If you're like me, you sometimes get. turned off by books you frequently see popup on your feed as five star ratings, but let me tell you, this book is worth every single star! Carley Fortune hats off to you! Every Summer After lives up to the hype. I started and just couldn't bring myself to put it down. I instantly fell in love with these complicated characters. Time heals, right? Perhaps that's what we like to tell ourselves. Some scars remains and some wounds don't heal. They fester and over time they grow bigger and bigger as we have time to think about them.

Persephone may be living what looks like the glam life in a trendy apartment, walking to work (and everywhere she goes), and going out, but under the surface she's still carrying burdens from her youth. Primarily, she can't get over Sam Florek, the boy she fell in love with and hasn't managed to get over. When she receives an unexpected phone call notifying her of the passing of Sam's mom, Percy knows she has to go back. It's only right.

The sparks fly between Percy and Sam even years later. Older, but perhaps not wiser. These two are forced to confront what happened all those summers ago that led to their estrangement. My one frustration with this book is just how much both of them beat themselves up. They were teenagers and while I recognize actions have consequences, some of the things they harp on about themselves annoy me. I found myself wanting to shake them both over and over, but I'm willing to say it's because I was that invested in these two finding their way back to one another.

Pick this book up. Find friendship. Fall in love. Tumble painfully through the woes of loving so hard it hurts. Forgive. Grow and most importantly, reminisce on your own experiences and the relatability of these two. It's worth every single moment of the rollercoaster ride.

This will probably be one of my best books of the year. Definitely in my top ten that is for sure. I wasn't a big fan of Charlie that's for sure and the ending made me crazy with everyone just being best friends, but, man this was a great book!

Every Summer After is a contemporary romance explores friendship, betrayal, secrets, and grief. The author addresses several subjects: death of a parent, cancer, infidelity. I initially heard of this book during the @berkleyromance influence event back in April. I was hesitant to pick it up because of all the hype I saw on bookstagram, but once I saw Colleen Hoover rave about Every Summer After, I knew I had to pick it up. Going in, I heard that this contemporary romance is great for romance readers who love Emily Henry and CLo’s Love and Other Words. As I was reading Every Summer After, I realized that I kept comparing the storyline to Love and Other Words as it seemed way to similar. I enjoyed more of the flashbacks than the present day. I felt that the present day barely moved since it was only the span of five days or so. I really liked that book was solely told Percy’s perspective and loved her character in the flashbacks. The writing style captivated me since the beginning. The part that really irritated me was the way the big twist was handled and that the ending was so rushed which knocked it from a 5 to 3.5 star read for me (rounded to 4 stars on GoodReads).

I have mixed feelings about this book, Did I enjoy it as I read it? Yes (until the end, which was super rushed and featured a reveal I was not a fan of.) At the same time, the uncanny similarities to Love and Other Words were very distracting during the reading experience.

Every Summer After is the perfect, high quality beach read. From the lake front setting, to the beautiful writing, to the flawed but lovable characters, this book satisfies every summer reading desire.

This is the adult answer to The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han. Percy (short for Persephone) heads to her family’s new cabin for the summer when she is thirteen years old. There, she becomes fast friends with Sam and Charlie, the two handsome boys next door. Told in alternating timelines over the next two decades, the story of how Sam and Percy fall in love and then don’t speak for 12 years is a slow unfolding.

A summer romance perfect for fans of Jennifer Weiner, Josie Silver, or Kristan Higgins. I can’t wait to see what Fortune puts out next!

If this is not the perfect summer read, then I don’t know what is. First of all, the cover gave me all the summer vibes that come with spending your days at the lake. I really enjoyed how the story began as kids through teenagers and finding their way in life.

Percy and Sam meet as kids and for 6 summers they are inseparable going from best friends to falling in love. I truly saw the authenticity in the blossoming of this friends to lovers story since I have a little sister that coincidently went through this. The story also follows them to adulthood and the different paths life takes them on. This is a complete binge-worthy story for the summer. ☀️

Every Summer After is the book of the summer ☀️⁣
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Childhood friends to lovers is a supreme trope! I loved the summer lake house aspect and how things changed over the years!⁣
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This one was a little heartbreaking at times but totally worth it in the end.
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It’s been compared to Love and Other Words and I totally agree!⁣
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Don’t miss out and read this before summer ends.

Omg??????

Believe the hype with this one. I can't even count the times that I screamed out loud while reading this book simply because I loved Percy and Sam and Charlie and all the characters in this novel so much. This debut novel has already cemented Carley Fortune as an author who I know I'll be reading for as long as she's writing.

