Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This book is the perfect YA romance summer read for me. It was a fast, fun read and I can see myself rereading it in future summers. Maybe it won't sweep the book awards, but it is exactly what I have been searching for. While there were some aspects I didn't love, overall I really, really enjoyed this book. Though I had a suspicion on who Lara would end up with both of the love interests got to be actual people which is such a rare thing in love triangle books?

The questioning aspect! As an adult I can look at Lara and be like "girl." but it was like reading old diaries from high school honestly.

The sex positivity (both with a partner and on your own) was an absolute delight as it always is when I find it in a book that isn't blatantly about sex positivity. Are all teenagers having sex? Of course not. But all teenagers who think maybe someday they want to have sex should know that that's totally fine and sex isn't evil.

I also loved that while it would have been very easy for me to hate some of (one of) Lara's friends, Dahlia made a point to stress the positive qualities of this person as well. Friendship is messy and no one is perfect, but if the good regularly outweighs the bad I think you're doing okay. Especially if you're only 17. In this house we absolutely stan Kiki though.

Also I had almost zero knowledge of Demi Lovato's music before reading the book as her Disney channel time was beginning right when mine was ending and I'm an audiobooks in the car no radio ever person, but I of course had to listen to Cool for the Summer. And then the entire album. And now she's all over my Spotify. You got me there Dahlia.

If this book demonstrates anything, it's that steamy bisexual summer is far more superior to hot girl summer. Cool for the Summer is a hot fever dream of spiralling teenage thoughts and intoxicating sexual awakenings at the hands of some truly suave love interests.

The romance and the alternating settings make you feel the heat of a bonfire party and that swoon-worthy first kiss. This book has a strong flow as it effortlessly juggles the breezy Outer Banks and brisk fall nights on the football field. There's a lot to love about this disarming and honest spin on Grease, with its dreamy high-school crushes and long summer nights spilling over with possibilities.

This book is a revolving door of good-looking, rich, popular teen girls. This often means their likeability is non-existent, with Lara’s triumphs coming rather effortlessly at every turn. The lack of conflict doesn't help the fact that race and character quirks are thrown in as box-checking afterthoughts for the reader. Thankfully, Lara’s repetitive thought process and her friend group's superficial behaviour are elevated by the sophisticated tone of Natalie Naudus’ narrating and Dahlia Adler’s dreamy way of depicting the messiness of teenage love.

And sure, the love triangle is no more present in this story than Chase is as a character, but Lara and Jasmine are a powerful match, and their endgame is the main driving force behind this story’s success. The way this book so casually and harmlessly explores bisexuality is commendable, not to mention comforting. I only hope I can one day come across another power couple and steamy summer read as cool as this one.

Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler
Narrated by: Natalie Naudus
Publication Date: May 11, 2021
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Description
“Lara's had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He's tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he's talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe...flirting, even? No, wait, he's definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara's wanted out of life.

Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers.

Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she's finally got the guy, why can't she stop thinking about the girl?
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Thank you to @netgalley @macmillan.audio @wednesdaybooks for the ALC in return for my honest review.
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My thoughts...
Better than expected. If you, for some reason, do not like YA/NA romcoms, or you think it’s just a bunch of whiny, corny teenagers, then let this book change your mind. I listened to this, and really liked the narrator. Yes, it still had the teenage angst, and whiny musings, but it made sense with the plot. This book actually has a lot to offer in terms of self-discovery, sexuality, first loves and friends who accept us for who we are. It surprised me how Adler made the characters so witty, smart, tender, affectionate and understanding, especially Chase Harding.

Cool For The Summer was such an easy read. A beautiful easy flow. The characters are so realistic, such real teenagers. Usually, teenagers written by adults don’t sound normal and feel too ‘’adult’’, but not in this novel.
Although, you could say the love triangle trope is cliché and overdone, all three characters in this triangle are so likable. It was so hard for me to choose! I usually always know who I’m siding with from the beginning, but not in this book. Between every chapter my opinion changed, which kept me on my toes.
I read this in the audiobook format, and I really enjoyed it. The voice actress was really good at differentiating the voices without it sounding ridiculous and had the perfect exclamations. It really felt like Lara was telling me this story.
All-in-all it was a great read that I recommend to all for a nice and easy summer read.

