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There are so many wonderful things about summer that I just cherish.  One is the summer wardrobe.  Getting to wear breezy summer dresses, flip-flops, and messy ponytails all summer long is such a treat.   I don’t shop at the beginning of summer because my kids usually hit a growth spurt somewhere in the middle of June or beginning of July.  It’s perfect timing because their clothes still look rather newish when it’s back to school season.  So I’ll definitely be hitting the summer sale at Tea Collection.  Beginning 6/23, Tea Collection is offering an additional 25% off sale items with promo code 25SAVE.  That “additional % off” gets me every time.    Another thing I love about summer is having the time to read books that I WANT to read.  During the school year I feel both driven and obligated to read academia.  In the summer, though, I allow myself mind candy like Barefoot Summer by Denise Hunter . I got a copy of this to participate in the book tour and was so excited. Doesn’t it just look like a sweet read?

Barefoot Summer is your typical Christian romance novel, except it’s not.   I mean, it is Christian.  And it is a novel.  And it is a romance.  Yes, it’s all of those things, but so much more.  I really liked learning about the characters and their backgrounds.  Although Beckett was supposed to be the tough-guy in the novel, he’s the one to whom I could most relate in this book.  Not that I’m a real tough cookie (quite the opposite, really) but his childhood was not ideal and yet he changed his future.  That’s a bit how I feel about my past.  I really couldn’t relate to the main character, Madison, at all.  She came from a very tight-knit family who was supportive and encouraging of each other.  That’s definitely not how my family was.    Sometimes I felt like she was a real blockhead for not seeing how Beckett felt about her, but then when I thought about the dynamics of her family, it made sense.   Learning about the ways that each character came to terms with life was a welcome reprieve from the doldrums of  the school year.  This is a beach book if ever I saw one.  Take it with you on vacation, you won’t be disappointed.