Here we have a young adult story about our main character named Casey, a transgender young teen planning a trip to a camp for two whole weeks with his best friend Ella. Casey came out to his parents and has dreams of getting older so that he can get surgery. Casey is our main character at age fourteen and has, for the most part, had a good community in his life in Virginia where he goes to a school that seems to be more accepting of queer people.

Casey tells himself he won't think about romance when he goes on this trip and fears the day on this trip that maybe things will go awry. What if there aren't any queer kids? What if he gets bullied or attacked, or outed? These are things that he know he has to struggle with in his life. But Casey is a strong, independent man, and he isn't going to let others dictate his life for him.

At first I knew there would be some cheesy romance, I mean- Look at the cover and title! But what I didn't expect was to be educated well beyong my expectations, and to fall in love with so many characters in such a short time. These nine chapters killed me! Took my children, and left me for dead.

This was beautifully written and the plot had layers and layers of impact on me. Whenever I thought romance would be an issue, I was pushed back into the view of our main character working through his struggles and to figure out what person he is and what person he doesn't want to be.

I loved that our character had flaws and that he acknowledged these flaws as well as the fact that he tried to work on them, that he used proper skills to work through problems like a decent human being, and I'd like to think that it is because I truly does have great parents.

We had a best friend named Ella who was the best king of sidekick, that kick-ass woman who was independent, and not just because she was aro ace! ( Stunning. The representation is ON-POINT. Killer ). I loved the themes of LGBTQ+ in this book and I think that this is an important book to many kids, teens and adults out there looking for closure and a little something to help them.

The one thing I do want to address is the bullying, which I believe wasn't handled as well as I would like. It was a typical teen book where the bully was reprimanded for physical violence, rather than the tolls of physical, emotional AND psychological abuse placed on teens at the time. I think that there was a far more adult way for the ADULTS to handle that kind of situation, instead of being stand-by characters. The sense that even in writing that adults are passive is a let-down, but I suppose it is a cliche and would probably take the story in a direction most wouldn't take the time to appreciate, but I digress.

Regardless, I loved this book. And I usually have low expectations going into stories like this. But it was well done and I loved every second of it. I loved every second of Alex, Ella, Gavin, of Casey and the counselors and GOOD GOSH did I want to know more about Lars! I was totally hoping there would be some kind of sub-plot about him! Totally disappointed but that's okay!

This book deserves every star up to 5 and I have no doubts about loving this book. Please pick it up, buy it when it releases, and share it with everyone you know. This is a story everyone needs to read.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to make this review.

I was really excited when I learned that the best friend in this book was aromantic and asexual, but there were unfortunately a lot of remarks that were distancing and offensive for aromantic and asexual readers. Aside from that, it was a decent book. The romance moved crazy fast for my liking though I understand that they're 14 and that sort of thing happens when you're 14 for some people. I can't speak for the trans rep, but the aro ace rep was definitely lacking.

On A Summer Night by Gabriel D. Vidrine is a coming of age romance story set at a summer camp. The book deals with trans issues, with the main character, Casey, being a trans boy. It is his first year at a camp that isn’t aimed at trans people, and he is hoping to pass as a boy during his time at camp.

Overall, this book is a very sweet romance story that follows the usual formula of misunderstandings and missed connections. Vidrine is trans himself, and this gives the book its strengths. I am also trans, and I never felt that Vidrine wrote in a belittling tone, or wrote clichés when it came to Casey’s identity. For someone who wasn’t part of the trans community, I think that they would easily understand Casey’s story and understand him as a character.

One of my main problems with the story was the character of Ella, who is Casey’s best friend. She identifies as asexual, which I found upsetting as she’s only fourteen. This may be petty, but I don’t think you can decide at fourteen that you will never have sex or have a relationship. At fourteen, you shouldn’t be thinking about whether you want to be having sex with someone, and for me, that slightly ruined the story. As well as that, she comes across as quite creepy, shipping Casey and another boy together and getting angry when Casey doesn’t want to date them.

In conclusion, this is book that I would aim at middle school age, and not young adult. It was very simple, and as a 19 year old, I would laugh at the idea of being ‘in love’ with someone at 14. However, it was an interesting take on the romance at summer camp idea, and I did enjoy reading it.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for a review.