When I saw Tessa Bailey’s latest novel, It Happened One Summer, described as a Schitt’s Creek-inspired rom-com, it immediately landed on my must-read list. Schitt’s Creek is one of my favorite television series so I’ll admit that I was a little nervous about the comparison since it creates high expectations in the humor department for me, but I’m thrilled to report that It Happened One Summer really delivers. The Schitt’s Creek-inspired part of the story involves Piper Bellinger, a Hollywood party girl and influencer, who takes her partying one step too far and lands herself in jail. Piper’s mother and stepfather are beyond furious at her behavior and decide to cut her off from their money and send her to live in a fishing town in the Pacific Northwest. She’ll be living in an apartment above a bar that her father used to own and will have to fend for herself for three months. The hope is that Piper will learn there’s more to life than parties, fashion, money, and getting likes on Instagram.

The characters in It Happened One Summer are what really made me fall in love with this story. I honestly really wanted to dislike Piper when we first meet her, just because she comes off as such a flake, but she wormed her way into my heart almost immediately. There’s so much more to her than first meets the eye. She’s got a huge heart, she’s a lot stronger than she thinks she is but at the same time, she has a vulnerable side as well, particularly when it comes to her own sense of self worth. I felt so much sympathy for her when she talked about how alone she feels in Hollywood, even when she’s in the middle of a crowd. The more I got to know Piper, the more I wanted her to find happiness in this little fishing town so that she wouldn’t return to the toxic Hollywood environment.

As much as I adored Piper’s character, I loved Brendan, the sea captain, even more. He’s big, burly, and gruff, but like with Piper, there’s so much more to him than first meets the eye. He might be a grizzly bear on the outside, but he’s soft like a teddy bear on the inside. Brendan’s wife Desiree died seven years ago and he now devotes most of his time to helping his father-in-law keeping Desiree’s memory alive. In essence, Brendan himself has stopped living. That is, until he meets Piper and the sparks fly. From the moment the two of them meet, it’s clear they are each exactly what the other needs and I was hardcore rooting for them to get together. I don’t want to give anything away about how their relationship progresses, but I was fully invested in every page, every scene of it, even the inevitable angsty, dramatic moments of their journey.

It Happened One Summer is a sexy, flirty, romance that will leave you feeling swoony, but at the same time, it’s a hilarious read that will have you laughing out loud page after page. It’s truly just a delightful read!

Piper is an inconsequential socialite who lives by her image on social media after getting dumped by her boyfriend, she decides to live the night of her life and show him that she moved on. It turns out that this night resulted in a lot of damage to his stepfather and he decides to give this spoiled girl a little reality check and sends her with little money to her father's hometown to try to have new perspectives on life. Quiet Hannah offers to go with her as she doesn't want to let her sister go alone,

Upon arriving in the small coastal town of Westport, Piper and her sister will connect with her late father and friends, as well as meet people who will show her that she is more than picture perfect on the internet. Of course, none of this will be too easy as none of the girls are used to a regulated life and they will face many challenges, among them one in the form of a rough, beautiful and gentle fisherman who teases Piper instantly.

What Piper and Brendan don't even picture is that this meeting and the memories of the girls' late father will definitely transform everyone's lives. As she and he begin to let their guard down and get caught up in their unexpected feelings for each other, the story takes on a new sensual and romantic rhythm.

First book I read by this writer and I fell in love with her writing, although I don't really like books involving mega-rich characters I had a lot of fun with Piper's mess in her struggle to adjust to the new reality.

I really love Tessa's writing, but I think this just wasn't the book for me. After hearing so much about how Piper was inspired by Alexis Rose (both from the book promo and from Tessa herself) I found Piper kind of like a uncanny valley version of the TV character, and struggled to connect with her as I found her characterization confusing. She was somehow this vapid, stupid socialite who couldn't think beyond herself, yet at the same time was self-actualized enough to discuss her lack of genuine connections & inability to think beyond herself? It just felt jarring to me.

Beyond the character of Piper, there was a lot I enjoyed about this book. I loved Piper & Hannah's relationship, I was immediately won over by the town & the people of Wesport, and Brendan is a ridiculously charming hero! I really liked watching Piper and Brendan fall in love🥰 and as always, Tessa writes a DAMN sexy book!! If I do en up rereading this one, it will be for those steamy scenes— she is just unparalleled!! But I just never clicked with Piper as a heroine

OBSESSED! This book was perfection. The humor, banter and the steam. I loved the grumpy captain and the high maintenance rich girl…. Match made in romance book heaven. I could not put this book down. This book was pure contemporary romance gold.

