It's easy to lose sight of the significant advantages and simple pleasures of reading fiction in today's hectic environment.  Even if non-fiction delivers insightful information, fiction offers something just as significant: a narrative examination of the human condition.

Some fiction novels that will be published in July 2025 include the following titles:

1. Summer on Lilac Island by Lindsay MacMillan

A sweet diversion about mother-daughter bonds, dating in small towns, and everything that brings us home.  Lindsay MacMillan demonstrates that it's never too late to alter preconceptions and get your hard-won happy ever after with a compelling cast of people and poignantly postponed sexual tension.  Harper Muse is anticipated to publish this book on July 1, 2025.

2. Our Last Vineyard Summer by Brooke Lea Foster

Set in 1965 and 1978, this gripping new book from the great storyteller follows a doctoral student who travels to her family's summer home on Martha's Vineyard with her sisters and starts to uncover long-kept truths.  With a dual timeline spanning 1965 to 1978 and brimming with the colorful, sunlit nostalgia of the beloved New England vacation destination, Our Last Vineyard Summer eloquently depicts two generations of women navigating womanhood, love, and loss as they search for the strength to stand up for their convictions and the courage to determine whether the house they once loved is worth preserving.  This book is anticipated to be published by Gallery Books on July 1, 2025.

3. Archive of Unknown Universes by Ruben Reyes Jr.

This striking debut novel, written by the author of There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven, explores the processes of fate, the gravity of the past, and the enduring power of love by following two families in different timelines of the Salvadoran civil war.  An epic, genre-bending trip through two inverted worlds—one where conflict ends with a peace accord and another where the Salvadoran government wins handily—is presented in Ruben Reyes Jr.'s debut novel.  What transpires is a breathtaking tale of grief and love, of relocation and belonging.  It's a potent examination of our past as well as a bold fantasy of what could have been.  This novel is anticipated to be published by Mariner Books on July 1, 2025.

4. Finding Grace by Loretta Rothschild

It appears like honor has it all.  She loves her husband Tom (despite the fact that he works a hundred hours a week) and her daughter Chloe.  But until a startling incident permanently alters their life, her desire for another child threatens to overshadow everything.  This book is anticipated to be published by St. Martin's Press on July 8, 2025.

5. These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean

The sharp, seductive story about an affluent New England family's long-overdue encounter with hidden desires, catastrophic secrets, and one week that threatens to rip them apart is New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean's first step into contemporary fiction.  This sumptuous novel, which explores past secrets, current truths, and futures built in the wake of great summer storms, is a narrative about the transformational power of loss, love, and family. It is simultaneously wonderfully smart and shockingly sensitive.  Ballantine Books is anticipated to publish this book on July 8, 2025.

“It is a horrible, terrible thing, the worst thing, to watch somebody you love die right in front of you and not be able to do nothing about it.”

― Kate DiCamillo, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

Kate DiCamillo, an American novelist, and Bagram Ibatoulline created the illustrations for the 2006 children's book The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.  The book received the 2006 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award in the Fiction category and told the story of a ceramic rabbit.

Synopsis From Goodreads...

A timeless tale by the incomparable Kate DiCamillo, complete with stunning full-color plates by Bagram Ibatoulline, honors the enduring power of love.

Once, in a house on Egypt Street, there lived a china rabbit named Edward Tulane. The rabbit was very pleased with himself, and for good he was owned by a girl named Abilene, who treated him with the utmost care and adored him completely.

And then, one day, he was lost.

Kate DiCamillo takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the depths of the ocean to the net of a fisherman, from the top of a garbage heap to the fireside of a hoboes' camp, from the bedside of an ailing child to the bustling streets of Memphis. And along the way, we are shown a true miracle — that even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose, and to love again.

My reaction to this novel...

In my opinion, this book is appropriate for readers of all ages, and it's especially good at teaching creative concepts.  I like how the writing appeals to both the emotions and the intellect, and it is exquisitely written. The book is a great, frequently painful story that helps with vocabulary development and humility lessons. I also experienced a wide range of emotions as an adult, and at one point I had to leave because I got emotional too much.  This book is one of those that you just can't put down.  Both the characters and the writing are excellent.  The reader is frequently allowed to make their own conclusions despite the fact that each individual has a unique story, which leads to a lot of discussion.

