Cool for the Summer is the novel embodiment of your classic summertime Hallmark romance movie, with an LGBT twist.

Overall I enjoyed this novel and it was a fun, quick read. I liked watching Lara become more herself and realize she should make decisions for herself and what she wants- not what her friends, peers, or mom might expect. Jasmine is your classic cool girl, but she has a soft heart which was sweet to read. Chase was a refreshing version of your star jock trope, as in actually kind and understanding. Even the other side characters experience some growth, like Lara’s friends! Lara and her friends were very annoying at points, but it seemed to mellow out in the end.

I feel like this would be more appropriate if the characters were college age (does anyone else feel a little weird reading about underage intimate actions?? Because I know it doesn’t feel quite right to me). This novel would have been just as powerful without the descriptions, but at the same time I get that these are experiences a lot of high schoolers have? It’s conflicting to me, wanting to be realistic but also not weirded out.

The first chapter or so felt so cliche, which almost made me dnf, but I am glad I continued to read this! I was invested in whether or not everything would end up alright and how the summer had ended. I liked the format of the past vs present sections. It isn’t easy to create a good novel with that format and I felt like the author wrote it well.

When Lara starts her senior year she had no idea the girl she fell in love with over the summer would be walking through the door. To make matters worse Chase, the boy she's been crushing on for years, is finally interested in her. Lara's feelings have never been more confused than they are now. She thought what was happening between her and Jasmine over the summer was more experimental but the more time they spent together the more she started questioning if she was actually falling in love.

Chase has finally asked Lara out and she couldn't be more thrilled. She's up for going all in with him as far as dating, making out, and going to prom together but even though she's happy he's finally seeing her she can't help but feel like something is missing.

I enjoyed Lara's journey to self discovery. I liked the format between the past (her time with Jasmine over the summer) and the present (her conflict of feelings between being with Chase and seeing Jasmine again). I thought it was well done. I liked Lara's friends at home and the one's she made over the summer as well.

If you're looking for a fluffy YA contemporary romance than I would definitely recommend this one. I listened to the audiobook and I thought it was well done.

Dahlia Adler’s Cool for the Summer confirms her as the Queen of Queer once again. This light YA rom-com features Larissa Bogdan, a bisexual high school student who is coming to terms with her sexuality with the help of a summer spent with Jasmine and a long-term crush on Chase, the school’s most popular football player. It is a fun and lighthearted romp, with a lot of pop-culture references thrown in and much love to books and nerdy culture. It is very much YA aimed at a teen demographic – which meant that I wasn’t as in love with it as I hoped to be, but teen me very much would have. And one of my favourite details of the book was that quite early on, when Larissa was asked about her sexuality, whether she was into boys, girls, or both, the asker immediately added that ace and aro was just as valid and welcome. Dahlia Adler, Queen of Queer, we stan.

* note that Demi Lovato now uses they/them pronouns, so there is some misgendering of the singer in the text

As a lost 20-something, it is always so heartwarming to read about teenagers finding themselves.

Larissa “Lara” Bogdan (17, Russian, Jewish) has been loving the star quarterback Chase Harding for what seems like forever. And then Chase starts liking her back. Except now that Lara has a whole summer’s worth of memory with Jasmine Killary (17, bi, Jewish, Irish), and she isn’t sure what anything means anymore.

I admit I didn’t think I’d enjoy this book so much. There were a lot of partying, high school kids who can only think about hooking ups, flashbacks, and one HP reference (I later learned that it was edited out in the final copy so yay) within the first few chapters. That left a sour taste in my mouth that it took me another 10 days or so to pick it up again. And I had fun with the rest of the book!

The fact that Chase is a sweet guy and not some monster after Lara gets to know him makes COOL FOR THE SUMMER more about Lara’s self discovery. Her storyline with Jasmine is so cute and at times tugged at my heart. It’s about these two wonderful love interests and what Lara really feels, and there is also a somewhat questionable friendship between Lara and her best friend.

Ever got yourself tangled in a complicated romantic relationship in high school? Or hear about your friends trying to navigate their even more complicated college dating lives? COOL FOR THE SUMMER is like that with mostly the fun scenes, little to no homophobia going on, and covers a cast of characters with various backgrounds. Lara’s Russian roots and Jasmine’s Jewish ones play some part in the story, so that was nice to read about.