#HotDamn

That’s the best way to describe Tessa Bailey’s new release, It Happened One Summer. She’s truly outdone herself on this hilarious romcom. This steamy, hilarious start to series has me so excited for what’s in store!

I will admit, I’m never a grumpy/sunshine trope kind of person. But, if they were all written like this, then yeah, I’m down for the rest. Brendan and Piper were amazing. I loved their chemistry, and we are adding Brendan to our top 10 book boyfriends of all time. He’s top notch.

Can we also appreciate the other aspects (besides love) that were dealt with? We have a loss of a spouse, loss of a father, grieving while still moving on, instant validation, the dangers at sea, etc. I honestly adored all of it.

But back to the love, this was umm.. steamy. Make you blush and laugh out loud because it’s so steamy you feel awkward that you just walked in on a couple, steamy. 😂 Charlotte North was the reader for this, and she definitely brought the heat! There were a few times I had to triple check my Bluetooth to make sure it wouldn’t accidentally pick up somewhere else and everyone could hear it. I also had to turn it off while waiting for the car wash because whew, my car needed a cold cold shower after sending the story through my speakers. Charlotte was so good on audio! I haven’t blushed on audio since The Kiss Quotient.


Overall, I loved. I truly think this is by far my favorite Tessa Bailey book. The audio is phenomenal and.. the ending with the Fleetwood Mac 👀🥺. Ugh, I need all the Fox in my life and cannot wait to hear his story next in the series! Thank you so much HarperAudio for the gifted copy! It Happened One Summer is out now, and y’all need it to spice up your shelves!

I took a poll in my Instagram stories to see if the new Tessa Bailey book would be a good place to start since I haven’t read her before. A large majority said that I should. So I did, and I’m so happy about it.

Normally the rich/famous meets small-town/simple trope isn’t my jam and, at first, I was a little worried about not liking Piper. However, almost immediately I could see that there was so much more to her than the spoiled, rich girl that she had become known for. Thrown into the world of grumpy, hot fisherman Captain Brendan Taggart, she handled herself amazingly well. The chemistry between the two of them was so perfect and don’t even get me started about what happened behind closed doors. 🥵🥵

The book read like a small-town romance with fantastic secondary characters, who I can’t wait to read more about, but gave good steam!! I could see how some people might think the sex scenes and the story didn’t exactly match but that was one of my favorite things. Small-town folks can get down and dirty too!

Needless to say, I will be picking up the next book in this series when it releases and I’ll for sure be checking out some more books from Tessa Bailey’s backlist!!

* I received an early copy from NetGalley for voluntary review

This has to be my favorite summer romance so far! This is classic Tessa Bailey and I am here for it!

Beyond the Schitt's Creek references ( a show I really haven't been able to get into to, as much as I adore David's character), this a fish-out-of-water (pun 100% intended) internet famous heroine sent to a tiny PNW so she can get her shit together after one too many stupid stunts.

Enter a salt of the earth boat captain and we have the making for one of the swoonest, yet scorching books I've read in a while. The character development is on point and the descriptive scenes are an absolute dream.

As a romance reader of many, many years it takes a lot for me to rave about a book, but I am here to tell you, this is the most perfect summer romance I have read in years. This is the one summer romance you don't want to miss!

THIS BOOK. (HEART EYES)

Piper is an instagram famous step daughter of a movie producer, living loud and fast in LA. When her most recent break up leads to a wild party with bigger consequences than she expected, her step-dad ships her off to Westport. A small fishing town with the command her for to fix her mistakes and learn something. So Piper and her sister Hannah arrive and shake the foundation of Westport. From big burly fisherman to a No Name bar to love, the sisters are in for it, but so it Westport.

I DEVOURED THIS BOOK. It is fast, funny, and FULL OF LIFE. Piper learns a lot about who she is and whose wants to be. But most of all she learns who she wants to spend her life with. Brendan is HOLY MOLY. I’m just going to dress Mr. Reading up at a burly “deadliest catch fisherman” and collapse. >< *INSERT SWOON*

You’ll laugh, cheer characters on , then want to smack the, then cheer some more! I highly recommend this!

When you check Goodreads and every single one of your friends gave the book five stars, you know it’s going to be a winner! This is easily my fave Tessa Bailey book that I’ve read so far! Because I had the ebook and the audiobook, I was able to finish in about 24 hours!

Inspired by Schitt’s Creek, you will be laughing out loud at the situations Piper gets into, but at the same time she really managed to pack in such real, sweet emotions. I’d call it a beach read, but it’s so steamy that you might spontaneously combust on a hot day - so fair warning!!

