I received an ARC from NetGalley and Atria for an honest review.

I have never been so confused about a book in a while. Honestly, I don't usually go for the "summer beach reads," but the premise sounds interesting.

The main character, Daphine, is an influencer who is not a size four and just lands a big fashion deal. Yay. That's cool. I like that realization of how influencing an online platform is all about selling yourself, and that is, in fact, a subject through the book. Fine. That plot I could deal with, and it was pretty solid for the first 50 percent of the book. Daphine gets invited/forced into being an old best friend's wedding as the maid of honor because Drue doesn't' have friends anymore. They had a massive falling out that included an online video of said fallout. It was ugly. Drue screwed everyone over, and on her wedding day, she needs to bribe and even pay people to be in the wedding party.

Anyway, it was hard to take the book seriously, and that was the point until the middle of the book changes the tone completely, and then that is when I was about to end it, but I kept reading anyway.

There is a murder, and Daphine is involved and must solve it. It just gets ridiculous, and I had a hard time caring about the plot. The book could have ended, and it would have been a nice novella.

The prologue made no sense, and whenever the novel tries to bring it into play, it just doesn't work.

I was continually pulled out of the book. I would sit there, reread a sentence, and wishing it was the first 50 percent of the book. I like taking on big ideas about selling ourselves online and being happy with yourself and removing people in our life that cause heartache. Whatever good that author did at the beginning was removed with the murder mystery plot that we suddenly have to solve.

This book is a weird beach read because it is not easy. There is a murder, which is fine but I wasn't expecting it. And it felt like two books smashed together. I am reading an ARC, so hopefully, the final/printed copy is fleshed out more.

Wow. I was not expecting this book to be what it is, at all. I went into this thinking it was a light friendship beach read. I was wrong. The twist genuinely shocked me. I didn’t see that coming at all. I appreciated the Bachelor and Murder on the Cape references. I loved the POV and character flaws and builds. Bravo on covering topics that felt relatable among circumstances that felt real. Definitely one of my favorite books I’ve read recently!! Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc!

Daphne and Drue have a long history. When Drue inserts herself back in Daphne's life after a long absence, it causes Daphne's life to explode into chaos.

I loved part one of this book. We explore Daphne as a plus size influencer with all her past body image and bullying issues. Drue is smack in the middle of why Daphne is who she is.

But, Starting with part two, this book turns itself upside down from a women's fiction story into a murder mystery. The amount of suspended belief I needed to buy into Daphne being the detective who solves The Who done it just wasn't there. Add to the fact that there were umpteen plot twist and character reveals. Sadly, I skipped to the last chapter and found out who done it and bid farewell to this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Jennifer Weiner for the opportunity to read her latest novel - loved it! 4.5 stars for a book that will make you think - especially about self-esteem and what part social media plays in that.

Daphne is a plus-size Instagram influencer and is mostly happy with her life now. But that feeling was hard won - her best friend in high school, Drue, made Daphne feel special just by being near her. So she accepted the fact that Drue was mean and used her. Until a scene in a bar one night that was filmed made Daphne rethink her life and her friendship with Drue. Fast forward six years, and Drue is back asking Daphne to come to her lavish wedding on the Cape, swearing that she's changed. But has she?

This story covers lots of topics, such as family, friendship, self-esteem, forgiveness, but there is also a mystery to solve with quite a few suspects. A good read to start the summer!

Oh, how I wanted to love this book. This is a story about a friendship that starts between two girls in high school. Two very different girls who are drawn together for very different reasons. So as you can imagine, there is plenty of drama to keep you interested in the story. I found the first half of the book to be...just okay. One snobby, entitled girl using her friend who is overweight and lacking in self-confidence. It's, sadly, a story as old as time. The girls have a huge falling out and the overweight friend starts to love herself, finding her own way in the world. Then the old friend reappears and the story takes a totally unexpected turn! I hit the halfway mark and there was a twist that I did NOT see coming. This twist kept me turning the pages until I finished the whole thing. So why only three stars? Well, there were some plot points that I thought were a little too convenient and others that I wish had more explanations and details. The book felt like it was missing some meat that would hold it all together. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it as a light read that you don't have to think too hard about (which is something we all need right now!)

Wow! This book blew me away!

I was expecting a light summer romance, chick lit book and it was that a little in the beginning but then took a turn. I really liked the turn and was quickly sucked into the mystery that surfaced. My jaw literally dropped when each twist came. I was caught unawares and LOVED that!

I think this book will appeal to lots of different readers, each wanting something different but getting what they need from this book, too.

Even though I work in a school library, I love to read adult books and keep up with the adult book world. I will definitely recommend this book and am already looking forward to the next Jennifer Weiner book that I get to read!

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for a gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. Pub Date - 5/5/2020.

