June Baby by Shannon Garvey
My Review of June Baby by Shannon Garvey looks at this new summer novel that is perfect for fans of Carley Fortune who want a more literary story!
Review of June Baby by Shannon Garvey
In the summer, I love a good contemplative book and June Baby fit the bill.
To me, June Baby felt a bit like a literary Carley Fortune (a seaside setting on Block Island, a young woman who has had a lot of grief and loss in her life, a friendship with a guy that always felt like it could be more, and some messiness around that.)
Ruth is June Baby (her late mother’s nickname for her), a woman in her late twenties. After the devastating loss of her mother when she was a teen, she’s cobbled a life together in Maine.
Then Ruth gets a phone call telling her that Diana, her mother’s closest friend and the person who helped her weather the loss of her mom, is also dying. She heads back to Block Island, where Diana lived, and is drawn back into her past, including her very close friendship with Charlie, Diana’s nephew.
June Baby is a quiet and lyrical book, told by Ruth as she ’s forced to comes to terms with her relationships with both Diana and Charlie.
Diana was a talented and famous photographer and, because Diana wanted Ruth to write a retrospective piece about her for Vogue, Ruth needs to go through Diana’s office, giving her more insight into the true nature of Diana’s relationship with Ruth’s mother.
June Baby had
- A slow-paced but quietly compelling narrative
- Themes of grief, healing, regrets, and looking back on life events in a new light
- A beautiful New England island setting
Content: cancer, unplanned pregnancy.
- Publication date: May 12, 2026 by Thousand Voices/Random House. Thanks so much to them for the advance review copy.
June baby is perfect For:
- Fans of bittersweet summer stories about life and loss
- Readers who want a “beach book” with a bit more depth and more of a self-reflection plot than a romance plot.
