Between The Pages | July 2025 Reading Round Up

Can you believe July is over already? It feels like just yesterday we were kicking off summer, and now autumn will be right around the corner before we know it. Despite the fleeting days, I’m overjoyed to share that I took in 7 fantastic books this month! My reading journey took me on an incredible adventure, crisscrossing from coast to coast and across the miles. From sweet stories that warmed my heart to captivating tales filled with secrets and family mysteries, and a memoir, I was carried away by every page. Come take a look at the books that made my July truly unforgettable!

The Story She Left Behind by Patti Calahan Henry (via Kindle Unlimited)

** This is definitely in my top favorite reads of 2025**

Patti Callahan Henry’s The Story She Left Behind is a captivating historical mystery inspired by a true literary enigma. The novel spans decades and continents, following a daughter’s quest to uncover the truth about her renowned mother’s mysterious disappearance.

• A Disappearing Prodigy: In 1927, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham, an acclaimed author who stunned the world with a book written in an invented language at just twelve years old, vanishes without a trace off the coast of South Carolina. She leaves behind a devastated husband and her eight-year-old daughter, Clara. The public is captivated by the missing author, but Clara longs for her mother.
• A Daughter’s Lingering Hope: Fast forward to 1952, and Clara is now an accomplished illustrator and a single mother to her own daughter, Wynnie. The unresolved mystery of her mother’s disappearance has shadowed Clara’s life, and she carries a deep, unanswered yearning for her.
• A Mysterious Discovery: Clara receives a shocking phone call from Charlie Jameson in London. He claims to have discovered a handwritten dictionary of her mother’s lost language among his late father’s belongings, along with a letter addressed directly to Clara, with instructions that it must be delivered in person.
• A Journey Across the Atlantic: Compelled by the hope of finally understanding what happened to Bronwyn, Clara travels to London with Wynnie. Their arrival coincides with the infamous Great Smog of 1952, a deadly natural disaster that plunges the city into a dangerous, eerie fog.
• Unraveling the Truth: To escape the smog and ensure Wynnie’s safety, they find refuge with Charlie at his family’s retreat in the serene Lake District. It’s there, amidst the beauty of the English countryside, that Clara begins to piece together the fragments of her mother’s life and uncover the long-held secrets surrounding her disappearance and the story she truly left behind.

Through lyrical prose, Patti Callahan Henry weaves a tale of mother-daughter bonds, enduring secrets, the power of language, and the profound impact of family legacy, as Clara confronts her past and searches for closure. **This book is part of my #20BooksOfSummer2025 reading challenge**

The Words We Whisper by Mary Ellen Taylor (via Kindle Unlimited)

Mary Ellen Taylor’s The Words We Whisper (published in 2023) is a dual-timeline novel that weaves together a contemporary story of family, love, and self-discovery with a poignant historical narrative set during World War II.

The story introduces us to Zara Mitchell, a hospice nurse who is no stranger to loss. When her older sister asks for help caring for their ailing grandmother, Nonna, Zara agrees, even though her family relationships are a bit strained.

Nonna, despite her declining health, is still sharp-witted and focused on finding something important that has been long forgotten. She enlists Zara’s help to clean out the attic. While sifting through old belongings, Zara unexpectedly reconnects with a man she’s drawn to, despite his complicated past making a romance seem unlikely.

The real turning point comes when Zara discovers what Nonna was searching for: a wooden chest, an emerald brooch, and a leather-bound journal. As Zara delves into the journal, she’s transported back to war-torn Italy in 1943. The journal tells a powerful story of heroism and loss, revealing answers to questions Zara didn’t even realize she had about her family’s history.

This journey into the past fundamentally changes Zara’s understanding of love, regret, and the importance of seizing the day, influencing her own life and relationships in the present.

The Secret Library of Hanna Reeves by Christine Nolfi (via Kindle Unlimited)

Christine Nolfi’s The Secret Library of Hanna Reeves is a dual-timeline novel that explores the power of secrets, the formation of unlikely friendships, and the enduring impact of family legacies.