I don’t have much to say about this book except that it is kind of messy and cute and fun. If you don’t mind a lot of then and now scenes interspersed throughout the whole book, COOL FOR THE SUMMER is an entertaining story about two queer disasters with good chemistry.

[content warnings: brief biphobia, mention of antisemitism]

Cool for the Summer is all about summer plans and mistakes which follow us back. Full of 'Then' and 'Now' sections, Lara's story examines what happens when we get our dreams, only to have lingering feelings. Thoughts we can't put to bed at night. People we can't get out of our head. It exposes the vulnerabilities of summer, of friendships you put yourself out there in, because they seem temporary. Cool for the Summer is a love letter to summer loving. To those summer relationships that haunt us even after we've unpacked.

I became immersed quickly in Cool for the Summer. In doubts we can't shake off and the power of a single summer. Lara's questioning representation, as well as the biphobia she encounters, is emotional and tender. While there were a few elements that seemed sudden which, upon reflection I wonder about, they never pulled me out of the book.

A great summer romance book and back to school book all in one! I really loved how Larissa is trying to figure herself out, and is confident enough to say "I'm not sure what label fits me so I'm just not going with a label and that is okay." This book is a bi disaster love triangle, and I was here for all of it!

I was so excited when I got this arc from NetGalley! Cool for the Summer is almost everything that I needed in a cute summer romance. It was so much fun to read. When requesting this book, I did not know a lot about it except that it was inspired by Grease but I needed to read it and I am so glad that I did!

In Cool for the Summer, we follow Lara comes back from summer vacation into a new school year with newfound confidence. This allows her to catch the eye of her long-time crush, Chase and she seemingly has everything. However, when a ghost from the summer, Jasmine, appears and this changes everything.

There are so many things that I enjoyed about this book and one of the best parts is Lara's overall character growth. Before she went to Outer Bank she lived in the shadow of her friends especially Shannon and depended on them. When she comes back from the Outer Banks she has changed a lot. She starts to believe in herself and even starts writing which she is very passionate about. I also loved seeing her figure out her sexuality and comes to terms with it.

Another aspect of this book that I loved was the dual timelines. One timeline would show the present and the other would show the summer. Nearly every chapter something that happened in the present that would relate to the past. It was interesting seeing how different Jasmine and Lara were in the summer compared to in the present.

The friendship group in this book was something I also enjoyed. The friendship was not perfect like some books portray but it was&nbsp;<strong>realistic to how some high school friends can be. It demonstrated how if you are not careful you can become too reliant on your friends. I loved the friendship between Kiki and Lara. Kiki was always there to help Lara even if Lara did not know she needed it.

I also enjoyed the writing style. I usually do not care for this much but I remember it being straightforward but still light and funny. I loved reading Lara's thought process even though some of her choices were questionable.

There were also a few things that I did not like in the book. The romance between Chase and Lara did not seem as genuine as I wanted it to be. Lara had liked Chase for so long that basically, the whole school knew including Chase. After all this time, he never seemed to display an interest in her but then as soon as he sees her in the book he instantly likes her and flirts.

Also, there was a part where a guy over-sexualizes a girl's body and it was not resolved in the best way which made me uncomfortable

Overall I still enjoyed this book. It was such a fun read and I loved Lara so much!&nbsp;<strong>If you love contemporary books about discovering your sexuality, imperfect friendships and dual timelines then this book is for you!

This would be a great sweet story for this summer. It tells a tale of self-discovery with a Jewish LGBTQ romance that was so addicting that I fell in love!! Humor and summer themes make this a must read!!

When Larissa arrives to school on the first day of her senior year, everyone can tell there’s something different about her and it’s not just the new haircut and blond highlights. It’s more that she has a new attitude, a certain confidence she didn’t have before. Whatever it is, it has gotten the attention of her forever-crush Chase Harding and now he has gone from barely acknowledging her existence to blatantly flirting with her. Chase Harding is everything Larissa has ever wanted, and between him, her close-knit friend group, and a fantastic job, Larissa is sure her senior year is going to be incredible…until Jasmine walks through the door. Jasmine, the girl Larissa met and had a summer romance with when she traveled to the Outer Banks in North Carolina with her mom. What is Jasmine doing here in New York, at Larissa’s school? And the bigger question, why is she now ignoring Larissa and pretending they don’t know each other? Was their romance just a summer fling or could it be more than that?

