Twelve Books That Awaken the Travel Bug In Me

Posted June 11, 2018 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 51 Comments

Don’t worry! You’re in the right spot! I unveiled my new blog design today, and I’m pretty much in love with it. Things needed to change! I’m still working out some little kinks, but I wanted to make sure it was live and working in time for TTT!

Books with travel aspects (or that just make me want to pack my suitcase and jet set somewhere amazing) are my absolute favorite kind of books! I especially love books that take place in places I’ve been to before because it’s a cheap way to go back for a visit. lol. So today’s topic highlights 13 of my very favorite books that awaken the travel bug in me!

 

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch (Florence and Rome, Italy)
This book takes place in Florence and Rome, Italy and it is amazing. Lina moves to Italy after her mother’s death, and learns all about who she is, who her mother was, and that she’s not as alone as she thought.

Love, Lucy by April Lindner (Florence, Italy)
This book is actually a modern YA retelling of A Room With a View by E.M. Forster. I can’t really comment on the retelling aspects of the story because I’ve never read A Room With a View, but I really loved Love, Lucy. It’s the perfect summer love story that blossoms while Lucy is backpacking through Florence and drinking in everything from the food to the architecture. She falls for a street musician, and I pretty much fell for him too!

Wish You Were Italian by Kristin Rae (Rome and Cinque Terre, Italy)
BAH. This book is one of my greatest loves! Pippa is off to Florence for art school, but ditches that plan to explore instead. She finds herself traveling solo through Italy and ends up in the beautiful Cinque Terre, living with the cashier from a coffee shop and her family. She goes on long walks, explores ruins, eats a lot, souvenir shops, goes on train rides, swims in the Mediterranean Sea, works in a restaurant, and goes sightseeing.

Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson (Italy)
A few days before a class trip to Italy, Jessa discovers that her boyfriend has been cheating on her. Before she leaves, her best friend equips her with a list called “Top Twenty Reasons He’s a Slimy Jerk Bastard”. She also gives her instructions to do one thing out of her comfort zone each day she’s gone in the hopes of getting her through the heartbreak.

Just One Day by Gayle Forman (Paris, France)
I love Paris. I could picture Allyson and Willem on the train, walking the streets of Paris, eating crepes, gazing over the river, even walking past all the street vendors. I loved that they did not do the typical touristy things, though. They experienced Paris in a way that most people who only have one day there don’t. I want to do what they did, and I want to find a guy like Willem to be right there next to me.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (Paris, France)
This is just SUCH a cute boarding school story set in Paris, with a pretty cute boy. Paris is described so perfectly, and brings the entire city to life.

Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard (Central America, namely Belize)
Artsy Bria goes on this crazy adventure through Central America. Along the way, she learns so much about herself and gains a lot of life experience. Plus, she sees amazing places, experiences new things, meets cool people, and falls in love.

Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill (London, England)
A class trip to London results in a really cute love story. The author paints a really great picture of the city, and I felt like I was there, wandering the museums, running in the rain, and soaking in an old fashioned bath tub after a long day of walking.

Love & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch (Ireland)
Addie, her brother, and her brother’s swoony online friend drive all over the Irish countryside in a tiny dilapidated car, looking for important sites that are tied to a popular band. It’s both funny and romantic.

Austenland by Shannon Hale (England)
Jane is obsessed with Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Seriously obsessed. After her great aunt’s death, Jane’s learns that she left her an all-inclusive, all expenses paid trip to Pembrook Park to experience what it’s like to have your very own Mr. Darcy. It’s fun and fluffy, and I loved it.

Unbreak My Heart by Melissa C. Walker (Summer on a sailboat)
Clem and her family spend the summer aboard a sailboat, spending time together, eating disgusting meals made only from canned foods, eating s’mores by blow torch, star gazing, sunbathing, laughing, and bonding. Clem, Olive, and red spend many hours hanging out trying to catch fish, perfecting their Little Mermaid moves, giggling, and teasing each other.

Carrie Goes Off the Map by Phillipa Ashley (Road trip through the English countryside)
Carrie’s fiancé comes home from a stag party and tells her he can’t marry her anymore. Her best friend, Rowena, decides the two of them need to go on a road trip to Italy and beyond. But then Rowena gets a job on a soap opera and has to back out of the trip the morning of. She mischievously calls on Dr. Matt Landor, an old friend from college, to go with Carrie instead. Carrie is mortified at this change in plans, but Matt finally talks her into going on a trip with him. They spend just over a month traveling around the English countryside meeting new people, and getting to know each other far better than they expected. Love blossoms among several different sets of characters. There’s even a bit of a scary twist that makes you worry for the characters!