Here’s what the story is about:

The novel features Claire Shelton, a cautious young employee at an antique shop in Maine. She’s given a unique opportunity: to catalog the vast treasures of the reclusive Hanna Reeves, the sole descendant of a prominent family of shipbuilders and industrialists. Hanna, nearing eighty, has retreated from society years ago, and her fabled estate, Rose Hill, holds many mysteries.

Claire moves into the carriage house at Rose Hill and quickly discovers that Hanna is a formidable woman, demanding, judgmental, and fiercely protective of her ancestral home. Despite the initial friction between them, Claire dives into her work.

Her exploration of the mansion leads her to a remarkable discovery: a hidden library, a place of legend among locals. As an avid book lover, Claire is thrilled. But what truly captivates her are Hanna’s leather-bound family journals found within the library.

These journals open a window into Hanna’s past and the history of her powerful family, revealing long-kept secrets and a complex legacy. As Claire immerses herself in these stories, an unexpected and rich bond begins to form between the two very different women. The revelations from the journals are powerful enough to potentially reunite old friends and families, but also shocking enough to tear them apart.

Ultimately, The Secret Library of Hanna Reeves is a story about uncovering hidden truths, understanding the past to illuminate the present, and the profound connection that can blossom between individuals across generations.**This book is part of my #20BooksOfSummer2025 reading challenge**

True to Me (A By the Sea Novel Book 1) By Kay Bratt (via Kindle Unlimited)

Kay Bratt’s True to Me (A By the Sea Novel Book 1) is a heartfelt and emotional story about a woman’s journey of self-discovery after a shocking family revelation.

The protagonist, Quinn Maguire, believes she has a stable life and a clear vision for her future, including a fiancé. However, her world is turned upside down when her mother, on her deathbed, confesses a deeply held secret: the man Quinn has resented as her absentee father for thirty years is not her real father at all.

This earth-shattering whisper sends Quinn on a quest to uncover the truth about her origins. Her journey leads her to Maui, her mother’s childhood home, a place described as a “storied paradise.” Quinn is determined to unravel all the secrets hidden within her mother’s past on the island.

As Quinn settles into island life and begins to dig deeper into her family history, she faces complications, including questions from her fiancé back home. Despite the challenges, the magic of Maui and the process of uncovering the truth about her identity begin to transform her. She learns about family, forgiveness, and ultimately, starts to become the woman she was always meant to be. The book explores themes of family secrets, self-identity, and finding your true self, all set against the beautiful backdrop of Hawaii.

Vintage by Susan Gloss (via Kindle Unlimited)

“Vintage” by Susan Gloss is a charming and heartwarming women’s fiction novel centered around a vintage clothing shop and the lives of the women connected to it.

The novel takes place in Madison, Wisconsin, at a boutique called Hourglass Vintage. The premise is that every item in the shop has a story to tell, and so do the women who are drawn to it.

The story follows three main characters whose lives intertwine around the shop:

• Violet Turner, the owner of Hourglass Vintage, has poured her heart and soul into building her dream business. However, she’s facing the possibility of losing the shop and realizes she can’t save it alone. Violet also has her own past to confront, which she’s largely avoided acknowledging.
• April Morgan: An eighteen-year-old facing an unplanned pregnancy. Her hasty engagement has just been broken, and when she attempts to return a 1950s wedding dress she bought at Hourglass, she finds unexpected possibilities and a supportive network of friends who encourage her not to give up on her dreams.
• Amithi Singh: A woman who has been betrayed by her husband and begins selling off her old clothes, remnants of her past life. After decades dedicated to housekeeping and raising a daughter who rejects her traditional ways, Amithi fears she has nothing more ahead for her, but finds new purpose and connection through the shop.