Persephone gets an unexpected call from Charlie, her childhood friend after a decade asking to go to his mother's funeral. Percy agrees to go but has to face the ghosts from her past. Percy hasn't seen the love of her life, Charlie's brother Sam for over twelve years. Percy and Sam were best of friends but one summer's events broke them apart. Will going back for Sue's funeral help Percy and Sam resolve their differences and past trauma? 
Every Summer After is a deep and very heart breaking emotional read. If I don't judge the choices Sam and Percy make in their teens this is an amazing read. Adults make poor choices so it's hard to blame Sam and Percy for taking each other for granted or making dumb mistakes. But their choices also make them who they are, so I'm not sure I really like the way they handled themselves. I really liked Charlie but for this one moment which made me change my opinion of him. Coming to Delilah, I loved the fact that she wasn't typecast and the author addressed an important aspect of judging someone. The nostalgia this book brings is amazing and a perfect summer read.
Please check trigger warnings before you read the book. Thank you @berkleyromance for sharing the eARC.

While as a rule I generally don’t love second chance romances, the way this one was written drew me into the story and made me believe in and love the characters. As kids, Percy and Sam were best friends. They grew into more as they got older, but now haven’t seen each other in many years. When Sam’s mother dies, Percy returns to the lakeside town where they spent their summers and reunites with both Sam and his older brother Charlie. Many people mention that this book is similar to Christina Lauren’s Love and Other Words, which happens to be a favorite of mine as well. This book also flashes back to the past and lets us get to know the characters as they get to know each other. I predicted why Percy and Sam broke up and I was able to believe in their reunion in the present. This book takes place in Canada, which was fun, having just visited there myself!

It's a summer read with dual timelines. For fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty and Love and Other Words because it's a messy amalgamation of both and not really in a good way, in my opinion. I can see how popular it'll be already but the "twist" at the end was a no go for me. I could barely stand Percy as a character before and that just about did it for me. But in reality, I couldn't stand Sam either. He was okay at best. It'll be popular because it'll check all the right boxes but it's a no from me.

I just finished EVERY SUMMER AFTER, and I absolutely loved it. I wanted to scream at Pers, and Sam, and I freaking loved Charlie. I could. It put thus book down. I snuck in pages every chance I could get. Thank you @berkleypub for my E-GALLEY! @carleyfortune I am your newest forever fan. Thank you for writing a book that will be a forever favorite.

There were a lot of things I loved about Every Summer After, but there were also a few things that really bothered me.

Things that worked:
- Carley Fortune nailed the confusion and magic of first love. The past chapters built such a beautiful story of friendship and then more. I loved how things developed between Sam and Percy and that uncertainty and vulnerability was so relatable. Yes, they made mistakes and didn't have the best communication, but what teenagers do?
- Revealing the story through past and present chapters. This really worked to build up the story, but I do wish there had been more present day chapters (see below).
-The grief. Percy returns to Barry's Bay after more than a decade away because of the death of Sam and Charlie's mother. I thought the depiction of how the different characters processed grief and the funeral/celebration of life were beautifully done. I also loved that Sue made pierogis ahead of time for guests to enjoy.
- The setting. I have never been to Canada, but I'm ready to pack my bags and get my own cabin.
- The audiobook narration. I both read the ebook and listened to the audiobook and AJ Bridel was amazing! Her performance was heartfelt and captivating. She voiced all the different characters regardless of age so well and I had no problem figuring out who was speaking. I look forward to listening to more of her work.

Things that didn't quite work:
- Sam and Percy's actions once Sam left for college seemed very out of character. Sam came across as callous and Percy as needy and very immature.


SPOILERS


I understand that Percy felt unwanted and had grown closer to Charlie that summer, but it still didn't add up for them to sleep together. And then after pushing Percy away repeatedly, Sam returning and asking her to (eventually) marry him? It was all too much. Also, Charlie's feelings were never discussed (did he actually have romantic feelings towards Percy??) and so readers are left to assume he did it without any consideration to Sam, which doesn't ring true to me. He teased and annoyed his brother, but he loved him and knew how much Sam loved Percy. I understand that people make mistakes, but this was a HUGE one by Percy and Charlie that I'm not sure I can get past.