Girl At Sea by Maureen Johnson (Summer aboard a luxury yacht in the Mediterranean Sea)
Luxury yacht in the Med, guys. And the book has history, mystery, adventure, suspense, romance, and humor. It’s the complete package, and I LOVED it.

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51 responses to “Twelve Books That Awaken the Travel Bug In Me

    • Jana

      Ahhh, I hope you read them all!! They’re all so fun!

      And thank you. :) It was so fun to let my creative juices run wild again. :)

  1. I love traveling in books, whether it’s overseas or road trips or whatever. :) Love & Gelato was such a fun read, and I love that cover (I have a different one, but I think I need to get that one!), and I need to Love and Luck!

    • Jana

      Me too! Travel books are my absolute favorite. :) I ordered this Love & Gelato off Book Depository (it’s the UK cover) because it’s so cute and colorful and WAY BETTER than the USA one. Too bad they didn’t make a hardcover one, but it’s ok! Love & Luck is just as cute. I hope you love it!

  2. I don’t know how the blog looked before, but I LOVE your new design! What program did you use to create the title image with the “13 books…”? Looks amazing! Plus, I really love your choices. Am not much of a YA reader, but there are some books on that list that I read and enjoyed as well. Lovely post!

    • Jana

      Oh, thank you! It’s a pretty big change from the old design, and I’m excited!

      I made the “13 books…” image myself using Adobe Illustrator. :) So glad you like it!

      Thanks for much for stopping by! :)

  3. I really enjoyed Welch’s books, and included Love & Luck on my own list this week as well as Just One Day. I see a BUNCH of books I have and need to get to as well. Austenland was really fun too.

  4. Kay

    The only one of these that I’ve read is Austenland and I remember liking it very much. I love Jane Austen, so that was a given. I really do enjoy travelling virtually through books. I’m not doing the meme today, but the book I reviewed today was set in Antarctica. That’s a place that I like to read about – never want to go there. LOL
    Kay recently posted…The Winter Over – Matthew Iden

    • Jana

      Ooo. I’d love to read a book set in Antarctica! I’ve actually always wanted to go there. :) I’m heading over to your blog to check this book out!

    • Jana

      I’m so glad those three made your list! They’re three of my favorite books ever! And Girl At Sea is so much fun. :)

    • Jana

      Oh yay, I’m glad I could recommend some new titles to you! You honestly can’t go wrong with any of them. :)

      Austenland is so much fun, but I’ll admit I didn’t love the movie. lol.

  5. I love the new design! It’s so pretty!
    Some of my favourite books that awaken the travel bug in me are The Indigo Notebook series. They’re super underrated, and take place in Ecuador, France, and Mexico, and they are SO good! I also quite enjoyed The Geography of You and Me… Lots of traveling in that one, even if other aspects of the story were a tiny bit lacking.
    Iris @ Hoardof Books recently posted…My One Year Blogiversary! – Q&A + New Dividers!

  6. RS

    Awesome list — I’ve read 3 of these (perfect description of Just One Day! and YAY for Instructions for a Broken Heart love!) and been planning to read a bunch more, but now I wanna read absolutely all of them thanks to how you’ve described them. I’m really excited to see that Lindner has another one out, but that Phillipa Ashley ones sounds RIGHT up my alley, and that’s the only one I hadn’t heard of before.

    • Jana

      Yes, you MUST read them all! lol. Lindner’s is so cute. And I really love Carrie Goes Off the Map. It got so little spotlight when it came out, and it’s amazing!

  7. YES, the new look is totally slaying me right now. I’m gonna swoon for a minute and then get back to commenting this post.

    Okay, we’re back. I’m still swooning. FIRST OF ALL, great list. A lot of these titles just slipped my mind somehow when I was working on my own list. But, I see quite a few favourites on here and am getting the warm and fuzzies over some of them.
    Jessica recently posted…Top Ten Tuesday (#12): Books That Awaken the Travel Bug In Me

    • Jana

      Haha. You’ve totally made my day! I’m so glad you’re swooning over my design! Best reaction to the new look. Thank you!

    • Jana

      My goodness, me too! And I actually went a year or so later and thought about Anna the entire time I was there. Hehe.