I really enjoyed the way the author lets this story unfold through a dual timeline, with the first timeline set in the present as Larissa and Jasmine try to navigate getting to know one another in a completely different environment from where they first met. The second timeline takes place in the Outer Banks over the summer and shows us how Jasmine and Larissa meet. Larissa had no idea she was possibly bisexual until she met Jasmine and I thought the author did a wonderful job of showing Larissa exploring this newly discovered aspect of her sexuality in a positive light. There is of course a bit of a love triangle in the present-day timeline and even though I’m not usually a fan of those, it works here because the triangle reflects how Larissa finds herself torn between the person she used to be and the person she has grown into since meeting Jasmine. She has some big decisions to make and doesn’t want to hurt anyone or get hurt in the process. Larissa’s journey is somewhat painful at times as she attempts to navigate this awkward terrain, but I really enjoyed watching her grow throughout the story. Cool for the Summer is a satisfying coming of age story that left me feeling nostalgic for my own summer romances from years gone by.

The bi Grease retelling intrigued me, but the execution is just not doing it for me. It reads like the drama of spoiled rich kids (not necessarily a bad thing, but not what I'm interested in). YMMV.

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

When this landed in my inbox, it was the first time I’d heard of it. I was immediately drawn to the beautiful cover and I thought it would be a fun romp through a past summer with something a little more. …Well, I wasn’t wholly wrong but perhaps I went in with the wrong expectations?

Content warning: homophobia; on-page but not explicit sex and masturbation

To be honest, I’m struggling to put my thoughts into words around this book because I feel like a lot happens internally with our main character, Larissa, and overall, she had a hard time truly expressing herself almost because she didn’t know…how? So enter the summer she spends with her mom and her mom’s boss’s daughter, Jasmine. These two characters find each other when they needed each other the most but didn’t really realize it until it was (almost) too late. The initial few chapters were really disorienting for me as well and I had a hard time connecting and really putting myself into the story mainly because I didn’t care for Larissa at all, especially in the beginning. She seemed a bit vapid, even after she starts dating Chase. I did like how the story is told in a past and present (“Then” and “Now”) viewpoint because we are able to see how these characters changed through Larissa’s eyes and how she struggles coming to terms with it. This also gave Larissa a chance to examine who her friends are as well because honestly… Some of them aren’t that impressive. What I did like, though, is Larissa ending up being true to herself, and for her that was scary. I liked the support she received from her friends as well because…who has a 100% perfect friend group where you’re going to agree on everything? I also enjoyed Larissa’s feelings when she was with Chase and with Jasmine. But…I’m not about that *one* person being the single thing that makes you change or realize you can be a different person, which is a bit of the vibe I got here.

My main qualm here isn’t about Larissa, per se, but rather…her friends. There are a few paragraphs dedicated to Larissa speaking badly about her friends and how her “best friend” basically gas lights her and her other friends… So immediately I’m like, “And you’re still friends with her?” I struggle determining if it’s worth remaining friends with her when this is something she does regularly to Larissa and others and Larissa points it out. As for Jasmine, you come to find out that she is very good at hiding herself in the same yet different way that Larissa does and she feels quite alone due to external issues she doesn’t have much control over, such as her parents’ divorce. Other than that, I actually quite liked Larissa’s other friends and appreciated that Larissa had a strong, core group of friends. In the end, I felt bad for Chase and I’m glad the author didn’t turn him into a person who is horrible to Larissa.

Also, if Larissa and Jasmine had simply talked to one another and communicated openly then perhaps half of the issues they had with each other wouldn’t exist. Oof.

You know, I didn’t give this much thought until now. I found myself later invested due to the characters. Larissa is in her senior year of high school, so it was easy enough for me to put myself in that because I experienced it myself, homecoming and prom included. I also found myself enjoying the “Then” chapters the most because that summer between school year can be pretty magical and for Larissa, it was eye-opening.

I enjoyed this book, and I liked the Demi Lovato inspiration. I thought it was a fun, quick, easy Summer read, and I am so happy to see more bisexual representation in the mainstream media, and I thought that the queer love triangle was a nice deviation from the standard f/m/m love triangle. The Grease vibe was fun, but not as prominent as I would have enjoyed. I think it would have been better with either MORE Grease inspiration, or perhaps none at all. It was a solid read, however, and I might pick it up again in the future. Overall, a pretty solid book with enjoyable characters and a solid (albeit cliche) plot line.

