist, READ IT. 2 sisters, with a controlling and abusive father, escape their island and go to Caraval. A legendary, week-long game hosted by Legegnd, where magic is currency.” – Kayla

“Currently reading Where the Crawdads Sing, Waiting for Tom Hanks was cute, and The Unhoneymooners!” – Gina

“Gab Unions’ book We’re Going to Need More Wine is next on my to read list, and anything by Nora Roberts is amazing for the beach!” – Erin

“Becomingby Michelle Obama was fantastic!” – Sarah

“Anything written by Jojo Moyes is amazing!” – Michelle