3.5 stars

Daphne Berg and Drue Cavanaugh used to be best friends in high school until a huge fight ended their friendship six years ago. Now Drue is getting married and asks if Daphne will be her maid-of-honor. Noone is more shocked than Daphne. A lot has changed since their huge blow out. Daphne is now an up and coming plus-size Instagram influencer; while Drue is still as beautiful and privileged as ever. Daphne knows that Drue is used to getting whatever she wants but she also can't find it in her heart to refuse Drue. On the morning of Drue's wedding, something tragic happens and Daphne must now look deeper into Drue's family and past to find the truth about her friend.

Well, this is not the usual Jennifer Weiner book! The first half was a bit slow for me and I was skimming through some parts but once the twist came, I was hooked! It's a good story about complicated female friendships, self esteem, figure shaming and the good and bad of social media. I thought Jennifer Weiner did a really good job setting up the scenery - I could see the images in my head like a movie. Some of the mentions about social media hit close to home for me, especially the pressure on posting and engaging constantly in order to build a following. But I also agree with Daphne's view that it's a community and it's nice to find your tribe. For me, book people are the best people!

Weiner does it again! Her novels are engaging and she tells the stories of women’s lives like no other. Highly recommend for book clubs, and adult reference /book talks.

I loved this book! It took a turn I wasn't expecting and I was eager to see what happened in the end!

Big Summer follows Daphne, a plus-size social media influencer who is shocked when her ex-high school bestie begs her to be the maid-of-honor at her wedding. Hoping that her friend has changed and wants to make amends, Daphne heads to Cape Cod for the nuptials…but finds that this wedding weekend may be way more than she bargained for. This book kind of reminded me of what I imagine an episode of Gossip Girl might be like, between the Cape Cod wedding, the Upper East Side setting, and the rich-people-behaving-badly. It started as one thing and kind of went in a direction I wasn’t expecting – which was a good thing! I was really interested in seeing how it would all pan out, and I thought the social media influencer aspect was fun and current. Overall really liked this one!

Review on my blog here: https://yorkavenueblog.com/what-i-read-in-april/

This was my first Jennifer Weiner and it did not disappoint me. I went into the book thinking that it would be a typical romcom, and halfway through even thought that this book was predictable. And I was so wrong about it.

Giving any of the storyline away would spoil the unexpected twists, so I'll just mention the general things that I liked. The female friendships and their dynamics, both the good and the bad, are portrayed very well in the book. The social media world and how it affects us is also depicted well. There are a lot of themes in the book, but body issues and how we deal with them is the main theme and I liked how it wasn't preachy but mentioned things like they are - we cannot be brave all the time and sometimes in the privacy of our minds we are harsh and brutal about our own bodies. The only gripes I had were about people trying to solve mysteries on their own and how the MC's love interest got a little preachy about social media. I would have liked it if the love interest addressed the MC's body issues at least once, and found that the love interest was strangely one-dimensional in some aspects.

All in all, this is a good summer read and not your typical rom-com. It definitely made me want to read the author's other books.

I know this is an unpopular opinion but I really did not love this one. I liked the pace of the book and I enjoyed the timely themes (fat shaming, influencers, women empowerment etc) but it almost felt like two different books.

A good summer read with it all: chick lit, romance, mystery! This is my first read from this author. I enjoyed it!

Thank you to Netgalley for a free copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Big Summer tackled a topic that is so relevant in today's society.....Social media and how everything is not what it seems and how easy it is to fake a perfect life when you hide behind a screen.
This was a fun enjoyable read with a plot twist I didn't see coming.
A perfect book to take to the beach!

I would highly recommend this "summer read" to all of my adult girlfriends. It's jam packed with lessons on self-love, forgiveness, letting go, moving on, second chances, first loves, and true friendship! Within this murder mystery there are so many reasons why I could not put this book down! There were unexpected characters and lots of unpredictable plot twists! Jennifer Weiner did such a good job at putting a modern-day twist on this book filled with instagram influencers and first world problems! She's brilliant! If you're looking for a great summer read then run, don't walk to get your hands on this book!

Thank you to Atria books for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review


I had never read a Jennifer Weiner book until last years Mrs. Everything. I loved it. Such wonderful storytelling about women and their differences and the expectations from society. I enjoyed it so much. Big Summer was COMPLETELY different. It was like it didn't know what kind of book it was trying to be; chick lit, romance, murder mystery. All of the tropes of those genres tried to blend together and while it was a compulsive read, at times it felt a bit like a mess.

Our main character Daphne is really the only redeeming part of the story. She is well rounded and dynamic with a very clear voice. The characters surrounding her were very flat and uninteresting. As I mentioned, the book is very readable. I was flipping pages so quickly and flew through to the end. However, a fast paced plot does not good writing make.