What I loved:
•The sweet PNW small town setting.
•The crab fishing topic (I used to love the show, The Deadliest Catch!)
•Brendan. Oh this guy and his “recharging station” had me swooning.
•Piper’s growth. I loved the way Bailey handled her becoming more confident and finding her true self without changing.

This is probably my favorite Tessa Bailey book that I have read. Brendan is book boyfriend goals. This was inspired by Alexis from Schitt's Creek. The author did a great job at making this unrelatable character likeable and someone you cheer for. The only thing I did not like was the steam/dirty talk. There wasn't much buildup and it just messed up the flow of the book and didn't really fit the characters. It is an easy thing to overlook and I enjoyed the rest of the story so much.

I am so sorry to say that I did not enjoy this one like I thought I would. Between that lovely cover, and the fact that it’s inspired my Alexis Rose I thought I would devour it. I felt this was a book that has been done hundreds of times before and there was just no originality to it. The characters were ok, but forgettable. Overall, this wasn't the book for me. Thank you for the review copy though.

It Happened One Summer was a fine read. It had good banter, good characters, and a nice romance. It is advertised as a Schitt's Creek type of book and as someone who has not seen the show (but know of it) I was interested to see how this would go. Piper and Brendan are as opposites as you can get. However the more time they spent together, the more they realized that they actually do like each other. I liked seeing how these two grow closer as the story progresses. They were spicy and sweet. I also liked how both Piper and Brendan grew individually as well. They were able to learn from each other and it was endearing in a way. I enjoyed the small town feel and the supporting characters were great. Overall, a nice summer read. I am intrigued with Hannah and Finn's story.

DNF @ 50%⁣
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One thing I cannot stand in contemporary romance novels is an overuse of terms of endearment. So the honey/baby that started at the halfway mark just got on my nerves too much to keep going. ⁣
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It started off well enough, reminding me a lot of Schitt's Creek but with its own spin. Unfortunately my own reading pet peeves got in the way of this one.

I have a confession to make…I’ve never seen Schitt’s Creek. Since it inspired this book, maybe I’ll give it a shot!
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I loved Piper and Brenden so much! Their enemies to friends to lovers progression was so much fun to read! Piper was a little lost at first but found a sense of family in Westport. Brenden was the best kind of grumpy in the beginning and eventually softened with Piper’s help. There’s nothing better than a gruff, grumpy hero with a soft spot for a woman. 😍⁣
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Set in a small town with so much heart, this book had awesome supporting side characters, electric chemistry, and steam for days! 🔥🔥 No one does a dirty-talking hero like Tessa Bailey! 🙌🏻⁣
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Get ready to laugh, cry, and swoon with this one! Piper’s walks to the museum and her “recharging station” got me every time. I didn’t realize I do the same thing with my husband and will now be calling it this moving forward! 😊⁣
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This one gets all the stars!! I’ll just be over here patiently waiting for Fox and Hannah’s story. Ok, maybe not so patiently. 😏⁣
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5⁣
🔥🔥🔥🔥/5⁣
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Thank you to @avonbooks and @netgalley for a #gifted arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Holy swoony, steamy, wonderfulness!

I don't care that I may have made up some words there, this book is so good! It gave me a little bit of Jonah and Calla from Simple Wild vibes!

I absolutely ADORED Piper and Brendan. Brendan is a grumpy mc without being TOO grumpy! I enjoyed Piper's transformation as the book goes on. I also really loved Piper's sister, Hannah, and I canNOT wait for her book to come out next!

This was my first book by Tessa Bailey and now I must run to read all of her backlist!

I blanked and thought this was releasing next week.. so sorry for the late post! I guess, that happens when you take a couple of weeks off. lol

This is my very first book by Tessa Bailey. I know that she’s got a huge following and I always see her books popping up. I’ve never grabbed one but when I saw this pop up on Netgalley, I wanted to give it a go.

Just a tidbit- the author said this book was based on the character Alexis from Schitt’s Creek. OMG. I was so in after that. I love that show and Alexis!

One of my favorite tropes is enemies-to-lovers. I was so excited to see that this was characterized as such. Well, my friends, I’m sad to say that it’s not really. The enemies-to-lovers starts but then fizzles out extremely fast. It was maybe a couple of chapters and we went from enemies to pretty much being in love. It’s not what I’m about.. I love that angsty banter that you get, ya know?! I didn’t get that here because we quickly jump to in love and it seemed unrealistic.