This book was a lot of fun. I honestly would have called it "new adult" and not "young adult" due to the content. The writing seemed geared more towards an older audience. There are some descriptive romantic scenes that wouldn't be appropriate for younger teens, in my opinion.
When it comes to the story itself it was really good. Lara's inner monologue was easy to follow with the audiobook narrator and I really loved the way she narrated as well. Lara had a great coming of age story that involved a unique encounter over the summer away from everyone she knew. It was very Grease but Lara was obviously inspired by Demi Lovato as well which is a great way to make the story relevant to today's youth, or even me honestly.
I appreciated how in the end Lara didn't want a label but knew who she loved and wanted to be with and was fair to everyone involved.

I really liked this book, even though it was a bit cheesy and predictable at times. I love the idea of a LGBTQ romance for YA readers. Even though LGBTQ relationships are becoming more normalized in media, this kind of representation is still so important. I didn't love the narrator of this audiobook, however. She was great at changing to different voices for each character but the voices were unrealistic at best and annoying at worst, and they took me out of the story sometimes. At time, the plot was also a bit cliche or easy to predict, however this did not diminish from my enjoyment of the book. Overall, I think this book is great and I would recommend it to students who want to read a YA romance and especially to students who might be questioning their sexuality.

Sweet, fun and heartwarming!
Cool for the Summer is a beautiful and lighthearted romantic comedy about self-discovery that explores, identity, friendship and love.
I’m not a big fan of love triangles but it worked perfect in this story.

Cool For The Summer by Dahlia Adler releases tomorrow May 11, 2021.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ALC.

http://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeepleasemx

COOL FOR THE SUMMER is a breath of fresh air that will leave you smiling and hopeful and ready for a sun-kissed adventure.

Lara's journey navigating her feelings between Chase and Jasmine, and how each path holds a different impact on her future, was so real and wrought with emotion, vulnerability, and care that only Dahlia Adler can write so well.

This is the ultimate coming-of-age novel that centers a main character who knows her value. The supportive family and friends served as a refreshing framework as Lara deep dives into the desires of her heart and dreams for her future.

A joy of a novel you're sure to devour and return to whenever that summer breeze blows in.

Cool for the Summer is a lovely coming of age story about miscommunication and finding out who you truly are. I loved the relationships between Lara, Chase, and Jasmine, and the struggle for both Lara and Jasmine was definitely relatable. This is a wonderful story for any teen girl who is trying to figure out who she is and who she wants to love. Some things were wrapped up too nicely for me near the end, but I appreciate the mild drama surrounding Lara's revelation.

Plot (which I'll keep short)
After coming back from Summer Lara has eyes for only one person. Even though the guy of her dreams that she has spent all her life crushing on is finally into her. She can't stop thinking about that one girl. Lara finally gets everything she's ever wanted - the guy of her dreams, an amazing job, and perfect friends but she feels as though there is something missing. She can't stop dreaming about the girl she's spent the summer with. Yes, it wasn't anything serious but she misses her more than she thought she would. And when the girl (Jasmine) moves to her town and school things take a turn. Lara finds herself obsessed with everything Jasmine does, in this case - Ignoring Lara, and acting as nothing happened.


I really enjoyed the love triangle and the confusing relationship between Jasmine and Lara. I felt so bad for Chase cause he has no idea what's going on and is helplessly in love with Lara. Chase is a jock but unlike other Jocks, he is sweet AND charming + he respects boundaries. Cool for the summer was easy and light although at some points of the book, I found myself not really caring about the characters. Which left the plot which was not really amazing. I didn't grab my attention the way the premise did. So that left me not caring about everything. Except at the end when I did! I was finally relieved at what happened at the end because I was just so angry at Lara for not doing the right thing but I did get where she came from. The romance was sweet, that's one of the things that stood out because I really wanted to know who Lara would end up with (although I was screaming for her to end up with Jasmine the whole time) AND how she'd do it because she was in a real mess.
The ending was satisfying and I'm happy with what happened though I wish the ending was a bit longer because I grew quite attached to the characters!