As these women’s lives intersect at Hourglass Vintage, they find friendship, support, and a renewed sense of hope and possibility. The novel beautifully captures the essence of female camaraderie and how finding connection can lead to personal transformation, even when life throws unexpected challenges their way.

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle (via Kindle Unlimited)

Rebecca Serle’s In Five Years is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that blends contemporary fiction with a touch of magical realism, ultimately exploring the nature of love, destiny, and the profound power of friendship.

The protagonist is Dannie Kohan, a highly driven and meticulously organized Manhattan corporate lawyer. She lives her life by a carefully constructed five-year plan, and at the beginning of the book, everything seems to be falling perfectly into place: she nails a crucial job interview for her dream firm. She accepts her longtime boyfriend David’s marriage proposal. She goes to sleep that night feeling utterly content and on track.

However, when Dannie wakes up, she finds herself in a completely different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and next to a man she doesn’t know. The date on the television confirms it: it’s December 15, five years in the future. She spends one intense, shocking hour in this alternate future before waking back up in her own bed, in her own time.

This inexplicable “vision” deeply unsettles Dannie. A practical, logical person, she tries to dismiss it as a vivid dream, but she can’t shake the feeling that it was more. She files the experience away, determined to ensure her actual life aligns with her carefully laid plans.

The story then progresses through the next four and a half years of Dannie’s life, as she attempts to live out the future she envisioned. However, a significant turning point arrives when she meets the very same man from her future vision, not as a romantic interest for herself, but as the new boyfriend of her free-spirited best friend, Bella.

This unexpected encounter forces Dannie to confront the meaning of her vision and how it might impact her carefully constructed life and, more importantly, her deepest relationships. The novel, while initially appearing to be a traditional romance, ultimately unfolds into a powerful and emotional exploration of the unbreakable bond of female friendship, loyalty, and the unexpected twists that destiny can take, reminding readers that love comes in many forms, not always the ones we anticipate.

Gay Girl, Good God by Jackie Hill Perry (via Kobo Plus)

Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was and Who God Has Always Been by Jackie Hill Perry** is a powerful and personal memoir that recounts the author’s journey from a life defined by same-sex attraction and a masculine identity to a life transformed by her Christian faith.

Jackie Hill Perry shares her raw and honest autobiography, detailing her experiences growing up fatherless, enduring childhood abuse, experiencing gender confusion, and embracing homosexuality. She describes how she identified deeply with her lesbian identity and masculinity, and how that shaped her understanding of herself and the world.

The core of the book lies in her testimony of a profound encounter with God at the age of nineteen, which she describes as a miraculous turning point. This encounter led her to convert to Christianity, prompting a radical shift in her life and identity. The book chronicles her struggles and triumphs as a new Christian, including how she wrestled with her same-sex attractions, learned to embrace her femininity, and eventually fell in love with and married a man.

Beyond her personal narrative, the book also delves into theological discussions and practical insights. Perry addresses common misconceptions, arguing against what she terms “the heterosexual gospel”—the idea that becoming a Christian automatically means one’s sexual orientation will change to heterosexuality. She emphasizes that the ultimate goal of Christianity is not heterosexuality, but rather holiness and conformity to the image of Christ, and that the battle against sin, including same-sex attraction, is an ongoing process of endurance and reliance on God.

Gay Girl, Good God is a book that aims to offer understanding and hope, both to those who identify as LGBTQ+ and to those within the Christian community seeking to engage with these topics from a faith perspective. It’s a testament to her belief in God’s transformative power and grace, inviting readers to consider their own relationship with faith and identity.

And that’s a wrap on my July reads! What a journey it’s been, from uncovering hidden family histories and navigating the complexities of love and friendship to traveling across continents and deep into personal transformations. Each one of these books captivated me in its own way, offering a perfect escape from the summer heat and a delightful preview of the cozy reading days autumn will bring.

I’m partying with these Amazing Blog Hop | Link Up party hostesses! & #20BooksofSummer2025 challenge, hosted by Anabel of Anabookbel and Emma from Words And Peace.