On the other hand, I did love the characters. Piper did have some Alexis vibes and it was so great to see what was under the exterior. She has heart, motivation and is much more than she appears. I loved seeing her character arc throughout the book. I was way more invested in her character than the actual romance.

Brendan’s character was sad to learn about. He’s got a bit of a tortured past and it’s hard for him to move on. I did think it was a little quick how he jumped to Piper and I do think he went about some things the wrong way. Regardless, he was one of your swoon-worthy romance interests.

Since this is my first Bailey book, I didn’t know what to expect in the love scene department. Holy cow. I was not expecting that. haha. It’s not bad but I did find some of it to be a bit too corny. All the “honey” and “baby” talk was a little much for me. Am I being nit-picky? Maybe so, but it felt out of place at times.

To be honest, in the third part of the book, I was way more interested in Hannah and Fox. This is a couple that I can’t wait to read about! I get a strong enemies-to-lovers vibe because Hannah is much more snarky than Piper. Regardless, I will be picking up that one!

Overall, this was a fast-paced romance. Even though I’m not a fan of insta-love and I didn’t get the trope that I was looking for, I had fun with it. I loved Piper’s character arc. I do look forward to reading the next one!

Thank you to the publisher, Avon/HarperVoyagerUS(& Netgalley), for providing me with an e-ARC!

As soon as I read that this one is recommended for Schitt’s Creek fans, I was IN.
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I am huge fan of rom-com’s and I was pretty giddy reading this one the entire time. I loved reading about Piper all glitzed and glammed coming into this small fishing town and making waves. She was such a party girl, but learned quickly how to make a name for herself in a small town too. I loved her heart and how much she wanted the townspeople to love and accept her.
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Then, insert manly man Brendan. Wow. New book boyfriend? I think so. I really love an opposites attract story. He’s this big, burly, crab boat captain, and Piper is this spoiled rich socialite who was sent to this town by her step father to learn some responsibility.
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I loved the connection that started to form between them. Brendan fell hard and it was totally adorable. Piper was instantly attracted to him but struggled with accepting if this small town life was for her or not. It was so fun to read it all unfold.
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This one was STEAMY! Probably the most steamy book I’ve ever read, now I’m not a prude whatsoever, but some of these steam scenes were a little much. The finger scene? Like why? IYKYK, I love a good steamy read, but let’s not make it weird.
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I still highly recommend you add this to your summer list. It was fun, cute, and definitely for fans of shows like Schitt’s Creek and Hart of Dixie.

Wow! I knew I was really excited for this Schitt's Creek inspired rom-com, but I was not expecting to find my new favorite Tessa Bailey book. This just had everything I look for in a rom-com - a swoony romance, well rounded characters, opposites attract, worshipping hero, all the steam you could want, and plenty of laugh out loud moments.

Piper was such a fun, unique main character. She's not necessarily likable (especially at first) but she's somehow charming and quickly grows on you. If you love Schitt's Creek, reality TV, or just general "rich people drama" she's definitely a character you will enjoy! But I also liked watching her grow throughout the book. Piper goes on a pretty substantial journey discovering who she is and what she wants out of life. And while most of us may not have a billionaire step-father to fall back on, it's a journey I think a lot of people will relate to.

I adored this costal town. There's something about a small town romance that just captures me every single time. And Tessa Bailey knocked it out of the park with this one. The residents are sweet and heartwarming and quirky in the best way. I would 100% move to Westport.

Brenden was literally everything I love in a male love interest. He starts off cold but he's not really a grumpy hero. Just hesitant. And I couldn't help but swoon over him warming up to Piper. He absolutely worships the ground she walks on and I love that in romance!!

The chemistry was out of this world and wow did Tessa Bailey go there with the steamy scenes. I honestly just adored everything about this and love how some hints/glimpses at the next romance were sprinkled toward the end. I need Hannah's book yesterday!

Heat Factor: It’s a slow-but-steady scorcher.
Character Chemistry: Folks...we have a classic Grumpy/Sunshine on our hands!!!
Plot: Piper tries to wrest control of her breakup narrative in a way that lands her in jail...so her wealthy stepfather sends her and her sister to the town they were born in, where they are meant to live in the bar apartment they inherited from their father for three months to SHAPE UP, and there she meets Brendan, the cranky sea captain who stole my heart. I mean, her heart.
Overall: Obsessed. This book was such a solid read, and so enjoyable...