Overall
I really appreciate this book and its diversity. I also really love how this book is connected to Demi's song! It's even mentioned in the book!! (I LOVE DEMI) Also, I would like to thank the author for not dragging anything out, a lot of authors drag out books that should honestly not be that long. (IDK why they do so) This book was short, easy, light, and yet I actually learned something from it:
Follow your heart- yes, I know cheesy...but it's really true. Most books have this as their message but I loved actually SEEING it play out.

⚠️Spoilers ⚠️
I was screaming at Lara the whole book to tell Jasmine that she likes her!!! And oh, the relief when she finally did! Thank you for that relief! It was like cutting an invisible string that was getting tighter around my neck...I know, dramatic but honestly it was!!
⚠️Spoilers ended⚠️



A special thanks to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for sending me an arc for an honest review!!

~Till Next Time!
📚 Ꮢҽαԃ σ⨍⨍ ɾҽαԃҽɾട! 📚

This book was steamy and good! I know the title is based off of Demi Lovato's Cool for the Summer, but this book is burning up! I love the Then and Now chapters all through the book because there's such a contrast in the relationships in the two timelines. I also love that this book is filled with LGBTQIA characters, and they're the most popular high schoolers in the book. Finally, I love Lara's mom! Not going to spoil the ending, but there are reasons to love her.

Lara has finally gotten the guy she has had a crush on for the last three years. Her life is perfect. But for some reason she can’t stop thinking about the confusing and romantic summer fling she had with a girl named Jasmine.

Before I even get to the book, can we just talk about how gorgeous this cover is? I love it! I thought this book was incredible. Lara’s journey of self-discovery and understanding of her sexuality was messy and felt so raw and real. I loved the alternating timelines as we uncovered Lara and Jasmine’s summer and what it meant to them. This book also has great representation, not just of LBGTQ+ characters, but both Lara and Jasmine are Jewish and you get glimpses into their Jewish culture as well.

Audio: The narrator did a great job and I was able to listen and follow clearly at various speeds (I go between 1.5 -2.5 x depending on what I'm doing while listening).

This is a must-read for fans of YA.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Wednesday books for the audio book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a fun, messy, love triangle romance, something I wish I’d read as a teenager, but here it is now. It wasn’t perfect - the diversity as quite a few reviewers mentioned was not perfectly executed, but the author was obviously trying to hit that criteria. I loved Lara’s mom, hearing about Kiki’s podcast, and the portrayal of bisexual awakening being complex if you’ve already liked the opposite gender and then you meet that one girl/guy who suddenly you have feelings for. I enjoyed the audio, and kept wanting to pick it back up.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced audiobook of ‘Cool for the Summer’ by Dahlia Adler. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

I wish I had a book like to read when I was younger. I think it will help a lot of the lucky people who do get to read it. It was a fast read but I enjoyed it.

The only thing that didn’t quite work for me was that I wasn’t the biggest fan of the love triangle element and I really didn’t like when one character had an incredibly anti-bi moment which seemed really out of character for him. While I didn’t really like the love triangle element, it did make sense and I could see it as something that would happen to someone in real life. So I can’t fault the book for it too much. I also felt like the end game was pretty obvious but not in a bad way.

There was a great conversation about Lara not knowing it was an option for her to feel her own emotions towards Jasmine and wow did that hit me hard. Both Lara and Jasmine have to figure out their own feelings as well as how they feel about one another and I just enjoyed their journey. I wish I could have read this book as a teen.