END SPOILER

- I wish there had been more present day chapters. All the "now" chapters take place over a weekend and this left me feeling unsatisfied with the resolution. I know they had already forgiven each other and wanted to leave the past in the past, but the big reveal and their reactions were a let down after soooooo much build up. There was no final reckoning and things felt unresolved and rushed.
- I felt the book read overall very young, even the present day chapters when they're 30 years old. This is probably because there were more chapters in the past, but sometimes I would forget this was an adult contemporary romance.
- Taylor and Delilah's characters. Both were the stereotypical mean girls and Taylor especially felt like such a throw away character. I understand why she was in the novel, but honestly she only made Percy seem petty and judgmental. Delilah's character made more sense when they were younger and I actually liked that bullying was addressed in the story, but even her storyline was magically resolved with a sentence.

Fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy by Jenny Han and Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren will love this one, but it ended up being a case of like and not love for me.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4
Performance 5 stars
Story 3

CW: death of parent, grief, panic attacks (on page), cheating, underage drinking, bullying (past)

*I voluntarily read and listened to a review copy of this book*

Perfect summer read! Romance that goes back and forth between summers when Persephone spent time on the lake and fell in love with her neighbor and present day when they meet again.

A fab debut - this perfect summer read - a romance about a past love and a second chance in a beautiful setting - this takes place over six summers which allows the reader to watch the characters grow

Every Summer After reads like a hybrid of young adult and contemporary fiction, which is not an easy thing to do. Persephone, known mainly as Percy, made a mistake years ago, but doesn't know if she can ever fix it. Going back and forth between present day and each summer following her parents' purchase of a vacation cottage, we get to know Percy and her best friend, Sam. At first, I was a little annoyed by the back and forth, but I quickly got drawn in by the characters and the setting. I really, really want to visit Barry's Bay now. This is a great summer read! Thanks, Lynette, for recommending it to me!

I’m wiping away tears as I write this review, this book was so beautifully written. I cannot believe this is a debut!! The author did an amazing job portraying young love and heartbreak.
When Percy’s parents buy a cottage on the lake, she’s only thirteen when she meets the boys next door Sam whose the same age as her, and his older brother Charlie. Every summer they would swim and take the boat out and soak up all that summer has to offer. Percy becomes close to Sam and they share secrets and even friendship bracelets, and slowly she finds herself falling in love with him. We soon see that something happened when they were eighteen and they stopped speaking. Now adults Percy receives a phone call from Charlie informing her , that his and Sams mother has died and will she please attend the funeral. Percy loved their mother and agrees to go , and she is immediately taken back to the summers of her and Sam. She knows she has to face the guilt and apologize to Sam on walking away from him the only person she has ever loved or opened to. This book is told in dual timelines now and the summers of Percy and Sam when they were thirteen and the fateful summer when it all changed with the big secret. I fell in love with all the characters especially Sam! This book is going to be in my top books of the year I cannot stop thinking about it!

I loved how nostalgic this was. I loved how Canadian this was. I loved the setting (the lake), the unloveable-loveable characters, the dual time line. Just overall so so good… how is this a debut novel?! Mind boggling.

I would have read this one in 1-2 sittings if I weren’t so busy right now. I was in a book slump before this… and then found myself GETTING MAD at my obligations, because I had to put the book down and attend to real life 😂.

I was gifted an eARC of this book for review, and like an idiot, didn’t read it until after my preorder came in and I’m really kicking myself for not reading it sooner!! Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for granting me a copy regardless.

This WILL BE my staff pick at work the next time I’m in!!

I devoured this book in three days—could not put it down. This beautifully written love story has all the heart, witty banter and even heartbreak that make a great romance.

LIKES:
📝 bingeable, emotional, immersive writing
⏳ dual timelines (teen years & present)
🇨🇦 set in Canada!
🏡 …in a small lake town
🌊 + PERFECT summer lake energy!
✍️ writer vibes
👩🏻 Percy is messy, relatable, & creative
👱🏼‍♂️ Sam is kind, thoughtful, & deep
👫 explores friendship
🖤 + grief, loss, & betrayal
💖 first love/childhood romance (CHEFS KISS)
💞 + second chance romance (steam level 3/5)
🌱 THE BEST coming of age vibes
📺 ALLLLL the nostalgia
🥹 heart wrenching & heartwarming
🎢 a emotional roller coaster!!!!!
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DISCLAIMERS:
⚠️ dm me for TW!
🤩 none for me!
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VERDICT: ESA is PERFECTION in a book! IMPECCABLE first love/childhood romance with a dual second chance timeline serving ALL the nostalgia & coming-of-age vibes while exploring grief, loss & betrayal & giving immaculate summer energy! A MUST READ!