The book's exquisite writing, which follows Edward from a point of self-centered indifference to a profound awareness of love, sorrow, and connection, is what really captured my attention.  His metamorphosis is modest but impactful, and it seems both magical and incredibly human as it develops with each interaction.

Readers, I think, will experience a range of emotions while reading this book.  As Edward learns what really counts, we can expect to chuckle at his conservative actions, cry at the heartbreaking turns, and feel our emotions rise. I may remark that this is a gem that remains long beyond the last page.

This book will touch all the right places and evoke memories from the most distant parts of your being; it is heartbreaking and tragic. It is superbly written and outstanding in every way, from the narrative to the amazing illustrations that are interspersed throughout the plot like unexpected treasures to the intricate binding. I heartily recommend it to children and adults alike, as it will teach readers a valuable lesson about love that will stick with them forever.

My Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨(4.5/5)

“If you behave as if you are all right, then one day you will be. You have to go through the motions of surviving in order to survive.”

― Nicci French, Killing Me Softly

Nicci French's "Killing Me Softly" transports readers to a dangerous, passionate, and romantic trip.  The ramifications of an accidental meeting that swiftly escalates into a passionate and ultimately risky relationship are examined in this psychological thriller book.  "Killing Me Softly" grips readers from beginning to end with its compelling story twists, evocative location, and deep character development.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Alice Loudon has it a devoted boyfriend, a marvelous circle of friends, a challenging job as a research scientist. Then one morning, on her way to work, she exchanges a lingering look with a devastatingly attractive man. Adam Tallis is the essence of every female fantasy--a daring mountain climber who has been hailed as a hero. As a lover, he is more passionate than Alice's wildest imaginings. Soon there isn't anything or anyone she wouldn't give up to stay by his side. Soon all she has is Adam, and life with this stranger will take her to new heights of madness...and fear.

My reaction to this novel...

I acquired this book from an online preloved bookstore, and I was delighted because I purchased it at a low price. I have never read a book by Nicci French before, so I have no idea how she writes. I was simply intrigued by the title and the cover, which made me interested in buying it. When I read the synopsis, I realized that it is somewhat a steamy romance, which is not my usual reading preference. I contemplated whether I should read it, but since I had already bought it, I told myself to give it a try; perhaps I might enjoy it.

The words used by the author are pretty simple, so it's easy to understand. The story felt a bit weird for me, maybe because I don’t believe in that kind of attraction happening right away, and then jumping into sex. I didn’t like that theme because it made the girl seem shallow to me. She turned her back on her boyfriend, who's been her friend for a long time, for a stranger, and then she just gives in after a little eye contact. I was kind of turned off by that kind of story. The author's idea feels really shallow.

Everything happened so fast after they met; the girl got married to a stranger right away. After that, the story slowed down, because once she got married, she couldn't stop digging into the guy's life. I thought to myself, shouldn’t this girl have prioritized her curiosity before tying the knot? Now she's all up in his business, and it's too late for her. She got too carried away with her feelings. And she keeps investigating, which is kind of annoying because what does she even want to prove? She chose that path, and yet she won’t stop. It's just frustrating because the story is annoying, especially the main female character that the author created.

For me, I found the story unappealing. The main character is annoying and I didn't read any good twists. It's shallow, and for me, that's exactly what can happen when you marry a stranger; you expect to get to know them deeply even though you didn't know them at all before marrying them. Because of what she did, she should also be ready to face the consequences. She didn't even bother to find out what kind of person she was marrying, then suddenly she starts digging into events as if she was so sure about what happened, but she was only interviewing her husband's hiking buddies, and then she only comes up with speculations. It's exhausting to read; I really wanted to skip some chapters, so for me, this is not highly recommended. There are many better thriller novels than this.

My Overall Rating: ⭐✨(1.5/5)