If you want a mindless beach read then this may be a great book for you. The pieces don't all fit, it's all a bit messy but overall enjoyable. I think my disappointment stems from the fact that the last book I read from this author was COMPLETELY different so I was expecting a bit more depth and polish.

Huh. This went a different way than I was expecting. Daphne Berg, a nanny/Etsy store owner/plus-size Instagram Influencer, finally feels like her life is on-track after years of self-doubt and self-criticism. When Drue, an old friend from high school comes back into her life and asks her to be a bridesmaid, Daphne is torn. Daphne was happy to be a sidekick to beautiful, rich Drue, until Drue turned her mean streak on Daphne, and they had a falling out. Has Drue really changed? Or should Daphne stay wary that her old friend will soon be back to her mean girl ways?

So, this starts off like it's a standard Jennifer Weiner, albeit a little overdone on the "I'm angsty about my weight" bit. And then it takes a hard left turn into a mystery, with surprises I admit I did not see coming. Unfortunately, I feel like it's too much beach read to be a good mystery, and the beach read part is not as good what I normally expect from Weiner. Points for trying something new, but I'd give this a solid C+/B-.

I always love Jennifer Weiners books and this was no different! Such a great read and one of my favorites of hers

Daphne Berg idolized Drue Cavanaugh when they went to school together. Drue seemed to have the perfect life--beautiful, rich, and adored by all. But eventually Daphne tired of Drue's mistreatment, with one incident finally pushing the two apart for good. So she's quite surprised when Drue appears back in her life, asking Daphne to be maid-of-honor in her upcoming wedding. Daphne is now an Instagram influencer, with a growing following in plus-size fashion. And, truly, she could never say no to Drue, especially when she visualizes the wedding as a prospect for more followers and the potential to meet a cute guy. So off to Cape Cod she goes--ignoring the warning of her best friend and roommate, who knows the pain Drue can cause. The night before the wedding, Daphne does meet a handsome and charming guy. And she overhears rumors that all might not be right in Drue's world. In the morning, she awakes to something terrible, causing her to dig deeper into those rumors and her own relationship with Drue.

"The trick of the Internet, I had learned, was not being unapologetically yourself or completely unfiltered; it was mastering the trick of appearing that way. It was spiking your posts with just the right amount of real... which meant, of course, that you were never being real at all."

Well this was an unexpected yet enjoyable read. It's far less serious than Weiner's previous book, the expansive and beautiful Mrs. Everything, but I think it's exactly the read we need for these times. I finished feeling happy and grateful for what I had in my life. Big Summer was a wonderful distraction from real life.

This is a fun story featuring our engaging plus-size heroine, Daphne, who is still struggling to find herself as an adult. Many of her scars and insecurities come from her so-called friendship with Drue, who was more of a user than a friend. After Drue hurt Daphne one time too many, she hasn't seen her in six years. But she's still powerless to say no to her, especially when she's begging for her to attend her high society wedding.

"You are susceptible to Drue Cavanaugh. She's your Kryptonite."

I found Daphne to be sweet albeit in need of a backbone at times. Her journey to self-actualization is certainly engaging. Big Summer takes a huge turn about halfway through, giving me a big surprise, but I loved it, honestly. I'm glad I hadn't read about the twist--a lot of reviews give it away, but I won't. Let's just say that Drue and her minions can be quite twisted at times, and there's a lot to unravel and unwrap here in terms of motivations and backstory. Big Summer starts with a little snippet set in the early 1990s, setting us up for the story ahead. We also learn about Daphne and Drue's past and all about their friendship.

This is such a sweet, sometimes silly (oh how I love Daphne's parents), and real read. Goodness, the pieces about Daphne's weight can be so heartbreaking. There's a section where she remembers her grandmother caring for her for a summer and basically giving her her weight insecurities, as she put Daphne on her first diet, making her aware of being heavier. Oh man. Weiner is an excellent writer, and she brings Daphne to life here, making her such a true person, whom we want to root for, hug, and love.

And she gives us a book about family, love, and reminds us to be grateful for what we have. The grass isn't always greener on the other side, per se. Always important, but even so more right now. I loved this one, with its escapist nature and twisty yet heartfelt storyline. 4+ stars.

This book, yall. Wow!⁣
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It started off a little slow for my liking. The chapters were long and it just seemed to drag on. But then, BAM! It picked up fast and I couldn’t put it down. There was a tiny bit of romance but so many other things happening. I want to tell you all about it but I don’t want to spoil it. Just know that I loved Daphne. She was a girl on a mission. There were characters that you hated, characters that you grew to love, and characters that just shocked you. ⁣
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I highly recommend this one. If you haven’t done your @bookofthemonth order for May, grab this one! If you have, no worries. This one comes out on Tuesday (May 5th)!⁣
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Thank you @netgalley, @atriabooks, and @jenniferweinerwrites for an ARC of the book in exchange for my honest review! ⁣