I’m telling you, this book just starts out fresh from the jump. It opens with Piper’s breakup—which, let’s be honest, introduces us to our heroine at a real low point and it does NOT represent her in the best light...and I loved it. She comes across as shallow but beneath it is some real pain and insecurity—she’s almost brittle as she’s being publicly dumped by a self-absorbed two-dimensional man. It’s a real mess. So she convinces 200 people to break into a hotel pool and gets herself arrested in a ball gown, as one does. Naturally.

So Piper and her sister Hannah get shipped off to their almost-forgotten hometown. Their father was a fisherman who was lost at sea, and their mother was so heartbroken she ran off to LA with her two daughters and ended up falling in love with a super successful movie man.

It’s in their father’s bar/apartment the girls meet Brendan Taggart, who is, just...one of the juiciest, foxiest, grumpiest heroes I’ve read in a long time. This guy is CRANKY. He only ever orders the same thing at restaurants. He handles issues immediately and does not understand why you wouldn’t, too. The man takes inventory of everything. I tell you, when he threatened to fire his crew for suggesting sassy instagram usernames, I nearly swooned.

As one might expect, Piper very quickly discovers that she’s been ignoring really huge holes in her life that are threatening to swallow her up. She dates men that make her feel bad about herself, and she prioritizes choices that manipulate how she appears to other people over those that are actually fulfilling. And ultimately, it becomes clear that she really doesn’t know WHAT is fulfilling to her.

And of course, Brendan is stuck in a pretty deep rut. He’s still grieving the loss of his wife, living the same days over and over again and staying ultimately focused on what has to be done instead of considering what could happen if he stepped out of his usual routine.

Part of the allure here is that Brendan woos Piper by just getting. things. done. She keeps banging her head on the bunk bed? He sends over a handyman to fix it. She needs a tree torn down? Brendan quietly shows up with a few guys and tears it out. Piper is horribly embarrassed by crashing a memorial service? Brendan quietly helps her find her humor again. It’s just dreamy. Swoon. The guy knows what he wants, and he wants Piper. It’s really that simple.

Ultimately this is a surprisingly sensitive read, with depth of character and a deeply satisfying plot. If you need a palate cleanser, this is the one—it’s wholesome, funny, and it just plain feels good.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report.

Tessa Bailey is a genius. Beginning the book with a heroine who is supposedly an airhead lowers your expectations drastically. So when the airhead turns out to be a smart, sweet young woman who never lived up to her potential because everything was handed to her on a silver plate and all she had to do was look pretty, you can't help but fall head over heels for this heroine. This girl was such a revelation. Sure, Piper had to work through her fears but she was quick to admit when Brendan called her out on her BS. I adored her, she was so quirky, cute and sometimes she put her foot in her mouth which made me laugh so hard. She grew so much into her own over the course of the story, Piper found her purpose, herself. For as much as she didn't want to be in a small town, away from the glitz and glitter of LA, she was the girl people gravitated too. Except Brendan.

Brendan was the perfect grump. He's not warm and welcoming when Piper and Hannah first arrive in the PNW and sometimes even hostile but when he realizes that Piper sees herself as insignificant and that she has depth and a good heart you can literally see him melting. He knows what he wants and he goes after it with gusto.
“You can wrap me as tight as you want around that little finger, but I won’t play games about what this is.”

No matter how often Piper pushes him away or tries to make it casual he follows his gut feeling - he knows Piper feels the same things he does. I loved this so much about him because, even though their feelings grew fast, he knew very soon that Piper and Brendan were supposed to be.
This girl. He'd be keeping her. There was no way around it.

The whole town was awesome and there is a wonderful supporting cast, spearheaded by Piper's sister Hannah, who is the best sidekick ever and Fox, Brendan's friend. And I'm pretty sure this is also a match in the making and I can't wait!

When I saw that this was set in my beloved Pacific Northwest I had to have this book. And I regret nothing. If you're looking for a hilarious, swoony, ovaries-set-on-fire, small-town, opposites-attract/enemies-to-lovers story, look no further. Tessa Bailey has you covered and is giving us a dreamy hero and an adorable heroine. Despite the occasional cheesiness and a little OTT drama I loved IT HAPPENED ONE SUMMER so much. I'll end this with a quote from a scene in which sea bear Brendan signs up for Instagram and his crew ribs him about it.

"It won’t let me just use my own name as my username.”
“Yeah, probably because about nine hundred Brendan Taggarts joined before you.”
“So what should I use?”
“CaptainCutie69,” Fox spat out.
“IGotCrabs4U,” Deke supplied.
“SlipperyWhenWet.”
“You’re all fired. Go home.”