This was such a quick and fun read. I really appreciated the inclusivity of not only having a bisexual character, but also a nonbinary character as well. I did have a little bit of trouble connecting with Lara, but appreciated certain aspects of her character. I feel like this was one of those young adult reads that is definitely more geared towards actual younger readers and I may be just a bit old for this. Still enjoyed and thought it was a cute storyline!

I LOVE THIS BOOK! It was a blast to read, super fun characters, and an engaging love triangle. Wonderful.

CW: divorce, underage drinking, biphobia

Lara has had eyes for one person throughout high school, Chase. When he starts to show an interest in her, things couldn’t seem more perfect. What more could she want? Her crush is finally showing an interest in her and everything is perfect until Jasmine shows up at her school. Jasmine, the girl she spent a perfect summer with. She had tried to forget about Jasmine and even harder since Chase was showing interest in her, but she can’t forget about her.

This is truly a hard book for me to rate and talk about. I loved Lara’s inner turmoil as she tried to figure out how she tried to come to grips with her feelings and sexuality, but there was also so much that I’m left questioning which I think might overpower everything else? I truly can’t decide.

Cool for the Summer is really focused on Lara’s inner dialogue. The author showcases her struggles in the present and how she grew over the summer with Jasmine. Throughout this, we really get to see her bipanic which I do feel like was truly relatable. This is one thing that I really loved about the book.

But, with the book focusing on Lara and her bipanic, a lot of things fall to the side which is really the other characters. A lot of the side characters fall to the side and aren’t as fleshed out as they could be, or rather, should be. Not to mention, the side characters were well… some of them were questionable. Shannon in particular. Lara’s friend group really did not sound like a group of people anyone should be hanging out with, at least the ones that were talked about the most.

There were also moments that just rubbed me the wrong way. Characters were described in such a fashion that let the reader know they were POC, but as mentioned earlier, those characters were never fleshed out or barely in the book. On top of that, there were some comments about non-binary, that I tuned out and refused to go back and look at because I am fragile and tired.

It also needs to be mentioned that this whole story really hinges on the beautifully frustrating trope of, miscommunication.

Even though I had way more problems with this story than I did likes, I do feel like for teens who are struggling with their sexuality, this could find a special place in their heart and help them come to terms with it.

This was a really fun story! I loved the bi representation and the high school setting. I also loved the alternating timelines between the summer story and the fall one. In the beginning it almost gave me Grease vibes as I thought they might burst out in Summer Lovin' in the beginning when she's thinking about her summer and Jasmine. Anyway, really cute story, would definitely recommend!

This is such a great book to pick up for a quick YA beach read! I am really happy this book exists for teens questioning their sexuality and I think the representation in this book is going to be so validating for many. I really enjoyed that the chapters switched between "then" in what happened over the summer and "now" which is during the school year. This is a must-read for those who love young adult books.

This book was probably one of the easiest reads I’ve picked up in a while. I felt submerged into the story right away. The contrast between the past and present helped me fully invest in both Larissa and Jasmine’s story. I felt the confusion and the angst but ultimately the love and friendship between the two of them. I understood Larissa’s anger and frustration at Jasmine but I could also see the underlying want for connection. I thought Chase would be a bigger point to the story strictly based on the book’s tag line but I was so happy to see Larissa’s change through him. Ultimately I loved this story because at its core it’s all about exploration and friendship and we all need a little bit of that.

Cool for the Summer turned out to be a cute book about a teenage girl coming into her identity.

Lara has loved Chase for what seems like forever -- he's cute, popular, and the school's star football player. Her dreams finally come true when he starts paying attention to her... that would be perfect if it weren't for Jasmine, the girl that Lara spent a romantic, yet confusing, summer with.

The book focuses on Lara figuring out her identity, and accepting what she learns about herself. I really enjoyed the LGBTQ+ representation in the book, and felt it was nicely done. Lara's journey of self discovery is what carries the book... but I will admit that there is a LOT of teen drama in the book.

This was a really fun YA read! The beginning of the story absolutely hooked me and I couldn't put it down. The middle of the story was a bit slower for me, but I still really enjoyed it.

I love to read YA stories that highlight young individuals figuring out themselves, their friends, their sexuality, etc. These are the types of books I wish I had when I was in high school!