4/5 stars

A fun YA coming of age story featuring a young bisexual girl trying to figure out her feelings. The boy she’s had a crush on for years is finally interested in her but the girl she fell in love with over the summer is back in her life now too. What’s a girl to do? Told in both the present and flashbacks to the summer this is an entertaining summer read. Plus the cover is da bomb 👌🏻💜🕶💜

Audio only notes: Loved the narration on this one immensely. It was so well narrated that it really added to my overall enjoyment of the story.

This is a go to summer recommendation. It was so delightful. I loved the bi representation in the story. I loved the self discovery story and finding your identity elements. Seriously delightful

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Rating: 6/10
Steam: 🔥🔥/4
Narrator: 🎧🎧🎧🎧/5
Publisher: Macmillan Audio / Wednesday Books

Cool for the Summer follows Lara, a high school senior, who discovers herself and her romantic preferences. This book switches from the past summer before and currently during her senior year. During the summer, Lara and Jasmine have a memorable time together that changes both of them. Then Lara catches the eye of her long-time crush Chase. Her dreams are coming true because one of the most popular boys in school wants to date her. She should be happy, right? Why can she not get Jasmine out of her head? Everything becomes even more complicated when Jasmine transfers to her high school. Lara needs to listen to what her heart is telling her about herself and who she wants to love. This is a cute YA triangle queer love story.

Thank you, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley, for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was the cutest story. I loved it! This is a sweet rom-com with a queer love triangle. I enjoyed the ride along with Lara on her journey to self discovery and acceptance. The narration for the audiobook was fantastic. I highly recommend putting this on your summer reading list!

Thank you to Netgalley St. Martin’s / Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy

2.5. Rounded up for truly exquisite narration.

I thought that this book was...fine. There were some things that I thought were really important about it, there were some things that I found really frustrating, and there were some things that just didn't work for me. I'm feeling really mixed about it.

The book tells the story of Lara, a high school girl who has just come back from summer vacation in the Outer Banks, and the boy that she has had a massive crush on for as long as she can remember is suddenly into her. The only problem is that the girl she had a confusing, definitely-more-than-friends fling with shows up out of the blue on the first day of school and Lara has to reconcile what she wants now with what she has always thought she's wanted.

The story is told in an intriguing time slip structure, which is actually really compelling. However, the way that Lara acts towards pretty much everyone throughout the book is pretty mean, and it's hard to get on her side without understanding what actually happened last summer (i.e. "the big reveal"). Even after all is revealed, it was still really hard for me to root for her after watching her make really mean choices that didn't seem like they had a good reason. I am all for young women, especially young queer women, being allowed to be selfish when it comes to their emotional and mental health. However, Lara hurts a lot of people, including everyone she's supposed to love (and most especially her love interest), and it's really hard to root for her without understanding why or even if there is a good reason. And I don't think there actually ends up being one.

On the whole, the depiction of teenagers in the story felt a little off to me. It seemed like these teenagers were having way more sex than modern American teenagers have in real life, and I wish that the female friendships had been stronger and more dynamic. Teenage girls deserve representations of teenage female friendships that are complex and challenging while still being loving, and the ones in this book just fell short for me.

The story explores class difference in a way that I have rarely seen in YA romance before, and I think is incredibly important. Both the heroine and the female love interest of this novel are also Jewish, and they experience that in different ways, which I found to be really wonderful and essential representation. I am also so excited by the influx of bisexual stories being told right now, so that is always a plus.

Natalie Naudus's narration is, as ever, precise, fluid, and so beautifully timed,

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

It's no secret that Lara Bogdan has had a crush on the hot football star of her high school. When Chase Harding finally takes an interest in her, Lara is pretty sure her dreams have come true - that is, until Jasmine Killary, Lara's summer fling, comes unexpectedly strolling back into her life on the first day of school and disrupting just about everything in Lara's life. In Cool for the Summer, Dahlia Adler has written a charming book that still manages to challenge some very real issues in the LGBTQ+ community, such as biphobia and coming to terms with one's sexuality. Cool for the Summer is absolutely not to miss!