Best Books of Summer Selection by People, Elle, Redbook, Domino Magazine, US Weekly, PopSugar, PureWow, InStyle.com, WMagazine.com, HarpersBazaar.com, SouthernLiving.com, Arizona Republic, and Tallahassee Democrat Epicurious Best Foodie Reads Selection Library Reads Pick “A clever beach bag must-have” (People) from Laura Dave—the author of the “addictive” (Us Weekly) and critically acclaimed …
Epicurious Best Foodie Reads Selection
Library Reads Pick
“A clever beach bag must-have” (People) from Laura Dave—the author of the “addictive” (Us Weekly) and critically acclaimed bestseller Eight Hundred Grapes—“a smart, fun read about trying to live an authentic life in the age of social media overload” (PopSugar).
Sunshine Mackenzie has it all…until her secrets come to light. Sunshine is living the dream—she’s a culinary star with millions of fans, a line of #1 bestselling cookbooks, and a devoted husband happy to support her every endeavor. Sunshine Mackenzie has it all…until she gets hacked.
When Sunshine’s secrets are revealed, her fall from grace is catastrophic. She loses her husband, her show, the fans, and her apartment. She’s forced to return to the childhood home—and the estranged sister—she’s tried hard to forget. But what Sunshine does amid the ashes of her own destruction may well save her life.
“A delightfully addictive page-turner” (WMagazine.com) that takes place in a world where celebrity is a careful construct, Hello, Sunshine is “wickedly funny and gorgeously entertaining…there is no chance you won’t consume this golden summer read in one sitting” (Redbook.com).
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I first came across Laura Dave after listening to the audiobook of Eight Hundred Grapes. Deciding to give it a try was my way of picking up a book I normally wouldn’t read and expanding into different genres. I am so happy I did because I fell in love with that book. I must say reading Hello, Sunshine was no different.
I literally could not put this book down and finished it in less than 24 hours. Hello, Sunshine is captivating from the very beginning. The foreboding and inevitable hint of a scandal about to hit the fan was too juicy for me to look away despite knowing things would not end well for the main character Sunshine. And boy was it as juicy as a ripe tomato.
Sunshine Mackenzie is a popular Food Network star who is about to hit the television scene with her own show and a book deal right around the corner, but it all goes awry with a few simple tweets. Sunshine looses everything she held dear; her husband, her home, and her career. She is then forced to move back home to Montauk. It is there that Sunshine tries to find herself and get back what she’s lost. Herself.
I was blown away at how good this story was. So much so that I couldn’t stop reading, I needed to know more. I needed to know how Sunshine was going to pick herself up after hitting rock bottom. I wanted her to be a better person and see how she ended where she was. Granted it took her longer than I wanted to, but Laura Dave has a way about her characters finding themselves. She breaks her characters down so you can see how the pieces of their lives got them to that breaking point. In the end I felt that not only did I know who the real Sunshine was, but so did the Sunshine in the book. It brings me joy when there is a lesson the character learns that not only helps them look at life differently, but also me as a reader. With the help of Sushine’s sister Rain, her daughter Sammy who I absolutely adored, and Ethan the fisherman, Sunshine was able to accept the error of her ways. Thank you Ethan for giving it to Sunshine straight and not sugarcoating your words. He was a breath of fresh air. While most people may hate it, I always love that Laura Dave leaves the ending open for the reader to fantasize and picture their own happy ever after for the main character.
I cannot gloat enough about this book. All I can say is please read it. It will bring you A Little Bit of Sunshine.
I liked this book very much. It had a realism to it that drew me in and made me want to help the characters build, or rebuild, relationships. Just when I thought that I had everything figured out for Sunshine – along came a twist and I had to re-evaluate and change my solution for what would be best for her happiness! It kept me involved and interested, which I liked, and made me want to know what happens next.
In the age of cancel culture and social media darlings, how does a star pick up the pieces after her true self is exposed? A great novel that explores real life vs the face we show to the world–and what happens when the curtain comes crashing down.
I enjoyed the humor throughout this book! And at the same time, the story is an honest look at people, relationships, and family. Sunshine is an online culinary star. She has a huge following. But she wakes up one morning, well not just any morning, but her birthday and by the end of the day everything will have changed. By the end of the day, she loses her husband, her home , and her job.
This is an intense read with a shocking ending. All the seemingly little” lies told by the popular television foodie snowball into a freak show, toppling all she holds dear. I can’t say I enjoyed all the drama, but I can say I want our teenage grands to read it in this age of living life through social media.
This was such a fun read in the “fame doesn’t solve anything” genre (which I happen to adore). I didn’t guess the twist, I enjoyed the characters and the ride, and, again as always, the whole “glimpse of a different world that I’ll never live in. Weirdly, I read two books centered on cooking shows last weekend, and enjoyed them both–so bring on more of those, I guess.
I really enjoyed this book, working in social media I totally get how it can become such an artificial and cultivated version of the truth. Seeing Sunny and her husband struggle through it made for an interesting read.